Chapter 116: No Openings
The Sabaody Archipelago, currently broadcasting the war at Marineford, was in an uproar.
âItâs supposed to be a war between the Navy and Whitebeard, isnât it!?â
âKaido, Big Mom... and even the Golden Lion joined the war!?â
âAt this rate, the Navyâs gonna lose, arenât they!?â
âWhatâs gonna happen to the world!?â
Marines, civilians, journalists, piratesâevery last one of them stared at the scene of war that looked more like hell than reality, pale with fear, filled with dread over what tomorrow might bring.
Originally, the plan had been to prevent the war from being shown at all by faking a malfunction in the visual transponder snails.
But the âChimera Nueâ hijacked one and tampered with it, broadcasting every intense moment of the war directly into the eyes of the people.
Naturally, the next generationâthe Supernovasâwerenât about to miss this spectacle either.
ââŚIs this the end of the NavyâŚ?â
âTheyâre putting on a showâfor the public, and for all the pirates out there⌠the moment the world falls into pirate handsâŚ!!â
âWhitebeardâs a living legend, yeah⌠but heâs not just up against the Navy. With that kind of difference in firepower, thereâs no way he winsâŚâ
âChances of Marine Headquarters survivingââ
âAmen.â
âIf this keeps up⌠heâsâŚ!!â
ââŚWeâre setting sail, Bepo!!â
âAye aye, Captain!â
They too could sense the coming heartbeat of the pirate era, holding their breath as they watched the end of an age unfold.
The footage showed the Navy initiating a plan to surround the Whitebeard Pirates.
Having charged into the war to rescue his brother Ace, the boy in the straw hat, Monkey D. Luffy, was racing straight through the chaos toward the execution platform.
âHaah⌠The strong-looking ones went Aceâs way⌠Is he gonna be okay over there!?â
âThatâs the Golden Lion, Luffy-kun!! The legendary pirate who made the first successful escape from Impel Down 20 years ago!!â
âThe Navyâs already decided to execute Ace-boyâthereâs no way theyâre gonna let some pirate do it!! We have to get to the plaza, fast!!â
âYeah⌠With the Navyâs forces spread thin, this is our best chance to save Ace!!â
âAlright!! No oneâs in our way right now!! We can get up there!!â
Hearing the voices of Jinbei, Ivankov, and Musashi running beside him, Luffy stretched his arms out and grabbed the edge of the plaza, attempting to climb up. Butâ
âWhaâ!? What theâ!?â
âA wall!!?â
Suddenly, from beneath the ice, a massive iron wall shot up to block the way to the plaza, swatting Luffyâs arm away and cutting off the Whitebeard Piratesâ path forward.
âWeâre surrounded!!!â
âWhat the hell is this!?â
Walls emerged, encircling the entire bay. No matter how hard the pirates attacked them, the steel barricades didnât so much as tremble.
âSo thatâs the âencirclement wallsâ they kept talking about!!!â
âYou trying to avoid fighting us, Navy!?â
âAll the cannons are pointed this way!!â
The Whitebeard Pirates came to a halt in front of the wall. With it blocking the way, they couldnât reach the plaza, and though they tried to break it, the wall didnât even crack.
The Navyâs plan had been to use these walls to trap the Whitebeard Pirates in the bay and wipe them out in one go.
By activating the system, they thought they could at least temporarily stall the threats posed by the Whitebeard and Golden Lion Piratesâbut the plan was flawed, and it couldnât be executed immediately.
âWhat the hell is going on!!! Get those walls fully operational!!!â
ââŚOne of the walls couldnât lift Oarsâs massive bodyâŚ!! It seems his blood got into the system and caused a power dropâŚ!!!â
Sengoku shouted for the walls to be activated at once. One of the barriers meant to complete the enclosure had failed to rise properly, blocked by the sheer mass of Oarsâs corpse.
Even if the walls had gone up fully, the rest of the plan couldnât proceed. After allâ
âFighting the Navy brings back memoriesâŚ!! Of that dayâwhen we decided to break away!!!â
ââŚ!! You shouldâve died back thenâŚ!! You just had to get in the wayâŚ!!â
âWorororo!! If youâve got a complaint, take it up with Garp over there!!! âHey Garp!! Iâll make you regret not killing us back then!!!â
ââŚYou think I donât alreadyâŚ!!?â
One of the planâs key playersâAkainuâwas now completely tied up with Kaido.
