One Piece: Path to Power

Chapter 153: [153] The Last Stand (IV)

[4200 words]

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""Judgement Day!""

The torrent of pure destruction howled forward, showing no chance of stopping or slowing down. 

The mellow night that had arrived had just as quickly disappeared—the combination of blue and red lit up the island and the nearby seas in its catastrophic delight. Incessant shockwaves raged out from the attack, leaving a trail of annihilation in its wake. The atmosphere nearby cracked, shattered and was turned to nothingness. 

It was an attack beyond anything God Valley had seen and was enough to sink the island. 

.

The Marines were shaken as the attack spanned nearly 50 meters in diameter and eclipsed the evening sun into oblivion—it was inescapable.

"Damn!" Kong cursed, feeling the boiling heat of the attack barely a hundred meters away. The tips of his hair were already burning away! 

His battle-hardened mind was firing, devising the best way to resolve this. Ultimately, even Mythical Zoans couldn't walk free from such a cacophony of devastation.

"Phantom! Portal me out!" Garling roared with fear stuck to his tongue.

Upon his command, a dark entity shrouded in gloom appeared, opening a portal to retreat—Garling was an ambitious man vying for the spot of an Elder; he had no intention of dying here!

Surprisingly enough, a sole marine made a move even before anyone could go further… an action that shocked everyone.

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* Calm and collected footsteps.

"I've been an Admiral for a decade now," a voice resounded, somehow overshadowing the approaching hell. I've seen great pirates rise and fall…" 

Its calm yet disappointed tone didn't fit in the current context. "My personal Justice has been stained. I disgraced my position as an Admiral and brought shame upon the Navy."

The voice grew firmer, becoming more resolute the closer the attack got. "This war represents the future of the Marines… If I can no longer live for justice, I'll die for it!"

The tattered man walked forward, utterly unfazed by the destructive force before him. An ant facing down the boot that would surely crush it. 

"Basara…" Kong muttered. 

The Mountain did not respond to the others and faced off against what would surely end him.

Without hesitation, he extended both arms out. With tears appearing over his body and face from the howling winds, he declared, "I failed once before… I will not fail again, even if it comes at the cost of my life!"

*Rumble* Boom!

Tremors tore through God Valley, splitting the earth into jagged shards of rock. Basara let out a thunderous roar, every ounce of his power pouring from his body. The island quaked under his command, tipping the balance as the destructive force summoned by Whitebeard and Damien closed in, now only ten meters away.

His power reached deep into the island's core, transforming magma, metal, and minerals into pure earth. Mountains erupted from the seafloor, merging with the shattered land at his will.

"I leave the fate of the world in your hands!" he bellowed to his comrades before standing alone against the island-sinking onslaught.

…

Damien's eyes narrowed as he watched the towering Admiral stand defiantly against the attack. The attack wasn't meant for this. The power of Judgment Day was supposed to wipe out the Marines and carve an escape route for his crew. But Basara—that damn fool—had thrown himself into the destruction.

"Dammit, Basara!" Damien's heart pounded in his chest, blood rushing through his veins as he gritted his teeth. His body ached from the battle, muscles trembling from exhaustion. But the future the Sin Incarnate saw left him angered—this wasn't supposed to happen.

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"Trembling Earth: Absolute Justice!"

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A massive shield, sixty meters tall, rose from the ground, forged from the very essence of God Valley. It weighed over a dozen mountains, and every rock fused together under Basara's control. The front of the shield shimmered with Haki, his last reserves spent fortifying its defense.

For a brief moment, the world stood still. Basara closed his eyes and took a deep breath, bracing himself.

Then, hell arrived.

BOOOOOOM!

The shield met the full force of the attack, and Basara's eyes flew open. His muscles bulged, veins bursting from the immense pressure.

"Auuugghh!" he howled, pushing back with sheer will.

*Crack!* His left forearm snapped, bones ripping through skin. His right knee buckled, forcing him to one knee as blood streamed from his eyes, ears, and mouth.

