Cough… cough… cough!
Amid the shattered rubble, Monkey D. Luffy convulsed with violent coughing. Blood kept spilling from the corner of his mouth as he struggled to prop himself up with his hands.
But the agony surging through every inch of his body—and the numbness that seemed to seep all the way into his bones—made even that simple motion nearly impossible.
Somewhere in the depths of his mind, he knew that a stronger form still existed.
Gear Fourth.
But right now, his body simply couldn't handle it. His stamina was utterly drained, and his injuries were far too severe to support another explosive surge of power.
In other words—
That miraculous "get-up-again" cheat of his… even if he wanted to activate it, there was no way it would work immediately.
The merciless barrage from Enel—a relentless combo delivered with the strength of a peak admiral-class fighter—had genuinely devastated him.
"Tap… tap… tap…"
Crisp footsteps echoed through the ruined street.
Enel approached slowly, a golden staff resting across his shoulder.
He stopped before the rubble, looking down at Luffy as he struggled amid the debris. The mocking amusement that had once filled his eyes was gone.
What remained was nothing but the cold indifference of a god toward a mortal.
The tip of the golden staff lowered and gently pressed against Luffy's forehead.
The icy touch—and the faint arcs of electricity dancing along the metal—made Luffy's body stiffen involuntarily.
"Two years ago," Enel said calmly,
"I already told you."
His voice was quiet, almost casual.
"To challenge a god…"
"…is foolish from the very beginning."
Luffy clenched his teeth.
He didn't care about gods.
Right now, only one thought was spinning wildly through his mind.
Sabo.
He had already lost one brother.
He had watched Portgas D. Ace die before his eyes.
He absolutely could not lose Sabo too.
That single obsession kept him from slipping into unconsciousness.
But it also made the pain even more unbearable.
"Enel."
At that moment, a calm voice suddenly rang out, interrupting the execution-like scene.
It was Gern Reginald Sigmar.
No one had noticed when he arrived. He was already standing beside the ruins—dragging the unconscious Sabo behind him.
Sabo's body scraped lifelessly across the rough ground.
At the sound of Gern's voice, Enel frowned slightly in reluctance—but he still withdrew the golden staff from Luffy's forehead and stepped back.
He ceded the right of judgment to Gern.
Because he understood.
This was Gern's game.
Luffy struggled to lift his gaze.
He looked at the tall, familiar figure standing before him.
Even though they hadn't seen each other in years…
Even though that man was now a Marine Admiral, and the enemy who had captured Sabo—
That brief but unforgettable meeting from their childhood still lingered in Luffy's memory.
And so, instinctively, he muttered the old nickname.
"…Weir… weird old man…"
The words were weak.
But they still carried Luffy's unmistakable blunt sincerity.
Gern froze for a moment when he heard that long-forgotten—and frankly inappropriate—form of address.
Then a faint smile appeared on his face.
It was complicated.
Almost nostalgic.
"Ace used to call me Gern the weird old man," Gern said lightly.
He reached down and casually patted Sabo's head.
"As for this one…"
"…he calls me a bastard."
A short laugh escaped him.
"Even tried to kill me."
Then Gern crouched down so that his eyes were level with Luffy's.
His tone shifted, becoming strangely deliberate.
"But since you're still willing to call me 'weird old man'…"
"As the elder here, I'll give you your first real choice since entering the New World."
"A choice…?" Luffy gasped weakly, forcing himself to stay conscious.
"What… choice?"
He could sense instinctively—
Whatever Gern was about to say… was extremely important.
Gern didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he glanced toward the western street.
There—
Running desperately toward them—
were Nami, Tony Tony Chopper, Brook, Sanji, and Kozuki Momonosuke.
Sanji was heavily wounded, barely able to move as the others supported him.
They were shouting frantically—
Calling Luffy's and Roronoa Zoro's names as they ran.
Clearly, the massive commotion and Luffy's peril had made waiting by the ship impossible.
Gern watched them approach.
Then he glanced at the unconscious Sabo at his feet.
Finally, he looked back at Luffy in the rubble.
Only then did he speak again.
"Relax," he said calmly.
"I won't make you choose between your companions."
Luffy blinked in confusion.
Not his companions?
Then what?
Gern's gaze returned to Luffy's face, as if reading the thoughts in his mind.
A faint smile curved his lips.
"Other than your companions…"
"…who else do you still have?"
"—!!!"
