Impel Down?
Sengoku's heart lurched. His expression darkened instantly.
"What exactly happened? Don't panic—explain it clearly!"
"Th-Three hours ago, Impel Down suddenly contacted us, but the mont we answered, the call was cut off. After that, we tried calling back several tis… but no one ever picked up…"
The staff officer on the other end seed to have forced himself to calm down, but his voice was still trembling:
"At the ti, we didn't think much of it, but we still sent a warship to investigate imdiately."
"And just now… the warship reported back! Impel Down—Impel Down was torn completely out of the seafloor, lifted to the surface… and now it's totally destroyed. A pile of ruins. And the prisoners… Fleet Admiral… from Level 1 down to Level 6… almost all of them have escaped!"
Sengoku's expression changed drastically.
Impel Down pulled out of the seafloor and brought to the surface?!
Such a horrifying event—how could that even be possible?
And a complete mass breakout… sothing that had never once happened since the great underwater prison was founded.
"Who did it? Did they find any clues?!" Sengoku barked.
"What about the guards? What about Magellan and Shiryu? Where are they now?"
"Most guards are dead or wounded. Both wardens tried their best to stop the attackers, but they were defeated and knocked into the sea. Magellan's been picked up by a Marine ship and is being rescued… As for Shiryu, according to a guard, once he regained consciousness, he stole a small boat and chased after the pirates."
"As for the escaped prisoners… all we know is they seized several Marine warships, passed through the Gates of Justice, and entered the maelstrom currents. Their exact direction is unknown. We have already mobilized forces to search and pursue them…"
"No need to pursue them."
Sengoku suddenly cut him off, voice cold.
"Eh? W-What? Fleet Admiral?!"
The voice on the other end was filled with confusion.
Sengoku slowly raised his head, took a deep breath, and stared at the distant horizon—his expression completely grave.
"They're already here."
"Wh-WHAT?!!"
...
Boom—Boom—Boom!!
Right as Sengoku finished speaking, a violent barrage of chaotic cannon fire erupted from beyond the rain-shrouded horizon.
Through the torrential downpour, five heavily damaged Marine warships erged, sailing full speed toward Marineford's bay.
On their decks and along their railings stood countless towering, muscular figures in black-and-white striped prison uniforms—
and even several mountain-sized giants.
As they saw the harbor growing closer, they burst into wild, ecstatic laughter:
"Hahahaha! The war's still going! We made it—we made it in ti!!"
"Fufufufu~~ What a perfect ti to show up!"
"Twenty years! I've been locked up for twenty whole years! Now it's ti for the Marine to feel my wrath!!!"
The uproar was so loud that even through the storm, it reached deep into the battlefield.
At the edge of the battlefield, many people finally saw the five ships.
The mont they recognized the prisoners, their expressions twisted in shock.
"H-Hey, am I seeing things? Aren't those—?!"
"Forr bounty 500 million—Garrison!
Forr bounty 390 million—Akra Dodo!
Forr Shichibukai—bounty 340 million—Donquixote Doflamingo!
And that infamous female pirate, the 'Crescent Moon Hunter'—Catarina Devon!"
"And that giant—Isn't that Sanjuan Wolf?!"
"A-And that guy! Damn it—that guy… that's not… ISN'T THAT DOUGLAS BULLET?! A forr mber of the Roger Pirates—the legendary Demon Heir?!?!"
Around the bay—
More and more people noticed these unexpected arrivals.
Both marines and pirates broke into explosive uproar.
"What the hell! Aren't these all Level 6 monsters from Impel Down?!"
"Damn it—how did all of them escape at once?! What happened down there?!"
"Damn it! Why did they have to show up NOW—right when victory was within reach…!"
Panic spread rapidly among the marines.
And among the high-ranking Marine officers—every heart sank to the bottom.
"This just got troubleso…"
High in the air, just after finishing off a pirate officer, Kizaru couldn't help but show a rare serious expression. He muttered under his breath:
"One… two… three… suddenly so many monsters popping out at once—what an unexpected headache…"
On the pirates' alliance side, however, most were shocked—then ecstatic.
