Public Execution

"Public execution… so it's come to this after all?"

Jon felt a heavy weight in his heart upon learning that Roger was to be publicly executed.

Fleet Admiral Kong had sent Garp to speak with Roger, and the results were significant—Roger agreed to the public execution but insisted that it take place in his hometown, Loguetown in the East Blue.

Hearing this, Kong actually felt relieved.

From the current situation, it seemed that Roger had no intention of leaving Marineford after surrendering. Otherwise, he wouldn't have chosen his own execution site.

However, Kong still couldn't understand Roger's true intentions. Did he have some hidden reason? Or was it simply that, as the Pirate King, he wanted a death as grand as his title?

But whatever the reason, it no longer mattered to Kong. The important thing was that Roger was going to die.

For now, the decision was not yet made public. Only Marine personnel were aware. Kong was waiting—he wanted the news of Roger's capture to spread far and wide before announcing the execution. That way, the impact would be enormous, and the Marines could use Roger's death to assert their dominance and strike fear into the pirate world.

Jon, after hearing the news, thought about it for a moment and then took the initiative to seek out Vice Admiral Tsuru.

He knew he couldn't directly advise Kong, but if he could convince Tsuru, she might relay his concerns. After all, she had far more influence than he did.

When Jon entered Tsuru's office, she was buried in stacks of reports, carefully analyzing intelligence. She didn't even acknowledge his presence at first.

After a long while, she finally set her documents aside, stretching her stiff body. The past few days had been exhausting, requiring constant mental effort to sift through valuable intelligence.

"Did you come here for a reason?" Tsuru asked, rubbing her temples. "If it's not something important, don't waste my time. I'm very busy."

Jon's face was serious. "Vice Admiral, it's about Roger."

"Roger?" Tsuru looked surprised. "What do you know?"

"I think Roger's surrender is all part of his plan," Jon said. "He must be plotting something."

Tsuru's gaze sharpened. "And what kind of plan would require him to throw away his life?"

Jon hesitated for a moment before saying, "What if… he was already dying?"

Tsuru's expression changed. "What do you mean?"

Jon explained, "You should know that a few years ago, I was on Roger's ship for a short time. I often saw his ship's doctor examining him. If his health wasn't failing, why would he need frequent medical check-ups?"

Tsuru muttered, "If Roger really is terminally ill, then his surrender makes more sense. He doesn't want to die quietly—he wants his death to be as grand as his life."

She considered the idea but quickly refuted it. "This is just your speculation."

Jon replied, "It's easy to confirm. Have a doctor examine him. Then we'll know for sure."

"You're right," Tsuru admitted. "If Roger is indeed dying, we'll be able to confirm it. I'll report this to the Fleet Admiral."

Jon felt relieved. He believed that if Kong and the others learned that Roger was terminally ill, they would be more cautious, and perhaps there would still be a way to prevent disaster.

However, he underestimated human nature.

A few days later, the Marines officially announced the news to the world:

In one month, Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King, will be publicly executed in Loguetown, East Blue.

The moment the news broke, the world was in an uproar. The reaction was even greater than when the Marines first announced Roger's capture.

Countless people felt an uncontrollable excitement upon hearing the news.

Loguetown, a small and insignificant town in the East Blue, suddenly became the center of the world's attention.

When Jon learned of this, he fell silent for a long time before sighing.

He knew that Kong and the others had surely examined Roger and confirmed his terminal illness. But in the end, they still chose to go through with the execution.

The truth was simple: they couldn't resist the temptation of publicly executing the Pirate King.

And to be fair, their decision wasn't necessarily wrong.

After all, this was the Pirate King, the first—and perhaps the only—man to ever claim that title.

Executing Roger would be a massive victory for the Marines, boosting their prestige and serving as a warning to all pirates.

Even if Kong had his doubts, the Five Elders of the World Government would have undoubtedly pushed for the execution.

Jon had been too naïve.

Because he knew the future, he understood the consequences of Roger's actions.

But no one else did. Right now, all they saw were the benefits. Even if they suspected something was off, the advantages were simply too overwhelming to ignore.

At this point, even if he were a Marine Admiral, he wouldn't be able to change anything. The World Government had already made its decision.

"There's nothing I can do… I'll just let things play out."

Jon decided to stop trying. His influence was simply too limited. Even if he explicitly warned them of the dangers, not only would they ignore him, but they might even suspect how he knew so much. That would only bring trouble upon himself.

"Roger… you're truly brilliant," Jon muttered.

"The World Government and the Marines have walked straight into your trap. Even decades after your death, you'll still be a legend."

Since he couldn't change anything, Jon focused on what he could do—training.

With Roger's death, a new era of chaos was about to begin.

The next era would be one of the Four Emperors, where the strongest pirates would battle for supremacy. The seas would become more dangerous than ever.

He needed strength. More strength than ever before.

One morning, just after breakfast, Jon was preparing for training when suddenly—

RUMBLE!

The ground trembled violently, as if struck by an earthquake.

"What's happening?"

He turned toward Marineford's harbor, where a loud explosion had just erupted.

Although he didn't know what had happened, one thing was certain—

That tremor came from the bay.

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