Garp stood over Sengoku's lifeless body, his face full of pain. The Navy had tried every possible means to confirm it, and the answer remained the same—he was dead. Silence engulfed the nearly ten thousand soldiers present.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku was dead.
"How did this even happen..." Garp clutched his head in anguish. He couldn't understand it. In his wildest dreams, he never imagined Sengoku would fall—especially at the hands of Kuke, who wasn't even twenty yet.
Garp thought back to his previous encounter with Kuke in the East Blue. Kuke had been strong, but certainly not strong enough to kill Sengoku. Not even with a sneak attack.
He had grown even stronger.
"Have we driven this kid into becoming a monster with all our relentless pursuits?"
Kuke killed Sengoku in just one hour. Even if he had help or relied on a sneak attack, without sufficient power, it wouldn't have been possible.
Garp estimated that even if he gave it everything he had, he wouldn't be confident in defeating Kuke. True trouble had arrived—he felt pressure he hadn't felt in a long time.
How could someone grow so fast? How could one person be so different from others?
For the first time, Garp found himself unable to understand someone. Not even when it was Rocks or Roger.
Rocks and Roger—they had grown step by step, with every increase in strength visible and traceable.
But Kuke...
To Garp, it seemed like Kuke's strength would surge suddenly, and before long, it would happen again.
It wasn't a normal kind of growth.
Garp had seen countless geniuses—his own talent was considered a benchmark. Yet even he was shaken by Kuke's rapid ascent.
"He's not even twenty yet. Still two months shy of it... and already he's standing at the pinnacle of the sea."
Garp's heart sank. "Where does it end? Can he just keep growing stronger and stronger?" The thought terrified him.
If Kuke kept growing at this rate... Garp couldn't bear to imagine it.
"He should be nearing his limit soon, right? After this, it'll just be minor improvements," Aokiji frowned. It wasn't possible for someone to grow infinitely. Eventually, everyone reached their limit.
"Not necessarily. There's something very eerie about Kuke," Garp said.
Aokiji stared, unnerved. "Garp-san, don't scare me like that."
"We can't stop him anymore. Life's going to be rough for the Navy from now on." Garp looked at Aokiji, a slight smile on his face. "Luckily, I'm getting old. It'll be up to you guys from here."
Aokiji's frown deepened.
Garp approached the medical tent, voice hoarse with the last vestiges of hope. "How's Tsuru?"
"The Chief Staff Officer Tsuru is alive."
"Alive? Alive?! That's all that matters, as long as she's alive..." Garp laughed, and as he laughed, he began to cry.
"But Sengoku and Tokikake... are gone?" Aokiji looked around, taking in the aftermath.
Before arriving, they had braced themselves for the worst—for the complete annihilation of the Navy here.
"Honestly, I never agreed with the plan to hunt down Kuke," Aokiji sighed. Reflecting on Kuke's actions, Aokiji realized that he didn't really dislike him. He wasn't the typical pirate. Kuke didn't steal wealth, massacre innocents, or destroy others' homes.
"True," Garp agreed. "If it weren't for the World Government, we wouldn't have ended up like this."
Only Garp dared to speak such words aloud.
Garp looked at Sengoku's body, now covered with a white cloth. He opened his mouth but could only let out a long, weary sigh.
With a heavy heart, Garp shook his head, sighed again, and hunched over as he trudged back to the warship.
"There's no chance now of changing that boy Ace's dream." Garp's headache only worsened.
East Blue, Goa Kingdom Forest
"Ace, Sabo."
Luffy watched his two older brothers, who often beat him up, as they sat motionless by the riverbank.
They had been like this all day—no food, not a word spoken.
Ever since they had returned from the city a month ago, they had been this way. At least before, they ate just enough to stay alive. But today, it was worse than ever.
Luffy knew why.
Ace had learned that his idol had died—died a long time ago.
The pirate who had tricked Sister Makino had died.
It was getting dark.
After sitting in silence for a long while, Sabo's empty eyes slowly changed. He turned to look at Ace.
"Ace, we can't go on like this. Kuke is gone—that's the reality now. Today, the Navy trampled on his grave. We have to get back up," Sabo urged.
Ace remained indifferent, as though his spirit had left his body. He had no goal in life.
"Ace."
Sabo grabbed Ace's shoulder forcefully. "We said we'd grow stronger together, sail out together, head for the Grand Line, and destroy that island for Kuke, so he would never face humiliation again."
"Do you want Kuke's resting place to end up like it did today, forever a place for others to trample over?"
Ace's expression slowly began to change. He clenched his fist, his teeth grinding together. Determination filled his eyes as he slowly stood up.
"Yes. I'll make it happen. Kuke, watch over us from above."
Seeing Ace come to his senses, Sabo felt a renewed strength. Luffy ran over, excited.
"See? Death isn't that scary. Worst case, I'll share a bit of my dream with you guys. You can work to become the Pirate King too, how about that?"
"Hit him!"
Sabo and Ace chased after Luffy, delivering a thorough beating.
After they were exhausted from horsing around, the three brothers lay on the grass, staring up at the sky.
Suddenly, Ace sat up, his voice serious. "I'm going to the city. I need to see today's newspaper."
"???"
Sabo looked at Ace, concerned.
Today's newspaper?
He could already guess what would be in it—the Navy's glory and Kuke's humiliation.
"Ace, don't. There's no need." Sabo feared Ace would go mad once he read it. He didn't even want to think about how the newspaper would mock and defame Kuke.
"If I can't even face it, what kind of man am I?" Ace's gaze was unwavering.
Once Ace made up his mind, there was no changing it. He would go, even if it meant heading into the city in the dead of night.
Three young boys stumbled repeatedly as they made their way through the forest towards the city.
It was nearly midnight when they finally reached the city outskirts.
Before even entering, they could see the lights, hear the cheers—it seemed like a grand celebration was underway.
Ace's expression turned increasingly angry.
It wasn't a holiday.
There was no festival.
There was only one kind of event that could make the world celebrate—a major occurrence far away on the Grand Line.
"How could they do this? Kuke helped them deal with the Celestial Dragons; he saved them," Ace said, confused and furious.
Yet here they were, celebrating in the middle of the night.
Sabo grew to hate his kingdom even more. His disgust grew deeper and deeper.
Ace and Sabo, exuding an aura that warned others to stay away, walked silently toward the bustling city.
Their furious expressions slowly turned into confusion.
The people were chanting Kuke's name.
Why?
Kuke had been dead for over a hundred days now.
"A-A-Ace?!" Sabo screamed as though he'd seen a ghost, pointing at a newspaper on the ground. "Kuke... he's alive!!!"
"What?!"
Ace couldn't believe it.
His hands trembling, he picked up the newspaper.
He scanned through it quickly, his once dull eyes now brimming with joy, disbelief, and admiration.
"Not only is he alive, but he killed the Fleet Admiral."
"Hahaha! That's Kuke for you! My idol, my inspiration!"
Ace's excited shout echoed through the sky.
"Luffy, look! Could the Pirate King kill a Fleet Admiral? Your dream is nothing compared to this!" Ace proudly waved the newspaper at Luffy.
Luffy pouted in annoyance.
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DONT FORGET POWER STONE FOR EXTRA CHAPTERS
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P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 154+ at patreon.com/Emik01.
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