Watching Garp sit on the sofa, munching on senbei and slapping his thigh while laughing so hard that tears sprayed from his eyes, Sengoku's anger soared.
"Garp, you bastard! Look at what your grandson has done!"
"Bwahahaha! As expected of my grandson! Hahahahaha!"
"Garp!!!"
"Hahaha... Hey! Don't steal my senbei!!"
...
Some time later...
With the assistance of Emporio Ivankov, the Okama King who had already been stripped of his position as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Straw Hat Luffy and his crew infiltrated Impel Down and threw the prison into chaos.
They released the former Warlord Crocodile and several other prisoners, but they arrived one step too late and ultimately failed to rescue Fire Fist Ace.
Blackbeard, another Warlord who arrived afterward, began wreaking havoc throughout Impel Down.
After briefly exchanging blows with the Straw Hat crew, both sides separated without fighting seriously because they each had their own objectives.
Blackbeard then led the companions he had recruited toward the deepest levels of the great underwater prison.
Ahead of them, Magellan was rapidly approaching atop a black poison dragon!
Meanwhile, the prison ship transporting Fire Fist Ace had already passed through the Gates of Justice. With the acceleration provided by the great ocean whirlpool, it reached Marine Headquarters at Marineford.
At that moment...
The entirety of Marineford presented a grim and oppressive sight.
There was scarcely a single Marine with a smile on his face, and no one was still in the mood to laugh or joke.
The heavy, silent atmosphere continued to intensify.
From the vice admirals and rear admirals above to the officers below, everyone wore a stern or tense expression while gripping a sword or musket.
One hundred thousand elite Marines!
The highest level of wartime readiness!
The lowest-ranked Marines present were captains, and the only two at that rank were disciples of the Marine Hero Garp.
In addition, there were numerous powerful fighters whom Fleet Admiral Sengoku had recruited through the World Military Draft, along with many Cipher Pol agents concealed in the shadows to assist with assassinations and surprise attacks.
Everything had been prepared to welcome one of the legendary pirates—the man who had once been the strongest in the world, Whitebeard, Edward Newgate!
"Do not lower your guard!"
"No matter what happens, only three hours remain! Once those three hours pass, everything will be over!"
A giant vice admiral from Marine Headquarters roared at the hundred thousand elite Marines gathered in Justice Plaza.
Standing at the very front of Marine Headquarters were five members of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
"Clang-hahahahaha! All we have to do is kill one of the Whitebeard Pirates' division commanders, and we'll receive a treasure map! Those Marines have truly spared no expense!"
Mad Treasure, the treasure-obsessed pirate, waved the chains emerging from his body and laughed viciously.
"Kishishishi! This is a battlefield, so plenty of people are bound to die. It would be even better if I could obtain the corpses of some Marine vice admirals and Whitebeard Pirates division commanders!"
Moria surveyed the area, laughing sinisterly to himself.
"Honestly, why is this place filled with so many filthy men? Were it not for that old woman saying I might meet Thunder Emperor-sama here, I would never have agreed to come."
Hancock wrinkled her delicate nose and looked around in disgust.
When Vice Admiral Momonga delivered the compulsory summons, Hancock had initially refused to accept it.
She had only come willingly after Elder Nyon told her that she might have an opportunity to meet the Thunder Emperor.
"The Thunder Emperor and Fire Fist Ace have known each other since childhood. Three years ago, when Fire Fist Ace passed through the undersea Fish-Man Island, he was the only person whom the Thunder Emperor allowed through without charging a toll."
"Afterward, Fire Fist Ace even entered the Golden Palace on Raijin Island and remained there for an entire day before emerging."
"That proves the two of them share a very deep bond. The Thunder Emperor will definitely come to rescue Fire Fist Ace during the Summit War. When that happens, you will have an opportunity to see him again."
Only Elder Nyon herself knew how complicated and helpless she had felt while saying those words.
"Hmm! Am I finally about to meet Pops? I'm so excited! I'm so excited!"
Two streams of mucus swung wildly beneath Edward Weevil's nose. He was extraordinarily excited at the prospect of meeting Whitebeard.
"Mama said Fire Fist Ace isn't worthy of being Pops's son! None of the others are worthy either!"
"If it weren't for them, Pops never would have abandoned Mama and me..."
"Once I kill every division commander in the Whitebeard Pirates, Pops will acknowledge me and let me become his son!!"
The Marines had experienced considerable difficulty deciding whether Edward Weevil should participate in the Summit War.
After all, he claimed to be Whitebeard Jr.
However, Whitebeard's forces had been strengthened by the addition of Katakuri and the others, leaving the Marines somewhat lacking in combat strength. Weevil was also a powerful fighter capable of defeating Admiral Zephyr.
Therefore, after presenting Weevil's mother with some gold, silver, and jewels, the Marines allowed her to persuade Weevil to stand on their side with only a few words.
Beside the highly emotional Weevil, Chinjao stared fixedly at Garp on the raised platform.
"Garp! I have waited a very long time for this day! Once you and Whitebeard have exhausted each other in battle, I will take your life!"
Beneath the execution platform, three chairs had been placed there long ago.
Akainu and Aokiji emerged from the headquarters one after the other. They approached the execution platform and sat in the chairs on the left and right.
The person sitting in the central chair was Garp!
All three wore Marine coats bearing the word "Justice."
None of them spoke, but the moment they took their seats, the anxiety within the Marines eased considerably.
Two Marine admirals!
And the Marine Hero, whose combat power was comparable to an admiral!
They represented the highest fighting strength of Marine Headquarters!
The sight of that formation filled every Marine soldier with boundless confidence.
As time continued to pass, Fire Fist Ace was finally escorted onto the execution platform in handcuffs and leg irons.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku of Marine Headquarters emerged behind him.
Then, under the gaze of the entire world, Sengoku revealed Ace's true lineage.
At that very moment, an enormous shadow appeared beneath the surface of the harbor.
Countless bubbles began rising and churning across the water.
(End of Chapter)
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