"Father!"
Diamond Jozu and the swordsman Vista shouted in fury, charging through the debris-strewn deck toward their captain.
"Filthy insects. Go rot in the wheel of reincarnation!"
The skeletal warhorse roared, galloping forward. Frost and ghostly mist burst from its hooves. On its back, Lord Nasujurō of the Five Sage Lords drew a cursed blade—the First Oni Blade: Demon Slayer. Black-red lightning crawled along the edge, radiating an aura of pure malice.
"Damn monster! You die here!"
The thirteenth division captain, Atomos the Water Buffalo, swung his twin blades in rage. His strikes met only air. In a flash, Nasujurō had passed him. A line of ice traced itself across Atomos's chest—no blood, just silence. His wound froze solid, and he collapsed with eyes rolled white.
"Atomos!"
The other division captains cried out in panic. They knew what they faced: a Sage Lord, each one a being equal in power to the Four Great Sovereigns.
Cold and sword wind howled across the deck. Every crewman caught in the arc of Nasujurō's blade froze mid-motion, statues of terror before they shattered into glittering shards.
"Everyone, together!"
Fossa, captain of the fifteenth division, bit down on his cigar and drew a long blade that erupted into flame. He rushed the spectral warhorse without hesitation, shouting as the fire spread across the deck.
The captains followed, blades and guns flashing as they surrounded the skeletal monster.
"Insects are still insects," Nasujurō sneered. His hooves blurred as he tore through them, leaving only frost and corpses in his wake.
A burst of steel and cold light—another captain fell. The eleventh division leader, Kingudo, collapsed, his chest split wide and instantly frozen solid, his still-beating heart trapped in ice.
"No! Kingudo!"
Their brothers' deaths pushed the rest to the edge of madness. Screams and roars filled the air, echoing across the main deck of the Moby Whale.
Down below, Marco's hands trembled as he poured more of his healing blue fire into Ace's battered body. He could hear every cry above. Each one made his chakra burn hotter, more desperate.
On deck, Jozu saw the monstrous boar charging straight for Whitebeard. Without hesitation, he transformed, his diamond body gleaming like a living fortress, and crashed into the beast with all his might.
The impact sent the boar stumbling back, yet even Jozu's diamond shell began to smoke and glow red from the heat radiating off its molten hide.
"Rose Slash!"
Vista's twin blades spun, scattering crimson petals of energy that slashed across the air, striking the giant bird-form Sage that had been diving at Whitebeard.
"Today, none of you leave alive!"
Topman of the Blazing Fang, in his boar form, howled as he galloped again, his tusks glowing black and red with condensed Haki.
"Jozu, help Vista!" Whitebeard barked, dragging himself from the rubble. He charged forward, his halberd gleaming with the power of the quake release.
There was a tragic nobility in his movement now—the sadness of a warrior at twilight. He could barely protect his sons anymore. Now, they were protecting him.
If his body weren't failing, he would never let his children stand in his place against gods like these.
"Father, we'll hold them back!" Jozu yelled, his eyes fierce. Even if it cost his life, he would stop one of the Sage Lords.
The clash came again—halberd against tusk. Black-red lightning exploded outward, tearing up the deck, flinging men into the sea.
"Rumble!"
From Whitebeard's blade burst a blinding white shockwave. It slammed into the boar, detonating the beast's face and tusks in a spray of bloodless gore.
The boar squealed, its flesh splattering across the deck like molten wax. But there was no blood—only white, claylike tissue that began to knit itself together in seconds.
Whitebeard's brow furrowed. This wasn't regeneration. It was… reconstruction. Artificial.
Both Topman's boar form and Masu's monstrous bird healed the same way—no blood, no cells, just matter reshaping itself. Some other power was at work here.
He exhaled heavily. Their stamina was limitless. His was not. He could not outlast them.
He realized, in that grim moment, he probably wouldn't survive the day.
But he could buy time for his sons to escape.
Beyond the G18 fortress, dozens of ships surged toward the battlefield—forty allied pirate crews flying the Whitebeard banner. Drawn by the live broadcast, they had come charging to their father's side.
Their arrival sent panic through the navy lines. The admirals had no choice now but to abandon pursuit of Kaido's forces and prepare full defense against Whitebeard's armada.
On the scarlet dragon flagship, Shanks's lieutenants disengaged from the Arlong Legion. They turned back to aid their leader, the Red Fang himself, retreating from the chaos.
Far above, the Beast Horde's generals—Calamity Jhin and Drought Jack—saw the Red Fang trying to swarm their leader and immediately dove in, reigniting the war between Kaido's horde and Shanks's clan.
From the flying fortress, Rain Xiru and the thunder god Enel watched the widening conflict, eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Shouldn't we go get Barrett?" the Tyrant King sneered when he noticed they hadn't moved.
"That fool doesn't need rescuing," Enel snorted. Barrett's arrogance exceeded even his own; he'd rather die than accept help.
"Looks like the Great Mother's staying out of it," purred Catarina Devon, licking her lips. "Why don't we team up with her clan and crush what's left of the navy?"
The idea hung in the air like smoke. The Sages were untouchable, Kaido and Shanks were berserk, and the Marines… well, they looked like the only easy prey left.
Xiru's gaze flicked toward the naval ships where Bogart and Commander Gion stood ready—two swordsmen worth killing.
He grinned. "I'll ask her. This war's far from over."
Enel's eyes sparked with manic light. "Fine. And if it gets ugly—help Whitebeard stall them until the real boss arrives."
In a burst of lightning, he vanished toward the Great Mother's fleet, already plotting.
In his mind, the plan was simple. Wipe out the navy's flagship fleet, then turn on the Sage Lords. When the Dragon of Destruction arrived, they would finish them all—Whitebeard, Shanks, and the Five Sages alike.
No survivors.