The moment Finn saw that saintly little brat Rosinante had left the warship to rescue someone, his first instinct was simple: pretend he hadn't seen anything.
Let the kid get himself killed if he wanted.
At such a dangerous moment, pulling stunts like this? It was sabotage, plain and simple.
But as that thought formed, a sudden sense of crisis struck Finn's mind.
Because he suddenly realized something critical: Rosinante might actually have plot armor. There was no way the kid would die during the Marines' operation against Shiki.
On the contrary, Rosinante lived for many more years. Though he eventually died on Minion Island, that was years in the future.
To put it simply, even if the kid was actively trying to get himself killed right now, he wouldn't succeed.
As soon as that realization clicked, Finn's mind raced through the implications.
He had no memory of any battle between Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr against Golden Lion Shiki in the North Blue from his previous life's knowledge. That was normal. This wasn't a manga anymore; this was a real, living world. He couldn't be omniscient, and there would be countless events that never appeared in the manga or anime.
Therefore, he had no idea what kind of crisis, opportunity, or development this incident would bring.
Was the warship he currently thought was safe actually safe at all?
He couldn't be certain. But one thing was absolutely confirmed: Rosinante didn't die in this incident.
Using reverse thinking to extrapolate, then Rosinante, who currently seemed like the biggest liability, was actually in the safest position possible.
"In other words, it's actually safest to stay with Rosinante?" Finn arrived at this conclusion rapidly.
To be fair, Finn was rather cunning. He could be considered quite calculating by nature.
And because of everything he'd experienced over the years, he wasn't particularly righteous. In fact, if you had to categorize him, he was an egoist through and through.
For example, in dangerous situations, he never chose to sacrifice himself to protect everyone else. He prioritized his own survival above all.
So at this moment, his thoughts shifted through several iterations. He stepped back slightly, slowly moving toward the deck's edge.
"Finn? What are you doing?" A Commodore noticed the movement and turned to look at him questioningly.
Because no matter how you looked at it, Finn's behavior resembled desertion.
Finn didn't panic at all. His expression became serious and formal. "Commodore, Rosinante is over there. I don't know how he got off the ship. Admiral Sengoku ordered me to look after him. It's dangerous, I know, but I made a promise to the Admiral. I need to go bring him back."
The Commodore froze for a moment, then turned to look at the distant ruins. Sure enough, he spotted Rosinante's small figure.
He cursed internally. What was that kid doing? Looking for death?
But he also knew Rosinante had a special relationship with Admiral Sengoku, that they were extremely close. He couldn't genuinely ignore the situation.
However, after both Admirals joined the battle, he was the highest-ranking officer remaining on the warship. He couldn't abandon his post. The rest of the Marines were also on standby for combat deployment.
When you really analyzed it, only Finn, the non-official member, had no specific assignment.
Considering this, the Commodore said, "Then I'm counting on you. Be careful!"
"Yes, sir!" Finn responded immediately.
Then he vaulted over the railing and dropped directly from the warship's deck.
The vessel was quite tall, but though Finn wasn't overwhelmingly strong, he wasn't afraid of a simple drop. His feet hit the ground, and he bent his knees to absorb the impact. He quickly surveyed the situation, confirming that the three combatants were still engaged and hadn't noticed anything here. Finn wasted no more time and sprinted toward Rosinante.
"Hey, kid! What the hell are you doing?!" Finn grabbed Rosinante and hauled him away from the rubble, his voice low and harsh.
"Brother Finn... he's not dead yet... we can save him... I just saw his hand moving..." Rosinante said frantically, his voice pleading.
"Do you understand what you're doing, you idiot? There are no good people on this island. Even if he dies, it's one less criminal in the world. Come back with me immediately. It's extremely dangerous here!" Finn gripped Rosinante's arm tightly, scolding him.
Rosinante responded with saintly conviction, "But he's still alive... Regardless of whether he's good or bad, shouldn't we Marines save him? Even if he's guilty, he should be tried and punished properly later, not left to die..."
"What you're saying makes perfect sense!" Finn snapped, then raised his hand and slapped Rosinante across the face.
Rosinante clutched his stinging cheek, looking at Finn with shock and fear, suddenly unable to speak.
"Listen carefully, kid. You're right. Logically, that's how it should work. However, you're not a Marine yet, so you have no such obligation. At the same time, the world isn't that simple. This world is often unreasonable..." Finn grabbed Rosinante's collar and spoke with vicious intensity.
As he finished speaking, Shiki's wild laughter erupted in the distance.
"Jihahaha! Let's end this here, Sengoku, Zephyr! I'll admit you two are tough opponents, but I don't have time to waste competing with you. Just wait. In a few years, whether it's the Marines or the World Government, I'll defeat you all. This world belongs to pirates. It belongs to me!" Shiki retreated rapidly, shooting high into the sky with his trademark laugh.
Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr frowned, about to shout after him, when they saw an evil smile spread across Shiki's face as he slowly raised one arm.
"This is..." Admiral Sengoku seemed to realize something, his expression turning ugly instantly.
"Twist," Shiki whispered.
His smile widened into something savage.
An inexplicable force swept outward. The warships that had been safely anchored in the harbor were instantly twisted like wrung-out rags by invisible pressure.
"SHIKI!!!" Instructor Zephyr roared, fury blazing in his eyes.
He pushed off the ground explosively, his figure launching like a cannonball. In an instant, he appeared before Shiki.
The rage-fueled burst was so fast that Shiki barely reacted. He crossed his arms suddenly, coating them with Armament Haki, but Zephyr's punch still drove him from the sky directly into the ground, creating a massive crater on impact.
"Buddha's Wrath!" Admiral Sengoku roared, striking with his palm through the air.
Meanwhile, Finn stared at the warships in the harbor, now twisted into unrecognizable wreckage, and felt genuine fear.
Damn it! If I hadn't been smart enough to leave earlier, I'd be heroically dead right now...
Thinking this, he looked down at Rosinante in his grip and thought, Sure enough, everything in this world exists for a reason. Even a nagging saint like Rosinante can save your life if you think in reverse...
At that moment, the massive shockwave struck Shiki directly, sending him tumbling across the ground. He rolled more than ten times before slamming into a pile of ruins.
As bad luck would have it, those ruins were not far from Finn and Rosinante's position.
"Damn it! I really can't praise this brat Rosinante. His halo of sabotaging teammates isn't for nothing. How is this such a coincidence?!" Finn cursed internally.
Without further thought, he scooped up Rosinante and turned to run.
At that moment, Shiki pushed aside the debris covering him and wiped blood from his mouth.
Though the two hits had been painful, the injuries weren't severe. That rebellious smile still played at his lips, his arrogance undiminished.
"Oh? Some fish slipped through the net?" Shiki turned his head to look at Rosinante and Finn, chuckling darkly.
Rosinante was nothing special, just an ordinary child. But Finn wore a Marine uniform.
"As a parting gift, I'll kill all your subordinates, you two bastards!" Shiki's smile turned cruel.
Watching Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr pursuing him, he chose not to engage them. Instead, he pushed off the ground and charged directly toward Finn and Rosinante.
Though Finn didn't look back, he felt overwhelming terror wash over him.
As if a ferocious, bloodthirsty lion was hunting him down.
The sensation was visceral, undeniable. He knew without looking that it was Shiki.
"Am I going to die?" The thought flashed through Finn's mind.
But in just a moment, determination hardened in his eyes.
Yes, he feared death. Yes, he was cunning. Yes, he was an egoist.
But when it came to fighting, he never hesitated.
Just as Zephyr had observed, Finn had always been decisive and ruthless in combat.
"Get out of here, brat!" Finn suddenly grabbed Rosinante and hurled him far away.
At this moment, if he kept Rosinante and his teammate-sabotaging aura close, he might die even if survival was otherwise possible.
As he threw Rosinante away, Finn's foot stamped down. His figure stopped abruptly, his ankle twisting his body around to face Shiki head-on.
But when Finn completed his turn, Shiki's fierce, domineering figure was already upon him.
"Tch..." Finn reached for the sword at his waist.
Unfortunately, just as the sharp blade cleared its sheath by three finger-widths, Shiki's famous sword Oto pierced Finn's chest.
"What disgusting sense of justice. Before dying, you're willing to throw away that brat to protect him? Are all you Marines this brave?" Shiki looked at Finn with disdain.
Though this strike hadn't pierced the Marine's heart, Shiki's experience told him from the feedback through his blade that he'd completely penetrated the young man's lung. Normally, with such an injury, an ordinary person would lose all capacity to resist and most likely die.
Shiki didn't think highly of Finn. From this instant of combat, he could tell the Marine was a complete rookie. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to be stabbed without even managing to draw his sword.
With no intention of wasting more words, Shiki withdrew Oto from Finn's chest and prepared to move past this insignificant Marine to kill the remaining child.
But at that moment, he suddenly sensed something.
Cold light flashed in his peripheral vision. Sharp intent made Shiki feel genuine danger.
Though Shiki was tremendously powerful, he wasn't a monster-template fighter like Kaido or Charlotte Linlin. His physical durability was relatively normal. If caught off guard, he could be injured by bullets or blades.
Otherwise, a ship's rudder wouldn't have embedded itself in his skull during the Battle of Edd War.
Therefore, this sudden cold light genuinely triggered Shiki's survival instincts.
The next second, blood sprayed through the air in a red arc.