Elbaf — island of the warrior race, the giants.
On the coast of Elbaf, there is a bar that was always busy, frequented by locals and sometimes by visitors from outside, particularly pirates. This was Ida's bar, now run by a kind, round-faced giant named Mato.
Inside the bar, the atmosphere was festive, with people talking about events happening around the world, especially the war of the best and the man who emerged and turned the world upside down.
Open ~
"Jehahaha, when will this war of the best begin? Mato, give me a beer."
A giant opened the bar door and entered with a frustrated expression, asking for a beer, to which Mato smiled slightly and served him.
"Hahaha, still no sign of that big screen appearing in the sky? You're really eager to see that war."
A giant commented, laughing at his colleague's frustration as he drank from a giant mug. The truth was that he had lost count of the number of times his friend had gone outside just to see if that mysterious screen that had appeared a few days ago would reappear in the sky, signaling the start of the war of the best.
"Heh, you know that when it appears, it won't be subtle and we'll all notice it."
Mato said, wiping a glass and pouring another drink for a visiting pirate.
"It could also be that that human, Jason, doesn't want to show the war to Elbaf—"
Someone said that Jason didn't want to show the war to Elbaf, but a giant threw a glass at him and hit him squarely in the head.
"Shut up."
"Aaack"
Jason had already shown the big screen more than once, displaying the slaying of a celestial dragon, a list of beauties that included one of the giant warrior women of Elbaf, and also him freeing slaves and making them kill their jailers in a fight and speech that made everyone's blood boil. It made no sense for him not to show them the war of the best.
"It seems like they're excited to see the war of the best. I won't deny that I am too."
A female voice was heard from a corner of the bar, belonging to Gerd, a giant member of the New Giant Pirates and one of the women who appeared on Jason's list of beauties.
"Speaking of the war of the best, didn't Gaban disappear from Elbaf shortly after learning that the human Ace was the son of his former captain?"
The one who spoke was Goldberg, another member of the new giant pirates. He watched Gaban leave on a boat, but didn't think much of it at the time, since Gaban always left Elbaf to go fishing and do various other things. Only now that he hasn't returned has Goldberg put the pieces together.
"Defufufu, you guys are giving too much importance to this human. Just because he destroyed a bridge and freed some human slaves? I bet he'll be killed in this coming war, and that's why he won't show it off."
Road spoke, irritated by the importance the giants were giving to a human and despising him, thinking Jason was just weak. As a member of the warrior race of giants, he doesn't think Jason's feat of defeating a navy admiral is a big deal, something he himself can do. As for destroying the bridge? It was just a pile of stone and iron, nothing special.
Gerd and Goldberg looked at Road and frowned, especially Gerd, who was hostile toward Road and didn't want him anywhere near her, let alone at the same table.
Just as she was about to say something, the bar door opened and two figures entered the bar. It was Ripley and Colon, who walked over to Mato and sat down on stools at the counter.
Seeing the serious expression on Ripley's face, Goldberg came to a silent conclusion.
As the conversation slowly resumed, everyone heard the sound of something turning on and quickly looked up at the sky, seeing screens appearing in various parts of Elbaf, causing the giants and visitors to break into joyful smiles.
The war of the best was no longer confined to islands near Marineford, such as the Sabaody Archipelago and adjacent islands, but could be seen around the world.
As Jason was a good presenter, he reviewed the war of the best since Whitebeard's arrival up to the present moment to update his large audience.
"Giants in the navy, government dogs."
Some giants despised the giants who served the world government as navy soldiers. Those giants did not represent them, the warrior giants of Elbaf.
When everyone saw a giant arrogantly advance against Whitebeard, they waited to see what would happen, and the result was brutal.
Whitebeard destroyed his weapon with a single blow, pulled him by his helmet, and threw him to the ground like a disobedient child.
As if that weren't enough, all the giants saw the moment when Whitebeard held the marine giant's face with his hand and used his devil fruit... causing the giant's head to explode like a rotten fruit in a brutal demonstration of what war was.
"..."
Children around the world and some adults closed their eyes at the brutality of that scene, and not even Colon or the children of Elbaf escaped, with some even vomiting. For them, it didn't matter if that giant was from the navy, he was still just like them, a giant, and seeing that was too much for their young minds to handle.
As if that weren't enough, all the giants saw the moment when Whitebeard held the marine giant's face with his hand and used his devil fruit... causing the giant's head to explode like a rotten fruit in a brutal demonstration of what war was.
"..."
Children around the world and some adults closed their eyes at the brutality of that scene, and not even the colonists or the children of Elbaf escaped, with some even vomiting. For them, it didn't matter if that giant was from the navy, he was still just like them, a giant, and seeing that was too much for their young minds to handle.
Someone commented as they watched the fog disappear and saw Jason with some prisoners behind them.
"Shouldn't these people be in Impel Down?"
Some of the older giants recognized the prisoners as ancient legends and knew that their names had disappeared from history and were only in the memories of a few.
Everyone then saw the former Shichibukai Crocodile attack Whitebeard, only to be stopped by a boy in a straw hat whom everyone recognized as Monkey D. Luffy.
And then the first meeting between Jason and Edward Newgate took place, with Jason handing something to Whitebeard and telling him to use it whenever he wanted, as this could be his last war.
"What do you think it could be?"
"I don't know. Maybe a drug that burns his vitality in exchange for one last burst of strength?"
The giants speculated, but Jason didn't give them time to think for long and spoke directly to Garp, saying that he had taken something that belonged to him. When someone was about to ask what it was, everyone saw Jason summon a person dressed like a celestial dragon, and from her frightened expression, they knew that what was in store for her would not be good.
