Chapter 124: Usopp in a Desperate Situation

Thor is strong.
There is no doubt about that.
Although he did not see exactly what happened, Mode knew very well that it was because of him.
"Mode?"
Sabo also saw the severed leg. While shocked, he noticed Mode suddenly stop and could not help but stop as well.
Mode turned his back to Sabo, and as he looked into the distance, a crimson glow—the manifestation of his Observation Haki—gathered in his eyes.
For as long as he could remember, Mode had considered himself lucky.
Lucky to have been reborn in a weapons shop.
Lucky to have met Sunny and Thor.
Lucky to have received Thor’s protection and guidance.
He had thought such days would last for a long time...
Amidst the silence, Mode loaded a precious Seastone bullet into "Usopp."
He knew that when Thor had risked his life to fire this Seastone bullet toward him, it wasn’t just to give him another means of self-defense; it was as if Thor had entrusted him with the bullet as a final relic.
Now, Thor was on the verge of death.
Should he pretend not to see and keep running?
If he did that, a hurdle would form in his heart that he would never be able to overcome.
"Mode, you..."
Sabo took a few steps forward, but upon seeing the expression on Mode’s face, he instinctively fell silent.
Mode ignored Sabo’s reaction. After loading the Seastone bullet, he raised "Usopp" and aimed the barrel at Garp in the distance.
Even though it was far beyond the effective range of 200 meters, still...
Stop him, stop him...!
This thought spiraled rapidly through Mode’s mind.
"Just as Thor taught, imagine condensing the Haki into a mass, and then releasing it."
"It's just like releasing telekinetic power. Can it be done? Is it possible...?"
"Usopp, if you truly are a capable old gun, then guide me. Find a way to guide me..."
The weathered, aged body of the gun did not change in response to Mode’s desperate pleas.
It was an old gun, an inanimate object; it could not respond to his thoughts.
However, having accompanied Yasopp through countless battles, it had indeed left behind something invaluable through the passage of time.
It possessed the "feel" that was very friendly to novices, and the "experience" that was like adding wings to a tiger for a veteran.
This was Usopp.
An old gun that once belonged to the top-tier sniper, Yasopp.
Mode focused his spirit to the absolute limit.
Under his direction, his Armament Haki surged, pouring entirely into "Usopp."
As he channeled the Haki, the principles of using Armament Haki that Thor had once explained to them resurfaced in his mind.
It involved the technique of how to project Haki outward.
For a sniper, to reach a higher realm, one must master this technique and apply it to their firearm.
If the technique was flawed, not only would the bullet fail to fire, but the uncontrolled Haki would destroy the weapon.
"It’s not flow, it’s compression, and then control."
"Every step must be perfect."
"If I make a mistake, the uncontrolled Haki will cause the barrel to explode."
"But..."
"Usopp, if it’s you, it will definitely work..."
"You were left behind by Yasopp..."
The crimson light in Mode’s eyes burned like fire.
He was gambling.
But he also trusted the capabilities of "Usopp" with all his heart.
"Stop him!"
The burning red light in his eyes suddenly converged into the shape of a needle.
In the distance.
Thor lay on his back in the crater.
His right arm hung limply, and blood flowed freely from his severed leg.
Having lost a leg and an arm, it was pure fantasy to think he could still contend with Garp.
Garp stood before Thor, his right fist coated in pitch-black Haki.
He looked down at Thor and asked, "What is that boy to you? Is he worth going this far for?"
Thor raised his trembling left hand, pulled out the only remaining flintlock pistol, and tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"He is... a treasure I discovered."
"A treasure?"
Garp did not understand the meaning.
Clearly, Thor had no intention of explaining.
Garp watched silently as Thor moved his left hand, trying to aim the muzzle at him.
At this stage, such an act served no purpose other than to highlight the tragic intensity of a dying struggle.
