The immense pressure exerted by Whitebeard forced Sengoku to accelerate his plans.
It could be said that Whitebeard's premature arrival had, in an invisible way, hastened the tempo of the battlefield.
Quake—
Whitebeard swung his naginata, preparing to unleash the same devastating attack as before.
His sweeping motion sent his cloak billowing backward.
Zzzt—
Once again, the blade of Murakumogiri gathered a sphere of energy brimming with terrifying seismic force.
"Ara ara, such reckless attacks… one should be enough, right?"
At that moment, Aokiji, in his elemental form, silently appeared before Whitebeard.
His face was shrouded in icy mist as he raised a hand, freezing Whitebeard's body just as he was about to strike.
At the same time—
A dazzling yellow light streaked in, coalescing into the form of Kizaru.
"If only you could conveniently shatter into pieces of ice, things would be much easier for us~~"
Kizaru raised his index finger, aiming it at the frozen Whitebeard, his fingertip glowing with radiant energy.
Biu—
The light at Kizaru's fingertip condensed into a beam and shot straight toward the seemingly immobilized Whitebeard.
Just as the beam was about to pierce through Whitebeard, Jozu, fully transformed into diamond, arrived in time, positioning himself in front of Whitebeard.
The laser struck Jozu's diamond body and immediately refracted skyward.
"Mm~~ What a shiny 'mirror,'" Kizaru mused, placing a hand above his brow as he gazed upward, watching the deflected beam disappear into the sky.
Crack—
In that instant, the ice encasing Whitebeard shattered and crumbled to the ground.
Breaking free from Aokiji's ice, Whitebeard maintained his striking posture and, without hesitation, swung his naginata at both Aokiji and Kizaru.
The terrifying quake force instantly shattered Aokiji into ice shards and Kizaru into scattered light.
The residual shockwave surged toward the plaza, sending nearly a hundred Marines flying in an instant.
When the dust settled—
Aokiji and Kizaru, who had been shattered by the quake, slowly reformed their bodies.
"Ara ara, stopping you here is proving to be quite difficult," Aokiji murmured, icy mist seeping from his lips. He first glanced at Jozu before shifting his gaze toward the approaching Marco.
These two key members of the Whitebeard Pirates had efficiently taken out the warships stationed at the harbor flanks, allowing them to return to the battlefield's center so quickly.
"Gurarara…"
Whitebeard looked down at Aokiji and Kizaru and remarked meaningfully, "Are you really that confident in the 'defenses' around the execution platform?"
As he spoke, he raised his arm, clenching his fist as seismic energy rippled around it.
His fist was aimed directly at the execution platform.
"If you can stop this, then go ahead and try."
"!!!"
Aokiji and Kizaru both tensed in alarm.
At the same time, under Sengoku's orders, the Marine forces gradually retracted their defensive lines, retreating toward the breach in the harbor left by Little Oars Jr. before his death.
That position, aside from the conspicuous corpse of Little Oars Jr., was where the Warlords of the Sea, led by Maude, stood.
As for the pirates who had recklessly advanced to protect Little Oars Jr., they had all been felled by the casual attacks of Doflamingo, Hancock, and Mihawk.
For powerhouses of their caliber, even the most nonchalant of attacks were beyond the ability of ordinary pirates to withstand.
Their annihilation was inevitable.
Although their comrades who had advanced prematurely had all fallen, the Marines' retreat presented an opportunity for the pirates still standing on the ice.
Seizing the moment, they pressed forward, advancing toward the harbor's edge.
This was the closest they had been to the plaza since the battle began.
With just a glance, they could see the "plaza entrance" that had been destroyed by Little Oars Jr., mere dozens of meters ahead.
Just a few dozen meters away…
However—
Standing before the entrance were the Seven Warlords of the Sea, like an insurmountable wall blocking their path.
Most notably—
The pirates warily eyed Maude, who stood in front of Little Oars Jr.'s corpse.
They couldn't accurately gauge the difference in strength between the Warlords, but one thing was clear.
Compared to Mihawk and Doflamingo, the one who had slain Oars Jr. exuded a far more oppressive presence.
The difference lay in Maude's killing intent—it was sharper and more palpable.
"That damn Warlord killed Oars Jr.…"
"If we don't take him down, we won't reach the plaza!"
