Two years later, Goa Kingdom, Inner City.
"Charge!"
"For the New Era!"
"For the Revolution!!"
Smoke. Gunfire. Blades. And, lives lost.
Amid the chaos, the sounds of shouting, clashing steel, and brutal combat echoed through the streets…
Cries of pain and terror rang out like wails from hell itself, staining the once peaceful inner city with a horrifying wash of blood.
Inside the opulent and decadent royal palace,
For now, the war hadn't yet reached this far.
The brief calm gave the palace servants a sliver of comfort.
But…
"Your reign is over, Your Majesty!"
A man clad in knight's armor, Sabo's father, stood tall, brandishing a rapier as he shouted up at the white-haired old king seated on the golden throne.
Removing his helmet, he revealed a stern, resolute face, righteous as a true knight.
"Sasuke! You, you, how dare you!!!"
The senile old king trembled with rage, pointing a jeweled finger, still wearing a brilliant emerald ring, at the man below.
"So it was you! You're behind all of this!!"
His gleaming golden crown wobbled as he shook with fury, as if it might topple off at any moment.
But Sabo's father didn't flinch. Instead, he calmly sheathed his sword and clipped it to his belt.
Step by step, he entered the grand throne hall, walking slowly toward the king.
With each footfall, his voice rang out, echoing like a divine decree.
"Your Majesty, can you hear the cries outside?"
"Those voices belong to your people!"
"People who once believed in you without question!"
He came to a stop beneath the golden dais, raising his eyes to look up at the king who still sat high above.
Behind the king, the gilded palace walls shimmered, reflecting a dazzling light that should've appeared holy, but instead made the king look grotesque and corrupt.
"Sasuke!!"
"How dare you! Colluding with peasants! You're a disgrace to nobility! A traitor!!"
From the corners of the hall, other nobles, those trapped by the sudden uprising, joined the king in their condemnation, pointing fingers at Sabo's father in outrage.
To these elite aristocrats, social class was everything. The rot of hierarchy had blinded them entirely.
"Your Majesty," Sabo's father said sternly, "you still refuse to see the truth?"
"What defines a nation? Is it the nobility? No, it's the people!"
He stepped forward again, arms wide, bathed in the same golden light, but unlike the king, it gave him an almost divine aura. In that moment, few could find the courage to refute him.
The hall fell silent. He continued:
"The people are like water; the ruler is a boat. Water can support a boat, but it can also sink it."
"The people's resentment has simmered for far too long. Even if it wasn't me, sooner or later, someone else would have risen to break this twisted system."
"But I... I have simply followed the will of heaven. The call of our time. I am the chosen one, to overthrow this decaying hierarchy!"
─────────🏴☠️─────────
Clatter!!
A group of burly men suddenly surged into the palace, weapons in hand.
Clad in ragged, mismatched clothes, they looked completely out of place in the regal hall. Their weapons were crude, bloody sickles, shovels, butcher knives.
But they had arrived just in time to hear the climax of Sabo's father's speech.
In that instant, every wound they'd suffered, every tear they'd shed, vanished.
To have a noble who saw them, who cared about them, after years of being crushed under the boot of privilege, was like a dream. Right then and there, they would've ripped their hearts from their chests to follow this man.
"Yes!!!"
"For the revolution!!"
"For a better life!!"
The citizens flooded the palace gates. Their deafening roar shook the entire structure.
The old king and his nobles looked on in horror at the endless tide of people.
The king's worldview shattered. Trembling, wide-eyed, blood vessels bursting in his eyes, he stumbled two steps forward and muttered in disbelief:
"No… Impossible… How could my Royal Army be defeated so easily?!"
"No! No! This can't be happening!!"
CLANG!
Suddenly, Sabo's father drew his rapier again and leveled it at the king's throat. His voice, though heavy with emotion, was firm:
"There's no such thing as impossible, Your Majesty…"
"What do you think the Royal Army truly is?"
"They were once young dreamers from the outer city."
"They passed rigorous selection to join the inner city, but their families, their parents, their wives and children, are still ordinary citizens."
"He who wins the hearts of the people, rules the land."
"Those words, and the ones I spoke earlier, were taught to me by a great man…"
"And now, I see he was right."
The king, sword inches from his throat, had already descended into madness. His eyes glazed over, he babbled:
"Impossible! I'm royalty! The most noble king of the Goa Kingdom!!"
"You can't rebel against me!!"
Sabo's father looked at the old man with a complicated expression, he had once thought the same way.
"You haven't looked at how people live in a long time, have you?"
"Two years ago, I requested a post in the outer city."
"It was only when I went to the front lines that I realized how the people of Goa truly live, trapped in hellish conditions."
"No one is born noble, and no one is born lowly."
"Nobility should lead the people toward a better life, not exploit and oppress them."
"So in secret, I gathered trusted allies, sought out others who shared my vision, and spent two years forming the People's Army."
"To fight for the people. In the name of the people!"
Suddenly, from the huddle of trembling nobles, one man cried out:
"Wait! My son holds a high post in the outer city! There's no way he'd let something like this happen under his nose!"
"Oh?" Sabo's father glanced at him and replied coldly:
"Then you should know, every voice of dissent has already been silenced… permanently."
"You…!!"
The noble raised a trembling finger, but then thought better of it. Not even a whimper escaped his lips.
─────────🏴☠️─────────
"You think that's all the royal family has, Sasuke?!"
The old king suddenly snapped out of his stupor, stepping back out of the sword's reach.
BOOM!!!
A giant boulder suddenly flew out from deep within the palace, smashing into the crowd and killing several rebels instantly.
Then, a large man stepped out from a hidden door.
"Sasuke… You really think the king's only defense is the Royal Army?"
"Let me show you the true hidden strength of the royal family."
"Slaughter these mongrels, Naruto!"
The man roared, and his body began to change.
Muscles expanded. Thick black fur burst from his skin.
In moments, he had transformed into a massive black gorilla.
"Raaaahhh!!"
"I am the Guardian of the Goa Kingdom! A Devil Fruit user with the powers of the Gorilla-Gorilla Fruit!"
"All who oppose the royal bloodline, prepare for hell!!"
His roar shook the palace walls, rattling everyone's eardrums.
─────────🏴☠️─────────
"Hmph."
Sabo's father didn't flinch.
He raised his elegant rapier in front of him, the blade glinting coldly in the light.
His eyes narrowed with disdain at both the king and his monstrous enforcer. Then, with a dramatic shout, he called out:
"Nami-san! Help me!!"
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