Pirate's Freedom

"Life must go on."

I don’t know where this statement came from, but it must be said by countless people every day.

slam-la-

Amidst the continuous sound of water, I stood in front of the sink and leaned down deeply, splashing a handful of cold water on my face with both hands.

While washing his face, Hikigaya raised his head to look at himself in the mirror, and roughly smoothed down his raised hair.

Even if evaluated strictly, the face reflected in the mirror is unusually neat. However, those dull eyes are more than ordinary, they are simply super high school-level dead fish eyes.

In his groggy mind, the numbness of day and night still lingered, but the temperature of the morning air and water was clearing away his sleepiness little by little.

Little by little, I regained my sense of reality.

"...That's me, that's Hikigaya Hachiman."

After feeling sober because of his unchanged self, Hikigaya left the sink.

On the sofa, Hikigaya Komachi was immersed in a fashion magazine. The covers were full of popular words such as "wooing battle" and "super eye-catching".

Komachi nodded frequently, which made people feel worried.

"Ah, brother, good morning."

Komachi poked his head out from behind the magazine.

"Oh, good morning."

In response to the morning greeting, Komachi said "Oh——" with some admiration.

"...I feel like my eyes are awake normally today."

"...Ah, well, it's because I washed my face with cold water."

After being told this, Hikigaya appropriately explained the reason that came to mind.

"Well -, but I think the water is the same as usual."

"Isn't it suddenly getting cold? Rather than that, you'd better eat quickly and go to school."

"Ah... um."

He walked over and sat on the chair next to the dining table. The two of them put their hands together and sang a small chorus like "Let's start."

On the table was toast spread with jam, black coffee and milk. By the way, these were all made by Hikigaya Hachiman's sister Hikigaya Komachi, who was in the third grade of junior high school.

While eating breakfast, Komachi did not forget to read the magazine. She expressed her admiration by making "oh" sounds from time to time, and even dropped crumbs on the magazine.

"so good……"

she said suddenly.

"……what?"

Chewing the bread repeatedly, Hikigaya's reaction was a beat slower.

"Brother's school, isn't that... closed?"

"Ah, that's it..."

Hikigaya picked up the sugar and milk and added them to the black coffee.

"It seems like it's going to be overhauled or something...so let's go home and study first."

"..."

Komachi blinked in surprise.Then he gently put the magazine aside, pressed his hands on the table, and leaned over aggressively, carefully peeking at his expression.

"I feel like my brother is a little absent-minded. What happened?"

"Nothing."

Hikigaya paused.

"...I would rather say that, but my life so far has been too uneventful. Although everything in this world is like a blessing in disguise, from that point of view, there may be something that goes more smoothly. People with chronic illnesses often go to the hospital and have troubles. It’s healthier or something like that, so on the contrary, just because there is nothing, it may be a big wave in a sense.”

"What's wrong brother?"

After I finished speaking in one breath, I was asked a very ordinary question, Komachi, can't you cooperate?

"No, how can I put it...it means nothing."

"Although my brother usually says some hopeless things, when he is in a bad state, he will say even more hopeless things..."

Komachi rested his chin on his hand.

"But Komachi likes this kind of brother very much! Ah, Komachi's score is super high now!"

"...Thank you very much."

Hikigaya took a deep breath.

"I also like this kind of me. Now Hachiman's score is super high!"

"what is this……"

Ignoring the astonished Komachi, he drank the coffee in one go and Hikigaya stood up abruptly.

"Hey, you're going to be late!"

"Wow! Oops~~"

Komachi quickly closed the magazine and stood up, running behind Hikigaya and pushing him hard.

"It's all my fault for being so slow, brother. It's already so late! Komachi will be late~~"

"You brat..."

About a few months ago, she completely overslept and was almost late, so Hikigaya took her to school on his bicycle.

Later, he did it more and more often.

The tears of a girl are the most unbelievable thing, especially Komachi, who has a unique ability as a younger sister.

Thanks to her, Hikigaya's concept of the opposite sex was rewritten by her as [woman = someone who uses men like a sister].