With the giant dragon tearing across the sky, there was no way to use Akainu to destroy the Whitebeard Piratesâ footing. But they couldnât just sit on their hands, either.
ââŚ!! Maintain minimum vigilance on Whitebeard in the bay! All other Marines in the plaza, focus your forces on repelling the Beasts Pirates and Big Mom Pirates!!â
âYes sir!!â
Sengoku left Whitebeard to the encirclement walls and artillery, redirecting his troops to counter the two pirate crews closing in from the flanks.
He decided there was no need to rush taking Whitebeard down. The Golden Lion Pirates from behind, the plazaâs âChimera,â and Big Mom would handle him sooner or later. If anything went wrong, there were still other options.
Thus, Sengoku shifted strategy, prioritizing the three pirate crews that had nothing to do with Ace, all of whom sought to bring down the Navy. He needed Whitebeard to stall for timeâbut nothing ever went according to plan in a battlefield this chaotic.
âââQueen-sama!! Weâre all set!!â
âAlriiiight!! Then aim at the Whitebeard Pirates in the bayâFIRE!!!â
â!!?â
âGyaaah!!â
âGah, I got hit!!â
The Whitebeard Pirates had judged that heading toward the opening Oars made was their best bet. But from atop the left-side wall, a rain of gunfire poured down on them, injuring many. It wasnât laser fireâit was all physical ammunition⌠but not ordinary bullets either.
âSo coldâŚ!! What the hell is thisâŚ!?â
âGyaah!! What the hellâs your problem!?â
âAn infectionâŚ!? Damn itâŚ!! Itâs PlagueâŚ!!!â
âââMuhahaha!!! Thatâs right!! Third Division CommanderâDiamond Jozu!!!â
ââŚ!! Queen the PlagueâŚ!!!â
The Whitebeard Pirates who were hit suddenly began suffering from extreme cold, lost control of their minds, and turned violently on those around them. Anyone they touched caught the same illness.
There was only one person on this battlefield who could unleash such a bizarre viral weapon. Jozu looked up toward the source of the gunfire, and sure enough, there stood Queen, one of the Lead Performers of the Beasts Pirates, flanked by countless gun-wielding subordinates.
âThese are Excite Plague Rounds!! No matter how tough you areânobody beats illness!! You of all people should know that⌠seeing as your captainâs sick, isnât he!? Mwahahahaha!!â
"Gyahahahaha!!"
"âKhâŚ!! Donât you dare make fun of PopsâŚ!! Come down here, Queen!!!"
"Muhaha, idiot. Youâre all gonna die down there, spreading that infection amongst yourselves. I donât even need to come down!! Youâre family, right? Then stay together till the end!! Catch it and die together!! Mwahahaha!!!"
"That bastardâŚ!!!"
"Commander Jozu⌠runâŚ! Weâre done forâŚ!! If we touch each other, weâll just spread itâŚ!!"
A portion of the Whitebeard Pirates trapped in the bay had succumbed to a mysterious diseaseâan engineered virus that gave the âPandemicâ his moniker. The infected unknowingly passed it on to others. If nothing was done, a pandemic would erupt inside the bay.
But their escape routes were limited. Behind them was the Golden Lion Pirates. The bay was surrounded by barricades, and enemy forces made every direction dangerous. Even UFOs hovered in the sky.
To make matters worse, while Jozu was grinding his teeth on the left flank, on the right, Marco was locked in battle with yet another âcalamity.â
"Gyahhhhhh!!"
"Itâs burning!!"
"Shit, back up!! The fireâs spreadingâour footingâs disappearing!!"
"Damn it!! That bastard KingâŚ!!"
Flames had spread across the frozen sea, melting away their footing one patch at a time.
The one responsible was one of the two airborne combatants wreathed in fire. The man engulfed in red flames rained destruction from above, while the one cloaked in blue fire watched the chaos in the bay, his mouth twisting with disgust.
"Tch!! That damn 'Plague'⌠If we donât push through to the plaza now, itâll be too lateâŚ!!"
"Youâve got my sympathy. Falling victim to that dumbassâs weaponâŚ!! Arenât you going to stop him?"
