When Anne struck Luffy's chin and sent him crashing to the deck, Zoro was the first among those watching from across the deck to speak up.
"Luffy lost, and he let his guard down right then."
"But they were pretty evenly matched, Marimo. In the end, they're family—what could he do?"
"So… are we going to go get Luffy now, Hancock?"
Seeing Luffy fall, Hancock said nothing, turned, and walked toward the cabin.
Why is she acting like that? I thought she'd rush straight to Luffy…
Just as Sanji was thinking that, Hancock flung open the cabin door.
Gurururung!
At that moment, a surge of [Conqueror's Haki] erupted from where Luffy and Anne were, spreading throughout the ship.
"Luffy?"
Rumble!
Feeling it, Hancock turned her head, and as everyone's gaze snapped toward the battleground, a colossal black energy surged from the ground up, forming a gigantic dark pillar.
"Luffy!"
Seeing it, Hancock immediately activated [Moonwalk] and dashed toward the scene, with Zoro and Sanji right on her heels.
Kaang! Kwaaang!
Amid the thunderous noise echoing from the scene, Hancock's view settled on the widespread ruin.
Landing ahead of Zoro and Sanji, she saw a vast crater stretching out right before her.
She couldn't take in the whole scene at once; only after turning her head from side to side could she roughly gauge it.
Hancock confirmed the crater's diameter was well over five hundred meters.
"What is this…? This unbelievable destructive force…"
"This scene is even more monstrous than Arlong Park… Could Luffy have done this too?"
"Where is Luffy…?"
Late as they were, Zoro and Sanji finally arrived and gaped at the destruction. Hancock, searching for Luffy, spotted him and Anne in the center of the deep crater, its depth easily dozens of meters.
Luffy lay flat on his back against the ground, while Anne, also on the ground, was struggling to raise her upper body.
"Luffy… you managed to use [Conqueror's Haki]?"
"…I accidentally used it once a long time ago. Now I finally have a decent feel for what it is and how to wield it."
"My dad taught me, so I can use it, too… But it's not something just anyone can wield; it's a power you have to be born with."
"By the way, you can use it, Hancock, too."
"On a ship of only six, having two Conquerors… Conqueror's Haki isn't exactly common, is it?"
"Also, including me, four of us have Devil Fruits."
"Sure, you and your friends are all special… But what was that power you just showed?"
"Your skin was dark, and your eyes, too… They're not black anymore?"
"I don't know. It just felt like I was using it for the first time for some reason."
"Anyway, keep our promise. You said if you lost to me, you wouldn't follow Teach and would go back to Whitebeard."
"You lost control, smashed everything at random, got exhausted and collapsed, and now you want to say I'm the loser?"
"You only went down because you grazed me with that wild attack. If you'd hit me dead-on, you wouldn't be talking right now."
"…Fine, I give up."
"Are you really going through with it?"
"Yeah… I'll go back to Father, like I promised."
By the time they spoke, Zoro, Sanji, and Hancock had reached the crater and now stood looking at the pair.
Anne looked down with a sad gaze, and Luffy, looking up at her, lifted himself on one arm and spoke.
"Sis… are you that upset?"
"If I'd been stronger, I never would've lost to you like this. Even if Teach was stronger than I expected, I'd still have won."
"Then I could've handled it all by myself, comforted Satchi who died, and even Father—he might hide it, but he'd have been worried."
"If only I were stronger, if I'd tried harder… I hate that I'm so weak."
Thanks to the memories from the original story, I now know that Anne always struggled with whether she even deserved to be born into this world.
That she wanted to prove herself to the world so badly that she buried the inescapable truth of being the Pirate King's daughter—and if she couldn't, she'd want to die.
And how much Whitebeard, who accepted her unconditionally, had become a precious figure in her heart.
"Sis… you've been through so much, haven't you?"
"Huh?"
"When we were kids, you asked Sabo and me about our real dad and whether we should've been born."
"…You did."
"Back then, you never showed it to me, so I never knew… But now I get it."
"I realize now that you, carrying that secret, lived such a painful life."
"Luffy…"
"I can guess why you clung to Whitebeard like that. Obviously, when you asked me that question back then, Whitebeard gave you a better answer."
"No, it wasn't exactly a better answer…"
"So it's just because I'm not good enough, huh."
"It's not like that…!"
"Enough. It'd sound even weirder if a kid three years younger and a big mustached guy said the same thing."
"I can't replace Whitebeard. He's someone who not only recognized you but also acted as your father."
"But sis… I'm your family too, right? The family you've lived with for ten years."
Now that I'm a little closer to being an adult… I want to be someone you can lean on, someone who can acknowledge you.
"So I'll answer the question you asked back then, one more time."
Anne recalled when, as a child, she had shared her secret. Right after, as she nervously looked down, the blond-haired boy her age beside her was the first to speak.
"If someone like me even deserved to be born… what do you think, Luffy?"
"Sabo, that question Anne just asked is totally stupid."
"St-stupid? It was a really serious question…!"
Luffy continued, even as Anne's face grew hot with anger.
"Who my dad is doesn't matter to me. I don't care about that stuff."
"Luffy, my father is…"
"If Dad's the Pirate King, does that mean you can't be my sister? I hate that!"
"You asked if you were even allowed to be born? Of course you were! You being born made you family!"
"There's no such thing as someone who shouldn't be born! Same goes for you, Anne!"
"Luffy…"
As Anne remembered her childhood, the young Luffy from back then overlapped in her mind with the Luffy before her now.
Before she knew it, Luffy had grown taller, and now, seated on the ground, he met her gaze and spoke.
"Thanks to you becoming my family, my childhood was so happy, and it'll be the same for the rest of my life."
"Thank you for being born into this world, sis."
Sob… Sniff… Luffy!!!
Just like when they were children, Anne threw herself into Luffy's arms and burst into tears.
The only difference was that as children they had been about the same height, but now, with the height difference, Anne ended up in Luffy's embrace.
"It was because you said that when I was little that I was able to keep going… You're such a precious family…"
"It's okay, so don't cry."
"I got so used to it… that I forgot…!"
"It's okay, sis—that's what family is."
Waaaahhhhh~!!!
Not far from them, Zoro, Sanji, and Hancock stood inside the edge of the crater.
Seeing Luffy and Anne, Zoro looked at Sanji, who was lighting a cigarette, and spoke.
"Well… was that sorted out okay?"
"Can't you see? Obviously it's a happy ending."
As they spoke, Hancock quietly watched Luffy and Anne, a gentle smile on her face.
Hancock thought, "I'm glad you and sis didn't have a big fight and managed to reconcile, Luffy."
And so, as Hancock, Zoro, and Sanji watched in silence, Luffy continued stroking Anne's head and spoke.
"Don't cry so much, sis… Your head'll hurt if you cry too much."