Chapter 120: You are Breaking Out in a Cold Sweat, Aren't You, Sengoku?
The Red Count, Baloric Redfield, raised his head and looked toward Kazuma Yumesaki.
He couldn't feel a single thing.
As a possessor of innate Observation Haki since birth, he could detect the contents of anyone's heart with absolute clarity. Because of this ability, he had grown disillusioned with the world, viewing the human heart as something inherently foul.
But while facing Yumesaki, he sensed nothing at all.
His Observation Haki, capable of reading minds, had failed him completely.
This was an entirely new experience.
Baloric's aged face showed a faint smile. Are you truly willing to let me out?
If you agree to the conditions I just mentioned, then it is possible.
The moment Yumesaki finished his sentence, the prisoners in Level 6 became restless and began shouting at the top of their lungs.
Let me out, I'm willing to fight the Navy!
Me too, I'll even be your slave!
Captain, let me board your ship, I beg of you! I don't want to stay in this lightless place any longer!
Release me! I'm willing to follow you, I'm willing to be loyal to you!
Facing this noisy mob of prisoners, Yumesaki furrowed his brow. Silence!!!
As soon as those words were uttered, a terrifying explosion of Conqueror's Haki erupted violently.
An invisible and horrific gravitational pressure descended abruptly, falling evenly upon every person present.
The majority of the Level 6 prisoners in Impel Down began foaming at the mouth, falling unconscious one by one.
Douglas Bullet's pupils shrank inward.
He was also a wielder of Conqueror's Haki and believed his own Haki was second to none.
Yet at this moment, the Conqueror's Haki released by Yumesaki was on an entirely different level. He even felt that his own Haki, when compared to Yumesaki's, was like a small spark next to a blazing sun.
They were truly not in the same league.
Just who was this man? Why did he possess such monstrous Conqueror's Haki?
Baloric Redfield let out a short breath and couldn't help but comment: Such remarkably powerful Conqueror's Haki. Even the Pirate King Roger did not possess Haki like yours. Who exactly are you?
Didn't I tell you earlier? I'm just an ordinary person who likes to eat, drink, and have fun.
Baloric chuckled softly; not even a ghost would believe those words. How could an ordinary person possess Haki this strong?
However, he did not press further, choosing instead to agree to Yumesaki's terms.
Even if he had to die, he would rather die on the battlefield of Marineford than inside this lightless cage.
A wise choice.
Yumesaki shattered the shackles of The Red Count, freeing him.
Then, he also rescued Shiryu of the Rain and the World Destroyer, Byrnndi World.
The conditions were the same: go to Marineford, join Whitebeard's side, and fight the Navy.
Both men agreed without a single word of protest.
Let's go.
Although there were many prisoners in Level 6 of Impel Down, only a few caught Yumesaki's attention. The rest were either irredeemable criminals or people who had already received the punishment they deserved.
Yumesaki ignored them and led Jinbe, Bullet, Redfield, Shiryu, and Byrnndi World out of Impel Down.
Meanwhile, the staff of Impel Down were completely unaware of this.
The reason was simple: when Douglas Bullet had released his Conqueror's Haki earlier, he had knocked out all the Monitoring Den Den Mushi on Level 6.
By the time they realized what had happened, it would already be too late.
...
Elsewhere, at Marineford.
Today was the big day when Ace would be publicly executed.
For this day, Navy Headquarters had made meticulous preparations. Not only had they mobilized 100,000 elite troops from all corners of the world, but even the three Admirals—who were usually hard to encounter—were all gathered here.
Furthermore, with the exception of Crocodile and Jinbe who were imprisoned, and Gekko Moria who was dead, the remaining members of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea had all arrived.
Dracule Mihawk, Donquixote Doflamingo, Boa Hancock, and finally, Bartholomew Kuma.
Without a doubt, this was the most luxurious formation in the history of the Navy.
And this formation was intended solely to face the Whitebeard Pirates.
The Strongest Man in the World.
The time for the execution was drawing near, but for some reason, Sengoku, who stood atop the execution platform, felt increasingly uneasy, plagued by a bad omen.
A few days ago, the Whitebeard Pirates had suddenly vanished from their surveillance.
No matter how hard they searched, they could not find Whitebeard's whereabouts.
The enemy seemed to have evaporated from the world.
Even the World Government had sent agents to search for the Whitebeard Pirates.
But the results were still nil.
This made Sengoku feel as if the situation was slipping out of his control.
His instincts told him that the Whitebeard Pirates would definitely show up. Given Whitebeard's protective nature over his subordinates, it was impossible for him to watch Ace be executed with his own eyes.
But the problem was, he had no idea in what manner the Whitebeard Pirates would appear at Marineford.
It was this ignorance that fueled his unease.
Of course, despite the anxiety in his heart, Sengoku's face showed no emotion. As the Fleet Admiral of the Navy, it was impossible for him to show doubt or agitation at a time like this.
That would only crush the Navy's morale.
