There were only four days left until Portgas D. Ace's public execution. Three days had already passed since the monumental clash between Kaido and Red-Haired Shanks. Far from the world's centers of power, another force was in motion. Guided by the Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock, Straw Hat Luffy was making his own desperate journey toward the great underwater prison. They were still two days out from the impenetrable fortress of Impel Down.
The Calm Belt was living up to its name. Upon the still, azure surface of the sea, a lone Marine warship sliced through the water, heading for Impel Down at top speed. It had just passed through the Gates of Justice, and in five short hours, it would arrive at its destination.
On the deck, alongside the regular Marines, stood a silent, imposing group. They were all dressed in identical black suits, their faces hidden behind stark white masks. They stood motionless at the bow, exuding an intimidating aura that kept the other soldiers from getting too close. If one dared to inch a bit nearer, however, they would have heard the nervous whispers exchanged between the black-clad figures.
"Uh, are we really going to be okay doing this?" Perona's voice was filled with her usual anxiety.
Though the masks concealed their expressions, the tense posture of the others made it clear they shared her nervousness. Only Blueno, their leader, seemed completely at ease.
"Don't worry," he said in a low, steady voice. "CP represents the will of the World Government itself—the highest authority on these seas. The Marines aren't qualified to question us. As far as they're concerned, we are CP9."
Blueno wasn't exaggerating. He knew well the power their disguise held. In the future, Rob Lucci, after his promotion to CP0, would dare to shout down Fleet Admiral Akainu himself. Even the Five Elders had once dismissed the Marines as nothing more than the public face of the World Government, declaring that the truly important matters were handled by Cipher Pol. That alone proved the immense authority they wielded.
Jewelry Bonney, standing beside him, asked curiously, "So, does this mean we can just walk right into Impel Down?"
Blueno paused for a moment before answering. "I'm not sure," he admitted slowly. "It all comes down to luck."
"Luck!?" Perona shrieked.
"That's right," Blueno confirmed. "Everyone else in Impel Down will be easy to deal with; no one will dare to stand in our way. But there's one exception: the warden, Magellan. He's a notoriously difficult man to handle. If we're unlucky enough to run into him, then this mission is over before it begins. The man is a monster, easily on par with one of the three Admirals."
His words caused a wave of fear to ripple through the group.
"However," Blueno continued, "there's good news. Magellan is a Paramecia-type user who ate the Venom-Venom Fruit. Because of his fruit's side effects, he spends nearly half of every day stuck on the toilet, which means he rarely leaves his office on Level 4. If our luck holds and we don't cross paths with him, we should be able to get inside without a problem."
"Could you tell us more about Impel Down?" Yamato asked, her voice steady and focused.
"Of course," Blueno replied. "Impel Down is a massive, tower-like structure located in the middle of the Calm Belt. It has seven levels in total. The ground level, which is above the water, is where the staff live and work. The six floors below sea level are for the prisoners. They are, in order: Level 1, the Crimson Hell; Level 2, the Wild Beast Hell; Level 3, the Starvation Hell; Level 4, the Blazing Hell; Level 5, the Freezing Hell; and finally, the deepest level where Fire Fist Ace is being held, Level 6, the Eternal Hell."
"So we have to fight our way from the top all the way down to the sixth level, and then fight all the way back out again, just to save one person?" Perona said, her voice dripping with despair. "That's impossible!"
The others fell silent, the weight of the task settling upon them.
Blueno, however, had already formulated a plan. "It would be impossible to fight your way through," he agreed. "That's why I'll use our CP9 authority to get you directly to Level 5, the Freezing Hell. That level is special."
"Special how?" Yamato asked.
"For two reasons," Blueno explained. "First, because it's not Level 6, the guards won't be overly suspicious of our presence. Second, the extreme cold interferes with the Den Den Mushi, so there's no video surveillance. Getting you there is the most I can do. After that, you'll be on your own. I won't be going down with you; I'll find an opportunity to leave."
Perona trembled, but Yamato simply lowered her head. "Thank you," she said softly.
"Don't thank me. I'm just following Lord Kaido's orders," Blueno replied. "Oh, and that reminds me. Lord Kaido had another message he wanted me to give you."
Yamato's head snapped up.
"He said there's a rumor," Blueno continued, "of a hidden level between Level 5 and Level 6, a place called Level 5.5. He thinks that if you can find it, it might be the key to rescuing Fire Fist Ace."
While Yamato and Luffy were both racing against time, each on their own path to save Ace, the man himself was trapped in the deepest pits of hell.
In a massive cell on Impel Down's Level 6, the legendary Marine Hero, Monkey D. Garp, sat slumped on the cold stone floor, his face a mask of sorrow.
"Why, Ace? Why did it have to turn out this way?" Garp's voice was heavy with grief. "I trained you and Luffy to become the finest Marines in the world, and you both ran off to become pirates."
Ace, chained and covered in blood and grime, managed a weak smile. "Maybe it's because Luffy and I both carry the world's most evil bloodline," he said. "I never wanted to admit it, and I even took my mother's name to escape it, but no matter what, I could never have become a Marine."
Garp's expression grew even darker. "Your father, he..."
"I have only one father," Ace interrupted, his voice ringing with unshakable conviction. "And his name is Whitebeard!"
Hearing the resolve in his grandson's voice, Garp knew it was useless to argue. He fell silent, trying to prolong the little time they had left. "Do you know Kaido's daughter?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Yamato?" Ace's gaze softened slightly. "Yeah, I know her. She's like me... she hates the blood she inherited." He let out a bitter laugh. "But she's luckier than I am. Kaido gave her freedom, while I'm still chained down by my bloodline."
For a brief moment, Garp felt an unexpected pang of sympathy for his enemy, Kaido. "You kids," he grumbled, shaking his head. "One by one, you're all determined to give your parents nothing but headaches."
The cell fell silent again. Garp searched for something else to say, anything to keep him by Ace's side a little longer, but Ace had closed himself off completely. Seeing this, Garp knew it was time to leave. He slowly pushed himself to his feet.
"A war is coming," he said, his back to the cell. "A war between the Marines and the World's Strongest Man. No one knows how it will end... but Ace, as your grandfather, I just hope you survive."
"Old man..." Ace whispered, looking up, but Garp was already walking away. As a Marine, he had already said more than he should have. It was the best he could do.
Inside the elevator ascending from the depths of Impel Down, Garp's expression was grim. Watching the grandson he had raised with his own hands waste away in a cell, knowing he was powerless to stop his march toward death, filled him with a profound weariness. He had never felt so old, so utterly defeated.
The elevator doors slid open with a soft hiss.
At that same moment, a strange presence brushed against his senses. He looked up, his eyes narrowing as he saw a group of people dressed as CP9 agents walking toward him from the prison's main entrance.
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