Chapter Text
The war was not over.
In a state of utter shock, Jinbe surveyed the stricken scene before him and prayed it was a deception of the mind, some fleeting hallucination that surely couldn’t be reality. Despair hung heavy in the air like a noose above the gallows. Where the grandeur headquarters of Marineford once heralded self-proclaimed Justice, there now lay nothing more than a wasteland scarred in every conceivable way. Dotted upon the ravaged expanse, corpses - some Marine, some Pirate, all tainted the same shade of red - shared hurried burials without mourners. In craters. Poor excuses for graves which only sought to dispose of obstacles still in the way of the raging battle.
Some had been hastily piled up in rotten stacks metres high, while others were laid to rest in the very same place they had been ultimately slain. The unluckiest victims were simply unsalvageable - strewn about in mismatched pieces across the bloodied rubble. Cracked blades and guns with still smoking barrels had been discarded in the same instance that their wielders fell. War-hounds howled over their unmoving handlers. Somewhere else, a locket containing a happy family slipped from the hand of its dying father.
Worse than the gore - though not by much - was the smell. Death, gunpowder and scorched flesh all moulded together into one indiscernible pungency Jinbe was certain he’d never forget. The air was made toxic by clouds of vaporised blood, condensed on the tip of the tongue long enough so that the copper scent was permanently imprinted into the minds of those staggering by, reduced to living dead with no purpose or goal other than to keep on moving. And move they did - past their slain brethren and enemies, past unexploded bombs, and finally, past a boy not even eighteen, arms coated in the remnants of his brother, both equally lost to the world.
In the centre of the carnage, there lay a dead man. A remarkable man in life, no different to any other dead man in death. If not for the gaping hole burnt straight through his chest and out his back, he would have appeared content, locked in a deep, peaceful slumber. A bittersweet smile graced his freckled face, eyes red rimmed, but no longer tearful, as if in his final moments, he had finally been released of a burden beyond imagination. But as with all, where one perishes, another is born, such is the cycle of life and death.
Where Ace smiled, Luffy screamed. Mouth agape, wretched noises of utter anguish echoed through the battlefield, all stemming from the same soul that once shone brighter than the sun after a long winter’s fog. The joyful spark of adventure in his ever-curious eyes were now distorted into a blank, unregistered gaze of horror up into the sky, onyx pupils so contracted that to find them amidst that murky white would be akin to a needle in a haystack.
For an excruciating length of time, Luffy continued wailing up at the sky, which darkened, hiding the sun behind a wall of hideous grey clouds. All of a sudden, the cries ceased, replaced by unbearable silence. If not for the desperate, gasped retches from his rattling chest, Jinbe would have assumed Luffy to have perished from utter devastation. It was clear what had just happened: Luffy’s body, which had already been running on dying fumes, was now in such a state of chaos that he’d quite literally been shut down by some frantic self preservation switch. This instantly turned him into a sitting duck in the middle of a war, practically begging to be attacked. Having only a small amount of time to shed tears before the crowd was torn from their stunlock right back into a bloody frenzy, Jinbe immediately began forging his way through the crowd of mourning pirates toward Luffy. Despite their failed efforts to rescue Ace from execution, his parting words to Jinbe still rang true - one final request, to look after his little brother. With every shallow breath passing through Luffy’s ashen lungs, Ace’s will would carry on.
No matter what, Jinbe would save Luffy, even if he had to exchange his own mortality in return.
Regardless of how resolute he was in his mission, Jinbe knew very well it wouldn’t be an easy endeavour, for there, silhouetted in the dying embers of the man he had just slaughtered, the red dog loomed over the motionless body of his next meal. Akainu’s eyes were darkened by the brim of his cap, embellished by the word Marine - a word that would supposedly bring ‘Justice’ to the world. He didn’t appear in the same state of shock and disbelief as the rest of the surrounding navy did; if anything, those bone-numbing screams Luffy had made until he passed out had caused the corners of his mouth to curl up into a half-smile.
Victory.
It seemed yet again, the winners of the war had turned their perceived ‘wrong’ right again. In the death of Ace, the Marine’s honour was once more firm on its pedestal at the top of the world. Molten coated fist reared back for another swing, Akainu prepared to bring down the gavel of Absolute Justice on Luffy’s broken heart. Jinbe broke into a sprint, but he was too far away to stop the punch. For a split second, a nightmarish future flashed in his mind; of Luffy, murdered in the wake of his fallen brother by the same hand, in the same place, two birds killed with one stone for the navy.
However, by some stroke of heavenly luck, right as Akainu struck, a ring of iridescent golden-blue flames spiralled around Luffy, temporarily protecting him from harm. Quickly, Jinbe scooped Luffy’s limp body up in his arms, He offered an affirming nod in Marco’s direction, who shouted back something that wasn’t quite audible, and continued fending off Akainu for as long as he could. Stirred on by the actions of their commander, the rest of the Whitebeard pirates erupted in outbursts of solidarity, charging to their certain doom in solidarity of their fallen brothers and sisters. Each pirate rallied a cheer for Jinbe’s escape as they dashed past straight into a horde of marines in hot pursuit of Luffy, mowed down only seconds later Jinbe continued past the nightmarish scene.
