Chapter 26: The Trial of the Undying — The Seastone Silence
The screen at Marineford froze. The blue flames of the Phoenix were suspended in mid-air against the golden light of Kizaru. On the Moby Dick, the atmosphere was suffocating. Every commander was staring at the screen, then at the empty seat where Ace usually sat.
[SYSTEM: EMOTIONAL PEAK REACHED — THE FATE OF THE SECOND DIVISION.]
[INITIATING SOVEREIGN TRIAL FOR RANK 47: MARCO THE PHOENIX.]
A countdown timer appeared: 60 Seconds. [QUESTION: In the projected future of this war, what is the 'One Tool' the Navy uses to finally bypass Marco's Phoenix regeneration and bring the Commander to his knees?]
The Global Chat: The Desperate Guessing Game
The world was in a panic. The Navy was sweating because their "Future Strategy" was being leaked, and the Pirates were desperate to find a counter.
> [Rocks D. Xebec] : (Who don't care about punishment) "Bwahahaha! I know how the Marines play! They use numbers! They probably just piled a thousand men on the bird until he couldn't breathe! Give me the coin, System! I need to buy my way out of this hell!"
> [Edward Newgate]: (Clenching his Murakumogiri so hard the deck cracked) "They won't get the chance. I'm turning the ship around. We're going to Impel Down NOW! Marco, don't answer—don't let them know our weakness!"
> [Sengoku]: "SQUEAK! (The tool?! We have many tools! SQUEAK! Don't let the Pirates know about the specialized cuffs! SQUEAK! Kizaru, stop looking at the screen and get to the docks!)"
> [Buggy the Clown]: "I KNOW! I KNOW! It's obviously a giant net made of gold! Or maybe they used a super-strong bird-trap! HONK! (Wait... if I get this right, do I get a power-up? HONK! I need to be strong if I'm going to rescue that freckled brat!)"
>
The Sabaody Sidebar: The Dark King's Heavy Heart
On Sabaody, Rayleigh stood next to a vibrating Luffy. His eyes were fixed on Ace's face on the screen. He saw a resemblance there—one he hadn't wanted to acknowledge for years.
> [Silvers Rayleigh]: "Luffy... the answer isn't about strength. It's about the one thing that humbles every Devil Fruit user. Think."
> [Monkey D. Luffy]: "The sea! The sea-stone things! The smoky guy Smoker used them on me! ACE! THEY'RE GOING TO USE THE STICKY CUFFS!"
>
The Submissions: The Unexpected Genius
The timer hit 10 Seconds. The board flashed with the first three correct or semi-correct guesses.
* [Rocks D. Xebec]: "A REALLY BIG CAGE!"
* [Buggy the Clown]: "SEASTONE HANDCUFFS! (I saw them in the Impel Down brochure once! HONK!)"
* [Monkey D. Luffy]: "THE SMOKY-STAIR-CASE CUFFS!"
[System: TIME EXPIRED. EVALUATING...]
The Evaluation: The Honk and the Haunt
The screen turned a mocking yellow for Rocks.
[INCORRECT: Rocks D. Xebec.]
[PUNISHMENT: Your ghost-voice is now replaced with a 'High-Pitched Opera Singer' for 1 hour.]
> [Rocks]: (Singing at 100 decibels) "NOOOOOOOO~ OOOOOH~ MY DIG-NI-TYYYYY~!"
>
[CORRECT: Buggy the Clown.]
[REWARD: 1 GOLDEN COIN + 'THE FLASHY UPGRADE'.]
> [Buggy]: "I GOT IT?! HONK! I mean... OF COURSE I GOT IT! I'm a legendary captain! HONK! Wait, what's a Flashy Upgrade?!"
> (Suddenly, Buggy's red nose began to glow with a blinding light, and he felt his 'Chop-Chop' powers range double in distance.)
>
[CORRECT: Monkey D. Luffy.]
[REWARD: 1 GOLDEN COIN.]
The Revelation: The Bloodline of the King
Just as the rewards were given, the screen didn't return to Marco. Instead, the text turned a deep, bloody crimson. The image shifted from Marco to a side-by-side comparison of Ace and Gol D. Roger.
[SYSTEM: REVEALING THE TRUE CATALYST OF THE SUMMIT WAR.]
[FACT: Portgas D. Ace is NOT the son of a random pirate.]
[FACT: He is the biological son of the Pirate King, GOL D. ROGER.]
The World Stops Turning
The silence that followed was absolute. Then, the world exploded.
> [Morgans]: "KWA... KWA... KWA-KWA-KWAAAAA!!! THE SON OF ROGER?! THE BLOODLINE SURVIVED?! THIS IS THE BIGGEST STORY IN A THOUSAND YEARS! SOMEONE GET ME A VEST, I'M GOING TO FAINT!"
> [Garp]: (Clench his fist) "It's out... the secret I guarded for twenty years is out.The world will never be the same!"
> [Silvers Rayleigh]: (His eyes widened, a tear finally escaping) "Roger... you lucky old bastard. He's alive. Luffy! We aren't just going to Marineford. We're going to bring back the King's legacy!"
> [Gol D. Roger]: (In the afterlife, his ghost looked at the screen with a mixture of pride and pure, unadulterated fury) "Newgate... save my son. And System... if you're listening... put my Rank on the board. I'm coming back. I don't care about the rules of death anymore."
>
The New Resolve
On Sabaody, Buggy was shaking, but his new glowing nose gave him a strange sense of bravado.
> [Buggy]: "The Captain's son?! Ace is... he's the Captain's brat?! (Thinking a plan to go to find Ace because Buggy is already in Impel Down.)
>
[System: Rank 47 - Part 2: Marco — CLOSED.]
[System: The Phoenix's Reward — 'The Ashes of Resurrection' have been sent to Marco on the Moby Dick.]
[System: 5 Minute Break.]