The battlefield was engulfed in smoke and chaos.
The execution platform had fallen, leading to the dramatic scene where Fire Fist Ace was rescued by the Revolutionary Army and Straw Hat Luffy.
This moment was broadcasted to countless spectators through the Visual Transponder Snail.
"Fire Fist Ace... has been saved!!!"
"How could this happen...!?"
Citizens closely following the war were thrown into panic.
If Ace, the man carrying the evil bloodline of the Pirate King, were to escape...
That was an outcome they simply could not accept.
The same held true for the countless Marines guarding the world's central stronghold.
Before the collapsed execution platform—
"This is an utter disgrace... with me here, and yet this still happened!"
Sengoku, having reverted from his Great Buddha form back to his human state, watched helplessly as Fire Fist Ace was taken away. His expression darkened.
Being of the same generation as Garp, he could not maintain his Buddha form for extended periods.
The enemy had seized this very moment of vulnerability. In the brief seconds that Issho was preoccupied by Marco and the Revolutionary Army's West Army Commander, Morley, they had successfully rescued Fire Fist Ace.
However, the real reason for this failure was—
Sengoku quickly glanced at Garp, who lay on his back on the ground, his cheek swollen from a heavy punch.
Garp had been floored by a single strike from Straw Hat Luffy's severely fractured right arm...
Taking a deep breath, Sengoku swiftly calmed himself and turned his gaze back to Fire Fist Ace.
The enemy did not have the key to the Seastone cuffs.
As long as Ace remained shackled, there was still a chance to turn the tide.
Moreover, under the leadership of Aokiji and Gion, the wild beasts that Golden Lion had thrown into the plaza had been mostly cleared out.
"Executing Fire Fist Ace and Nico Robin on the spot is also an option. Stop them!"
Sengoku had no time to reprimand Garp for his intentional lapse. His thunderous command was transmitted across the battlefield through the Den Den Mushi.
Hearing Sengoku's order, the Marines who had finished dealing with the beast horde quickly returned to reinforce their positions.
Although the threat of the wild beasts was eliminated, the situation at the plaza remained grim.
Since the Marines stationed at the mid-battlefield were withdrawing to protect the execution platform, the morale-boosted pirates surged forward.
They no longer sought to break through the Marines' entire defensive line. Instead, they clustered together into a sharp, spearhead-like formation, aiming to carve out a path for Ace's escape.
The shifting movements of both the pirates and the Marines did not escape Sabo's sharp eyes.
"The pre-planned escape routes didn't include the plaza, but since our goals align, I'll let you all continue drawing their fire."
Lifting a hand to adjust his hat, Sabo watched the fiercely battling pirates with a faint smile.
As soon as he spoke, a flock of black crows appeared in the sky over Marineford's rear district.
This mission to rescue Ace was a personal undertaking by Sabo.
Since the rescue target was a pirate, even with his high standing in the Revolutionary Army, he could not mobilize their forces purely for personal reasons.
Initially, he had planned to rescue Ace alone.
However, Dragon had not turned a blind eye to his actions, assigning both West Army Commander Morley and North Army Commander Karasu to assist him.
The former, Morley, was someone Maude was familiar with, while the latter was Karasu—the very man who had now transformed into a flock of crows.
Being able to receive Morley and Karasu's help under Dragon's approval made Sabo quite pleased.
That said—
Sabo had actually wished for the assistance of East Army Commander Belo Betty, who possessed the Pump-Pump Fruit's ability to inspire and empower others.
But he was well aware that Betty was one of the Revolutionary Army's most crucial assets.
There was no way Dragon would risk sending her into a large-scale war that held no benefit for their cause.
Even so, with Morley digging underground escape routes, Karasu providing aerial transport, and his own Clear-Clear Fruit ability...
Even if they were encircled again, Sabo was confident he could get everyone out of Marineford safely.
The only problem was the Seastone cuffs on Ace.
His invisibility powers could not conceal Seastone...
"It's time to escape."
Sabo flashed a broad smile at Ace and Luffy.
Meanwhile—
The battle between Maude and Whitebeard raged on, undeterred by Ace's rescue.
In less than a minute, they had exchanged hundreds of blows.
The sheer force of their clash shattered the surrounding landscape.
Maude's current strength, speed, and Haki were on par with—or even superior to—Whitebeard's.
