"Gurarara, little brat, what's your name?"
The Four Emperors' Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, smiled, and a strange fluctuation flashed in his eyes.
What a day this was. To think he would meet two such interesting kids.
One of them was the Supernova, Straw Hat Luffy—recently infamous in the first half of the Grand Line, with a bounty of 300 million berries! This brat actually dared to declare in front of him that he wanted to become Pirate King. Even Ace hadn't been this reckless.
The other one shook the entire battlefield. Even Whitebeard—the strongest of the Four Emperors, a man who had weathered countless storms and once stood against Pirate King Roger—had to admit that this kid, who descended like the god of thunder, was qualified to stand in this war.
Whitebeard had never seen such a powerful young man. Even his most promising son, Fire Fist Ace, fell slightly short in comparison...
"Uncle Whitebeard, my name is Victor!" Facing Whitebeard, Victor stayed calmer than he thought he would.
Perhaps because he didn't sense any ill intent from him. Still, he had to keep steady—any sign of weakness and Whitebeard might crush him.
For now, Victor was forcing himself to recover the stamina he had burned through. His fight with Mihawk had taken a heavy toll.
Even with the power of the Thunder Fruit, he realized his body wasn't strong enough yet to handle continuous, high-intensity combat.
In other words, if Whitebeard hadn't interfered, Victor might have lost to Mihawk.
According to the system's realm reference, Victor—now wielding the power of the Thunder Fruit—had barely reached "king level," on par with the three Admirals.
But in actual combat, he was still a bit short. His fruit control was underdeveloped, and his physical endurance lagged far behind.
Even after pushing himself to the limit at Impel Down, his body had only just reached the platinum level.
"Gurarara, Victor? Never heard of you before. But that's fine. After today, your name will resound across the entire ocean!"
With Whitebeard at the center of this unprecedented war, every eye was on him. And through his booming voice, Victor's name instantly spread across the world.
So that was the name of the thunder god who appeared on the battlefield—Victor!
"Victor… is that really him? Where the hell did this troublemaker come from? Did he storm Impel Down early? Damn it, what a pain!"
On the execution platform, Fleet Admiral Sengoku furrowed his brow, his beard twitching with irritation. He could only pray Victor wasn't allied with Whitebeard. The last thing the Marines needed was more chaos.
Whitebeard looked back at Victor with a fatherly smile. A dangerous thought crossed Victor's mind—was Whitebeard about to adopt him?
Sure enough, the thing he feared came true. Whitebeard raised his hand, his overwhelming aura crashing down like a tidal wave.
"Victor, little devil… be my son. Use my name, and do whatever you want on this sea! Gurararara!"
Whitebeard's declaration shook the battlefield.
In the middle of a war against the Marines, he openly invited Victor to be his son—proof of just how much he valued him.
"Hahahaha! Whitebeard's losing it again!"
Vice Admiral Garp clutched his stomach, laughing so hard he teared up.
Beside him, Vice Admiral Tsuru cast him a sharp glance. "You're laughing? If that boy accepts Whitebeard, it'll be a disaster for the Marines. When did such a remarkable newcomer appear on the seas?"
But Victor wasn't flattered.
Sure, Whitebeard treated his "sons" well. Everyone knew that.
But Victor wasn't reborn into this world to play somebody's son.
Not even Whitebeard's.
By now, Victor had recovered some strength. He wasn't strong enough to face Whitebeard directly, but with the speed of the Thunder Fruit, he could at least keep his distance.
[Ding! Selection triggered!]
[Option 1: Accept Whitebeard's invitation and join the Whitebeard Pirates. Reward: A system-made Door-Door Fruit!]
[Option 2: Reject Whitebeard so fiercely it shocks the audience. Reward: Five Power Pills!]
[Option 3: Politely decline and join the fight to save Ace. Reward: Diamond-level Physique!]
The system's voice echoed in his head.
Victor nearly lost it. If he could, he'd drag the system out for tea and ask it why the hell it loved screwing with him like this.
Why not just give him the option he wanted straight away?!
Option one? Useless. He didn't want the fruit.
Option two? Who the hell thought it was smart to insult Whitebeard in the middle of Marineford?! And the reward was just some stupid pills?!
Option three… now that was tempting. A diamond-level physique was exactly what he needed right now.
Victor felt cornered—once again, the system was forcing his hand.
"Uncle Whitebeard, I appreciate the offer… but I already have Hancock, so I can't join your crew!"
"Huh?! Think carefully, brat. No one has ever rejected me before!"
Whitebeard's eyes widened, his Conqueror's Haki flooding the air. Even the massive Moby Dick groaned under the pressure.
"Rejection is rejection, Uncle Whitebeard! Surely you won't bother with a junior like me over this, right?!"
Whitebeard: "…"
Pirates and Marines alike: "!!!!"
Did Victor just counter-threaten Whitebeard, the strongest of the Four Emperors?!
"Husband… you're risking your life for me again!" Hancock's eyes welled with tears.
Seeing Victor refuse Whitebeard touched her deeply—this was true love!
The happiest man on the battlefield, however, was Sengoku. He finally exhaled in relief. The pressure Victor had brought into this war had been suffocating.
But his relief was short-lived.
"Uncle Whitebeard, let's make a deal. I'll help you rescue Fire Fist Ace… and you'll give me Murakumogiri. How about that?"