Shiki stepped aside, his pupils shifting left. A tiny wound marred his cheek.
The injury was barely worth mentioning. Like accidentally scratching yourself in daily life, skin barely broken. Superficial.
But it bled nonetheless.
"Cough... ah..." Finn couldn't help coughing up blood, looking utterly wretched.
Blood poured from his chest. He could clearly feel breathing becoming difficult. Every breath felt like drowning, blood flowing backward into his punctured lung.
Strength drained from his body rapidly. He couldn't even stand steadily.
But he felt a measure of relief. At least... Shiki was hurt, right?
An ant had challenged a lion and drawn blood.
Though grievously injured, thanks to Iron Will, Finn's thinking remained clear for now. His perception of the external world stayed sharp and complete.
He could sense both Instructor Zephyr and Admiral Sengoku's powerful presences rapidly approaching.
And it was at this moment that Finn's cunning, selfish instincts erupted again.
He forced himself to endure the pain and spoke with righteous conviction, "Golden Lion... if you want to kill that brat... you'll have to step over my corpse first... don't underestimate the Marines!"
Shiki seemed to have no idea what calculation lay behind those words. He stared at Finn, and unlike the contempt and disdain in his eyes before, there was now a hint of seriousness.
"Marine brat, what's your name?" Shiki asked suddenly.
"Rodriguez Finn..." Finn said, his voice low but steady.
Shiki said nothing more. He activated his ability, his figure floating upward rapidly. Within moments, he'd risen high into the sky.
Simultaneously, Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr arrived. Instructor Zephyr caught Finn's collapsing body, looking up at Shiki with fury.
Admiral Sengoku also stopped, glaring at the floating pirate with anger burning in his eyes.
"Not interested anymore..." Shiki muttered to himself, then turned and flew toward the distant horizon.
Neither Admiral Sengoku nor Instructor Zephyr pursued. The battle was over.
"Finn!" Instructor Zephyr looked at the young Captain with genuine concern.
Finn opened his mouth to respond, but weakness from massive blood loss rapidly invaded his consciousness. His vision went black, and he lost consciousness before he could speak.
Time passed in undefined fragments.
Scattered consciousness slowly coalesced. Finn gradually opened his eyes and found himself in a small room. Almost immediately, he felt rhythmic swaying that told him he was aboard a ship.
Before he could properly assess his surroundings, he heard Rosinante's voice.
"Brother Finn!!!"
The voice carried surprise and relief. Then came a series of shouts.
"Brother Finn is awake!!"
Finn turned his head to see Rosinante sprint out the door, yelling excitedly.
"So unlucky to see that little brat the moment I wake up..." Finn muttered under his breath.
But soon, a smile tugged at his lips.
Not dead. He was still alive.
And surviving this meant he'd gained something invaluable. Multiple things, actually.
First, the courage to face the world's strongest and draw his sword against them.
Second, the courage and outstanding performance he'd demonstrated to two of the Marines' highest-ranking officers during this incident.
All of it was positive. All of it would serve him.
Whether he could rise rapidly through Marine ranks in the future might very well begin from this exact moment.
Just as Finn contemplated these thoughts, the door opened again. Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr both entered.
Seeing Finn awake, Admiral Sengoku's expression showed visible relief, while Instructor Zephyr smiled with satisfaction.
"Seems you're lucky, Finn," Zephyr said warmly.
Finn smiled weakly. "Perhaps I'm not destined to die yet..."
"Destiny?" Admiral Sengoku murmured, then nodded with emotion. "Perhaps it really is destiny."
This operation had cost them dearly. A warship completely destroyed. Nearly every Marine aboard had been seriously injured, and many had died. Only emergency rescue efforts prevented total annihilation.
But by fortune or fate, Rosinante and Finn hadn't been on the warship when Shiki twisted it into wreckage, allowing them to escape that particular disaster.
Finn had been stabbed through by Shiki, yet here he was, awake and recovering. He'd been lucky enough to preserve his life.
It truly warranted contemplation of fate.
By now, through both the surviving Marines' accounts and Rosinante's tearful confession, Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr understood what had transpired.
Originally, Rosinante had been hiding aboard the warship. He'd suddenly noticed someone buried in the ruins was still alive. For reasons defying logic and common sense, instead of asking the Marines for help with the rescue, he'd snuck down alone to dig the person out.
This scene had been discovered by Finn. Because Sengoku had casually requested that Finn look after Rosinante, the young Captain had taken that responsibility seriously, risked his life, left the warship's safety, and attempted to bring Rosinante back.
This had triggered everything that followed.