Garp raised his right fist, wreathed in Armament Haki, and said in a deep voice, "I will not make things difficult for the boy, but since he is connected to the Revolutionary Army, I can only ensure he stays alive."
"Heh..."
Thor’s mouth curled even higher.
Then, without hesitation, he pulled the trigger.
When the gun fired, the lead bullet, shrouded in Armament Haki, shot toward Garp’s heart.
But the slow movement of the gun earlier allowed Garp to easily dodge the lead bullet fired at such close range.
Immediately, Garp threw a punch toward Thor’s face.
Thor lowered his left hand as if accepting his fate.
"Ran for most of my life, and in the end... I still couldn't fire a shot I was satisfied with..."
The wind of the punch arrived.
Thor’s eyelids slowly drooped.
Suddenly, a soft sound reached his ears, like the whistle of a willow branch slicing through the air with force.
It was very familiar.
It was the sound of a bullet in flight.
At that moment, the wind of the punch brushed against Thor’s face, kicking up the surrounding dust and smoke.
However, the fist did not land.
Thor opened his eyes in astonishment.
It was only then that the sound of the gunshot, trailing behind, finally arrived from the distance.
Then, Thor saw a gash open on Garp’s cheek, with blood streaming uncontrollably from the wound.
Garp did not pay attention to the cut on his face; instead, he looked in the direction from which the bullet had come.
There stood a boy holding a long gun.
At that age, at that distance, with that kind of power.
A flash of realization crossed Garp’s eyes.
"A treasure, huh..."
Garp then withdrew his gaze and turned to the stunned Thor.
"For you, he is indeed a treasure."
"It’s Mode... Ha... Hahaha... Hahahaha!"
Thor suddenly burst into loud laughter.
Even if it was just an insignificant gunshot wound, it was enough for him to head toward the afterlife with laughter.
Without Thor’s interference, Aokiji seized the opportunity and froze Morley once again.
Immediately after, Aokiji heard Thor’s laughter.
When he followed the sound, he saw blood streaming down half of Garp’s cheek.
Aokiji had also noticed the gunshot from earlier.
"Was it that youngster?"
Aokiji turned to look at Mode, who was still holding his firing stance, his eyes flickering.
From such a distance, and he broke through Garp’s Armament Haki?
Or perhaps, Garp hadn't had time to use his Haki?
In the distance.
Countless white dots flashed in Mode’s eyes, and his vision blurred in an instant.
Clatter.
The "Usopp" in his hands suddenly disintegrated, its parts scattering to the ground.
"Did I miss...? What kind of old monster is he, under those circumstances..."
Mode’s legs went soft, and he collapsed to the ground.
A single shot had almost completely drained his stamina.
"Mode!"
Sabo hid the shock in his eyes, shielding Tatamu behind him with one hand while catching Mode just in time with the other.
"Sorry."
Mode whispered.
He didn't know if he was saying it to Sabo or to Thor.
Before the effects of his Observation Haki faded, he "saw" Aokiji freeze Morley again, which meant that no matter how fast they ran, it was impossible to escape this island.
"It’s okay."
Sabo bit his lip, his peripheral vision catching the fragments of "Usopp" scattered on the ground.
A gun...
Could it be that powerful?
The shot Mode had fired in this desperate situation with the help of "Usopp" had truly stopped Garp.
But that was all it did; it was nowhere near enough to save Thor from Garp’s hands.
However, this shot had invisibly changed many outcomes.
Aokiji did not stay idle; he conjured clusters of ice spears and waved his hand, sending them toward the exhausted Mode.
Seeing the ice spears arrayed against him, Sabo’s expression changed.
A figure descended from the sky, brandishing a sword to shatter the ice spears.
The newcomer was Laffitte.
It was one of the results triggered by that shot.
On the other side.
Garp looked at the laughing Thor and threw his fist again.
But his fist was forced to stop once more.
Because another shot had arrived as reinforcement.
A shot from Yasopp.
This, too... was one of the results triggered by that shot.