Even as Whitebeard’s final words rippled through the world, he did not halt even for a moment. No matter what, he kept on running, clutching Luffy close to his chest so he would be spared from the stray cannon blasts and bomb shrapnel. At last, he spotted an unguarded opening obscured between two fallen battleships, pivoting so he could blitz toward it at breakneck pace. Just before he reached the escape route, a sudden mountain of ice froze the waters in place, stranding the remaining viable galleons in mile-wide icebergs. Eyes darting around in pursuit of a new exit, Jinbe made a quick turn so he could run parallel beside the ice wall. Before he could take a single step, a figure formed of magma and pure fury bubbled up from the blood soaked ground. Now in a deadly standoff with Akainu, Jinbe held his head high, not a single speck of fear in his heart spared on himself.
“When I said this would be the day you die , I wasn’t lying. Give up. You will not survive.” Akainu’s command may have been a deadly calm, but his formality was betrayed by the unsuppressed waves of raw hatred he emitted, always on the verge of boiling over into his words. His eyes were a raging bonfire fueled with resentment and an insatiable hunger for violence. When looking beyond the attire and title, all Jinbe saw was a chained mutt forever on a leash too short for his own liking, who longed for nothing more than to finally be freed from its limitations and bring down hellfire on the world. “Hand over Dragon’s son, Jinbe.”
“I refuse.” Jinbe levelled a seething glare to match Akainu in intensity’ “I will protect this man with my life.” He declared, tightening his iron grip on Luffy’s unconscious form.
Akainu snarled, “Then I won’t ask again.”
Just as Jinbe prepared to shield Luffy from any incoming attacks, a third figure thundered into view, slicing the ground in two with a furious Hell Wink in a fiery explosion that left ash clouded in the air, briefly obscuring the view of the battlefield. Jinbe snatched up the opportunity, sending a grateful nod in the direction of Ivankov, who offered a non deadly wink in return. Even with everyone’s determination and sacrifices, it didn’t take two minutes for Akainu to crop back up on the horizon, fully intent on finishing what he had started. Jinbe adamantly refused to allow the government hound any more satisfaction and bloodlust. Luffy would live. He had to-
And then it happened
Jinbe’s shoulder burned .
He bit back an agonised curse as a scorching fist of molten rock was thrust through his side, aimed squarely at where Luffy was still unresponsive in his arms. Agony coursed through his veins, stunting his reaction speed down to such a degree that, when Jinbe attempted to angle himself to the side so as to prevent serious damage to Luffy’s vital organs, he wasn’t fast enough to fully divert the blast to a safe location. Though it didn’t plant itself in Luffy’s stomach or chest area - which would have undoubtedly damaged his body in many irreparable ways, the torment wasn’t finished just yet. Akainu’s fist plummeted into the ground, sizzling straight through the stone, and then exploded. Chunks of blistering magma were sent flying every which way. Several of those pieces were flung in the direction of Jinbe. He managed to dodge the first two, but on the third, his body seized up for a split second. A split second which cost everything.
The magma struck true.
Directly onto Luffy’s face.
There was a sizzling sound. One that would haunt Jinbe in his dreams for the rest of his life. And then the ground came rushing up to meet them. Scraping against rocks and rubble, he collapsed, prone in a heap on the ground. The force of the impact nearly dislodged Luffy from his arms. Distantly, a straw hat drifted down from the sky and landed in a puddle, spared thanks to the rope being frayed by magma, but now out of reach. At least it hadn’t been lost in the blast… but something else had.
Luffy’s face was utterly decimated. The magma splash had seared off all the surface layer skin around his cheeks, eyes and forehead, leaving a gruesome raw burn slicing across his upper features. Through the mangled mess of gore, viscera and blisters, Jinbe attempted to find Luffy’s eyes to assess their condition - they’d been wide open upon contact with the lava due to his unconscious state preventing motor function, and had no doubt taken heavy damage. However, as Jinbe scanned across the burn, he saw something far more brutal than he could’ve ever expected. Where Luffy’s eyes should have been, there were merely mangled sockets left, quickly pooling with blood.
“I’m sorry Luffy, because of me, you’ve been given such terrible wounds.” Jinbe wheezed through mouthfuls of blood. Clutching Luffy close to his chest, he strained to get to his feet, but his severe injuries kept him grounded. Throughout it all, even with those excruciating injuries , Luffy didn’t move even an inch. An injury like that, on top of being life-altering in nature, could also be unsurvivable, especially considering how dire Luffy’s condition already was before being struck. For a brief moment, Jinbe’s stomach turned into knots and he almost feared the worst, however his fears were somewhat quelled by a tiny, heart shattering whine rasped from Luffy’s strangled throat. Said cries were on shredded lungs, a palpitating heart and an obvious time limit before they cut out for good, but at least he was still breathing, for now. The noise was probably expelled out of grief, rather than pain; Jinbe couldn’t claim to be a doctor, but considering his own wound was completely numb, it was probable that the nerves in that area had been fried further than pain could conceive for the moment.