"I want to, but leaving you alone is way more dangerous, yoi!!"
"A wise choiceâŚ!!"
Even as they traded words, the battle never paused. The Phoenix versus the Pteranodonâtwo mythical and ancient Zoan users clashed in a battle of airborne supremacy. With flight capabilities and tremendous combat prowess, it was a high-level sky duel no one else could interfere in.
"Flames donât work on me, yoi!!!"
"The flames are just to clear out the trash below. You, Iâll carve apart thoroughly⌠until you canât regenerate anymoreâŚ!!!"
"âŚ! Humanoid formâŚ!!"
King spread his flames wide, but they were useless against Marco, the Phoenix who was already wreathed in fire. The flames were meant for Whitebeardâs menâand in truth, small-scale blazes were already breaking out across the frozen surface.
Marco took flight to stop it, surging toward King at high speed. But King shifted from his beast form back to humanoid, drawing a blade proportional to his massive frame. Marco narrowed his eyes, reading the movement and readying himself. At that moment, Kingâs sword gleamed.
"!!"
"!? A flying slashâŚ!!"
King swung his sword, releasing a massive slash toward Marco below. Marco, seeing it just in time, chose to dodge rather than take the hit.
"Uwaaahhh!!? What the hell!?"
"Captain Buggy!! That slash came down from above and cut through the ice!!"
"Weâre gonna fall!! Watch your footing!!"
The flying slash reached the bay floor, slicing the entire right half of the frozen surface in two. But even after witnessing that, King clicked his tongue, unsatisfied. He stayed airborne with his black wings, blocking Marcoâs incoming kick with his blade, then transformed back into a Pteranodon and flew higher.
"If heâd taken that head-on, I couldâve worn down his regeneration⌠but as expected, taking you downâs gonna take some timeâŚ!!"
"Then hurry up and drop already, yoiâŚ!!"
"Hmph⌠At this rate, Nue might finish off your captain before we settle things."
"!!? No wayâŚ!!"
Marcoâs expression tightened at Kingâs wordsâfor good reason. At that very moment, Whitebeard was indeed locked in combat with Nue.
"Youâve really gotten slow⌠havenât you, âWhitebeardâ!!"
"Haa⌠Donât spout bullshit, you damn brat!! What part of meâs gotten slow, huh!!?"
"Trying to deny it? Ahaha!! Thatâs a stretch, WhitebeardâŚ!! Even if you ignore how much stronger Iâve gotten, the old you was way, way more of a monster⌠so much so that even someone like me back then couldnât compareâŚ!! Everybody knows thatâŚ!!!"
Whitebeardâs quake-powered, Haki-infused naginata clashed with Nueâs spear. At a glance, they looked evenly matched. But Whitebeardâs breath was ragged, sweat beading on his brow. Nue, on the other hand, showed no such signs. It was clearâWhitebeard was not at full strength. He knew it. His crewmates knew it. His aging, diseased body had been deteriorating for some time, kept functional only through daily medication and IVs. Heâd managed to keep moving up to now through sheer force of will⌠but deep down, he could feel it. His end was near.
âAnd Nue, who had known the Whitebeard of the past and possessed powerful Observation Haki, sensed it too.
"Righteous Heart: Green UFO Barrage!!!"
"âŚ!!"
As Nue thrust her left hand forward, green UFOs materialized in midair and bombarded Whitebeard.
He managed to fend them off, even shooting some downâbut his movements lacked the sharpness of his prime. From Nueâs perspective, he was barely holding it together.
"The old you wouldnât have even flinched at something like this."
Despite the smile on her face, her voice carried a trace of sorrowâas if, even in battle, her mind had wandered back to a time nearly forty years ago.
ăHey, look, Whitebeard!! Take this!! My new UFO technique!!ă
ăLike hell Iâm takinâ it, dumbass!! No matter how many of those puny snot-nosed UFO shots you fire, they ainât puttinâ a scratch on me!!ă
ăDonât call a cute girl âsnot-nosed,â you big jerk!! You dumbass Whitebeard!!ă
Once upon a time, Whitebeard had been a member of the most powerful and feared pirate crew in the world.
