Boom-
Artillery fire roared, and the sound of battle echoed across the battlefield.
The war against the world's strongest man, Whitebeard, had reached its true climax!
Although the Navy hero Garp had temporarily halted Whitebeard and dragged him onto the ice battlefield, the situation for the Navy remained dire.
The unexpected arrival of Straw Hat Luffy and his crew had thrown a wrench into their plans.
Even Fleet Admiral Sengoku the Buddha was puzzled.
According to his previous orders, Straw Hat Luffy should have been detained somewhere secure within Marineford.
Could it be the work of that red-nosed pirate who was trailing behind the Straw Hat crew?
Stupid Smoker!
Not only had Shiro been brought back to Marineford, but Smoker had also brought a tough opponent like Straw Hat Luffy along with him.
That's right.
Sengoku had realized that Shiro was the 'Warrant Officer' who had previously followed Smoker to Navy Headquarter.
Reflecting on the Pirate Empress's compliance due to the word "Warrant Officer" at that time, it was easy to draw conclusions.
But let's not dwell on it.
Shiro, that boy, was indeed a rare monster in Navy.
He had disappeared for a short period, yet his strength had soared.
Not to mention, he had even won over the Pirate Empress.
You must understand, the Pirate Empress, as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, had her strength recognized even by Sengoku.
What's more, with the entire Amazon Lily Kingdom and the Kuja Pirates as "dowry," it was no exaggeration to say that as long as Shiro and the Pirate Empress could leave Marineford safely, they would soon form a powerful force led by Shiro on the Grand Line!
Of course, these were concerns for the future.
As an Fleet Admiral of the Navy, whenever there was a chance, Sengoku would never let Shiro and the Pirate Empress, who were almost equivalent to defectors, leave Marineford unscathed!
And it was clear that this sentiment was not held by Sengoku alone.
Due to Shiro's various actions since his debut, Admiral Akainu was already seething with rage.
In his view, Shiro was a disgrace to the Navy!
As someone who once stood for justice, Shiro was now fighting against the Navy alongside the pirate Whitebeard!
Such a man must be eliminated!
Akainu's thoughts were clear as he stared at Shiro with murderous intent.
But at this moment, Shiro was still locked in combat with Borsalino.
Moreover, in terms of speed, Borsalino couldn't entirely shake off Shiro's pursuit!
This only deepened Akainu's fears, heightening his killing intent!
He had no idea what kind of Devil Fruit Shiro had consumed to become so powerful in just a few days!
If he were allowed to escape... the consequences would be unimaginable!
After Akainu had unleashed his Meteor Volcano to destroy the World Tree, he then cleared out a wave of pirates around him.
At present, the top combatants of both the pirates and the Navy were engaged in their own battles.
Akainu was temporarily free because Garp had intervened earlier.
None of the Whitebeard Pirates' division commanders came to face him.
They knew well enough who to provoke and who to avoid!
Soon, as Akainu scanned the battlefield, he devised an excellent tactic.
He immediately turned his attention to the Pirate Empress, who was "observing" the battlefield!
If he wasn't mistaken, this Pirate Empress seemed to have a close relationship with Shiro, right?
It seemed that Shiro had won over the world's most beautiful woman!
Humph, what world's most beautiful woman!
In Akainu's eyes, there were no women, only justice!
Strictly speaking, the Pirate Empress's behavior had violated the duties of a Warlord of the Sea, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call her a defector.
After all, aside from her connection to Shiro, this woman had already been treated as an enemy by both the pirates and the Navy.
In that case...
First, kill the world's most beautiful woman.
As long as Shiro panicked, there would be an opportunity to completely take him down and uphold the face of justice!
With his mind made up, Admiral Akainu began to make his move, gradually closing in on the Pirate Empress.
This Admiral, who believed in absolute justice, had no idea that his path was narrowing...
Meanwhile, since Straw Hat Luffy had appeared, the Navy hero Garp clearly had no desire to continue fighting Whitebeard.
Admiral Aokiji was left to deal with Whitebeard, called upon by Garp to take his place.
"Garp, I didn't expect your grandson to escape imprisonment. What will you do now?" Admiral Sengoku the Buddha asked Garp as he returned to his side.
He could understand the level of internal conflict his old comrade was experiencing at this moment.
But there was no way around it.
They were Marines!
Boom-
"Alas, at this rate, I won't be able to hold out much longer!"
Before Sengoku and Garp could exchange a few words, Whitebeard knocked Aokiji back with a punch.
The massive spatial vibrations even caused cracks to appear on the execution platform.
At this point, to prevent Whitebeard from advancing further, Aokiji had no choice but to confront Whitebeard head-on.
But Whitebeard hadn't been on the offensive, doing his best to avoid unnecessary casualties.
In addition, the pressure had decreased significantly after forming an alliance with Shiro, and the arrival of the World Tree had further bolstered his morale.
As a result, Whitebeard was exceptionally powerful at this moment.
Aokiji was clearly struggling to handle him alone.
However, with Kizaru being held back by Shiro and Akainu occupied elsewhere on the battlefield, Aokiji had no choice but to hold the line for now.
"Damn it, where's that Sakazuki?!"
Sengoku the Buddha was getting a headache from the situation.
Before the war began, even a quarter of an hour ago, he had never imagined that Whitebeard could breach this far.
The Navy had set up many obstacles on the battlefield to prevent the Whitebeard Pirates, particularly Whitebeard himself, from reaching the execution platform.
Though the strongest man in the world was already old, once he unleashed his power, it was still terrifying!
And it was due to the giant tree that Shiro created, which sent Whitebeard directly over the execution platform, that they now faced this predicament.
Shiro! Shiro!
Admiral Sengoku kept grinding his teeth in frustration.
"Sengoku, leave it to me here. Kuzan needs your support!"
At that moment, the Navy hero Garp suddenly spoke up.
"Garp, you...!"
Sengoku was visibly startled, but then a look of resignation flashed across his face.
"Don't let me down!"
With that, Sengoku the Buddha personally entered the fray, joining forces with Admiral Aokiji to battle Whitebeard!
And on the execution platform, the Navy hero Garp stood guard.
At this moment, Garp gazed at Luffy, who was charging through the battlefield, making his way toward the execution platform, with an indescribable conflict in his eyes.
"Luffy, come on, beat me and rescue your brother, Ace!"
...
Shiro had been keeping an eye on everything happening on the execution platform.
When he saw Sengoku stepping down and Garp guarding the platform, he sighed and smiled.
As expected, even Vice Admiral Garp couldn't bear to see his grandson executed.
"Yo yo~ Shiro, your strength is truly terrifying now, but do you want to take a look over there?"
--------------------
+30 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg
Looking for a way to get early access to new chapters of my fanfics before their official release on Webnovel? Become my patron on Patreon and gain early access to all new chapters, as well as exclusive content that is not available anywhere else! Your support will help me continue creating your favorite stories and making them even better