"Ice man… you actually slipped away halfway? That's too much!"
Mira rushed over after sensing Rain was fine. Seeing Kuzan standing there calm as ever, she pouted unhappily.
"Really now… why are today's young people all monsters?"
Kuzan sighed, scratching the back of his head. His eyes swept over Rain and Mira, both of whom radiated strength that could crush entire fleets. To be honest, he didn't know how this was supposed to end.
He alone had already felt how troublesome Mira was to deal with.
Now, with Rain standing there...Rain who had just torn through Sakazuki like nothing, he knew:
If these two actually wanted to kill them, how many of them would realistically escape?
So, he chose to speak first.
"That… can we talk this out? Tell me, what price do we have to pay for you to let us walk away?"
Kuzan lowered his head as he spoke, his tone sincere.
There was no shame in it. If your strength isn't enough, you bow your head and live. Those who can't bow their heads die early. That was all there was to it.
"…Oh?"
Rain raised a brow in surprise. He hadn't expected Kuzan to swallow his pride so easily.
If it had been Sakazuki here instead, the guy would have already turned into magma and dragged the island into hell with him.
"There's no helping it. I can't compare to you right now."
Kuzan admitted bluntly, without the slightest trace of embarrassment.
Compared to losing face, letting two admiral candidates, three elite vice admirals, and an entire Buster Call operation be destroyed here—that would be a far bigger humiliation for the Navy.
So what if he bowed his head?
"Kuzan, don't be scared of them!"
Onigumo spoke up sharply, forcing himself into the "tough guy" role.
"I already called for reinforcements! Borsalino is bringing Garp here. Just stall them for half an hour, and these two won't escape alive!"
In short, his message was clear: if you don't negotiate, we'll drag you down with us.
Even if they all died here, buying time for reinforcements would ensure Rain and Mira were finished too.
"Ahhh… ra ra ra. Even if half an hour's a bit long, I could maybe stall. But…"
Kuzan exhaled a frosty breath and pointed at Sakazuki, still barely alive in the ice, "I think his life is the more urgent matter here."
Onigumo's bravado vanished instantly. His words had sounded strong, but Kuzan had no interest in martyrdom if it meant letting his fellow marine die.
The rest of the vice admirals stayed silent, their gazes fixed on Rain.
At this point, the choice rested entirely with him.
Would he take the step back they were offering, or force this into a battle of mutual destruction?
Rain shook his head lightly. "Don't worry. We're not enemies."
The marines tensed.
"If I wanted you dead," Rain said calmly, glancing at Sakazuki frozen in Kuzan's ice, "he wouldn't be breathing right now. He'd already be a corpse."
"..."
In response to Rain's words, Kuzan and the others immediately fell silent, unable to come up with a single rebuttal.
Because… it made sense.
Given the overwhelming strength Rain had just displayed, if he truly intended to kill Sakazuki, the admiral candidate wouldn't still be alive...he'd already be a corpse.
"What do you… really want to do?"
Kuzan's voice was calm, but his eyes carried genuine confusion. He couldn't read Rain's intent.
"I told you already," Rain replied, shaking his head, his tone steady.
"I just couldn't stand Sakazuki's behavior ordering fire on a refugee ship."
"..."
For a moment, Kuzan froze. And then the irony hit him.
Wait a second… he's supposed to be the navy, right?
So why did this boy sound more like a Marine than he did?
The realization left an awkward weight hanging in the air.
"That's all for today."
Rain gave Kuzan and the others one last glance before turning away. With Mira beside him, he stepped lightly and vanished into the distance.
"Kuzan?"
Onigumo, Doberman, and Stainless all looked toward Kuzan, awaiting his call.
Though they were vice admirals, Kuzan's status as an admiral candidate naturally put him in charge.
"Forget it."
Kuzan finally shook his head after a long silence. "Chasing them isn't worth it. That guy can fly. Even if I fought to pin him down, maybe I'd survive but you? … What do you think would happen?"
He didn't need to finish the sentence. The answer was obvious.
The truth was simple: the cost wasn't worth it.
Besides, Rain wasn't some wanton butcher. He wasn't a man they had to destroy at all costs.
So why gamble with so many Marine lives for an uncertain victory?
"Focus on Sakazuki. Get him treated, now."
Kuzan's voice returned to its usual laid-back calm, but his words were firm.
The medical corps rushed forward immediately, tending to the gravely wounded Sakazuki as the tension on the battlefield finally began to ease.
About half an hour later, a dazzling golden light cut through the sky and smashed down onto the island.
"BOOM!!!"
The earth split, a crater blasting open from the impact.
"Cough… cough…!"
A gruff, irritated voice came from inside the pit.
"Borsalino, you damn fool...don't you even know how to brake?!"
From the dust rose the figure of Monkey D. Garp, shaking rubble off his shoulders.
His whole body shimmered with Armament Haki, which had absorbed the brunt of the crash.
Without that, even a man like him would've been broken bones and blood.
"Ehh~ sorry, Mr. Garp," came the slow, lazy drawl from above as Borsalino (Kizaru) floated down, adjusting his coat as if nothing had happened.
"You told me to move at full speed. Controlling the landing wasn't in the instructions, you know~."
The tension among the surviving Marines instantly loosened.
"Mr. Garp!"
Kuzan, Stainless, Doberman, and Onigumo all breathed a collective sigh of relief as they rushed over. Seeing Garp standing there alive, even if covered in dust, was enough to let them exhale.
If it had only been Borsalino arriving first, the situation might have gone from bad to worse—he'd have been nothing more than delivery food to Rain and Mira.
"Where are they? Already gone?"
Garp finally straightened his back, his aura like a mountain. Closing his eyes, he released a wave of Observation Haki, scanning the island in an instant. No traces of those overwhelming presences remained.
He clicked his tongue in annoyance.
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