No one had expected that at the very mont they were about to be driven into complete despair, such a massive force of powerful, natural allies would fall from the sky.
"Heh heh, looks like the tide's about to turn."
"Lads! Reinforcents are here—hold on a little longer!"
"Follow ! Charge back in—kill these marines!!!"
…
The pirates, like a pack of frenzied wolves injected with adrenaline, howled as they launched another assault on the Marine.
And far away, through the curtain of rain, the five stolen Marine warships continued cutting through the waves at full speed, drawing ever closer to the bay.
"Outer fleet and artillery emplacents—open fire! Stop them!"
The Rear Admiral commanding the frontline bit down hard and shouted into the Den Den Mushi.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
In an instant, the world erupted in cannon fire. Hundreds upon hundreds of blazing gun barrels roared, shells pouring down like rain from all directions toward the five warships.
"Heh heh, perfect timing!"
"You think these little kids' toys can hurt us?"
The pirates on the ships burst into loud laughter, not the least bit afraid of the relentless barrage.
A portion of them leapt directly into the air—so drawing blades to slice through shells, so taking hits with their bodies, others using all sorts of bizarre Devil Fruit abilities.
Within just a few seconds, the sky had been completely cleared, returning to calm.
Not a single shell had even co within ten ters of the ships.
"Damn it… they didn't even scratch them…"
The rear admiral at the artillery line scowled, teeth clenched.
"And those legendary monsters—those ancient freaks—haven't even made a move yet… and they can already neutralize everything…"
"There's no helping it. Even the ones locked up on Level 4 or Level 3 are all elite-class pirates…"
…
On the high platform—
Sengoku's expression darkened. Then as if making a final decision, he took a deep breath and barked toward Kizaru in the distance:
"Borsalino, notify Sentomaru and the others to imdiately end their standby status! Let those big guys make their appearance now!"
"Eh?"
Kizaru looked at Sengoku with mild surprise.
"We're changing the plan already…?"
He then glanced again at the approaching intruders and sighed, curling his lips:
"Well, I suppose we really don't have any extra manpower left to hold those guys back…"
He pulled out a pure-white Den Den Mushi from his coat, whispered a few instructions, then hung up and continued fending off the pirates around him.
anwhile, Sengoku also dialed another number.
In the next instant, the giant screens in the Marineford residential plaza—previously broadcasting the battlefield—suddenly switched to Sengoku's face.
"Zephyr, Garp, you two should be able to see now."
On the screen, Sengoku's expression was grave.
"Nao and Whitebeard's fight still hasn't ended, and the situation is becoming unfavorable for us. Among those who arrived, several are extrely troubleso. I'll need one of you to co to the battlefield."
With a flicker of static, the transmission ended, and the screen cut back to the war.
"…"
The gathered marine families fell silent. One by one, they turned to look at the two towering old n.
"It seems we really can't sit still anymore," Zephyr sighed.
He was just about to speak to Garp when Luffy, beside him, lifted his head curiously:
"Grandpa Zephyr, Grandpa Fleet Admiral said only one person needs to go. Is it going to be you or my grandpa?"
Ace also turned to look.
"Of course your grandpa."
"Of course ."
Garp and Zephyr answered at the sa ti.
Ace and Luffy both froze, stunned.
Garp burst into booming laughter, stood up, and strode out of the plaza toward the fortress.
His white "Justice" coat billowed in the wind. Zephyr watched Garp's departing back, shook his head, and smiled—clearly thinking it was only natural, with no objection at all.
After all—
Even in their youth, his strength had always been a little inferior to Garp's. Now that he had retired and his physical strength had declined, the gap between him and a still-vigorous Garp was even wider.
With terrifying enemies suddenly appearing on the front lines, it was only fitting for him to remain in the rear while the stronger Garp went ahead.
Go for it, Grandpa!
