"Magellan is escorting Ace back here?"
Hearing the intelligence Shiryu had just shared, Xia Te raised an eyebrow slightly.
After confirming his allegiance, Shiryu had immediately begun feeding him information.
At present, Impel Down's Warden Magellan was not in the prison.
He had gone to Marine Headquarters to escort the condemned prisoner, Portgas D. Ace.
At the same time, it also meant that the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates were bound to clash in a war of unprecedented scale.
"Even though I don't think we'll lose, it's better not to waste too much time."
Xia Te stepped into Shiki's cell, hoisted the white-haired corpse onto his shoulder, and walked out of Level 6 side by side with Shiryu, smiling as he said:
"First, let's go gather some companions. No matter what, we absolutely can't miss this war."
"You already have a plan?" Shiryu asked, a cigar clenched between his teeth.
"Heh… just look forward to it."
The two took the chain-driven elevator up to Level 5.
The death row prisoners who had narrowly escaped death finally let out sighs of relief.
For reasons unknown, the monster who had inherited the Golden Lion's power—
and Shiryu of the Rain, known alongside Magellan as one of the "two strongest shields of Impel Down"—
had joined forces.
These two together were bound to turn the seas upside down!
…
…
With Shiryu leading the way, Xia Te advanced through the upper levels of Impel Down like an unstoppable force.
Even without triggering a riot on the scale of Luffy's in the original story,
the two still made their way back to the prison's entrance with ease.
"Heh, let's use this ship for now. We'll switch to our own pirate ship later."
Xia Te leapt onto a Marine warship docked nearby, grinning.
This was the largest class of vessel used by the Marines, capable of carrying a thousand soldiers.
It normally required at least a hundred men to operate.
But for Xia Te, that wasn't a problem at all.
In the next moment, he lightly touched the ship's hull.
Under the disbelieving gazes of the heavily injured guards—
the massive warship began to float.
"The power of the Float-Float Fruit… how convenient."
Shiryu leapt up and landed on deck, his eyes beneath the brim of his Marine cap fixed on Xia Te as he said in a low voice:
"I hope following you turns out to be the right decision."
"This will be the most correct decision you've ever made."
Every word Xia Te spoke was filled with unquestionable confidence.
…
…
Watching the warship gradually disappear into the clouds, Hannyabal endured the intense pain wracking his body as he pulled out a Den Den Mushi and muttered shakily:
"I—I really want to be Warden… oh! No, that's not it… I need to report this to the Warden immediately…"
One minute later, Magellan—who was escorting Ace back from Marineford—had his expression drastically change.
Furious at Shiryu's betrayal, he quickly contacted Fleet Admiral Sengoku to report the situation.
"With the battle against the Whitebeard Pirates approaching, and something like this happens…"
In the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku pressed his fingers against his temple, looking like he wanted to kill someone.
"It's not suitable to make this public right now, Sengoku,"
Tsuru, the Chief Staff Officer, interjected.
"This would damage the Marines' morale."
After discussions between the Marines and the World Government, it had already been decided that Portgas D. Ace would be publicly executed in one month.
And on that day, it was certain that a massive war between the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates would erupt.
If news of a Level 6 prison break—and the defection of the Chief Guard—were to spread now,
the Marines would lose face and their morale would falter.
Sengoku nodded in agreement, then turned to look at the photos of Xia Te and Shiryu that had just been sent from Impel Down.
"Inheriting the Golden Lion's power… where the hell did this brat come from!?"
Sengoku gritted his teeth.
Magellan had already investigated—there was no record of Xia Te ever being imprisoned in Level 6.
Leaving aside how he obtained the Golden Lion's Devil Fruit ability, just the question of where he came from—
was something the Marines couldn't figure out at all.
Sitting on the sofa, Garp chewed on rice crackers with a displeased expression.
Damn it… why couldn't those brats have escaped a little later?
Maybe then Ace could've taken the chance to escape too.
Of course, thoughts like that were unbecoming of a Marine hero like Garp.
But then again—Ace was a child he had raised himself.
…
…
A few days later.
A warship sailed through the skies above the sea.
Shiryu held that day's newspaper, exhaling a puff of smoke. "Still nothing… no reports about us."
"If news of a prison break from Impel Down got out now, it would seriously damage Marine morale. The Navy and the World Government are probably planning to settle accounts with us after the war with Whitebeard is over."
Xia Te lounged on a deck chair, legs crossed, smiling.
"By the way, you're planning to get involved in that war, aren't you? Just the two of us won't be enough."
Shiryu folded the newspaper and changed the subject.
[Ding! Discovered sign-in location—Weevil]
[Sign-in reward—Talent: Peerless Strength]
Just as Xia Te was about to respond, the system notification rang out in his mind.
His expression froze slightly as he stood up and looked down below.