Chapter 248: The Bell of a New Era!
The next morning, a cool sea breeze swept over the waves, finally dispersing the suffocating scent of war smoke that had been lingering over the sea.
On the vast, boundless sea, the main fleet of the Whitebeard Pirates was ready to set sail.
Their massive sails were billowed high, and the figurehead faced the rising sun, ready to sail back to the New World that belonged to them.
On the deck, Ace, his toned upper body bare, carefully tore in half a Vivre Card he had just remade the previous night.
Then, with a solemn expression, he shoved it into Luffy's hand.
"Don't you dare die, Luffy!"
Ace pressed firmly on Luffy's shoulders.
A wild, high-spirited smile bloomed on his face, which still bore traces of smoke, his eyes filled with anticipation for the future.
"Two years from now, bring your reliable crew and come find me in the New World."
"If you run into a tough enemy on that ocean that you can't handle, shout my name, Ace, loud and clear!"
Luffy shouted back, somewhat dissatisfied:
"I'm a pirate with a bounty of one billion! One day, we'll surpass you all! The Whitebeard Pirates!!"
Hearing Luffy's "declaration of war," the crew of the Whitebeard Pirates couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Hearing their "mockery," Luffy became even more dissatisfied, until Tatsuya pressed down on his Straw Hat, which finally calmed him down a little.
Standing on the high bow of the ship, Whitebeard looked down at Luffy, Tatsuya, Rayleigh, and Jinbe, who had already transferred to a small, coated ship below.
This legendary, strongest man faced the sea breeze and let out a hearty laugh that shook the surroundings:
"Gurararara! Straw Hat Luffy! I'm looking forward to it!"
"You brats of the new era, go and turn the world upside down!"
Accompanied by these weighty words of farewell, the massive body of the Moby Dick slowly sailed into the hazy morning mist.
The brothers thus embarked on their own magnificent new journeys.
The scene shifts, and Marineford after the Marineford War is left in ruins.
The once magnificent and solemn Marineford building was now only half-standing, and the plaza was filled with busy scaffolding and combat engineers clearing rubble and moving debris.
The air was filled with the smell of ash and dirt, and the once unassailable majesty was completely gone.
In a crudely built temporary office, Fleet Admiral Sengoku seemed to have aged ten years overnight.
His temples were gray, and a blood-stained bandage was wrapped around his forehead. He was frowning, looking with a heavy gaze at the post-war report in his hand, which detailed casualties so severe they were heart-wrenching.
Sitting opposite him was Admiral Akainu Sakazuki.
At this moment, Akainu's right arm and half of his broad chest were tightly wrapped in thick medical bandages.
The burning of that black flame had not only left him with indelible scars.
It had also left his expression dark and gloomy, like a suppressed volcano ready to erupt at any moment.
Sengoku put down the casualty report and sighed deeply.
He raised his bloodshot eyes to look at Sakazuki, his voice filled with an unshakable exhaustion:
"I'm sorry, Sakazuki."
"I've left you with such a mess to clean up..."
"The future of our Marine is now in your hands."
"After some time, I will officially announce my resignation to the World Government and step down from this position."
Akainu gritted his teeth tightly, the muscles in his cheeks bulging.
His eyes burned with a bone-deep hatred for pirates that was almost overflowing.
He said nothing, simply nodding heavily, accepting the immense burden of rebuilding "Absolute Justice" amidst the ruins.
At this incredibly solemn moment.
A loud "bang!"
The dilapidated wooden door of the office was rudely kicked open by a trembling Marine Major.
The Major's face was as pale as paper; he scrambled in, having forgotten even the most basic military posture and salute in his panic:
"It's bad!"
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku! Admiral Akainu!"
"Straw Hat... Straw Hat is back!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the veins on the back of Sengoku's hand bulged, and with a "crack," he crushed the teacup in his hand, hot tea and porcelain shards spilling all over the floor.
His majestic face was filled with disbelief.
How could these bastards, who had just made the Marine lose all face, dare to swagger back here?!
