Chapter 13: Freedom's Answer
East Blue, at seaâone hour after the naval battle between the Rocks Pirates and the Marines.
âVice Admiral!! Theyâre getting away!! Theyâre heading for the Calm Belt after all!!â
âGahâŚ! Damn itâŚ! Cough⌠This was our chanceâŚ! But I suppose this is where it endsâŚ! Whatâs the damage report!?â
âCasualties and severe injuries are numerous!! Of our five warships, three have been completely destroyed!! The remaining two are critically damaged!!â
âGhâŚ! We need to return to base immediatelyâŚ! What about Vice Admiral Garp!? Is he alive!?â
âY-Yes!! Heâs badly injured, but heâs still commanding one of the ships!!â
ââŚI see⌠Then weâll return to base at onceâŚâ
The Vice Admiral of Marine Headquartersâhis handsome face now marred by a fresh sword woundâwatched as a pirate ship sped toward the Calm Belt. His subordinateâs grim report left no room for interpretation.
The result of the battle? A complete Marine defeat.
The enemy ship bore minor scratches, but none that would hinder its voyage. Almost none of their crew had been captured. They had slipped through the Marinesâ fingers.
The Vice Admiral clenched his fists, unable to suppress his frustration. But amid the bitter news, one report provided a sliver of relief.
âVice Admiral!! A message from Vice Admiral Garp!!â
ââŚWhat is itâŚ?â
He didnât want to hear another report. They had been utterly crushed. But as a Marine Vice Admiral, he had a duty to listen.
And then, the words he had been hoping for came.
âTwo crew members from the Rocks Pirates have been captured alive!!â
â!! Y-Youâre sure!?â
âYes! They were found unconscious on the deck just moments ago and were immediately restrained!!â
ââŚGhhâŚ! Good work!! Now go tend to the wounded!!â
âYes, sir!!â
With that, the battered warships set course for the nearest Marine base.
And while the Marines reveled in their small victory⌠mere minutes earlier, aboard another shipâ
âV-Vice Admiral GarpâŚ! You should receive medical treatment firstââ
âHahh⌠Hahh⌠Forget that⌠These two⌠They did this?â
âY-Yes⌠They finally collapsed just nowâŚâ
The Marineâs name was Garp.
He surveyed the wreckage of the deckâcountless downed Marines, their bodies strewn about. And at the center of the carnage, two figures lay unconsciousâtwo children.
âThe Marines⌠Hahh⌠took this much damage⌠And these two did it?â
âYes, sir⌠They suddenly boarded our ship, so we surrounded them and fought back. But both of them are Devil Fruit users⌠and despite their age, they put up a hell of a fight⌠Before she went down, this girl alone took out two hundred Marines. And this boy⌠four hundred before he finally collapsed. But not before sustaining countless injuriesââ
âEnough. I can see it for myself. Theyâre on deathâs door⌠Pirate apprentices, most likely⌠âWait!!â
â! W-Whatâs wrong, Vice Admiral Garp!? Your face justâdid you notice something about the girl?â
Garp knelt beside the unconscious children, studying them carefully. And thenâhe saw it.
His face twisted in shock.
His subordinates, sensing his shift in demeanor, followed his gaze to the girl. But to them, she was simply lying there, unconscious. Nothing seemed out of place.
Then, without hesitationâGarp placed his hand over the girlâs back, covering it completely.
And in a firm, commanding voice, he ordered:
ââŚIâll take these two to the brig myself. Return to your posts.â
âHuhâŚ? But, sir, we couldââ
âJust go!! Iâm exhausted!! Let me take them while I get some damn rest!!â
â!! Y-Yes, sir!! My apologies!! We should have been more considerateâŚ! Then, weâll leave them to youââ
âI got it. Now go.â
âYes, sir!!â
As his officers left, Garp let out a deep breath.
Then, just as he said, he grabbed the larger boy by the collar and dragged him along, while lifting the girl with careful precision.
It looked almost as though he was hiding her back.
And indeedâhe had a reason.
