"Vista, according to Dad's orders—Ace and his brother must not be allowed to die."
"Find a way to rescue them!"
Marco pulled himself out from the rubble, groaning.
The violent tremors shaking Marineford finally brought him back to consciousness. As he looked around, his eyes landed on Vista—Captain of the 5th Division of the Whitebeard Pirates—standing frozen, mouth agape, staring at the execution platform in utter disbelief.
"...What happened?"
Even Marco was at a loss.
Whitebeard's face was drenched in sweat. His body… was failing him.
Minato had already stopped attacking.
There was no point anymore.
If he kept going, he'd only push Whitebeard closer to death.
The old man already looked like a walking corpse.
"…Heh. So this is how it ends," Whitebeard muttered, bitterly amused, as he dropped to a seated position.
Even if Minato stopped, there was no way Whitebeard could interfere in the battle again.
"Your blade's still sharp, Sengoku," he said, looking toward the golden Buddha looming in the distance. "But I'm just a man… with only one heart."
"Call me a demon, a monster, it doesn't matter. No one stays the strongest forever."
"…And now, I can't even protect the future."
He sighed and slowly shook his head, eyes lifting to Sengoku's giant Buddha form towering above.
But the shaking of Marineford hadn't stopped. No—it was getting worse.
Up on the execution platform, as Senju Hashirama's voice fell—
BOOM!
Thick, gnarled roots erupted from the ground, snaking upward in rapid spirals. Wood Release techniques surged from under Hashirama's feet, forming a towering wooden structure in an instant—rising higher than even Sengoku's golden Buddha.
Whitebeard's eyes widened.
He made a desperate choice.
He clenched his fist hard, as if trying to seize one last chance—
Ancient Platinum—!!!
But before he could act, a flash appeared in front of him.
Minato.
"You're a warrior worthy of respect. But right now... your role has ended."
Whitebeard chuckled hoarsely.
"My mission… it's not done yet."
Minato narrowed his eyes.
BOOM BOOM—!!!
Above, the wood release surged again—forming a massive Buddha head.
It was even larger than Sengoku's golden form.
Sengoku's eyes widened in shock. For a moment, he stood frozen, completely overwhelmed.
The quaking intensified.
The power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit was still at work, tilting the island of Marineford to the right, making the battlefield below descend into chaos.
But the execution platform—remained untouched.
"Hah… failed…" Whitebeard muttered, panting heavily.
Sweat poured down his face.
A three-pronged kunai was now embedded in his chest.
The Flying Thunder God seal had been marked directly over his heart.
Minato pulled his hand back, speaking coldly:
"You have no chance of turning this around."
"And I don't just mean you pirates—that includes the Marines too."
"I'm giving you a chance to witness what's coming next."
"But if you're not curious... I can end it here."
"You decide."
Whitebeard gave a bitter smile.
He could feel his life fading fast.
He had only wanted to save Ace—and Luffy.
But there was one more thing that gnawed at his heart.
Betrayal. Whitebeard hated betrayers.
Now, he simply stayed still, doing everything he could to preserve the scraps of his strength.
Back on the execution platform—
From the massive wooden Buddha, an even greater wooden avatar emerged—seated atop the Buddha's head, with a lifelike wooden dragon coiled protectively around its body.
Hashirama Senju stood atop this colossal construct.
Sengoku's eyes bulged in disbelief. He instinctively stepped back.
But the countless arms behind the wooden Buddha made the truth clear—
This was the true power of "Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands."
"Damn it!" Sengoku growled. "I'm the Fleet Admiral of the Marines—Buddha Sengoku!"
With a roar, sweat pouring down his face, he sprang forward and struck.
He raised the golden Buddha's palm and slammed it down with full force.
BOOOOM—!!!
The shockwave tore through the air.
CRACK—
But when the full force of Sengoku's golden Buddha landed on Hashirama's construct…
It didn't leave so much as a scratch.
"…Then it's my turn."
Hashirama's voice was calm.
"If you know Haki, use it now."
"Otherwise—you won't survive what's coming."
"BUDDHA ON THE TOP!!!"
With a thunderous shout, chakra erupted like a tidal wave.
The sea of arms behind the wooden Buddha surged forward—
Each hand larger than Sengoku's entire golden Buddha.
Thousands of wooden fists descended like divine judgment.
Sengoku looked up—
Mind going blank.
Each one of those fists was a death sentence.
Even with Haki…
Even with the Navy's Six Styles…
Under this relentless, godlike barrage—
There was no chance of winning.
No—
There was no chance of survival.
BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!
The sky exploded with shockwaves.
Sengoku roared.
But it was already too late.
Sengoku clenched both fists tightly.
"Drink—!!!"
With each swing, he unleashed a powerful air cannon.
But no matter how fierce or rapid his attacks were, against thousands of wooden hands—each the size of his entire Buddha form—it was like trying to stop a tsunami with a handful of pebbles.
BOOM BOOM—!!!
He managed to destroy a few wooden fists with his air cannons, splintering the wood mid-air.
But for each fist destroyed, countless more followed.
What awaited the Fleet Admiral of the Navy, Buddha Sengoku, was still a storm of a thousand fists.
"Damn it!" Sengoku cursed, fists trembling.
He shifted into full elemental mode.
At the same time, he activated Tekkai—Iron Body—and coated both fists in Haki.
BOOM BOOM—!!!
Against the endless barrage of Wood Release fists, Sengoku retaliated with full force.
And yet—
Nothing changed.
