BOOM!
Two massive waves of force, each spanning a kilometer, surged toward Whitebeard with crushing momentum.
From afar, Ace, newly freed from his restraints, saw the incoming attacks and immediately prepared to leap into action.
"Pops! Let me help you—this time, I'll defeat Teach for sure!"
But before he could move, Whitebeard's thunderous voice rang out first:
"No! Marco, follow the plan—get Ace out of here!"
"The original plan?" Marco froze, face going pale.
"Pops…"
"Shut up! Or are you ignoring your old man's orders now?"
Whitebeard roared again, slamming his naginata into the ground.
BOOM!
The ruined plaza trembled violently as the blade embedded itself in the earth.
Whitebeard hunched forward, muscles bulging, and shouted once more:
"Don't forget—I'm Whitebeard!"
"A mere traitor and a brat with a candle can't kill me."
"Marco—get out of here!"
"Airquake: Shockwave!"
Whitebeard's arms swelled like stone, his crimson skin seeming to bleed.
As he struck, the space around his fists shattered like glass.
BOOM!
The sky exploded with thunder.
The air itself froze for a moment—
Then a tsunami-like shockwave erupted outward.
The earth cracked and split beneath Whitebeard's feet.
The two incoming attacks stalled—
Then were obliterated by the shockwave.
Akainu and Blackbeard, caught in the blast, had no time to dodge.
The shock slammed into them.
BOOM!
Marineford was plunged into an apocalyptic scene.
Everything in the shockwave's path—stone, rubble, buildings—was torn apart like paper.
Ten kilometers of land were flattened.
As the shockwave surged toward the collapsed HQ and the wounded soldiers behind it—
Garp roared and rushed to intercept.
"Whitebeard! Are you trying to die? You madman! Aokiji, Kizaru—help me stop this!"
The three Admirals stood before the shattered HQ, bracing for impact.
BOOM!
The explosion rocked the battlefield again.
Dust and debris filled the sky like a sandstorm.
Cough! Cough!
Blackbeard spat blood and scrambled to his feet.
He had assumed Whitebeard—old, wounded, and stabbed in the back—was spent.
He never expected such overwhelming power.
Shaken, he considered retreating, letting Akainu wear Whitebeard down before striking again.
"Teach! Where do you think you're going?"
Whitebeard's voice boomed.
Blackbeard looked up—Whitebeard was suddenly right in front of him, his massive frame moving like a blur.
The wind from his movement scattered the dust.
Everyone stared as Whitebeard raised his naginata, now crackling with violent Conqueror's Haki.
"You ungrateful bastard! You dare betray me? Today, I'll kill you!"
BOOM!
He swung.
The world seemed to split in two.
Blackbeard's face turned ghostly white. He poured every ounce of Armament Haki and Darkness power into defense.
"Pops! Don't kill me! I was wrong!"
BOOM!
The naginata struck.
The shockwave tore through the plaza like a category-12 hurricane.
The ground split in two.
Blackbeard was hurled dozens of meters away.
A deep gash ran from his shoulder down his torso, blood spraying everywhere.
But as everyone looked closer, they realized—
Whitebeard had changed the angle at the last second.
The blade had missed Blackbeard's neck.
"Pops… couldn't do it in the end…"
Marco, dragging Ace back to the Moby Dick, covered his face and wept.
The other commanders froze.
"Marco, what's Pops thinking? Why won't he let us help?"
Ace shouted.
"I promised to deal with Teach! Let me help him—we can cover his retreat!"
"Ace, shut up!"
Whitebeard barked without turning.
"This isn't your fault. It's mine—as your father."
"Let me finish this."
"Teach, are you ready? I'm taking your arms!"
Whitebeard gripped his naginata again.
Blackbeard, writhing in pain, looked up at Whitebeard's resolute face and began to plead:
"Pops, you said anyone could be forgiven for their mistakes! I lost my head for a moment—please, don't do this! I'll cut off my own arm to atone…"
He struggled to his feet.
But before he could react—
SPLURT!
Blood sprayed from Whitebeard's crimson skin.
The veins bulging across his body began to bleed.
Blackbeard froze.
Then, seeing Whitebeard stumble, he burst into laughter.
"Haha! Pops, looks like I'm the one with fate on my side! Even the heavens want me to kill you!"
"In that case, I'll take your fruit!"
Blackbeard, still in pain, attacked.
Everyone's face changed.
No one expected Whitebeard to falter now.
"Pops!"
Ace and the others screamed.
Even Sengoku and Garp were too late to stop Blackbeard.
But before anyone could act—
A terrifying aura descended from the sky.
A blood-red Susanoo blade pierced the heavens and came crashing down.
Everyone's pupils shrank.
Their eyes widened in disbelief.
They looked at the clock tower—
Two minutes to noon.
And in that moment, they understood:
Ain had been right.
He really came back to clock out.