Luffy clenched his small fists atop the little folding stool, watching Garp's figure fade into the distance. Then he looked up at the screen showing the aerial battle, silently cheering.
Uncle Nao, you have to do your best too!
Even with a severed arm and a prosthetic limb, that old man Whitebeard is definitely not your opponent. You will definitely win against him!!!
…
BOOM!
High above the sky island, thunder roared and the sea of clouds surged.
As the dust dispersed, Nao and Whitebeard's figures reappeared.
From dawn until noon, their duel had lasted for hours, and the balance of victory had clearly begun to tilt.
Nao now stood calm, sword in hand. His body showed almost no signs of battle; the few wounds he had were rapidly healing before the naked eye.
Across from him, Whitebeard's figure was still towering, but his breathing was ragged. Massive sword wounds cut across his shoulder and abdon. His right hand, gripping the naginata, trembled slightly. The webbing between his thumb and forefinger split open and constantly oozing blood.
"You're old, Whitebeard," Nao said coldly, voice calm as still water.
"If it were twenty years ago… no, even ten, defeating you would not be so simple. But now, the era that belonged to you has completely co to an end."
"Gurararara…"
Whitebeard still grinned, his laughter low and rumbling.
"So I'll say it again—brat is brat. You'll never understand how high the sky really is."
"Those big words of yours…"
He straightened his back once more, gripping his massive blade tightly.
"…are still far too early!"
CRACK!
He swung.
The space before him twisted and split instantly, fracturing like brittle glass.
And those countless shards of "broken space" didn't freeze in place—no, they trembled like razor-edged blades, whistling sharply as they gathered under the force of his swing and ca crashing down toward Nao!
"This kind of trick doesn't work anymore!"
Nao remained calm.
In an instant, he unleashed dozens of slashes, surging with overwhelming lightning that fused together into one colossal blue dragon.
ROAR!!!
The blue dragon roared skyward and shot forward. It devoured every fragnt of shattered space with ease, restoring calm to the floating land above the heavens.
"Looks like sothing unexpected is happening down below."
Nao glanced downward, then at the increasingly labored breathing of Whitebeard.
"You must sense it too. So—this duel should end here."
"Heh…"
Whitebeard curled his lips but didn't answer.
They were both smart n; he naturally understood Nao's aning.
Though their battle had been fierce, neither had truly used every last trump card yet.
If things continued like this, regardless of who won in the end, Whitebeard was certain that with his monstrous stamina and recovery, he could drag this fight out until sundown if necessary.
But now that the situation below had changed, the Nao before him clearly wasn't planning to give him the chance to stall any longer.
"Then let's find out, brat!"
Whitebeard suddenly took a deep breath and let out a thunderous roar.
His entire body twisted and trembled—and then his wounds began healing at a terrifying speed, the muscles beneath visibly writhing as they regenerated.
His aura surged again, growing dense and massive.
A familiar scene…
Nao's eyes narrowed.
He had felt this sa "burning the body for a final strike" sensation when he pushed Big Mom to the brink in the North Blue.
Was Whitebeard now preparing to burn the last of his strength—to fight to the death in an over-limit state?
PAH!
Whitebeard stomped heavily, gripping his naginata, chest lifted, eyes blazing with fierce light.
The aura rising from his body had beco tangible—like a primordial beast that had slumbered for ages, now awakening.
He had sailed for decades, step by step reaching where he stood today.
It had been so long that even he had begun to forget:
That orphan boy—who left ho because he could no longer bear the oppression of his village—when had he beco "the strongest man in the world"?
And now, soone had finally appeared to take that title from him?
No.
NO!
It would not be that easy.
It had never been that easy!
Whitebeard threw his head back and laughed.
"Co!"
At this mont, the old man with white hair and beard seed to return to his peak.
The figure that once rivaled the Pirate King Gol D. Roger, that once conquered the seas and struck fear into the hearts of the Marines—in this mont, amidst the torrential rain, that figure gradually drew closer to him, until they completely overlapped.
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