Besides, Hikigaya’s father’s famous saying is——

I will kill any man who dares to approach Komachi, even her brother.

In short, Hikigaya not only belongs to the lowest class in school, but also has the lowest status at home.

"It's all because of you that I have distrust of the opposite sex. If I can't get married in the future, what will I do when I get old?"

"Komachi will help you find a way! I will work hard to make money and send you to a nursing home."

"...She is indeed my sister."

Hikigaya walked out of the entrance hall and got on his bicycle. Komachi followed him and sat on the back seat, holding his waist tightly with both hands.

"set off!"

……

On the deserted beach of Tokyo Bay, the huge six-pointed star formation has been completed.

When she saw Namibi at the other end of the magic circle making an OK gesture, Karina immediately swung the shovel and dug down the dam she had finally built in two or three strokes.

rumbling--

Accompanied by the sound of turbulent water, the sea water rising due to tidal force roared and surged along the dug gully.

After a period of waiting, sea water filled the entire array.

At this time, everyone was holding their breath and concentrating. Even Yukinoshita had indescribable expectations in her heart, her eyes fixed on the Johnny Panda doll in the center of the circle.

but--

1 minutes passed.

2 minutes passed.

3 minutes passed.

"Where's your brother?"

Nami, who had been waiting quietly until now, was a little out of breath and looked at Ila aside and asked.

"Well...it seems like it has come, and it seems like it hasn't come, but now..."

After wandering for a while, Ira lowered her shoulders and said in frustration.

"He ignored me..."

……

click, click, click, click...

The teaching building seemed empty because there was no one around.

Fine debris was spread on the ground like snow, and on the wall beside him, there were square holes one after another.

And the cracks on the lower window sill spread like bushes through the cement, all the way to the opposite load-bearing wall.

"All glass products were shattered and there was structural damage to the main body of the building."

The high heels made a crisp sound, and the posture and movements of Yakushiji Ryoko's head held high were full of beauty——

That kind of walking style with the back straight and straight, the knees not bent, and the slender calves thrown straight ahead, is as majestic as Her Majesty the Queen receiving the defeated enemy on the conquered land.

The corridor connecting the school building and the special building has no roof on the fourth floor, forming something like a rooftop.

The originally locked glass door had now turned into glass shards all over the floor. Yakushiji Ryoko easily stepped over and smiled with satisfaction.

"With the damage to this extent, it wouldn't be surprising if it was blown down by the sea breeze one day. Hmm, no wonder classes will be suspended indefinitely."

"That's it. It seems like there's nothing we can do if we don't want to take a vacation."

Junichiro responds to his boss's interests without any sincerity.

Until now, the scene before him was becoming more and more unsettling. He couldn't help but put his hand into his arms and touched the colorful single book.

... those dozens of incoherent phone calls, and the transcripts that were later denied by the parties involved, could it be...

Have the characters in the comics really come to reality?

The idea was so ridiculous that, like a normal person, he didn't blurt it out easily.

However, the word "hesitate" does not exist in Yakushiji Ryoko's dictionary.

"Unless the U.S. military in Okinawa went crazy and came here to experiment with directed energy weapons, the answer is already obvious."

Ryoko Yakushiji stood up proudly and asserted categorically.

"There is no doubt about the truth! It is the characters in the comics who came to reality. They used their superpowers to fight and caused the aurora, and at the same time, they used their superpowers to protect people!"

"..."

Junichiro looked at her valiant back wordlessly. After a moment of silence, his voice came out with a sigh.

"But is there any other possibility?"

"Oh, what do you think?"

On the surface, Yakushiji Ryoko didn't feel dissatisfied with his minister.

"Infrasound waves, which are produced with the aurora phenomenon, cause resonance that destroys glass and damages buildings."

"It's not bad, it does make sense in theory, but our prime minister didn't kneel down on TV yesterday to apologize."

Ryoko Yakushiji made an unceremonious assertion.

"Ah... that's what I said."

Junichiro understood what she meant——

The human body is much more fragile than buildings. If things go as he said, Chiba County should be littered with corpses now.

"That's it, but..."

