Sengoku's speech directly boosted the Marines' morale to its peak!
It could be said that now they feared no one!
"Shishishishishi~"
"How interesting~" Doflamingo grinned widely. "The upcoming battle is sure to be spectacular!"
It would be best if the Marines and Whitebeard fought to a stalemate, allowing him to profit from the situation.
Thinking this, Doflamingo's laughter grew even more gleeful.
"Meiser... how are things on your end?" Hancock murmured to herself.
Fire Fist Ace's appearance here meant Meiser and the others had failed.
Then... was he still alive?
At this thought, Hancock's eyes filled with concern.
Just then, the alarm at Marine Headquarters suddenly blared, accompanied by the lookout's frantic shout.
"Attention!"
"Whitebeard's main fleet has appeared!"
"Repeat!"
"Whitebeard's main fleet has appeared!!"
"All personnel, prepare for battle!!!"
"Damn it, how did they appear so suddenly?!"
"So they've finally arrived!"
Watching the massive fleet emerging in the distance, Doflamingo laughed heartily. "This is truly exhilarating!"
This time, he would witness with his own eyes this historic battle that would be recorded in history!
"Whitebeard."
Hawkeye narrowed his eyes as he stared at the distant fleet.
At this moment, he desperately wanted to know exactly how powerful this World's Strongest Man truly was!
Observing the distant fleet, Sengoku demanded, "Has Whitebeard's position been spotted?!"
"Negative!" the lookout replied. "Only members of Whitebeard's subordinate fleet have been detected."
"Forty-three ships in total, each captained by a New World expert!"
Sweat poured down the lookout's forehead as he observed the numerous powerful pirates.
"Can't confirm his location?"
Sengoku frowned. "What is that guy planning?"
Since Whitebeard's subordinate fleet had already reached Marine Headquarters, Whitebeard himself would definitely come!
The question now was... from which direction would he attack?
Could it be not from the front, but a surprise assault from another position?
Considering this, Sengoku shifted his gaze to other directions.
Just then, a massive bubble suddenly surfaced in the waters of Marine Headquarters' bay, as if announcing the arrival of something significant.
"Could it be..."
Seeing this, Sengoku's expression instantly changed.
Watching the Moby Dick emerge from the sea, Sengoku said with a grim face, "So that's it. All their ships were coated and advanced from underwater."
No wonder those ships had appeared so suddenly—they had all been emerging from the sea!
"We've been outmaneuvered," Vice Admiral Tsuru said with a troubled expression.
They had considered every possible direction except underwater—a serious miscalculation.
"All three ships of the Whitebeard Pirates have appeared!"
"All 14 division commanders are here!"
"He's finally arrived!"
"Gulp..."
Some Marines instinctively swallowed, their palms sweating with tension.
At that moment, a man emerged from the deck, step by step making his way to the ship's bow!
This man was none other than the World's Strongest Man, Edward Newgate, known as Whitebeard!
"Gurararara!"
Seeing Sengoku's expression in the distance, Whitebeard grinned and said, "It's been decades since we last met, Sengoku!"
"Is my beloved son unharmed?!"
"Whitebeard!"
Watching Whitebeard's arrogant smile, Sengoku grimaced and said, "Damn it, to think he got this close. Although we have Fire Fist Ace as leverage and they might not dare destroy Marineford... this man is still the World's Strongest Man! The closer he gets, the more disadvantageous it is for us!"
"Pops!"
"You..."
Seeing Whitebeard smiling at him, Ace suddenly choked up.
"Gurararara, it seems my beloved son is unharmed."
After casually planting his Cloud-Cutting Scythe into the ground, Whitebeard laughed, "Just wait a little longer, Ace. I'll save you right away."
With those words, the man assumed his iconic stance.
Then, he slammed two powerful fists into the air on either side, shattering the atmosphere itself!
"Crack!!"
"Daka da~"
Cracks spread rapidly as a terrifying force began radiating outward.
