𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄 | One Piece

- 𝟎.𝟏-𝟏 【тнσυgнтѕ】

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𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐓 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐃𝐄𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐒, Aki's mind has been in a constant state of chaos, her emotions subsiding with only turmoil, anguish and guilt bearing their ugly heads.

She was aware of the marine's corruption, as much as she would like to deny it. She herself was a victim of the unscrupulous hierarchy, yet she still clung to it and painted over its flaws with her own eyes. Aki knew of the thousands of unjust deaths that were committed everyday in the name of the marines — she hadn't directly witnessed it though, and she desperately convinced herself she wasn't apart of it. That was true, she wasn't, that is until the corruption seeped into her own work. Soon enough her superiors became greedy, and she still heedlessly followed their orders like a mindless minion, all while the chant of justice repeated in her mind.

She could no longer blatantly lie to herself when she stood on a battlefield scattered with bodies. Comrades and enemies alike were sprawled across the red ground, some groaning and weeping as they scrambled to tighten their grip onto their loosening thread of life, while others had already succumbed to death; relieved to leave behind a scene as brutal and terrifying as that of the Marineford battleground. Large projectors captured this same horrifying image, broadcasting it to millions of hungry eyes, and excited greedy minds.

The marines had done this.

No, the pirates had retaliated; they could of have just understood they were overpowered and admitted defeat. Aki retorted to her own conscious with this thought, desperately clinging onto her last shreds of trust she had in the system — this had been hours before the war, as the marine soliders were suiting up and being given their weapons in preparation for the war.

Yet, now that her own hands were stained with the blood of countless lives, one thought was impossible to deny: the pirates hadn't come here for the sake of fighting. They had come for a comrade, and that was a notion she could never belittle or discredit.

Why were the Marines doing this? Why were the admirals so fixated on killing Portages D. Ace? Is it truly for his past crimes? If so, why would they expose the identity of his father if they wanted to punish him in an objective fashion?

Nothing was made sense, but one thing was obvious; the marines were no heroes. Neither were the pirates.

Thus, Ito Aki resolved to be neither.

She wasn't a hero either, nor would that ever be her purpose. Instead, she was a soul with one objective that she would fulfill no matter what — she wouldn't allow herself to die until she has reimberused every single soul she has wronged during her time as a marine.

Maybe then the painful constraints around her heart would loosen. Maybe then the disgusting red liquid dripping from her hands would finally disappear. Maybe then she could leave this miserable world in peace.

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