Chapter 25

The rubble was cold, but Kurumi’s side burned like fire.

She sat hidden in the shadow of a collapsed guard tower, wrapping a strip of her torn dress tightly around her ribs. She winced as she pulled the knot. The Reject Dial had saved her from incineration, but the recoil had nearly shattered her sternum.

"One rib cracked. Maybe two," she assessed, her voice ragged. "Breathing is… inefficient."

She bit down on a piece of leather from her belt to stifle a cry of pain as she snapped the bone back into vague alignment.

Aleph was drained. Her stamina was in the red. She was officially designated "MIA – Presumed Dead" by Admiral Akainu.

"Perfect," she whispered, spitting out the leather. "Now I can watch the show without the paperwork."

The Unstoppable Father

The plaza was a slaughterhouse. But unlike the history Kurumi knew, the momentum was entirely one-sided.

Without the gaping chest wound from Squard, Edward Newgate was a catastrophe.

"GURARARARA!"

Whitebeard swung his bisento. A shockwave of pure force tore through the Marine ranks. It didn't just knock them back; it disintegrated their formation.

Vice Admiral John Giant swung his massive sword. Whitebeard caught it with one hand. He didn't even buckle.

"Stay out of my way, little one," Whitebeard grunted.

He twisted his wrist. He flipped the giant—a being the size of a building—over his shoulder and slammed him into the execution platform’s base.

BOOM.

The entire scaffolding shook. Ace, chained at the top, looked down with wide, tear-filled eyes.

"Pops! Everyone! Get out of here! I'm not worth this!"

"Shut up, son!" Whitebeard roared, stepping on John Giant’s chest. "I decide who is worth saving!"

The Admiral’s Desperation

"Magma… HOUND!"

Akainu, realizing the situation was spiraling, abandoned all pretense of command. He launched himself at Whitebeard. A massive dog head of lava screamed toward the Yonko.

In the original timeline, Whitebeard would have taken this hit due to a heart attack.

But not today.

Whitebeard’s eyes flashed red. Observation Haki.

He didn't dodge. He coated his bisento in a thick, black layer of Armament Haki and a bubble of quake energy.

CRASH.

He swatted the magma dog out of the air like a fly. The lava splashed harmlessly onto the stone.

"Is that all, magma brat?" Whitebeard sneered. "You can't light a candle to my era!"

He swung the blade down. Akainu was forced to block with both arms crossed, turning into magma to disperse the impact. But the Haki caught him.

WHAM.

The Admiral was driven into the ground, a crater forming beneath his knees. Akainu coughed, blood trickling from his mouth. He looked shocked.

"He's… overpowering Sakazuki?" Kizaru, watching from a distance, stopped lazily shooting lasers. "Ohhh… this is bad."

The Bridge to Freedom

While the monsters fought, the ant kept running.

"ACE!"

Luffy sprinted up the debris created by Inazuma’s Scissors Fruit. The path to the execution stand was open.

But standing at the top of the ramp was the Hero of the Marines.

Monkey D. Garp.

Kurumi watched from her hiding spot. This was the moment. The Grandfather vs. The Grandson.

"Luffy!" Garp roared, tears in his eyes. "If you want to pass, you have to kill me! I am a Marine Vice Admiral!"

Luffy hesitated. "Grandpa! Move!"

"I won't move! We are enemies now!"

Luffy gritted his teeth. He activated Gear Second.

Kurumi held her breath. Do it, Garp. Let him win.

And he did. At the last second, Garp closed his eyes. Memories of Ace and Luffy as children flashed before him. He lowered his guard.

Jet Pistol.

Luffy punched his grandfather in the face. Garp flew off the bridge, crashing into the plaza below.

"The Hero has fallen!" the Marines screamed.

Luffy landed on the execution platform.

"I made it!"

The Liberation

Sengoku, in his golden Buddha form, tried to smash the platform. "BUDDHA PALM!"

But Luffy inflated into a balloon—Gigant Fuusen—cushioning the blow. The platform collapsed.

In the chaos of falling timber and smoke, a key—wax-made by Mr. 3—clicked into the lock.

Click.

The chains fell.

A pillar of fire erupted from the debris.

"Fire Fist Ace… is free!"

Ace stood amidst the flames, grinning, spinning his hat on his finger. "You never change, do you, Luffy? Always reckless."

"Ace!" Luffy laughed, crying.

The brothers stood back to back. Fire and Rubber.

The Fatal Flaw

Kurumi watched the reunion. Her heart ached. It was a beautiful moment. They were fighting their way out perfectly. Whitebeard was holding the line. Akainu was injured.

"They could actually escape," Kurumi realized. "With Whitebeard this strong, they could all leave."

If they left… Ace would live. Luffy wouldn't train for two years. He wouldn't learn Haki. The Straw Hats would be crushed in the New World.

The timeline demands a sacrifice, she thought grimly. But I don't need to intervene. Akainu knows exactly which button to push.

Akainu, recovering from Whitebeard’s blow, stood up from the crater. He was breathing heavy, magma dripping from his shoulders. He saw Ace and Luffy running toward the ships.

He realized he couldn't stop Whitebeard physically. So he attacked mentally.

"Cowards," Akainu muttered, loud enough to be heard over the battlefield.

Ace froze.

"The Whitebeard Pirates… are nothing but a gathering of losers from the old era," Akainu sneered. "Led by a failure who couldn't become King."

Luffy kept running. "Ignore him, Ace! Let's go!"

But Ace stopped. The fire on his back flared up.

"What did you say?" Ace turned around slowly.

Kurumi closed her eyes. "And there it is. The pride of Roger's blood."

"I said your father is a loser," Akainu walked forward, his fist turning into terrifying, dark red magma. "He gathered trash and played house. And now he dies like trash."

"TAKE THAT BACK!" Ace roared.

He charged.

The Hole in the World

Ace clashed with Akainu. Fire vs. Magma.

"You are mere fire," Akainu gloated. "I am magma that consumes even flame! My power is superior!"

He overwhelmed Ace instantly, burning the Logia user's arm. Ace was thrown back.

Akainu didn't chase Ace. He looked at Luffy.

Luffy was on his knees, reaching for Ace’s Vivre Card which had fallen. He was exhausted. Defenseless.

"The son of Dragon is the real threat," Akainu said.

He leaped.

"LUFFY!" Ace screamed.

Time seemed to slow down for everyone—except Kurumi, who watched with cold resignation.

Ace jumped in front of Luffy.

SQUELCH.

The sound of burning flesh silenced the entire war.

Akainu’s magma fist punched through Ace’s back and out his chest.

The Vivre Card on the ground burned away to a tiny scrap.

Ace gasped, coughing blood onto Luffy’s shoulder.

"Ace…?" Luffy’s voice broke.

Kurumi opened her eyes. She saw the hole in Ace’s chest. She saw the light fading from his eyes.

"The tragedy is complete," she whispered, a single tear escaping her eye despite her resolve. "Now… the era ends."

She stood up from the rubble. The shock of Ace's death would freeze Whitebeard for a second. And in that second, the world would turn upside down.

"Goodbye, Fire Fist," she murmured. "Your death will build the King."