As the weakest combatant on the crew, he had zero confidence in holding his own. While the others could split up without any issues, Doc Q was genuinely worried he'd get killed.
"Zehahahaha! Don't worry— I personally chose you for my crew. You won't die that easily!"
Blackbeard laughed heartlessly. If he weren't outmatched, Doc Q would have shoved an exploding apple into his mouth by now.
"Good luck, then."
Lafitte simply shrugged, removed his top hat, and flicked it upward like a magician— Suddenly, a flock of doves burst out from inside.
The moment the doves took flight, however, the Red-Haired Pirates' snipers shot them all down in an instant.
But the distraction worked— The Blackbeard Pirates used the opening to scatter, avoiding further suppression by gunfire.
"Open fire freely! Cover the Whitebeard Pirates' retreat!"
Ben Beckman snorted at the scene. He had no interest in wasting time with Blackbeard's crew.
Shanks always had a bad habit of meddling, so as his first mate, Beckman had to clean up his messes.
Some of the snipers still had a grudge against Blackbeard for his betrayal and kept focusing their shots on him. But a few Haki-coated bullets weren't enough to bring him down completely.
That didn't mean it didn't hurt.
Every shot drew a furious curse from Blackbeard— The Dark-Dark Fruit's pain amplification was no joke. Even someone as tough as him could barely endure it.
"Huff… huff… Can't be too close to Pops… but can't be too far away either… Need to find a high ground to assess the situation first…"
Finally breaking out of Yasopp's sniping range, Blackbeard rushed across the battlefield, calculating the best way to steal the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
At this moment, Whitebeard was holding back the Navy's pursuit. The "Strongest Man in the World" stood alone, an unbreakable wall between the Marines and their target.
To make things worse— Fleet Admiral Sengoku was occupied, held back by a mysterious hooded figure who refused to reveal their identity.
The remaining Vice Admirals? Completely outmatched against Whitebeard.
Seizing the moment, Blackbeard quickly found the perfect spot— a large watchtower standing tall over Marineford's central plaza.
"Zehahaha… This spot is perfect…"
With a grin, he climbed up to the tower's pavilion.
From here, he had a clear vantage point— He could monitor Whitebeard's condition without drawing attention. The ongoing chaos would keep both the Navy and the pirates too distracted to notice him.
At least… that's what he thought.
Because the moment he stepped inside, his grin froze solid.
"Hmm? What a coincidence, Blackbeard…"
Sitting leisurely on a beach chair— where it had come from was anyone's guess— was Kizaru.
A small table sat beside him, piled high with food, drinks, and fine liquor.
To his left, Baby-5 and Nami were tending to him.
Behind him? Hancock and Esdeath, locked in an icy stare-down.
The moment Blackbeard entered, all eyes snapped toward him.
[Random Bystander Trying to Suck Up to Luo Feng]: PFFT! HAHAHA! Blackbeard just walked straight into his own doom!]
[Orochimaru]: So this is the Dark-Dark Fruit user you mentioned earlier? The most unique Logia… intriguing.
[Tony Stark]: Whoa, just saying— no offense to plus-sized folks— but this Blackbeard guy's body proportions are insane. Is he really that strong?
[Xiao Mei]: He looks evil… and really ugly.
[Kobayashi]: Ehh, judging someone just by their looks is kinda mean, don't you think~?
[Ai Haibara]: Don't underestimate him. If the dumb dog isn't lying, this guy is the mastermind who started this entire war.
[Fubuki]: Doesn't look very smart, though…
[Orochimaru]: Heh… Can I pre-order this guy's corpse?
The chat exploded with reactions— Clearly, Blackbeard's dramatic entrance was too good to ignore.
"Navy monster… Y-yo, Admiral Kizaru… Zehahaha… Didn't expect to see you here… My bad! I'll just— get going now!"
Blackbeard forced out a dry laugh. He still remembered the battle between Whitebeard and Kizaru more than a decade ago.
Although Whitebeard ultimately repelled the admiral, the seriousness on his face back then proved that the title "Marine Monster" was well deserved.
In Teach's mind, Whitebeard was the one person he least wanted to face. And after that? It was definitely Kizaru.
If he ignored Whitebeard's blazing fury—the sheer hatred that made it seem like the old man wanted to tear him apart alive—then Kizaru might actually rank even higher.
In some ways, the Glint-Glint Fruit was the perfect counter to the Dark-Dark Fruit.
Most importantly? Kizaru was too fast.
Even with the ability to nullify Devil Fruits, Blackbeard couldn't touch someone moving at the speed of light.
"Leave? You think you can leave without my permission?"
Kizaru put down his wine glass, a lazy smile on his face.
The moment the words left his mouth, Blackbeard's expression changed dramatically.
Unlike Akainu, who would gladly drag every pirate to hell with him, Kizaru had a different philosophy.
To him, preserving the Navy's interests wasn't just about eliminating pirates—it was about maintaining balance and order on the seas.
At first glance, this made his ideals sound similar to Shanks'.
