Shanks did not answer, but his eyes said it all. He leaped into the air, and the moment Gryphon was drawn, a crimson sword slash shot across the battlefield, precisely cleaving the sea between Whitebeard and the execution platform.
The seawater was split open, forming a hundred-meter-deep trench that refused to close for a long time.
"Shanks!" Whitebeard slammed his Murakumogiri heavily onto the deck, triggering another round of seaquakes. "Are you going to stop me from dealing with my own traitor?"
Shanks landed on a piece of floating wreckage, the tip of his sword lightly touching the sea's surface. "His life now concerns the balance of the entire sea."
His peripheral vision caught the trembling Teach, the traitor looking at him with pleading eyes.
The battlefield fell into a terrifying silence. Everyone realized that this youngest of the Four Emperors was about to make a decision that would reshape the world's landscape.
"The entire world is watching." Shanks's gaze swept over the Transponder Snails broadcasting images everywhere. "Should the bloodline of Rocks die on a Marine execution platform?"
"Moreover..." Shanks's Conqueror's Haki surged once more, shattering several of the broadcasting Transponder Snails. "Who knows what he might shout before he dies?"
His sword suddenly pointed in the direction of Mary Geoise. "Like... certain secrets even the Marines are unaware of?"
These words were like a bucket of ice water poured over everyone's heads. Teach abruptly stopped trembling, a flash of shock in his eyes. This guy... did he want him dead or alive?
"Gurararara..." Whitebeard rested his Murakumogiri on his shoulder and laughed. "Red-Hair brat, you'd better know what you're doing. Think carefully about the consequences of stopping me!"
"Let me tell you, Red-Hair brat, no one has ever been able to tell me what to do!"
"Not even Roger!"
The sea wind howled. Red-Haired Shanks's expression was sharp. He stood on the floating wreckage of a warship, his posture as straight as a sword. The scar over his left eye looked especially menacing under the gloomy sky.
Facing Whitebeard's overwhelming pressure, his gaze did not waver in the slightest; instead, it grew even sharper, like a honed blade.
"Newgate, I am not telling you what to do." Shanks's voice remained low and steady. "But if you are allowed to kill Teach today, the entire sea will plunge into chaos far more terrifying than this."
His Conqueror's Haki coiled around him like a tangible force, crackling with black and red lightning!
It clashed violently with Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki in mid-air, causing thunderous explosions. The seawater beneath them churned and surged under the collision of these two supreme powers.
On the Red Force, Beckman silently lit a cigarette. Lucky Roux, Yasopp, and the entire Red Hair Pirates crew entered a state of combat readiness.
"Gurarararara!" Whitebeard laughed in anger, slamming his Murakumogiri into the sea and stirring up massive waves. "Red-Hair brat, do you think you can stop me?"
The killing intent in his eyes was almost palpable. "This traitor will die today!"
Shanks took a deep breath, his right hand slowly moving to rest on his sword hilt. This action instantly froze the atmosphere on the battlefield. Everyone knew what it meant when this Emperor's hand gripped his sword.
"Not only will I stop you," a look of determination flashed in Shanks's eyes, "but I will also stop this public execution!"
His voice suddenly rose, ensuring every Transponder Snail could clearly capture it. "But Teach must be punished—imprisoned in Impel Down's Level 6, never to be released! Perhaps that is a more suitable fate!"
This proposal made Sengoku frown deeply. Akainu's magma body churned violently. Who did this pirate think he was, arrogantly interfering with Marine justice!
The audacity!
Kaido even halted the charging of his Boro Breath, snorting disdainfully at Shanks's posturing.
Whitebeard's eyes grew more dangerous, and a white glow of vibrations began to shimmer around Murakumogiri. "Red-Hair brat... you are far too arrogant!" He suddenly roared, his voice shattering the masts of several warships. "No one can save the man I have marked for death!"
The sea erupted as Whitebeard's Murakumogiri, carrying world-shattering power, swept toward Shanks!
The Conqueror's Haki enveloping the blade intertwined with the white glow of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. Where it passed, space shattered inch by inch, emitting a grating *crack* sound.
The force contained in this strike was enough to split an island in half!
Shanks's pupils constricted sharply. Gryphon was drawn in an instant. Facing this legend who once rivaled the Pirate King himself, he dared not hold back in the slightest.
"Divine Departure!"
A crimson slash shot into the sky, the blade itself wreathed in black and red Conqueror's Haki. Where its edge pointed, even light seemed to twist and be swallowed.
*BOOM—!!!*
The two supreme blades did not directly collide but locked in a stalemate, a mere inch apart.
The space between them twisted into a dazzling point of light, erupting with terrifying energy like a miniature sun!
Black and red Haki clashed violently against white vibrational energy, constantly erupting in thunderous explosions. The scattered shockwaves instantly vaporized the surrounding seawater, creating a vacuum zone hundreds of meters in diameter!
"Stand down, Newgate!" Fine beads of sweat formed on Shanks's forehead, but his voice remained firm. "If we continue, only the Marines will benefit!"
Whitebeard laughed wildly, his white crescent mustache trembling violently. "Gurararara! I am Whitebeard!" The muscles in his arm bulged, the white glow on Murakumogiri intensifying. "No one can stop my decision!"
The aftershocks of their clashing Conqueror's Haki spread outward like a physical force!
The deck of the nearest Marine warship suddenly buckled, its mast snapping in two. Weaker Marines fainted in droves, foaming at the mouth and toppling into the sea. Even Vice Admirals Momonga and Doberman turned pale, forced to resist the pressure with all their might.
"Damn it..." Doberman grunted, kneeling on one knee, the scars on his face contorted in pain. "This is... a clash on the level of the Emperors..."
At the center of the battlefield, the clash between Shanks and Whitebeard had reached a fever pitch!
The point of light suspended between their blades grew brighter and brighter. The intense heat it emitted caused the surrounding seawater to boil and evaporate. Kaido and Big Mom watched the battle with keen interest.
"Linlin, that old man Newgate is still this strong, even in his old age."
"Mamamama, that old fossil's body is failing, but he can still hold on for a few more years."
Kaido also observed Whitebeard, pondering for a moment. "Linlin, even though Whitebeard wants Teach dead, we have to wait until he and Red-Hair decide the outcome. You can't interfere until then."
"Hmm? Are you getting sentimental about the past again, Kaido!" Big Mom looked at Kaido's tense expression and snorted coldly. "Back on Rocks's ship, you were happy to follow him around, but that can't compare to the favor of me giving you a Devil Fruit!"
Hearing Big Mom bring this up again, Kaido felt a sudden headache.
"Linlin, you old hag, must you bring that up again!"
"Hmph! Kaido, that was a life-changing favor!"
"..."