Public executions must follow standard procedures and commence precisely at the scheduled time. Unless truly extraordinary circumstances interfere, the execution will proceed using straightforward and brutal methods.
Right now, everything was proceeding according to protocol. The two executioners had already raised their blades high, simply awaiting the order from Sengoku.
"Sengoku! Don't think you can stop me!"
With a powerful punch, Whitebeard unleashed the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, shaking the battlefield and sweeping away countless marines like dandelions in the wind. Before they even hit the ground, he channeled that same quake energy into his naginata, Murakumogiri, and slashed once more.
Seeing the execution blades already raised above Ace's head, the thought of his son being beheaded ignited something in Whitebeard. He surged forward toward the execution platform with a roar.
But the burst of action worsened his already critical condition — his body was failing him. And even worse, he was still dozens of meters away from the platform!
"Whitebeard, you're at the end of your rope!" Sengoku shouted, "Now watch as Fire Fist Ace loses his head!"
"Whitebeard!"
Momonga intercepted him, slashing with his sword — Whitebeard blocked the attack, but it slowed him down. Already wounded and exhausted, he could no longer push forward.
Though not among the absolute strongest, Momonga was still one of the Marine's elite, and at this point, even he could hold back the injured Yonko.
"Ace!!" Luffy screamed.
"Get out of my way!"
"Gum-Gum Gatling!"
In an instant, his fists blurred into afterimages, the speed overwhelming. But there were tens of thousands of marines between him and the platform. How could he possibly punch through them all?
And these weren't just any marines — while cannon fodder to someone like Whitebeard, they were formidable obstacles to Luffy, especially now that he was nearing his limits.
"Too far!" Sabo leaped forward, bouncing off the shoulders and heads of marines as he tried to close the distance. But a giant marine wielding a mace struck him mid-air, the impact so intense it felt like his chest would collapse.
"Execute!"
At that moment, Sengoku gave the order. The executioners, tense and under immense pressure, swung their blades down in perfect sync.
Ace looked at Luffy, Sabo, Whitebeard, and the others — despair and helplessness filled his eyes. He didn't blame them. He just wished he had a little more time to see the people he cherished one last time.
All eyes turned to the platform.
From Garp's vantage point, he could see the gleam of the descending blades. His heart felt like it would burst from his chest. The image of Ace's head rolling was unbearable, and his body began to tremble.
Whitebeard's eyes widened. A marine tried to stop him, only to be slammed into the ground by Whitebeard, who coughed up blood from the effort.
"Ace!"
Marco and the other commanders were devastated. Some couldn't even bear to watch.
Across Marineford—the Shichibukai, the Marine, even spectators from Sabaody Archipelago — all watched with bated breath.
Everyone imagined the scene: Fire Fist Ace's head falling from his body, rolling across the execution platform…
But just as the blades were within thirty centimeters of Ace's neck—
A bolt of lightning suddenly tore from the heavens, striking the platform with blinding speed.
The two executioners were thrown back instantly, unconscious from the electric blast. Yet the one closest to them—Ace—was completely unharmed!
"What the...?"
"Who did that?!"
Sengoku's expression darkened. Just seconds ago, Ace's death had been a certainty. But the thunderstrike had foiled the execution!
"Who interfered?!"
"Hey hey, what just happened?" Moria was baffled. "A lightning bolt? Out of nowhere?!"
"Someone stopped the execution!"
"What's going on?"
"The executioners were struck by lightning!"
Shock swept through the crowd. Anyone with a working brain knew this wasn't a natural occurrence—this was a deliberate, human intervention.
"Ace... Ace is safe!"
The small group of people who still held hope — Garp, Luffy, Sabo, the Whitebeard Pirates — were overwhelmed with relief.
Ace himself was stunned. Just moments ago, he had felt death brush against him. And now... the executioners lay motionless, smoke curling off their bodies.
He had been saved.
"Who was it?!"
Countless people stared, confused.
Whitebeard shouted, "Sons! Someone bought us time—charge!"
With a roar, he swung his naginata again, knocking back another wave of marines.
"Hell yeah! Let's go, brothers!" Squard shouted as well, brandishing his weapon and charging the frontline.
But ahead of them stood 30,000 marines — an overwhelming force by any measure.
Sengoku glared furiously at Elior. Was he the one who summoned the lightning?
No — it was Dragon!
Only then did Sengoku notice Dragon in the distance. With storm clouds gathering above, Sengoku understood: Dragon had made his move.
"Damn it!"
Sengoku snarled and ordered the next batch of executioners to the platform. To prevent further interference, multiple groups of executioners had been prepared.
Akainu, too, turned a furious gaze toward Elior.
But Elior had done nothing.
Or rather, he hadn't acted — but he knew exactly who had. It could only have been Dragon. After all, this wasn't the first time Dragon had intervened.
Back in Loguetown, Dragon had also summoned a storm, striking Bucky with lightning just as he was about to execute Luffy.
And now, once again, a bolt of lightning had saved a D.
Dragon's powers had full command over the weather — especially lightning.
"Damn you!"
Akainu launched an attack.
"Great Eruption!"
"What does Dragon's interference have to do with me?"
Elior taunted, countering with a punch of his own. As his fist struck, frost swirled in his right hand and solidified into a massive ice fist.
Dragon?