Boom! *Krrrr* The earth wall groaned under the strain, fractures spreading like lightning. It slowly but inevitably gave way—an earthquake clashing with pure Pulverization.

Boom!

The shield exploded, the attack drilling through its core and slamming into Basara. His body was torn apart, bones shattering, muscles ripping as the force broke him down to the atomic level.

His skin boiled away, exposing raw muscle, but still, the attack continued. He was falling, his body giving out.

But in one final act of defiance, his left foot slammed down, steadying him. His eye, the only one left, burned with unyielding determination.

'The Rocks Pirates will end today!'

Basara locked his body in place with a final burst of willpower, activating Iron Body to face the onslaught head-on—sealing his fate.

Black lightning sparked through the air from the attack while a blue sphere stretched for kilometers. The ball of destruction further contained violent crimson energy, some even tearing through the sphere and piercing the broken clouds. The tides born from the shockwave would carry on for hundreds of kilometers, washing West Blue without end.

Every ounce of the hell concentrated on the lone Marine.

[Spectacle Image (in Discord)]

…

It took a good two minutes for the spectacle to die out.

In a single attack, God Valley had been assaulted by twin natural disasters. One look and it would leave people frightened.

The Pirates stood a good 150 meters from the Marines' side.

A direct line spanning 50 meters in width connected the two like a road. Only this passage was bubbling with molten metal and lava!

It was reduced to pure devastation, almost as if every natural disaster known to man had passed by.

Yet after 140 meters, the molten road of death abruptly ended, and all that remained beyond it was a piece of dusty fabric with the word "Justice" written in bold ink.

A heavy-hearted Kong stepped ahead, absently staring at the ashes decorating around the scorched cape. "...Basara," he breathed with a shaky voice.

…

The situation on the other side, too, was unexpected.

"Ugh!" Damien collapsed to one knee, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

His hand trembled uncontrollably, a violent shudder that refused to stop. Sweat poured from his brow, dripping down his gaunt cheeks as his vision blurred at the edges. He glanced down at his arm, the veins beneath his skin pulsing unnaturally, darkening as if his blood had turned corrosive.

"Not now!" His heart pounded painfully in his chest, so fast it felt like it might burst, and a sharp pain shot through his side. He wiped his nose absentmindedly, only to see streaks of crimson on the back of his hand.

"I didn't let him live at G-2 to piss me off right now!" Damien complained, feeling his muscles locking up from the overuse of the energy drugs.

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Whitebeard huffed but remained standing. He placed his trusty glaive to the side, acting as support. "Stamina to fight this long has to be built over decades, Damien. You're shortening your life."

But his words were met with deaf ears.

"Pablo."

The Drug Lord, who had been caretaking after the unconscious Hensō and Kaen, jumped to attention.

Pablo saw the look in Damien's eyes and shook his head. "Patrón, any more of my shots, and you'll put too much pressure on your heart!"

Damien didn't take no for an answer: "Just do it."

Pablo gulped and slowly took out his gun. With a sigh, he unloaded some shots.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Only for the result to leave him speechless. "How come?" Pablo wondered, seeing no change in his Commander's condition. 

…

Meanwhile, the dust had now settled, unveiling a sight of utter dismay.

"Basara is dead. His sacrifice will not be for nothing!" Kong roared. He was not the only one furious about The Mountain's fate either.

A giant Buddha whizzed across the battlefield, regret etched on his face. To his side was a handsome Celestial Dragon, his fury directed at the state of the Cradle of the Gods.

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"Impact Wave!"

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"Saintly Surge!"

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Whitebeard clicked his tongue. With a light sigh, he slashed the Supreme Blade, amplified with quake energy.

BOOOM!

The titan gnashed his teeth, feeling his boots dig deep into the barren land. 

"You can't save him, Newgate!"

Sengoku's right palm quivered with vast energy. The howling shockwaves pulsed with a heartbeat, getting smaller and thinner—he was concentrating the attack into a thin stream!

Boom!

