At that moment, Sal and Garp clashed once more, reaching a stalemate. The collision of their dominant auras created a whirlwind of distorted air around them.
"Garp..." roared Sal
"Roger..." responded garp, letting out his emotions.
Both were already aware of Ace's escape, which stirred new thoughts in their minds.
Sal had no intention of continuing the fight. It was difficult to determine a winner between these two titans. Even if they continued battling, they would only be wasting the remnants of Roger's strength.
Meanwhile, garp became distracted as an opponent. If Ace hadn't been rescued, he could have barely justified himself with his sense of justice. But now that Ace was saved, garp's heart couldn't help but tremble. Memories surfaced of moments when Ace called him "grandfather." This rebellious, unruly grandson... sometimes he was even endearing. And Luffy's foolish expression, the two relatives standing on opposite sides from him... that feeling was hard to suppress.
In garp's moment of distraction, Sel instantly took advantage of the opportunity.
His afterimage had not yet faded, and he was already standing before the silver-haired old man. Garp, coming to his senses, saw Ace the blade rising toward his chest. A dark red slash sliced through the air, knocking Karp out of the fight and hurling him into the island, causing a devastating breach in the buildings.
"Boom... Long..." the dull thud echoed, and garp reappeared in sal's view. His black shirt was ripped to shreds, but the deep wound on his chest didn't affect his resilience.
As they prepared to clash once more, Marineford shook with a powerful tremor. Both sides were transfixed by a distant flash, and suddenly a gigantic crack formed between them, like an abyss swallowing the earth, stone walls, steel structures, even corpses.
Whitebeard's desperate attack was so dreadful that it temporarily halted the battle between them. Standing on opposite edges of the chasm, neither moved a step. The already waning fighting spirit was undermined by this sudden fissure that seemed, to both of them, to offer a chance to seize the initiative. The first to launch an attack risked falling into the abyss.
After a moment of silence,garrp looked at sal, took a deep breath, and in his thunderous voice asked:
"Roger, was everything you said that night true?"
Without further explanation, Sal understood what garp was implying. Based on his deep understanding of garp, if he believed that friendship was just a pretext for being used, whoever it might be, he wouldn't be able to accept it. This would lead to a rift, or even a fight to the death.
"How... No, garp, what he said that night was true. The Pirate King was indeed executed on the scaffold, and this body has only recently come back to life.
— ...
Karp found sal's explanation strange, but due to his trust in Roger, he decided to believe this odd statement. In his view, although resurrection was bizarre, nothing was impossible.
After all, according to his information, the Five Elders were considered ancient monsters who had lived for hundreds or even thousands of years, and Toki Kozuki, Oden Kozuki's wife, a former member of Roger and Whitebeard's crew, apparently was a Devil Fruit user of the Time type.
All this information was secretly obtained by organization CP0. Initially, the World Government had a plan regarding the Time-type Devil Fruit, but unfortunately, Toki Kozuki died before its implementation.
Because of this, the secret was revealed, and the higher ranks of the fleet learned about the plan.
Just as both sides were ready to clash again, sal asked a question that still lingered like a thorn in his heart.
— garp, why did you accept Ace as your grandson? Do you consider yourself the older generation? Or are you simply happy to have used him? ...
Garp stopped upon hearing this question, turned to Sal, picked his nose with his pinky, and contemptuously said:
— I don't have as many tricks as you, Roger. The reason I adopted Ace as my grandson was simply due to age. I thought you'd remain a bachelor forever.
Who would have thought that when my son was about to get married, you, cunning Roger, would still manage to have Portgas D. Rouge bear your children. Honestly, you're not worthy of everything Rouge did for you.
— ...
Garp turned and walked away. That night, 22 years ago, he was truly astonished by a woman with incredible strength of will. In his heart, he felt nothing but respect and pity for her. That scoundrel Roger, before his death, managed to find such a remarkable woman.
22 years ago, after Roger's execution, Rouge was pregnant with Ace for a full 20 months to keep him in her womb. She gave birth to Ace only after all the marines had left. Garp's arrival ensured Ace's safety. In the glow of the morning sun, Rouge died with Ace in her arms. She was a great mother.