Luffy's pupils shrank violently.
Momonosuke.
That self-proclaimed descendant of the Kozuki clan.
A cowardly, crybaby kid who constantly shouted that he would one day become the shogun.
Gern wanted him…
To choose between Sabo and Momonosuke?!
The choice Gern had thrown before him felt like a pair of icy chains locking around Luffy's heart.
On one side—
His brother Sabo, whom he had only just reunited with… only to see him gravely wounded and captured again.
On the other—
Momonosuke, the child entrusted to their protection during this long journey.
Choose?
How could he possibly choose?
Luffy fell completely silent.
His head hung low.
Sweat and blood dripped together onto the broken stones beneath him.
This wasn't a contest of strength.
It was the cruelest possible interrogation of his beliefs.
His nature.
His purity.
The road he walked toward becoming the Pirate King had never been built on sacrificing or abandoning others.
Both Sabo and Momonosuke were people he had accepted as his responsibility to protect.
"I…" Luffy rasped hoarsely.
Pain twisted his voice, but the stubborn resolve in his eyes never wavered.
"I… won't choose."
"I'm saving Sabo."
"And I'm protecting Momo too."
"If one of them has to die…"
"…then I'd rather it be me."
It was the most Luffy-like answer imaginable.
No calculations.
No weighing options.
Just that almost childish—but utterly unbreakable—resolve.
I want everyone.
And if a sacrifice must be made—
I'll be the one.
Gern watched him quietly.
The faint smile on his face faded slightly.
His eyes grew deep and unreadable, as if he were contemplating something.
At that moment—
Hurried footsteps and frantic shouting echoed closer.
"LUFFY!! ZORO!!"
Nami, Chopper, and Brook finally arrived, half-carrying the severely injured Sanji.
But the moment they saw the scene before them—
Enel standing with a cold smile.
Luffy gravely wounded in the ruins.
Gern watching calmly with Sabo at his feet—
The four of them, Sanji included, turned pale instantly.
It was like witnessing the most terrifying nightmare imaginable.
The oppressive aura of Enel—and Gern's overwhelming presence—
Made their breathing almost stop.
Yet there was one person who completely ignored the suffocating tension.
"Father! Father!"
Taking advantage of everyone's distracted attention—
Momonosuke suddenly broke free from Nami's grasp.
Crying out loudly, he dragged along Kin'emon, who had only just managed to stand up and was still staggering.
The two of them ran straight toward Gern.
Momonosuke lifted his small face.
Fear was still visible in his eyes—
But what shone stronger was the desperate urge to grasp the last possible lifeline.
He tugged fiercely at Kin'emon's trousers and pointed at Gern, his voice shrill.
"Kin'emon—no! Father!"
"You have to tell him!"
"Tell this Marine!"
"Am I a descendant of the Kozuki clan or not?! Am I?!"
Momonosuke had to prove his value immediately.
Only by confirming his identity as a Kozuki descendant could he use that "noble" bloodline to bargain for survival—
Perhaps even protection.
Kin'emon was momentarily stunned by Momonosuke's sudden, almost forceful move.
But years of loyalty as a retainer—and the desperate situation they were in—forced him to compose himself instantly.
He took a deep breath.
Suppressing the pain from his wounds, he straightened his back.
Then he faced Gern with solemn dignity.
"I am Foxfire Kin'emon, retainer of the Kozuki family."
He bowed in the formal manner of Wano.
"This young lord, Momonosuke, is indeed a noble descendant of the Kozuki clan. His identity is beyond question."
"Our journey is undertaken for the sole purpose of restoring the rightful rule of Wano…"
Kin'emon's explanation was earnest and respectful.
He tried to use both his loyalty as a vassal and the prestige of the Kozuki name to confirm Momonosuke's legitimacy.
However—
He remained cautious.
Carefully avoiding the most sensitive identity of all:
the son of Kozuki Oden.
Revealing that detail could easily trigger questions about the impossible timeline.
So he simply emphasized one thing—
"descendant of the Kozuki clan."
As Momonosuke listened to Kin'emon's testimony, a flicker of hope appeared on the boy's small face.
He looked up at Gern eagerly.
Waiting.
Hoping for his recognition.
Gern's gaze drifted slowly between Momonosuke's anxious expression—
And Kin'emon's steady but subtly evasive explanation.
The faint smile on his lips deepened.
That half-amused, half-knowing expression became even more pronounced.