"Everyone look! It's Fleet Admiral Sengoku's Devil Fruit ability!" a Marine exclaimed.
"What ability is this?"
"I don't know, this is my first time seeing it too."
Watching the figure that resembled a giant Buddha, the Marines' eyes filled with astonishment.
Though they didn't know exactly what this ability was... since the Fleet Admiral himself had taken action, there was absolutely no way the Straw Hat Boy could survive!
Thinking this, excitement reappeared in the Marines' eyes.
Whitebeard, staring intently at the giant Buddha, frowned and said, "Straw Hat Boy, whether we can save Ace depends on this moment!"
Don't let fear of Sengoku's presence stop you! Hurry up and unlock Ace's handcuffs!
"Straw Hat Boy!"
Sengoku, transformed into the giant Buddha, looked coldly at Luffy and declared, "Don't think you can escape from my grasp!"
As his words fell, Sengoku raised his enormous fist, intending to smash both of them with a single punch.
At that very moment, the two executioners on the execution platform suddenly twitched, then slowly began to rise.
"Hmm... What happened to me?" Mr. 3 said, looking utterly confused.
Wasn't he here to rescue someone? How did he suddenly lose consciousness?
"Three?!"
Seeing Mr. 3's familiar face, Luffy was instantly dumbfounded. Why was this guy here?
"Straw Hat Boy?!" Mr. 3 exclaimed in shock. "Why are you here?"
"Ah, I came to save Ace—" Luffy's words were cut short as he noticed the face of the other executioner.
"Little Bon?!"
"Straw Hat!" Bon Clay, having regained his senses, said, "You're here too?"
"Yeah, I came to save Ace. But why are you two here?" Luffy asked, puzzled.
"That's a long story," Bon Clay replied.
But as soon as he finished speaking, he noticed something was wrong.
"Huh?"
"Where is this golden light coming from?"
Turning his head to look at the colossal figure behind him, Bon Clay's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets in shock.
"Wh-What is this?!!"
Why was there an incredibly huge golden giant here?!
Sengoku: "..."
Witnessing this entire scene, Sengoku was rendered utterly speechless.
So the Straw Hat Boy managed to fight his way to the execution platform... and now it turns out the two executioners are pirates as well?
"Although I don't know what's going on, we finally have a chance to rescue him!" Bon Clay said, striking his signature fighting pose. "Little Straw Hat, Little Three, hurry and save him!"
As he spoke, Bon Clay swiftly leaped up, delivering a powerful kick directly at Sengoku.
"Clang!"
Bon Clay: "..."
Feeling the intense pain shooting through his shin, Bon Clay's face immediately changed.
"It's... this hard?!"
Clutching his leg as he lay on the ground, Bon Clay's eyes were filled with terror.
"Let me handle this."
Luffy handed the key to Mr. 3 and said, "Three, protect Little Bon and Ace. Find the right moment to unlock the handcuffs!"
"Understood!"
This time, Mr. 3 didn't waste words either. He immediately crouched down, activated his Devil Fruit ability, and created a protective candle barrier around the three of them.
Then, Mr. 3 picked up the key and began working on the Sea-stone Handcuffs.
Meanwhile, Luffy activated his own Devil Fruit ability.
"Gum-Gum Balloon!"
"Whoosh~"
Inhaling a massive amount of air, Luffy instantly inflated like a balloon!
"You think you can block me with this?" Sengoku roared. "Too naive!"
With those words, Sengoku threw a punch downward!
"BOOM!!"
The heavy blow directly shattered the execution platform beneath them!
"The execution platform collapsed!"
"Was the Straw Hat Boy defeated?!"
Watching the crumbling platform, a glimmer of anticipation appeared in the Marines' eyes.
On the pirates' side, tension was high. They didn't know if the Straw Hat Boy had been defeated, or if Ace had been successfully rescued!
"Open fire! Blast the Straw Hat Boy and the others to pieces!" a Navy Vice Admiral shouted.
"But Fleet Admiral Sengoku is still up there!"
"The Fleet Admiral won't be killed by mere cannonballs. Fire now!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Marines, having received their orders, stopped hesitating and immediately launched a barrage of cannon fire at the gradually falling debris of the execution platform!
