Although Whitebeard was once the strongest, that era had passed ever since Kizaru became an admiral. And despite spending decades aboard the Moby Dick, Blackbeard still found himself lacking confidence when facing Whitebeard. Because this was not the Whitebeard who had been stabbed by Squard, fought through an entire war, and was left on the brink of death after taking Akainu's magma fists head-on. No— This was the Emperor of the Seas who had battled Fleet Admiral Sengoku for half a day and still remained in peak condition.
Even though Blackbeard had mentally prepared himself, a wave of panic still surged within him. For a moment, he even considered fleeing and coming up with another plan later. But— With his lifelong ambition right in front of him, and his rational mind screaming that this was his one and only chance to seize the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, Blackbeard knew— If he hesitated now, he would never get another opportunity.
"Teach… you actually dare to show your face before me…" Whitebeard's furious voice boomed through Marineford, shaking the very air itself. Murdering Thatch was already an unforgivable crime. But betraying the crew, handing Ace over to the Marines, and indirectly causing the deaths of countless Whitebeard Pirates? That was beyond redemption. At the very moment he laid eyes on Marshall D. Teach, Whitebeard made his decision— No matter what, this traitor had to die!
"Long time no see, Pops!"
"No need to get so worked up over me!"
Blackbeard grinned shamelessly. He had been terrified at first— But he quickly regained his composure. If he could provoke Whitebeard into continuing the fight, then he wouldn't even need to hold off Shanks for the Marines. Sengoku would have no choice but to keep fighting— For the sake of the Marine's honor.
"Blackbeard… why are you here?" Sengoku frowned deeply. Blackbeard had been granted a Warlord title for handing over Fire Fist Ace to the Marines. But ever since then, he had been dodging every single Marine summons. If not for the Top War keeping Marine forces occupied, Sengoku would have had him hunted down already.
"Zehahahaha! Of course, I came to help the Marines fight Shanks! I'll handle Red-Haired Shanks, and the rest of the Seven Warlords can take care of his crew! If we work together, this war can continue!" Blackbeard eagerly declared.
Because in this entire sea, only Marine Headquarters had the power to push Whitebeard to the brink. If Sengoku refused to keep fighting, then Blackbeard alone would never be able to get his hands on the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. Not in this lifetime, or even the next.
Before Blackbeard could finish speaking, a glint of excitement flashed in Akainu's eyes. If anyone in the Marines wanted this war to continue, it was either Blackbeard—or Akainu. But their reasons were different. Blackbeard wanted the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. Akainu wanted to win enough merit to secure the Fleet Admiral position.
Otherwise— Even though Kizaru was older than him by a few years, that guy was known as the "Ageless Admiral." Despite being in his fifties, he still looked like he was in his early twenties. That was the ultimate mastery of Life Return, a technique that allowed one to control their body's aging process. Even the naval officer who originally developed Life Return never expected someone to perfect it to this level. That officer had lived to be over 120 years old— And Kizaru's mastery was far beyond his. If Kizaru became Fleet Admiral, then unless he voluntarily retired, Akainu knew he'd be waiting his entire life for a position that would never open up.
"That bastard Teach!"
"Damn it! How dare he show his face here?!"
"I'll kill him and avenge Thatch!"
Whitebeard Pirates cursed furiously. As the fourth division commander, Thatch had always been well-liked. And with Blackbeard's betrayal also leading to Ace's capture, their hatred for him had reached the absolute limit.
"Eliminating pirates and upholding justice is the duty of the Marines! In the name of justice, Whitebeard's crew must be destroyed!" Sengoku had finally made up his mind. The cost of destroying Whitebeard's crew would be immense, but letting them leave freely in front of the entire world? That would damage the Marine's honor beyond repair!
"Yeah! Wipe out Whitebeard's crew!"
"For justice!"
"Kill these damn pirates!"
As Sengoku's order rang out, the entire Marine force erupted. It was true that the Marines had corrupt officers, but the majority of them had joined for justice. And no matter what definition of justice they followed, destroying pirates was something all Marines agreed on!
"Retreat! Commanders, cover the crew's retreat! I'll hold them off! Marco, take Ace and get out of here!" But just as the Whitebeard Pirates were preparing to fight to the death, determined to kill Blackbeard no matter what, their father— Whitebeard himself— unexpectedly gave the order to retreat.
"Old man… are we really not avenging Thatch and Ace?!"