Sal silently listened to Garp's mocking. If the words "old bachelor" had been prompted by the remnants of his soul, he would still feel a slight dissatisfaction. But, as he continued to hear words of pity for Rouge, he could only sigh inwardly.
In the end, it was all Roger's fault, and he, Sal, wasn't going to bail him out.
Thinking about this, Sal felt relieved and moved away from Garp, muttering curses after him. Damn Garp, not only did he mock him before leaving, but he also brought up a sad story.
Sal quickly headed towards Whitebeard. That astonishing attack had caused him anxiety.
On the way, he met Rayleigh, who was also hurrying to help. The collapse of part of the island not only halted Sal's fight but also stopped Rayleigh and Aokiji's battle.
Soon, they found themselves at the edge of the rift, where a group of Whitebeard Pirates had already gathered, and other pirates were hurrying there as well. Ahead stood several captains marked with scars.
Marco, Ace, Diamond Joz, Vista, Ice Witch Vildibe... Except for Ace, all the others had been members of the crew following Whitebeard for over 20 years.
In his memory, when Roger fought Whitebeard, their young faces were already beside Whitebeard.
At this moment, Whitebeard, holding Murokomogiri in his hand, stood on the other side of the fissure. His tall silhouette faced away from everyone. Like a true hero, he remained unwavering, as if a giant, unfazed even in the face of the surrounding marines.
Sal furrowed his brow slightly. With his keen observational Haki, even though Whitebeard stood with his back to them and no blood dripped from his legs, Sal still sensed that the flame of his life was very weak.
— Pops, we came to save you.
— Wait for me, Pops.
— Pops, Pops, Pops... — H999
Whitebeard's demeanor made the pirates understand his decision. He intended to sacrifice himself to protect everyone. The pirates wept bitterly.
Looking at the weeping children, Whitebeard continued to stand with his back to them and quietly said:
— Children, I am the remnant of the old era. In the new era, there are no ships that can carry me.
— Pops...
The marines concentrated behind formed a circle. Sengoku couldn't hold back a sigh.
— Whitebeard, even with his stomach burned through, I did not expect him to still possess such strength.
Whitebeard's eyes showed signs of fatigue, yet he continued to restrain himself, pretending to be unyielding.
— It's far from over, Sengoku. Let me be your opponent.
Without hesitation, the bloodthirsty marines launched an attack. Even the strongest man in the world couldn't stop the marines now.
Countless bullets and weapons crashed against the giant, but were instantly fended off by the swirling wave of blades. With every swing of Murokomogiri, Whitebeard swept away entire groups of marines.
Sal watched the battle with Whitebeard from afar, his hand involuntarily gripping the hilt of his sword. If they faced battle again, they would have numerous chances to save Whitebeard, as the combat strength of both sides was nearly equal.
Out of habit, Sal turned his head to look at Rayleigh, the cunning partner, silently asking a question with his eyes.
Although Rayleigh's breathing was rather uneasy, he still smiled and, trying to appear calm, said:
— Decide for yourself, Roger.
Whitebeard's resolve was clear to both of them. Resuming the war might not be best for Whitebeard.
Before Sal could make a decision, Ace, standing next to him, noticed that Whitebeard was constantly receiving minor injuries and finally could not hold back. He wanted to use a stream of fire to take flight.
Suddenly, Whitebeard interrupted Ace's actions with a hoarse shout, as if he predicted the thoughts of his children standing behind him.
— Ro... Ger... Why did you give up 22 years ago? Why didn't you spend the remaining time with Ace's mother and enjoy the rest of the small family joy?
— …
The shout not only halted the actions of the marines and pirates but also caused Rayleigh to look at Sal in embarrassment, clearly remembering something.
Sal froze for a split second, then immediately stepped forward, pinning Ace, who was about to move, to the ground, his stubborn young face pressed into the concrete floor, preventing him from moving.
At that moment, he was overwhelmed by conflicting emotions, Whitebeard's departing words echoed in his mind.
Yes, why didn't Roger enjoy the happiness of family in the final moments of his life? …
Sal always had an answer in his heart.
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