Boom—!
After the thunderous explosion, black smoke billowed into the sky. A massive shadow towered within the crater, and a suffocating pressure swept outward in every direction with that shadow at its center.
Very few people knew that the Five Elders, who stood at the pinnacle of the world's power, were also very capable fighters!
When the smoke dispersed, an enormous monster appeared where the impact had landed.
It looked like an enlarged version of Saturn himself, with gigantic bull horns, while his white beard covered most of his upper body like a scarf.
Ribbon-like black flame clouds coiled around both arms, forming long trailing bands behind his shoulders.
His lower body was that of an eight-legged spider, with flame patterns along his thick, rigid legs.
At this moment, this monster that looked as if it had crawled out from hell was gripping his cane in both hands and planting it against the ground. His cold, merciless eyes swept across the battlefield.
Roughly like this:
"Saturn... why?"
Shanks looked somewhat incredulous, seemingly never having expected the Five Elders to personally enter the field.
And upon hearing that name and witnessing the commotion just now, within the defensive circle protected by Sengoku,
one Marine could not help but glance over. After seeing Saturn's hideous monster form, as if he had crawled out from hell itself, a look of shock appeared on his face. Then—his head burst open like a watermelon!
"Did you not hear me clearly? Rear admirals and below are not to look directly at Lord Saturn!"
Sengoku's fierce shout instantly calmed the Marines who had been growing restless.
They lowered their heads in confusion and helplessness, while eight spider legs stomped across the earth, passing at the edge of their vision.
Saturn stopped before the open ground, staring at Shanks, who had drawn his blade and stood in front of Ace and the others.
"You broke your promise with me!"
"Yes, Shanks."
Saturn calmly looked down at the much smaller Red Hair. "But you were the first to forget your own origin.
"Shanks, it was because of the glory carried by your bloodline that we showed you favor, even indulged some of your requests.
"It was not because you became a Yonko that we favored you. Compared to those fools of the Donquixote family who abandoned their glory on their own, you were simply unfortunate enough to be lost outside.
"But now—you have abandoned that position yourself and stood on the opposite side from us."
He lowered his head slightly, and an oppressive shadow fell over Shanks.
"When you chose to disregard the lives and deaths of your own kin, as well as the authority of our side, you had already lost the position we granted you.
"In Mary Geoise, even Celestial Dragons may be executed by judges when they commit grave crimes."
"It was my miscalculation."
Shanks tightened his grip on Gryphon and swung his hand backward. "Fall back. This is my matter now!"
Ace and Blamenco quickly retreated.
Because of their earlier conversation, he now roughly understood the relationship between Red Hair and Roger, so he still retained a layer of trust.
Of course, the most important point was that if Red Hair had any ulterior motive, the two of them would have no way of breaking through.
Ace also believed that Pops would not make such a mistake.
And in truth, that was indeed the case.
Several members of the Red-Haired Pirates had formed a guarded defensive circle around them.
The only one who remained behind was Beckman.
He stared at Sengoku, and as the two looked at each other, sparks seemed to flare between them.
"Arrest Ace!"
Sengoku gave the order, and the surrounding Marines, along with the Marines aboard the warships, all began to move.
Then the soon-to-retire Fleet Admiral stared at Beckman, and the two sides entered a standoff.
On the frontal battlefield, Saturn did not make a move. Instead, he spoke with composed ease. "You still have a chance, Shanks. Leave this place now.
"For the sake of the Figarland name, this matter will end here.
"I truly do not wish to regret this. You should have stood on our side, becoming the sword of the Celestial Dragons, just like the ancestor at the source of your bloodline."
"There's no way I can just abandon Ace."
Shanks refused without the slightest hesitation.
"It is meaningless, Shanks."
Saturn sighed. "You do not understand what kind of power you are opposing, nor do you understand what we intend to do.
"This will be absolute destruction. Whether it is Roger's remnant or Whitebeard, who dared challenge authority, all will be purged one by one in this destruction.
"Everything related to them will be destroyed. Only blood and terror can make the world remember once again what the World Nobles truly are."
"What are you planning to do? Your target isn't just Ace?"
Shanks's pupils contracted.
"Total destruction."
Saturn said, "Every island protected under Whitebeard's flag will be slaughtered to the last. Those who chose the wrong side will vanish together with the Whitebeard Pirates."
"What does that have to do with the civilians?"
"Authority is built upon absolute order, and order originates from absolute violence.
"A destruction that sweeps across everything, regardless of good or evil, regardless of action or identity, will allow the world to firmly remember this truth: those in authority must not be challenged."
At this point, Saturn stared at Shanks, whose expression had grown increasingly displeased.
"Admittedly, your talent is beyond comparison among the other Figarlands.
"The one who can be compared to you would have to be Saint Figarland Garling of the previous generation.
"But if you insist on standing against us, destruction will include you as well.
"Perhaps the current you is very strong, but you only have yourself, while we are more than just ourselves."
An invisible pressure spread at this moment. It was different from Conqueror's Haki, yet it was a mysterious power capable of suppressing an enemy's ability to move.
