The tide of battle had shifted.
The side defending Good was slipping deeper into disadvantage.
And if Sengoku — a powerhouse on the level of an Emperor — entered the fray, the balance would shatter completely in the World Government's favor.
"Sengoku!! Remember!!"
"You are the Fleet Admiral!!"
The Grand Elder's roar cracked across the battlefield.
Sengoku closed his eyes slowly.
The coat of justice draped on his shoulders weighed heavily, forcing a choice he had long dreaded.
Enough. After this battle, he would retire.
He would live out the rest of his days in quiet guilt toward Good.
His face twisted into a snarl. With a roar, he tore free:
"Fight!!!!"
The "Justice" coat split apart under the golden radiance bursting from his body.
"Fight! Fight to the death!!"
The warship beneath him exploded into splinters under his sheer force.
The massive vessel sank instantly as his colossal, golden form leapt into the sky.
Above, it was as if a second sun shone, bathing the battlefield in blinding golden light.
"Fight!!!"
The thunderous roar echoed through heaven and earth. Sengoku's gigantic golden palm crashed downward, aimed straight at Whitebeard. Shockwaves rippled through his hand.
Behind him, the Third Elder scoffed.
"Hmph! This fool… acting just like Good did in that last battle, when he drove us to the brink. An insult to us all."
The Second Elder sneered.
"So what? He still obeys our command. By striking here, his ties with Good are severed forever."
The Gorosei smirked in unison.
"This world… belongs to Lord Im…" the Grand Elder muttered, a truth only they could hear.
Ahead, Sengoku's palm plummeted.
Its crushing weight and holy radiance terrified even Whitebeard Jr.
"So powerful! Is this… the true might of the Fleet Admiral's Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Daibutsu (Human-Human Fruit, Model: Buddha)?!"
Whitebeard's Kenbunshoku Haki screamed in alarm.
He looked up, eyes narrowing. Alone, he would never dodge — he would counter with the Gura Gura no Mi (Quake-Quake Fruit).
But with Akainu and Whitebeard Jr lurking at his flanks, a reckless clash would leave him open.
He swung his naginata in a wide arc, forcing Akainu and Whitebeard Jr back.
Just as he prepared to evade Sengoku's blow, his heart sank.
He couldn't move.
Looking down, Whitebeard saw shadows swallowing his feet.
The void tugged to drag him under.
Off to the side, Teach laughed madly, smug beyond measure.
"Don't blame me, Pops!"
"Teach!!" Whitebeard snarled through clenched teeth, fury radiating.
But time was gone.
Sengoku's colossal strike descended.
Whitebeard burst his muscles, wrenching free from the Yami Yami no Mi (Dark-Dark Fruit), but it cost him precious moments.
Too late to fully defend.
Unprepared, he hastily coated himself in Armament Haki.
But such a thin defense against a peer-level titan like Sengoku spelled disaster.
The golden palm smashed the ice, shattering a hundred meters of frozen sea.
The shockwave hurled chunks of ice skyward, and Whitebeard staggered, blood spilling from his mouth as he was blown across the battlefield.
He crashed and rolled dozens of meters before driving his naginata into the ground to stop.
Half-kneeling, blood gushed from his lips, staining the earth red.
"Pops!!"
"Whitebeard!?"
His crew and allies cried out in horror.
Good still slept — Whitebeard was their pillar.
If he fell, the war was lost.
"Damn you, Teach, you bastard!!"
Marco roared, ignoring the combined attacks of King and Queen.
He took wounds without hesitation, forcing himself free to strike Teach.
"Phoenix Seal!!"
But halfway through his charge, a monstrous weight crushed him down.
"Marco, fighting my All-Stars while ignoring me? Are you looking down on the Beasts Pirates!?"
Kaido, in his dragon-man form, stomped Marco brutally into the ground.
Marco's body bent under the impact, snapping back into human form.
It was a devastating blow — enough to kill a weaker man outright.
But Marco's immense endurance and the Tori Tori no Mi, Model: Phoenix (Bird-Bird Fruit, Model: Phoenix) saved him, leaving him broken but alive.
Whitebeard's pupils shook violently.
"Marco…"
He grit his teeth and stood, ignoring his wounds.
His naginata dragged behind, tearing the ground apart as fury consumed him.
"Kaido!!"
The Gura Gura no Mi erupted, making the earth quake and crack beneath his blade's weight.
But at that moment, magma surged from one side — Akainu's Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Magma Dog (Dog-Dog Fruit, Model: Magma).
From the other, a storm of blade aura — Whitebeard Jr's attack.
And above, Kaido's body surged with thunder.
His kanabo swung down like divine judgment.
"Kōzan Seikai: In Naraku (Descending Three Realms: Drag to Hell)!!"
The heavens rumbled with Kaido's strike.
Momousagi and Tokikake sprinted desperately toward Whitebeard, weapons ready.
They knew the truth — Sengoku and Kaido had chosen to strike Whitebeard first.
If he fell, with Good still unconscious, their side would collapse entirely…
(End of Chapter)
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