Chapter 130: The Great Righteousness

The pain on his face was nothing compared to the confusion in his heart.

Fujitora instinctively swung his blade back, pressing the flat of the blade against Gao Wen's shoulder, and the demon he had always suppressed erupted with a boom at that very moment...

"Gravity Blade - Reverse Slash!"

The voice fell to the ground.

Before the flat of the blade could touch Gao Wen's shoulder, peerless gravity had already erupted.

In an instant, Gao Wen's shoulder felt as if it bore a mountain; under the assault of gravity hundreds of times heavier, the ground beneath his feet began to collapse at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Within a few breaths, it spread tens of meters in all directions.

Gao Wen's bones emitted a series of crisp cracks at that moment, the sound only made when bearing capacity nears its limit!

This is Fujitora's ability.

The Paramecia-type Gura Gura no Mi that manipulates gravity.

The user can bestow hundreds or thousands of times the gravity upon surrounding objects, even pulling down meteors from outside the atmosphere to cause devastating attacks.

Even among the vast and varied Paramecia-type Devil Fruits, the Gura Gura no Mi ranks among the top.

Especially in wars at sea, it is overwhelmingly powerful.

After all, no matter how strong your own combat power is, a ship's bearing capacity is ultimately limited; increase the gravity by a few times and you can only wait to sink into the sea.

"Oh my~"

"It is I—!"

Fujitora, who had unconsciously used his ability, paused, a hint of apology appearing on his face, but before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a dragon's roar that pierced the sky...

Roar!

A visible shockwave erupted from Gao Wen as the center, directly flipping over the shattered rocks around him.

Fujitora instantly broke out in goosebumps and leaped back violently.

When he turned his head, the eye that still retained a sliver of light perception could only barely make out an extremely strong black shadow emerging from the dust and smoke.

His wings spread behind him, further highlighting that domineering and unparalleled ferocious aura.

"Such an unsettling aura... a Zoan-type Mythical Beast?!"

The only answer to Fujitora was a whistling sea breeze.

Whoosh!

The dust and smoke cleared.

Gao Wen, reappearing, had already returned to human form.

His upper body was bare, revealing a well-proportioned figure, yet the aura he radiated was more ferocious than ever before.

Hiss!

Gao Wen slowly sheathed Guanshi Zhengzong, but his gaze fell upon Fujitora, and he said calmly:

"You have lost."

"Ah."

Fujitora slumped, his fighting spirit in his heart already vanished without a trace; after sheathing Black Blade Fire Line with a reverse motion, he murmured:

"I have lost."

"Not just in swordsmanship, but to myself."

"You are right; I did not fail to find the answer, I was just afraid to believe in that answer."

"Pirates can govern a port with hope; nobles, the World Government, even those people, naturally can as well; the difference lies only in whether they are willing."

"I have already found the answer; I just need to confirm it again with the eyes of my heart."

At this moment, Gao Wen finally saw a familiar shadow in the Fujitora before him.

That firmness revealed from the soul brought unparalleled composure, and was also the embodiment of him finding the path forward amidst confusion.

Originally, this answer might have only been found when Fujitora decided to join the Marines.

But now, because of Gao Wen's existence, that time has been advanced by several years.

"Do you want to consider coming with me?!"

Gao Wen couldn't help but speak out to recruit him.

Facing Fujitora's immense combat power, no one would not be tempted.

Unlike strong seeds like Zoro and Sanji whose futures are promising, Fujitora is already a strong one now.

Even though he has not yet reached the height he held when serving as an Admiral in the original story, he is still among the strongest just below the Emperors.

His immediate combat power is already no less than Gao Wen's own.

If he could obtain such powerful assistance, the New World would surely have a place for Gao Wen's pirate crew.

"Although I also very much want to go with you to see."

"However..."

Regret was written all over Fujitora's face, yet his voice was incredibly firm:

"Becoming a pirate might protect this one port, but it cannot change this filthy world; that is not the Great Righteousness I seek to pursue."

"Rather, Mr. Gao Wen, your understanding of the essence of this world is the most profound existence among the countless people I have seen."

"Do you not want to go with me to change it?!"

"At the very least, everyone should be able to feel the warm side of this world, just like the wanderers in Raven Port."

A smile curled at the corner of Gao Wen's mouth, and he said mockingly:

"What I want is freedom not constrained by anyone, to live a happy life with companions by my side."

"Such grand propositions as saving the world should be left to those destined for them."

"After all..."

"Forget it, even if I told you, you wouldn't understand."

"Destined by fate?!"

Jin Shizi naturally heard what Gao Wen meant, but instinctively shook his head:

"How do you know that everything we've done, the effort we've put in, isn't part of what was destined?"

"Anyone who says that has already equated themselves with fate — I cannot accept that."

Gao Wen smiled and said:

"Your tongue is a good deal sharper than your blade."

Jin Shizi's expression did not change:

"Looks like neither of us can convince the other, but, we're friends now, aren't we?!"