Diamond Jozu, the Third Division Commander, was furious. He had been extremely close with Thatch, and if Ace hadn't insisted on taking responsibility, Jozu would have been the first to hunt down Blackbeard. In Jozu's eyes, with both the Red-Haired Pirates and the Revolutionary Army on their side, the Whitebeard Pirates absolutely had the strength to fight the Marines— There was no need to run away.
Many pirates shared Jozu's sentiment, their eyes turning toward Whitebeard, hoping he would change his mind. After all— They were the Whitebeard Pirates. How could they stand idly by, watching their family's murderer right in front of them, only to turn and flee like cowards?
"Shut up! I ain't dead yet! The Whitebeard Pirates are still mine to command!"
Whitebeard's roar silenced them all. There was no need to throw their lives away in a death match with the Marines just to kill Teach. They could deal with him anytime. Their true goal in coming to Marineford had been to rescue Ace— And now, Marco and Straw Hat Luffy had already succeeded. There was no reason to keep fighting.
"Old man…" Ace hesitated. He wanted to kill Blackbeard, to avenge Thatch. But he also knew that if he stayed behind, he would only endanger his crew.
"Thatch was my son. His vengeance is mine to take." Whitebeard shook his head. He knew all too well the burden Ace carried on his shoulders— But this was not the time to test his resolve.
"Think you can escape? Hah! Dream on!" Akainu sneered, raising his hand as countless magma meteors shot into the sky. Lava rained down, ready to turn Marineford's harbor into a molten hell. Unless they had Whitey Bay's icebreaker ship, even the Moby Dick wouldn't be able to sail out.
"Akainu, you brat!"
Before the magma could fall, Whitebeard had already slammed his fist into the air. Shockwaves rippled outward, shattering the very atmosphere and obliterating Akainu's lava meteors in an instant.
"Block them! Don't let the pirates escape!"
At Sengoku's command, tens of thousands of Marines charged forward, their battle cries shaking the battlefield.
"Over my dead body! Earthquake!"
Whitebeard swung his bisento down onto Marineford's plaza. A massive rift— over ten meters wide— tore through the ground, completely separating the Marines from the pirates.
Sure, Marine officers could use Moonwalk to cross the gap— But not every Marine had mastered the Six Powers. And even among those who had, not all could use Moonwalk efficiently. Recklessly charging across would only get them trapped and slaughtered by the pirates. Even a Marine Vice Admiral could be overwhelmed in such a scenario.
"Ice Rainbow Bridge!"
At the critical moment, Admiral Aokiji leapt into the air, activating his powers. A massive ice bridge, dozens of meters wide, instantly spanned the gap. As his ability continued to spread, the entire rift began filling with ice— Even if the Whitebeard Pirates destroyed the bridge, the Marines only needed to wait a moment before charging across again.
"Move!"
"Don't let them get away!"
"Destroy the Whitebeard Pirates!"
The Marines' morale surged. Akainu, his fighting spirit burning brighter than ever, transformed into molten lava and rushed toward Whitebeard. He needed to claim the head of the world's strongest man— To make up for the glory he had lost.
This was his final opportunity. Once the war ended, Sengoku would almost certainly retire. And the next Fleet Admiral? Without a doubt, it would be Kizaru— The Admiral who had delivered pure gold to the Five Elders.
In terms of strength, merit, and seniority, Kizaru was flawless. The only way Akainu could change the outcome was by achieving a feat of equal magnitude— And Whitebeard's head was the perfect choice.
Even if it didn't fully match Kizaru's accomplishment, Akainu was confident he could use Kizaru's personality flaws to sway the Five Elders. After all— Who would want a Fleet Admiral who constantly disobeyed orders and ignored the World Government's will?
"Die, Whitebeard!"
Akainu transformed midair, becoming a massive lava tsunami, and plunged toward Whitebeard in an all-out attack.
Before Whitebeard could move, a jet-black flying slash split the lava in two.
"Red-Hair!"
Shanks had drawn his sword— And intervened.
Akainu's face twisted in rage. It felt like the entire world was against him— Every time he locked onto a target, someone else got in his way. And this was his last chance!
Even with his pride, Akainu knew he couldn't take on both Shanks and Whitebeard at once. His dream of becoming Fleet Admiral was now nothing more than an illusion.
With a roar, he erupted like a volcano, throwing everything he had into a suicidal charge against Shanks.
