At first, Gern Reginald Sigmar showed a look of sudden realization, as if he had just confirmed some crucial piece of information.
Then, a remarkably gentle smile spread across his face—so mild that it almost seemed encouraging.
He bent slightly at the waist and looked down at Kozuki Momonosuke, his voice soft and almost reassuring.
"I see… so you're really not a pirate after all."
His gaze lingered on the boy's anxious face.
"In that case, Momonosuke… what exactly would you like me to help you with?"
Hearing such a surprisingly kind response, Momonosuke's eyes instantly lit up.
Hope surged across his face.
He opened his mouth eagerly, ready to make his request.
"I—"
"MOMO!!"
The desperate roar cut through the air like a blade.
It came from the ruins.
From Monkey D. Luffy, lying amid the shattered debris.
Luffy glared at Momonosuke with everything he had left, forcing the words out with sheer will.
"You can't trust him! Don't trust the weird old man!!"
Luffy's instincts—simple, raw, and honest—were screaming at him.
He didn't truly understand Gern.
But to someone as straightforward as Luffy, one thing felt unmistakably wrong.
Behind that smile… there was no pure goodwill.
Momonosuke froze, startled by the shout.
For a moment, hesitation flickered across his face.
But Gern seemed almost reminded by Luffy's warning. He stroked his chin thoughtfully before continuing.
"Oh, right," Gern said mildly.
"I almost forgot something."
His tone remained gentle.
Yet the meaning of his words slowly began to shift.
"You're the future shogun of Wano Country, after all. A man of noble lineage… destined for great things."
Then his gaze drifted across the battlefield.
Past the gravely wounded Luffy.
Past the dying Trafalgar D. Water Law.
Past the restrained fury of Roronoa Zoro and Sanji, who stood frozen under the overwhelming pressure of Gern and Enel.
Then he spoke clearly.
"Right now, the Straw Hat Pirates, along with their close associate Trafalgar Law…"
"…are, from a legal standpoint, pirates who have been arrested—or are about to be dealt with—by me, a Marine admiral."
He paused.
Momonosuke's face immediately tensed.
And then Gern delivered the key reminder.
"So if you insist that you're closely associated with them…"
"…then by Marine regulations, I may have no choice but to classify you as a pirate accomplice as well."
His smile remained unchanged.
"But that wouldn't be a very glorious record for the future shogun of Wano, would it?"
"In fact, it might even undermine the legitimacy of your future restoration."
"!!!"
Momonosuke trembled violently.
Realization dawned.
He quickly looked around.
And the reality became painfully obvious.
Luffy was gravely wounded.
Law was barely alive.
Zoro and Sanji were immobilized by the overwhelming presence of Enel and Gern.
The stronger allies—Franky, Usopp, Nico Robin—were nowhere to be seen.
Meanwhile Nami, Tony Tony Chopper, and Brook looked terrified and helpless.
The outcome…
Already seemed decided.
"But…" Gern continued softly.
His next words fell like the whisper of a devil.
"…if you were actually kidnapped by these lawless pirates…"
"…and forced to travel with them…"
"Then the situation would be entirely different."
The moment those words fell—
Everything changed.
Before the stunned, furious, and disbelieving gazes of the Straw Hats—
Before Kin'emon could even react and try to stop him—
Momonosuke suddenly stepped backward.
He pointed at Luffy and the others.
Then, with the clearest and most "righteous" voice he could muster, he shouted:
"That's right! I was kidnapped by them!!"
"I am Kozuki Momonosuke, the future shogun of Wano!!"
"These pirates forced me to travel with them and exploited my identity!!"
Then he turned desperately toward Gern.
His face was filled with the urgent hope of someone seeking salvation.
"Marine sir! I need the Navy's help!"
"Please defeat Kaido and restore me to the shogun's seat in Wano!"
"I am the legitimate ruler!"
"I'm not a pirate!!"
After shouting those words, Momonosuke didn't dare look back at Luffy or the others.
All his hopes now rested entirely on Gern.
In his mind, the Straw Hat crew had always been nothing more than mercenaries he had "hired" using his tragic story and future status as shogun.