But there was a fundamental difference—
Shanks wanted to preserve the balance of the Great Pirate Era. He needed the Four Emperors to exist, ensuring that the Navy could never fully suppress the endless waves of pirates entering the New World.
Meanwhile, Kizaru wanted a balance where the Navy was in complete control.
In simple terms, his vision of balance meant the Navy standing high above all, with the power to eliminate any pirate crew at will—without actually wiping out all pirates.
At least, not until the World Government was overthrown.
After all, as long as pirates existed, the Navy could maintain a certain level of independence from the Government.
So for someone like Blackbeard—a pure opportunist who only wanted to tear down the existing order—it didn't matter whether he ended up in the hands of the Red-Haired Pirates or Kizaru.
Either way, he was a dead man.
"Zehahaha… Maybe Admiral Kizaru isn't aware… I'm a Warlord of the Sea now. We're on the same side."
Blackbeard slowly took a step backward, bloodshot eyes locked onto Kizaru, watching for any sign he might attack.
"A Warlord?"
Kizaru tilted his head, voice still as casual as ever.
"Now that you mention it… I really don't like that system. Once I become Fleet Admiral, I'll just abolish it altogether."
He stood up at an unhurried pace—yet Blackbeard's entire body tensed.
His mind was already in full escape mode.
The odds of getting away were slim, but no way in hell was he going to die right before his dream was within reach.
He had spent decades waiting for this—he wasn't about to lose everything now!
"Zehahaha… But before the Warlord system is abolished, wouldn't attacking me mean defying the World Government's orders?"
Blackbeard's voice took on a hint of menace as he played his last card—threatening Kizaru's shot at Fleet Admiral.
"If you do that… you might just lose your chance at the position you've been waiting for."
Kizaru simply chuckled.
"In that case… I'll leave this one to you two."
He turned to Hancock and Esdeath.
The two had been locked in a silent standoff just moments ago, but as soon as Kizaru spoke—
Both women turned their attention to Blackbeard.
The sheer pressure of their combined killing intent nearly made Blackbeard's knees buckle.
What the hell was wrong with these two?!
"Don't worry, my dear~"
Esdeath's lips curled into a cold, merciless smile.
"I'll bring you this fool's head in no time."
She was getting tired of constantly bickering with Hancock over Kizaru's attention—so Blackbeard showing up was perfect timing.
Just one glance was enough for Esdeath to sense the subtle danger radiating from him.
He might not be as strong as Delocas or Red-Haired Shanks, but he was definitely powerful enough to give her an entertaining fight.
"Don't be ridiculous! Lord Kizaru clearly ordered me, a Warlord, to deal with this man!"
Hancock had no intention of backing down.
She wasn't particularly interested in fighting strong opponents, but if it was Kizaru's order, she would carry it out without hesitation.
Seeing that Hancock was about to argue with her again, Esdeath rolled her eyes.
She had wanted to experience the game of love, and so far, her time with "darling" had been incredibly enjoyable.
But the number of strange women around him was starting to annoy her.
It wasn't that she had some obsessive need to monopolize Kizaru—
But Hancock's constant competition for his attention was seriously irritating.
Why couldn't she be obedient like those two maids?
It's not like Esdeath minded Kizaru having other women—
Though, what she didn't realize was that while she and Hancock were butting heads, a certain Nami was secretly hoping they'd start fighting for real.
"Fine! Let's see who's faster! Whoever takes his head first wins!"
Esdeath finally lost her patience and declared a challenge—
Then, completely ignoring any sense of fairness, she attacked first—hurling a barrage of ice spears straight at Blackbeard.
"Bastard!"
Blackbeard never expected this outcome—
Kizaru himself wasn't making a move, but instead, he had sicced the Pirate Empress and the woman who killed White Ram Delocas on him at the same time!
To be honest, Blackbeard wasn't afraid of fighting either of them one-on-one.
But two-on-one, right at the moment he was about to steal the Tremor-Tremor Fruit—
That was enough to make him mad.
Even if he somehow won, he might miss his only chance to claim Whitebeard's power.
So, without hesitation, Blackbeard leaped off the tower, diving straight toward Marineford's war-torn battlefield.
As chaotic as the fight below was, it was still better than getting hunted down by two monstrous women.
"Don't even think about running!"
There was no way Esdeath would let her prey escape.
She drew her saber and immediately gave chase.
Hunting dangerous creatures was her way of life, and the thrill of tracking and slaughtering prey was ingrained in her blood.
"Wretched woman!"
Hancock gritted her teeth, her long legs kicking off the air as she leaped after them.
She may not have trained as a Marine, but given her relationship with Kizaru, she had long mastered the Six Powers.
From this height, all she had to do was use Moonwalk a couple more times—
And she'd catch up in no time.
"Hmph. Not bad."
Esdeath landed gracefully on a massive ice platform, skating across the rapidly freezing battlefield as she closed in on Blackbeard.
Then she saw Hancock running through the air with Moonwalk, effortlessly outpacing her due to having a more direct route.
But Esdeath wasn't worried.
Blackbeard was strong—
Taking his head wouldn't be that easy.
°°°
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