_________________
•———•———•———•———•
*Chapter's Events:*
—————————
"Iva…!!"
Luffy sensed Ivankov's arrival beside him.
"Ha!! You're still conscious…!!" Ivankov was surprised by the situation.
"This is my last request…!! Please listen…" Luffy said with difficulty.
...
"Clear a path!!!"
"Gyaah!!!"
The chaos of the Summit War continued unabated. Explosions and clashing weapons created a cacophony that echoed throughout Marineford. Amid the turmoil, Ace's internal struggle was mirrored in the violence of the battlefield.
"I'm… Awful…!!!"
On the execution platform, Ace's body trembled. His thoughts were a whirlpool of memories and regrets, causing him to cry.
"Ace, just wait!!" exclaimed Jimbei.
"Just one more step!!"
"We'll be right there!!!"
"Ace!!!"
"Ace!!! We'll save you!!!"
"Just you wait, Ace!!!"
"Don't give up!!!"
These were the words of pirates being stabbed and even dying, all reflected in Ace's tearful eyes at that moment.
"Damn it… I'm…"
"I'm so messed up!!! At a time like this…"
"My old man… My little brother… My brothers in arms…"
"Their blood is being spilled all around me…!!!"
Ace's tears dripped onto the platform intensely as he spoke.
"And I'm so happy…!!!"
"I can't stop my tears."
"At a time like this, I want… to live!!!"
Hearing this, Garp's expression saddened, and he couldn't stop his own tears either.
•———•———•———•———•
…
..
Roger and Rouge, seeing this scene, were silent, absorbing the weight of Ace's words.
Roger clenched his fist with a mixture of pride and sorrow in his eyes.
He felt proud that his son found the answer he needed about whether he should have been born, and sad because Ace's tears cut into his heart like knives.
"The burden of happiness in such a battlefield where people fight for you… It's hard for our son to carry on his shoulders. I doubt he would be sad even if he died after that," Roger said as he wiped his wife's tears again.
Rob watched them, deeply feeling their emotions at that moment, "Ace's journey isn't over yet…"
Hearing this, Roger and Rouge nodded, "Then let's see things through to the end. We'll see the end of his journey."
"For Ace, for our son." They said.
...
Just after they re-immersed themselves in the chapter, they were forced to burst into laughter due to Buggy's reappearance.
That's how One Piece manga was: right after a dramatic event, a scene equally funny must follow.
...
Thunder rumbled and struck the jagged rocks below, shattering them into pebbles and dust.
A thunderstorm had just formed above Onigashima on Urura Island.
In the constantly turbulent New World, Kaido was exhilarated by the events of the Summit War. Chapter after chapter, page after page, he never tired of this manga for even a moment.
"Wororororo! In my life, I've never seen Whitebeard this weak! Is this my fate too as I grow older? Will we all become weak with the specter of aging!?"
"Worororo! That dog admiral is lucky he isn't facing the Edward Newgate I know, or he'd be counting his broken bones in hell right now."
"I see that old Whitebeard's Haki has weakened." This time, it was King, Kaido's first subordinate, who spoke.
"Blah~ Refreshing~" Kaido poured an entire jar of sake into his mouth before saying, "… Not just Haki, but everything."
Kaido's eyes reflected the image of Whitebeard, who had been bleeding from the mouth all the time due to Squardo's stab.
"Even his mind has deteriorated… Whitebeard wasn't this kind to forgive a traitor! Wororororo! Tsk, trash! This isn't the Edward Newgate I know! This is just an old man dying!"
"He's going to die, he's going to die. I bet my counterpart wanted to save the old man from death, and that red-haired bastard stopped him because he wanted the old man to die, Wororororo!"
"Queen! Write this in a post on the forum! Let the world know the truth about Red-Haired Shanks! Wororororo!"
...
Not far from Urura Island, in the central prison, specifically in Golden Lion Shiki's cell.
"Jihahaha! What's wrong with you, Newgate?"
The scene of Whitebeard nearly falling to his knees and vomiting blood due to the injury was reflected in Shiki's eyes.
•———•———•———•———•
Whitebeard clutched his chest, then knelt with a pained expression on his old face.
Marco's expression changed upon seeing this, wanting to reach his father's side quickly.
"Uuuhh…!!!"
"God damn it…!!!" Whitebeard vomited blood from the impact of his previous injury.
"Boss!!?" His sons who saw this cried out in concern.
"Even you can't overcome old age… Whitebeard!!!" Akainu's arm turned into searing hot magma as he said that.
(This is what I was most afraid of…!!!)
Thinking this, Marco ran, trying to reach his father in time to protect him.
"Fights are won and lost in a single instant ~"
Saying this, Kizaru had already injured Marco, who had his back turned, with his deadly laser shots.
"Uuhh!!!" Marco groaned weakly.
"Marco!!!" Jozu shouted angrily.
"Looks like you aren't focused…"
Jozu was then half-frozen in an instant by Aokiji.
Taking advantage of Whitebeard's moment of unprotected weakness, Akainu plunged his magma arm violently into Whitebeard's chest, deepening the injury. This was a decisive blow.
Seeing this shocked Ace as the battlefield fell silent.
•———•———•———•———•
"…"
"Argh!! Bastard! Coward! Scoundrel! Oh, how I want to crush your damned dog head!!!"
Seeing how Akainu exploited Whitebeard's moment of weakness, Shiki felt almost insane.
He could no longer distinguish between reality and manga, believing that Akainu had harmed someone who was once a comrade in a way even despised among pirates!
Seeing this, Moria's head shrank into his neck in fear, thinking he would get kicked again in another rampage by the mad Golden Lion.
"Hehehehe~ That bastard is more evil than the pirates, I kind of like it…"
"He managed to take down Edward Newgate without mercy, oops, how violent, Jihahahaha!"
Once again, Shiki's impression changed. Signs of madness show that a person doesn't stay on one stance after all.
But undoubtedly, the Golden Lion was thoroughly enjoying the manga events as if he were part of the Summit War.
...
On Sphinx Island, a heavy silence hung over the art store.
Whitebeard's eyes widened as he witnessed this scene.
"... Akainu… isn't it?"
"What about I find you now and tear your dog head off your shoulders?"
Veins bulged on Whitebeard's forehead, indicating he was truly enraged by a mere manga scene.
_________________
Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
_________________
Chapter 736: The Pride of Whitebeard.
Chapter 737: Luffy's Conqueror's Haki Sweeps Marineford!
Chapter 738: One Step Closer!
_________________
BlackStar_BH:
Join my Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/BlackStar_BH to support me and unlock advanced chapters. Get ahead with up to 30 chapters in advance:
- 5 advanced chapters for $5
- 10 advanced chapters for $10
- 15 advanced chapters for $15
- 20 advanced chapters for $20
- 30 advanced chapters for $30 (New)
Don't miss out on this exclusive content and dive into the epic Marineford arc in One Piece!