"Not just him, but the other Warlords as well…"
"The Marines have been forced back by Pops, yet these damn Warlords are just standing there, unmoved."
The Warlords before them stood like gatekeepers at the plaza entrance, making it impossible for the pirates to advance.
"Take them down!"
Though they knew the Warlords were formidable, the Whitebeard Pirates had no choice but to press forward.
They raised their weapons and charged.
Bang bang…!
Bullets fired toward Maude and the others.
Maude's eyes gleamed red as he swung his sword, Shusui, creating a wall of slashes that deflected all incoming bullets.
Kuma stood motionless, allowing the bullets to strike his body, where they harmlessly sparked upon impact.
Unfazed, he opened his mouth and fired a laser beam.
A massive explosion erupted, instantly felling a swath of pirates.
Mihawk flashed into the crowd, choosing not to unleash a powerful flying slash, but instead methodically cutting down the pirates who attacked him.
These pirates weren't weak—most wielded Armament Haki—but their strength was insufficient to withstand even Mihawk's simplest strikes.
Hancock, like Maude, remained stationary. With a rain of pink heart-shaped arrows, she turned every pirate who dared to attack her into stone.
Doflamingo cast his Parasite String, taking control of Atmos, the 13th Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, a towering warrior wielding twin blades.
"Fufufu… what a fine toy I've acquired," Doflamingo chuckled as he lounged atop a makeshift throne of corpses, legs crossed, eyes gleaming with malice.
"Doflamingo!"
Under Doflamingo's control, Atmos grit his teeth in fury, his gaze promising death.
"Interesting," Doflamingo mused, growing more entertained by Atmos' defiance. Without hesitation, he commanded Atmos to attack his own crewmates.
"Captain Atmos!?"
"Stay away from me!"
Atmos swung his sword wildly at his crewmates, his voice filled with anguish.
Two Whitebeard Pirates, caught off guard, were cut down before they could react.
"Doflamingo! I'm going to kill you!!!"
"Fuffuffuffu…!"
A cruel, mocking laugh drowned out Atmos' cries of despair.
Maude glanced at Doflamingo, who seemed to be toying with his prey. With his free left hand, he pulled out his flintlock pistol—transformed from Bailey—and took aim at Atmos' shoulder before pulling the trigger.
Bang!
A shadow bullet shot through the air, piercing Atmos' shoulder with precision, sending a spray of blood into the air.
"Hmm?"
Doflamingo's smirk faltered as his gaze turned icy, locking onto Maude.
Despite being shot in the shoulder, Atmos remained unaffected by the injury under Doflamingo's Parasite String control, continuing to swing his blade at his nearby comrades.
"Can't you see I'm enjoying myself?"
Doflamingo's eyes gleamed with murderous intent as he glared at Maude. His voice was chilling. "If you want to die, I can make that happen right here and now."
With past grudges piling up, a single gunshot was enough to ignite a violent killing intent.
If Maude crossed the line, Doflamingo wouldn't hesitate. No matter the setting, he would kill him on the spot.
"Oh."
Maude responded indifferently.
Shadow Flow – Shadow Shift.
Before the last syllable of his reply faded, Maude's figure flickered—instantly teleporting in front of Atmos, right where the bullet had struck his shoulder.
Thud.
Maude materialized and immediately stomped down on Atmos.
With overwhelming force, Atmos was sent crashing to the ground.
"The second one..."
Standing over Atmos, Maude flipped his blade and drove it through the back of his skull.
Blood splattered.
Atmos' body convulsed for a brief moment before finally going still—silent, freed from his suffering.
With one hand resting on the hilt of Shusui, its tip still embedded in Atmos' head, Maude turned his gaze to Doflamingo and said coldly, "If you think you can, go ahead and try."
At that very moment, he echoed words similar to Whitebeard's.
The difference was—
Whitebeard had said them to Aokiji and Kizaru.
Maude, on the other hand, was speaking to Doflamingo.
Doflamingo's face darkened, his body language radiating suffocating killing intent.
"Captain Atmos!!!"
Not far away, Whitebeard Pirates crew members looked on in grief at Atmos, who had been slain in an instant.
From Maude's gunshot to the final killing blow—
It had all happened too fast.
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