Sacrifice for the Greater Good!

Gion looked at the rift, then at Fleet Admiral Kong's unsteady back. She bit her lip until it bled, her body turning into a pink streak of light as she shot through the path Enel had been too late to block and burst out through the closing gap in the Flame.

The instant she passed through, the gap closed.

Outside the barrier, the sun blazed beneath a deep blue sky. The sea breeze swept in, lifting her disheveled long hair.

Behind her stood the silent, burning urn of purple-black Flame. It cut off all sound and sight.

She could not see the battle within or hear a single sound. Only that barrier stood quietly there, like an ominous tombstone.

Gion stood on the shore, her cloak of justice hanging limp. She did not leave. She merely stood there with her back to the fiery Flame barrier.

Her hands were clenched tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms. Blood dripped through her fingers onto the sand and gravel with faint taps, then was swiftly absorbed by the dry earth, leaving no trace.

People were not plants or trees. How could they be without feelings?

On one side was the man she loved; on the other was an elder who had always cared for her. Helping neither was the best choice she could make.

Inside the barrier, devastation filled the eye.

Fleet Admiral Kong knelt on one knee, breathing heavily. His shirt was shredded, revealing a powerful body marked by the ravages of age.

Blood ran from the corner of his mouth and dripped onto the scorched soil. His distinctive mohawk was now plastered messily to his sweat-soaked forehead, and his once-sharp eyes were bloodshot, filled with exhaustion.

Dawn calmly looked at the old man before him.

"Time spares no one.