The moment Sengoku said those words, not only Marineford, but every broadcast location—including the Sabaody Archipelago—fell into dead silence.
Just one man's name seemed to bring the entire world to a standstill.
On the Sabaody Archipelago, Rayleigh watched from a distance in silence.
Then he saw the reporters' expressions change rapidly, followed immediately by a great uproar.
And at that moment, Rayleigh, who had still been clinging to the last shred of hope, snuffed out those thoughts. Suppressing his agitation, he stood up.
He placed his hand on the hilt at his waist and spoke in a low voice to the companions behind him.
"Let's go. It's our turn to move."
"Yeah. No helping it. He's the captain's bloodline. We can't let it end in a place like this."
The ones who answered him were Roger's former crew!
More than twenty years had passed since Captain Roger turned himself in and was executed.
Because of that, not every former crewmate had gathered here.
In the time after the crew disbanded, some had married and had children, starting their own lives. Some had thrown themselves into their own work.
Some had also died early from illness, or perhaps fallen in unknown conflicts.
In the end, the only two people Rayleigh had managed to find and bring with him were: Crocus, who guarded Twin Cape, and Gaban, who had lived his whole life in a carefree manner.
Yes, Roger's old crew had been reduced to only three old cats. It was the inevitable result of what happened after the crew disbanded.
"Looks like these old bones of mine will be handed over to the Marines," Crocus sighed.
"I don't really mind."
Rayleigh smiled freely. "If either of you wants to leave, I won't force you."
"Ha. I don't have much longer to live anyway. Trading this life for a junior's isn't bad."
Crocus snorted, then looked toward the old man holding twin axes. "Gaban, I've made up my mind. You're still much younger than us."
"There was only one captain. And the captain only had one son. If my life can trade one for one, that isn't bad either."
Gaban said calmly, "Legends should be buried in the past. The future belongs to the young.
"If he lives, then it means we live too. The Roger Pirates live on."
"Hahahaha, same here, same here."
Rayleigh laughed, then took out a Den Den Mushi. A ripple stirred in his eyes. "I just don't know what his attitude will be.
"After all, he's also one of the young ones. He's different from old men like us."
Gaban and Crocus both fell silent. In the end, Crocus was the one who spoke.
"No matter what choice he makes, I'll support it. There aren't many young people from the crew left.
"Buggy is dead. Bullet has been locked in Impel Down for more than twenty years. The others haven't been very active either.
"He's the only one still moving around—and he's even become a Yonko. Maybe... he might become the next Pirate King."
"Pirate King Red-Haired Shanks. That doesn't sound bad either."
Gaban chuckled softly.
At that moment, a Buru Buru rang out.
Kacha.
Rayleigh answered the call, and a familiar voice came through.
"I'll arrive."
Far out at sea, Red-Hair hung up after saying that and looked toward his first mate beside him. "Turn around. We're going to Marine Headquarters."
"What about Kaido...?"
Beckman reminded him, "Wasn't our main objective this time to suppress any possible disturbance from Kaido?"
"Yes. Once Whitebeard moves, that guy Kaido will definitely seize the chance to act and take Whitebeard's territory.
"That isn't something I want to see. But... the captain's bloodline being severed is even less something I want to see."
Shanks's gaze fell on the Den Den Mushi equipment on the ship.
At Marineford, Sengoku's words were still being broadcast. He was declaring why this war was necessary.
"When we finally realized Roger's bloodline had not been severed, Whitebeard noticed it at the same time as us.
"In order to raise you into the next Pirate King, he did not even hesitate to take you—the son of a former enemy—onto his own ship!"
"That's wrong! I boarded that ship to make my old man the Pirate King!"
Ace refuted him at the top of his lungs.
"You were the only one who thought that! The fact is, the reason we could not casually make a move against you was because you were protected by Whitebeard!"
Sengoku's deep, powerful voice delivered the final conclusion.
"If we simply ignored you, then you would surely have displayed the qualities needed to stand at the pinnacle of the next era of pirates.
"That is why taking your head here today carries immense significance!
"Even if it means going to war with the Whitebeard Pirates, we will not hesitate—
"for the sake of the world's justice!"
When Sengoku's conclusion ended, the bay plaza froze for an instant.
Then cheers erupted, shaking heaven and earth.
"For justice!!"
The many doubts surrounding the public execution of Fire Fist Ace finally received a reasonable explanation in the eyes of the world at that very moment.
Why did they have to execute Ace, one of more than twenty division commanders? Why did they absolutely have to go to war with the Whitebeard Pirates?
The lower- and middle-ranking Marines had their doubts resolved as well.
At first, they had not understood why they had to wage war against the Whitebeard Pirates.
Because of that, they had been uneasy, questioning the decisions of the higher-ups, and suspecting that something was wrong. They had only suppressed those doubts and carried out orders because they had no authority to decide.
But now, they had been given a reason they had to fight to the death for.
Even if they died here, even if they became corpses alongside their comrades, as long as Ace was successfully executed, every sacrifice would have meaning!
