"Fufufufufu… truly worthy of a legendary monster," Doflamingo chuckled, his grin twisted and delighted. "That level of power right from the opening move."
The other Shichibukai stood unfazed, seemingly indifferent to the towering waves hundreds of meters high bearing down on Marineford.
Then Aokiji moved.
With a Geppo, he kicked off the air itself, moonwalking upward. His voice dropped.
"Ice Age."
Before the final syllable faded, jagged spears of ice formed in his grasp and shot forward. In the blink of an eye, the raging tsunamis were frozen solid, transformed into colossal walls of ice.
"It stopped!"
"It's Admiral Aokiji!"
Only now did the Marines snap back to reality, their voices trembling with awe and lingering fear.
Whitebeard wasn't surprised in the slightest. He had never expected that tsunami to wipe them out—it was nothing more than an opening warning.
"Ice Block: Partisan—"
Taking Whitebeard's move as a challenge, Aokiji launched a counterattack, his frozen weapon slicing through the air.
Whitebeard didn't even bother to look.
With a casual punch, a tremor rippled outward. The quake shattered Aokiji's attack instantly, the shockwave crashing into Aokiji's body and blowing him apart, sending him plummeting into Crescent Bay below.
The result was instantaneous.
The entire bay—and the surrounding waters of Marineford—froze solid in an instant. The Moby Dick was locked in place, unable to move.
"It's frozen!"
"But this works for us—we've got solid ground!"
"Brothers, attack!"
The Whitebeard Pirates leapt from the ship one after another, roaring as they charged.
"Don't panic!"
"We have a hundred thousand elite Marines!"
"And the Three Admirals and the Seven Warlords!"
"That's right—crush the Whitebeard Pirates!"
"Charge!"
The battlefield erupted.
Marco shifted instantly into his hybrid form, blue flames flickering along his wings. As he launched forward, he called back to Jozu:
"Jozu—Pops is in your hands!"
"Leave it to me!" Jozu replied with a confident grin.
Marco didn't hesitate.
He dove straight into the Marine ranks, his kick sending three soldiers crashing to the ground. In one smooth motion, he drew a sword from his waist and drove it cleanly through their throats.
No hesitation. No mercy.
Killed Marine Sergeant — Reward: 3 Attribute Points.
Killed Marine Corporal — Reward: 2 Attribute Points.
Killed Marine Corporal — Reward: 2 Attribute Points.
Marco barely spared the notifications a glance. He didn't stop to allocate the points—he kept moving, cutting down Marines without pause.
In this world, fists alone didn't guarantee death.
To kill someone, you struck the throat. You severed the head. Anything less left room for survival.
High above, Whitebeard watched Marco charging at the very front lines, surprise flickering across his eyes.
Marco had never favored swords before. And yet now, his movements were precise, ruthless—every fallen Marine received a finishing blow.
Whitebeard's lips curved slightly.
Good. This was war.
Against the enemy, there was no room for hesitation.
Only kill—or be killed.
"Pops—!"
Jozu rushed over at that moment.
Whitebeard glanced sideways, a hint of surprise flickering across his face. "Jozu? Why are you here?"
Jozu answered honestly, "Marco told me to stay and protect you."
Whitebeard threw his head back and laughed thunderously.
"Gurarara! Protect me? The man who can kill me hasn't even been born yet!"
"That's only natural," Jozu replied firmly. "Pops is the strongest."
Even so, he didn't move away. Instead, he planted himself behind Whitebeard like an unyielding statue.
Whitebeard didn't dwell on it. His gaze returned to the battlefield—but when it landed on Marco, his brows creased slightly.
In order to gain attribute points, Marco made sure every Marine he knocked down stayed down. Over time, he realized that most of the Whitebeard Pirates didn't bother finishing off fallen enemies. Once he noticed this, Marco began deliberately moving through the battlefield, delivering clean finishing blows one by one.
It wasn't glorious—but it was efficient. It saved stamina and rapidly increased his gains.
Jozu hesitated.
Should he tell Pops about Marco's suspicions?
He didn't think it was strictly necessary—but watching the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates clash violently atop the frozen bay, his urge to join the fight grew stronger. The Marines outnumbered them several times over, and as the Third Division Commander, he couldn't remain idle.
"Pops," Jozu said, "I'm heading into battle."
"Mm. Go," Whitebeard replied with a nod.
Just as Jozu turned to leave, he paused and added, "There's one more thing… Marco asked me to warn you about Squard."
"Squard?" Whitebeard frowned slightly.
Jozu explained, "Marco said Squard's former crew were killed by Roger—and Ace is Roger's son. If Squard finds out, the Marines might manipulate him into acting against you."
Whitebeard's eyes sharpened instantly.
"…I see," he said gravely. "That does sound like a Marine tactic."
He waved Jozu off. "Understood. You may go."
"Yes, Pops."
—
On the battlefield, Marco continued carving his way through Marine ranks. Every Marine here was elite—the weakest among them were non-commissioned officers. Even so, Marco's kill count rose rapidly, and soon he had accumulated over five hundred attribute points.
He still didn't allocate them.
The real slaughter hadn't even begun yet.
I need to squeeze out every bit of strength I can, Marco thought. After Ace is rescued, I'll probably have to face Akainu head-on.
In the original timeline, Marco had been utterly suppressed by Akainu. Even with the Phoenix's regeneration, he couldn't stop him.
This time, Marco didn't expect victory—but he needed the power to stall him.
"Phoenix Marco—die!"
Several Marine officers charged him head-on, swords drawn.
Marco's eyes were ice-cold.
His sword hardened with Armament Haki as he surged forward.
Clang!
With a single strike, his blade sliced through their sabers, severely wounding two Marines in an instant.
"Tch—there's an opening!"
Three more Marines lunged from behind.
Marco sensed them and sneered.
Blue flames ignited along the edge of his blade.
"Blue Flame Sword."
He struck again—three more Marines collapsed, screaming in agony.
Marco stepped calmly in front of them, drew a pistol from his waist, and raised it without hesitation.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
Five shots.
Five heads shattered.
On this battlefield, Marco had already made his choice.
No mercy.
No hesitation.