Within that vicious crew, where betrayal and backstabbing ran rampant, Whitebeard had stood firmânever allowing comrades to kill one another or commit atrocities beyond necessity. His overwhelming strength kept the worst impulses of his crewmates in check. When Whitebeard was around, betrayal stopped.
"Dark Cloud of Peace!!!"
"Kh⌠black mistâŚ!! But something like thisâ!!"
âWhitebeardâ swept away Nueâs conjured black clouds and bullet storm with a single slash of his naginata, dispelling both the blinding cover and the barrage in one motion.
But within that haze, he caught sight of Nue charging toward him, spear raised.
Whitebeard turned his naginata to intercept, swinging wide with another heavy blow to repel herâbutâ
â!?â
âPurple Mirror.â
His attack struck Nueâs bodyâyet not a drop of blood flew. Her form simply vanished into the air.
The black clouds cleared. The real Nue had slipped into Whitebeardâs blind spot, right into striking range.
âIf this were the old you... you never wouldâve fallen for such a cheap trick.â
â...!! (Damn it...!!)â
There wasnât enough time to bring the naginata back into position. He couldnât block. Couldnât dodge. A fatal openingâjust one moment.
But for the Nue of today, that was more than enough.
As if lost in memory, Nue channeled a dense coating of Armament Haki into the trident in her right hand. She spun it at blinding speed, turning it like a wheel.
ăIâll hide myself like this... and now, Whitebeard! For Kaido! Youâve let your guard down~~~!!ă
ăI didnât let nothing down! That crapâs just kid stuff!ă
ăOw! Youâre so mean!! Muu... someday I will land a clean hit on you!!ă
ăYou cheeky brat... Go ahead and try it. You couldnât do it in a hundred years, Nue. Gurararara...!!ă
âYouâve grown weakânothing like the monster you used to be. The Navyâs just going to run you into the ground and youâll die a wreck. So if thatâs your fate... Iâll be the one to finish you here and now.â
âGh... Nue...!!â
âCheckmate, Whitebeard.â
With resolve flaring in her red beastlike eyes, Nue locked onto Whitebeard.
Her trident, surging with Armament Haki and crackling with the power of her ability, sparked violently like a thunderclapâthen shot forward in a lightning-fast thrust.
âRaiju Hakkei!!!â
â!!!!â
ââNueâs spear pierced Whitebeard through the chest.
The "Beast" plunged its spear through Whitebeardâs chest, the impact tearing through the air, punching a hole in the sky.
And in that instant, the consciousness of every witness was seized by the moment.
The Whitebeard Pirates, the Marines, the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the escapees from Impel Down, the civilians of the Sabaody Archipelago, the reporters, the piratesâmany of them paled at the sight. The Beasts Pirates, Big Mom Pirates, and Golden Lion Pirates each reacted in their own way as they confirmed what had just happened.
"Oyaaajiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!"
"WhitebeardâŚ!!"
"The old man'sâŚ!!"
The voices of the Whitebeard Pirates and their allied crews echoed across the battlefield, and even those not aligned with them stood stunned by the sight of the legendary pirate being pierced through.
"OyajiâŚ!!"
"In battle, the one who shows an opening dies first. That's just how it isâŚ!!"
"!? KingâŚ!! You bastard⌠Let me go!!"
Marco had been frozen for a split second by the sight of Whitebeard being impaled. He moved to rush to his sideâbut in that instant, King struck, seizing Marco in the massive jaws of his pteranodon form and diving at full speed toward the plaza. Marco struggled to break free, but he couldnât escape the beast's brute strength.
"Donât worry. Iâll take you to the same place as Whitebeard!!"
"Kh⌠damn itâŚ!!"
"!!!"
"Captain Marco!!"
King crashed into the plaza without slowing, splitting the stone and sending dust erupting into the air. Some of the Whitebeard Pirates watching shouted in fear, worried for Marcoâs safety.
But most couldnât tear their eyes away from Whitebeard. Even Kaido, floating above, snorted as he watched the scene unfold.
"âŚHeâll be dead soon⌠Whitebeard. Thatâs the end of the Whitebeard Pirates. Once that old man dies, the rest are nothing. Itâs only a matter of time before they all fallâŚ"
"Kaido-sama!! Reporting in!!"
"!? Bao Huang."
