Sengoku surveyed the entire battlefield, now a dark red purgatory reminiscent of the underworld. The charred skeleton army that filled the battlefield looked like evil ghosts crawling out of Hades itself. Especially alarming were the three leading figures, different from the ordinary charred skeletons—they had the appearance of flame puppets.
These three men, leading the Black Skeleton Army and intercepting all the Naval Headquarters Vice Admirals, were none other than:
Sir Crocodile, former Warlord of the Sea, wielding the Sand-Sand Fruit.
Ghost Spider, a strong Naval Headquarters Vice Admiral who had fallen to Portgas D. Ace.
Enel, the Thunder Fruit user from Sky Island, once claiming to be a god.
The strength displayed by these three made Sengoku's cheeks twitch. With the powerful Armament Haki bestowed by Ace, both Crocodile and Enel could exert combat power comparable to an ordinary Admiral. Ghost Spider, with his experience as an Admiral candidate, proved formidable. On this battlefield, their bodies possessed the characteristic of immortality, giving the Entei Pirates a terrifying edge. The Naval Headquarters Vice Admirals, led by Momousagi and Tea Dolphin, found themselves in a bitter struggle against these undead warriors.
Despite their immortality, the charred bodies were easily broken and couldn't exert the physical strength of a living strong person. They relied on suicidal attacks, utilizing their Devil Fruit abilities and the wave power, fortified by Ace's Armament Haki. However, this borrowed Haki wasn't as efficient, especially for Enel, who seemed to be using Haki for the first time. This lack of finesse was the only reason the Marine forces, led by two Admiral candidates and Rear Admirals capable of covering their bodies with Armament Haki, hadn't collapsed immediately.
Even so, with the addition of these three undead powerhouses, the Entei Pirates' combat power soared. Ace's ability to create a lava-hell environment further disadvantaged the Marine's Logia users, tipping the scales of battle in favor of the Entei Pirates. The Marines' strategy to leverage Haki was completely failing under the new onslaught of Ace's abilities.
Sengoku observed Ace, who quickly recovered his strength using the high-temperature flames. The corners of Sengoku's eyes twitched in frustration. On this battlefield, only Ace and his undead soldiers could recover their physical strength. Everyone else, including the Marines insulated by Haki, saw their energy deplete.
The battlefield had truly become Ace's home ground. The undead, animated by Ace's power, were effectively immortal in this environment. Even though the Logia Devil Fruit users could restore physical strength by transforming natural elements, this consumed their spirit. However, Ace's formidable spirit and physique were more than enough to sustain him through the war. The idea of outlasting Ace was unrealistic.
Marine's objective was to prevent the public execution of the three Celestial Dragons, which Ace clearly intended to carry out to demonstrate his absolute authority and correctness. He aimed to use a perfect public execution to assert his dominance, just as the Marines had with Gol D. Roger. This man saw himself as a true emperor, aspiring to rise above the World Government with terrifying ambition.
At this time, the reading of the memories of the three Celestial Dragons and the memory of Saint Charlos had been completed, and their ugliness and sins were laid bare before the world. The memory reading of Saint Shalria was also coming to an end. The time for Portgas D. Ace's execution was drawing near, and the Marines' window of opportunity was closing fast.
Sengoku gritted his teeth, glaring at Ace. "You can use the powers of other Devil Fruits because of the Paw-Paw Fruit's ability, can't you?"
Ace smirked, his confidence unwavering. "That's right. At Thriller Bark, I intercepted part of the demonic factor from Bartholomew Kuma's Paw-Paw Fruit. This ability is truly useful. It was indeed a prize given to the Knights of God in the Valley of the Gods incident, along with the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon."
Sengoku's face hardened, despite the urgency of the war. As the supreme commander of the Marines, he needed to stay composed. More information was essential for strategizing.
Ace's casual revelation was deliberate, meant to destabilize Sengoku. "Want information? Here you go," Ace thought, knowing that overwhelming Sengoku with sudden data would exhaust his mental resources. The Buddha-like spirit, wisdom, and power granted by the Great Buddha form Devil Fruit were powerful but also taxing.
"God, Valley of the Gods, Knights of God?! How do you know about that?" Sengoku's pupils contracted violently. Very few knew this information. It couldn't have been Garp, as Sengoku knew his old comrade well enough to trust in his loyalty to Marine justice. If not Garp, where did Ace get this information?
Sengoku's enhanced wisdom from his Devil Fruit was working overtime, yet he found no answers. Ace was an enigma. Even with the ability to hunt and utilize the demonic factors from the Paw-Paw Fruit, how could Ace replicate other Devil Fruit powers?
The mechanics of Devil Fruits dictated that their abilities couldn't be divided. Once a Devil Fruit was consumed, only the first person to take a bite gained the powers, leaving the rest as ordinary fruit. Thus, no two people could share the same Devil Fruit ability.
But Ace had defied this rule. Crocodile and Vivi wielded the Sand-Sand Fruit simultaneously, while Enel and Nami shared the Thunder-Thunder Fruit. Additionally, Ace's ability to summon souls from the underworld resembled the powers of the Underworld Fruit, yet exceeded them by calling forth the souls of his victims.
Sengoku's mind reeled. Why could Ace harness multiple Devil Fruit powers, pushing their limits beyond natural constraints? Where had Ace learned about the Valley of the Gods incident and the Knights of God? And why did he know so much about the Celestial Dragons?
Ace had only been at sea for a year, raised in secret by Garp. How did he possess more knowledge about the Celestial Dragons than Sengoku, the Marine Marshal himself?
As Sengoku wrestled with these questions, the battlefield around them grew even more chaotic. The time left to prevent Ace's execution was dwindling, and the balance of power seemed to be tipping dangerously in favor of the Entei Pirates.
Sengoku looked at Ace fiercely, sweat dripping down his back. Despite being in the lava hell-like environment created by Portgas·D·Ace, Sengoku felt as if he had been thrown into an icy cave. Fear, trembling, and disbelief—emotions uncharacteristic of him—swelled within. He had consumed the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Daibutsu, gaining the wisdom, spirit, and power of a Buddha, yet these emotions surged uncontrollably.
Finally, using the wisdom and spirit of the Buddha, Sengoku noticed a clue about Ace's secret. Ace viewed the world from a perspective that was fundamentally wrong, almost as if an omniscient and omnipotent god was observing the world through its eyes.
"Who is Monkey D. Luffy?" Sengoku wondered, feeling a chill run through him as he gulped and panted. The burden of analyzing this secret was overwhelming.
"It seems that you've used the wisdom and spirit of Buddha to glimpse a bit of my secret, Sengoku. What's wrong? Can't the ultimate person who ate the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Daibutsu handle it?" Ace taunted, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Sure enough, you know all about the powers I've gained from the Great Buddha form," Sengoku replied, teeth gritted. "You deliberately shared information, forcing me to use the wisdom and spirit of the Buddha to analyze it, placing a huge burden on me. You defeated me using my own strategy, Portgas·D·Ace. What a terrifying man."
Sengoku, cheeks twitching, forced himself to stop thinking, realizing he had fallen into a trap set by Ace. The blazing hell environment created by Ace, which Sengoku had hoped to use against the Flame Emperor Pirates, had backfired. Portgas·D·Ace, known for brute force, had outwitted him.
"Damn it! I was tricked in a battle of wits!" Sengoku cursed silently, feeling his spirit falter and dizziness set in. The burden was too great.
"Well, it's almost time," Ace said, glancing at the execution platform, a slight smile on his face. "The memory reading of the last Celestial Dragon has also come to an end. The trial is about to begin!"