Whitebeard was quickly sent back, his towering body grinding his feet into the ground to stay up, his glaive acting like a break. With an annoyed grunt, he glared up to see the combined might of Sengoku and Garling continuing the assault.

The last thing he saw before being shot away was the Fleet Admiral folding Basara's cape neatly and walking toward the downed Damien.

"I will bury Basara later, but first…" Kong glared at the fallen pirate. 

'He can no longer enter his Logia-like state. Now, to finally finish what should have ended a long time ago!' With resolve burning in his heart, the top Marine exploded into his 50-foot-tall frame, growling out his frustrations.

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"Drums of Justice!"

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Boom!

Kaboom!

Bang!

BOOM!

The fireball was nearly 10,000 Celsius in temperature, quickly obliterating everything in its path. Every beat created a dozen such explosions, chaining through the land and covering the pirate side with hell itself.

"..."

Kong raised a furry eyebrow, momentarily pausing his assault.

Damien was still down, yet his Haki signature was as bright as before—someone had gotten in the way!

Kong recognized the obstacle as the smoke cleared up.

The man had cracked armour all around. Some metal shards fell every so often, exposing the man from within. Blood dribbled out from the visor of the mask, yet the axe in the man's hand was just as sharp as before.

"Silver Axe. Do you really want to die for a pirate under Rocks?" 

The silver eyes locked onto that of the Ape's, showing determination as he slammed the butt of his weapon into the ground. "If he was just another pirate, then you would not be so adamant in taking him down." 

"I was there when this young man faced off against Sengoku. It would be a shame for him to die now, don't you agree, Fleet Admiral?"

Kong scoffed, returning to his previous attack. "Then I will extinguish you!"

BOOM!

Kaboom!

BAM!

The drums played their devasting tune once more, forcing Silver Axe to his knees and his armour to dust.

A huffing Damien absently watched as he saw the man's weathered face under the broken armour. 

The golden pupils hid a smirk even under fireballs. "Avenge us, Damien."

Those were the final words before the knight was scorched into oblivion, right before the Sin Incarnate's eyes. 

'I got too confident,' Damien grumbled while applying Life Return to squeeze any energy left, only to meet another dead-end.

BOOM!

Kaboom!

BAM!

The Fleet Admiral continued his bombardment to vanquish the younger threat, only to arrive at the same outcome—more nuisances in the way.

Kong growled past his giant fangs, this time seeing two giant silhouettes that could be made out.

"The fools of the Fourth Division…not enough!" He recognized them: two Ancient Zoans tanking the hits while a rested-up Kaen and Hensō behind them.

"Kuhuhuhu! How about you add the toughness of a Mythical Zoan in the mix!"

A proud Solomon in his Wendigo appeared alongside the others, his body bursting into black smoke. "Indra's out cold from that annoying sand kitty… It's my turn to help the Boss!"

Kong leaned his savage face at the line of threats; a particular one required careful thinking: "It would be problematic for another Mythical Zoan to enter reincarnation. Phantom, move him aside while I end the others."

"Wai–" Solomon couldn't even finish his defiant roar before the shrouded agent opened a portal under his feet and portalled him kilometers away.

"I give you four the choice to lay down your weapons and surrender for a shorter sentence," the overwhelming Fleet Admiral offered, his body smoking with black vapour. 

Yet no reply came.

"Cheh. So you will die for a man who hoped for his own Captain's death?"

Kaen chuckled, shaking his head. He raised his right hand, sparkling with flame, "Oye, oye, you overgrown gorilla! Perhaps you didn't know… but we're the Fodders of the Fourth Division! Dying was part of the job description!"

Hensō nodded and threw on a fiery mask. "I've already lost everything at the Superbia. Dying here doesn't sound so bad." Flames ignited along his arms, conveying the rage in his heart.

"Then fulfill your destiny in fire and blood!"

Boom!

Kaboom!

Bang!

BAM!

The colossal Ape continued the bombardment, raining hell onto the extinct creatures.

