...
Seeing the hot tears streaming from Giant King Harald, and the undisguised admiration and complex emotions in the eyes of those around him—including Roger, Marine Garp, and even his own subordinates—
Rocks unusually felt… uncomfortable.
He was Rocks—the man who aspired to become the King of the World, making everyone tremble at his feet!
The ruthless, ambitious overlord of the seas who took pleasure in conquest and destruction!
How could he be looked at with this near "hero-worship" gaze?
This didn't fit his character at all!
"Ahem, ahem…"
Rocks cleared his throat, trying to salvage his crumbling "villain image."
He put on a stern face and defended himself in his usual arrogant tone: "You guys… don't get the wrong idea! I protect Eris and Teach because they're my family!
"Whoever touches what's mine, I'll wipe them out! As for Harald…"
He paused, glancing at the Giant King who was still wiping his tears, and pretended to be indifferent: "That guy is an important fighting force for me!
"The support of the Giant Tribe is crucial to my plans! That's all there is to it!"
This deliberately cold explanation did not earn the "I see" realization he expected—instead, it was met with waves of… laughter.
"Mam-ma-ma-ma! Rocks! Stop being so stubborn!"
Big Mom laughed heartily while looking at Rocks: "Caring about your wife, kids, and friends isn't something embarrassing! I may not like you sometimes, but on this point, you're acting like a man!"
"Gurararara!"
Whitebeard laughed boldly and slapped Rocks on the back: "Just admit it, Rocks! Deep down, you're a sentimental bastard too!"
Even Shiki joined in, winking: "Exactly, exactly! You looked so cool earlier! 'Don't touch my wife and kid! Don't touch my friend!'
"Boss, you were seriously badass!!"
Scopper Gaban, Rayleigh, and the others also shook their heads with smiles…
Rocks' face turned green then white, and finally he just turned his head away with a dark expression, no longer bothering to argue.
Deep down, he knew his pure "supreme evil pirate" image had probably completely collapsed…
At least in the eyes of this group of top-tier powerhouses who now knew the truth, he had been labeled with complex tags like "villain with principles" and "ambitious man who values loyalty."
"Alright, alright, Harald…"
Rocks took a deep breath, forced a serious expression, and looked toward the Giant King who was still wiping tears.
"Watch your image a bit! You're the king of Elbaf after all—crying like that, what kind of look is that!"
The words were spoken earnestly, but the faint awkwardness and forced coldness in his tone instead made Harald break into a smile through his tears.
"Heh heh…"
Harald wiped his face hard. Though his eyes were still red, a simple and warm smile spread across his mouth: "Got it, Rocks. Thank you."
He knew that Rocks' "explanation" and "scolding"
were simply this proud man's way of showing care and acknowledgment.
Some things didn't need to be spelled out.
This unexpected interlude did indeed cause a subtle shift in how the world perceived Rocks' image.
However, as people thought… a change in perception didn't mean Rocks was no longer a villain.
In the eyes of most ordinary people, Rocks remained that "supreme evil pirate" responsible for countless casualties and intent on overthrowing the world.
Roger was still the "source of sin" who had opened the Great Pirate Era and plunged the world into greater chaos.
The "human side" shown in the light screen might make them seem less like pure "monsters,"
but their "evil deeds" and "threats" would not be erased because of it.
Villains can have feelings too—but those feelings are reserved only for the very few they cherish.
To the rest of the world beyond those few, they remain… disasters.
Just as the atmosphere in God Valley eased slightly due to Rocks' "image collapse," the outside world had already descended into utter chaos.
The Marines were the first to act.
On islands and kingdoms covered by the light screen, local Marine branches and bases—after the initial shock—finally received urgent orders from headquarters:
"Do everything possible to control public opinion and prevent civilians from continuing to watch and spread the light screen content!"
However, when Marine soldiers appeared in plazas and streets with guns loaded, attempting to disperse the crowds gathered to watch the light screen…
What greeted them was no longer the usual awe and obedience, but wariness, disgust, and even open resistance.
"Get lost! You accomplices of butchers!"
"The Five Elders are monsters! The Marines are helping monsters kill people!"
"We saw it all! You fired on civilians! What kind of bullshit justice is that!"
"Don't touch us—we want to know the truth!"
…
Angry crowds surrounded the Marines, curses and questions ringing out nonstop.
In some especially heated towns, a few agitated people even picked up stones and threw them at the Marine ranks.
In several fiercely conflicted towns, the situation nearly escalated into large-scale riots.
Marine soldiers held their guns aloft, yet none dared pull the trigger.
Their faces were pale, their eyes wavering—the scenes in the light screen had shaken their own convictions as well.
Were those comrades who fired on civilians, those who tacitly approved or even participated in Celestial Dragon atrocities, really the "justice" they had sworn to defend with their lives?
