【One Piece】Dawn in the Darkness

Chapter 381 Not Strong Enough

"I'm not strong enough, what's wrong with me!!" Luffy's limbs were trembling, he was weaker than ever, the weight of sadness and pain almost crushed him, he grabbed the soil beneath him desperately, his body had never felt so fragile and powerless, even in the sea, when he was deprived of his strength by the sea and sank to the bottom of the sea like an anchor, he had never felt so weak and powerless as now.

Tears blurred his vision. He could hardly breathe. Breathing had never been so difficult before. He could barely catch his breath. His breathing became extremely rapid. He couldn't control himself. Big tears rolled down his face uncontrollably. Why was he... why was he so weak?!

His crew all disappeared because Luffy was too weak to save them!

When they killed the two fake Shichibukai Kuma, the Navy Admiral appeared and everything began to become chaotic. They had decided to escape, but the sudden appearance of the real Tyrant Kuma caught them off guard. When no one could react, Kuma suddenly appeared behind Qi, and in just a moment, everything disappeared.

The first one is Qi, who has always been by his side. During the three years that Ace was at sea, Qi never made him feel that he was alone.

In reality, he should have noticed it from the beginning. Everything he did was so similar, so similar to what Luffy would do to him. He had long considered him a brother who hadn't been there for him, but he still lost him. One moment they were having a pleasant conversation, and the next, Luffy was completely gone after being touched by the bear. He couldn't stop it! Luffy couldn't do anything!

Next was Zoro, his trusted swordsman who always followed him and would always try to get back to them even if he got lost.

And then there was Brooke, who they had just found and who had just finished being on his own.

Usopp was next, his constant companion and playmate, with whom he would quarrel and laugh. Then there was Sanji, who would always quietly prepare food for him to comfort him.

Franky, he punched the bear with all his strength, but the bear didn't move, the Thousand Sunny would not forgive him for losing his shipwright.

Then there's Nami. Even though she can be fierce at times, she's always cared about them. She's always been there to guide them and lead them to the right path. And then there's Chopper. He transformed into a monster to protect them. He was very violent. He knew he wanted to protect them, but he still disappeared. He was so young, this shouldn't have happened! They shouldn't have just disappeared like that!

Finally, it was Robin, the Robin who wanted to survive. She had reached out to him, but he failed to catch her, failed to save her. They were completely defeated just by being touched.

And he did nothing, he could do nothing, he could only watch his crew members disappear one by one, he didn't want to be alone, he hated being alone, but he couldn't save them! He couldn't save any of them!!

"Wuwuwu... What's wrong with me? I can't even save a friend..." Luffy grabbed his hair in pain and kept hitting the ground. How could he be so weak? He wanted to do something, he should do something, but he was powerless in pain. He couldn't solve the pain that overwhelmed his heart.

"We will never meet again."

It took him a while to realize that a shadow was covering him. He forced himself to straighten his trembling body and stared at the bear's still indifferent face with anger and despair, as if he and his companions were completely ignored.

"farewell."

……

Garp walked across the drawbridge towards the magnificent gate of Impel Down with a heavy heart. He had visited this infamous prison many times before, and although he entered as a navy, his heart would thump every time the seastone-forged gate was suddenly slammed shut behind him. The moment the gate was closed, all the sunlight disappeared, leaving only darkness until a guard holding a lamp emerged from the darkness and escorted him.

His position allowed him to ignore all the strict inspections he had to undergo, and they led him through the various doors quickly and efficiently. They did not stop to talk to anyone, which was actually just what he wanted, because there were only two people in this damn prison that interested him.

"Sir, are you going directly to the sixth floor for a tour?"

Cap came back to his senses. He was too lost in his own thoughts to realize that they had arrived at the prison elevator door. The elevator was like everything else in the prison, dark and spiked, and almost identical to the surrounding rooms. No one would notice that this huge door was an elevator, large enough to accommodate several prisoners and guards at the same time.

"Yes," Cap answered gruffly, revealing no emotion. He didn't want to go there, he didn't want to see his grandchildren shackled and trapped in one of those cells. He tried with all his might to avoid the sight and hoped to never see it in his lifetime, but things always went against his expectations and it seemed he could only postpone it but never truly avoid it.

Feeling the elevator moving, they would soon reach the fourth floor. He couldn't help but ask softly, "Are both prisoners on the sixth floor?"

"Sir?" The guard looked at Garp blankly.

Seeing the guard's confused expression, Garp frowned impatiently, "I'm here to see two prisoners, Portgas D. Ace, and the other Whitebeard pirate who was brought in with him."

"Sorry, sir, I just heard that you wanted to see Fire Fist Ace." The guard smiled awkwardly and then added, "The other prisoner sent in with Fire Fist Ace is said to be the Dragon's Son. He has been sent to the infirmary, which is heavily guarded. The warden won't allow anyone to approach."

"Infirmary? Why?" Cap asked anxiously. The reason why this prison was notorious was that they did not care about the life or death of the prisoners at all, so they would not easily provide any medical assistance to the prisoners. Only when the prisoners were on the verge of death and they needed the prisoners to be alive more, would they provide medical treatment to the prisoners.

The guard was startled by Garp's sudden outburst and subconsciously revealed what he knew. "It seems he's been seriously injured. After preliminary evaluation, it's been determined that he needs medical treatment."

"Preliminary...assessment?" Garp gritted his teeth. He couldn't say there weren't any guards in this prison who took pleasure in torture, but he absolutely couldn't tell him what Lucci had gone through, or else he didn't think Lucci would be able to control himself from destroying this place. "Was it... caused by the interrogation?"

A dangerous aura enveloped the entire elevator. The guard shrank back in fear and stammered, "No, no. It's said that he was already seriously injured when Admiral Akainu brought him here. His injuries suddenly worsened during the interrogation, so he was deemed to need medical treatment first."

"Take me to the infirmary!" Garp crossed his hands tightly in front of his chest and almost bit his tongue to control himself from showing his inner anger. He couldn't show it too obviously, which would put Lucci in more danger.

Although Lucci might have attracted more attention due to his visit to the infirmary, if Lucci was not downstairs with Ace, Ace would definitely be very anxious and would undoubtedly be eager to know about him, and he could at least bring him some useful information.