Tools to help him reclaim his country.
Now those tools had failed.
Worse—they might drag him down with them.
And standing before him now was a far stronger tool.
A more legitimate one.
The Marines.
So his decision came instantly.
Without hesitation.
For a moment—
The contrast was unbearable.
Momonosuke's frantic attempt to sever ties and cling to power—
And Luffy, lying in the rubble, still refusing to betray a single companion even on the verge of death—
Formed the most brutal, undeniable contrast imaginable.
Human nature revealed itself clearly in the face of survival and opportunity.
Kin'emon closed his eyes in pain.
Zoro's hand gripping his sword trembled with bulging veins.
Sanji's cigarette had long since gone out.
Nami and the others felt as if they had fallen into a frozen abyss.
Meanwhile—
Gern watched the scene unfolding before him.
A performance he had personally orchestrated.
And Momonosuke had delivered it with remarkable enthusiasm.
The faint smile on Gern's lips finally broke into a low, audible laugh.
"Heh… heh…"
"HAHAHA…"
Beside him, Enel lowered his combat stance and folded his arms.
Disgust and contempt filled his eyes.
With his Mantra, he had already heard the thoughts of nearly everyone present—except Gern and Luffy.
Including the selfish calculations inside Momonosuke's mind.
The desperate urge to protect himself.
To cling to power.
To treat the Straw Hats as disposable tools.
"Hmph."
Enel snorted coldly.
His gaze swept over the hopeful Momonosuke.
The disdain in his voice carried the arrogance of a god.
"Disgraceful."
"To kill something like that…"
"…would only dirty a god's hands."
Gern stopped laughing.
His gaze shifted back to Luffy, who was struggling to speak.
"Do you see, Luffy?" he said calmly.
"Given the same choice…"
"…he didn't choose you."
Luffy clenched his teeth so hard they creaked.
He simply stared at Momonosuke.
Two years ago, Luffy had been little more than a reckless adventurer.
But after everything he had experienced…
Even someone as straightforward as him had begun to understand the ways of people.
If Gern truly intended to kill them—
Then Momonosuke's words just now had been nothing less than a direct push toward their execution.
Gern no longer looked at Luffy.
Instead, he turned to Momonosuke, who was growing uneasy under Enel's scorn.
Then he issued his first command.
"You."
He pointed at Momonosuke.
Then at the barely conscious Luffy lying in the rubble.
"Go."
"Walk over there."
"And step on his face."
The words struck like thunder.
Everyone froze.
"Young lord! You must not!!" Kin'emon shouted in horror, stepping forward to block him.
If that step landed—
It wouldn't just be a physical humiliation.
It would sever every possible bond of loyalty and gratitude between Momonosuke and the Straw Hats.
It would be an act of absolute betrayal.
A stain upon his very dignity.
But Momonosuke hesitated only briefly.
The lure of power.
The fear of death.
The dream of Marine-backed legitimacy.
They crushed everything else.
He needed to prove his obedience to Gern.
To demonstrate that he had cut ties completely.
"I… I am Kozuki Momonosuke!"
"The future shogun!"
"He's just a pirate!!"
Shouting those words as if to encourage himself, Momonosuke rushed forward.
He jumped—
Striking a dramatic pose, almost like a flying kick.
Under the horrified gazes of Nami, Chopper, Brook, and Sanji—
Under the furious eyes of Zoro and Kin'emon—
And under Luffy's stunned expression—
Momonosuke's wooden sandal came crashing down.
Right onto Luffy's face.
SMACK.
The sound wasn't loud.
But it echoed with brutal clarity.
Time seemed to freeze.
Luffy didn't close his eyes.
He simply stared upward.
At Momonosuke standing over him.
Those eyes—usually full of laughter and fighting spirit—
Now held only a vast, silent emptiness.
Pain.
And something colder.
Momonosuke immediately jumped away like a frightened rabbit.
He hurried behind Gern, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.
That single step had crushed more than Luffy's face.
It shattered something fragile that might once have existed between them.
Above the ruins—
The sunlight of Dressrosa dimmed.
As if the world itself had grown darker.