Jason then stretched out his arm, and the golden ring on his finger took the form of a sword over 2 meters long, and Jason launched a compressed energy attack that left all the giants of Elbaf speechless when they saw the technique.
The giants of Elbaf, seated at the table, widened their eyes. Some even rose from their chairs, leaning forward, trying to absorb every detail of the attack.
"Hakoku! That... that was Hakoku!!" exclaimed one of them, his voice mixing surprise and reverence.
Another giant, older and scarred from ancient battles, leaned on the table, muttering to himself:
"A human... he can master Elbaf's sacred attack... and against Sengoku, no less!"
Some began to exchange glances, whispering words of respect:
"That's... a true warrior."
"What strength! What precision! He didn't just copy it, he felt the spirit of the blow!"
Even the most skeptical, accustomed to great feats, could not hide their admiration. For them, it wasn't just brute power, it was the essence of a warrior, discipline, concentrated energy, and honor in execution.
When everyone saw that Sengoku did not defend or destroy the blow, but had to redirect it to the skies, a mixture of pride and arrogance struck the warrior race of giants.
That was one of their most powerful and symbolic attacks, and Sengoku, a fleet admiral who was the most powerful force in the navy, had to enter Buddha form just to defend himself from the attack and still couldn't destroy it.
Jason, without even trying, managed to earn the respect of most of the giants with just his first attack in the war of the best.
Meanwhile, Gerd also watched Jason now with admiration and respect for his strength and thought again about the fact that she is on this man's list of the world's beauties.
= =
Marco, the phoenix, landed next to his father as he looked at Crocodile, who was still surrounded by his brothers, Jason, who had made a celestial dragon woman appear seemingly out of nowhere, and his father, who still held the pill Jason had given him in his hands.
"Pops."
Marco said, and Whitebeard nodded, handing the pill Jason had given him to his first son and second in command of the crew. Marco was the best doctor Whitebeard's crew had, so good that even the redhead wanted him among his companions, even though Marco was an Akuma no Mi user.
Marco looked at the red pill, which appeared ordinary, and sensed nothing coming from it with his observation haki.
If it were a harmful pill, it would give off a ghastly and unnatural aura, but the pill was too ordinary for someone of Jason's level to hand over like that. Either that, or Jason's skills as a doctor/alchemist far surpassed Marco's medical skills.
Marco then closed his eyes and remembered the words Jason had said to his father, that this could very well be his last fight, and Marco, as the chief physician of Whitebeard's ship, knew very well his father's current medical condition.
"Don't worry, Marco. I'm sure it's not poison. Jason isn't a coward who would kill me like that." Newgate sensed Marco's emotions even without using his observation haki and reassured him.
"If to save one more of my men, I have to take this catalyst in exchange for my life, I'll do it without thinking twice."
Marco sighed deeply and handed the pill back to Whitebeard as he looked at Jason's back just as a sword appeared in his hand.
The two then saw Jason accumulating Conqueror's Haki on the blade of his sword and launching a Pressurized Attack toward Sengoku, causing the fleet admiral to enter his final Buddha form just to defend the attack.
Marco's eyes widened when he saw how someone who looked younger than him managed to defeat Sengoku, the fleet admiral and one of the strongest sailors in the navy.
"Hoh, Hakoku?"
Whitebeard muttered, already recognizing the attack as coming from the giants and, even better, seeing that Jason had gained a psychological advantage in the war by proving himself superior to Sengoku.
Marco also noticed this and thought it would be a good chance to save Ace quickly and end this war here without many deaths among his brothers.
With Kizaru out of the picture because of Jason, Marco dominated the skies of Marineford and quickly transformed into his phoenix form and flew at high speed toward Ace, hoping for a quick rescue.
"Ace, wait for me!"
Luffy, Jozu, Vista, and several other pirates saw Marco rapidly approaching Ace and smiled broadly at this.
"That's right, Commander Marco."
"Go!!"
"Save Ace."
The pirates exclaimed excitedly. With Sengoku temporarily incapacitated, Kizaru out of the skies, and the admirals lacking many air attacks, who would stop Marco from saving Ace?
Marco could already see Ace looking at him and was also seeing his injuries, already thinking about which ones he should prioritize healing, when something, or rather, someone with an oppressive aura appeared in front of him like a ghost, and the last thing Marco saw was a completely black fist coming toward his face.
Bam~
Marco's heart leapt out of his chest when the fist hit his face and sent him flying down as he felt pain throughout his body.
Crash~
Marco's body fell to the ground like a meteor, creating an explosion of debris and dust, causing everyone in the navy and all the pirates to look up at the sky to see who had hit Marco.
"G-Garp..."
"Garp-san."
"It's the hero of the navy, Monkey D. Garp."
"That's right, Garp-san is on our side!"
Garp then landed in front of the admirals' seats and sat down in the center chair, crossing his arms and saying:
"If you want to advance, you'll have to get past me!"
That was enough to rekindle the flames of justice in the hearts of the sailors, who became inflamed and returned to attacking the pirates with tooth and nail.
Jason looked at it and admitted that there was no chance that he and Garp would cooperate to defeat the World Government.
Even if Dragon told him about the World Government's plan, Garp would not turn his back on the Navy. Not because he agreed with the Navy's actions, but because it would destroy the Navy from the inside out. Even if Garp agreed with what Jason was doing, he would not turn his back on the sailors he swore to protect. Jason knows that not all sailors are like Akainu or the World Government's lapdogs, and Garp wants to protect these "seeds" of justice.