The submarine quietly pulled out from beneath the Moby Dick by Whitebeard's crew was none other than Trafalgar Law's Heart Pirates.
Inside the submarine—
Law leaned against the cold metal wall and slowly slid down to sit on the floor.
His face was pale, his forehead covered in cold sweat. His chest heaved violently as he gasped for breath.
He looked as if he had been thoroughly drained for three days and three nights straight.
He didn't even have the strength to lift a single finger.
"Captain! Are you alright?!" Bepo the white bear, along with Shachi and Penguin, immediately rushed over.
The three of them had followed Law the longest and were deeply worried about his current condition.
Law shook his head with difficulty, his voice hoarse and weak.
"Just… overused my Devil Fruit ability… a bit exhausted…"
He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
Yet on his pale face, an uncontrollable flush of excitement surfaced.
Seeing this, Bepo and the other two began to wonder if their captain had been broken somehow.
Just as they were about to ask, Law spoke again.
"However…"
A look of lingering satisfaction appeared on his face.
"After this extreme operation, my Ope Ope no Mi ability… seems to have become stronger!"
Even now, thinking back on what had happened, he still hadn't fully processed it.
He had barely escaped from a Marine Admiral at Sabaody.
Not long after, he was completely surrounded and captured by the Whitebeard Pirates.
He had thought he was doomed.
He'd even mentally drafted his will.
And yet—
Not only did he not die, he even joined forces with the Whitebeard Pirates' ship doctor, Marco.
To perform surgery on the strongest man in the world.
That was an unprecedented experience.
Of course, it wasn't because he feared death and wanted to live.
It was simply a doctor's benevolence.
Seeing that their captain didn't appear to be in life-threatening danger, Bepo scratched his head and asked curiously,
"Then… Captain, Whitebeard's body… has it recovered?"
Shachi and Penguin immediately perked up at the question, eyes shining with curiosity.
If Whitebeard had truly regained his health…
Then the outcome of this Paramount War would become very uncertain indeed.
Hearing the question—
Law nodded, then shook his head.
"He's recovered… but not fully."
That answer left the three of them utterly confused, staring at each other blankly.
How could someone say something so contradictory?
Seeing the confusion on his crew's faces, Law explained,
"Marco and I worked together. I used my ability to remove the diseased organs and damaged tissue in his body. Marco used his regenerative blue flames to allow the removed parts to regrow in a healthy way."
"So aside from the natural decline caused by age and the gradual loss of vitality, Whitebeard's physical condition has recovered to about seventy to eighty percent."
The trio listened with expressions that said, "We understand every word, but not the sentence."
Law looked at their dull faces and sighed deeply.
He felt worried about the overall intelligence level of his crew.
Switching to a simpler explanation, he said,
"Put simply, Whitebeard is like an old but powerful ship."
"I removed the broken parts. Marco replaced them with brand-new, fully functional ones. Got it?"
"OHHH!!!"
"So that's what you meant!"
"We got it, Captain! We were just about to say the same thing!"
"Yeah, yeah! We totally guessed it earlier!"
"Don't underestimate us, Captain!"
Bepo and the others immediately acted enlightened, talking over each other to prove how clever they were.
Law closed his eyes weakly.
He didn't even have the energy to roast them.
Forget it.
He chose these crewmates himself. Even if he cried, he had to stick with them.
…
The unease in Sengoku's heart stemmed precisely from Whitebeard's apparent recovery.
Marine Headquarters.
On the execution platform—
Sengoku's bad premonition was growing stronger.
He stared fixedly at Whitebeard.
Something felt off.
But he couldn't pinpoint what.
So all he could do was watch him closely.
If Whitebeard made even the slightest abnormal move, he would intervene immediately.
Whitebeard, meanwhile, was beginning to feel uncomfortable under Sengoku's intense gaze.
The old man's eyes were practically burning holes in him.
What's with that geezer? Why does he keep staring at me?
Could it be that after failing to win Tsuru's heart back then, he turned resentful and became some old pervert?
The thought sent a chill down Whitebeard's spine.
But that fleeting discomfort vanished when his gaze shifted to the execution platform.
There, Ace stood in tears, enduring immense torment.
Rage surged within him.
He couldn't let his son suffer any longer.
"Gurararara…"
Whitebeard laughed loudly.
He raised Murakumogiri high.
"Old bastards! I've got another big gift for you!"
He took a deep breath.
Preparing to unleash the Conqueror's Haki he hadn't used in a long time.
Thanks to the unexpected fortune during his journey—
Otherwise, he still wouldn't have been able to use Haki.
At that very moment—
A slow, almost lewd-sounding voice rang out.
"Oooh~ capturing the leader first does make sense~ Can't let you keep doing whatever you like, Whitebeard~"
Golden light flashed.
Admiral Kizaru, Borsalino, appeared high above the Moby Dick.
He crossed his arms, countless dazzling light bullets forming instantly.
"Yasakani no Magatama!"
Pew pew pew pew—!
A dense barrage of light bullets rained down like unstoppable diarrhea.
Terrifying in appearance—and in reality, also quite terrifying.
Just not in the places they actually landed.
Truly worthy of the name "Yasakani no Magatama."
Most shots struck empty air or the surrounding ice, causing minimal damage to Whitebeard.
Considering Kizaru was slacking off, this result wasn't surprising.
"Hmph! Kid, work on your aim!" Whitebeard snorted coldly.
He swung Murakumogiri, sending a terrifying slash toward Kizaru!
Kizaru instantly turned into light, flashing away to dodge with ease.
"Ahh~ how scary~" he muttered lazily.
The moment Kizaru retreated—
Another icy presence closed in.
"Ice Block: Two Spears!"
Aokiji, Kuzan, appeared above the Moby Dick the instant Kizaru withdrew.
From his hands erupted extreme freezing air. Several massive ice spears formed and shot toward Whitebeard!
"Kid! That tickling attack won't work!"
Whitebeard didn't even glance at them.
He swung again casually.
The powerful slash shattered the ice spears instantly, its aftershock cleaving Aokiji clean in half at the waist!
Of course, Kuzan had already used Observation Haki to foresee it and turned elemental to avoid real damage.
"How boring, brats," Whitebeard said, slamming Murakumogiri heavily onto the deck.
"Let me clear the field instead. It's… far too noisy!"
Before his words even finished—
The Conqueror's Haki he had held back exploded outward from him!
Buzz—!!!
Dark red, lightning-like shockwaves spread wildly, sweeping across the entire battlefield!
Whitebeard was a veteran powerhouse.
His Conqueror's Haki deliberately avoided all pirates—
And crashed straight into every Marine soldier.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Like dumplings dropping into boiling water, Marines collapsed in heaps.
Even many Vice Admirals from various branches couldn't utter a scream—
Their eyes rolled back, foam at their mouths as they fell unconscious!
This wasn't five at a time.
Conqueror's Haki was the ultimate battlefield-clearing ability.
A massive section of the Marine ranks emptied out.
"Bastard!!! Whitebeard!!! Don't think you'll get away with this!!"
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