Chapter 26: Those Scum Deserve to Die!

Once the dust had finally settled, Vice Admiral Garp and Rear Admiral Roca arrived with their Marine forces at the royal palace of the Kingdom of Neil.

They were like the righteous heroes in a movie, who always arrived fashionably late never absent, but never quite on time either.

Outside the grand hall, the violent winds subsided. Kuzan released his icy powers, and the wall of ice crumbled into shards.

Yorichi Tsugikuni and Kuzan stepped out of the great hall just in time to see Garp and Roca leading a detachment of Marines, surrounding the entire palace.

Yorichi's gaze lingered on Garp and Roca only briefly before drifting toward the distant palace walls.

There was now a massive hole punched through the towering palace wall. Beside it stood the palace gates, wide open as if nothing unusual had happened.

Yorichi was certain that the Mud-Mud Fruit user who'd created the fortress had already been dealt with by the time Garp and the others arrived. Yet even so, Garp still refused to take a normal route into the palace.

When Garp and Roca saw Kuzan and Yorichi emerge from the hall, they merely cast a quick glance inside, then focused their eyes on the two younger men.

Garp chuckled and patted Rear Admiral Roca heartily on the back, speaking with a note of pride.

"Uncle Roca, my two brats here already handled everything."

"No need to thank me."

"I'll let you have the credit this time. Just help keep an eye on them for me whenever they get into trouble, will you?"

Garp's grin was bright as ever. With his sharp Observation Haki, he already understood perfectly what had taken place inside the hall. The headless corpse beside the throne was obviously Yorichi's handiwork, and those scattered shards of ice were clearly the result of Kuzan's powers.

Garp knew these two young men and their fighting styles extremely well.

He remembered vividly how, when he first brought Yorichi out of Ryugin Island, the boy had single-handedly wiped out a group of pirates beheading them all, swift and merciless, exactly as he'd done today.

As for Kuzan, his Devil Fruit powers were hardly a secret among the Marines. Besides, Kuzan had already served under Garp for some time, giving Garp plenty of insight into his abilities.

"Hmph!"

"Why the hell would I thank you?!"

"You're lucky I'm not holding you accountable."

"The pirates were already dealt with by these two kids, yet you still had to smash a hole through the palace wall."

"You think you're not going to pay for that?!"

"I'm reporting this to Kong. The repair costs are coming out of your salary!"

Roca let out a sharp snort, glaring in frustration. But Garp only responded with a blank, carefree look, casually picking his nose with his pinky as if Roca's words meant absolutely nothing.

Seeing Garp acting so shameless, Roca could only sigh helplessly. He waved over his adjutant, whispered a few instructions, and then turned back toward Yorichi and Kuzan. His demeanor shifted entirely as he broke into a warm smile.

"You two young men are quite impressive!"

"I received intelligence that the attackers were the Newk Pirates."

"Their captain, Newk, was a Logia-type user of the Mud-Mud Fruit, with a bounty as high as two hundred million!"

"He caused no end of trouble back in the North Blue. He was quite a formidable opponent."

"And his crew included some real heavy hitters. For you two to wipe out the entire Newk Pirates that's extraordinary!"

"To be able to accomplish this at such a young age… you're far more capable than I ever was."

Roca spoke openly, his admiration for Kuzan and Yorichi plain in his voice. A bright, appreciative smile lit up his face as he praised them both.

Just then, Roca's adjutant returned to his side and reported:

"Rear Admiral Roca, there are no more enemies left in the hall. We've recovered the king's body, and we successfully rescued the queen and several of the maidservants."

"We also found the corpse of Newk, captain of the Newk Pirates. It's confirmed that Newk has been executed."

"It's just… the rest of the Newk Pirates—"

Before the adjutant could finish, Roca waved a hand and interrupted him with a chuckle.

"Just record them all as eliminated."

"These young men these days… they're truly something else!"

Roca's eyes lingered on Kuzan for a moment before turning to study Yorichi. He already knew quite a bit about Kuzan's abilities. But it was the teenage Yorichi who genuinely astonished him.

Roca's Observation Haki was exceedingly sharp. He'd already grasped the full picture of what had transpired inside the hall. The state of Newk's corpse cleanly beheaded, with scarcely a sign of battle left no doubt.

It was an instant kill. A decisive, absolute instant kill.

Roca knew perfectly well that such a feat wasn't Kuzan's style.