'Maybe the roots of the Marines and the World Government are rotten, but these soldiers truly can be called people who fight for justice.
'People fear death, but after experiencing enough, they grow indifferent to life and death. What they truly care about is whether their deaths have meaning.
'All men die, but some deaths are weightier than the Everest, while others are lighter than a feather. As expected of the Resourceful General.
'With this move, Sengoku gave them meaning. At the very least, more than half of the Marines from here on will truly be unafraid of death.'
A ripple stirred in Ren's eyes, but he was not worried.
In order to completely cripple the Marines' ability to operate for the next few years through this war, the preparations he had made were not limited to Word Spirit: Don't Die!
Red-Hair had probably confirmed the situation on his end too. Not only because of Rayleigh's contact, but also because of the warning Ren had given him in advance.
In terms of relationship, they were still enemies, but Ren did not mind making use of him once.
'I wonder how the preparations over there are going. This is a three-front operation, after all.'
Ren shifted his attention to the third front—
Wano!
In the waters outside Wano, Kaido, transformed into an Azure Dragon, soared through the sky, looking down on the great fleet below.
His voice rolled like raging thunder.
"Brats! Are you ready? We're going to seize Whitebeard's territory! We'll bite off the biggest piece of meat before those bastards make their move!"
Having glimpsed an opportunity, Kaido acted without the slightest hesitation.
Although he loved battle, he was not a pure brute. Otherwise, he would never have been able to take Wano.
With the intelligence he had obtained, Kaido knew Marine Headquarters would definitely kill Ace, no matter the cost.
And as a former crewmate, he also understood that Whitebeard would never watch his son be executed.
That man's greatest pursuit was family!
In other words, the Marines would suffer heavy losses, Whitebeard would die, and the Whitebeard Pirates might either be wiped out completely or leave behind remnants.
For a Yonko power, the most important thing was the Yonko himself. Once Whitebeard, the core of the organization, died, everything he had would collapse with him.
That would inevitably draw countless forces to spy on and attack his holdings, with his territories being the first target!
Rather than wait until afterward to act, it was better to seize the chance now and start a war. In any case, Whitebeard would never walk out of Marine Headquarters alive.
"Wororororo! The war begins!"
The Azure Dragon led the great fleet away from the waters near Wano.
And above the sky, Perona, in her soul state, trembled as she had her Shikigami relay the news.
In distant waters, Violet, seated inside Sea Lion 007's glass cabin, also sent feedback at the right time.
'Among the Beasts Pirates' Three Disasters, King and Jack are not in Wano. More than seventy percent of the main forces have been confirmed to be participating in the operation to seize territory.
'The ones left behind are Queen the Plague, part of the main force, and affiliated troops. This matches the prerequisite Lord Ren mentioned.'
The electric signal was transmitted to an uninhabited island that had been moved here from elsewhere.
Kuma, who had been waiting on standby, slowly stood and looked toward the person who appeared in front of him.
He removed his glove and asked in a gentle voice, "If you were to take a trip, where would you like to go?"
"A collaboration like this really makes one emotional."
Dragon said with a smile as he removed the bandages from his body. "Wano, of course, Kuma."
"Then have a pleasant journey."
Kuma touched Dragon and packaged him off toward the location of Wano.
Next came a group of the Revolutionary Army's main forces. Karasu, Betty, and the other commanders were all here.
Lindbergh was the last one. Before being repelled away, his tone was extremely excited.
"Pluton, wait for me! I'm coming right away!"
The bomb-cat-like Lindbergh vanished, but Kuma's work was not yet over.
Thousands of new-generation angels were now looking at him, waiting for collective ultra-long-distance deployment.
The person leading them was Zoro, who had rarely come out for activity!
Yes.
This was the third front!
A joint operation composed of thousands from the Angel Legion, the Revolutionary Army's main force, and the officers of Ren's group, with the recovery of Pluton as the core objective!
'While Kaido is stealing Whitebeard's home—
'we steal Kaido's home!'
That was the strategic point Ren had set.
Of course, when stealing someone's home, timing mattered. You could not kick down the door and start looting the moment Kaido had just left.
The owner of the house would not have gone far yet. Doing that would just be courting death.
The best method was to wait until Kaido had traveled some distance, or even started a war.
Then they would quietly sever Wano's electric-wave network and begin a complete lights-out battle!
In fact, because of technical upgrades and the convenience of learning it, the new-generation angels heading to Wano basically all possessed the ability to cut off electric-wave communications, allowing them to drag the entirety of Wano into a state of signal silence.
As an aside, the scrolls in Cavendish and the others' hands were bound to a marked building that Kuma had sent over.
This would be a battle taking place simultaneously!
However, for Ren, who was far away at Marine Headquarters, it did not have much to do with him for the moment.
At this moment, he looked toward the sea ahead and raised his brows slightly.
A thin mist had appeared over the surface of the sea, and the silhouettes of countless ships emerged from within it.
One enormous vessel after another slowly revealed itself from the thin fog.
At the same time, the Marines also noticed the massive pirate fleet approaching from the front.
(End of Chapter)