“Shouldn’t you worry about yourself?” Akainu was back and showed no signs of relinquishing. “It’s because of you that I missed. If it had hit his heart, he would have died instantly. I burn up his face and you’re still trying to escape.” His expression warped into something malicious, magma churning between his fingers as he took one step forward, then another, circling around Jinbe like a cat toying with a mouse before going in for the kill.
Just then, a well angled blade made of sand careened up from the ground, impaling straight through Akainu, which temporarily grounded him in place. A twister bloomed, the bay enveloped in a thick impenetrable cloud. Tossed every which way by the merciless sandstorm, Jinbe was flung high up into the air. Through the carnage, the vague outline of Crocodile, hook extended in a direct and promised challenge to Akainu, flickered in and out of view. The Warlord’s motives were still uncertain as of yet, but even so, Jinbe felt gratitude for the assistance. Seconds later - though it may have been minutes, he was beginning to lose his sense of time due to blood-loss - someone he vaguely remembered as a red-nosed man from Impel Down, caught Luffy and Jinbe.
The pirate very nearly dropped the both of them the second he realised who he was carrying, “HUH!?? You two!? What’re you doing up here and-” At that moment, the man must’ve noticed the state of Luffy’s face, “and what the hell happened to HIM???”
“Thank you, Red Nose,” Jinbe whispered - no longer able to raise his voice above a weak rasp, “Luffy’s suffered another serious injury…He needs emergency care immediately,”
“What do I care!?” The clown pirate snapped, “I’M the one in trouble up here! Besides, there’s no treating something like that, this is a WARZONE! - And who’re you calling ‘Red Nose’!?” While Jinbe didn’t care to admit it, the man was making a good point. Unless they had a surgery table, operating tools and the necessary equipment somewhere in one of the destroyed town buildings, Luffy’s fate was likely sealed. None of the doctors down below would be able to handle a patient with their eyes boiled out of their sockets in the middle of a raging battle. Still, they needed to escape, and fast. At last, with the number of sacrifices to Jinbe’s aid counting up in the hundreds, Akainu was being stalled further and further back. Despite that positive circumstance, the previous way out Jinbe had spotted was no longer viable - he’d been diverted far off track, the only feasible path being the sea. That in itself was a risk factor - a devil fruit user’s natural born enemy was water, and having Luffy submerged for too long could drown or weaken him enough that his injuries might sap his remaining life force.
But just then, in yet another miracle bestowed from above, something sizable erupted from the depths of this ocean, its golden, metal hull thrumming with energy. It was a beast of a species Jinbe had seen maybe three times in his life - a Submarine. The small vehicle forged through the choppy waters close to Marineford’s shore. A pair of double doors attached to heavy mechanisms now whirred to life and from within the sub, a man dressed in a leopard-print hat and a yellow jumper stood before the war, a glint in his silver eyes. In one hand, he clutched a longsword.
“I’m a doctor!” He lifted his spare hand - knuckles tattooed with the words ‘DEATH’, and pointed in the direction of Jinbe and Luffy. “Leave Straw Hat-ya to me.”
There was no other choice. Jinbe saw fit to put trust into this man for now - he might not be entirely certain of the man’s intent with this exchange yet, but he was out of options and didn’t have enough time to ponder over the specifics. Trafalgar Law - he remembered the man’s name now - had become widespread as the so-called Surgeon of Death . While the title of ‘Death’ wasn’t exactly appealing, Jinbe did take note of the ‘Surgeon’. Surely, if anyone could keep Luffy alive through this, a Supernova of the Worst Generation who apparently possessed an extremely sought after devil fruit would be their most favourable option. The red nosed pirate seemed to agree. Happy to be free from the burden of carrying two dead weights, he launched the two, hurling Jinbe and Luffy onto the sub. Law took one look at Luffy, in particular his eyes or lack-thereof and loudly cursed.
“Both of you need surgery. Follow me. Prepare to Dive!” Law ordered, out of sight in seconds and already directing his crew in retrieving Luffy without disturbing his wounds. Several of the crewmembers' faces turned green at the sight of what was left of their new patient’s upper face, but no one made any comments other than medical observation. As for Jinbe, he was hurriedly wheeled into a medical ward, dozens of hands linking him up to different machines. Unconsciousness was quick to take hold of him, The injuries he’d been suppressing for the sake of escape now sunk their bloodthirsty fangs into his body. Not that it mattered - a sedative was already coursing through his veins. A chatter of half discernible voices in his head all spoke of the ensuing operation.
“-completely destroyed-”
“-no way in hell that-”
“-go blind for sure-”
Just before anaesthesia hit and sleep swallowed him up, Jinbe managed one final glance upwards.
Straight into the eyeless face of the boy he had sworn to protect.
Then darkness.