"The... the space itself is shattering?!" a Marine cried out in terror. "Is this Whitebeard's true power?"
"Look! The sea is churning!"
"Oh no—it's a Sea Quake!"
Seeing the massive water columns towering even higher than Marine Headquarters, some Marines' eyes filled with despair.
How could they possibly fight against such catastrophic, natural disaster-level power?
"Is this Whitebeard's ability?" Koby muttered in disbelief.
No wonder this man was called the World's Strongest Man—his power was truly terrifying!
To create such a devastating Sea Quake with just his initial attack?!
"What a fearsome man," Aokiji remarked, glancing up at the colossal water pillars rising on both sides. "Does he plan to destroy Marine Headquarters?"
If those two water columns were to crash down, Marine Headquarters might indeed be destroyed.
Thinking this, Aokiji prepared to stand and counter the attack.
But before he could act, the water pillars surged away into the distance, showing no signs of stopping.
This unexpected turn left Aokiji momentarily stunned.
"What... does this mean?"
"Hey, did you see that? The water pillars vanished!" a Marine shouted.
"I saw it—they're really gone."
"What happened? Did Whitebeard give up the attack?"
"No idea."
Though no one understood why, they were saved for now.
A collective sigh of relief swept through the ranks.
"Pops!"
"Everyone!"
"Why did you come to save me?" Ace said in anguish. "I was the one who ignored everyone's warnings and went off alone, causing all this trouble."
"So why still..."
"No."
Whitebeard slowly spoke, "It was I who sent you, my son."
Ace froze, unable to comprehend why his father would say such a thing.
But... but he had chosen to go himself!
At this thought, Ace exclaimed agitatedly, "Father, I went on my own accord! You tried to stop me back then, but I..."
"I said it!" Whitebeard interrupted loudly. "I was the one who sent you!"
Seeing the man's earnest expression, Ace opened his mouth but found himself at a loss for words.
"Marco."
"I did tell him to go, didn't I?" Whitebeard stated.
"Ah, I heard it. That's indeed what happened." Marco glanced toward Ace in the distance and said, "You've endured much hardship, Ace."
After a pause, Marco coldly swept his gaze over the Marines ahead and declared, "Marines, you should know the consequences of laying hands on our comrades."
"Prepare yourselves, you bastards!"
"That's right! We won't let anyone who harms you live, Ace!"
"Wait for us! We're coming to save you!"
"Ooooh!"
"Ready yourselves, Marine Headquarters!"
Hearing his crew's roars, Ace's eyes reddened.
"Everyone..."
"Quite a fearsome bunch we've provoked," Aokiji remarked.
"Hmph, what's the point of saying that now?" Akainu snorted.
Whitebeard?
The world's strongest man?
Whatever this man was, today he would ensure this damned pirate remained here!
"Scary~" Borsalino calmly observed the distant scene. "One after another, all terrifying pirates~"
Hearing Borsalino's comment, the other two instinctively glanced sideways at him but said nothing, knowing this was just his usual demeanor.
"This is so thrilling!" Doflamingo exclaimed excitedly. "I'm growing more and more eager for the battle ahead."
"Fufufu!"
After his laughter subsided, Doflamingo glanced at Hawkeye and asked, "Are you planning to sit this one out again?"
But unfortunately, Hawkeye showed no intention of engaging, not even sparing him a look.
Unfazed, Doflamingo merely shrugged and fell silent.
"Nothing but crude men everywhere. How displeasing," Hancock remarked.
Yet... that man was different!
Perhaps thinking of Meiser, a faint blush spread across Hancock's cheeks.
"Please stay safe, Meiser!"
Just then, a Marine noticed something amiss.
"Hey, look! Why is the water level dropping so rapidly?"
"Not sure. Could it be related to Whitebeard?"
As he spoke, the man recalled the events from Whitebeard's earlier attack.
The water might truly have been drawn away by those two colossal pillars of water!
