One Piece: Surrounded at Marineford? Just kidding!

Chapter 484: The Debt Left by the Future!

Chen Ye remained unaffected and continued his story.

His gaze swept over Roger's increasingly stiff face without pausing, and without giving anyone time to process it.

"The first thing you did after becoming the Pirate King was to disband your pirate crew."

The moment those words were spoken, Roger's hand clenched tightly at his side. He opened his mouth to retort, but it truly seemed like a choice he could make!

"Because you know that anyone in the pirate crew could be eliminated by the World Government because of your name. You don't want their lives to be tied to your legend."

Chen Ye looked at Roger, his eyes showing no mockery or sympathy, only calmness.

"So you chose to turn yourself in."

When the words "surrender" came out of his mouth, Roger seemed to have been struck by something, his shoulders trembling violently. He stared intently at Chen Ye, his brows furrowed, his lips moved, and finally only a low sound escaped his lips.

Zephyr stared at Roger's profile for several seconds, his eyes filled with emotions so complex that even he couldn't quite make sense of them. As a Marine who had fought Roger his entire life, he understood better than anyone what the words "The Pirate King surrenders to the Marines" meant.

That wasn't a simple surrender; it was gambling with the fate of himself, the entire era, and all those who followed him.

"You should know better than anyone how the government will deal with you."

Chen Ye didn't give Roger a chance to catch his breath. He took a step forward and looked down at the crowd below.

"Public execution. Loguetown. Let the whole world watch."

When Ace heard the words "public execution," he felt as if he had been struck by lightning, his back stiffening abruptly. He clenched his teeth tightly.

That name—the one he'd heard since childhood, the one that always drew criticism whenever it was mentioned—ended in this way.

He clearly hated this name. He hated everything it had brought him. But now, hearing Chen Ye talk about that execution, his chest felt like it was blocked by something, a sour and swollen feeling, an indescribable discomfort.

The white-bearded man remained silent. He sat there, his face darkening inch by inch. The wine bowl in his hand had been set aside sometime earlier, replaced by a tight grip on the hilt of the Murakumogi sword. He understood Roger too well; he understood without needing any explanation the meaning behind that execution. A man died a glorious death, taking all the glory and infamy with him, leaving the storm to those behind. How were those left behind to live?

Chen Ye's gaze shifted from Ace and returned to Roger's pale, paper-like face.

"After you die, you will leave behind more than just the beginning of the Great Pirate Era."

His voice suddenly lowered, sounding even colder than before.

"And Ace's mother, Portgas Rouge."

The moment Chen Ye uttered that name, Roger's body visibly swayed, as if struck in the chest by something unseen.

"To evade capture by the World Government, she hid herself and her child in a small fishing village in the South China Sea."

"But the government won't let the Pirate King's offspring go. They searched the entire sea, and every baby born at that time was executed."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the faces around him, some shocked, some silent.

"So she made a decision. A decision only a mother could make."

The air seemed to freeze completely at that moment.

"Twenty months."

When Chen Ye uttered this number, the corners of his mouth tightened slightly. It was the only time in the entire narration that he revealed something akin to emotion—not anger, nor sadness, but a heavy, almost awe-inspiring weight.

"Ace stayed in her belly for twenty months."

These words reached the ears of everyone present!

Chopper gasped, staring wide-eyed at Chen Ye, as if he couldn't believe what he had just heard!

Because as a doctor, Chopper knows all too well!

Twenty months. What does that mean? In a small fishing village with no medical facilities, what kind of pain and fear must a woman endure to keep her child until full term? Ten months is already the limit for humans, twenty months—that's risking one's life.

Roger stood rooted to the spot, as if his soul had been ripped from his body. He stared at Chen Ye, his lips moving, but no sound came out. The image was too terrifying, so terrifying that he dared not even think about it. Rouge hid alone in a dark, sunless hut, enduring all the pain and risks of her overdue pregnancy, gritting her teeth to keep the child until the very last moment—simply because she knew that once this child was born, it would become prey for the World Government.

She had no choice.

Chen Ye didn't give Roger much time to process what was happening.

"She didn't survive after giving birth to Ace in the South China Sea."

The moment those words left his lips, Roger's knee buckled as if struck by something, and he nearly lost his balance.

Rouge is dead.

He died for his child!

Shanks sat to one side, his eyes downcast, not looking at his captain. He knew he should do something, but at this moment, he could do nothing. He had served under Roger, and he knew better than anyone the man's pride and arrogance.

But it is precisely because I understand this that it is all the more painful at this moment. When certain stories are unraveled, what is revealed is not heroic grandeur, but rather very real and heartbreaking stories.

The person who started this story was the captain he respected most in his life!

Chen Ye's gaze shifted from Roger, swept over the various expressions on the faces around him, and finally landed on the dragon.

"The only thing you did right was to entrust Ace to Garp before his execution."

Upon hearing this, many eyes turned to Dragon. Luffy paused, instinctively turning to look at his father, his face filled with confusion.

The dragon was silent for a few seconds, then slowly nodded.

He didn't offer any explanation or cover for anyone; he simply acknowledged this absurd yet real future with a single, under the watchful eyes of everyone.

When Roger heard the name "Garp," he seemed frozen in place. He stared at Dragon, at that face that bore a resemblance to Luffy's, and suddenly he understood everything.

Garp. His old rival. The person he least wanted to owe favors to in his life.

In his future self, Ace was entrusted to Garp.

This decision was so much like him. So much so that he didn't need any explanation to understand the logic behind that choice—only Garp could protect Rouge's child right under the World Government's nose. Only Garp had the ability and the will to do it.

But it is precisely because of this understanding that the pain is even greater now.

He entrusted Rouge's child to his nemesis. To the Marine who had pursued him his entire life.

Chen Ye looked at Roger's eyes, which were gradually losing their luster, and his lips tightened slightly. He didn't give Roger any chance to catch his breath and handed him the last knife.

"To the world, you are the man who ushered in a new era. You are the Pirate King who brought freedom and dreams to the entire sea."

"But for Ace—"

"You are the man who left his wife and children to be torn apart by the world's malice."

Ace's body trembled violently. His fists clenched so tightly that his nails almost dug into his palms. Something welled up in his eyes, but he forced it back.

He won't cry. He stopped crying a long time ago.

But those words were like dull knives, slowly ripping away at the softest part of his heart. The past he desperately wanted to forget, the memories he never dared to touch, the wounds he licked alone in the dead of night—all were torn open by Chen Ye's words, exposed bloodily to everyone.

He had heard that name countless times since childhood. Every time someone mentioned "Roger," it was always followed by curses, ridicule, and disgusted looks. As a child, he didn't understand why; he just instinctively felt that he had done something wrong, that he was someone who shouldn't exist. Later, he gradually understood, understood that he had the most damned blood in the world flowing through his veins.

He never resented his mother. He only ever resented Roger.

Sabo stood beside Ace, watching him desperately suppress his emotions, and felt a sharp pain in his heart. He didn't speak, but silently took another half step forward, using his body to block most of the gaze directed at Ace.

Roger stood there, opened his mouth as if to say something, but his throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton.

He didn't know in what capacity he should speak!