Freedom's Peril, the Heart of Freedom

Thump! X3

The man next to them looked up, startling Luffy and his two companions so much that they rolled backwards in a heap. After all, the experience of being collectively thrashed on the terracotta island was an unforgettable one for the Straw Hat crew—

"Why are you panicking?"

Brook remained calm, even though he no longer had a 'face'.

Who is this?

"Marine Admiral Aokiji!!"

Luffy, who had gotten up, immediately assumed an attack stance.

"Zoro, Sanji!"

"Oh!" X2

Facing the four people taking a bath who were on high alert, Aokiji lazily scratched his hair.

"Well, I'm not here to arrest you. After all, I'm no longer in the Navy," he said, turning to look at the pigeons perched on the skylight of the hot spring.

"You mean, right, Roman?"

Plop plop~~

A white dove, flapping its wings, landed on the hot spring railing and stood on the same side as Luffy and his three companions.

"Mr. Kuzan resigned from the Navy two years ago, and now... he should be considered a 'social idler'."

Well, bringing up the matter of joining the Blackbeard Pirates now would only ruin the atmosphere.

"Actually, I prefer the title of 'Nakama of Justice'."

As Aokiji stood up from the hot spring, the ice instantly froze into a fake leg, leaving Luffy and his Luffy dumbfounded.

"Oh, this."

Noticing the look in the eyes of the four, Aokiji nonchalantly patted the large wound on his shoulder and his missing left leg.

"I accidentally went Guotou."

Who told you not to cross your legs like a navy soldier on top? Now your legs are broken!

White Dove inwardly scoffed, but Roman remained unperturbed. —Leaving aside the fact that Aokiji harbored no ill will towards the Straw Hat crew, the very reason he was here was for Zephyr.

"In short, this is not the place to talk."

The white dove pecked at the wooden hot spring railing; if it weren't for its human-like speech, it would have looked exactly like a normal pigeon.

"I'll go and inform the others to meet at the dock."

Wow, I made so much money!

When Roman turned his gaze over, he saw Usopp and Chopper sitting at the back door of the tavern counting money, and Robin looking like she hadn't had enough.

Is Robin that popular?

"Of course, look at this tip..."

·······

"I said, didn't you come here to gather intelligence?"

They act like they're performing for money, and they seem to be enjoying it.

"Mr. Roman, we have a good 'job' to do."

Robin smiled and stepped forward.

"A lot of navy personnel have come to this island. The information we've gathered from them is that they've come to capture the 'NEO Marines' Fleet Admiral, Mr. Zephyr. In other words—"

"Zephyr is on this island."

The white dove nodded; in fact, the other white doves had already spotted Zephyr and his army in the towering, dormant volcano behind the town. And:

A 'Explosive Rock' stuck in the crater, ready to be triggered at any moment, and a straw Straw Hat!

Oh, Zephyr...

"Let's meet at the dock first. There's someone who wants to tell us something."

?

"Snort,"

The adorable Nami, pouting, turned her head to the side, making Roman rub his temples in exasperation.

"Well... Nami, you know my taste in clothing..."

For Roman, clothing and appearance are completely irrelevant. After all, Roman himself is someone who's always running around surrounded by his magical creations...

"Sir, these clothes..."

Roman casually waved his hand at the large pile of changed children's clothes that the shop assistant pointed to.

"Wrap it all up."

!

"Okay, sir, please wait a moment!"

The sales clerk, who had initially been a little reluctant to smile, immediately broke into a genuine smile. There's a world of difference between spending hours selecting clothes and spending hours buying them! It's true, business is definitely easier with gentlemen.

"Let's go~~"

As Nami turned to leave in a huff, Roman tossed down a stack of Beli and, with a wave of his hand, stuffed all the children's clothes he'd been changing for hours into the 'Pocket Page'.

Well, even though I might not have the chance to wear it again, it's good to keep it as a souvenir. —Who knows, maybe 'Little Nami' will need it someday?

"Aokiji!!!" x4

When they arrived at the dock, the scene from the hot spring played out again. The terrified screams and the collective retreat of Usopp and the others made Aokiji scratch his head once more.

"Um, um, am I that scary?"

It's terrifying!

Everyone was inwardly cursing. Back in the ring-top island, Zoro and Sanji's arms and legs were easily frozen into ice cubes, Luffy and Robin were turned into giant blocks of ice, and Roman's arm was even fractured into a comminuted fracture...

In other words, the Straw Hat crew members possess superhuman physical abilities, and the unscientific medical technology of this world is what keeps them safe and sound.

Otherwise, there would be a group of disabled people with missing limbs here right now!

"Well, anyway, I've been pursuing a guy lately."

Aokiji forcefully steered the conversation back on track.

"You guys must have met a really strong older man recently, right?"

"Zephyr..."

"In this Great Pirate Era, pirates are constantly heading towards 'One Piece'."

As Aokiji spoke, the Straw Hat crew calmed down and decided to listen to what he was up to.

"Is it because 'One Piece' exists on the seas of this world that pirates exist? Or is it because pirates exist that 'One Piece' exists?"

"No matter what, as long as there are pirates, there will be people who shed tears because they have lost their warm homes and loved ones."

"How can we end all of this?"

