The blade thrust toward Whitebeard's chest.
Originally, the strike was meant to leave a sliver of life intact, ensuring that Law—who was standing by—could extract the Gura Gura no Mi at any moment.
But the sudden arrival of the Blackbeard Pirates made Maude change his mind in an instant.
The Gura Gura no Mi no longer mattered.
What he needed was Whitebeard's experience points.
That was the primary reason he had fought so hard to insert himself into the Paramount War.
And so—
This momentary shift in decision led Maude to drive his blade straight through the last thread of Whitebeard's life.
"..."
Whitebeard lowered his head, looking at Maude—who had willingly taken several gunshots just to ensure this fatal strike.
As his life began its final countdown, he could vaguely sense an unusual sense of purpose emanating from Maude.
It wasn't just about seizing the fame Whitebeard had built over a lifetime at sea…
There was something more—some unknown goal hidden beneath the surface.
"My time… ends here…"
With great difficulty, Whitebeard raised his head, casting one last distant glance at Teach—the true instigator of everything that had unfolded.
If not for the fact that his life was slipping away, he would have slain Teach without hesitation.
But it was too late.
Whitebeard then turned his gaze toward the chaotic battlefield, his eyelids growing heavier.
Darkness slowly encroached upon his vision.
At the very end—
The smoke, the flashing blades, the billowing gunpowder—all of it faded away.
All that remained in his sight were the figures of his sons.
The darkness that was creeping in suddenly stopped.
"Hear me, Whitebeard Pirates…!"
Whitebeard looked at his crew, his voice surging forth as if illuminated by one final burst of life force. Even with a blade piercing his heart, he still found the strength to speak.
Maude's eyes flickered with surprise. He instinctively moved to twist his wrist, intending to end Whitebeard's life completely—
But upon seeing the old man summon the last remnants of his strength, struggling to finish his words, Maude hesitated.
He granted Whitebeard the chance to speak his final words.
"This is my last order as captain… You must… return alive to the New World!!!"
With the last ounce of his strength, Whitebeard's voice thundered across all of Marineford.
As the final syllable faded into the sea breeze, his eyelids drooped.
The darkness that had momentarily paused now resumed its relentless invasion.
Until all that remained was a thin sliver of light—
And in that last sliver, he saw Maude standing before him.
Whitebeard had noticed Maude's deliberate hesitation just now.
What a strange little brat…
With that final thought, Whitebeard's eyes closed.
No hatred. No anger. Only the calm acceptance of death.
With the last flicker of his life extinguished—
An immense, immeasurable reward surged into Maude like a raging river, flooding his entire being.
The pain from his wounds instantly vanished.
Though he had expected a substantial reward, the sheer magnitude of it still filled him with exhilaration.
At the same time, the countdown for the remaining duration of Shadow's Asgard entered single digits.
...
On the battlefield.
Hearing Whitebeard's final order, the captains and crew of the Whitebeard Pirates stood frozen in shock.
"The final order!?"
"Pops… Pops!!!"
"This can't be real!!!"
They stared at Whitebeard's lifeless body, their faces filled with disbelief.
Such an emotional reaction in the midst of battle was fatal.
And the Marines had no intention of showing mercy. Seizing the pirates' moment of distraction, they ruthlessly struck down many of them in mere seconds.
Had the Warlords not been focused on Whitebeard's death, the captains engaged with them might have been annihilated on the spot.
"I never thought… he actually pulled it off."
Doflamingo's usual grin faded as he coldly observed Maude's severely wounded body. Behind his tinted lenses, a flicker of killing intent surfaced.
"With those injuries, he's as good as dead on this battlefield."
Doflamingo's killing intent surged.
Now that Maude had claimed Whitebeard's head, his desire to eliminate him was stronger than ever.
And right now, there was no better opportunity.
"You're dead, fufufu…"
All the political considerations and restraints that had held him back before no longer mattered.
...
"Dead, huh… Whitebeard…"
Mihawk turned his gaze toward Whitebeard's towering, unmoving corpse.
Then his eyes shifted to Maude.
A flicker of battle spirit arose.
However—
Seeing the wounds riddling Maude's body, Mihawk's thoughts aligned with Doflamingo's.
Claiming Whitebeard's head at such a cost might secure him a place in history, but it had also sent him straight into the jaws of death.
