On the execution platform.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku was already prepared. The condemned man, Portgas D. Ace, commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division, knelt on both knees, gritting his teeth as he quietly awaited his tragic fate.
Monkey D. Garp, the man known as the Hero of the Marines and the strongest Marine, sat on the execution platform with his head lowered. The justice in his heart and the affection he felt for his family were locked in constant struggle, swaying back and forth against each other. His heart was incomparably uneasy, unable to decide which path he should choose. At that moment, the word "justice" on his back felt so heavy that even this man, who had fought the Pirate King, punched Four Emperors, and stomped Warlords underfoot, found it a little hard to breathe.
"Portgas D. Ace, say your father's name. Let the entire world know your true identity!"
Sengoku swept a glance at Garp. There were three reasons he had appeared beside Ace. First, to control the entire situation. Second, to serve as the final line of defense to ensure the execution went smoothly. Third, to keep an eye on Garp and stop him from doing anything foolish.
Unless there was truly no other choice, Sengoku did not want to walk down a path where he had to become enemies with an old friend. But once things truly reached that point, if he did nothing, it would be a desecration of the justice they carried on their backs.
"Sengoku, did you really have to go this far?"
Garp muttered under his breath, clenching his fist, his expression struggling.
"My father is one of the Four Emperors, Whitebeard, Edward Newgate!"
Ace loudly declared his father's name. He only had one father, and that was the Four Emperor Whitebeard.
"No! Portgas D. Ace, no, you have another name, a name you hid away. Portgas is your mother's surname, isn't it? Your father is…"
Sengoku continued speaking into the video Transponder Snail. He wanted to reveal the most terrible truth here, in front of countless people.
"I only have one surname, and that is Portgas. I also only have one father…"
Ace refuted him, his emotions extremely agitated. He forbade anyone from mentioning that man.
"Stop lying. If you keep lying, even you will start believing it, won't you?!"
"Your true father is none other than the man who once defeated countless challengers, reached Laugh Tale, and was called the Pirate King!"
"Yes, you should never have been called Portgas D. Ace. Your name is Gol D. Ace! Your father is the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger!"
Sengoku cut Ace off, and with the help of the camera, his voice spread across the entire world.
"…"
Countless citizens sitting in front of their television screens, waiting for the latest news, froze in place after hearing Sengoku's words. Their eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
"This is huge news!"
"Rush it! Print the papers immediately! I want Fire Fist Ace's true identity published in the afternoon edition!"
The news workers shouted loudly. If one asked who was the busiest during the Summit War, aside from the Four Emperors who moved after hearing the news and the Marines preparing for battle, it was naturally these news workers. The Summit War between them was also underway.
"No…"
Ace's expression was incomparably bleak. He was unwilling to acknowledge that truth, even though he knew everything Sengoku said was true. His father was indeed that famous Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
"The whole world was deceived by Whitebeard. The only reason he took you in was so that, in his later years, he could support you in becoming the new Pirate King. Whitebeard knew that on this sea, the person most likely to become the Pirate King had to be Roger's son. Unfortunately, perhaps fate was playing tricks, or perhaps your father committed too much evil, because in the end, you fell into the hands of our Marines. Justice will sever the last evil!"
Sengoku looked at Ace and spoke coldly.
"…"
"Dad, don't come! This place is a trap!"
Ace gritted his teeth and used the video Transponder Snail to send his voice across the world. He hoped, hoped that his father would not come to save him. In his heart, he understood very clearly that Sengoku had no need to stage such a massive execution ceremony just for a mere Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Even if he was that Roger's child, there was still no need to execute him in such a grand, public fashion. It was not as if Level 6 had no one with a more terrifying identity and greater status than his.
The reason Sengoku had chosen him as the target was not to deal with him, but to invite the strongest man in the world into the trap.
Sengoku had gathered one hundred thousand Marines for only one purpose, to send his "old friend," the strongest man in the world, the strongest pirate who could easily destroy even the world itself, Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, out of this world.
This was the graveyard Sengoku had chosen for Whitebeard.
"Stop talking nonsense…"
Beads of sweat seeped from Sengoku's forehead as he covered Ace's mouth with one hand. He knew Ace was an incomparably intelligent person and had already seen through his plan.
