The battle's dust had barely settled when Zephyr and Gion raced to the scene. Even at full throttle, Zephyr arrived too late to join the fray. What greeted him instead was a sight that left him stunned.
The setting sun bathed the dunes in a rusty bronze glow, its final crimson rays clinging to the horizon. The battlefield—a thousand-meter wasteland—looked like it'd been pulverized by some divine hammer. Sand dunes had been flattened into a crater-pocked hellscape, each pit wide enough to swallow a ship. Warm, dark lava still oozed from fissures, weaving through glassy sword scars like a deadly web. The air hung heavy with the tang of rust, scorched meat, and blood.
At the epicenter stood three figures. Sakazuki's once-crisp suit hung in shreds, blood trickling down his chiseled abs. He knelt on one knee before Ross, head bowed in solemn pledge. Zephyr knew Sakazuki inside out—this was no defeat. It was allegiance.
Ross... he'd actually swayed Sakazuki?
Zephyr's eyes flicked to the Red the Aloof's corpse. The legendary pirate died mid-stance, staff-sword buried in the sand, his hollowed chest somehow propping up his frame. Blood crusted his face, locked in that signature sneer of disdain for the world.
The Red the Aloof was gone. One of the era's untouchable titans, felled by two upstarts. And in just two hours? Unthinkable. Top clashes like this dragged on for days. Even outnumbered, the Red the Aloof should've dragged it out longer.
Zephyr's gaze settled on Ross, a spark of respect igniting. Scratches marred Ross's clothes, his left jacket sleeve ripped clean off at the elbow. Zephyr knew his style: trading blood for blood. All three had gone full berserk, which explained the swift end. Pirates like the Red the Aloof thrived on chaos, and Sakazuki was a mad dog in a fight. But Ross? A Celestial Dragon diving into that meat grinder? Zephyr hadn't seen it coming.
He pieced it together from the aftermath. In his death throes, the Red the Aloof went all-in, trading his life to claim Ross's arm. Ross countered by lopping off the pirate's limb, while Sakazuki's magma fist punched through his heart. End result: Red the Aloof dead, Ross down an arm, Sakazuki a bandaged wreck. If Ross couldn't regenerate, it'd be a hollow win.
Under Zephyr and Gion's watchful eyes, Ross hauled Sakazuki to his feet, pulling him into a rough embrace. They shared a knowing grin, the bond sealed in blood and fire. Sakazuki was all-in now. Why bow to the lofty Five Elders when Ross would stand toe-to-toe with an Admiral against the seas' worst?
"Teacher Zephyr," Gion murmured, eyes tracing the devastation, Ross's support for Sakazuki, the pirate's rigid corpse. A quiet fire lit her gaze. "One day... could I fight beside them like that?"
Zephyr shot her a grin. "The world's yours, kid. Back in the day, Saint Ross pegged you for greatness. If anyone can, it's you."
His words carried real encouragement. Ross and Sakazuki's triumph, the Red the Aloof's fall—it made Zephyr feel his age. But damn, it warmed him to see these youngsters eclipse the old guard. Ross, Sakazuki, Gion: the next wave, ones he'd mentored from the start. If he could steer them right, the future might not sink into chaos.
He rates me that high? Gion stole another glance at Ross, a mix of envy and resolve stirring inside. No more sidelines or cleanup duty. She wanted in on the front lines, shoulder-to-shoulder with him.
...
Ross showed the Red the Aloof's body no burial rites. Legends like him belonged in the light, not the dirt—fuel for inspiration. With their Devil Fruit powers, Ross, Sakazuki, Zephyr, and Gion hauled the corpse to Alubarna's royal capital. King Cobra's mangled remains rode in the convoy too.
Word of the king's murder spread like wildfire, hitting every corner of Alabasta before the group even arrived. Even distant allies caught wind via Den Den Mushi, flooding the World Government with demands. No member nation would tolerate another royal assassination—especially with Celestial Dragons on-site. It could be their head next.
They wanted the killer's head, power be damned. The World Government stonewalled, but the pressure mounted.
The convoy rolled into Alubarna the next morning amid throngs of mourners. The streets choked with grief-stricken faces.
"The king!"
"Cobra!"
"Revenge!"
"String up those pirate scum!"
Cobra had been a fair ruler, beloved by his people. His death at pirate hands ignited Alabasta's fury. Ross and Sakazuki led the procession, the crowd's sorrow crashing over them like a tidal wave. Sakazuki trudged on, stoic and swathed in bandages that screamed his wounds. Ross, by contrast, looked untouched—same sharp suit, same unflappable poise, as if the inferno had been a stroll.
"Why?!" A young man in flowing Alabastan robes shoved to the front, jabbing a finger at Ross. Rage twisted his features. "King Cobra's dead, but you're walking away without a scratch?!"
Murmurs rippled. Some nodded in shared outrage; others paled, fear clamping their tongues. Plenty harbored the same question, but who dared challenge a Celestial Dragon?
Yeah. Why? Why'd Cobra fall while Ross strolled out fine?