"Hey, Marco is flying towards the execution platform!" a Marine shouted. "Quick, shoot him down!"
Hearing the man's words, the nearby Marines immediately raised their weapons and launched an attack on Marco in the air.
But unfortunately, the opponent possessed the Phoenix Fruit—ordinary bullets couldn't deal any effective damage to him!
Seeing this, the pirates immediately erupted in excitement!
"Go, Marco!"
"Save Ace!"
"Marco, huh." Meiser stared at Marco flying in mid-air, momentarily stunned before exclaiming in surprise, "Is this guy planning to rescue someone?"
Not a bad idea, but... did this guy forget he was just sent flying earlier?!
That old man Garp's attack infused with Conqueror's Haki could really kill someone if it landed!
At that moment, Meiser noticed Marco in the air glance back in his direction, as if conveying a message to someone here.
"This look..."
Meiser frowned in thought, and then an idea immediately popped into his head.
That's right, Marco must be trying to send me a message!
"Does he want me to try again?" Meiser thought to himself.
If he and Marco both appeared at the execution platform... they might actually be able to save Ace!
Might as well give it another shot—it's not like I'll die anyway!
With that in mind, Meiser quickly created a Shadow Clone to stay by Luffy's side, then his main body charged toward Kuma, intending to use the other's Devil Fruit power to launch himself toward the execution platform!
"Hmm?"
Noticing Meiser's movements, Borsalino raised an eyebrow and said, "He's running toward Kuma because..."
As if he had figured something out, a look of understanding instantly appeared in Borsalino's eyes.
Then, his body gradually transformed into yellow light, swiftly rushing toward Meiser.
By the time he reappeared, he was already standing in front of Meiser.
"Kizaru?!"
"You're probably planning to use Bartholomew Kuma's ability to fly over there again, aren't you?" Borsalino tilted his head and said. "I won't let you succeed."
Meiser frowned upon hearing this, then spat and said, "Tch, light-based powers are really annoying."
With this guy blocking the way, it wouldn't be easy for him to get through.
But he could always have Kuma come to him instead!
Thinking this, Meiser activated his ability, intending to summon Bartholomew Kuma over.
Just then, a figure appeared in mid-air and reached Marco in the blink of an eye!
"Garp?!"
Seeing Garp appear before him, Marco's pupils contracted to their limits.
"Get lost!" Garp roared.
As he spoke, Garp swung his Haki-infused fist and smashed it hard into Marco's neck.
"BAM!!"
An overwhelmingly terrifying force struck Marco, sending him plummeting from mid-air!
"Whoosh!"
"BOOM!!"
Like a cannonball, Marco crashed into the ground in an instant, creating a massive crater upon impact!!!
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Whoosh"
Garp, stepping through the air with Moonwalk, returned to his previous position and stared down at the pirates below, declaring, "Pirates, you shall not pass through here!"
"Vice Admiral Garp has made his move again!!"
Seeing the man seated firmly in his position, the Marines' morale surged to new heights!
"Dammit!"
Marco climbed out of the crater, clutching his neck as he muttered, "We were so close..."
If he and the Blood-Eyed Ninja had managed to approach the execution platform together, they would have surely found a chance to rescue Ace. But unfortunately, this Marine Hero gave them no opportunity.
"Hiss..."
"It hurts so much!"
Feeling the intense pain radiating from his neck, Marco's expression darkened.
The injury was more severe than he had anticipated...
As expected of the Marine Hero, wasn't it?
Glancing at the old man sitting steadily in his seat, a shadow of gloom flickered in Marco's eyes.
"What on earth is that old man Garp thinking?!" Meiser frowned inwardly.
"Hey, hey, hey~ Isn't it a bit disrespectful to be looking elsewhere right now?" Borsalino spoke up. No sooner had his words faded than he flashed to Meiser's side, delivering a whip kick!
"Light Speed Kick!"
"Thud!"
The blow sent Meiser flying backward!!
In the next instant, Meiser's body twisted strangely, and he reappeared beside Kizaru, aiming a punch straight at his kidney!
"Armament - Super Strength Fist!"
"Clang!"
Borsalino, having protected his kidney with Armament Haki, glared darkly at Meiser and said, "Are you not done yet?"
Did this brat have to keep trying to shatter his kidney?
In response, Meiser merely smiled faintly without saying a word.
Then, he infused Haki into his leg and kicked directly at Borsalino's body.
"Clang!"
"BOOM!!"
