The massive Video Transponder Snail slowly opened its eye.
Reflected in its pupil was Crescent Bay, a battlefield soon to be drenched in blood.
In an instant, public squares, taverns, and even the underground world across the globe lit up as countless screens came alive.
A worldwide broadcast had begun.
Sabaody Archipelago.
Before a gigantic screen, a dense sea of people gathered shoulder to shoulder.
Pirates, bounty hunters, slave traders, ordinary civilians. Everyone craned their necks upward, eyes locked tightly onto the glowing image.
Among the crowd, several figures stood out.
They were the Supernovas, newly arrived and preparing to enter the New World.
"Hmph. So it's finally starting."
Eustass Kid, his spiky red hair jutting out beneath a heavy fur coat, let out a low snort.
Beside him, Killer remained silent behind his mask.
Not far away, a man wearing a spotted fur hat leaned against a wall, his hand resting on the hilt of the cursed blade Kikoku. Trafalgar Law watched without a word.
Scratchmen Apoo tapped his teeth idly, producing scattered, rhythmic clicks.
In a shadowed corner, Basil Hawkins quietly drew fortune cards.
"It's time! Where's the Whitebeard Pirates? Why haven't they shown up yet?"
"What's the rush? That's Whitebeard we're talking about."
"Look! The execution platform!"
A wave of agitation rippled through the crowd as all eyes focused on the center of the screen.
Marine Headquarters. Marineford.
In the crescent-shaped plaza that symbolized justice, one hundred thousand elite Marines stood in formation, like a silent white forest. The killing intent was so dense it seemed to spill through the screen.
At the very front of the plaza sat three chairs, representing the Navy's highest combat power.
Akainu. Kizaru. Aokiji.
They were like three immovable mountains.
Behind them loomed the towering execution platform.
Two figures knelt upon it.
One was the infamous commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division, "Fire Fist" Portgas D. Ace.
The other was an obscure figure, curled in shadow. "Blackbeard" Marshall D. Teach.
Footsteps echoed.
Steady. Measured.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku the Buddha ascended the platform and stopped before the two condemned men.
Holding a Den Den Mushi, his calm gaze swept across the one hundred thousand Marines below, and beyond them, across the billions of eyes watching worldwide.
At that moment, the world fell silent.
"Today, we gather here,"
Sengoku's voice rang out through the Transponder Snail, clear, solemn, and merciless.
"To declare to the world that the justice of the Navy will not be challenged."
"The Age of Pirates must come to an end."
"The two men behind me mark the beginning of that end."
He raised a hand and pointed at Ace.
"Portgas D. Ace."
"Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Bounty: five hundred and fifty million Berries."
Sengoku paused, his voice suddenly rising.
"But that is only his public identity."
"Today, I will reveal a shocking secret hidden for over twenty years."
"In this man's veins flows the most dangerous bloodline on the seas."
"His father is the source of the great pirate era that began twenty two years ago."
"The Pirate King. Gol D. Roger!"
The world exploded.
On Sabaody's plaza, the faces of pirates were filled with pure shock and terror.
Kid's grin froze in place. Law's grip on Kikoku tightened sharply. Apoo stopped clicking his teeth altogether.
"What… what did he say?"
"Fire Fist Ace is Roger's son?"
"That's impossible!"
"Is the Navy insane? They're executing the Pirate King's bloodline?"
But this was only the beginning.
Sengoku's hand shifted, pointing toward the other kneeling figure.
"And this man!"
"Marshall D. Teach!"
"Former member of the Whitebeard Pirates. Devious and cruel. He murdered his own crewmate for a Devil Fruit."
"But his crimes go far beyond that."
"According to the Navy's highest classified intelligence, we have uncovered a terrifying truth."
Sengoku's eyes turned ice cold.
"This man has an inseparable connection to the ruler of a bygone era, the one who sought to dominate the seas forty years ago."
"He is the son of the captain of the Rocks Pirates."
"Rocks D. Xebec!"
Among the younger pirates, confusion spread.
Rocks?
Who was that?
The name was distant, unfamiliar.
But the older pirates, those who had lived through the previous era, trembled as if staring at a demon. Their faces drained of all color.
"Rocks…?"
"That legendary tyrant of the seas?"
"He has a son?"
"This is madness!"
"The Navy has completely lost its mind!"
"They're executing the bloodlines of both the Pirate King and the tyrant of the old era on the same day!"
"This is a declaration of war against every pirate in the world!"
The world went silent.
Everyone was stunned by the Navy's earthshaking move.
On the platform, Sengoku lowered the Transponder Snail and turned to walk down.
As he stepped off the final stair, he brushed past a tall, upright figure.
"The rest is yours, Hawk," Sengoku said quietly.
Renn Hawk stepped onto the platform and took his place at the center.
He scanned the surroundings once before raising his right hand.
"Begin the execution."
On both sides of the platform, two massive executioners drew in deep breaths.
They lifted their execution blades high.
The edges aligned with Ace's and Teach's necks.
The world seemed to hold its breath.
Then suddenly, the sea before Marineford churned violently without warning.
A colossal shadow surged upward from the depths.
With a thunderous splash, the sea split apart.
A gigantic whale-shaped ship burst from beneath the surface.
The Moby Dick.
The flagship of the Whitebeard Pirates.
"Gurarararara!"
A booming laugh rolled out from the bow, drowning out the roar of the waves.
That man stood there.
A long-handled bisento in hand. A pure white captain's cloak draped over his shoulders.
The strongest man in the world.
Whitebeard. Edward Newgate.
"Navy brats!" Whitebeard's voice boomed like rolling thunder over Marineford.
"What do you think you're doing to my son?!"
The instant his words fell, an invisible, overwhelming pressure erupted from his body.
Conqueror's Haki.
A silent shockwave radiated outward from the Moby Dick, sweeping across the bay.
On the platform, the two executioners shuddered violently. Their blades slipped from their hands and crashed to the ground.
"Hmph!"
"Newgate!"
Below the platform, Sengoku snapped his fleet admiral's cloak aside and stepped forward.
A vast will rose from him, equally overwhelming, yet filled with authority and order.
"This is Marine Headquarters!"
"You do not get to run wild here!"
Golden light flared around Sengoku as his own Conqueror's Haki surged forth, colliding head-on with Whitebeard's pressure.
The clash detonated at the center of Marineford Bay.
At the same time, behind the Moby Dick.
Splash after splash echoed.
One ship. Two ships. Ten ships. Dozens of ships.
Coated pirate vessels surfaced one after another from beneath the sea as if appearing from nowhere.
At the bow of each stood a notorious pirate feared throughout the New World.
Marco the Phoenix.
Diamond Jozu.
Vista of the Flower Sword.
And many more.
The Whitebeard Pirates had arrived in full force.
Nearly fifty thousand elite pirates stood silently on their decks.
Their gazes converged on Ace atop the execution platform.
Within their eyes burned undisguised killing intent and unwavering resolve.
The war was about to erupt.