Chapter 241: The Destruction of Hellhound! The ASL Brothers Reborn in Hellfire
Just at the critical moment when the key was about to slide smoothly into the lock, the air above the entire battlefield suddenly twisted.
An incredibly pungent smell of sulfur, accompanied by a lethal heat capable of instantly vaporizing steel, descended upon the towering scaffold without warning.
The scene suddenly cut back to the boiling ice in the center of the plaza.
On the left shoulder of the Marineford Admiral "Akainu" Sakazuki, a terrifying wound deep enough to expose bone had been ripped open by Whitebeard's naginata.
Blood poured out like a waterfall, staining his white uniform, which represented absolute justice.
Yet, in the eyes of this iron-blooded Admiral, a mad, sharp glint flickered.
He had actually paid the painful price of taking a heavy blow from the World's Strongest Man head-on.
Forcing himself to use the terrifying impact of the blade's strike, his body flew backward like a cannonball, forcibly breaking free from Whitebeard's suffocating restraint.
While in mid-air, Akainu twisted his waist and abdomen to steady himself.
His thick right arm instantly elementalized completely, turning into rolling, churning magma that had turned a terrifying black-red due to the extreme heat.
He stared fixedly at the three people on the high platform who were about to complete the rescue, veins bulging on his forehead, and let out a hysterical, violent roar: "Do not underestimate the Marine!"
"You unforgivable pirates, how could I possibly let you have your way!"
"Die, all of you!!!"
With this roar, Akainu's right arm blasted forward. "Hellhound!"
A hellhound formed entirely of high-density dark red magma, its bloodthirsty maw dripping with lava, tore through the sky with a terrifying heat capable of melting all things and unstoppable kinetic energy, heading straight for the towering scaffold!
"Boom!!!" This fatal strike, named Hellhound, struck the fragile middle support structure of the scaffold with violent, unmatched force.
The steel frame, capable of withstanding heavy artillery fire, couldn't even hold out for a single second before this black-red magma instantly vaporized it into nothing but wisps of smoke.
Accompanied by the deafening sound of wood and stone collapsing, the entire sky-high scaffold let out a teeth-grinding crack from the middle and crashed down.
And the key of hope in Luffy's hand, which hadn't yet been fully inserted into the lock, quickly melted into a useless drop of scorching molten iron in the aftermath of the magma explosion, sliding down through his fingers.
"Ahhh!" Having lost their footing, Luffy, Sabo, and the chained Ace plummeted rapidly downward, accompanied by the burning boulders and shattered wooden planks filling the sky.
In mid-air, the wind howled in their ears. Having lost their point of leverage, and with Ace—the most crucial one—still not freed from his Sea Stone handcuffs, the three of them were instantly plunged into a desperate situation.
Down on the plaza, Akainu's eyes, burning with rage, were locked onto them, while countless Marine elites had already raised their muskets and swords, ready for the final, fatal blow.
Feeling the whistling wind in his ears and the lethal killing intent below, a flicker of deep despair flashed in Ace's bloodshot eyes.
He closed his eyes in pain and shouted to the two brothers beside him: "Luffy! Sabo! Forget about me, run away!"
"Shut up, Ace!" At this desperate moment of their fall, Sabo's slightly hoarse but incredibly firm roar exploded in mid-air.
"I said it before: today, we will definitely bring you home!"
The wild wind tousled Sabo's short blonde hair. In mid-air, he violently twisted his waist, his left hand grabbing Ace's wrist like an iron clamp, pulling him toward himself.
At the same time, the muscles in Sabo's right arm instantly knotted. His five fingers curled into a strange arc, transforming into a jet-black, fierce dragon claw.
That dragon claw, carrying an indomitable momentum, gripped the thick, heavy Sea Stone handcuffs on Ace's wrists.
"Ahhhhhh!!!" Sabo let out a throat-tearing roar, a brilliant light flashing in his eyes.
He pushed all his potential and Ryou Haki within him to an unprecedented limit in that instant.
That violently destructive internal Haki, like thousands of invisible needles penetrating every pore, instantly pierced through the rock-hard surface of the Sea Stone, reaching its fragile internal structure.
Under the incredulous gaze of Sengoku and Akainu below, whose eyes were wide with shock, the Sea Stone handcuffs—reputed to be able to lock down any Devil Fruit user—actually began to sprout countless fine cracks on the surface under the terrifying grip of Sabo's bare hand and the impact of his high-level Haki.
"Bang!" With a crisp explosion, the heavy Sea Stone handcuffs turned into debris, shattering completely in mid-air!
The moment the heavy shackles fell away, that terrifying Logia power, which had been silent for so long, finally awakened with a roar in mid-air.