"To go this far for fame… men truly are fascinating creatures."
Boa Hancock, expressionless, looked at Maude as if she were staring at a dead man.
The Warlords naturally ceased fighting.
As the self-proclaimed spectators of the war, they had no qualms about conserving their strength.
...
"Whitebeard was slain by the Warlord Maude…!!!"
"The world's strongest man… is truly dead…"
Even some Marines standing nearby were left shaken by the sight of Maude cutting Whitebeard down.
...
Near the execution platform.
"…Pops…"
Ace stood frozen.
His heart felt as though it had stopped beating, leaving him gasping for breath.
"Ace?"
In this critical moment of escape, both Sabo and Luffy looked at him with concern.
...
On the high platform at the Marine Headquarters' front.
The Blackbeard Pirates stood tall.
Just as in the original timeline—
Teach, having set his sights on Impel Down, had recruited a crew of notorious criminals from the world's most hellish prison, including the former warden, Shiryu of the Rain.
Despite their grand entrance, Whitebeard's death had completely overshadowed their arrival.
"Oi, oi… My dear old Pops was taken down just like that?"
Teach looked on in surprise at Maude, who had risked taking multiple gunshots just to ensure Whitebeard's demise.
And those weren't just any bullets—they were Armament Haki-infused shots.
Though Maude had avoided fatal wounds, four bullets had pierced his left hand, right hand, left leg, and waist.
Such grievous injuries meant there was no escape for him now.
Teach simply couldn't understand Maude's actions.
Based on what he knew of Maude, even if he sought the glory of slaying the world's strongest man, he wouldn't have done something so reckless and foolish.
But the reality was right before him.
Not that it mattered.
"Let's finish him off first."
Blackbeard glanced sideways at Van Augur, who stood nearby, wearing a black hat, an eyepatch over his right eye, and a dark cloak.
Whitebeard was dead.
He had to seize the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit before the Devil's power residing in Whitebeard's body dissipated.
Fortunately, Whitebeard had an exceptionally strong affinity with the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
Even though he had breathed his last, the Devil Fruit's power wouldn't immediately leave his corpse. It would take some time.
Time wasn't exactly abundant, but Blackbeard was confident he could pull it off.
Upon hearing Blackbeard's command, Van Augur calmly loaded his beloved rifle with ammunition and once again took aim.
Without the need for precise sighting, he fired three consecutive shots at Maude, whom he had already deemed a dead man.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three Haki-infused lead bullets sliced through the smoke, heading straight for Maude's vital points.
"Room!"
At that moment, a massive, semi-spherical space materialized, instantly enveloping half of the plaza near the bay.
Trafalgar Law had finally made his move.
"Shambles."
Law raised his index and middle fingers, swapping a nearby stone with Maude's position.
Swish—!
In an instant, the gravely injured Maude teleported to Law's side.
The three bullets hit nothing but air, crashing into the ground and leaving three deep craters.
The sudden appearance of the spherical domain left most people stunned, but Doflamingo's face immediately darkened.
"Law!"
The name was spat through gritted teeth.
At this very moment, on the battlefield of Marineford—
The three most coveted individuals in the eyes of the World Government had converged in the chaos, all influenced by the ripple effects of Maude's actions.
The person possessing the most desired ability—the Op-Op Fruit wielder, Trafalgar Law.
The one they most wanted to eliminate—the inheritor of the Pirate King's bloodline, Fire Fist Ace.
And the one they feared most—Nico Robin, the woman capable of deciphering the ancient texts.
Three individuals, each carrying profound significance in the tides of history, had been drawn together by fate into this battlefield that would shape the new era.
"What a waste."
Maude opened his eyes and looked at Law.
His words referred to Law expending his energy—perhaps even shortening his own lifespan—to expand his Op-Op Fruit's operational range just to save him.
Law, who understood Maude well enough, instantly grasped his meaning.
His expression twitched slightly as he glanced at Maude's grievous injuries.
"You're too badly wounded. If you took even two more shots, not even I could save you."
The implication was clear—without wasting his strength, Maude would have died right then and there.
"It certainly looks like I've suffered some 'serious' injuries."
Despite his dire condition, Maude merely chuckled, then added seriously, "So much so that they must think I'm about to die here. Look—even that flamingo isn't bothering to hide his killing intent anymore."