No wonder everything unfolded exactly as Finn had calculated, causing Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr's impression of this originally "insignificant" young officer to improve dramatically.
Especially Admiral Sengoku, who now vaguely regarded Finn as his own junior.
Look at what a fine young man he is! Only nineteen years old, yet so responsible.
"Rosinante already told us what happened. I'll be having words with that boy later. He doesn't understand how serious this was..." Admiral Sengoku's tone softened. "But thank you, Finn."
He'd adopted Rosinante as his son. Now Finn had saved that son's life. His gratitude was genuine.
Finn smiled weakly. "After all, I promised you, Admiral, that I'd look after him... And as a Marine, it's my duty to rescue someone in danger, even a reckless brat like that."
Admiral Sengoku nodded, saying no more words of gratitude, but he committed this deed to memory.
He'd secretly resolved that as long as Finn met the other requirements, there would be no obstacles to his promotions. He'd personally ensure proper career advancement.
Any valuable resources would be prioritized for Finn.
Shouldn't such a responsible and courageous Marine be cultivated to become a pillar of the organization?
He was only nineteen. His future remained vast and brilliant. Sengoku believed that under the training and guidance of himself, Zephyr, and others, Finn would not disappoint them.
At that moment, Instructor Zephyr suddenly asked, "Are you still confused?"
Zephyr had heard everything Finn said to Shiki, so this question carried weight.
He expected Finn to shake his head.
But Finn nodded. "Still confused..."
This made Instructor Zephyr pause, then laugh heartily. "Hahahahaha! Perhaps I'm being too impatient."
After finishing his laugh, he patted Finn's shoulder. "Perhaps you're still confused, but Finn, as a witness, I'm honored to have seen you take another firm step on the path toward justice. I firmly believe that sooner or later, you'll find the justice in your heart. I look forward to that day."
"I definitely won't disappoint you," Finn said with a smile.
He didn't feel he was particularly righteous.
It had just been for better performance. Better positioning.
But so what? He'd genuinely risked his life. That was undeniable fact.
In truth, though he hadn't joined the Marines for justice initially, if he could actually find the "justice" Zephyr spoke of in the future... maybe that wouldn't be so bad?
At that moment, the ship, which had been swaying slightly, gradually stabilized.
Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr, who'd been chatting with Finn, both stood simultaneously. "We've arrived."
"Arrived?" Finn was confused.
He didn't understand.
Arrived where?
Come to think of it, hadn't their warship been destroyed?
"That's right." Admiral Sengoku smiled. He paused, then looked at Finn directly. "Welcome to the headquarters of justice, Marine Headquarters, Marineford, Finn."
Headquarters of justice?
Weren't we in the North Blue?
"By the way, how long was I unconscious?" Finn asked quickly.
"Calculating the time, about a month and a half," Instructor Zephyr said with a smile.
"That long?!" Finn asked, genuinely shocked.
He'd thought he'd only been out for two or three days at most.
"Don't underestimate your injuries. If the ship's doctor hadn't been fortunate enough to avoid Shiki's attack, you would have died on Minion Island. Your physical conditioning still needs work, but that doesn't matter. Now we're at Marineford. After you recover, I'll train you properly. Hahahaha." Instructor Zephyr laughed warmly.
After a brief pause, Instructor Zephyr reached out and placed his hand over Finn's heart. His tone became serious, almost solemn. "I've always been excellent at judging character. Finn, I believe you have the potential to become truly powerful."
Seeing Finn's somewhat bewildered expression, Admiral Sengoku smiled. "I think so too. You have the heart of a hero."
Finn lay there, processing their words. The heart of a hero? Him?
He was a calculating egoist who'd made a strategic gamble and gotten lucky. But if two Admirals wanted to see heroism in his actions, who was he to correct them?
Sometimes, Finn reflected, the world saw what it wanted to see. And if that perception benefited him, he'd wear it like armor.
Outside the small room, through a porthole, he could see structures rising in the distance. Massive buildings, fortifications that dwarfed anything in the North Blue.
Marineford.
The heart of Marine power. The place where legends were forged.
He'd finally arrived.
Not as some faceless recruit, but as someone who'd impressed two Admirals. Someone they believed had potential.
The irony wasn't lost on him. He'd followed Rosinante, that walking disaster, specifically because he'd calculated it was the safest option. And that calculation had somehow transformed him into a "hero" in their eyes.
Maybe Rosinante's teammate-sabotaging aura worked in reverse sometimes. Or maybe Finn was just better at playing this game than he'd thought.
Either way, he was here. Alive. With the backing of two of the most powerful men in the Marines.
Everything else? He'd figure it out as he went.
That's what survivors did.