Junichiro is still making his final resistance. Although his past experience tells him that his chances of winning are slim, he does not want to be involved in bizarre cases again.

"From the beginning..."

Ryoko suddenly stopped as she walked into the special building. She twisted her graceful neck and turned her head to look out the window without glass.

"Has the sky gotten a little cloudier?"

……

A moment of silence.

Amidst the sound of the continuous tide in Tokyo Bay, Nami rubbed her belly and suddenly spoke.

"Very hungry."

goo goo goo...

She has been busy since dawn, and when she reminded her, several people's stomachs began to growl.

"...I'll take you to have breakfast."

Yukinoshita spoke with slightly red cheeks.

"what?"

Ila blinked her eyes with her head lowered. She suddenly raised her head and shouted in surprise.

"Someone is crying!"

"..."

Nokigao and Nami looked at each other, Karina looked around, and Yukinoshita sighed, cheered up and asked.

"Who's crying?"

"It's crying."

As Ila raised her hand to point to the sun, at that moment, a small, dark and deep dot appeared in the middle of the sun.

……

creak-

Hikigaya immediately grasped the handbrake, lifted his legs to get off the bicycle, staggered a few steps, stood still, and kicked off his feet.

After completing the above actions in one go, he let go of the handlebars, looked up at the sky, and then sighed briefly.

"[Every ordinary day we live may be composed of one continuous miracle after another]."

he muttered to himself.

"It's amazing. It's been proven just like the theory of relativity. If this continues, Keiichi Arai will definitely win the Nobel Prize."

"What is it this time?"

Hikigaya turned back, and before darkness fell completely, he saw Komachi in the back seat of the car with his mouth wide open in a cute way.

Wait until the next moment——

The endless shadows were like a tide, spreading over the tall buildings, reaching from one end of the horizon to the other in an instant.

In the darkness where you can't even see anything.

The sounds of sudden braking came and went, and the blaring car horns kept ringing.

Old people, middle-aged people, young people, children.

Students, office workers, housewives...

On the street, all the pedestrians stopped and stood there blankly, raising their necks and looking in the direction of the rising sun.

"A solar eclipse?"

……

5 minutes ago.

5000 million kilometers away from the earth, the center of the solar system.

Surrounded by high-level armed Haki that constantly bursts out and disappears into the darkness, Porusalino floats quietly in space.

As usual, with his hands in his pockets, he stared at the celestial body composed of high-temperature plasma and magnetic fields that occupied most of his field of view hundreds of thousands of kilometers away.

The sun has been hanging high in the sky for millions of years since the birth of human beings, in an environment far beyond hell inside the huge fireball that is out of reach.

Under today's scientific theories, mankind's ultimate imagination for clean energy, the coveted controllable nuclear fusion, is happening on a scale far beyond ordinary people's imagination.

The volume of the sun is 130 million times that of the earth, the core temperature is as high as 1500 million degrees, and the pressure is equivalent to 3000 billion atmospheres. Every second, 6 million tons of hydrogen undergo thermonuclear fusion reaction into helium, and release the equivalent of 400 Of the energy of 22 tons of hydrogen, [-]/[-] billion is radiated to the earth, becoming the main source of light and heat on the earth.

According to scientists' measurements and calculations, this consumption is nothing to mention. The sun still has a normal lifespan of at least 50 billion years.

Today, at this moment, the sun is spreading its light and heat generously as always.

"...What a pity..."

In a vacuum environment without a trace of air, Porusalino opened and closed his mouth silently, slightly squinting his eyes under his brown sunglasses.

"I thought you were really a girl lover, and I couldn't wait to come and see my sister."

Under the Chambord Islands, around the Fishman Island, which is [-] meters under the sea, near Yangshu Eve.

The world's largest coral colony, called the "Small Vegetable Garden" by the navy, is home to the world's largest sea king species, named Tartarus, ever discovered by humans.

This is no secret to all Navy officers as part of their routine intelligence briefing.

but.

In a piece of extremely confidential information code-named [S03-bd800], with the cancellation name [Holy Land Flame [-]], only admirals and higher-level navy officials can read it with authorization.