"Whoosh~"
"Whoosh~"
"Whoosh~"
A hail of cannonballs flew towards the area, clearly aiming to blow Luffy to smithereens.
Just then, a burst of flame shot out from within the candle barrier, striking the incoming cannonballs head-on.
"Fire Fist!"
"BOOM!!"
A single punch detonated all the cannonballs mid-air!
Seeing this, the pirates erupted in triumphant roars.
"Great! Ace is free!"
"Well done, Straw Hat Boy!"
"Wooo!!"
"Buddha... Hmph~"
"He actually pulled it off," Doflamingo remarked.
He never expected this Straw Hat Boy to truly rescue someone right under the Navy Fleet Admiral's nose. Quite surprising!
"Hmph, it seems the kid wasn't just boasting," Crocodile said.
After speaking, the man glanced towards Whitebeard's direction, starting to contemplate when would be the best time to withdraw from this place.
"So he managed to rescue him in the end," Aokiji said with a frown.
Hearing this, Marco glanced at Aokiji and said, "It looks like we've won, Aokiji!"
"Don't celebrate too soon," Aokiji retorted, his eyes shifting to the four figures rushing downward. "You haven't escaped yet!"
As he spoke, Aokiji created two ice spears, intending to attack the distant Ace.
But the moment they formed, Marco shattered them.
"Clang!"
Kicking the ice spears apart, Marco stared intently at Aokiji and declared, "I won't let you lay a hand on them!"
With that, Marco launched another attack, engaging Aokiji in close combat to buy time for Ace and the others.
"Luffy, you always have to do things the reckless way," Ace said.
Hearing Ace's words, Luffy grinned widely, showing his teeth. "I told you, even if you scold me, I was coming to save you!"
"You idiot..." Ace chuckled helplessly. How could he possibly scold him?
This guy went through hell and back to save him!
Shaking his head, Ace turned his gaze to the battlefield ahead. "Luffy, you can still move, right?"
"Of course!"
"Good. Then come with me and fight our way back to everyone!"
"Wooo!!"
Letting out a roar, Luffy called out, "Three, Little Bon, follow us!"
"Coming!"
Mr. 3, who had been playing dead on the ground, immediately scrambled to his feet. Along with Bon Clay, he followed Luffy and Ace as they fled into the distance.
"Dammit! Even with me here, they still managed to escape," Sengoku said, his face dark with displeasure.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, what should we do?!"
"Pursue them!"
Sengoku looked at the retreating figures and commanded, "Don't let them get away!"
"Wooo!!"
The Marines, having received their orders, charged forward with furious cries, chasing after Luffy's group.
Sengoku himself turned his attention to Meiser's clone, which was watching him intently from not far away.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, is it?" Meiser grinned. "Can't let you go after Luffy and the others."
As he spoke, Meiser slammed both hands onto the ground, decisively activating his ninjutsu.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"
As the ninjutsu took effect, the ground of the Marineford plaza began to tremble slightly.
Then, enormous, sharp earthen spears erupted from beneath the surface, shooting straight towards the approaching Sengoku!!
Watching the closing earthen spears, Sengoku's eyes turned cold. "It seems I'm being looked down upon."
Then, he leaped into the air, aiming a palm strike directly at Meiser!
"BOOM!!"
An incredibly terrifying shockwave erupted from Sengoku's palm, utterly shattering the sharp earthen spears into rubble!
The shockwave continued unabated, rushing towards Meiser's clone!
Meiser: "???"
Watching the approaching shockwave, Meiser was momentarily stunned.
Wait, he wasn't using this much force when he attacked Luffy earlier. With that thought, Meiser's clone was struck by Sengoku's attack and vanished in a puff of white smoke.
"Hmph."
Seeing this, Sengoku snorted coldly, then promptly deactivated his Devil Fruit ability, reverting to his normal size.
"Whoosh~"
"Click"
After landing on the ground, Sengoku fixed his gaze on Luffy's retreating back, a complex expression flickering in his eyes.
But this look lasted only for a moment before Sengoku concealed it again.
After a brief silence, Sengoku shouted once more, "Don't let the Straw Hat and the others escape!"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
Hearing Sengoku's command, the Marines redoubled their efforts, charging even more fiercely towards Luffy's group.
"What a strange guy."