What Garp had seen on the girl⌠was a symbol.
A mark that represented the rulers of this world.
ââŚâŚâŚâŚTchâŚ!!â
Garp grit his teeth. There was no mistaking it.
It was smallâsmall enough to fit under his palm. But its shape was unmistakable.
The mark of those he despised.
The mark of innocent people sacrificed in the name of âorder.â
The symbol of slaveryâthe Hoof of the Soaring Dragon.
And that was why he had hidden it.
Because for Garpâfor his morals, his justiceâhe would never acknowledge the existence of âslaves.â His face twisted in fury, his convictions unwavering.
When I wake up⌠it is never pleasant.
Because a peaceful awakening does not exist for me.
Pain. Suffering. Fear.
That is what consciousness means to me.
The life I once lived in povertyâwas paradise in comparison.
I am not a person. I am a slave. A mere plaything, meant to entertain my masters.
When they grow bored, I will be discarded. My worth is less than that of an animal. Violence is routine. Obligation. Duty.
My job is to be torturedâto writhe in pain, to contort my face in agony.
Food? Once a week. Maybe once every two weeks. If they remembered. If not, I ate the corpses of things that died in my cell. Because I had to.
All the other slaves who became my friends⌠They all died before me.
I could not sleep. The constant pain in my body denied me rest. The only time I could âsleepâ was when I passed out from the agony.
That was the only time I knew peace.
I ran away once. But the Marines caught me. Brought me back.
The punishmentâŚ
âŚI was sure I would die.
I endured that hell for years.
How long? I do not know. Time lost all meaning. But when I escaped, I knewâI had spent at least five years in that nightmare.
A hell beyond words.
That was why I longed for death.
I wanted to die.
âAnd so,
âTell us everything you know about the Rocks Pirates.â
ââŚâŚâ
âDamn it! Say something!!â
ââŚâŚâ
âŚYes. Iâm used to this.
The last thing I remember is fighting an army of Marines. Then collapsing.
Kaido⌠He was still fighting even after I fell.
âI donât show mercy to criminalsâeven if theyâre children!! We know youâre both apprentices of the Rocks Pirates!!â
ââŚHah⌠Thatâs obvious.â
ââŚWhat?â
ââŚAnyone could figure that out just by looking. And youâre acting like it was some big discovery? Are you stupid?â
â!! You littleâ!!!â
Fury contorted his face.
And with a crack, the whip tore into my skin.
But I made no sound.
Neither did Kaido.
ââŚDamn itâŚ! Listen here!! Youâre not human!!â
â!â
ThatâŚ
That was what broke my silence.
And as the soldierâs hateful gaze burned into me, he declaredâ
âYou monsters will never be human!!â
â⌠âŚâ
And as he stormed out, another man entered.
A man I recognized.
A man they called⌠Garp.
"âŚIn the end, you're not going to treat me like a person either, are you? Just like the Marines who sold me out⌠Just like the ones who turned me into a s-l-a-v-e."
"âŚ! You⌠I knew itâŚ! And what do you mean by 'sold'â"
Garpâs expression hardened. He had realized something. But that went both waysâI knew that he had caught on as well. Even though I had lost consciousnessâŚ
"My back is wrapped in bandages⌠There's no way I did this during the fight. Which meansâyou did it, didnât you?"
"âŚThatâsâ"
"So tell meâwhatâs your reasoning? Why would you do this for someone who isnât even human? A slave? A being lower than an animal? Was it just a whim? Pity? Or maybe⌠y-o-u t-o-o just want to toy with me for fun?"
"TchâŚ!"
As I spoke, Garp clenched his jaw and fell silent. His fists tightened, trembling with restrained emotion.
âAh, I see. He really is a good person.
A good person⌠bound by the laws of the world, just like the ones who captured me.
After a moment, he let out a breath, loosened his grip, and regained some composureâthough his expression remained stiff as he spoke.
"âŚThe government considers the Rocks Pirates the greatest threat. Theyâll do anything for informationâno matter w-h-a-t t-h-e c-o-s-t."