There is a line of related information that clearly points to: King Kong [blacked out] appears [blacked out], reverses [blacked out] suspected awakening [blacked out] demon [blacked out] ability user...

As for...

Now that it has eaten the Devil Fruit, why can it still move freely in the sea?

This question, which violated scientific common sense and puzzled those familiar with the matter, was finally handed over to Dr. Vegapunk, the chief scientist of the Navy.

500 years beyond human wisdom——

Being given this title, he got all the known information, thought about it briefly, and got the answer in five seconds.

Then, the Navy's scientific branch simply removed it from the ranks of the Neptune class.

After discussion at the high-level meeting——

The answer was quickly shelved along with the redacted intelligence document and listed as something not to be messed with unless necessary.

And now-

Unmeasurable, astronomical quantities of amorphous transparent matter are continuously secreted from the void——

Dark and terrifying marks spread rapidly on the surface of the sun...

Its light dimmed to a degree visible to the naked eye...

Since the [-]th century, countless scientists and engineers have created the greatest fantasy about the energy of interstellar civilization——

Dyson ball——

Under this ideal state, even if all the planets in the solar system are dismantled, it will not be enough to obtain enough materials to build a completed artificial celestial body that wraps around the star and exploits the energy of the star.

In just a few minutes it went from fantasy to reality.

but.

"I see, oh yo yo ~ Are you here to have a big meal?"

A monster that doesn't know where it comes from, doesn't know where it's going, is incredible, has no sense of reality at all, knows neither restraint nor mercy, will not be satisfied with this.

no doubt--

Dr. Vegapunk proves him right once again.

"Ah, by the way, today happens to be [World Book Day]. Tartarus, would you like to read more books?"

The invisible thing was still crawling in the deep darkness, the sun flickered like a candle, and Porusalino watched everything that happened.

"I would like to recommend "The Theory of Relativity" to you. It is a really good book. I really want to introduce Professor Einstein and Dr. Vegapunk to get to know each other."

He looked calm and seemed to be talking to himself indifferently.

"Of course there is Planck. That book "Quantum Theory: The Great Debate between Einstein and Bohr on the Nature of the World" also inspired me a lot."

that's it--

"When I came to this world, one thing impressed me deeply. Tartarus, no, King Kong, do you know?"

Porusalino kept talking to himself.

"Light has wave-particle duality."

With the dark space as the background, he kept his mouth slightly open and exhaled silently for a while.

"When I heard it for the first time, I had that feeling of 'ah, that's it'. Looking back now, it still makes a deep impression on me."

【Buzz buzz...】

"Later," he paused, then continued, "I myself——"

【Always there...】

"Try it -"

At this moment, finally, a certain existence finally responded to his words.

[The buzzing buzzing is so annoying...]

"The result——"

It is not a sound wave that requires a medium to be transmitted, but a more direct one——

【Little bee...】

The vast, vast and extremely impatient violent consciousness was poured into Porusalino's mind like boiling red molten iron.

【Don't interrupt me to eat snacks! ! ! ! 】

In the hot and dense molten sea, several celestial majestic doors opened one after another from the inside to the outside, and huge flares in the sun's photosphere lit up.

The next moment, a super prominence erupted.

On the surface of the sun, the corona layer with a temperature of several million Kelvin sets off earth-shaking waves, and every small wave is enough to engulf the entire earth.

Some of the ultra-high-energy X-rays, gamma rays and charged particle streams have already bombarded us first, flooding the vast space like a torrent, enough to fill up the entire Earth-Moon system.

Intense radiation, hundreds of thousands of times more than the lethal dose, spreads in the dark space.

"I'm not surprised at all. It seems you know it? That's right, but, oh yo yo..."

A long fiery tongue as thick as the diameter of Neptune snaked through space, licking towards a dust-like figure at a speed of more than a thousand kilometers per second.

"If you already know, who gave you the courage..."

Facing this truly peerless power that could shatter the planet, Kizaru's lips grew wider and wider, gradually revealing a nasty smile that contained absolutely no good intentions.

"How dare you choke on me here!!!"