Facing the dense barrage of Marine artillery fire and fatal pursuit below, a massive, bright yellow pillar of fire shot into the sky, like a roaring fire dragon, instantly incinerating all attacks.
Amidst the shocked gazes of the entire crowd, that dazzling burst of fire resembled a red lotus blooming in purgatory.
A bare-chested, black-haired man with the striking "ASCE" tattoo on his left arm looked like a Flame Emperor reborn from hell.
Stepping on rolling flames, his strong arms firmly holding Luffy and Sabo, he descended steadily from the sea of fire onto the devastated plaza.
The flames slowly dissipated around them, the heat waves distorting their vision. Luffy, Ace, and Sabo—these three brothers who had drunk the sake of brotherhood on the trash heaps of the Goa Kingdom in the East Sea since they were children.
After more than a decade of long and winding years, in the deepest part of the world's most dangerous Marineford, surrounded by an army of 100,000 elites, they stood in an impeccable triangular formation, backs pressed tightly against each other, standing proudly on this battlefield filled with the scent of death.
Ace's body burned with scorching flames, instantly evaporating the surrounding ice water. The tears welling up in his eyes quickly turned into white steam under the high temperature.
But on his rebellious face, the corners of his mouth gradually curled into an arrogant, unparalleled smile. "You're still so reckless, Luffy..."
Ace's voice carried a long-lost sense of relief and doting affection. Then, he turned his head slightly, feeling the broad shoulder behind him, his voice trembling slightly. "And you, Sabo... to think you've been lying to me for so many years."
Sabo raised his hand, habitually tugging at a non-existent hat brim, his scarred face full of gentle smiles.
Luffy, meanwhile, held his Straw Hat with one hand and clenched his other fist, revealing his iconic, brilliant laugh: "Hehehe, because we... are brothers!"
After a brief moment of warmth, the surrounding Marine elites, having recovered from their shock, roared like a black tide as they surged forward once again, attempting to completely drown these three rebellious sinners.
However, what awaited them was the perfect combat synergy of the three brothers, which seemed to be etched into their very bones.
"Fire Fist!" Ace's right arm transformed into a massive giant fist of fire, blasting forward with the power to incinerate everything. The Fire Fist instantly cleared all Marines within dozens of meters in front of them, leaving behind a charred sea of fire.
"Dragon Breath!" Sabo pressed his hands onto the ground, his pitch-black Haki erupting with a roar. The violent internal force flipped over the hard ice and stone slabs on both sides, blasting all the enemies attempting to flank them into the air.
"Gomu Gomu no—Jet Gatling!" Leveraging the high speed of Gear Second, Luffy's fists became a sky full of afterimages, accurately and unerringly knocking down the Marine officers who attempted to launch sneak attacks from the air using Moonwalk.
Flames, Haki, and Gum-Gum. The three of them stood back to back, moving through the encirclement of 100,000 troops as if it were empty, unstoppable!
Watching Ace jumping around in the crowd, Akainu, not far away, had a face dark to the extreme. The dark red magma all over his body began to boil violently, emitting a heart-palpitating "gurgle" sound.
Akainu stepped forward, one step at a time, preparing to enter the fray himself, using absolute power to completely eradicate these three tumors, who represented the bloodline of the world's most evil criminals, right here on this plaza.
However, just at the moment Akainu was about to explode into action, "Boom!" A figure as tall and burly as a towering mountain, accompanied by heavy, earth-shaking footsteps, slammed heavily onto the battlefield between Akainu and the three brothers.
Whitebeard Edward Newgate held his cold, shimmering naginata inverted. His white Captain's coat danced wildly in the smoke and hot wind, and alone, he firmly blocked the pursuit route of Akainu and all the Marine elites.
Whitebeard did not look back. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at Ace behind him, who had regained his freedom and was bathed in flames. In those eyes, which were always incomparably domineering, a rare trace of deep gratification and relief for the new era flashed.
This king, who had galloped across the sea for most of his life, took a deep breath of the air filled with smoke and blood. His chest swelled high, and then, using the last of his strength in life, he issued a majestic declaration that resounded throughout the sky of Marineford: "Gurararara!"
"I am but a remnant of the old era! There is no ship in this coming new era that can carry me!"
The Murakumogiri in Whitebeard's hand smashed heavily into the ice beneath his feet, the power of the vibration rippling out in all directions.
With that unquestionable Conqueror's Haki, he issued his final order to all the crew members who viewed him as a father: "Whitebeard Pirates, all hands, listen up—"
"This is the final order I give as your Captain! Everyone, return to the New World immediately! You must... live on!!!"
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