"I'll say this one last time..."
Rayleigh pushed up his slipping glasses, his gaze sweeping over the encirclement formed by the Marines.
"The purpose behind Uchiha Griffin joining the Marines is absolutely beyond your imagination."
"A man filled with violence and indifference, forcing himself to put on a righteous front..."
"He's a true monster. If we don't stop him, the justice of the Marines will eventually be devoured by him!"
The seagull flag flapped loudly in the wind.
Akainu tilted his head and sneered, "Your speech is terrible, and it doesn't make for a good last word either."
He moved,
Whoosh!!
The violent, scorching magma forced everyone to scatter as Rayleigh raised his sword.
Each of his strikes was incredibly precise and concise. Although he blocked every punch, splattering magma droplets landed on his shoulders, burning several holes in his faded cloak.
Swish—
Seizing an opportunity, Rayleigh sliced off Akainu's epaulette with his sword: "Sakazuki, you're still just as stubborn as you were back then."
"It's because of this that you can't see—"
...
"Dark Hound!!"
His answer was a roar of magma.
He lacked even the interest to refute a pirate's lecture.
Faced with such a ferocious attack, Rayleigh dared not be careless, swiftly gathering Conqueror's Haki into his blade.
"Beyond Blade!!"
As he swung, the air pressure in front of Rayleigh abruptly changed, the air itself forced back.
This was a vacuum slash!
Instantly evacuating the air along its path to form an absolute vacuum zone!
For this technique, the world also called it the Gate of Hell!
...
Boom!!
The colossal magma hound clashed with the vacuum sword Qi, distorting the atmosphere.
While a vacuum inherently isolates flames from burning, the magma fist wrapped in top-tier Armament Haki possessed destructive power beyond the rules!
The two forces erupted at the center point, shockwaves violently expanding outward.
...
"Stay away from Admiral Sakazuki's battle! This isn't a fight we can intervene in!!"
The outer layer of the encirclement consisted of elite Marines, with Rear Admirals and Commodores positioned further inward.
Onigumo and other elite Vice Admirals formed the innermost ring of the encirclement. The remnants of the Roger Pirates tried several times to break free but were forced back each time.
...
As the only Pirate Crew to have completed the Grand Line, the strength of the Roger Pirates could not be overestimated.
But aside from Rayleigh and Gaban, the other members' strength at most rivaled that of Vice Admirals now, and that was only for the combatants.
As for non-combatants like the ship's doctor, Rayleigh didn't even bother disturbing them.
Age was one factor, and besides...
Even at their peak, they weren't particularly strong.
Crews like the Red Hair Pirates, where every member possessed considerable strength, were the rare exception.
...
Rayleigh and Gaban's strength was undoubtedly top-tier, capable of matching Admirals.
But here, there were openly five Admiral-level combatants, along with numerous Vice Admirals proficient in Two-Colored Haki...
Not to mention nearly a hundred large warships and tens of thousands of elite Marines.
There was no chance of victory.
Anyone could see the overwhelming disparity between the two sides.
...
—
"This is the Marines' extermination of the old era."
A one-eyed pirate sighed softly. "A pirate who knows the location of One Piece, could it be..."
The pirates who had initially come just to watch the spectacle now felt a profound sense of sorrow.
Within the airtight encirclement, the Roger Pirates, who had once turned the world upside down, were like turtles in a jar, with nowhere to escape.
...
For the fall of a legendary pirate crew, wouldn't it be too anticlimactic?
——
Swish—
A flash of axe light, and Kizaru's body was severed in two.
Gaban, gripping his axe, grinned. "You transformed into your element in advance... Your Observation Haki can see quite far!"
Fingertips flickering with bright yellow light points, Kizaru let out two strange cries. "So scary, I almost got chopped to death by you!"
"Old man, wouldn't it be better not to use such a vicious weapon?"
Whoosh—
A beam of light struck the giant axe, only to be deflected by the jet-black Armament Haki coating it.
Boom!!
The tiny, scattered points of light fell onto the icy path, instantly blowing apart the ice bridge. The terrifying shockwave caused the nearby warships to rock violently.
...
A deputy base commander from the South Sea Branch clung to the warship's railing, struggling not to be blown away.
