Don't Know

"Get out of my way!"

"Newgate, stop blocking the way!"

At last, Zephyr and Garp grew desperate.

Risking injury, they briefly exchanged blows with Newgate and Kyo, then charged toward the Execution Platform without hesitation.

The man up there had killed Admiral Bright. There was no way Tsuru could stop him.

"Don't get cocky!"

"Don't ignore us!"

Newgate raised a hand and unleashed a quake wave. The atmosphere shattered, generating a powerful shock wave.

Kyo followed close behind, giving chase.

In that instant, Zephyr realized that if he and Garp took the attacks head-on, it might hurt the entire force's retreat afterward.

He made a snap decision, abandoning his charge toward the Execution Platform and turning back to intercept the attacks.

Garp's eyes widened when he noticed, but he had no time to say anything. Perhaps understanding Zephyr's resolve, he put his head down and charged toward the Execution Platform at full speed.

Hum, hum, hum~

Zephyr crossed his arms in front of himself, intending to take Newgate's attack head-on!

When the two collided, the shattered wave of air slammed into Zephyr's arms first. His muscles and bones ground together furiously, and even his blood seemed to stop flowing.

He thought that Garp really was stronger than him. After all, Garp had fought Newgate for quite a while earlier.

But... he was a Marine Vice Admiral too!

"Aaaaah!!"

Zephyr roared, his purple hair whipping wildly as a trace of blood-red light appeared in his eyes.

He released all his Haki and finally neutralized Newgate's attack, but his sleeves and shirt had already been reduced to strips of cloth.

He gasped for breath, but the killing intent that came at him from another angle left him no time to dodge.

The next second...

Bam!

Zephyr was sent flying and slammed hard into the ground, rolling several times and leaving a trail of blood.

Kyo stood where Zephyr had just been, an axe resting on his shoulder and a savage grin on his face. Blood was still dripping from its broad blade.

Zephyr clenched his teeth, his face somewhat pale, but he only clutched his mangled right shoulder without making a sound.

He stared at Kyo's feet, where an arm lay on the ground, blood still flowing from the severed end.

"What a shame. I meant to take your head off." Kyo planted a foot on the severed arm, a trace of regret seemingly in his voice.

Zephyr had lost an arm!

But Zephyr smiled, because in that time, Garp had reached the Execution Platform!

"Kong! Tsuru! Are you all right?!"

Garp landed heavily on the Execution Platform, the impact making it rock violently several times.

Perhaps because a reliable teammate had arrived, Kong forced a smile onto his strained face. "I told you to call me Admiral Steel Bone, you bastard!"

"That doesn't matter at all!" Garp waved a hand and moved sideways, placing himself between them.

By now, Tsuru had helped Kong to his feet. Part of the reason might have been that the poison that had left Kong weak all over was gradually losing its effect.

Although Kong's injuries were serious too, at this rate he could recover at least some of his fighting strength.

Kaya looked down. To cover Garp, Zephyr had fallen, losing an arm in the process.

Newgate and Kyo were looking up at him.

He turned back to face Garp and the other two, then said in an unreadable tone, "Willing to risk his life to cover you... I suppose Vice Admiral Zephyr is one of your... heroes."

"Every Marine on this battlefield is a hero worthy of respect!" Garp's face was solemn, and his fists were coated in Haki.

"Is that so, Vice Admiral Garp?" Kaya was noncommittal. "The justice you act in the name of is merely meant to preserve the World Government's rule. At its core, it is oppression."

"Bullshit!" Garp stomped both feet, shaking the Execution Platform, and shot toward Kaya like a cannonball.

"Am I wrong? The root of all the suffering in this world comes from the government!" Kaya raised a clenched fist, using not Haki, but Blut Arterie.

Boom!!

Fist met fist, and the shock wave that spread from the collision toppled the entire Execution Platform!

With a thunderous crash, the steel-framed Execution Platform collapsed, crushing the ground beneath it with a tremendous boom. Shattered stones flew everywhere, and the wind whipped the thick smoke into billowing waves.