As Kaido, in dragon form, battled the Marines in the plaza, Bao Huang approached aboard her rainbow-colored UFO to deliver her reportâunrelated to Whitebeardâs injury.
"Currently on the west side!! Joker-sama and Jack-sama have routed the Marines and are advancing toward the plaza as planned!! On the east side, Katakuri-samaâs Big Mom Pirates are facing resistance from Admiral Aokiji and seem to be falling behind schedule!!"
"Because that hag Linlin wonât step in. Damned old crone⌠she underestimated AokijiâŚ!!"
"Big Mom-sama is currently engaged in battle with âHawk Eyesâ in the bay!! Additionally, the Golden Lion Pirates are encircling the Whitebeard Pirates from the rear, just as planned!!"
"Got it. You stay âup topâ and keep monitoring and reporting from the battlefield, Bao Huang!!"
"Understood!!"
With Kaidoâs command, Bao Huang vanished above the clouds on her rainbow UFO. Kaido, meanwhile, descended in human form into the plaza, now strewn with fallen Marines.
"Even if you all fall here, the world will praise youâfor decades, centuries, youâve protected peace on these seas⌠youâve done your dutyâŚ!!"
"KaidoâŚ!!"
"Damn it⌠OyajiâŚ!!"
There were still many Marines left in the plaza, but not one of them looked confident anymore.
On the execution platform, Sengokuâs expression was grim, while Ace had turned pale. In the square below, Akainu stood at the center of the formation, Marines surrounding him, all bracing against Kaido. But every one of them bore injuries from the earlier attacksâboth from the UFO and from Kaido himself.
Kaido, on the other hand, remained completely unscathed.
"âŚItâs been twenty-two years since Roger died⌠now Whitebeardâs about to go too⌠and his son wonât be far behindâŚ!!"
Amidst the corpses of countless pirates and Marines, in the heart of a battlefield soaked in death, Kaido wore a fearless smile as he addressed the Navy.
You made it this far. He was ready to honor both their way of livingâand the way they were about to die.
He hefted his kanabo onto his shoulder.
"Now itâs your turnâŚ!!!"
A final warningâare you ready to die? Kaido demanded of the Navy.
"Iâll put an end to thisâŚ!!!"
"âŚâŚ!!!"
The strongest creature unleashed his wrath.
The moment I stabbed Whitebeard, I felt a flood of fear surge through my body.
It wasnât just fearâit came mingled with awe and fury. Thatâs what fuels me.
But this time, I couldnât bring myself to enjoy it as much. Surpassing Whitebeard isnât something that can be reduced to a single emotion.
Iâm not saying Iâm not happy. But itâs definitely not just that.
What I feel most of all isââSo, this is the end.â
Thatâs the plain truth. A human being canât survive a stab to the heart. No matter how monstrous they may be, that truth doesnât change. Itâs the natural end for a beast called man.
And yetâ
"This is the end, Whitebeard...ââ"
"...Like hell it is..."
â!!?â
Pure, unfiltered shock.
Whitebeard, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, speaksâand channels the power of a quake into his left arm.
His voice hasnât vanished. It wasnât an instant death. Iâm certain I pierced his heart.
And yet Whitebeard, that man, even as he hovers on the edge of death, is still burning with the fire of lifeâ
"Donât think you can kill me that easy, ya damn brat!!! Dumbass!!!"
â!!!â
The spearâstopped by the muscle of his chest!?
I tried to evade, but couldnât. I yanked the spear out with brute force, pouring more strength into itâbut in that very moment, I was hit. By Whitebeardâs fist, packed with the power of a quake, raw strength, and Haki.
It was both a nostalgic blow⌠and a sensation I was feeling for the first time.
"The shockâs cominâ, brace yourselves!!!"
"Old manâŚ!!"
"Hey, Nue just got sent flying!!?"
"No way!! How the hell is he still alive after getting stabbed in the chest!?"
As voices echoed from afar, I found myself remembering. Ah, thatâs right...
Come to think of it, has Whitebeard ever actually hit me seriously before?
Of course not when we were allies, but even when we used to fight⌠now that I think about it, Whitebeard never went all out back then either.
Itâs because we werenât strong enough to draw that out of him.
But nowâthough he may have weakened, he did hit me with all he had.
