CHAPTER 166 — Nearing
Diana walked slowly, boots crunching against shattered stone, her posture relaxed but ready. Around her, Marines stood frozen. Some gripped their weapons too tightly. Others lowered them without realizing. No one spoke. No one moved to block her path.
They all remembered.
They remembered the moment she struck Akainu.
They remembered how lightning wrapped around her blade.
They remembered how an Admiral had been forced back.
Diana did not glare at them. She did not threaten. She simply walked.
Her thoughts were calm, but not empty.
She was confused.
Not about what she was doing, but about who she was supposed to be fighting.
The Marines called themselves justice. But what she had seen today didn't match those words.
Akainu had attacked without care. His magma had burned through pirates and Marines alike. He hadn't slowed. He hadn't checked. His eyes had been locked on her and Ace alone, like nothing else mattered.
That wasn't justice.
That was obsession.
She stepped in because she had to. Because she saw two boys about to be killed, brutally, by him. She didn't know what they had done to deserve it, but in her eyes, they were still children, and they shouldn't die for it.
And she had stopped it.
She did not regret that.
If it happened again, she would do it again.
The Marines parted further as she walked, a wide, silent path opening through their ranks. She could feel their fear, their doubt, their confusion. None of them were strong enough to stop her. They knew it.
Ahead, she saw two figures moving toward the center of the battlefield.
Sengoku and Garp.
They walked side by side, heavy steps cracking the ground beneath them.
Sengoku's face was hard, drawn tight with control that was slipping faster than he wanted to admit. Garp looked calmer, hands loose at his sides, eyes sharp.
They stopped when Diana reached them.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Smoke drifted between them.
Sengoku's gaze settled on her, darkening further. He had seen too much today. Too many plans fail.
"Your friends have already left," he said at last, his voice firm but edged with frustration. "Do you intend to continue fighting here?"
Diana smiled slightly. Not mocking. Not cruel. Just honest.
"Indeed," she said. "But it seems you started it."
Sengoku's jaw tightened.
"And I want to finish it," she added.
The words landed heavily.
For a brief moment, Sengoku could not answer. Anger surged up first, but it ran straight into something worse.
Truth.
The Marines had begun this war.
The execution had been their decision.
Akainu had attacked them first Diana and Gaius' group, before they even knew their purpose or intentions.
Diana had reacted.
Not provoked.
Not plotted.
Reacted.
Garp let out a loud laugh, the sound breaking the tension like a crack in stone.
"Hah!" he said, shaking his head. "You've got guts, girl."
He glanced at Diana more closely now. Not as a threat. Not as an enemy.
As someone who had saved his grandsons.
Garp had felt it when Luffy escaped. Had known Ace was free. That weight had lifted from his chest, and nothing else on this battlefield mattered as much as that.
He looked at Sengoku.
"I'm not fighting her," Garp said plainly.
Sengoku turned sharply. "Garp"
"She saved Ace," Garp continued. "Saved Luffy too. I won't raise a hand against her."
Sengoku clenched his fists.
He was angry. Furious. Not just at Diana, but at the situation itself. At Akainu. At the war. At the world that kept slipping beyond his control.
But he could not force Garp.
And he could not attack Diana without turning this battlefield into something far worse.
So he said nothing.
And Diana walked past them.
High above, on the remains of a shattered building, Marshall D. Teach watched everything unfold.
Blackbeard leaned against broken stone, arms crossed, grin wide. To anyone watching from afar, he looked relaxed. Amused. Like a man enjoying the show.
Inside, he was furious.
Whitebeard was still standing.
Still tall.
Still commanding.
Still far too strong.
"Useless Marines…" Teach muttered under his breath.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go.
The plan had been simple. Let the Marines do the hard work. Let them wound Whitebeard deeply. Let the old man bleed and tire and weaken. Then, when the moment was right, Teach would strike.
Kill Whitebeard.
Take the Gura Gura no Mi.
Step into the world as something greater.
But Whitebeard was not desperate.
Not broken.
Not wounded enough.
The Marines had failed him.