The rain of wooden fists kept falling.
Each blow struck Sengoku's body with terrifying force, shaking him to the core.
The destructive power of the Wooden Hands surpassed even his own golden Buddha's might.
Though he shattered one fist with a desperate counter—
That was barely a fraction of Hashirama's True Several Thousand Hands.
Blood began leaking from Sengoku's mouth… then from his nose, eyes, and ears.
"…How is this possible?!"
"Damn it—this power… we're not even on the same level!"
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku!!!"
"Don't stop me! I have to save him!"
"You'll die if you go up there!"
"So what—we're just supposed to watch the Fleet Admiral die?!"
"Hahaha! Brothers, let's move! The Admiral can't hold out any longer!"
"..."
The battlefield below plunged into chaos again.
At that moment, Admiral Aokiji felt an overwhelming pressure settle over him.
He raised his head—
Uchiha Madara's full-body Susanoo stood like a dark god beneath the execution platform, towering over the battlefield.
And higher still—on the platform itself—stood Senju Hashirama's Shin: True Several Thousand Hands, its heads brushing the clouds.
The sheer density and scale of the wooden fists made Aokiji shiver.
Even if he shifted into his elemental ice form—
He couldn't survive that kind of attack.
Haki reinforcement and Tekkai required immense stamina to maintain. Even with all of it, he wouldn't last.
Put simply, Aokiji knew—if he were the one standing there, he'd be dead already.
The attack radius alone was vast. There was no escape.
"…Tch." Aokiji let out a bitter smile.
And when he looked up again at the massive, completed form of Susanoo looming above him…
He realized—
His own situation wasn't any better.
Elsewhere, Admiral Akainu stood with his head lowered, face clouded with fury and dread.
If this was just the Whitebeard Pirates, he'd still feel confident.
But now, after seeing the strength these other monsters revealed—
He knew.
They were going to lose.
BOOM BOOM—!!!
Suddenly, a massive black-and-purple sphere shot up from the distant sea.
Everyone instinctively turned to look.
Out on the deck of a giant vessel—
Nine colossal beasts stood watching from afar.
WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH—!!!
Akainu's head snapped up, magma flaring across his arms.
Heat rippled outward.
BWOBOBOBO—!!!
Waves of molten lava surged from his body.
"Meteor Volcano!!!"
Akainu thrust both arms skyward.
Lava burst from his fists like a volcanic eruption, hurling toward the incoming black sphere.
Countless magma bombs followed, launched high into the air.
From a distance, Sasuke Uchiha watched silently. The corner of his lips curled up.
"Heh. The storm is coming... The conditions are perfect for that jutsu."
No—stop him from smiling! Somebody stop him from smirking right now!
The lava bombs reached their peak—and then began to fall.
Each blazing meteor curved downward.
And as they dropped, one by one—
They took on the form of giant lava fists.
Their target—
The massive Tailed Beast Ball.
BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!
The blazing fists slammed into the dark sphere, unleashing a series of thunderous explosions.
Smoke blanketed the sky.
But as it cleared—
There it was.
The Tailed Beast Ball still hovered in place.
Even larger than Sengoku's golden Buddha.
Its surface now sizzled—coated in Akainu's magma.
The battlefield fell silent.
Everyone stared, speechless.
And then—
"…Barbecue'd. This thing's marinated now."
This was like a bomb wrapped in iron sand.
What could anyone do against something like this?
"Run—!!!"
"Get out of here!!"
"Damn it… who can even escape from a blast like that?!"
"We're not even on the same level as them!"
Aokiji felt a chill course down his spine. Not from fear—from raw instinct.
"Ice Age!"
He released his freezing aura, trying to counter or at least slow down the impending impact with sheer elemental force.
But—
It was already too late.
Before his freezing breath could reach it—
The Tailed Beast Ball detonated.
BZZZZZZZZZ——!!!
There was no sound at first.
Only a low, humming resonance… as endless shockwaves began to ripple outward.
All of Akainu's magma strikes were blown away in an instant—dispersed like candle flames in a hurricane.
Over Marineford, a small mushroom cloud blossomed upward, dirty gray and pulsing with chakra.
Navy soldiers. Pirates. Everyone below—
They froze.
For a second, it felt like the world went mute.
Then—
BOOOOOOM——!!!
The delayed sound of the explosion finally hit, like thunder slamming into the back of your skull.
Ears rang. Bodies staggered. Eyes widened in terror.
"That's chaos," muttered Senju Tobirama, his voice low, tone unimpressed.
He scanned the battlefield.
The new generation had already bolted—dodging instinctively before the impact.
Tobirama gave a short nod. Smart kids.
"Hahaha~!"
"I'm here!"
As the thick smoke slowly cleared over the sea—
On the massive deck of a distant ship—
An enormous octopus with a bull's head hoisted a fat, sand-colored tanuki overhead.
With a wild shout, Gyūki the Eight-Tailshurled Shukaku like a living cannonball.
Whoooosh—!!!
The One-Tail flew through the air like a screaming, angry ball of meat—hurtling straight toward Marineford.
In the sky above, Deidara watched it all unfold, his heartbeat pounding like a drum.
His mouth hung open, saliva dribbling down as he trembled—not from fear, but from overwhelming exhilaration.
His entire body buzzed.
Watching the Marine HQ get shredded into rubble—
Watching the shockwaves tear across sea and sky—
Made his scalp tingle with joy.
"…Art is—"
"EXPLOSIONS!!!"
...
TN:
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