"âŚâŚâŚ"
"But⌠if you talkâif you tell me about RocksâI could let you both escape. That much⌠I can keep under wraps."
"âŚAre you serious?"
"You're just apprentices. Compared to Rocks or the other infamous scoundrels, youâre insignificant. If you were to run awayâeven if you went back to being piratesâas long as you kept to the fringes of the East Blue, neither the government nor the Navy would waste resources hunting you down. Small-time pirates are left to the local branches. Right now, Rocks is the priority."
So talk.
Garp's words werenât something a Marine should say, yet he kept his eyes locked on us, unwavering.
But neither Kaido nor I responded. We didnât even flinch. Not because we were hesitatingâthere was simply no need to answer.
And Garp, a seasoned Marine, could sense that unspoken resolve. That was why he asked, his quiet anger seeping into his voice.
"âŚWhy? What is it that drives youâŚ!? Even after being wounded like this, youâd still choose piracyâŚ!? Even after being captured, after suffering hell, youâd still go back!? Why are you being so damn stubbornâ"
"âHell? Y-o-u c-a-l-l t-h-i-s h-e-l-l?"
"!"
I responded without thinking. Noâit wasnât even a response. It was just⌠what naturally came to mind.
Being captured. Enduring some torture. Feeling some pain and being restrained for a while.
âAnd this is what he calls hell?
I couldnât help itâI smiled. It was ridiculous.
"âŚAhaha⌠Wow, our definitions of hell are worlds apart, huh? You think this is hell? This is nothing. If you really wanted to call it hell, you shouldâve brought poison, boiling oil, torture devicesâsomething more fitting. I bet if I asked, youâd still give me plain bread and water, right? Honestly, if you really wanted to leave a mark, you shouldâve done a better job. Your superiors certainly did with me."
"âŚ!! But⌠your bodyâ"
"Heh⌠My body, huh? Itâs pretty, isnât it? Funny thing is, for some reason, I just donât break easily. Maybe itâs my insane healing ability, but my wounds always close up nice and clean. They really liked that about me. It meant they could cut me up as much as they wantedâwatch me heal, and then do it all over again. It was fun for them. They kept testing it, trying to find out just what kind of injury I wouldnât recover from. Thanks to that, I built up quite a bit of tolerance. Even had my skin peeled off a few timesâ"
"âStop!!!"
"!"
His voice roared through the cell, loud enough to make the iron bars tremble.
The man before meâGarp.
His teeth were grinding, his fists clenched so tightly that blood began to seep from his knuckles. He was furious.
But at what? At me? At pirates? At the Marines? At the Celestial Dragons? Orâ
"âŚYou donât have to talk about thatâŚ!! Even if you tell me, IâI am a MarineâŚ!! Thereâs nothing I can doâŚ!!"
"âŚI wasnât asking you to do anything."
I laughed.
"Sorry about that. Complaining about your misfortunes is annoying, huh? Everyone has hardships, after all. No oneâs coming to save you just because you wallow in tragedy. And itâs not like some âheroâ is going to swoop in to save me. If you want to survive, you handle it yourself. Especially in the pirate worldâno oneâs going to pity you. Everything is your own responsibility."
"YouâŚ!"
Yes. In the end, it was my fault.
If I had been stronger, none of it wouldâve happened. I couldâve forced my way into a better situation.
I knew how to get stronger. I just⌠hadnât done it. That was my failure. No excuses about talent or circumstances.
If you donât want to suffer, then get strong enough to change things. Play the game better.
Itâs not about whether you can or canât. Itâs about whether you will or wonât.
Because in this world, if you canâtâthen you donât survive.
"âŚAnd just so you know, itâs not like I went crazy from what they did to me. Iâm perfectly sane. I just⌠learned the truth of this world. You u-n-d-e-r-s-t-a-n-d t-h-a-t, d-o-n-ât y-o-u?"
"âŚTchâ!"
Garp trembled for a moment, then suddenly turned his back and stomped out of the cell.