And the moment Akainu heard this news, the image of that hundred-meter-tall crimson demon holding a giant sword immediately appeared in his mind.
The parts of his body that had been severely burned by the black flames of Amaterasu immediately felt a piercing, bone-deep phantom pain.
This unbearable pain then completely transformed into an endless rage that drowned his reason.
"You are courting death!!"
Akainu roared through gritted teeth, like a crazed beast.
The scene cuts to Crescent Moon Bay Plaza.
A large warship, clearly stolen from the Marine, surfaced from the bottom of the sea, wrapped in a bubble coating, and emerged with extreme arrogance.
Accompanied by huge splashes and mechanical roaring, the warship rammed straight and rudely onto the ruined shore, crushing rubble everywhere.
The heavy hatch opened slowly, and Rayleigh and Jinbe were the first to step off the ship with steady strides.
Following them was Luffy, his hands pressed against his Straw Hat, and behind him, the lazy-looking Crimson Lotus Victor!
Looking at these terrifying beings who had just wreaked havoc here not long ago.
The Marine combat engineers and ordinary soldiers responsible for the reconstruction in the plaza were trembling so hard that they couldn't even hold their guns and shovels steady.
They swallowed their saliva involuntarily, stumbling backward to the sides, forcibly clearing a wide path through the ruins for these four rebellious outlaws, leading straight to the center of the plaza.
They completely ignored the Marines around them who were treating them like a major threat.
Under the flashing camera lights of the reporters hiding in the distance, Luffy walked straight towards the huge surviving "Ox Bell" in the center of the plaza.
Luffy stood still, took a deep breath, exerted force with both arms, and pulled hard on the thick rope to strike the bell.
"Dong——!! Dong——!!"
Sixteen melodious and penetrating heavy bell tolls pierced through the sea breeze, echoing continuously over the scarred Marineford, lingering for a long time.
According to the ancient traditions of the Marine, ringing the bell sixteen times represented "crossing over the old era and announcing the arrival of a new era"!
After ringing the bell, Luffy closed his eyes and bowed his head in a moment of silence.
Paying tribute to the passing old era and all the souls who sacrificed themselves in this war.
Then, he opened his clear eyes, laughed, and raised his right arm, perfectly and clearly displaying the strikingly visible [3D2Y] tattoo engraved on his arm to the witness and lenses of all the reporters.
This was a secret signal to his distant crew, and also a pledge for the new era.
Just as the bell tolls were echoing, Sengoku and Akainu finally rushed from the ruins of the collapsed headquarters building to the edge of the plaza.
"Straw Hat!! Crimson Lotus!! You are courting death!!"
Seeing this humiliating scene, Akainu completely fell into an abyss of rage.
He disregarded his tearing wounds, which instantly burst open, blood quickly staining his white medical bandages red.
His only remaining intact left arm instantly transformed into rolling, dark red magma that emitted a pungent sulfur smell, roaring forward with destructive high heat, attempting to completely keep this insolent ship and everyone on it right here.
Watching the magma rushing towards them like a mad dog.
Rayleigh's eyes narrowed slightly, his right hand already on the hilt of his sword, preparing to draw it and meet the attack.
Just then, Tatsuya, standing to the side, tilted his head slightly.
The Mangekyo pattern in his right eye flashed instantly, and an eerie red light traced a trajectory in mid-air.
A cluster of ink-black "Amaterasu" flames, exuding the aura of death, appeared out of thin air on the path Akainu was charging along.
The black flames surged in the wind, instantly transforming into an impassable wall of pitch-black fire.
This domineering ocular power, capable of burning everything, actually forcibly suppressed the extreme high heat that the magma was so proud of, erupting with a teeth-grinding "hissing" sound!
"Sakazuki,"
"Consider this fire that will never go out as a gift from yours truly for your Marine reconstruction."
Tatsuya left behind this ruthlessly arrogant remark.
Taking advantage of the gap while Akainu was forced back by the black flames, the four of them turned and nimbly leaped into the warship that had already been coated.
Under the gaze of countless Marines, who were helpless and twisted with rage, the warship quickly dived into the deep sea, sailing away.
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