Once trust collapses, it is hard to rebuild.
At that moment, at Marine Headquarters Marineford, the current Fleet Admiral Steel Bone · Kong was frantically dealing with the chain of events triggered by the light screen.
In the Fleet Admiral's office, the Den Den Mushi calls had barely stopped.
Urgent reports from branches, panicked questions from allied kingdoms… all kinds of voices mixed together, suffocating even this famously composed Fleet Admiral.
"You're saying Garp, Sengoku, Tsuru, and Zephyr are all in God Valley?"
Steel Bone · Kong roared into the Den Den Mushi, veins bulging on his forehead: "And Roger, Rocks, Whitebeard… all the great pirates are there too?!! What the hell is going on?!!!"
He slammed the receiver down and paced irritably around the office.
He had caught only glimpses of the light screen's content, but even those fragments…
The Celestial Dragons' atrocities, the Five Elders' monstrous forms, the mysterious entity Imu, the taboo names!
They were enough to make even a Fleet Admiral's scalp tingle and worldview tremble.
"No more waiting."
Steel Bone · Kong stopped pacing, resolve flashing in his eyes: "Prepare the ship! Immediately! I'm going to God Valley myself! We have to figure out exactly what's happening!
"That idiot Garp… what the hell is he doing!"
As the Marines' highest combat power, he could not sit idly while the situation spiraled completely out of control.
The battlefield at God Valley had become the eye of the storm deciding the future direction of the world.
The appearance of the light screen affected not only the major figures and civilians of the present, but also planted seeds of destiny-altering change in the hearts of certain specific young people.
On a certain island, a tall young man wearing a strange sleep cap and with a passionate expression was excitedly looking up at the light screen in the sky.
When he saw his future self—the "Aokiji" Admiral who rode a bicycle leisurely across the sea yet possessed the power to freeze oceans…
He rarely widened his eyes.
"Ara ara…"
Kuzan scratched his head, a complex look on his face: "The me of the future… actually became a Marine Admiral? And acting like this? That's… quite the impressive future, huh?"
He originally had little interest in joining the Marines and preferred wandering and adventuring at his own leisurely pace.
But seeing that future self—who appeared carefree yet bore the responsibility of "justice"—quietly loosened something in a corner of his heart.
On a bustling island in the Grand Line, a black-haired young man lounging on a bench with his legs crossed was idly picking at his nails.
When he saw his future self turning into golden light, fighting in an almost playful manner while saying "So scary~," he couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Yo~"
Borsalino drawled, a playful glint flashing behind his light-colored sunglasses: "Marine Admiral or whatever… so scary~ But… it seems kinda fun too?"
He had zero interest in grand concepts like power or justice, but the light screen's depiction of that free-spirited, seemingly detached yet all-controlling demeanor… inexplicably suited his taste perfectly.
And in the ruins of a town where the fires of war had just been extinguished, a stern-faced young man with burning eyes was clenching his fists so hard his nails dug into his palms.
When he saw his future self transformed into magma—the Akainu Admiral who, in the name of absolute "justice," would spare no cost to eradicate "evil"—there was no confusion in his eyes, only an even fiercer flame.
"Damn pirates, chaotic order…"
Sakazuki gritted his teeth and growled under his breath: "I see it… I see it all! But the me of the future isn't doing enough!
It has to be more thorough! More resolute! All 'evil'… must be completely eradicated from this world!!!"
The future shown in the light screen did not shake him—instead, it strengthened his conviction even further.
Only this conviction's extremity would likely form earlier and more fiercely than in the original course of history.
On a peaceful island, inside a quiet casino…
A mild-faced young man in a purple kimono—"Issho"—set down his teacup and "looked" toward the sky outside the window.
He sensed the existence of the light screen and heard the surrounding people's shocked exclamations and discussions.
"My future… huh?"
Issho murmured to himself, a bitter yet relieved curve appearing at the corners of his mouth: "Losing my sight… yet becoming the 'Fujitora' Admiral, judging good and evil with the justice in my heart… That's really… hard to believe."
At this time, he had not yet blinded himself after witnessing the cruelty and injustice of the world; his heart still held beautiful expectations for it.
But the future self shown in the light screen—the one who punished evil with gravity, harbored compassion yet had to confront the dark side of the World Government—plunged him into deep contemplation.
The seeds of the future had already been sown.
Kuzan's laziness gained a trace of responsibility.
Borsalino's nonchalance hid a hint of seriousness.
Sakazuki's flames of justice burned even more extremely.
Beneath Issho's calm state of mind, the pursuit of "true justice" had taken root.
And at this moment, high above God Valley, the all-devouring white light finally began to slowly dissipate.
...
(Note: Green Bull exists, but he hasn't appeared yet. He doesn't know he'll become a Marine Admiral either—let's wait until he shows up!)