Teach's eyes flicked across the battlefield. Sengoku still stood. Garp was still breathing. Kuzan and Kizaru remained untouched.
This war was not finished.
But it was close to ending.
And that was the problem.
Below, Whitebeard stood at the center of the ruined ground, massive form unmoving despite the chaos around him. His sharp eyes scanned the battlefield, counting ships, sensing his sons.
Most of them were already retreating.
Good.
Family came first.
Then he turned toward Blackbeard's direction.
Whitebeard's gaze lifted.
"Teach!" he shouted.
The name carried years of trust broken, of betrayal that cut deeper than any blade.
Whitebeard did not move toward him. Not yet.
Instead, he raised his weapon and swung.
The shockwave tore through the air, ripping toward Blackbeard's position with overwhelming force. The building exploded behind Teach, stone collapsing inward as the wave tore past.
Teach and his crew leapt aside, barely avoiding it.
Dust filled the air.
Whitebeard turned away, already losing interest.
"Come," he called out, voice carrying across the battlefield. "Follow us."
Diana stopped.
She looked back once more.
The Marines stood where they were. Kizaru watched her, unreadable behind his glasses. Kuzan met her gaze briefly, then looked away.
They let her go.
The war was already lost in truth. Continuing would only mean more bodies, more destruction, and no clear victory.
Only Akainu remained different.
He stood rigid, magma pulsing beneath his skin, eyes burning with fury. He watched Diana move toward Whitebeard, his teeth grinding together.
But even he did not attack.
Diana walked to Whitebeard's side with ease.
The giant pirate laughed loudly.
"Gurararara!" The sound echoed across the broken land.
He looked down at her, eyes sharp but amused.
"You fight well," Whitebeard said simply.
Then he turned his gaze back toward Blackbeard.
"Teach," he said, voice low and heavy. "Wait for your punishment."
Blackbeard laughed in return.
"Zehahahaha!"
The sound was loud. Confident. Mocking.
But inside, Teach was already thinking.
This was bad.
Whitebeard wasn't desperate. The Marines were hesitating. Sengoku was pulling back. If the war ended like this, it would be a loss, but a clean one. Sengoku could control the story. Say the execution failed, but justice remained strong.
Teach couldn't allow that.
He needed chaos.
He needed fear.
He needed Whitebeard dead.
Marines didn't fight for pride like pirates did. They fought for order. For image. For control.
And the world was watching.
Den Den Mushi across the seas were still recording. Broadcasting. Sharing every moment.
Teach's eyes slid toward Diana standing beside Whitebeard.
An unknown force.
Not Marine.
Not pirate.
Strong enough to suppress an Admiral.
Perfect.
He leaned slightly toward Van Augur.
"Shoot," Teach said quietly.
Van Augur did not question it.
The rifle cracked.
A shot rang out across the battlefield, striking near the Whitebeard Pirates. Not a fatal blow, but loud enough. Close enough.
Enough to spark panic.
Teach stepped forward, voice booming.
"So this is it, Marines?!" he shouted, loud enough for everyone to hear. Loud enough for Den Den Mushi to capture every word.
"You're letting Whitebeard escape after he destroyed your headquarters?!"
He pointed openly, clearly. at Diana.
"And now he's even got a new ally! Some monster strong enough to fight an Admiral!"
The words spread instantly.
Marines stiffened. Murmurs rippled through the ranks. Fear took hold.
If they retreated now, the world would see it.
Whitebeard escapes.
Marineford destroyed.
A new unknown enemy revealed.
Sengoku felt it like a knife in his chest.
Akainu snapped.
"Enough!" he roared.
Magma surged as he stepped forward, fury overflowing all restraint.
Once an Admiral attacked, there was no stopping it.
The war ignited again.
High above the sea, a large ship approached Marineford.
Red sails caught the wind.
A calm, overwhelming presence rolled across the water.
The Red-Haired Pirates were coming.
~~~
If you're enjoying the story, want to read more, and want to support me in creating more, you can check out my Patreon here:
patreon.com/ZanderLee
Every bit of support means a lot and helps me keep writing!