At the same time Taro swept out with that strike, "Mihawk" Mihawk's pupils constricted slightly.
He could see that the slash Taro swung was very similar to his own sword techniques.
However, there were some differences; the power seemed more violent and appeared somewhat difficult to control, lacking the purity of his own slashes.
Seeing Taro looking at him with a face full of grief and indignation, Mihawk's brow furrowed. He thought to himself, 'You're the one who learned it wrong and can't control your power, so why are you blaming me?'
The hundred thousand Marines and tens of thousands of pirates on the plaza were all stunned. There had been too much drama today, and it was already hard to digest.
Now, another person with "King's Disposition" had emerged—Luffy, who had awakened his Conqueror's Haki.
And Taro had actually destroyed half of Marineford with a single basic attack. The power of one sword strike was such that his strength could be called Heaven-Defying!
The grief and indignation in Taro's heart were beyond measure. He withdrew his gaze from Mihawk and looked at Sengoku, saying timidly:
"Fleet Admiral, this... this was an accident!"
Sengoku was busy dealing with Dragon with all his might and had no time to pay attention to Taro. The power in his hands suddenly surged as he pressed down forcefully.
Faced with this power, Dragon did not intend to continue the stalemate. A gust of wild wind kicked up dust and sand, obscuring everyone's vision.
BOOM!
Sengoku's fist smashed down heavily, burying half of the Execution Platform deep into the ground.
However, in the next second, Dragon had already whisked Ace and Mr. 3 away, standing beside the Okama King, Ivankov.
How did he do it?
Taro was completely bewildered. When the dust and sand swirled up, his Observation Haki actually couldn't perceive Dragon's movements!
An air current lifted Ace and delivered him to Luffy's side.
"Ace... Ace!"
"Luffy, you bastard! You've been like this since we were kids—never listening to me and doing whatever you want!"
Luffy was ecstatic and hugged him happily; the two brothers were finally reunited.
When the Whitebeard Pirates saw that Ace was rescued, they also cheered in unison.
"My sons, open up a path for Ace's retreat! We're withdrawing and heading back to the New World!"
Whitebeard raised his arms and shouted.
"Tsuru, report to the World Government that Revolutionary Dragon has allied with Whitebeard. The situation is critical. Have the Commander-in-Chief immediately dispatch the Marijoa garrison for reinforcements!"
"Sakazuki, take down Whitebeard immediately. He won't be able to hold out much longer."
"Taro, you go and capture Ace!"
Sengoku issued a series of orders, finally looking at the grim-faced Garp with a particularly solemn tone.
"Garp, you should know what the consequences will be if we let them leave!"
Garp clenched his fists, pursed his lips, and spoke with a raspy voice, "I have been fighting pirates for decades. This time will be no exception!"
Sengoku's brow furrowed, and after staring at Garp for a moment longer, he turned to face all the Marines and shouted loudly:
"The success or failure of this mission concerns the dignity of Marineford. Failure is absolutely not permitted."
"All units, attack! We must not let them escape!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Marines responded in unison.
As the most hardline hawk in the Marines, Akainu had long been unable to restrain himself. Now that Ace was rescued, he was even more consumed by rage.
"Inugami Guren!"
His magma-transformed right arm turned into the shape of a red dog as he charged toward Whitebeard.
"Taro, what are you standing there for? Why haven't you acted yet?" Sengoku barked. He leaped up, extending his palm to strike at the Okama group where Dragon was.
Under his palm, a powerful shockwave sent the weaker fodder flying.
Dragon's figure flashed again, instantly moving forward dozens of meters. He threw a punch, meeting Sengoku's palm strike.
Instantly, the area where the two clashed was cleared by a powerful air current, providing them with a hundred-meter radius of empty space.
Taro felt helpless. Gritting his teeth, he also pursued. Tapping his feet lightly, he leaped into the air and kicked out a slash.
"Rankyaku: Katori!"
The bird-shaped slash rushed toward Ace at high speed.
"Enkai: Hibashira!"
"Gum-Gum Pistol!"
Luffy had already used the key Hancock gave him to open Ace's handcuffs. As Taro's attack arrived, the two counterattacked simultaneously.
Ace crouched down, circling his hands around his body. A spiral of scorching flames appeared and then shot into the sky, forming a pillar of fire that blocked Taro's attack.
At the same time, Luffy threw a punch at Taro in mid-air.
[Enkai: Hibashira successfully learned]
Taro tilted his body slightly in the air, dodging Luffy's attack. Then he grabbed Luffy's arm and yanked it down forcefully. Luffy was instantly lifted and then slammed heavily onto the ground.
"Slave Arrow!"
With a soft cry, an array of countless red energy arrows poured down.
The Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock, also stood in front of Taro.
With the System possessing him, Taro's mind was completely unaffected by this kind of mental attack. He casually brushed aside the rain of arrows.
However, the Marines who had followed Taro were a bunch of perverts. Under the rain of arrows, they were turned to stone one after another.
Taro: "..."
After landing, Ace, Luffy, and Hancock all looked at Taro warily.
Taro looked helpless. 'Damn it, I offered my heart to the moon, but the moon loves a dense guy.'
'What's there to like about that blockhead Luffy? Come to your big brother, let me take good care of you.'
Looking at the Empress in her purple cheongsam, her explosive figure fully on display, Taro—who aspired to be a harem king—was almost drooling.
Slurp
Taro swallowed his saliva and said softly:
"Hancock, be clear about your position. You are a Warlord of the Sea. Have you thought about how to explain this to the World Government afterward?"
The Empress looked at Taro and said coldly, "Do I need to explain anything to the World Government?"
As she spoke, she extended her right hand, pointing her index finger forward while leaning her head back in an extremely exaggerated pose.
"No matter what I do, I will be forgiven... because I am just too beautiful!"
Taro: "..."
The classic pose the Empress struck highlighted her chest, which was as vast as the ocean.
'Yes, yes, you have a big chest, you call the shots.'
Taro glanced at Luffy with eyes full of envy. 'You lucky kid, you've got quite the fortune with women.'
'With the body flexibility the Empress is showing, unlocking new knowledge would definitely be twice as effective!'
"Taro, Luffy is my brother. I advise you not to lay a hand on him!"
Taro was immersed in those pleasant images in his mind when a voice suddenly reached his ears, startling him awake.
Damn, you really don't learn, do you? One moment you're rescued, and the next you're acting arrogant again!
Having his fantasy broken and seeing Ace still so arrogant, Taro felt a surge of frustration at his lack of sense. He rolled his eyes at Ace and said angrily:
"You bastard, do you only remember the pain while it's happening? Did you forget how you felt on the Execution Platform so quickly?"
Taro's intention was to remind Ace: 'Brother, you need to get the hell out of here, why are you still wasting time with me!'
To his surprise, Ace became furious upon hearing this. "Taro, first you sneak-attacked Pops, and then you attacked Luffy. I won't forgive you!"
"Kyokaen!"
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the story has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 chapters in advance over on my Patreon: patreon.com/TLHimejima1
Every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and let me know.