As time ticked away, the Whitebeard Pirates still hadn't appeared.
At that moment, Vice Admiral Tsuru approached and said in a low voice: The time is almost here. You can begin.
Sengoku nodded.
At this point, the Visual Den Den Mushi began to function. Images of Marineford were broadcast to the entire world through the snails.
The image of Sengoku standing expressionless on the execution platform appeared before the eyes of everyone watching the live broadcast.
More than twenty years have passed since the Pirate King Roger was executed.
In these twenty-plus years, the seas have remained in a state of chaos.
Many wicked people, for the sake of the so-called Great Treasure of the Sea, have entered the ocean continuously, bringing wound after wound upon this world.
Therefore, it is time to end this era of turmoil.
Sengoku's powerful voice echoed across Marineford, reaching even other cities.
He slowly lowered his head. As the camera followed his gaze, a figure kneeling on the ground appeared before everyone.
As you can see, the man before you, Portgas D. Ace, is the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.
Today, we will execute him publicly.
And then, we shall declare war on the Whitebeard Pirates.
We, the Navy, will use cold, hard facts to tell the world that this era of chaos must end, starting with the world's largest cancer—the Whitebeard Pirates.
Now...
Just as Sengoku was preparing to give the order for the execution, he suddenly felt the sky turn dark.
No, it wasn't the sky that turned dark.
But something was blocking the sunlight overhead.
Sengoku abruptly looked up and saw a giant island falling from the sky, hovering right above Marineford.
At the same time, a wild and uncontrollable voice rang out.
Gurararara! Sengoku, didn't you want to declare war on the Whitebeard Pirates? I have arrived!!!
It's Whitebeard! Whitebeard is here!
The island... it's flying!
How can this be happening?
Sengoku's pupils shrank violently. He had considered many possibilities, but it had never occurred to him that Whitebeard would come from the sky.
If this floating island crashed down, all of Marineford would be destroyed. At the same time, a name long forgotten surfaced in his mind.
Golden Lion!!!
Only the Float-Float Fruit belonging to Golden Lion Shiki could make an island fly through the air.
He never expected that Golden Lion would be working with Whitebeard. This was going to be very difficult.
Akainu was the first to snap out of his shock. He leaped from his seat, unleashing the power of the Magma-Magma Fruit, and launched a searing fist toward the island hovering in the air.
Meteor Volcano!!!
Jihahahaha... Brat, I'll be the one to face you.
Before the burning fists falling from the sky could strike the floating island, a series of massive Flying Slashes shot out from the island, tearing all the magma fists in the air into broken shards.
Lion: Thousand Cut Valley!
The shattered magma rained down toward Marineford.
Aokiji, seeing this, immediately released an intense chill, freezing the magma into lumps of ice that crashed to the ground.
Everyone, fall back!!!
Sengoku, seeing the island continuing to descend, shouted at the top of his lungs.
Countless Navy soldiers retreated toward the headquarters building.
At the same time, the island that was originally floating in the sky hit the harbor of Marineford with a massive roar.
The immense impact triggered a wild storm, shaking the entirety of Marineford.
Many Navy soldiers couldn't keep their footing and fell face-first onto the ground.
After the dust kicked up by the storm settled, the members of the Whitebeard Pirates finally appeared in everyone's sight.
Leading them at the front was Edward Newgate.
Ace, I've come to save you!!!
Ace, seeing this, could not hold back his tears.
Pops... why did you come?
Foolish son, you are my son. How could I, as your father, let you die before my very eyes?
But while the two were showing their father-son affection, Sengoku felt a chill run down his spine and broke out in a cold sweat.
His hands and feet felt cold, and his scalp went numb. His heart instantly sank to the lowest depths.
Because he realized that on the island that fell from the sky, there weren't just members of the Whitebeard Pirates.
He even saw members of the Beast Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates on that island.
What was the meaning of this?
Could it be that Kaido, Charlotte Linlin, and Whitebeard had formed an alliance?
And among them was the Golden Lion.
This is bad. This is very, very bad.
He had originally wanted to lure Whitebeard using Ace to wipe out Whitebeard and his crew.
Who would have thought that Golden Lion, Charlotte Linlin, and even Kaido would get involved.
This wasn't catching a fish anymore; this was clearly hooking a prehistoric giant crocodile.
The Navy's advantage vanished in an instant.
Now, the ones in control had suddenly shifted from the Navy to the Whitebeard Pirates.
If today's events were not handled properly, the entire Navy would be completely destroyed, or might not even be able to rise again.
Just thinking about this made Sengoku's vision go dark for a moment.
At the same time, Whitebeard, having finished speaking to his son, looked at the stunned Sengoku and laughed loudly again.
Gurararara! You're breaking out in a cold sweat, aren't you, Sengoku?
You didn't expect Kaido, Charlotte Linlin, and Golden Lion to help me, did you?
Unfortunately, an arrow already shot cannot be pulled back.
Now, let it begin.
Our war!!!
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