"Great, all three Admirals have been tied up! Ace, I'm coming to save you!" A powerful blue flame erupted from Marco's body as he transformed into a phoenix and sped toward the execution platform.
"Do you think the old man will let you succeed?" Sengoku scoffed. A golden light burst from his body as he began to grow into his Zoan, Human-Human Fruit, Model: Daibutsu form.
However, at that moment, a playful voice came from behind. "Railgun!" A gold coin shot out at three times the speed of sound, leaving an orange afterimage as it struck Marco.
BOOM!
Marco was sent flying backward, crashing into the town below and kicking up a cloud of smoke.
"Captain Marco?!"
"Hey, did you just see who sent Captain Marco flying?"
"No... but the attacker must have used Haki, otherwise it would have been impossible to hurt Captain Marco's phoenix form!" The sudden scene shocked the surrounding pirates.
At the same time, Adrian appeared on the edge of the execution platform. Looking at Sengoku, who was gradually returning to normal form, Adrian smiled faintly. "Mr. Sengoku, let me deal with a guy like him!"
"I'm warning you, it's best not to do anything out of line... otherwise, I'll personally deal with you!" Sengoku stared at Adrian with a gloomy face. He didn't believe that Adrian would be so kind as to come and help him. This cunning little fox must have some ulterior motive! That shocking slash from earlier and the Empress's humble and obedient attitude toward him—all of it made Sengoku feel uneasy. Damn it, how many secrets does this kid have?! Sengoku suddenly regretted not getting rid of this troublesome guy before he had grown so powerful. The most ridiculous thing was that he had even considered recruiting him into Marine! Thinking about it, Sengoku gritted his teeth in hatred.
But now, even though he knew Adrian was up to something, there was nothing he could do. The massive threat of the Whitebeard Pirates and the Revolutionary Army didn't allow Sengoku to be distracted. This battle needed high-level combatants like Adrian to coordinate. It seemed that Adrian had dug a deep hole, waiting for Sengoku to jump in. And what made Sengoku the most anxious was that even though he knew it was a trap, he had to jump in.
Damn it! Sengoku swore inwardly. He then turned his head away from Adrian.
"Ha ha ha! Mr. Sengoku's threat... is so scary!" Adrian deliberately pretended to be scared to anger Sengoku. Under the other man's furious gaze, he laughed and jumped off the execution platform.
Blue arcs of electricity surged. In the next second, Adrian appeared in front of Marco.
"Marco, we meet again!"
"Damn it! He used Armament Haki!" Marco's right shoulder was completely pierced. He struggled to stand up as the blue regenerative flames emanated a powerful life force, quickly healing the wound. But Marco's expression became more and more grim. He suddenly realized that he and his father, Whitebeard, had greatly underestimated the strength and ambition of the black-haired boy in front of him.
"You Warlord bastard! Don't get in the way! If you know what's good for you, get out of the way and don't delay me from saving Ace!" Marco suppressed his anger and shouted anxiously.
"Hey, Marco, aren't you a little too confident in your own strength?" Adrian sneered, tilting his head and pointing his chin toward the battle between Whitebeard and Akainu. "Why, you can't even trust your father's strength? Isn't he the strongest man in the world?"
"Damn it, did he notice?" A look of fear and vigilance flashed in Marco's eyes. He hadn't expected Adrian's insight to be so sharp; he had discovered the anomaly in Whitebeard. Although Whitebeard was without a doubt gaining the upper hand in his fight with Akainu, his attacks were always interrupted by sudden pains. The high-intensity battle had exacerbated his old illness. If the battle didn't end soon, it would have serious consequences. This was the most direct reason why Marco was so anxious to rescue Ace. The Whitebeard Pirates couldn't afford a prolonged battle.
"Stop talking nonsense! Get out of here!" Marco charged forward, his right arm coated in Armament Haki as he punched toward Adrian's head. If he wanted to save Ace, he had to get past this brat first.
"You still want to save Ace? Hmph, you should think about how to save yourself first!" Adrian slowly drew the Oto and Kogarashi from the rising sand pillar, and sliced down toward Marco.
"More-More Fruit... 10x Slash Wave!"
To avoid his slashes being too shocking, Adrian deliberately didn't use the full power. But even so, a 10x Slash Wave was still terrifying with his swordsman skills. A huge crescent-shaped slash soared into the sky, as if to tear the world apart, and collided with Marco's fist with the terrifying power of cutting mountains and rivers.
"Not good!" Feeling the terrifying power from the slash, Marco's face changed drastically. A strong sense of crisis rose in his heart. If he didn't deal with it properly, he would die! He crossed his arms in front of him, covered in Armament Haki, and at the same time, the blue flames all over his body surged wildly.
Rumble!
After a dull explosion, the massive slash dissipated. Marco had been pushed back more than ten meters. Although he had blocked the attack, if it weren't for the Phoenix Fruit's super-healing ability, his arms would have been cut off long ago.
"As expected of Captain Marco! He withstood that slash!"
"Captain Marco, don't hold back! Kill that nasty brat!"
"Yeah, that bastard extorted 1.5 billion Berries from us!"
"Marco, Dad won't blame you! Just do it!" The pirates who didn't know the truth all started to cheer. In their minds, Marco had blocked the shocking slash with his bare hands, which meant he was stronger than Adrian. As the number two member of the Whitebeard Pirates, Marco's attack power might not be the best, but his incredible healing ability made him the most persistent and toughest enemy in the New World. So the other members of the Whitebeard Pirates were confident in his strength.
However, only Marco himself knew the huge gap between him and Adrian. The opponent had just casually swung his sword, yet it had forced him to use both his Armament Haki and his fruit ability. What a terrifying attack! Before this, Marco had only seen such power from his father, Whitebeard, and the other Yonko's.
This kid isn't even 20 years old! When I was 20, I had just learned Armament Haki! He's a monster! A proper monster! If he continues to grow, I'm afraid even Dad won't be his opponent! The more Marco thought about it, the more terrified he became, and he no longer had the will to fight.
But Adrian wasn't going to let him go. "Your performance is truly disappointing, Marco!" Blue lightning flashed, and his cold, playful voice sounded from behind Marco. "How can you be Whitebeard's second-in-command when you're so weak?"
As his voice fell, he unleashed a kick, infused with Armament Haki and the power of his devil fruit.
"Damn it! So fast?!" Marco's face went pale with fright. Even though his Observation Haki had sensed Adrian, his body couldn't react in time.
BOOM!
In the next second, Marco was sent flying in a "C" shape. He was traveling as fast as a cannonball, heading for the ice outside the plaza.
"..."
The pirates who were just clamoring fell silent, looking as if their necks had been squeezed. They all blushed.
"Honestly, this... this power is too terrifying!" a pirate muttered to himself, swallowing hard.
He wasn't the only one. The nearly 100 Whitebeard Pirates in the area were all equally shocked. The second-in-command of the world's strongest pirate crew, Marco the Phoenix, who terrified countless people, was being beaten so helplessly by a teenage brat? Can you believe this?!
But this group of people was clearly surprised too early. In the next second, an even more shocking scene unfolded. Marco, who was still flying backward, had no time to stop as Adrian's figure reappeared like a ghost.
"Marco, since you're so useless, let me take your Phoenix Fruit!" Adrian smiled. As his words fell, a pad shaped like a cat's paw appeared on his right palm as he slapped Marco's head.
Bo~
Marco's figure seemed to disappear. With a speed indescribable to ordinary people, he slammed into the ice.
BOOM!
A large hole exploded in the thick ice. A column of water soared a hundred meters into the sky.
BOOM!