"Ugh, Majajaja! I-It doesn't hurt one bit!"

"Arai body crumbling… Sweating many tiny rocks…"

Kaen roared through the hellfire that exploded around him, snapping his fingers to fight fire with fire. Hensō unleashed similar firepower hoping to cancel out the incoming explosions.

The Ankylosaurus and Titanoboa were spaced out as much as possible, hoping to protect the recovering Damien. Spurts and geysers of blood poured from the tough skin, painting the rugged ground a fresh red.

…

"Patrón, your body has created an immunity for the drug to work!" the short man remarked. His face was a sweaty mess from being so close to hell. 

Damien placed his hand over his chest, feeling the unstable heartbeat.

He looked up at the scene of red and orange that dominated the darkening skies of God Valley. The grunts and wails of the four fodder found their way to the Commander.

"Give me ten times the dosage."

Pablo gawked, his jaw dropping to the floor. "T-That will shave off at least ten years of your life!"

But all he got in return were cold and firm eyes.

…

Kong roared out, releasing the attacks without mercy. The fallen Basara had left him furious; an Admiral, a beacon of Marine supremacy, died. Furthermore, it was right after his oldest brother-in-arms, Xerxes, had been killed.

"Blood is repaid with blood is something you pirates should understand…so die!"

Boom!

Kaboom!

BAM!

"Hmm!?" Kong calmed his thoughts, glaring at the giant plume of smoke that spanned nearly half of God Valley.

The two giant Zoans had disappeared, and their human forms collapsed to the ground. Two other collections of ashes were nearby.

With a sniff of the ashy air, the Fleet Admiral said, "Einar D. Damien. Here I thought you'd use their sacrifice to escap—hmm?"

His eyes turned to examine the standing threat—something was afoot.

"The life force within you has shrunk… You gave up so much of your life," Kong growled, ignoring the crackling Haki seething from the undying pirate's body. His voice oozed venom, pressing the wound deeper. "And still, you failed to save them."

Damien exhaled lightly, his face an emotionless mask.

"They may have signed their lives away the moment they joined the Fourth Division," he began, his voice calm, almost detached. But there was a weight in his words—a weight Kong had yet to understand. "But that's the thing, Kong. They're my fodder. Their deaths… are mine to decide, not yours."

He cast his gaze over the ashes scattered across the dusty grounds—remnants of Silver Axe, Kaen, Majin, Arai, and Hensō. Each name weighed on him like a leaden chain wrapped around his soul. For a moment, his calm faltered.

"They knew they would die... but their life wasn't yours to take." His eyes darkened as he continued, the rage simmering beneath his stoic exterior threatening to surface.

"Ravager," he whispered, and with a slow, deliberate breath, he materialized Ryushi in hand, the once smooth blade now trembling with violent intent.

"Blood is repaid with blood, isn't that what you said?" Damien's voice sharpened, cold and piercing. He snapped his fingers, and a crimson glow flickered across the remains of the fallen men. 

Their ashes began to swirl around Ryushi, fusing with the sword, each particle a reminder of the lives lost, of the sacrifices made.

*Vvooo!*

The streams of ash twisted around the Supreme Blade, imbuing it with a ruinous edge, radiating with the fury of the fallen. Damien's grip tightened on Ryushi as he prepared to deliver the justice stolen from him.

His left boot sank into the ground, gathering his energy. And with a sudden bang, he launched forward, a single dauntless charge, Ryushi quaking with vengeance.

Kong scoffed at the reckless attack, raising his massive head in disdain. "Your helplessness has made you lose your mind, Sin Incarnate! You're a fool!"

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"Drums of Justice!"

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The Zoan-like monster bashed both his chests, unleashing a fireball blessed with flowing Haki.

Damien's midair assault was engulfed in a ten-meter-wide explosion that bubbled with enough heat to melt rock into lava!

It was the same attack that had kept the Sin Incarnate at bay for the past two days.