What a shame. Honestly, I had hopedâjust a littleâthat he might let us go. But I guess it wouldnât be that easy.
"� Hey, what was Vice Admiral Garp doing in there?"
"S-Sorry, sir! He ordered me to wait outside, so I have no idea⌠But he seemed⌠angry."
"Hmph. No doubt those criminals said something insolent and pissed him off. Well, no matter. Iâll just make them talk myselfâŚ!"
"âŚâŚâŚ"
As Garp left, the guards and the Marine from earlier returned, looking eager.
One of them immediately cracked a whip.
"Talk!! Start talking now, or the interrogaâno, the âquestioningâ continues!!"
A pathetic attempt to frame torture as something more palatable. I almost laughed. It was all so absurdâso ridiculous.
"âŚ! You dare laugh, you littleâ!? Whatâs so funny!?"
Before I knew it, I was smirking.
And that enraged them. The beatings intensified.
"Laughing while being tortured!? Youâre insane! Noâyouâre a monster!! Youâre not human!! Youâre just a beast wearing a childâs skinâa demon!! A savageâA B-E-A-S-T!!!"
âŚYeah. Maybe they were right.
The world never treated me as human anyway.
âAnd thatâs fine. I d-o-n-ât n-e-e-d t-o b-e h-u-m-a-n.
I can be a monster, a beastâwhatever they want to call me. It doesnât matter.
"âWorororoâŚ! A beast, huh? Now thatâs a funny thing to sayâŚ"
"!"
The one who had remained silent all this timeâKaidoâfinally let out a dark, amused laugh.
And then, he spoke the truth we both had realized.
"Doesnât matter what weâre calledâŚ!!"
Yes. Call us whatever you want.
But weâll live as we please.
Weâll raise the flag of our beliefâof our conviction.
Weâll build the strongest pirate crew.
âNow thenâletâs start the greatest war this world has ever seen!!!â
ââŚâŚ!!?â
âUghâŚ!!â
Yes⌠This was not only a challenge to the world but alsoâ
The awakening of the one who would seek to become the strongestâŚ
The birth of the âBeast.â
Andâ
ââŚâPeace andâŚâââ
For me, this moment was alsoâŚ
The true beginning.
A Vice Admiral of the Navy Headquarters witnessed that moment.
He saw two things happen simultaneously.
FirstâKaidou, the massive man, unleashing a deafening roar imbued with Conquerorâs Haki, instantly knocking out the guards standing watch.
And secondâthe girl named Nue. She⌠simply vanished.
In her place, a thick, black mist emerged.
Could it be⌠that was the girl?
The Vice Admiral cursed himself and his men.
They had failedâshe was a Devil Fruit user, and yet she hadn't been restrained with Seastone cuffs.
That was clear proof that intelligence hadnât been properly shared among them. He included himself in that failure.
Though, given that they were still in the middle of recovering from the devastation left by the Rocks Pirates, it wasnât entirely unreasonable that this had been overlooked.
Still, it was an inexcusable mistake.
That was why he immediately cloaked himself in Haki and moved to seize the girl.
Even if she was a Logia user, Haki could allow him to strike her true form.
Kaidou was still bound in chains, so there was no need to worry about him.
And in the end, the girl was just a pirate apprenticeâ
Grievously wounded from the previous battle, further weakened by torture.
From their perspective, she was utterly trapped.
Neither of them should have been a problem.
âBut that arrogance would cost him dearly.
âUOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!â
âWhaâ!? No way⌠ImpossibleâŚ!!â
Just as he was about to strike the girl, Kaidou let out a roarâ
And ripped apart the chains that bound him.
Impossible! he thought.
A monster like Rocks or Whitebeard, perhaps.
But Kaidou?
A mere pirate apprentice with no name or reputationâwas it truly possible for someone like that to break through those chains by brute force?
Yet, it had happened.
And Kaidou had begun to move.
A beastâŚ!
With no time to waste, the Vice Admiral launched an attack at the girl first.
