The shattered ruins of Marineford cast long shadows under the setting sun.
The stench of blood and gunpowder still hung sharply in the air.
Medics rushing around, the groans of survivors, and the tired, heavy voices of Marine officers formed the grim soundtrack of the devastated battlefield.
And in this bleak atmosphere, a command exploded like thunder, shocking every Marine to the core.
"Sentenced to death!"
Akainu's voice carried a coldness and finality unlike anything before.
He yanked the limp Koby off the ground, raising him high for all to see.
That crimson, magma-coated fist hovered dangerously close, threatening to crush him at any moment.
"Trash like this, who stains the honor of the Marines, will NEVER be forgiven!"
His gaze was razor-sharp, slicing across the assembled Marines.
His voice was like winter ice, absolute, merciless.
"Three days from now, on Marineford Plaza, all soldiers who deserted their posts in battle will be publicly tried and executed!"
"Justice must be upheld."
"The fallen must be honored!"
With this command, Koby was pushed fully into the abyss of death.
He stared blankly at Akainu's demonic face.
Terror swallowed him whole.
He couldn't even beg for mercy, his body trembled like a leaf in a storm, his mind on the brink of collapse.
"SAKAZUKI! STOP RIGHT THERE!"
A roar filled with rage and grief split the air like a thunderclap.
Garp shot out from the rubble like a black bolt of lightning, appearing in front of Akainu in an instant.
The battle-scarred hero's face bulged with veins, his eyes blood-shot.
The overwhelming Haki radiating from him hit Akainu like a physical force, warping the air around them.
Ignoring the stunned stares of everyone else, Garp grabbed Akainu's shoulder,
so hard that even Akainu's iron-like body trembled slightly.
"Are you out of your mind?! He's just a kid! A rookie soldier crushed by fear, nothing more!"
Garp roared until his voice nearly broke.
He looked at Koby's pale, despairing face and felt a stabbing pain in his chest.
This foolish boy… once the "seed of justice" Garp had tried to nurture, a future he had pinned hopes on, a child he cherished like a grandson.
He could not watch him be executed.
"He was scared, that's all! He can change!"
"Give him a chance!"
"I guarantee, he WILL become a true Marine!"
For the first time, the Marine Hero cast aside his pride.
For the sake of a deserter, he lowered himself.
But Akainu's eyes held no mercy, only icy killing intent.
"Vice Admiral Garp!"
He threw off Garp's hand violently, his voice cold enough to freeze blood.
"I respect your achievements."
"But right now, you are protecting a deserter."
"At the Marines' most crucial moment, he abandoned his comrades and betrayed justice."
"This is an irrefutable fact."
"His crime insults every Marine who died today."
"His existence disgraces our honor."
Akainu lifted Koby high again and glared across the ruins.
"Military law is absolute."
"Before Absolute Justice, there is no room for sentiment."
"Not even YOU, Garp, can change that."
"SAKAZUKI!"
Garp's eyes widened.
Armament Haki surged over his fists, and cracks spread across the ground beneath him.
He could endure Akainu's cruelty, but he would not allow him to destroy Koby.
Just as Garp was about to strike-
A figure silently stepped between them.
Sengoku.
His Buddha light had faded, his face was lined and weary, but his eyes still carried the weight of command and sorrow.
He didn't use Haki.
He didn't force Garp back.
He simply placed a steady hand on Garp's fist.
"Garp… enough."
His voice was hoarse, heavy with command, comfort, and a sense of tragic inevitability.
"Military law stands above all."
"Neither you nor I can break it."
His gaze flicked to Koby.
There was pain in his eyes, but duty hardened it quickly.
"In this war, we paid an enormous price."
"Countless Marines bled and died to protect justice."
"If deserters go unpunished, how do we honor the dead?"
"How do we keep morale alive?"
"How do we face the challenges to come?"
Sengoku's words were iron.
Many Marines had wavered upon hearing Garp's plea.
But Sengoku's speech reignited their belief in Absolute Justice and their hatred of deserters.
They had survived hell.
They had watched comrades die.
They could not forgive cowardice.
"The Fleet Admiral is right!"
A young Marine major shouted, his arm wrapped in thick bandages.
"Deserters must die! That is the only way to honor the fallen!"
"Execute deserters!"
"Maintain military discipline!"
"Justice cannot be tainted!"
Voices rose one after another, forming a massive wave of fury that shook the ruins.
Garp looked at those faces, angry, resolute.
At Sengoku's calm, unyielding eyes.
At Akainu's merciless expression.
He understood.
He could no longer change the outcome.
His enormous body trembled as he slowly lowered his fist, like a weathered mountain collapsing.
His eyes locked onto Koby, filled with pain, helplessness, and regret.
A broken whisper escaped him.
"Koby…"
He blamed himself, for failing to guide him, for failing to protect him, for failing to stop this tragedy.
Akainu watched coldly.
"Take this deserter to the cells. Guard him well."
Marines stepped forward and carried Koby away.
His body hung limp, like a soulless husk dragged toward death.
Three days until public execution.
The words tolled like a funeral bell.
Meanwhile, in Renzo's private kitchen.
Thick glass insulated the room from outside turmoil, though a faint, misplaced bitterness of coffee filled the air.
Kizaru swayed a folding fan lazily, sipping a caramel iced coffee Sanji had prepared.
"Looks like old Garp couldn't save that pink-haired kid after all. How scary~"
Renzo lay on the sofa under a thin blanket, eating Sanji's chilled pudding.
He only grunted in response.
He couldn't care less about Koby.
To him, Koby was just another irrelevant passerby on the battlefield.
Whether he lived or died had nothing to do with him.
Execution?
Public trial?
Just more noise and potential hassle.
As long as it didn't disturb his kitchen or his sleep, it wasn't his problem.
"Sengoku said the execution will be in three days."
"Does that mean another big meeting?"
Renzo frowned, clearly asking about the only thing that mattered to him.
Kizaru chuckled.
"Renzo, you really don't care about anything, huh~~"
"But yes, the Fleet Admiral seems to want one~"
"Tell him I'll be feeling unwell and can't attend."
Renzo rejected instantly.
"And have him save a pudding for me. Send it to my office later."
"Sure~" Kizaru replied, amused.
He was long used to Renzo's unreasonable, chronically slacking nature.
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu