The white cape slipped from Whitebeard's shoulders. There were no scars on his bare back.
Only the mark of the Whitebeard Pirates remained.
"Captain Buggy, is Whitebeard really dead?" The prisoners gathered around Buggy.
That monster… is he really dead?!
Sweat dripped down Buggy's forehead.
He had only been leading this group of prisoners to escape from prison.
As a result, he somehow ended up following Blackbeard all the way to Marineford.
After seeing Whitebeard, these bastards actually encouraged him to try and kill the old man.
Thanks to his quick wit and his incredible ability to lie, he had successfully kept this group of idiots under control.
"If he's dead, there's nothing I can do… but what a shame! I was planning to land the final blow on him. Kizaru totally stole the spotlight!"
Buggy placed his hands on his chest and laughed awkwardly.
Whoever wants to stay here, stay here. If you stay in this place, sooner or later, you'll get caught in the war and end up dead.
"Captain Buggy, where are you going? Kizaru stole your prize—kill him right here!" one of the prisoners shouted angrily.
Akainu!?
Cold sweat poured down Buggy's face like a waterfall.
"Yeah, yeah, Captain Buggy, you can't just let that slide!!"
"That's right!"
"We're all behind you, Captain Buggy! This is your chance to show your strength!"
(Don't be idiots! You're talking about an Admiral!!) Buggy screamed mentally.
He cursed in his heart, turned his head, yelled, and kept running:
"Just ignore him! Next time we meet, I won't let him go…?!"
With a loud thud, he suddenly crashed into something.
"Who's the idiot that stopped in my…!"
Buggy was so furious he turned around, ready to curse.
But when he clearly saw what he'd run into, his jaw dropped:
"Shanks?!"
The red-haired man had a serious expression. After glancing briefly at Whitebeard's body, he gave a soft smile.
"Hey, Buggy. How have you been?"
"What the hell is going on?! Why are you here, you bastard?!"
Buggy grabbed the redhead by the collar and shouted angrily, "Because of you, I can't swim anymore!"
"Haha, sorry about that. It was so long ago—you should've gotten over it by now."
Shanks chuckled.
This scene was witnessed by the prisoners, who all looked on in awe.
"As expected of Captain Buggy… he can even go toe-to-toe with Shanks?!"
---
The news of Whitebeard's death spread across the world in an instant.
Sabaody Archipelago.
An old man held a small bottle and watched the live broadcast with tears in his eyes.
Of the three giant screens, only the middle one was still on, showing Whitebeard and his final words before dying. Everything had been broadcast clearly.
"Goodbye, Whitebeard," he said with a smile.
Those who also watched the live transmission were in disbelief.
"That Whitebeard... is really! truly! dead?!"
"He really died! Buggy confirmed it!"
"Who the hell is this Buggy?"
Unlike the public's confused reactions, the reporters immediately grabbed their respective den den mushi and frantically dialed Marine HQ.
"This is from the Sabaody Archipelago. I'm a reporter. Is Whitebeard really dead?!"
The Supernova Pirates also witnessed this historic moment.
Each had a different expression.
Some were silent, some excited, some laughed.
But no one left—because the war wasn't over yet.
---
Marineford.
In front of the execution site's ruins.
Sengoku suddenly received a report, and his expression darkened drastically:
"What did you say? The transmission wasn't cut off!?"
"Yes! A reporter from the Sabaody Archipelago called to confirm Whitebeard's status."
"Damn it…!"
Sengoku's face turned grim.
Someone had tampered with the broadcast...
Cutting the live transmission had been an order from the top.
"Find out who messed with it!" Sengoku shouted furiously.
"Y-Yes, sir!"
---
At that moment.
In front of Whitebeard's body.
Blackbeard's crew suddenly approached, several subordinates covering the body with a large black cloth.
"What are you doing?"
Aokiji stepped forward.
Unlike Akainu, whose body was covered in blood, Aokiji's clothes were nearly spotless.
"Zehahaha, Aokiji?" Blackbeard grinned. "Thanks. If not for you, I wouldn't have gotten into Impel Down so easily!"
Aokiji remained silent.
Back when this crew was captured at sea, he hadn't thought this guy had much intellect.
"So the Gate of Justice opening… that was your doing too?"
Aokiji narrowed his eyes. He'd once suspected the Straw Hats, but now it was clear—this was the mastermind behind it all.
"Did you like my performance?" Lafitte took off his hat and bowed with a flourish. "On the warship escorting Ace, I found a few people to hypnotize."
Aokiji asked no further. There was no need.
"You're a prisoner. You should've stayed in prison quietly."
Cold air began to swirl around his body.
"Zehahahaha, don't be so impatient, Aokiji. The real show is just getting started!"
Blackbeard laughed, lifted the black cloth, and stepped inside.
After that, several pirates stood guard in front of the cloth, one after another.
(What are they doing?) Aokiji frowned.
He wasn't the only one—others also sensed something was off.
Akainu sealed his wounds with magma, stood up, glared at everyone, and snorted coldly.
Bullet stepped forward silently, his eyes suddenly narrowing.
Boom!!
A wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted powerfully toward the Marine side.
---
Luffy played with the Gura Gura no Mi in his hand, amused by the farce below.
But honestly, he was curious too.
Would Blackbeard still be able to become powerful without the Gura Gura no Mi?
Luffy had come to the Summit War for two reasons:
First, to rescue Ace.
Second, to obtain the Gura Gura no Mi.
Both objectives had been achieved.
Logically, as the final victor, he should be fleeing now.
However, he was still bothered by Blackbeard's presence.
He silently observed everything.
"Haven't you got it yet, Blackbeard?" Shiryu asked impatiently. "There's an Admiral outside."
Inside the black cloth, Blackbeard looked stunned.
Why wasn't anything happening?!
His goal was to acquire Whitebeard's power.
Impossible! How can this be?
Even if a Devil Fruit disappears and reappears somewhere else in the world, it wouldn't be this fast!
Blackbeard's face turned pale. He tried twice more, but still got no response.
He secretly felt something was wrong!
These prisoners hadn't truly acknowledged him as captain—they only followed his orders out of mutual interest.
Once those interests vanished, he couldn't control this vicious group.
No… maybe he was the one being used.
Blackbeard began sweating heavily.
This isn't right!
---
Outside the black cloth.
Akainu's eyes turned fierce, and his arms became magma.
"A runaway prisoner didn't flee to the sea but ran straight to the center of this battlefield and covered Whitebeard's body with a black cloth..."
Before he could act, Luffy already had.
In a flash, Luffy extended his arm and lifted the black cloth.
Blackbeard's crew was stunned.
He had descended from the sky so fast they couldn't even react.
Blackbeard felt the darkness around him vanish. Sunlight poured down again, and his heart raced.
Seeing his expression, Shiryu frowned.
"Failed?"
"No, something went wrong!" Blackbeard gritted his teeth. "Someone took it first!"
Everyone: "..."
Even though it was true, to the prisoners, it sounded like a joke.
Bullet suddenly turned and stared coldly. "Failed?"
"You better be joking, Blackbeard!" Shiryu growled.
"Seriously..." Blackbeard muttered, feeling like he couldn't explain.
How did this group come together so easily—and now fall apart just as quickly?
"Hmph! What a lame trick!"
Bullet snorted angrily. "Time for these so-called Blackbeard Pirates to scatter!"
Without another word, he fled at full speed.
They were fugitives, after all—and they were currently at Marine HQ!
The many pirates surrounding Blackbeard vanished in the blink of an eye.
Everyone knew staying to fight the Marines would be suicide.
As for Blackbeard, even though being betrayed felt awful, this wasn't the time for revenge.
Some prisoners didn't hesitate for even a second.
Only three remained.
Drenched in cold sweat, Blackbeard glanced at the nearby Akainu and Aokiji, then turned and bolted.
"Damn it! Run first!"
He shouted and took off.
"Shishishishi~ This is hilarious!!"
Luffy couldn't stop laughing. He moved instantly and chased after him.
---
At the same time—
Akainu snorted coldly. His body transformed into flowing magma as he began pursuit.
"Wait, Akainu!" Vice Admiral Tsuru called out. "Forget the prisoners. Our primary target is Straw Hat Luffy. That's a direct order!"
Upon hearing that, Akainu's expression shifted and he immediately changed targets.
Like a volcanic eruption, a pillar of magma shot into the sky.
"Trying to escape, traitor?"
Akainu formed half his body out of magma. Seeing that he couldn't catch up to Luffy, he hurled a massive punch.
The enormous lava fist roared through the wind.
Luffy paused, turned, and prepared to receive it—
But a red figure suddenly flashed in front of him, blocking Akainu's attack with a saber.
When the Marines saw who it was, their expressions changed drastically.
"Impossible!" Sengoku's eyes widened. "How are you here?! You were fighting Kaido in the New World just three days ago… Red-Haired Shanks!!"
The red-haired man looked calm. After blocking the blow, he said evenly:
"You should be satisfied already. Whitebeard is dead..."
"This can't be..."
Not far away, Kizaru extended his index finger, golden light gathering at the tip, locking onto Luffy.
"Who would've guessed… one of the Yonkou would offer up his own head?"
The golden light began to shimmer and intensify.
But suddenly, a short gun was aimed at him from a distance.
Benn Beckman sat on a pile of rubble, gun in one hand, toothpick in his mouth.
"Don't move, Kizaru."
"Oh~ How scary..."
Kizaru's face froze, and he immediately halted his attack.
Looking past Beckman, on the iron wall behind him, a group of pirates stood or crouched, all glaring with hostility.
"All of the Red-Haired Pirates are here!" a Vice Admiral exclaimed.
Akainu's face twisted. "What's the meaning of this?"
Emerging from the lava, Akainu faced off against another of the Yonkou.
"If you still want to fight, then let me be your opponent," Shanks said calmly.
Sengoku clenched his fists and stared at Shanks.
The battlefield instantly calmed.
Luffy had a speechless expression on his face.
Looking in the direction Blackbeard had fled, he sighed:
"Ahhhh~~"
Luffy was no longer his usual carefree self—his expression had turned cold.
Shanks was momentarily stunned, sensing a powerful killing intent from Luffy.
He couldn't help but turn around.
"Giantification!"
Luffy leapt, and in an instant, his body swelled—he transformed into a giant.
Upon seeing this, everyone's pupils suddenly contracted in shock.
"What is that?!" Sengoku shouted, confused.
The three Admirals looked up, each of them utterly stunned.
"Why don't I just finish off all the Marines right now?"
Grinning, Luffy threw a punch.
A colossal fist came crashing down from the sky.
Sengoku's expression changed drastically—he immediately activated the power of his Devil Fruit.
The golden Buddha slammed its palm upward to meet the strike.
But it wasn't enough to completely stop Luffy's punch.
Boom!!!
With a deafening crash, Sengoku's body was sent flying, and the Marine Headquarters fortress behind him was instantly reduced to rubble.
The shockwave spread outward, and in the blink of an eye, the entire plaza was leveled.
Countless warships were obliterated by the impact.
With a single punch from Luffy… the Marine Headquarters collapsed!
---
(End of Chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."