However, the target it was being applied to was Red-Haired Shanks.
With only a slight movement, he broke free from that force's influence.
"There's no room left for negotiation."
Shanks tightened his grip on Gryphon. Two types of Haki wrapped around the blade, forming a single strike.
He stomped down, and his entire body turned into a dark-red flash.
"Divine Departure!"
At this time, the New World fell into chaos. A large number of Marine warships appeared near various islands ruled by Whitebeard.
Silent and wordless, they carried out the order from Marine Headquarters—a Buster Call!
"This is madness."
Standing at the bow of a large warship, Vice Admiral Strawberry murmured in a low voice while staring at the island before him.
It was a large island under Whitebeard's protection. Roughly tens of thousands of residents lived there, and there was also a Whitebeard Pirates base.
There were quite a few members of the Whitebeard Pirates present, but... his target was not merely the Whitebeard Pirates.
Because the Buster Call launched this time was the most terrifying one in history.
Led by the Three Admirals, more than a dozen Marine vice admirals and tens of thousands of Marines were being mobilized to destroy everything related to Whitebeard!
That included the civilians on those islands!
The most obvious feature of a Buster Call was indiscriminate slaughter, ensuring the target was destroyed and no future threat remained.
But with a Buster Call on such a massive scale, the innocent people affected would number at least in the hundreds of thousands. How was that any different from carrying out a massacre in the name of justice?
True, these civilians were the foundation of Whitebeard's rule. In theory, they could be counted as part of the whole.
But...
No matter what, at this moment, Vice Admiral Strawberry found it somewhat impossible to accept.
Yet compared to his thoughts, the warships elsewhere were a little different.
"A Buster Call? Then let's just conduct indiscriminate shelling. I don't want to take the risk of going ashore."
The Marine officer commanding a large warship made that decision, and the Marine officers beside him all nodded one after another.
The Marine soldiers under them exchanged glances, but no one voiced any objection.
First, that was indeed what a Buster Call demanded.
Second... Marines with especially strong consciences were already quite rare in the current Navy.
However, just as this Marine warship operating near the edge of the plan was about to begin shelling the small island before it,
the figure of a giant blue bird entered the lookout's field of vision.
"It's... it's the Whitebeard Pirates' 1st Division Commander!"
The lookout urgently pulled the alarm, but it was already too late.
The phoenix dove down, and large amounts of blue flames gathered around him, forming a sphere of light.
The instant Marco descended onto the warship, a violent explosion erupted together with waves of blue fire. Its terrifying power snapped the large warship in half from the center.
"Sink to the bottom of the sea!"
The phoenix beat his wings and rose into the sky. Then, as if frames had been cut from reality, he disappeared.
Using the Paw-Paw Fruit's power, Kuma brought Marco to another location and repeated the same method, sinking another warship that had no powerful fighter stationed aboard it.
The scale of this Buster Call far surpassed those of the past, but due to the losses caused by the previous war, there were not enough large warships, and the same was true of manpower.
Faced with this shocking rate of losses, Kizaru, who had originally been stationed as the overseer, had no choice but to take action personally.
Whoosh—!
Golden flashes burst through the sky. A laser triggered an explosion, blocking the increasingly unrestrained duo.
Countless photons gathered into a form. Kizaru's light-formed steps hovered in midair, and with his crooked mouth, he said, "Oh my, you two really don't make things easy."
"Aren't you the ones who came looking for trouble first?"
Marco sneered. "Navy, didn't you say you were going to sign a treaty with us? Why tear it up and attack now?"
"Don't ask this old man about that sort of thing. This old man only came here to—kill you!"
A large amount of flashing light appeared around Kizaru. As he entered elementalization, he pinched his hands together and unleashed Yata Jewel, firing a swarm of yellow lasers.
He shot toward Marco and Kuma together with that rain of lasers.
"That move again?"
Marco instinctively wanted to use Undying Thistle, but Kuma stopped him directly.
"Don't fall for it. That is his hidden move!"
Kuma extended both hands and fired an Ursus Shock straight out.
It was also at that moment
that the yellow lasers blurred, twisted, and then transformed into Kizarus holding Ame-no-Murakumo Swords!
The Kizaru at the forefront slashed with his sword light, almost cutting open the Ursus Shock.
But the shock wave that followed immediately destroyed him together with the Kizarus behind him in an instant.
Those Kizarus seemed like bubbles, breaking at the slightest touch!
But Marco saw something different.
"Their attack power is extremely high, but their defense is almost nonexistent. Is this Devil Fruit application? Undying Thistle!"
Marco flung one hand backward, and a large amount of blue flame gathered to form a circular protective barrier.
The next instant, Kizaru, holding Ame-no-Murakumo Sword, thrust his blade into the barrier and could not help letting out a dissatisfied click of his tongue.
"Couldn't you just let this old man finish you quickly and go back to drinking tea?"
"That's not happening. Phoenix Brand!"
Marco's counterattack opened the curtain on the battle between the two of them and Kizaru.
(End of Chapter)