Kuzan was well-known in the Navy, and his fighting methods were nothing like that. Which meant the one who had slain Newk could only be the youth standing beside Kuzan this boy named Yorichi Tsugikuni.

A single strike to decapitate a pirate with a bounty of two hundred million.

"If I'm not mistaken, Garp once told me that you're only twelve years old, isn't that right?"

"Heh heh heh… Yorichi Tsugikuni, correct? Following Garp around might be wasting your talents. Tell me, would you be interested in coming under my command instead?"

"I'd treat you like my successor and train you properly."

Roca leaned forward slightly and gave Yorichi a gentle pat on the shoulder. He made no attempt to hide his affection for the young swordsman. Right there, in front of Garp, he brazenly tried to poach him.

Yorichi blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected this kindly old rear admiral to make such a sudden offer. He let out a small laugh and shook his head.

"I appreciate your kindness, Rear Admiral Roca. But I'd still prefer to sail with Vice Admiral Garp."

"I want to see more of the wider world."

Yorichi declined without the slightest hesitation. Although Roca was a warm and friendly old man, and Yorichi held no dislike for him, staying in a local Marine branch simply couldn't compare to sailing the seas under Garp's command.

At the very least, Garp was one of the strongest Marines Yorichi knew. And right now, Roger was still running rampant across the seas. Following Garp gave Yorichi the chance to witness the true might of the Pirate King himself. For someone fascinated by the strength of those who stood at the summit of the seas, that was simply irresistible.

Yorichi was pure-hearted by nature. He had no interest in wealth, fame, or power.

He only wished that when he traveled this world, he wouldn't always have to see ruined cities and fields littered with corpses.

He wanted to keep growing stronger, so he could stand against powerful enemies and defeat them.

Training, for him, was addictive. Much like an athlete becoming hooked on working out.

Watching his body change for the better, feeling his strength increase little by little that kind of satisfaction was indescribable.

And battle itself was an addiction, too. The thrill of defeating a powerful foe brought Yorichi a deep and unmatched sense of fulfillment.

"I see… that's truly a shame."

"I know you're not officially a Marine yet. Whether it's Garp or Zephyr, neither of them will try to limit your freedom."

"Yorichi, if you ever have time, you're welcome to come visit me."

The brief flicker of disappointment on Roca's face vanished as quickly as it had appeared. He gave Yorichi a warm, cheerful smile. Then, without lingering, he turned to begin directing the branch officers to clean up the battlefield and comfort the victims.

From there, the matter was no longer connected to Yorichi and Kuzan. A Marine lieutenant came to take their statements about what had happened, but soon allowed the two of them to leave.

Kuzan and Yorichi found themselves wandering back toward the same little food street they'd visited earlier. They strolled around and grabbed some snacks. But in the aftermath of the incident with the Newk Pirates, neither was truly in high spirits. After a short time, they returned quietly to the Marine base.

"Pirates… they really are running wild."

"All for the sake of chasing wealth and power, they'll harm innocent people without a second thought. Scum like that… they all deserve to die."

Somewhere on the grassy lawn within the Marine base, Yorichi was sitting beneath a tree, eyes closed in silent meditation.

Emptying the mind through quiet sitting and meditation was, for him, a great way to relax.

Beside him, Kuzan lay sprawled on the grass, hands folded behind his head, gazing up at the blue sky. After a long silence, he suddenly spoke.

Several hours had passed since the battle, but the memories were still vivid in Kuzan's mind. He was still in that stage of youthful righteous fury a young Marine whose hatred for evil burned hot and fierce. His anger hadn't yet faded.

"Yeah, they deserve to die. But isn't that exactly why you joined the Marines to punish people like them?"

"And you did it. So why keep dwelling on things that only make you upset?"

Yorichi opened his eyes and stared at him in mild exasperation. He was trying to meditate in peace, but this idiot beside him kept grumbling and venting his frustration. He would never have guessed that the aloof, icy Kuzan he knew could have been such a fiery youth in his younger days.

"Ha!"

"Yeah. I joined the Marines to punish bastards like that!"

"And I did."

Kuzan nodded, muttering quietly. He fell silent for a few moments.

"Those scum… they really fucking deserve to die."

Out of nowhere, after barely a few minutes of silence, Kuzan suddenly burst out cursing under his breath once again.

"…"