Although Sengoku's understanding of Whitebeard over the years allowed him to determine that Whitebeard would certainly charge into Marine Headquarters for the sake of his child, still…
Still, Sengoku was afraid. He was afraid that Whitebeard had grown old and had truly lost the ambition and drive he had possessed in the past. If Whitebeard did not come to Marine Headquarters according to his plan, then all the preparations he had made now would have been wasted. Although Ace would still be executed successfully in the end, that would not maximize their interests.
To put it bluntly, an Ace with a bounty of five hundred fifty million was nothing at all. Whether Ace lived or died was not a big deal. There were plenty of people like Ace in the New World. What mattered was Whitebeard. Whitebeard had to die.
As Sengoku subdued Ace, time passed second by second.
The time of Ace's execution drew closer and closer. Under the blazing sun overhead, Marine soldiers gripped their rifles one after another, enduring the scorching sunlight above them. Their hearts were incomparably tense. Anxiety and heat battered their steel-like will.
"Everyone, hold on! No matter what, as long as the time comes, victory will be ours!"
To prevent soldiers from fainting under the tremendous pressure, the morale officer loudly encouraged them.
"Oh!"
The soldiers roared almost like beasts, venting the endless pressure inside them through their shouts.
Although one hundred thousand officers and soldiers had gathered here, they were still incomparably nervous. Yes, because their opponent was currently the strongest pirate crew in the world, the Whitebeard Pirates, who had once competed against Roger.
"Could it be that he isn't coming?"
For one instant, even Sengoku began to doubt his own judgment. Until…
"Spotted! The Whitebeard Grand Fleet!"
The soldiers at Marineford's outer bay held telescopes and cried out in shock.
"All forty-three pirate crews are present!"
One soldier lowered his telescope. Amid the long, drifting fog, all forty-three subordinate pirate crews under Whitebeard had arrived. The captains of these forty-three pirate crews all had bounties above one hundred million. Even more terrifying was the fact that all of them had been tempered in the New World. It would not be an exaggeration to say that any one of them could casually beat the Supernovas who had gathered at the Sabaody Archipelago. They were all genuine monsters.
"We still haven't spotted the Whitebeard Pirates' main ship…"
The soldier continued looking around. Although all the pirate crews under Whitebeard had arrived, Whitebeard's own ship, the Moby Dick, had yet to appear.
"Could it show up somewhere completely unexpected?"
Beads of sweat seeped from Garp's forehead. He seemed to have some kind of premonition.
The inner bay…
"Glug, glug, glug…"
Along with a burst of bubbles, black shadows appeared beneath the surface of the inner bay.
"Hm?!"
Sengoku looked at the bubbles rising in the inner bay and widened his eyes, disbelief flashing through his gaze.
"Boom!"
With endless waves surging upward, four Moby Dicks instantly entered Marine Headquarters' inner bay.
"This is bad…"
Sengoku's face changed drastically as he looked at the situation before him.
"Fuffuffuffu…"
"Fuffuffuffu…"
"They really attacked from an incredible place, didn't they?"
Doflamingo laughed loudly, seeming to greatly enjoy the scene before him.
"Clang! Clang! Clang…"
Along with a series of metallic thuds, the man known as the strongest in the world walked onto the deck and gazed at Marine Headquarters.
"Sengoku, what are you planning to do to my son?"
"Gurararara…"
Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, stood on the deck of the Moby Dick and looked at Sengoku with a cold laugh.
"All units, pay attention!"
"The strongest man in the world has appeared!"
"Do not be careless at all! Even the slightest carelessness will cost us our lives!"
Sengoku stared straight at Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, and shouted loudly to the Marines below him.
"Gulp…"
When the Marines heard that, they subconsciously swallowed.
"Report! All Whitebeard Pirates division commanders are present!"
What made the Marines even more frightened was that at that moment, a full fourteen division commanders had gathered on the Moby Dick.
"Ara ara…"
Marine Admiral Aokiji, Kuzan, looked at the demoralized Marines and sighed. In an instant, he leapt from where he stood, rising high into the air as he launched an attack against Whitebeard, Edward Newgate.