Thatâs proof he now sees me as a true enemy.
"Oh my⌠Whitebeardâs still alive, huh!! Still the same tough old guy!!"
"I ainât dyinâ just yetâŚ!!"
Hearing Linlin and Whitebeard talk brings the memory back to me.
RightâWhitebeard isnât the kind of man who dies from just this.
Even if his heart is destroyed, even if his brainâs half-gone, this man will keep that flame of life burning until heâs done what he came to do.
Thatâs what makes a great man. Even if the body dies, as long as the will lives on, a person doesnât truly die.
Of course, there are limits⌠but if Whitebeardâs not dead, then that means this still isnât his limit.
"...Good griefâŚ!!"
"Nue-san!!"
I spat out a pool of blood, rose to my feet. My subordinates were worriedâbut please. Donât underestimate me. Iâm not so soft that Iâd pass out or be out of the fight from just that.
"Weakened or not, that punch packed a hell of a punchâŚ!! Ahaha⌠Iâll admit it, it hit me pretty goodâŚ!!"
"ââWell thatâs a relief, thenď˝ď˝"
"!"
Just as I debated whether to charge at the half-dead Whitebeard again, that dragging, lazy voice reached my ears from the sideâone I knew too well. Instinctively, I raised my arm, already flowing with Haki, to guard.
A kick came flying at the speed of light from the side. Of course, it was Kizaru. I was knocked back again, crashing into the iceâbut it didnât hurt much. Iâd defended in time. Standing again, I opened my mouth to tease the man standing before meâBorsalino.
"You want my attention that badly? Fufu, this time I wonât stop with just your left armâŚ!!"
"Well, Iâd feel all gross if I didnât get my paybackď˝ď˝. Though it seems youâve got a whole lot of people who hold a grudge against youâŚ"
"Haters come with the territory when you're popularâdonât you think!!?"
I agreed with Borsalino, then swept aside the incoming slash of sand with my spear, following the telltale signs picked up by my Observation Haki. I turned my voice toward the attacker as well.
"Bit of a rough greeting, donât you think, Sandy Croc-kunâĄ?"
"Donât go stealing other peopleâs prey⌠Youkai BeastâŚ!!!"
"Ahahaha!! Looks like you finally found the guts to pick a fight with me again!! Yes yes, thatâs what I like to see!! Makes it so much more worth killing youď˝ď˝ď˝âĄ"
One of the former Seven Warlords of the SeaâSir Crocodile, who broke out of Impel Down with Luffyâis now giving me a thoroughly sour look. I get it, itâs a chaotic battlefield, and I am pretty popular, so itâs no surprise all these interruptions come flying my way. Being desirable really is a sin!!
Anyway, I figuredâsince Iâve got the chanceâI might as well kill Borsalino and Crocodile first.
But just then, my Den-Den Mushi rang. Without dropping my guard, I used my serpent to answer while keeping my stance.
"What is itď˝ď˝? Iâm kinda in the middle of something right now!!"
ăLady Nue!! The encirclement is nearly complete!! Queen-samaâs Plague and King-samaâs Wildfire are spreadingâplease evacuate from that zone!!ă
"Ohhh, itâs already that time. Okayyy⪠Then I guess weâll continue this on the plaza!!"
"!"
Leaving Borsalino and Crocodile behind, I leapt into the air and headed toward the plaza. Honestly, Iâd been so focused on the fight with Whitebeard that I hadnât paid much attention to my surroundings. But it was trueâthe Navyâs encirclement was just about done, and the Whitebeard Pirates were still stuck inside the bay.
If I had the luxury, I could sense the flow of the whole battlefield like I just didâbut even now, even weakened, I couldnât afford to take my eyes off Whitebeard. ââWell, itâs fine. I do have a brilliant secretary, after all!!
"Now then⌠I wonder what that half-dead Whitebeard and those kiiiids of his will do next?"
Landing by Kaidoâs side on the plaza, I looked forward to seeing how the ones still trapped in the bay would act from here on out.
âWhitebeardâ had been dealt a fatal wound by the âPhantom Beast,â and as that beast moved into the plaza, the center of the battlefield shifted from the bay to the plaza.
"Hahâhahaha!! Sorry, but Iâm pulling out too!! Iâve got to go help those adorable little kids!!"