"..."
Law followed Maude's gaze toward Doflamingo, who was standing two to three hundred meters away. A murderous glint flickered in Law's eyes.
"Maude, am I too late?"
"Strictly speaking, it's not that you were late—it's that the Blackbeard Pirates arrived too early."
Maude glanced at Whitebeard's corpse.
With the Op-Op Fruit's abilities, extracting a Devil Fruit from a living target required that they remain alive for the procedure.
In other words, Whitebeard's 'inheritance' had been secured, but the Tremor-Tremor Fruit had been lost.
Maude's regret stemmed from missing out on acquiring the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
Law, on the other hand, regretted Maude's critical injuries.
With a sigh, Law suppressed his killing intent toward Doflamingo and solemnly said, "Maude, let me treat your injuries first. After that... we should focus on getting out of here."
He knew full well that Maude was in no condition to fight, nor could he provide any meaningful assistance in battle.
In other words—
Now wasn't the right time to kill Doflamingo. The priority was making a safe retreat.
Maude chuckled at Law's pragmatic decision and asked, "Do I look like someone who's critically injured?"
Law frowned at the question and replied, "Aren't you...? Wait—!"
His eyes widened in shock as he stared at Maude's wounds.
The gaping, bowl-sized bullet wounds that had pierced through Maude's body had already healed completely, as if they had never been there.
"Your injuries…"
Law was dumbfounded.
But he quickly realized this was likely the result of a Devil Fruit power.
His eyes widened further, staring at Maude with disbelief.
"Is this the power of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit? How did you do it?"
"Nothing too complicated. I just patched up my shadow."
A faint smirk played at the corners of Maude's lips as his skin tone and body size gradually returned to normal.
Law was stunned. "By repairing your shadow… you instantly heal your injuries? The Shadow-Shadow Fruit can be used like this?!"
Such a broken ability made him question his own Devil Fruit's worth.
Maybe the true 5-billion-beri fruit wasn't the Op-Op Fruit, but rather the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.
Maude said nothing more.
His injuries weren't just healed—his stamina and Haki had also been fully restored.
But that wasn't due to the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.
It was thanks to the Hunter's Notebook.
With Whitebeard and the five hundred prisoner shadows as his spoils, his injuries had been instantly restored.
That was why he had dared to take those gunshots in order to claim Whitebeard's experience points.
He wouldn't reveal the existence of the Hunter's Notebook to Law, so he simply let the Shadow-Shadow Fruit take the credit.
Yet, by doing so, he had unintentionally made Law start questioning reality.
"Shadow's Asgard is powerful, but its conditions and restrictions are too severe..."
Maude mused as he examined his restored body.
With Whitebeard's energy supporting him, he hadn't needed to absorb all the prisoners' shadows to recover fully.
However, due to the one-time-use nature of Shadow's Asgard, those shadows couldn't be utilized again.
So, he had decided to claim them all.
Considering the ability's time limit, its restrictions likely stemmed from an increasing repulsion between his soul and the foreign shadows over time.
Perhaps that was why Moria had focused on building a zombie army instead of solely relying on Shadow's Asgard.
Otherwise, if the technique had no drawbacks, Moria could have simply collected high-quality shadows and, with a single unrestricted use of Shadow's Asgard, become a Yonko himself.
Even with its limitations, Maude still regarded it as an immensely powerful ability.
At the very least, it had served him well today.
"Law, it's time to fulfill my promise to you."
Maude strode toward the battlefield, locking eyes with Doflamingo.
Law took a deep breath, suppressing his turmoil over Maude's abilities, and followed closely behind.
He had waited far too long for this day.
Once again, countless eyes turned toward Maude.
Doflamingo, mid-stride, came to an abrupt halt.
"His injuries... are gone?!"
"Oi, oi... you've got to be kidding me."
The Blackbeard Pirates, who had just reached the battlefield's edge, stared at the unscathed Maude in shock.
"Is this also the power of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit?!"
Even those who had assumed Maude was doomed were left speechless.
Among the countless gazes, one belonged to the airborne Golden Lion.
"Whitebeard... you actually fell to a brat this young?"
"Seeing this so-called 'inevitable replacement' play out... pisses me off!"
His eyes darkened.
Before the entire world, Maude had defeated Whitebeard.
This was a declaration—the old era had ended!
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