"Man, this guy's got a real bad temper…!"
Shanks' expression twitched slightly— He couldn't quite understand why Akainu was this furious. Still, even if Akainu went berserk, Shanks was confident he could stop him.
Before the scorching lava could even fall, countless flying slashes from Shanks' sword had obliterated it mid-air. But as a Logia user, Akainu didn't care about such attacks. The scattered lava quickly reformed, taking human shape once more.
"Great Eruption!"
Akainu, seething with rage, had already made up his mind— No matter who else jumped in to interfere, he was now fixated on killing Shanks.
Because in some ways— Shanks was the very reason Akainu's dream of becoming Fleet Admiral had been shattered.
At that exact moment— Aokiji also made his move. His frozen breath billowed into the air as he rushed toward Whitebeard, intending to take his head.
But unlike Akainu, Aokiji had no personal ambition for the Fleet Admiral position. He was simply protecting the Navy's dignity. In his eyes, as long as Akainu didn't become Fleet Admiral, he could accept any other outcome.
In fact— Borsalino's neutral stance wasn't all that different from the more pacifist factions in the Navy. The Borsalino faction was already known as a wild mix of former hawks and doves— Marines who had found the extremes of either side unbearable and had chosen to follow him instead.
"Storm Dragon Claw— Dragon King's Breath!"
Before Aokiji could reach Whitebeard, a howling storm rose before him, forming an impassable barrier.
Monkey D. Dragon.
Originally, Dragon's goal in the Paramount War had been to spread the Revolutionary Army's ideology and damage the Navy's image— Rescuing Ace had been secondary.
Even though his plan to strike a fatal blow against the Navy hadn't fully succeeded, he had still broadcast the Revolutionary Army's message to the entire world. Now that his objective was mostly complete, he didn't mind helping his temporary allies— blocking a Navy Admiral in the process.
Whitebeard, of course, understood the importance of returning favors. As he ordered his sons to cover the retreat, he also ensured the Revolutionary Army could escape safely.
The chaos of Marineford's battlefield exploded anew— But this time, the Blackbeard Pirates had made their move. Led by Blackbeard himself, they clashed head-on with the Red-Haired Pirates.
"Take him down!"
Ben Beckman, a cigarette dangling from his lips, glanced at Blackbeard, then calmly raised his rifle.
The Red-Haired Pirates weren't just the strongest Yonko crew on average— They also had the best snipers in the New World.
Ben Beckman, Yasopp, and Lucky Roux— All top-tier marksmen. And beneath them? A dozen more snipers, each as skilled as Izo from the Whitebeard Pirates.
Even a top-level powerhouse would hesitate to charge straight into that kind of firepower.
Bullets coated in Armament Haki rained down like a storm, forcing the Blackbeard Pirates into a chaotic retreat.
The Dark-Dark Fruit might be the most dangerous Devil Fruit— but unlike other Logia types, it lacked intangibility. Worse— it doubled pain when taking damage.
At this point, Blackbeard still hadn't obtained the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. He was not yet at the level of a top-tier fighter. Against the full force of the Red-Haired Pirates' snipers, he was completely helpless.
"Damn it! Aren't you supposed to be a sniper?! Fire back!"
Burgess, hiding behind a broken wall, roared in frustration. He loved fighting, sure— but not like this. Not cowering like a cornered rat under relentless gunfire.
"Screw you! If you're so tough, get out there and draw their fire for me! I promise I'll collect your corpse!"
Van Augur snapped back, furious. He wanted to duel the Red-Haired Pirates' snipers— but not like this.
This wasn't a one-on-one duel. This was a one-versus-ten bloodbath!
Unlike Burgess, who could tank hits, snipers lived or died by precision. A single misstep was enough to end them instantly.
And the worst part? There were at least two or three snipers stronger than him on the enemy side— Not to mention the dozen others who were just as skilled.
"Staying here is suicide. We need a new plan."
Lafitte glanced into a small mirror, observing the Red-Haired Pirates closing in from both flanks. Their formation made it clear— They weren't just pushing them back— They were setting up a kill zone.
If they didn't act fast, they'd all be wiped out.
"Eh? So what do I— cough cough— I mean, what's the plan?!"
Doc Q was a bit dumbfounded, and even his sickly horse, for once, seemed to perk up, eagerly staring at Lafitte.
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