A moment later, panicked shrieks erupted from the Big Mom Pirates.
"Perospero-niisan!!"
Perospero was Big Mom's eldest son; with his heart pierced cleanly by that sword, his chances of survival were practically non-existent.
"You..." Big Mom's face contorted in fury. She had seen clearly that Drake's blade had run straight through Perospero's heart. There was absolutely no saving him.
"Perospero is my son!!" Big Mom's eyes turned bloodshot as she glared death at Drake.
Drake, however, completely dismissed her rage. Big Mom had come to Wano with a single purpose—to kill him and Luffy. Since she had come for their heads, he had never once planned to show any mercy.
"Damn it! To do that to Perospero-niisan..." The Big Mom Pirates on the flagship began scrambling to rush off the deck.
Drake's gaze went ice-cold. Clenching his fist, he threw a heavy, linear punch straight toward Big Mom's ship.
Whir... BOOM!
A colossal spatial fracture rippled outward, instantly whipping up a cataclysmic tidal wave. The massive flagship of the Big Mom Pirates was sent blasting backward into the distant sea at a staggering velocity.
"That's..."
Seeing this, everyone on the battlefield froze. The Big Mom Pirates, the Straw Hat crew—but those most utterly shell-shocked were Marco and Ace.
For no other reason than the fact that Drake's stance and the way he unleashed that shockwave were identical to the signature posture of the former Yonko, Whitebeard, when triggering the Tremor-Tremor Fruit!
This was the first time Drake had adopted this specific stance to project his spatial tremors. It had to be said, the display was remarkably imposing.
The Big Mom Pirates, who had been on the verge of disembarking, vanished from everyone's line of sight in an instant, leaving only faint, chaotic screams echoing across the water.
Everyone: "..."
"What exactly... is your ability? That was Whitebeard's power, wasn't it?" Big Mom completely ignored her flagship being swept away by the massive waves. Her expression grew deadly serious as she stared at Drake's technique. Then, as if realizing something, a wicked smirk crept onto her face.
"Whitebeard completely vanished two years ago, and there hasn't been a single shred of news about him since. Now, Fire Fist Ace—no, 'Flame Emperor' Ace has returned. But Whitebeard didn't..."
Big Mom's eyes widened to the size of saucers as she barked at Drake, "Where did he go?!"
The question sent shockwaves through the crowd. In that instant, the gaze of every single fighter shifted toward Drake.
Among them, Marco's facial expression was the most glaring. As the First Division Commander, even he did not know where his Pops had gone. He had harbored faint suspicions upon seeing Drake's unique power before, but the stance and attack Drake had just unleashed were almost identical to Pops' style. Could such a perfect coincidence truly exist in this world? He didn't know; perhaps in the past, it might have.
"Did Whitebeard already die by your hand?" Big Mom looked at Drake with intense intrigue.
Subconsciously, Marco turned his gaze toward Ace. Right now, Ace was likely the only one who knew the absolute truth about Pops' fate. At this moment, Marco desperately craved an answer.
Noticing Marco's intense stare, Ace offered him a reassuring nod and a calm smile. Pops was naturally perfectly fine.
Seeing that look, the heavy weight that had been hanging over Marco's heart finally settled. He placed unconditional trust in Ace. Ace respected and loved Pops even more than he did; even if Drake was his brother, Ace would never align himself with anyone who wished to harm Pops. Furthermore, Marco understood Drake's character well. It was Drake who had saved Pops two years ago, so it was impossible for him to do Pops any harm. There had to be an underlying explanation.
Big Mom clearly captured the shift in Marco's expression; she had intentionally raised the question to probe their reactions, but the result left her disappointed.
"Old man Whitebeard obviously wouldn't die," Drake stated matter-of-factly. "However... the same can't be said for you and Kaido today!"
"Hmm?!" Big Mom's brow twitched, and her massive, terrifying face gradually hardened into a mask of cold detachment. "Then let's see you try!"