Kong expected the same result, confident that the scorching sea of hellfire would engulf his enemy again. Only this time, through the thick, fiery haze, he saw something that froze him in his tracks—a pair of razor-sharp eyes cutting through the flames, locked onto him with terrifying precision.

"Ryushi Combat Arts…"

A shiver ran down Kong's spine as realization dawned too late. The hair all over his colossal body stood on end in cold fright. 'H-His internal Haki… has evolved!'

Damien's Black Body had taken a final step forward, too far advanced for Kong to react in time. The Fleet Admiral could only raise his thick right arm in a desperate attempt to defend his throat.

.

"...Requiem."

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The Supreme Blade cleaved through the air with savage intent, the power to atomize anything in its path. 

*Grrrr!* Ryushi crashed into Kong's arm with brutal force, sparks of crimson energy exploding from the impact. The blade sliced deep through fur, muscle, and bone, severing the limb in one swift, merciless strike.

Within moments, a hairy arm was sent hurtling through the air, severed clean. And Damien, eyes blazing with resolve, powered through the narrow opening he had created, closing in on Kong's exposed throat.

He was there, the tip of Ryushi sinking into the Fleet Admiral's skin, moments from ending him…

But then something else came—something fast, something powerful—narrowing in on the bloodthirsty pirate from the side.

*BAM!*

Without warning, Damien's world spun into chaos. His view of Kong's frightened eyes and the ruins of God Valley blurred into a tunnel of dust and debris as an unseen force collided with him, smashing him from midair. The impact was jarring and violent, sending him careening through the air with unrelenting force.

He grunted in pain as his body was sent flying, hurtling through dozens of meters of dense earth, the momentum drilling him through the ground with the force of a warship ramming into a cliffside.

…

"Haaah, huuuh," Kong breathed, his eyes absently looking to the distance.

He gulped away the fear of death coursing through his mind. The pain from his missing right arm was secondary; he was more focused on memory from years ago…

"Ruhahaha! So the Navy sent a fresh Admiral to test me out? Show me what ya got!"

A shameful stain on Kong's name.

"Hehe, that's some tough skin you'd find on a Zoan!"

He then remembered the bone-chilling cold when faced with death.

"Dammit, Endou! I almost took the head of your precious successor!"

Kong growled, gnashing his fangs together with such anger that bits of enamel flew out. He slammed the ground in a rage, furious at the two similar faces coinciding decades apart.

"Ares…Damien…"

The enraged Fleet Admiral gave out a venomous roar, shaking the Cradle of the Gods with his might.

It was only when the other person present spoke did Kong calm down: "I've never seen you so pissed, Kong-san."

A heavy breath escaped the beast's maw as he looked down to acknowledge the man who saved him.

A tattered white sailor shirt with black pants. The sleeves were up to his elbows, unveiling two thick arms that hid the strength to flatten entire mountains. He had short black hair, a burly body and a small scar around his left eye.

"Garp…" Kong lightly spoke, his mind calmer. "You saved me from certain death."

The Marine known as The Fist shrugged, but his eyes betrayed great surprise at the turn of events.

When Garp fell asleep after Xebec's death, he thought he would wake up to a complete victory on the Navy's end. Still, he wasn't even remotely close—Kong losing his right arm to Damien was even crazier!

"It's time to end this war, old man," Garp sighed, breathing in all the death and suffering that befell the sacred land of God Valley in the past nine days.

…

The scene of Damien being swatted aside after the death of nearly the entire Fourth Division was seen by all.

An annoyed Whitebeard roared, sinking his unstoppable fist into the fabric of space. "You Marines are really getting carried away!"

Thick cracks spread across the air, spreading through and beyond as the creaking howled from the pressure. They kept branching and went all the way from the surface to the scarred skies above!

BOOM!

A single punch and God Valley was shaking, crying out in pain. Sengoku held a golden arm across his face, squinting at the island-ratting power. His feet dug into the weeping ground while torrents opened up countless cuts across his golden frame.

"W-What ridiculous power!" 