With his speed, there was no way she could dodgeâ
ââŚYour stomachââFinger PistolââŚâ
ââShiganââŚ! Huh!? Whatâ!?â
An attack she shouldnât have been able to evade.
Yet, as if she had seen it coming, she moved in advanceâslipping away at the last moment.
That was unmistakablyâ
Observation HakiâŚ!?
A girl like her? Impossible!
And yetâŚ
It made sense.
Haki often awakened and flourished in the face of extreme danger.
Observation Haki, in particular, had been documented to manifest when someone experienced a severe shock.
Perhaps she had awakened it in the previous battle⌠or in this very moment.
Under normal circumstances, his own Observation Haki would allow him to read her moves, creating an overwhelming gap in skill.
But right now, his own Haki was exhausted.
And before he could correct his mistake and go after her againâ
Something emerged from the black mist.
And pierced through his body.
âGaaahhh!!?â
A bullet!? No⌠Itâs burningâ!!
He had been struck.
That much was clear.
But in the close-range chaos and the black mist clouding his vision, he couldnât comprehend what had just happened.
He didnât know what had hit him.
Or who his true enemy even was.
It wasnât just a Logia ability.
Then what was it?
He had no answers.
No time to think.
The pain was severeâhe couldnât ignore it.
His feet faltered.
His mind struggled to keep up with the sudden turn of events.
He couldnât even activate his Observation Haki.
His Haki had already been drained in the battle against the Rocks Pirates.
He had yet to recover enough to use it again.
âAnd by the time he realized it, Kaidou was already on the move.
The Vice Admiral had hesitated.
And Kaidou had already pulled his fist back for a strike.
Under normal circumstances, he would have blocked with Armament Haki, or even dodged.
But now, he had no chance.
ââŚ! âIron Bodyâ!!â
He chose defense.
One of the Six Powersâa technique that hardened the body like iron.
Under normal circumstances, against any ordinary opponentâthis alone would shatter their fists.
And that would be the end of it.
âŚBut, unfortunatelyâ
âUOOOOH!!â
âGahâ!! KoffâŚ!!â
âHis opponent was far from ordinary.
Kaidouâs fist smashed into his head, driving him into the floor.
Air burst from his lungs, his vision blurred.
And through the haze, he finally noticedâ
Kaidouâs body had begun to change.
It was likely a Zoan ability.
A dragon.
And he had entered his Hybrid Form.
His power was overwhelming.
But it wasnât just raw strength.
He had shattered Iron Bodyâ
Because his attack carriedâ
âArmament Haki!!
For a brief instant, Kaidouâs fist had flashed with a deep crimson hue.
That alone was enough to knock out a Navy Vice Admiral.
Even though Kaidou had only just awakened to this power, his strength was already monstrous.
Damn it⌠Not⌠like thisâŚ
That was the last thought the Vice Admiral had before his consciousness faded.
His final memoryâ
Was of the dragon.
And the unidentified something lurking in the mist.
Only two people remained in the cell.
âHaa⌠We actually took him downâŚâ
âOf course we didâŚ!â
As we looked down at the fallen Navy officer, I muttered under my breath.
Kaidou, on the other hand, spoke with absolute certainty.
I found that reassuring.
And at the same timeâ
I was shocked by my own growth.
âThat⌠just now⌠was Haki, wasnât itâŚ? WaitâughâŚâ
âHaki? âŚNow that you mention it, I do feel strongerâhey, what the hell are you doing?â
âI donât know⌠Iâm hearing things⌠Itâs really unsettling⌠and my head hurtsâŚâ
ââSo youâre fine.â
âNo, I just said my head hurts!?â
âSounds like youâre fine to me.â
No, seriously, this is something Iâve never felt before.
Itâs kind of annoyingâŚ
Ahâso this is what Observation Haki is likeâŚ?
Getting used to this is going to be a pain.
Waitâoh crap.
âWe donât have time for this! Kaidou, weâre getting out of here!!â
âHah? And how exactly do you plan on catching up to the ship?â
âJust go! Iâll figure that part out!â
ââŚFine.â
Kaidou seemed to accept my words.
