Disaster of Foosha village!

Seeing this, Luffy froze, his mind overwhelmed by the sight of familiar villagers being brutally attacked. The pirates, however, didn't care about Luffy's reaction. They only saw a Devil Fruit user who hadn't yet adapted to the battlefield's harsh reality—a threat they needed to eliminate before he became dangerous.

Two pirates exchanged a look and then charged at Luffy from both sides. As they reached him, Luffy remained in a daze, his mind blank.

"Dragon Claw!"

In a flash, with a shout from above, Sabo appeared over Luffy, mercilessly striking the attacking pirates with his steel pipe. The pirate leader, who had been kneeling on the ground with a massive dent in his head, bled profusely.

"Luffy? Are you okay?" Sabo asked, concerned, after dispatching the two pirates.

He and Ace had always known Luffy's nature, which was why they had agreed to set sail at seventeen. They understood the sea's cruelty and planned to become powerful pirates ahead of Luffy to protect him when the time came.

"Luffy, Uncle Tack is dead! Waaah! Sabo, Uncle Tack is dead," Luffy cried, unable to hold back his emotions any longer in front of Sabo.

Sabo, at a loss for words, didn't know how to console Luffy, who was experiencing the loss of a familiar person for the first time.

As the pirate leader died, the remaining pirates began fleeing into the surrounding forest. For them, anyone capable of killing their leader was also capable of killing them.

Just as Sabo was about to help the villagers clean up the aftermath, his body suddenly tensed as he noticed a figure approaching.

A tall, imposing man wearing a Viking helmet with a broken horn and a cold expression entered Sabo's view. Sabo felt an intense chill, as if facing a top predator.

"Is this Garp's hometown? I wonder if turning this place into rubble will upset him, hahahaha," the man said, laughing. It was Byrnndi Waldo.

Waldo had escaped Impel Down, only to face a combined assault from Garp and the Marine Admirals. In the midst of the battle, he and a group of pirates had slipped away, later obtaining secret intelligence about Garp's hometown. He intended to make a statement by destroying it.

"Damn it!" Sabo's face darkened as he realized the implications of the newcomer's words.

Before he could react, Waldo vanished from sight.

"Gone?" Sabo blinked in surprise, then immediately swung his steel pipe behind him.

"Alert little brat!" Waldo caught the pipe mid-strike, grinning.

"But still too weak," Waldo said with a hint of pity. Sabo's eyes blazed with fury as he twisted his body, redirecting the pipe towards Waldo's temple.

Clang!

Sparks flew as the pipe struck Waldo's temple, as if hitting solid steel, leaving Sabo's hand shaking.

"Sabo, Gomu Gomu no—Pistol!"

Luffy's stretched fist was caught firmly by Waldo.

"Oh, a Devil Fruit user?" Waldo remarked, pulling Luffy towards him with one hand while covering the other in Armament Haki. He then punched Luffy in the face, sending him flying.

"Pathetic. Destroying this place won't even be fun," Waldo said, his words making Sabo's heart sink.

"Now it's your turn, brat!" Waldo suddenly accelerated, his right hand reaching out to grab Sabo.

"I'll admit, your skills are impressive for East Blue," Waldo said, his voice dripping with disdain. "But you're still far too weak!"

With a cruel grin, Byrnndi Waldo's muscular arm, covered in Armament Haki, swung a powerful punch. Sabo, seeing the incoming attack, quickly tried to parry with his steel pipe.

However, with a sharp crack, the steel pipe snapped in half upon impact with Waldo's fist. The force carried through, landing a devastating blow to Sabo's abdomen.

"Argh!" Sabo spat blood into the air, his body hurtling backward, rolling across the ground for dozens of meters before coming to a stop. His midsection felt like it had been crushed by an unseen force, leaving him utterly drained of strength.

The difference in their power was staggering; they weren't even in the same league.

"Warm-up's over. Now, let's get to the real fun," Waldo sneered, turning his gaze toward the villagers of Windmill Village, his expression twisted with malice.

At that moment, a figure rushed forward, standing between Waldo and the villagers.

"By the authority of the Marines, Byrnndi Waldo, you're under arrest!" the newcomer declared with unwavering determination.

"A Marine? Hah! You think you can arrest me? Not even Sengoku or Garp could manage that! Who do you think you are?" Waldo scoffed.

"I am T-Bone, a captain of the Marine Headquarters. As long as I'm here, you won't harm anyone!" T-Bone responded, his voice filled with righteous fury.

"Pathetic talk of justice," Waldo mocked.

"Justice isn't something a pirate who brings terror and pain to innocent people can understand!" T-Bone retorted, his anger evident.

Waldo's disdainful laughter sent a shiver through Sabo. Justice—a concept he had always dismissed as mere rhetoric—suddenly felt painfully real. The ideals he had once scorned now stood in stark contrast to the brutal reality before him, where people he knew were mercilessly killed by pirates.

"Let's see if your sword is as sharp as your tongue, kid!" Waldo growled, his eyes narrowing as he released a wave of killing intent.

In an instant, Waldo surged forward. In Sabo's stunned eyes, he saw T-Bone, with his intimidating appearance, being struck in the chest by Waldo's fist. The sickening sound of breaking bones filled the air as blood spurted from T-Bone's mouth and nose, and he was flung through the air like a broken puppet.

T-Bone crashed to the ground, dazed and struggling to breathe, the metallic taste of blood filling his mouth. He could feel the agony of broken bones piercing his organs. Despite this, he recalled his subordinates' words urging him to wait for reinforcements. But he was still alive, and as long as he breathed, he would fight. Protecting the weak was the duty of the Marines.

Summoning his last reserves of strength, T-Bone attempted to rise once more.

"Such a pointless struggle," Waldo sneered, kicking T-Bone with a brutal force that sent him skidding across the ground again. This time, T-Bone couldn't muster the strength to get up.

"You're nothing more than a weakling, just another insignificant Marine," Waldo taunted, but then his expression darkened as he sensed powerful presences approaching from the sea and sky.

"Who is it!?" Waldo spat, recognizing that these incoming forces were strong enough to pose a threat to him.

He glanced once more at the fallen T-Bone, lying in a pool of blood.

"Tch, lucky for you," Waldo growled, turning to flee. As he did, he flicked two small black projectiles from his fingers toward the terrified villagers.

"Boom!"

The projectiles expanded rapidly before exploding. In the ensuing chaos, Sabo could only watch helplessly as flames engulfed the area, consuming villagers who collapsed under the fiery onslaught.

"Captain!" voices shouted.

"Severe burns, most bones fractured!"

"Hurry, we have civilians in critical condition! Medical team, now!"

It took several moments before Sabo's hearing returned, bringing with it the frantic voices and the arrival of new figures on the scene.

 [AN- Im sad to say this but the story got interesting😞]