Watching Meiser locked in combat with Borsalino, Ivankov declared, "Leave Kizaru to the Ninja Boy! The rest of you, cover the Straw Hat Boy and get him to the execution platform!"
"Understood!" Inazuma nodded in agreement.
He then signaled to the Okama behind him, and they charged toward the distance.
"Follow me, Straw Hat Boy!"
"Coming!"
Luffy, who had been waiting beside Meiser's clone, stood up upon hearing this and quickly ran after Inazuma.
Meanwhile, the clone beside him frowned, staring intently at the high execution platform.
"A platform made of metal..."
Although he could use Earth Release Technique to manipulate the rocks below and launch an attack, the moment the rocks emerged, old man Garp and the Fleet Admiral would detect the Earth Release Technique.
So such a method would likely be pointless.
In that case, the only option was to find a way to send Luffy across. Meiser thought to himself.
He refused to believe that old man Garp could truly bring himself to harm Luffy!
With this in mind, Meiser glanced up at Garp and once again shot the observing man a meaningful look.
Garp: ???
What in the world did this kid mean by that?
At that moment, 16th Division Commander Izo roared, "Don't be intimidated by the title of Marine Hero! With Pops here, we have nothing to fear!"
"He's right! Pops said he's just a mere marine - no need to be afraid of him!"
"Rescue Ace! Destroy the Marines!"
"Oooooh!!"
Encouraged, the pirates howled with renewed vigor and charged forward rapidly.
Seeing this, Akainu instinctively furrowed his brow before turning to Whitebeard and saying, "It seems to completely deal with these guys, I'll have to take you down first."
If he could crush the spiritual pillar of the Whitebeard Pirates, then... the Whitebeard Pirates would be utterly annihilated!
Thinking this, terrifying killing intent erupted in Akainu's eyes.
"Gurararara!"
"Save that talk for when you can actually do it!" Whitebeard laughed heartily.
Hearing this, Akainu didn't respond but instead launched his attack without hesitation.
"Bzzzt"
Terrible magma emerged from his arm, transforming into an enormous wolf-like hound!
"Dog Bite Crimson Lotus!"
"Roar!"
The magma in the form of a wolfhound roared before charging toward Whitebeard.
"Hmph!"
Whitebeard snorted coldly at the sight, swinging his naginata backward to strike the Dog Bite Crimson Lotus head-on, forcibly sending it flying!
"Whoosh"
"BOOM!!"
The single strike directly shattered several buildings in the distance!
"Ahhh!"
Those directly hit by the attack screamed in agony before being burned to ashes by the terrifying high temperatures.
After glancing back at the destruction, Akainu frowned instinctively and said, "Damn you, Whitebeard, destroying the town again and again."
"Don't blame others for your inability to protect this place properly," Whitebeard retorted.
Akainu fell silent for a moment before rapidly charging toward Whitebeard, his fists transforming into blazing magma!
"Once I take you down, all problems will be solved!"
"Great Erup-"
Before Akainu could finish speaking, he found Whitebeard's naginata already before him, forcing him to abort his attack and use Haki to protect his body instead.
The next moment-
"CLANG!"
The great blade struck Akainu's body, sending the man flying away!
Watching Akainu land in the distance, Whitebeard snorted coldly. "Hmph, you magma brat, you..."
Before Whitebeard could finish, an indescribable pain seized his chest, forcing him to kneel on one knee in agony.
"Dammit... This damn heart condition again..."
As the pain from his heart intensified, cold sweat immediately broke out across Whitebeard's face.
"Pops?!"
Seeing Whitebeard's pained expression, Marco showed horrified alarm.
"Damn it! Our worst fear has come true!"
With Pops affected by his heart condition in this dangerous state, he had to get there quickly!
Thinking this, Marco rushed rapidly toward Whitebeard's position.
But the distance between them was too great - he couldn't provide support immediately.
"You've grown old after all, Whitebeard," said Akainu, who had quickly returned, coldly staring at Whitebeard. "Allow me to send you to hell!"
No sooner had the words fallen than Akainu charged before Whitebeard, landing a punch squarely on his chest.
"BOOM!!"
The terrifying high temperature instantly blasted a massive wound in Whitebeard's body!
"Is that all there is?"
With a cold sneer, Akainu withdrew his hand and distanced himself from Whitebeard, denying the latter any chance of a deathbed struggle.
Then, everyone noticed the wound on Whitebeard's body still burning with flames!
"Pops!"
Seeing this, Diamond Jozu's pupils contracted to their limits.
"Ara ara, you dare look away while fighting me?" Aokiji said coldly as he appeared beside Jozu. "How foolish!"
"BOOM!!"
The terrifying cold energy touched Jozu's right arm, instantly freezing the entire right side of his body into an ice sculpture!
"Damn it..."
Watching the ice gradually spreading to other parts of his body, Jozu's eyes immediately turned bloodshot.
Then, the man infused Haki into his left hand and struck his right arm with brutal force!
"CLANG!"
With a single blow, he shattered his own right arm, then quickly distanced himself from Aokiji.
"What?"
Aokiji was momentarily stunned seeing Jozu decisively break his own arm.
Then he remarked, "So you broke your own arm to avoid being completely frozen."
Glancing at the severed arm in his hand, a flicker of admiration appeared in Aokiji's eyes.
Undeniably, the man had made the most correct choice—otherwise he would have been completely frozen!
"Captain Jozu!"
"Quick, support Captain Jozu!"
The pirates from the third division angrily raised their weapons, charging toward Aokiji with furious roars.
"Stop them! Don't let them interfere with Admiral Aokiji!"
"Right!"
The Marines rushed forward at the command, weapons in hand, blocking the pirates trying to rescue their comrade.
After glancing at the intercepted pirates, Aokiji turned to Diamond Jozu and said, "Ara ara, it seems this is as far as you go."
"Huff... huff..."
Diamond Jozu gasped heavily, glaring coldly at Aokiji. "I only lost one arm, it's not like—"
Before he could finish, he found Aokiji already standing before him.
"Damn it, Brilliant—"
"Freezing Time Capsule!"
"BOOM!!"
Not giving Diamond Jozu any chance to strike, Aokiji instantly froze him into an ice sculpture!
"Jozu!!"
Witnessing this, despair flashed in the eyes of the distant pirates.
Their Captain Jozu was finished.
"You lost an arm and half your body is frozen—how could you possibly defeat me in this state?" Aokiji exhaled a breath of frosty air.
Then, he shifted his gaze to Marco, who was desperately rushing toward Whitebeard.
"Having lost your composure, your doom is not far off," Aokiji murmured.
Without Whitebeard as their backbone, the Whitebeard Pirates would be utterly defenseless!!!
"Bastard Akainu!" Marco roared. "I won't let you get away with this!"
As he spoke, Marco flapped his wings and took flight, swiftly charging toward Whitebeard.
At that moment, a man using Moonwalk appeared beside Marco, his voice icy cold as he said:
"You've let your guard down."
"Wha—?!!"
Watching Vice Admiral Onigumo suddenly appear beside him, Marco's pupils instantly constricted.
But before he could do anything, the man produced a pair of Seastone Handcuffs and shackled him.
"It's actually Seastone?!"
Feeling the power that made him weak, Marco's expression immediately turned grim.
It's over...
At this moment, Marco seemed to see the shadow of death.
"Eight-Finger Pistol!!"
"Pfft!"
Without hesitation, Onigumo transformed his hair into eight palm-like appendages and launched an attack on Marco.
"Pfft!"
"Pfft!"
"Pfft!"
A single strike directly pierced eight wounds into Marco's body!
After spitting out a mouthful of blood, Marco collapsed to the ground.
"Thud!"
"Pops..."
After one last glance at the man clutching his chest, Marco weakly lowered his head.
"Hah..."
Exhaling a puff of smoke, Onigumo said, "Finally subdued."
Although the Phoenix's Devil Fruit Ability is quite troublesome, as long as he can be restrained with Seastone, it can be resolved. Letting out a cold laugh, Onigumo drew the longsword at his waist, intending to finish off this guy for good.
"Don't even think about it!!"
A pirate from the New World charged over from the side, slashing his blade directly onto Onigumo's longsword!
"Clang!"
Frowning at the swordsman blocking his strike, Onigumo said, "Thunder Sword Homas, is it?"
"I can't let you kill Marco, you bastard!" Homas said coldly.
Seeing someone block Onigumo, the other pirates immediately breathed a sigh of relief and rushed over to drag Marco away to another location.
"Hurry, find the key to the Seastone Handcuffs!" one pirate shouted. "As long as we find the key, Commander Marco can recover!"
"Right!!"
Upon receiving the order, the pirates desperately began searching for the key that could unlock Marco's Seastone Handcuffs.
After all... this is a combatant capable of standing up to a Marine Admiral!
--Enjoying the story? Want more chapters? Check out my Patreon and support me for 40+ advance chapters.
Just search for "LegendaryTL" on Patreon!"
Thanks!