Or maybe he just trusted me.
And with thatâ
He clenched his fist andâ
âOOOOOH!!â
âSmashed the prison door apart.
I mean, yeah, thatâs helpful, butâ
ââŚThatâll do. Letâs go.â
ââLetâs goâ? Do you have to make as much noise as possible!?â
âIf anyone gets in the way, Iâll kill them.â
âYeah, if you can! Ugh, weâre wasting time! We have to leave before the Marines get here!â
âLet them come! Iâll crush every last one of themââ
âN-O!! Weâll do that later! You do realize that Marine from earlier fought against Captain Rocks, right!?â
ââŚTch. So Iâm still too weakâŚ!!â
âHurry up already!!â
Kaidou, perhaps recognizing the weight of Captain Rocksâ name, reluctantly followed.
For now, our plan was simple: retrieve our weapons and get outside. If we could manage that, escape was assured.
Despite the commotion we caused in the prison, the Marines had only just begun to notice the disturbance, meaning only a few low-ranking guards had gathered so far. If any patrol soldiers got in our way, we could easily take them down.
âAfter reclaiming our weapons, we searched for the exit. However, we couldnât find it, and Kaidou, frustrated, swung his recovered kanabo at the wall, smashing a hole through it.
As I had suspected, this place was inside a ship.
And thanks to the hole he created, we had a way out.
Taking full advantage of this, Kaidou shifted into his beast form, and I spread my wings, preparing to take flightâ
Just before we could leaveâ
"âŚAre you sure youâre not going back?"
"! âŚGarpâŚ!"
As we escaped the warship and soared into the sky, that manâGarpâcalled out to us from behind with a serious expression.
Yet, he made no move to attack.
No, more than thatâhe had no intention of attacking at all.
I had expected as much.
For someone as fundamentally good-hearted as him, dealing with me must have been difficult.
I appreciated that sentiment.
But even so, I gave him a firm, resolute smile and answered:
"âIâm sure. Because this is the life Iâve chosen."
"âŚNo matter what kind of past you have⌠If you become a pirate⌠the Navy will hunt you down. And that includes me. Iâll have no choice but to capture you."
"âŚThen I just have to become strong enough to shake that off. If I get caught, thatâs on me. It would mean I was too weak. Thatâs all there is to it."
"âŚâŚI see."
Hearing my response, Garp closed his eyes for a moment.
Then, without another word, he simply sat down on the shipâs floor and let out a deep sigh.
"âŚI still donât know if capturing you would be the right thing to do. So for now⌠Iâll let you go."
"âŚI see. You really are a good person, arenât you? I donât like Marines, but⌠I donât dislike you, Garp."
"âŚI donât like pirates."
"What a shame. I thought we couldâve been friends, but Iâve been rejected."
I smiled, not particularly disappointed, and turned to chase after Kaidou, who had flown ahead.
âŚDid he even know where he was going?
I had a feeling he was just flying aimlessly.
Well, as long as we put some distance between us and the warship, it didnât really matter.
"âŚSigh, I was in a great mood, and now the whole atmosphere feels all gloomy and sentimental."
Iâd rather not dwell on feelings like this.
Maybe one day, Iâd come to see it as just another experience.
But for now, I wanted to keep things light, bright, and fun.
After all, I was a pirate.
"âHey, Kaidou. The Calm Belt is that way. Not this way."
"HahâŚ? âŚOh, right. I knew that."
"Yeah, no, you definitely didnât know that from the start⌠But whatever."
Well, weâll just have to enjoy ourselves from now on.
Iâve got my dumb siblings with me, after all.
And Iâll help him achieve his grand ambitionâcreating the strongest pirate crew.
It might be difficult for now.
But one day, weâll make it a reality.
Even without saying it out loud, we both understood.
As comrades under the same flag, it was clear.
So I simply carried on, as carefree and true to myself as everâ
Bantering like a true pirate alongside Kaidou.
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