"I suppose."

"Then as a friend, let me give Mr. Gao Wen a word of warning."

Jin Shizi's expression gradually grew Solemn:

"Several warships from Headquarters are currently docked in Luo Ge Town. If anywhere in the East Blue could make the Navy take it this seriously, it would only be you."

"Navy Headquarters?!"

Gao Wen's brow furrowed slightly.

Two months earlier, upon learning that the one filling the vacant Shichibukai seat was Bartholomew, not himself, he had anticipated that the Navy would not simply leave him be.

He hadn't expected their move to come so fast — assembling troops from Navy Headquarters and reaching the East Blue within two months.

However, so long as it wasn't a Navy Headquarters Admiral, or Sengoku and Garp themselves arriving in person, the present Gao Wen had nothing to fear.

Even if those few did come, at most it would mean him fleeing with his pirate crew's companions.

Those who needed to stay in the East Blue could still stay in the East Blue.

After all, Gasha was already the lord of Raven Port, and even came from a world noble lineage, while the Martial Arts Tournament had the backing of the Goa Kingdom — entirely defensible.

So long as this Martial Arts Tournament proceeded smoothly, in the years afterward Raven Port could provide Gao Wen with substantial financial support.

Even if he wanted to carve out his own territory on the Grand Line and build his own force, he basically wouldn't be short on funds in the early stage.

Of course.

Being able to transition peacefully would naturally be the best case.

Thinking this far, Gao Wen felt reassured.

He turned and thanked Jin Shizi, then greeted the brothers at the port, and opened up all areas of Raven Port — except for certain restricted regions — to Jin Shizi.

Letting Jin Shizi truly see for himself.

Just how Raven Port differed from everything he had ever seen or heard of, and how it differed from the nations under the World Government's rule.

……

The same time.

East Blue.

Luo Ge Town.

Zephyr stood in the warship's cabin, letting the Navy scientist beside him fit him with a brand-new Smasher.

Power conduits connected and docked with the mechanical prosthetic limb one by one.

Zephyr only felt waves of tingling numbness spreading across his arm.

Completely unlike the previous stiffness — that cold, rigid feeling of forcibly joining steel to flesh.

Moreover, because the metal composing the prosthetic was laced with seastone, it naturally suppressed ability users.

"This time—"

"We've incorporated some of the technology from Future Island, and based on the data we previously collected, we've…"

A scientist stood beside Zephyr, chattering away as he introduced the functions of the upgraded Smasher.

Zephyr, however, did not have that much patience, and said flatly:

"Get to the point!"

"Harder! Lighter! Stronger!"

"Not only is the outer armor laced with seastone, the bullets in the internal machine gun have also been switched to seastone bullets, to suppress ability users to the greatest extent."

"The interior uses Power Rock as its energy source — even at full power output, it can sustain three days and three nights!"

"Power Rock?"

Hearing the familiar term, a hint of gravity appeared on Zephyr's face.

Power Rock was a kind of rock with extremely high energy yet extremely unstable — once it exploded, the consequences would be irreversible.

Even just this small piece inside the Smasher would probably be enough to annihilate everything in Luo Ge Town.

Then Zephyr seemed to think of something, turned his head to look at Smoker beside him, and said pointedly:

"It's said that in the New World there exist three super-large volcanoes, interconnected with one another. If they were all destroyed at the same time, the entire New World would be wiped out."

"In that case, the so-called One Piece would also be destroyed. Once the goal is gone, the Age of Pirates would end — might that not be a way to save the world?"

Smoker frowned tightly, the cigar clenched between his teeth, and said:

"You'd better drop that kind of dangerous idea as soon as possible."

"Once those volcanoes are set off, how many people would die in the eruptions?"

"Just looking at that number would make anyone uneasy, wouldn't it?!"

"Well."

Zephyr sighed.

He naturally knew just how mad that idea was.

Feeling the brand-new crusher, Zephyr exhaled a long breath, the corners of his mouth gradually curving upward:

"The weapon is in place."

"My body has also mostly recovered, and you few, after my training over these past few months, have all made obvious progress."

"Especially you!"

Smoker remained indifferent, yet within his eyes, there grew several degrees more of unyielding arrogance.

"This time, I will take back what was lost from that fellow!"

As he spoke, he recalled the matters of the Goa Kingdom, his gaze turning ice-cold:

"Knight Gao Wen... in the end, is merely a pirate."

"Hmph, still so arrogant, brat!"

Between their words,

Zephyr's crusher had already finished its debugging, and the hidden pressure-release valve erupted with scalding steam.

Step by step, Zephyr walked onto the deck, gazing at the Marine flag fluttering on the ship, his eyes gradually growing resolute.

Even if there are all sorts of problems within the Marines, in the end, it is pirates who have created the tragedies of this era!

As long as the existence of pirates can be eliminated, even if this world cannot become the ideal Eden, it will still be countless times better than it is now.

(End of Chapter)