"Jihaha... Looks like itâs about time... Iâll make my move too. âNow then, Ace!! I hope to hear a good answer from you...!"
"! Pops, Big Mom and the Golden Lion...!!"
"Pops!! The bayâs a disaster!! Itâs all fire and virusesâweâve got nowhere to run!!"
"I know...!! Everyone, weâre charging into the plaza!! Get ready, boys!!!"
"WOOOOAAAHHH!!!"
Left in the bay were only the Whitebeard Pirates and the Impel Down escapees. Everyone else had already moved up into the plaza.
Seeing this, the Whitebeard Pirates decided to storm the plaza as wellâbut amid the chaos, the escapees from Impel Down who aimed to rescue Ace began to moveâ
"Charging through that hole is suicide!! As much as Iâd like to use it, weâll be picked off one by one if we go in small numbers!!"
"Even if we reach the plaza, itâs way too dangerous-ble!! Weâd be going up against the Navy, the Seven Warlords, Kaido, Big Mom, the Golden Lion... weâd have to fight them all!!!"
"Zeh... hah... But we have to do something...!! They all mean to kill Ace!!!"
Bleeding from the head, Luffy was being tended to by Jinbe and Ivankov. Time was slipping away, and staying in the bay would get them killed. The pressure was building.
But in that storm of panic, Musashi alone remained calm. With a stern expression, he spent a moment deep in thought. Then, once heâd made up his mind, he turned to Luffy and laid out a planâwith the same resolve, he tested Luffyâs.
"There is a way to get into the plaza...!!!"
"! For real!!? Thenâ"
"Yeah. But... youâd better be ready for this, Straw Hat Luffy. Once we charge into the plaza... thereâs no guarantee weâll make it out alive!!"
"Hah... hah... Iâve been ready for that for a long time!! Just hurry up already!!!"
"! I see... then letâs go...!!!"
Musashi began her transformation, having resolved to carry Luffy and the others into the heart of the battle.
âAnd then, the giant body of Oars, the one hole in the siege wall, began to slowly rise. For a fleeting moment, both Marines and pirates alike looked up in awe.
"Oars is...!!"
"Ignore it!! We donât have time to be distracted!! Take them down at all costs!!!"
"Seriously... this battlefieldâs a damn nightmare~~...!!"
"! Kizaru!! Thatâsâ!!"
But just thenâriding the wind, figures soared over the siege wall.
They were beast-like in form, each carrying someone on its back.
"Ah...!!"
"Thatâs...!!"
The boy wearing the straw hatâsome recognized him instantly. There was only one person on this battlefield who fit that description.
But the ground he was about to land on... was one so blood-soaked and cursed, even hell would seem merciful in comparison.
"! You made it all the way here...!! You're definitely your grandpa's kid...!!"
"Dragonâs son...!! Iâll make sure to kill you later...!!"
"I really donât have time to deal with you~~~... but if you could just drop dead on your own, thatâd be great..."
The Seven Warlords of the Sea scattered across the fieldâthe three Marine Admirals, the Hero of the Navy, the Fleet Admiral forming a wall in front, and on either side, glaring down with overwhelming pressure, were the pirates who stood at the very peak of the world.
"Hmm~~~? Who the hell are you...!!"
"Jihaha... I hear youâre Fire Fistâs little brother, huh...?"
The Four EmperorsâCharlotte Linlin, âBig Mom,â stood watching, and beside her floated the supreme boss of the Golden Lion Pirates, âGolden Lionâ Shiki.
"! Musashi and... who the hell are you?"
"âAhaha⥠Straw Hat Luffy~~⥠Youâve got guts, but... donât you think itâs a little too early to be taking on something of this difficulty?"
The YonkoâKaido of the Beasts, and beside him floated his elder sibling figureâthe Phantom Beast Nue.
"Hah... hah... Iâm not letting anyone kill Ace...!!!"
"Luffy...!!"
And so, into a battlefield overflowing with monsters of legend, without a second thought, dived the reckless pirateâStraw Hat Luffy.
Barely able to stand, he still glared straight at the peak of the world with unshakable resolve. On the execution platform, Aceâs expression twisted in shock as he cried out Luffyâs nameâ
âThe swell of battle was now reaching its peak.
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