"For some reason, I have a bad feeling about this," Tashigi murmured.
"A bad feeling, huh?" Smoker looked up at the distant sky and said, "I feel the same."
"Hey, what's going on?!"
"Why are our ships moving backward?!"
The pirates who were sent flying due to the ship's rapid backward movement all cried out in alarm.
"It's the ocean currents!"
Meiser, standing steadily on the deck, glanced at the currents below and said, "These currents are rushing back toward the direction we came from at an incredible speed."
With his Sharingan activated, Meiser could clearly observe this phenomenon.
He then looked up toward the Marine Headquarters and murmured, "This sudden anomaly... Did someone cause it? Or did we encounter some rare weather phenomenon?"
If it were weather-related, they could only blame their bad luck.
But if it were man-made... that would be somewhat terrifying.
Anyone capable of affecting such a vast area of sea would undoubtedly possess formidable power!
"Dammit! We were sailing smoothly just moments ago, why did it suddenly turn like this?!" Buggy, clinging to a pillar, shouted frantically. In just this short time, they had been carried a great distance away!
"Could this be Pops' doing?" Jimbei thought to himself.
Staring at the distant situation, Jimbei unconsciously furrowed his brow.
He felt it was highly likely that this was Whitebeard's work.
"Dammit! I need to get to Marine Headquarters quickly to save Ace! What's going on here?" Luffy exclaimed, clutching his hat.
"Hey! We're heading back toward the Calm Belt!"
Looking back at the enormous Gates of Justice, Mr.3 cried out, "Do something, Meiser!"
If they accidentally returned there, who knew whether the Gates of Justice would close on them or not.
"The Gates of Justice?"
Meiser glanced back at the massive gates and frowned. "Could this be their goal? Using powerful currents to wash us back into the Calm Belt?"
It wasn't impossible.
However... Too naive!
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!!"
"BOOM!!"
As Meiser's words fell, an enormous water dragon surged from the ocean currents, lifting the massive warship on its head.
The water dragon then twisted its body and charged toward the Marine Headquarters!
"Well done, Meiser!" Luffy cheered excitedly.
With Meiser's Water Release Technique, they would surely reach Marine Headquarters safely!
"Water Release Technique, huh."
Crocodile, who had been sitting on the deck, stood up and looked down at the water dragon below. "Quite a convenient ability."
Even such powerful counter-currents couldn't stop his water dragon from advancing... As expected of a ninja!
"Meiser, prepare yourself."
"Huh?"
Hearing Jimbei's words, Meiser turned to look at him. "What do you mean?"
Why was he being told to prepare?
"If I'm not mistaken, this should be a Sea Quake triggered by Whitebeard," Jimbei explained.
"Sea Quake?"
"Yes," Jimbei continued. "Using the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, Pops is capable of creating Sea Quakes."
After speaking, Jimbei paused briefly before turning to look at the sea behind them. "It probably won't be long before a tsunami comes rushing toward us."
"A tsunami, huh."
Meiser glanced back at the sea behind them and narrowed his eyes.
He hadn't expected that these unusual currents they encountered were indeed man-made after all.
"To affect such a vast stretch of sea... This truly lives up to the title of Four Emperors."
Thinking this, Meiser couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.
He genuinely wanted to know just how powerful this old man called Whitebeard really was.
At that moment, Mr.3's exclamation came from behind.
"Hey, the ocean currents have calmed down!"
Leaning over the ship's side to look at the sea below, Mr.3 said, "Those powerful, turbulent currents have disappeared!"
"No, it's not just calming down," Inazuma stared at the sea surface and remarked, "It seems like currents moving toward the Marine Headquarters have appeared!"
Although the speed of these currents wasn't as fast as expected, they were definitely present!
"If that's the case, then doesn't that mean..."
Before Mr.3 could finish his sentence, Meiser's shout came from the ship's bow: "Everyone, grab onto whatever you can hold! A tsunami is coming!!"
"Whaaat?!!!"