Even when Whitebeard wielded his Murakumogiri to unleash the devastating power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, Maude countered each attack with his Hakoku slashes.
If it came down to stamina and endurance, Maude—bolstered by five hundred shadows—was undoubtedly above Whitebeard.
His relentless, fast-paced assault was gradually pushing Whitebeard into exhaustion.
The fierce blade-work kept Whitebeard locked in combat.
Under these conditions, Maude resumed his prior tactics, using his shadow abilities to deal damage amidst their exchanges.
In just a few seconds—
Multiple fresh wounds appeared on Whitebeard's body.
As blood sprayed from Whitebeard's wounds once more, Maude knew victory was in his grasp.
"Whitebeard, I can see it clearly..."
With the duration of Shadow's Asgard running low, Maude continued pressing Whitebeard while stating confidently, "You're holding out so they can rescue Ace, intending to stay behind alone to cover their retreat."
"..."
Whitebeard remained silent, enduring Maude's relentless offensive.
Looking into Whitebeard's wordless expression, Maude's voice remained calm: "But I'm sorry to say, my 'time' is also running out."
Whitebeard's eyes suddenly sharpened, keenly perceiving Maude's next move in advance.
He tried to react instantly—but his body, already pushed to its limits, failed to keep up.
A mere fraction of a second's delay proved fatal in such a lightning-fast duel.
Maude's hands, gripping his sword, suddenly freed his left hand. In a flash, he drew Bailey, now transformed into a pristine white blade.
The perfect timing—right as Shusui and Murakumogiri clashed.
With his left hand firmly grasping the White Weasel blade, Maude refrained from using a named technique and simply delivered two swift slashes across Whitebeard's chest.
Whitebeard's body trembled, his pupils shrinking sharply.
In the next instant—
The Armament Haki-infused slashes caused a torrent of blood to gush from Whitebeard's chest.
The end had come…
For the era named Whitebeard.
Maude's eyes gleamed with fierce light.
Seizing the moment, he forcefully knocked aside Whitebeard's faltering Murakumogiri and drove Shusui straight for Whitebeard's heart.
Whitebeard looked down at the blade rushing toward his chest.
His body, having reached its limit, could no longer obey his will.
The breath of death rushed toward him.
Yet, in the face of death, his expression bore no fear or panic.
"Forgive me for being such a failure of a..."
Just as Whitebeard was prepared to meet his end, the piercing whistle of three lead bullets, each wrapped in Armament Haki, tore through the air, interrupting his thoughts.
The three bullets hurtled toward Maude's heart, right arm, and temple.
The timing was exceptionally vicious—striking at the very moment Maude was pouring all his strength into ending Whitebeard's life.
However, the shooter had misjudged one crucial detail.
Maude's blade appeared to be delivering the final blow to Whitebeard.
But in truth, in order to secure the Gura Gura no Mi (Tremor-Tremor Fruit), Maude's strike was not intended to kill Whitebeard outright. Instead, it was meant to sever his ability to resist.
Because of this, even when the unexpected bullets came at him, Maude still had enough leeway to shift from offense to defense.
In a split second, he twisted his body and tilted his head to evade.
In the end—
One bullet missed completely. The other two, however…
One struck Maude in the waist, punching a bloody hole clear through his abdomen.
The other pierced his right arm, leaving another gaping wound that spilled fresh blood.
"Zehahaha! I made a special trip here to see Pops one last time—how could I just let you take him out like that?"
At that moment, Blackbeard's signature laugh echoed from afar.
The sniper who had seized the perfect opportunity to fire those three shots at Maude was none other than Van Augur, the elite marksman of the Blackbeard Pirates.
"I timed my shots with absolute precision… and yet he still managed to avoid a fatal hit?"
Van Augur narrowed his eyes as he observed Maude in the distance, now gravely wounded in two places.
Though his shots had missed the vitals, to Van Augur, Maude was already as good as dead.
As the Blackbeard Pirates reveled in their belief that they had stopped Maude from killing Whitebeard—
Maude suddenly thrust his blade forward, piercing Whitebeard's heart.
In that instant—
Van Augur fired two more bullets. One struck Maude's left leg, the other his left hand.
But it was too late.
With that one final thrust, Maude had taken the last breath from Whitebeard.
"The Blackbeard Pirates…"
Though riddled with gunshot wounds, Maude's expression remained calm, utterly devoid of fear.
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