Meiser, having received all the memories from his clone, glanced back towards Sengoku's direction, a hint of confusion appearing in his eyes.
Just then, Borsalino spoke up: "You were the one who sent those two fake executioners over, weren't you?"
Hearing this, Meiser turned to look at Borsalino and raised an eyebrow. "Why do you say that?"
"Because you didn't attack those two this time, did you?" Borsalino said.
During the first attempted execution, this guy decisively used ninjutsu to attack, but this time he didn't—
This meant the kid knew exactly who those two executioners were from the very beginning!
"Just not sure when he managed to send them over," Borsalino mused to himself.
Was it when he fell from the sky into the water that time?
Thinking this, Borsalino narrowed his eyes.
After hearing Borsalino's words, Meiser nodded. "Pretty much."
Although he wasn't sure how Mr. 3 ended up there, Bon Clay was indeed the one he sent over.
"Quite a cunning little brat," Borsalino remarked.
"Hehe, thanks for the compliment~"
Looking at Meiser's smug grin, Borsalino's mouth twitched slightly. He wasn't actually complimenting the brat.
Shaking his head, Borsalino turned his attention to Luffy.
But before he could do anything, that pale golden spear stabbed into the ground right beside him.
"Clang!"
"I won't let you attack Luffy," Meiser stated.
As he spoke, Meiser's gaze gradually sharpened.
Now that the person had been rescued, the next step was to escape safely from this place!
And what he had to do... was prevent this Marine Admiral from pursuing Luffy and the others!
"Such a fearsome look," Borsalino said. "In that case, then—" Before he could finish, he sensed the ground trembling, as if something massive was charging towards them.
"Huh?"
Instinctively looking towards the source of the sound, Borsalino was momentarily taken aback.
"This is... a pirate ship?"
Observing the massive pirate ship charging from the side, propelled by external wheels on land, Borsalino remarked with surprise, "Moving on land using external wheels."
It was certainly feasible, but the question was, what was their purpose in doing this?
Could it be... they planned to ram them with the ship?
Thinking this, Borsalino fell into deep thought.
"Isn't that the guy who stabbed Whitebeard?" Meiser said, frowning as he stared at Squard standing at the ship's bow. "What is he trying to do?"
"Pops!"
"Everyone!"
"Get away from here now!" Squard roared. "Leave this battlefield to us!"
"Damn you, Squard! What are you trying to do?!"
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?!"
"Yes, that's exactly my plan," Squard said, closing his eyes. "After what I did to Pops, I have no face returning to the New World with you all."
"So... let me die here in battle to atone!!"
Even though the Blood-Eyed Ninja healed Pops' injury, the fact that he stabbed Pops couldn't be changed.
So... let him die here to redeem himself!
"These damn fools!"
Looking at Squard's resolute expression, veins bulged on Whitebeard's forehead.
Did he need this kid to do something like this?!
"Pops, hurry!" Squard yelled. "I'll hold off these Marines!!"
"Damn Marines, come at me!"
"I'll be your opponent!!"
Drawing the long sword from his waist, Squard's eyes burned with madness.
Just then, a terrifying force acted upon the pirate ship, forcibly bringing the enormous vessel to a complete halt!
"BOOM!!"
"Huh?"
Nearly thrown off the ship by the sudden stop, Squard's face changed. "What's going on? Why did the ship stop?"
"Hey... look over there!" a Marine exclaimed, staring in shock at Whitebeard's back. "Whitebeard stopped the ship with just one hand?!"
"What monstrous strength is this?!"
Is this the power of the World's Strongest Man?
Even severely injured, he could still unleash such immense power!
"What a terrifying man," Doflamingo laughed heartily.
Old and frail + severely injured, yet he could still unleash such fearsome power!
Then... if it were a young Whitebeard, could he have annihilated Marine Headquarters?
He was very curious.
"Squard!" Whitebeard looked up at Squard and bellowed, "You damn brat, are you trying to make this old man send a junior to his grave?!!"
"That stab of yours wasn't enough to kill me, so there's no need for you to do something like this!!"
After speaking, Whitebeard took a heavy breath, then turned and began to walk away.
Watching Whitebeard gradually depart, Squard's tears began to flow uncontrollably.
"Pops—"
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