The Execution of Ace

"The Donquixote Family is down to Doflamingo alone. We can't let him die." Mo wore sunglasses, his tone icy, as if Akainu owed him several hundred million.

"That can be considered, for Fire Fist Ace's sake," Akainu said, nodding.

"And there's an extra condition, per Rono's request. One billion Beli." Mo held up a finger.

"..." Akainu pondered. "Could you see if there's something else we can offer? Our budget's been a little tight lately."

"Heh. Don't forget who gave you all that extra funding." Mo sneered. Trying to play poor in front of your sponsor? Don't make me pull my funding!

"It really is a bit too much. In the end, this is all Rono's fault. He tossed a bank card to the Science Department, and now they go to the Fleet Admiral every day, saying they're going to defect to Rono and won't work with him anymore. It forced the Fleet Admiral to give them a huge amount of funding." Akainu wore a complicated expression. This was clearly a shakedown. Even Ace's bounty was close to a hundred million.

"Rono said that if you can't pay, you can make it up with people." A sly smile appeared at the corner of Mo's mouth.

"Make it up with people? What do you mean?" Akainu asked.

"Rono and his group will go with you to execute Ace. You'll find out then. I'll be off." Mo left.

"People? Who in the Navy could be worth a billion? It can't be an Admiral. That's impossible. So who is it?" Akainu rested his chin on his hands, his Navy cap hiding the sharp glint in his eyes.

"Hey, Owl, why are you back so early this time? Come on, I've gotten a little stronger lately. Kick me once so I can test my Doriki." Rono sat in Spandam's office, chatting with Owl.

"No way. Someone could die. Chababa." Owl unzipped his belly, then zipped it back up.

"Aw, don't be such a spoilsport." Rono teased Gelu, who was sitting on his belly. Gelu was counting how many muscles Rono had. Every time he finished counting, Rono would quietly change one or two muscles with his Devil Fruit Ability, then tell Gelu, "Son, you counted wrong. Come on, count again." Gelu was very unhappy. How could he possibly miscount? He wasn't a little kid anymore.

He counted again. "!" Gelu stared at Rono's muscles, dumbfounded. How was there one fewer? No, he must have counted wrong. Again, again!

Rono lounged in his chair and beckoned to his water glass. The glass sprouted two short little legs and wobbled its way over to him. Owl stared at it, stunned. The Research Department was that advanced? They'd made artificial intelligence? Then he beckoned to the fruit basket with a wing.

"..." He'd try a smaller one. Maybe that one wasn't familiar with him. He beckoned again. ... Owl's face turned brown. This was so embarrassing. Just then, the little fruit basket moved. It took a tiny step forward, then slowly headed toward Owl, as if afraid of something. Owl was thrilled. Holy crap, this was so hard to control. He'd have to give the Research Department some feedback.

The fruit basket slowly drew near. Owl relaxed and reached out a wing to take an apple.

Suddenly, the basket leaped into the air, scattering fruit everywhere, then scrambled toward Rono as fast as it could. Owl stood frozen. He heard a shriek: Damn it, am I that ugly?

"Hahahaha!" Rono retracted his Devil Fruit Ability and laughed uproariously, shaking Little Gelu until he wobbled.

Gelu climbed down, kicked Rono in the shin, then pattered off to play with Uncle Sairona.

Rono looked at Owl, who was seething with rage, and started drooling. Slurp. He'd never eaten an owl before. Owl saw the malicious look in Rono's eyes and ran off too. This was no place for a person to stay.

Ace was being taken to Rogue Town for execution. As Rono boarded the ship, he felt a chill down his back and turned around. An old man with white hair was watching him with a piercing gaze. Garp.

Looking at Garp's knuckles cracking, Rono felt the pressure Garp gave off. Damn, that physique had to be at least 200. Rono was a little panicked. He couldn't take a beating from him at all. What? Super Regeneration? Did he want to get beaten even more?

In the end, Garp didn't make a move. He was a Marine first, and Ace's grandfather second.

"Grandpa, I'm sorry!" Ace looked back at the scene and said quietly.

Sairona took in Garp's expression and quietly committed it to memory.

One Admiral, three Vice Admirals, and a Shichibukai were accompanying them on this voyage.

The Admiral was Aokiji. Akainu had been sent to the New World to stand by. There were rumors that the Whitebeard Pirates were going to ally with the Red Hair Pirates. Though the Navy didn't quite believe it, they had still sent Akainu to intimidate the pirates.

On the warship, Aokiji sat with his legs crossed and an eye mask on. Beside him, Rono and Sairona sat in identical poses, with Gelu as well.

Only those few dared to be so relaxed. Before setting off, the crew had been told that Ace was Roger's son. If Aokiji hadn't stopped them, they would have already opened fire on Ace. Since Ace was the Pirate King's son, even the Vice Admirals couldn't afford to act carelessly. But they couldn't control Aokiji, and Rono's group wasn't under his command either. This created a rather amusing scene aboard the ship: more than a dozen Marine Headquarters soldiers and officers were on edge, scanning the seemingly calm sea, while Rono and the others lounged around as if they were on vacation.

The Navy's special Seastone-bottomed ship easily crossed the Calm Belt and reached Rogue Town.

White Hunter Smoker, the highest-ranking officer in Rogue Town, had been waiting for a long time. The entire dock had been cleared, and a huge Image Den Den Mushi had been set up beside the Execution Platform. A vast number of reporters adjusted their cameras, hoping to capture the moment the Pirate King's son died.

Admiral Aokiji greeted Smoker with his hands in his pockets, while Rono admired scenery unlike that of the Grand Line. Sairona studied the area, looking for a good sniping position. Gelu wasn't on Rono; he was asleep aboard the warship.

Ace's head hung low. He felt neither fear nor nervousness. He had long been prepared for death.

The Navy Headquarters had taken an interest in Ace, but not as much as they had in his previous life. Ace wasn't anyone's son now, just a rookie pirate with no parents. They had sent an Admiral only because of his identity.

The Executioner took Ace away. The execution would take place in an hour. Smoker felt somewhat relieved. With an Admiral here, he wasn't so nervous anymore.

In the deserted streets of Rogue Town, a few men with a rough, streetwise air sat in a secluded bar, each in a different pose.

They hadn't gone to watch the legendary Pirate King's son. Their leader was a young man with Dead Fish Eyes and a conspicuous pineapple-shaped hairstyle. Beside him sat a fierce-looking giant over three meters tall. Across from them, a green-haired punk of a boy with sharp teeth crouched there, trembling.

Marco the Phoenix, First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates; Diamond Jozu, Second Division Commander; and their division members. Blackbeard was among them too.