"You have attacked Sengoku, wielder of the Mythical Zoan Human-Human Fruit, Model: Great Buddha. The system is copying his Devil Fruit. Host, please hold out for one minute."
"You have attacked Tsuru, wielder of the Wash-Wash Fruit. The system is copying her Devil Fruit. Host, please hold out for one minute."
"You have attacked Smoker, wielder of the Smoke-Smoke Fruit. The system is copying his Devil Fruit. Host, please hold out for one minute."
"You have attacked Tashigi… correction, Tina, wielder of the Cage-Cage Fruit. The system is copying her Devil Fruit. Host, please hold out for one minute."
The string of system notifications didn't stir Jiang Lin in the slightest. His gaze remained fixed on Sengoku atop the execution platform.
"Sengoku, what's wrong with you?"
Garp smashed apart a magma fist flying toward the platform, then turned with concern to his longtime comrade. As Sengoku's old friend, he immediately noticed something was off.
Ever since swatting away one of Jiang Lin's blazing fists, Sengoku had frozen in place, his expression twisted with unease, like a man caught in an unsolvable dilemma.
After a tense silence, Sengoku suddenly raised his left hand, his eyes sharp. Without hesitation, he severed his own right arm—the limb that had been "infected."
Clang!
A heavy, golden hand thudded against the platform's boards.
"Sengoku, what are you doing?! Why would you maim yourself?"
Garp shot to his feet in shock, but Sengoku barked back through gritted teeth, clutching the bleeding stump with his remaining hand.
"Stay back!"
Sweat streamed down his brow. His voice wavered unnaturally—sharp, shrill, almost feminine.
"What's happening to you? Your body… It's changing! And your voice—it's… way too high…"
Garp's eyes widened in horror as he stared at his friend's grotesque transformation.
"We've been tricked! All forces, heed my command—do not touch the magma fists released by D. Jiang Lin! They are laced with poison and female hormones!"
"All forces, target and capture Emporio Ivankov immediately!"
"Akainu, Aokiji, Kizaru—move out together! Bring me Jiang Lin… alive!"
The order, shrill and furious, came through the Den Den Mushi, Sengoku's voice unmistakable yet twisted with a feminine pitch. The contradiction sent chaos rippling through Marine ranks.
"That's… the Fleet Admiral's voice?"
"I… I don't even know… and I sure as hell don't dare ask…"
Though Sengoku's command chain was intact, the jarring change in his tone left countless Marines frozen in bewilderment, caught between obedience and disbelief.
"What are you waiting for?! Capture Ivankov at once!"
Akainu's furious growl over the line snapped the troops back into motion.
"Horrifying! Truly horrifying! Good thing I didn't try to block that brat's fists directly…"
Kizaru muttered with feigned dread, his lips curled in sly amusement, more mocking than afraid.
"We should move now. Otherwise, if the Fleet Admiral loses his temper, I won't be able to shield you."
Aokiji's eyes burned with battle intent. His clash with Jiang Lin had been cut short thanks to Squard's betrayal; now that another chance had come, he refused to waste it.
"Tch. What an irritating brat…"
Akainu's eyes narrowed, locking onto Jiang Lin, who stood unflinching amid a sea of magma fists. Annoyance and killing intent seethed in his gaze.
"Oh dear, oh dear… that little brat is terrifying. I can't beat him at all, you know~."
Kizaru whined in mock defeat, making no move to put himself on the front line.
"Leave that brat to me and Kuzan. You, Borsalino—go after Ivankov. Sengoku wouldn't single him out unless he'd already fallen into Jiang Lin's trap."
Akainu's words were cold, decisive. He turned to Kizaru, assigning him the task.
"Understood. Then I'll just—"
Before finishing, Kizaru vanished, streaking toward Ivankov.
On the pirates' side, Ivankov shielded Luffy from the rain of molten fists crashing down from the heavens.
"Ohhh my…! That scared me half to death!" Ivankov exclaimed, cowering into a ball the instant he heard the Marines had marked him as a capture target.
"Just kidding… HEE-HAW!"
He sprang up with exaggerated flair, arms wide, laughing theatrically.
"Faster! Faster! Scale the giant's body and capture Ivankov!"
Marines poured into the bay, rifles raised, forcing their way forward despite the burning storm from above.
"That's…"
The pirates within the bay stared in shock. Among the wave of reinforcements, all Marine Vice Admirals had joined the fray—along with the three Admirals themselves, abandoning the plaza to storm the bay.
"Aokiji, Akainu, Kizaru—the three Admirals are all here!"
Panicked cries erupted across the bay as the overwhelming reality settled in.
"So… all three, huh?"
Jiang Lin's gaze flicked to Kizaru, who had already streaked past in pursuit of Ivankov. His breath grew heavier, his eyes narrowing with intensity.
To face two Admirals at once—a burden only the Four Emperors of the New World had ever borne.
Though Jiang Lin's strength was still far from that level, the chance to cross blades with two Marine Admirals would forge his growth beyond measure.
"Come then! Show me… where my limits truly lie!"
His eyes burned scarlet with battle lust, his chest heaving with exhilaration.
"Interesting…"
Whitebeard's cold stare lingered on the battlefield below. Since his initial strike on the platform, he had held back—but now, with the Admirals in motion, even his fighting spirit stirred.
"Jiang Lin! You truly are unforgivable!"
Sengoku stood tall atop the execution platform, chest thrust forward, the cloak of Justice billowing behind him. His gaze no longer lingered on Whitebeard; it was Jiang Lin and Ivankov alone that consumed his wrath.
"Bwahahaha!"
Garp's booming laughter echoed beside him. Sitting cross-legged on the platform, he slapped his thigh with his free hand, the sound sharp and resounding.
"Brat! You've got some nerve!"
As Garp's hearty laughter rolled across the battlefield, what should have been a blood-soaked clash of steel and death began to twist with a strange, unplaceable tension.