The commotion drew the attention of everyone across the battlefield. When they saw the Execution Platform fall, none of them understood what had happened.

But when Tsuru emerged from the dust and smoke with Kong, it dealt everyone a critical hit.

The Marines were thrilled, while the pirates were shocked.

"We did it! We rescued Admiral Kong!"

"It's Vice Admiral Tsuru!!"

"Damn it! That's impossible!"

"Everyone, stop them!"

"Kill them! Don't let the Marines escape!"

The entire battle shifted once again, as pirates and Marines alike moved in the same direction.

But they were soon trampled flat.

"Sorry, sorry! Please, everyone, get out of my way!" Harald hauled his enormous bulk forward, his long legs carrying him at a mad dash across the battlefield.

No one could stop him. Anyone in his path was sent flying.

Slash!!

Suddenly, a jet-black sword slash struck Harald's back, opening a wound at once. Blood sprayed out in great quantities like rain.

He cried out, realizing that Rocks had caught up again. Even he couldn't take an attack from Rocks with his body and come away unscathed.

But not only did he not look back, he ran even faster!

"That old bastard Harald! Is he trying to rescue the Marine Admiral to win the Marines' favor?!"

Rocks sped over the ground in a straight line, swinging his sword repeatedly and cutting to pieces everyone he encountered, Marine or pirate.

The two raced one after the other at astonishing speed, and the Execution Platform... the spot where the Execution Platform had fallen was already close at hand.

"When did she get over there? That woman looks pretty beautiful! She's got spirit, just my type."

Kyo watched Tsuru drag Kong away. Though a little surprised, he soon turned his gaze back to Zephyr.

He sized up Zephyr, who was half-crouched on the ground, then gave a bloodthirsty smile. "The Admiral's getting away, so let's kill another Vice Admiral to stop the bleeding!"

Beside him, Newgate showed little reaction.

Newgate merely looked at Kong as he gradually disappeared into the distance, then withdrew his gaze and paused for a moment on what lay ahead.

There, thick smoke billowed like clouds. The clang of metal and stone rang out ceaselessly from within, mixed with someone's shouts, while sparks from the friction lit it up from time to time like fog lamps.

The pebbles on the ground continued to tremble, and the muffled sounds of blows being exchanged further battered the land.

By now, Hachinosu no longer resembled its former self.

"Forget it. Let's leave it at that." Newgate suddenly put away his naginata and slung it across his back.

"Is that so?" Kyo was surprised for a moment, but didn't care. "You don't mind if I kill Zephyr, right? Once I leave here, the Marines should put a nice bounty on my head."

Kyo had just raised his axe when the earth shook behind him, accompanied by someone's deafening shout.

"People up ahead! Get out of my way!"

?! What?!

Kyo looked back and jumped in fright.

Harald was still charging at full speed! His body, terrifyingly immense to ordinary people, looked like a mountain shifting across the earth as he ran!

And he didn't seem to have any brakes. If he kept running like that, was he planning to smash Skull Rock apart with his head?!

Faced with the giant bearing down on him and blotting out the sky and sun, Kyo hurriedly lowered the axe he had only just begun to raise and fled in another direction, toward the sea.

Newgate frowned at Harald. Although he didn't want to keep fighting this meaningless war, he couldn't just ignore this.

"Air Quake!" Newgate punched with both fists at once.

Space shattered like glass, cracks spreading through the void to form a vast white spiderweb.

Then it burst apart with a roar! The air throughout the entire area shook. It was hard to imagine that the ground would surge like ocean waves, making the island heave along with it.

No one knew how many people fell or how many were shaken to death.

Harald ran headlong into Newgate's attack, and numerous fine cuts burst open across his body.

But the guy had even put his sword away!

"Sorry for the trouble!"

Harald bent down and scooped Zephyr off the ground, changed direction, and continued racing away.

And just like that, Harald ran off, leaving Rocks, who arrived afterward, and Newgate staring at each other wide-eyed in silence.

What the hell was that humanoid monster?!