"Have you forgotten that I am still here?" At that moment, Lucci walked forward slowly, closing the distance to Drake. "Regroup!"
Following Lucci's command, the remaining four masked CP0 agents shifted their positions in rapid bursts, flanking their leader. Their initial ambush had failed, leaving them with no choice but to opt for a direct, frontal assault.
Yet, they still held a massive tactical advantage. After all, due to the prolonged, chaotic warfare, the physical vessels of nearly every single fighter on the battlefield had been pushed far past their breaking points. Those still possessing the capacity to wage a high-level battle could be counted on one hand. As for the ordinary rank-and-file samurai, Lucci had never factored them into his equations from the very beginning. How could a falcon soaring through the high heavens ever take notice of ants?
"Oh?" The corners of Big Mom's mouth curled upward as she glanced at Drake. "It seems you've accumulated quite a substantial number of enemies."
Meanwhile, a crowd of figures was slowly condensing right behind Drake.
Kenshin, Bael, Locke, Ann. Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Jinbe. Ace, Yamato. Kid, Killer. Law.
However, with the sole exception of Drake, every single individual among them bore varying degrees of severe, blood-soaked injuries.
Standing at the absolute vanguard of the formation were Drake, Ace, and Luffy! The Legendary Four Brothers who were shaping the dawn of the new era—today, three of them stood united!
Right beside Drake's feet lay the completely motionless body of Perospero. A biting, wintry morning wind swept across the stone floor, yet it failed to elicit a single movement from any of the elite warriors present. The entire battlefield was locked in an absolute, suffocating silence.
The samurai had already retreated far into the rear; a clash of this caliber was fundamentally beyond their capacity to survive.
"Bind Kaido! Use the Sea Prism Stone handcuffs—wrap them around him until there isn't an inch left!" Hyogoro immediately barked out orders to his men.
This clearing around Drake had become the ultimate, definitive theater of the war. Which side would the final scales of victory tip toward?
Lucci swept his cold gaze across the opposing lines and remarked indifferently, "You may seem to have the advantage in numbers, but barely any of you are still functional. This is perfect. Today, the myth of your so-called 'Legendary Four Brothers' ends right here!"
"I imagine the news of three of the Legendary Four Brothers perishing simultaneously will be the most earth-shattering headline of the current era, won't it?" Lucci sneered, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Though Lucci and Big Mom had not exchanged a single word of alliance, an unwritten understanding had been established in their minds. Both of their primary objectives converged on one person: Nico Robin! They would dismantle the forces standing before them first; as for who ultimately claimed ownership of Robin, that was a calculation for after the slaughter. For now, they would present a unified front against the common enemy.
In his heart, Lucci naturally disdained the idea of joining forces with a pirate like Big Mom, but under the current parameters, this was the only absolute method to crush Drake and his faction in one fell swoop. Therefore, setting his professional scruples aside for a brief moment was a perfectly acceptable concession.
"Oh? You honestly believe you have us cornered?" Drake raised an eyebrow, looking at Lucci and Big Mom with an expression of intense amusement.
The two remained silent, their smirks carrying an air of absolute certainty.
Seeing their response, Drake extended his hands in a helpless gesture. It was true—given the battered state of his allies, overcoming Lucci and Big Mom simultaneously would normally be more difficult than scaling the heavens, even with him anchoring the defense. Furthermore, through their brief exchange of blows, a combat genius like Lucci had undoubtedly deciphered the core operational parameters of his spatial manipulation. His tactical adaptation was astonishingly fast.
However... all of their calculations were built upon a single, flawed premise: that his faction was out of commission.
"Ace, Luffy," Drake murmured. A beautifully crafted, compact container suddenly materialized in his palm. Inside rested three Senzu Beans.
The exact microsecond they swallowed the beans, a cataclysmic surge of vitality flooded Ace and Luffy's nervous systems! Their spirits skyrocketed as their depleted stamina completely refilled, and a pair of terrifying, unbridled auras erupted violently into the sky.