BOOM!
A rain of black specks, accompanied by a massive Marine warship, plummeted through the air and crashed into the harbor, sending towering plumes of water into the sky.
As for why there was open water in the middle of a frozen bay...
"Look! A warship fell right into the gap Jozu opened with that iceberg!"
The crowd's eyes shifted toward Diamond Jozu.
Having been fished out by Jinbe, Luffy slowly opened his eyes. That was the curse of a Fruit user; if no one was there to drag you out of the sea, it was game over.
"Ace..." Suddenly, Luffy scrambled to his feet, scanning his surroundings frantically. Finally, his eyes locked onto the execution platform ahead of the ship's prow.
"Ace!" Luffy threw his arms into the air, fists clenched as he roared at the top of his lungs: "A—C—E—!"
"Haha... finally... I finally see you..." From the moment he learned of the execution until now, only his absolute conviction had kept him standing. Even a man of iron would have broken under the strain. He had cheated death a dozen times, yet until this moment, he hadn't even caught a glimpse of Ace's back. Anyone else would have collapsed in despair, but Luffy was the kind of stubborn idiot who would risk everything for what he believed in.
"Luffy..." Ace was dazed. He never imagined Luffy would actually make it here. A war of this magnitude was no place for him. No matter how much potential he had, Luffy was still just a rookie; he didn't even know what Haki was. This was beyond reckless.
To Ace, Luffy was his last remaining brother. The guilt of failing to protect his other brothers in the past had left a deep scar on his soul. Seeing Luffy hurl himself into this global storm for his sake filled Ace with an agonizing mix of worry and self-loathing.
Inheriting the bloodline of the Pirate King, Ace had spent his life questioning the purpose of his birth—wondering if his very existence was a sin. The blood of the Devil must be severed. That was the answer he had found searching the world.
He wasn't satisfied with that answer, which led him to the Whitebeard Pirates. There, for the first time, he found a "home." But the meaning of his life remained elusive. No matter where he looked, the world couldn't give him an answer, because meaning is something one grants themselves; the opinions of others are just excuses people use to justify or condemn a life.
Seeing Garp—the man he called "Gramps"—weeping for him, and seeing his "crybaby" younger brother risking his life over and over to reach him... he hated himself. He felt like a failure. Shouldn't a man who never found a reason to live simply die in silence, unmourned?
Why? Why come for me? Why save someone like me...?
CRACK! A loud impact shattered Ace's train of thought.
"Crocodile!" Luffy shouted.
In a matter of seconds, the situation on the ice shifted. Luffy had blurred toward the Moby Dick, his body steaming with the heat of Gear Second.
"Straw Hat, now that we've reached Marineford, our alliance is over. My target is Whitebeard! Step aside." Crocodile looked at the dripping-wet Luffy, a flicker of realization in his eyes. The boy had already prepared to fight a sand-man.
Crocodile, a former Warlord and user of the Suna Suna no Mi, had one glaring weakness: water. It didn't just drain a Fruit user's energy; for him, it was a literal physical counter that allowed others to strike his intangible body without Haki.
"Not bad movement, Ace's brother," Marco, the First Division Commander, noted, relaxing his guard slightly.
Crocodile had launched a surprise attack on Whitebeard, catching the crew off guard, but Luffy had intercepted him.
"Sure, this old man is Whitebeard," Luffy said with total conviction. "But I won't let you touch him. Ace really likes this old guy."
"Don't let him near Pops!" Several Whitebeard pirates moved to block Crocodile's path.
Whitebeard, meanwhile, had fixed his gaze on the straw hat Luffy wore. He remembered a conversation he'd had with a certain red-haired man.
"Brat, that hat of yours... it looks a lot like the one Red-Hair used to wear."
"Oh! Shanks left this with me for safekeeping," Luffy said, touching the hat with a nostalgic smile. He looked up at the giant. "Old man, do you know Shanks?"
Looking at Luffy, Whitebeard recalled his meeting with Shanks. When he'd asked about the loss of the redhead's left arm, Shanks had replied: "I bet it on a New Era."
In that moment, Whitebeard realized that the "New Era" Shanks had gambled on was the boy standing before him. It made sense; there was no way a man of Shanks' caliber would lose an arm in the East Blue by accident. To a man like Whitebeard, it was clear: it was a deliberate sacrifice to forge the resolve of a future Pirate King.
"Are you here to save your brother?" Whitebeard glanced down at Luffy, his voice booming but calm. "You know where you are, brat? A shrimp like you will lose his life here!"
The entire battlefield fell into a sudden, eerie silence. Thousands of eyes turned toward the Moby Dick. The "Strongest Man in the World" was speaking, and everyone held their breath.
In the middle of the silence, Luffy threw his hand out and yelled, "Shut up! Who are you to decide that? I know the truth—you want to be the Pirate King too, don't you!?"
Hiss... Buggy, Ivankov, and the others nearly fainted from fright.
"I'm telling you right now—the one who's going to be the Pirate King is ME!" Luffy stood with his hands on his hips, glaring right back at Whitebeard.
The sheer audacity of the statement left the gathered legends and soldiers stunned in their tracks.
"Is he an idiot?" Buggy whispered in despair.
"He's actually... talking back to Whitebeard..." The escapees from Impel Down looked like their jaws were about to hit the ice.
Whirr—SLAM! Whitebeard spun his massive Bisento, Murakumogiri, in the air before slamming the butt of the weapon into the deck. The shockwave sent several nearby Marines and pirates tumbling over.
"Hmph..." A smirk slowly spread across Whitebeard's face. "You've got a hell of a nerve, brat. If you trip over your own feet and hold us back, I won't forgive you."
"Save your breath! I'm going to save Ace my own way," Luffy barked back, clearly annoyed.
After a beat, Luffy's tone turned serious. "Hey, old man, I've got some news for you. I'm only telling you this because we both want to save Ace."
The onlookers watched, eyes popping, as Luffy continued to speak to Whitebeard as an equal.
"How is he just... talking to him like that?" Buggy muttered, baffled.
"He truly is Dragon's son," Ivankov nodded in approval.
On the other side of the plaza, Sabo's expression softened. Seeing his most worrisome younger brother acting exactly like his old self brought him a profound sense of peace. He refocused his gaze on the execution platform.
Kenshin gripped his sword, bracing for the coming storm. His heart was far from calm, and the reason was obvious: Luffy.