Right at the beginning, it was already a clash between top-tier combatants.
"Hm?!"
Edward Newgate narrowed his eyes as he looked at the incomparably dazzling Aokiji in the sky. Then he struck toward Kuzan with an air quake.
"Crack."
In an instant, Kuzan was shattered in the sky.
"Admiral Kuzan!"
Watching Kuzan shatter, the Marine soldiers shouted loudly.
Immediately afterward, the shattered Kuzan froze the entire battlefield, providing a favorable battlefield for both the Marines and the pirates.
In an instant, the greatest war between the Marines and the pirates erupted.
"I should get moving too."
Jovian looked at the battlefield that had broken into combat in an instant, loosened up his body, and vanished from the Warlords' position.
"Has Jovian made his move?"
Hancock looked at the vanished Jovian and brushed back her beautiful, flowing black hair. She still did not move. She had only come here to support the Marines. She had no intention of truly taking action.
More accurately, the vast majority of the Warlords had the same plan.
As for Jovian…
He had gone directly around to Whitebeard's rear.
"I don't want to draw too much attention."
"But I also don't want to let these bounties go…"
Jovian walked with both hands in his pockets, watching pirate squad after pirate squad advancing as he continuously selected a suitable prey.
"Kill! Rescue Ace!"
"Bohemian Knight" Doma was a strange-looking oddball who held two katanas, with a monkey on his shoulder that used a pistol to shoot people from blind spots.
Unfortunately for him, he became Jovian's target.
"Bohemian Knight Doma?"
Just as Doma was laughing loudly and charging forward, a cold voice rang beside his ear.
"Hm?!"
Doma was stunned at first, then subconsciously turned his head.
"Bzzzt…"
In just an instant, two scarlet-gold beams of light directly pierced Doma's body.
"Pfft…"
As a mouthful of blood poured from his lips, Doma collapsed to the ground.
"Captain Doma!"
The pirates around Doma saw him fall and charged toward Jovian one after another.
"Don't get in my way. I don't have time to deal with small fry!"
Jovian looked at the pirates running toward him and shook his head. With a slight exertion of force under his foot, the ice on the ground instantly shattered, and the pirates immediately fell into the seawater.
"First one down…"
Jovian took out the notebook behind him and crossed out one head from the page printed with the faces of Whitebeard's forty-three subordinate captains.
"You bastard…"
However, to Jovian's surprise, Doma, whose heart had been pierced by his heat vision, actually stood up from the ground again, holding his weapons as he prepared to attack Jovian once more.
At the same time, the monkey on Doma's shoulder held its pistol and fired a bullet at Jovian.
"Bang!"
Along with a burst of flames and a shockwave, a special high-powered bullet instantly shot out from the monkey's pistol.
Unfortunately, before the bullet could even touch Jovian's body, it was destroyed by the magnetic field around him.
"I forgot. People in the One Piece world have absurd vitality…"
"If you want to kill someone, you have to cut off the head directly…"
As Jovian spoke, he picked up a katana from the ground.
"Swish."
Along with a flashing silver light, the pure ice surface was stained red.
"You Marine over there, remember this. I killed this guy! Don't forget to pay me!"
After killing Doma, Jovian rested the bloodstained katana on his shoulder and looked coldly at a Marine sitting paralyzed on the ground nearby.
"Y-yes, sir!"
When the Marine heard that, he immediately recorded Jovian's feat.
"That guy did pretty well."
On the viewing platform, Sakazuki, who sat in his seat observing the entire battlefield, noticed Jovian's feat and smiled faintly. Once the Summit War was over and he took the position of Fleet Admiral, he could consider inviting Jovian to join the Marines and take over a Marine admiral position. Of course, the prerequisite was that Jovian had enough strength to fight his way out from among the candidates and the reserves the Marines had trained themselves.
"Who should I choose as my next prey?"
Jovian did not notice Sakazuki's attention, or rather, he did not care at all. He placed his gaze on the others.
In the eyes of everyone else, the Whitebeard Pirates were incomparably vicious.
In Jovian's eyes, they were nothing more than walking wallets.
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