Saint Garling shrank behind the Buddha, his shaken eyes concealed behind the sweaty hair that had scattered across his forehead. "Looks like we overlooked the Titans a bit too much," Garling huffed out his frustrations.

"Huh?"

The two looked to the side, looking at a Cipher Pol Agent appearing from the darkness.

"Admiral Sengoku, Saint Garling. Urgent news!" Phantom's voice was sharp, and his urgency was clear.

"Then speak, Phantom," Garling snapped, his patience thin.

Phantom bowed quickly before delivering the bombshell. "The fleet escorting the surviving Celestial Dragons… it's been attacked by pirates!"

Sengoku's eyes widened, shock rippling through him. "Pirates? Who has the guts to pull that off? Who is it?!"

Phantom gulped, visibly shaken. "The Kuja Pirates… led by the Black Death!"

"Kuja Pirates?" Sengoku muttered in disbelief. "Shakuyaku? She should be retired by now…"

Phantom shook his head. "It's not just her… Silvers Rayleigh is with her!"

Garling's fists clenched tight, his knuckles white. The image of Roger flashed in his mind. "Damn them! Filthy pirate scum!"

Sengoku's voice was tinged with concern. "Is Roger involved, too?"

"No," Phantom replied quickly, shaking his head. "It seems to be Rayleigh acting on his own. But that's not all—tsunamis and storms have been battering nearby nations for days, and they're demanding Navy aid. The West Blue Mafia is also stirring, sensing our resources are stretched thin."

Garling's grip tightened on his saber. "There's more, isn't there? Spit it out!"

Phantom took a deep breath. "Golden Lion Shiki attacked G-1. There's… nothing left."

Boom!

Sengoku slammed his fist into the ground, cracks spidering from the impact. He shot a look toward Newgate, a grim realization setting in. "Maybe we weren't ready to wipe out the Rocks Pirates after all…"

.

Meanwhile, Whitebeard, who had used the past few moments to catch his breath and confirm the safety of Damien, Indra, Solomon and Pablo with his Observation.

The main problem was a rested Garp, but naturally, Newgate's expression revealed no such worry. "What? Having second thoughts now, Gurarara!"

*Thwack!* But it was then a loud slam that broke the turbulent situation up even more. 

Whitebeard, Sengoku, Garling and Phantom were all left staring blankly at the older man who had arrived.

Amid a pirate of earthquakes, a mythical Daibutsu, a mysterious phantom and World Noble was now an elderly man, standing tall and proud. His esteemed presence was unexpected from either side.

His voice carried with it an unnerving authority as he approached with a cane, unflinching in the face of the destruction around him. "Rocks has already been dealt with," he said softly, yet his words cut through the chaos like a blade. "We are satisfied with the results."

"S-Saint Saturn, I thought you had taken your leave…!" Phantom shakingly saluted, quickly moving aside.

The Overseer of the World then turned to a fellow Noble, "Figarland Garling, your actions have left us most surprised, and you will be granted appropriate accolades. However, your services are needed to safely transport the surviving Celestial Dragons; the God's Knights will accompany you."

Garling bowed his head, but his voice wasn't as subservient as his actions, "Many thanks."

Finally, the Elder turned to the Sengoku and gave a surprising order, "Whitebeard shall be allowed to retreat." 

There was a beat of stunned silence before Saturn's eyes narrowed, his voice hardening. "Your remaining mission is to ensure the immediate capture of Einar D. Damien."

The words hung in the air like a noose tightening around the Sin Incarnate's neck. Even amidst the devastation, a chill settled over the battlefield.

To Be Continued…

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Author's Corner.

Quite a lot of deaths in this chapter. Even without considering Xerxes from earlier, we can now add Basara, Silver Axe, Kaen, Majin, Arai and Hensō to that list. Damien was inches close to taking Kong's life as well, only for a rested Garp to appear. So close, yet so far. What do you think will happen after Saturn "allowed" Whitebeard to flee and aim at Damien?

Images are available on Discord alongside other niche details: https://discord.gg/aJHHHPvb6q