BOOM!!!!
Once again, Zephyr blasted the mammoth-form Jack away, but the impact aggravated his old injuries.
"Cough... cough..."
Dropping to one knee, he gasped for breath. The endless battle and constant exhaustion had finally pushed him past his limits, and the injuries he had suffered years ago during the Battle of Sgri, where he fought Roger, could no longer be suppressed.
His body was beginning to break down. The shattered bones in his chest and the lungs wheezing like broken bellows all showed that Zephyr had reached the end of his road.
Taking a deep breath, he forcibly suppressed the discomfort and looked up at the charging beast.
Tired… so tired...
His vision had begun doubling. Using one hand to support himself, he slowly stood upright and assumed a punching stance.
Buzz!
The lower halves of his arms darkened with Armament Haki.
Just as he was about to throw a punch, he stumbled. The Haki faded, and dazed, he dropped to one knee once more.
"Zephyr-sensei!!!"
A woman's desperate scream echoed from the distance.
Looking toward the charging mammoth, it took Zephyr a second to recognize the owner of the voice.
"Ain..."
His consciousness was already fading. He shook his head, but there was nothing more he could do.
Suddenly, Ain appeared in front of him, holding her broken twin swords as she charged directly at the mindless beast.
Zephyr's pupils contracted violently. Somehow, strength surged back into his body. He reached out and grabbed Ain's wrist. A tremendous force erupted from his arm, and before she could react, he flung her aside.
Zephyr slowly stood up. Like a dying flame burning brightly one last time, he rose with surprising ease.
Gazing toward the airborne Ain, he smiled. "Thank you, Ain. But I'm not that old yet."
He picked up the shattered sunglasses that had fallen to the ground and put them back on before looking at the charging beast.
It felt as if endless strength was surging through his body. For a moment, Zephyr felt as though he had returned to his prime, back to that year before the Battle of Sgri, back to when his wife was still alive...
As memories flowed through his mind, he slowly stood up and coated his arms with Armament Haki once more. His left hand moved forward while his right hand drew back. It was the most standard punching stance he had taught to countless Marines throughout his life.
A smile appeared on Zephyr's face as he returned to reality and looked at the raging beast that had already reached him.
"I..."
He stepped forward as violent shockwaves exploded around him.
"...am..."
Crackle...
Lightning suddenly flickered around both arms as an endless fighting spirit rose from within him.
"Zephyr!!!"
He threw a punch.
…..
…..
…..
BOOOOOOM!!!!!!!
The deafening explosion was far louder than anyone had imagined.
A massive hand was buried deep inside the skull of the mammoth-form Jack. That incomparably tough head had been smashed apart by sheer force.
The giant hand slowly withdrew, and wrapped around Zephyr's fist was another hand.
Zephyr, who had already prepared himself for death, froze for a moment. Then he smiled softly.
"You brat..."
Soter slowly turned around and released his grip from around Zephyr's fist. Trying desperately to suppress the tremble in his voice, he looked at him.
"Father."
Zephyr smiled. "Did you complete the mission the Fleet Admiral gave you?"
Soter nodded heavily, his voice shaking. "I completed it."
Carlo's hoarse voice sounded from nearby. "It's all over, Instructor Zephyr. We won."
Suppressing both his grief and the agonizing pain in his head, Carlo had repeatedly teleported with Soter, rushing across the battlefield. They had finally arrived in time for the father and son to share their final farewell…
Zephyr let out a relieved sigh and murmured, "That's good..."
His body suddenly gave out and fell backward, but Carlo and Soter quickly caught him from both sides and gently lowered him to the ground.
Ain also rushed over from the distance. "Zephyr-sensei!"
She threw herself beside him as light glowed from her hands and she tried to use her ability.
Zephyr raised a hand and stopped her. Shaking his head, he said, "It's useless. I know my own body. Let it be..."
His gaze shifted toward Carlo. "Did we really win...? You're not just comforting an old man who's about to die, are you...?"
Carlo tightly held Zephyr's hand, his voice rough and heavy. "It's true."
Feeling the strength in Carlo's grip, Zephyr broke into a bright smile.
"Good... Good... Good… Looking at it now... Sakazuki was the one who was right. Back then, he and I argued about whether pirates should be killed or spared... Thinking about it now... how foolish I was. Only killing can stop killing... I was wrong. I really was wrong..."
The old man who had remained strong his entire life finally let go of his long-held beliefs after hearing news of victory. He admitted the words he had never wanted to face.
Perhaps if he had killed those pirates back then, the tragedy that haunted him for the rest of his life would never have happened…
At this moment, Zephyr felt relieved, and liberated.
He looked toward Soter. "You've really grown up..."
His mind replayed the scene from moments ago. Soter had grabbed his fist and driven it into Jack's skull.
Zephyr had spent his entire life holding an umbrella over others. Today, for the first time, someone had held one over him, and that person was his own son. For some reason, it made him incredibly happy.
Slowly, Zephyr turned toward Ain. "Ain... do me one last favor. Restore my body... to thirty years ago."
Back then, Zephyr was at the peak of his strength. Back then, he wasn't seriously injured. Back then, he hadn't lost his wife...
Ain nodded repeatedly through her tears and placed both hands on him, continuously activating her ability.
Zephyr's body gradually became younger, but his life force continued fading. Death was already reaching out its hand.
When Ain finally stopped using her ability, Zephyr slowly raised an arm. Looking at the firm skin of his younger body, he turned toward Carlo.
"Do I... look the same...?"
Only Carlo had seen Zephyr thirty years ago. At that time, both Soter and Ain had only been small children.
Carlo took a deep breath and nodded firmly. "Exactly the same, Admiral Zephyr."
That was the title Zephyr had held thirty years ago...
Zephyr laughed heartily. Then the dizziness and sensation of weightlessness suddenly crashed over him.
Lowering his arm, he used the last of his strength to take Soter's hand and place it into Ain's.
"You two... take care of each other. Don't... be sad because of me. I'm... very happy... because soon... I'll see your mother again..."
The strength slowly left his body, and his consciousness grew increasingly blurred as his voice faded into a whisper.
"I'm happy... really... very... happy..."
At last, his arm dropped limply to the ground.
"Father!"
"Zephyr-sensei!"
Soter and Ain threw themselves onto him.
Though it was completely futile, Ain continued activating the powers of the Return-Return Fruit over and over, her body trembling as she cried.
* * *
Sea Circle Calendar, Year 1522.
The Seventh Day of the Great Cataclysm.
The fleet led by Vice Admiral Hillber and Marine Headquarters Academy Chief Instructor Zephyr, consisting of only a handful of warships, successfully annihilated dozens of pirate vessels.
Facing enemies several times their number, not a single Marine retreated. For the justice they carried on their backs, every one of them fell on this island.
The remnants of the Beasts Pirates were completely wiped out. Their leader, Jack the Drought, was killed.
The thousands of pirates aboard dozens of ships failed to escape.
Not one survived.
As for Vice Admiral Hillber, within Black Maria's illusion, no one knew what he had seen. With a smile on his lips, he detonated the Dyna Stones and died laughing.
And Zephyr, the old man who had devoted his entire life to the Marines. In the final moments of his life, he finally received news of victory. His body had also been restored to the appearance he had when he last parted with his wife.
And in the end, he died with a smile on his face…
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