"Former Marine Admiral Zephyr came to the conclusion that as long as 'One Piece' disappears, pirates will disappear."

But that was impossible, Roman lowered his eyes.

Pirates don't all exist because of 'dreams'; more often, they are people who have lost their will to live and have fallen into beastly ways! If people could live in peace and prosperity, who would want to fight and kill?

"So, Zephyr wants to destroy the New World. —What a crude idea,"

Faced with Aokiji's smile, none of the Straw Hat crew members could manage a smile. Ultimately, most of them had once deeply disliked pirates!

Zoro started as a Pirate Hunter who killed pirates for bounty; Nami specializes in stealing from pirates; Sanji beats up these guys who dine and dash every day; and Usopp, facing his deceased mother, also longs for his father to come back and see him one last time.

Chopper's 'father' had long since reformed, transforming from a pirate into a doctor; Robin, needless to say, had witnessed the dirty true nature of ordinary pirates while constantly on the run; Franky was also the leader of a bounty hunter team specializing in killing pirates; Brook... was more of a musician than a pirate...

But in this world, there is only one Straw Hat Pirates, and only one!

As for the other pirates...

"Straw Hat Kid, you'll stick to your beliefs and go fight Zephyr again, right?"

"Then let me see your answer. —Zephyr is on this island; your companions should know his location."

After saying that, Aokiji turned around and waved.

"Bye now."

As Aokiji left, Luffy silently turned away.

"Roman, lead the way."

"Um."

In the basin of the volcano:

Glug,

I took a sip of my 'JEREZ Sherry,' a wine only sold in the New World, touted as bringing 'a sunny and joyful feeling.' It's been Zephyr's favorite for many years, or perhaps his last.

"Free?"

How many crimes are committed in your name!

"Reckless and wanton, burning, killing, looting, and turning to swords at the slightest disagreement, slaughtering cities and destroying countries... How majestic, how Haki, how 'free'!"

Zephyr took another swig of wine, stood up, and looked at the scattered Explosive Rock in front of him, as well as the familiar Straw Hat in the middle.

"Roger, what does your freedom even mean?!"

"Take a good look at this ocean! How many civilians die every year for your 'freedom'? Ten thousand, a hundred thousand, or simply too many to count?"

"Only when the sea is free of pirates can it truly see the dawn—?!"

"Ain, Binz,"

The old man, who had been questioning the students, suddenly came to his senses and turned to signal to his two students, "More 'Rat' are here, prepare for battle!"

"Yes, teacher." X2

"Rubber--"

At the same time, Luffy's signature voice rang out first. Then came:

Bang!

A fist that pierced the air, creating rings of supersonic shockwaves, slammed into the massive Seastone arm. The Armament Haki of both men exploded, sending up towering waves of rock in the surrounding area. However:

The power is too weak...

Luffy unleashed a powerful punch, but Zephyr couldn't even move a step! It wasn't just the difference in their strength that made Luffy feel weak; the moment Luffy's fist touched Zephyr's Seastone weapon, he immediately felt a strong sense of weakness!

Even with Armament Haki applied, it will still cause some weakening.

"What are you doing here, you bunch of pirate thugs?"

"Who's the thug, you old codger!"

In response to Sanji's words, Zephyr simply waved his hand casually behind him.

Rumble, rumble, rumble—

"Hey, hey, hey, no way?!"

Usopp stared in disbelief at the approaching figures. Although they had changed into a white overcoat and their hair was now a fluffy gold, their appearance and attack pattern were still striking.

As those guys opened their mouths and stretched out their palms one by one, golden light began to gather momentum!

"Kuma!!!"

"To be precise, it is 'Pacifista -PX-Z'."

The white dove beside him calmly added, "But these combat robots are the best 'dividing line.' Those who can kill them single-handedly are Great Pirates with hundreds of millions of dollars; those who can't defeat these Pacifista are 'super soldiers' with less than one hundred million dollars."

"Leave that female swordsman to me."

Faced with a beautiful woman with long, flowing, wavy, sea-blue hair, Zoro flicked his thumb and drew his long sword, thus choosing his opponent.

"That damn Green Algae Head, how dare he beat me to it!"

Even so, Sanji still charged towards Binz, the user of the 'Shove-Shove Fruit', who was dressed in a brightly colored ninja outfit! After all, everyone in the Straw Hat crew knew that Sanji didn't hit women.

Moreover, this Binz can use 'Shave' continuously, and with his ability to control plant growth, one can easily fall victim to it. — Like Ain, he belongs to the type of ability that can decide the outcome in an instant.

Therefore, Zoro and Sanji did not hesitate to confront these two dangerous enemies.

"Uncle!!"

Luffy is undoubtedly going up against Zephyr.

"Give me back my hat! Turn Nami and the others back to normal! And—"

After glancing at the 'Dyna Stone' scattered across the ground, Luffy looked seriously at the former Marine Admiral opposite him.

"Return these things to..."

"Heh, pirates will use force to take what they want, right?"

Zephyr spread his arms and waved to Luffy.

"Hahaha, if you want these, then do it the pirate way!"

In response to Zephyr's words, Luffy, whose arms were instantly covered with Armament Haki, crouched down.

"Gear Second!"