Watching the central battlefield, cold sweat poured down his back.
Is this the power of a Marine Admiral...?
Forget participating... even just spectating is fraught with danger!!
...
...
After watching for a while, Sengoku spoke to Kuzan beside him. "There's no major issue here anymore. You go to Griffin's side."
"If Shanks gets away, it would be an unfortunate flaw in an otherwise perfect operation."
...
"Uh..." Kuzan habitually paused. "But Griffin said he doesn't need help."
"Just because he says he doesn't need it, you listen? As an Admiral, do you really have to follow his orders?!"
Sengoku acted like a boss looking for fault, but...
He realized something was off.
A key figure was missing—Beckman!
Beckman's strength was not inferior to Shanks's, which was precisely why the Marines had specifically imprisoned both of them in Impel Down, while it was fine to keep the others at Headquarters.
...
Beckman, who had not appeared for so long, might already be lying in wait near Griffin.
Having lost the frontal battle, Sengoku guessed he must be planning to strike from the shadows and ambush Griffin.
If that were really the case...
Things would be dire for Griffin!
...
Shanks's strength was a bit stronger than anticipated, but the problem was that Jailer Beast...
No!!
Sengoku suddenly remembered something. That thing matched the description of a Devil Fruit he had once seen perfectly!
Animal Series - Mythical Zoan Type - Dog Dog Fruit - Hellhound!
That mode of manifestation...
It was Shanks's sword that had eaten the Devil Fruit!
The research on having weapons consume Zoan-type fruits... he had only received a report on it recently...
When did he get involved with Vegapunk?!
He's been in Impel Down these past two months...
...
The more he thought, the darker Sengoku's expression became.
Shanks's identity was no secret among a few of the old-timers—the son of a Celestial Dragon whom Roger picked up at God Valley.
He had even entered the Holy Land and operated under the identity of a God's Knights Order From Blade, though he withdrew not long after.
That's why the Five Elders had expressed no opinion on the matter of executing Shanks.
A betrayer of the gods deserved no pity.
Thinking further... the more he thought, the more something felt wrong.
Sengoku had heard from the Giant King Harald that Shanks had an identical twin brother.
...
Thoughts rapidly collided, a golden light emanating from his forehead.
As a Mythical Zoan Type - Buddha Form ability user, he possessed wisdom akin to that of a Buddha.
Sengoku's mind flashed back to Rayleigh's gaze when looking at "Shanks"—inexplicably strange, but definitely lacking the warmth one would show toward a former cabin boy from the same ship.
Could it be...
Sengoku's pupils contracted sharply as a flash of insight struck him.
Now that he thought about it, Griffin's expression had been off too!
Tsuru had mentioned to him that when she invited Griffin to see Shanks, he had shown clear disdain.
Looking down on the victor—though arrogant, what young man wasn't arrogant?
But when "Shanks" appeared, Griffin's eyes had been filled with fervor!
That kid wasn't good at disguising his intentions. During his infiltration of the Whitebeard Pirates, Sengoku had known that Whitebeard and the others had seen through it long ago.
Wait...
Whitebeard!!
Whitebeard also knew about the events at God Valley, knew that Shanks was that man's son. Perhaps he had learned they were a pair of twins!
If Harald had told me, he likely told Whitebeard too—their relationship was even closer!!
Then...
Did Whitebeard tell Griffin?!
...
Sengoku drew a sharp breath.
There was no direct evidence, but he was certain...
Griffin knew that person wasn't Shanks, but a Celestial Dragon from the God's Knights!
Deliberately splitting the battlefield, refusing help...
Griffin truly intended to kill that man!!
And Rayleigh too... Was that why he said what he did?
How audacious! That damn kid!!
...
——
Kuzan shrugged helplessly and stepped forward to offer support.
Sengoku quickly reached out to stop him. The situation was too complex, and he hadn't yet figured out what to do.
Just as he was about to call out to Kuzan...
Whoosh————!!
From one side of the battlefield, a massive underwater current shot straight into the sky, and a prison ship descended from above.
...
"Hahahahaha!!! You're still alive, Yasopp!!"
"I've come to save you all!!"
Everyone fell silent as they recognized the newcomer.
What was going on...
That was...
Shanks!!
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