Only then did Akainu realize — it had to be Dragon. He remembered now: Dragon had demonstrated control over thunder and lightning before.
BOOM!
The two fists collided, and magma exploded in every direction. Akainu's magma hound was shattered on impact. Their clash continued for nearly ten seconds — then, finally, Akainu was sent flying.
"You're starting to slip, Admiral."
In a flash, Elior appeared above Akainu and brought his foot crashing down on the admiral's face. The moment his foot connected, the sound of bones cracking echoed. Akainu was launched away at terrifying speed, tumbling midair.
BOOM!
Lava erupted violently as Akainu hit the ground. The impact collapsed everything within a 20-meter radius, lava gushing from the fractures like a volcanic explosion.
His face burning in pain, Akainu's expression twisted in rage — he could barely contain the fury surging inside him.
At this point, Akainu had nearly fully transformed into his elemental magma state. The ground beneath him had become a seething pool of lava.
Deep red magma bubbled, emitting white-hot steam. The very air warped under the oppressive heat.
CRACKLE...
Elior raised his right hand. Blinding arcs of thunder surged forth, forming a massive pillar of lightning. Bolts wrapped around it like serpents, exuding an overwhelming aura of domination. Even the strongest nearby faltered in fear.
300 million volts of lightning!
Akainu couldn't comprehend Elior's abilities anymore.
"Ice manipulation, swordsmanship... and now control over lightning?!"
"What else can that monster do?!"
"This is insane!"
"His arm transformed into a thunder pillar tens of meters long—stones crumbled to dust on contact!"
"He's using ice with one hand and lightning with the other?!"
Once again, all eyes turned to Elior.
Among them were Dragon, Tsuru, Kizaru, and others.
Elior stepped forward calmly. As Akainu lunged with a magma fist the size of a warship, Elior swung the thunder pillar down in a sweeping arc.
"Great Eruption!"
Akainu roared.
BOOM!
The lava fist clashed with the thunder pillar — but what chance did magma stand against 300 million volts?
The moment the lava touched the lightning, it shattered and disintegrated instantly.
Crackles of thunder overlapped with magma detonations.
A tidal wave of shock and pressure blasted outward. Thunder spread in every direction, engulfing an area nearly 40 meters wide in blinding bolts.
The sight froze countless onlookers in terror.
All they could see was Akainu's magma being destroyed. No matter how much he produced, it couldn't keep up with the rate at which lightning tore it apart.
And Elior — he was still increasing the output.
Railgun.
Elior now controlled up to one billion volts of electricity. By comparison, Enel had only reached 200 million volts with his Rumble-Rumble Fruit — and even that was enough to obliterate entire islands in the original story.
But Elior was climbing — from 300 million to 500 million volts — and still rising.
RUMBLE...
Thunder and lightning swallowed the battlefield. Even Akainu couldn't see through the electric haze—lightning surged all around him like a spider's web, whipping his body mercilessly.
Not even a Logia user's elemental form could resist this.
Akainu, like all users of natural-type Devil Fruits, had limits. If their element couldn't endure the force striking them, even elementalization wouldn't save them.
Just look at the scars Aokiji bears. During their duel for Fleet Admiral, Akainu must have surpassed Aokiji's endurance limit — he couldn't have relied solely on Haki the entire time.
Now, Elior was doing the same to Akainu.
Before, his thunder might've been just a warm-up. Now, it was pure torment.
In the heart of the storm, Akainu struggled, body shaking under Elior's relentless surge. The lightning bypassed his magma form completely—it wasn't burning him anymore; it was breaking him.
"Can you still hold on, Akainu?!"
Elior shouted, grinning with a sick, gleeful expression. His voltage rose again — 600 million volts!
But that kind of power came at a cost. Elior was beginning to feel the immense drain on his stamina.
From afar, the Marines, pirates, members of the Revolutionary Army, and even spectators in the Sabaody Archipelago all stared in disbelief.
What kind of monster is Elior?
BOOM!
With an earth-shattering blast, a figure was sent flying—
It was Akainu!
Torn clothes flapped from his broken body. He was covered in horrific burns and wounds. Blood poured from his flesh. His skin was scorched black in places, the smell of charred meat filling the air.
Electricity produces extreme heat — Enel once used it to melt gold.
Akainu now looked like a corpse dragged through a volcano.
FWOOOSH!
Elior moved in for the kill — but at that moment, a white figure shot across the battlefield.
BOOM!
It was Aokiji, who had earlier frozen Bullet temporarily.
"Whoa, whoa! That's enough, man!"
Even though he and Akainu often clashed over justice and ideals, Aokiji knew: if no one stepped in now, the Marine might lose one of its three Admirals.
The last CP0 boss? Elior had killed him without hesitation.
Now another figure arrived—
Tsuru.
Akainu lay unconscious on the ground, bleeding from every orifice. His injuries were horrifying—massive wounds, blistered skin, blood dripping from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
Bleeding from all seven orifices.
"Sakazuki!"
Tsuru rushed to his side. Seeing his battered state—burned, bleeding, his life hanging by a thread—she panicked. If he wasn't treated immediately, he would die.
And Elior was right there.
He still intended to finish Akainu off.
Without hesitation, Tsuru grabbed Akainu and withdrew at once.
Akainu—gravely wounded and unconscious.