Boom!
Akainu, like a humanoid T. rex, charged down the street. His immense power sent shockwaves that knocked over everyone in his path.
"Sakazuki, stop harming civilians," Aokiji said from the rooftops, as bits of ice fell, clearly displeased with Akainu's recklessness.
Akainu snorted. "Shut up and don't let the target get away. Nothing else matters."
"Green pheasant! Yellow monkey! Red dog! All three admirals are here! Oh my god! Who in the world could be important enough for the Navy to welcome them with such an unprecedented show of force?"
"All three admirals together on the Sabaody Archipelago... this has never happened in history, not once!"
"Who is it?!"
Witnessing the three of them together, everyone watching was stunned.
For the pirates, even the most arrogant ones, fear overtook them as their legs turned to jelly and their bodies trembled.
Anyone foolish enough to believe they stood a chance quickly fell into despair upon seeing the three admirals arrive in unison.
The most hopeless of all was the Supernova, who tried to hold onto his pride, barely managing to say, "Hah… looks like I'm important enough to have all three admirals come after me. I suppose… I should be honored. Fine then, let me see just how strong—"
"Out of the way," Kizaru interrupted impatiently, delivering a casual kick that sent the boasting Supernova flying through the air like a meteor.
He crashed into a massive tree, which exploded upon impact.
When the dust settled, the once-feared Supernova, with a bounty of 200 million Berries, lay unconscious, his body charred black.
The surrounding pirates wept openly.
The Supernova, worth two hundred million, had been defeated in an instant by Kizaru, as easily as one would swat a fly.
"If a single admiral is this terrifying, what chance do we have against all three?!"
The pirates dared not even contemplate it further.
"Damn it, who could possibly be worth three admirals coming here? I have to find out or I'll never be satisfied!"
Some of the pirates, gritting their teeth in fear, cautiously followed the direction the admirals had taken, eager to uncover the answer.
It wasn't just the lower-level criminals who were panicking; even some of the bigger players on the archipelago were left stunned.
Doflamingo, currently hosting an auction at the human trafficking house, was among them.
The moment the sea froze over, he had rushed outside, staring at the ice in bewilderment.
"What's the Navy up to?" Doflamingo muttered, flying into the air for a better view.
Upon seeing the three admirals charging toward Island 13, even Doflamingo, usually the epitome of calm arrogance, found his expression faltering. His face twitched involuntarily, unable to fully hide his shock.
A cold shiver ran down his spine.
In all his time, he had never seen all three admirals take action together.
"Could it be... the entire Whitebeard Pirates have arrived?"
It was the only possibility Doflamingo could think of that would warrant such a massive show of force from the Navy.
"But that's not right," he muttered to himself, recalling the news he'd read recently. "The papers reported that Akainu and Kizaru were in different parts of the sea, so how could they be here now? Something's off."
Doflamingo's instincts told him there was a bigger plot at play.
"This is an ambush the Navy has been planning for a long time," he mused. "I need to see who this target is."
With that, Doflamingo flew off to enjoy the show.
He wasn't scared.
Inside the bar...
Rayleigh yawned lazily as he gazed at the empty bottles scattered across the floor. He felt a wave of dread wash over him.
Shakky would kill him when she got back.
As he pondered how to explain himself, his instincts suddenly sharpened.
"Aokiji's here?"
At that moment, the three admirals—well, to be precise, two admirals and Vice-Admiral Sakazuki—were quickly making their way toward Island 13.
"Why is this happening?"
Shakky's fist struck a nearby tree in frustration.
"Why is this happening now?"
"Everyone, Kuke, you need to leave immediately. You all escorted me here, but I'll hold them off. You have to get away!" Shakky urged, her face filled with worry.
All three admirals were coming.
Despite her many experiences, Shakky had never faced a situation as dire as this.
Even during the height of the Rocks Pirates' reign of terror, the Navy had never deployed so many top-tier fighters. Back then, it had mostly been Garp and Roger who stood in their way.
Admirals represented the peak of power in the world, standing on par with the Four Emperors.
While individual admirals varied in strength, not even the greatest of warriors could hope to take on two at once and emerge victorious.
As for three?
It was unthinkable.
Faced with the arrival of all three admirals, Shakky could not see any way for the Sun and Moon Pirates to survive this encounter.
Maybe they could hold out for a while, but victory was impossible.
To make matters worse, reinforcements from Marine Headquarters could arrive at any moment, not to mention the elite fighters from Mary Geoise.
If they were held down, they would be done for.
"The Navy and the World Government were smart this time," Kuke said slowly, opening his palm. "They didn't send gifts or hostages, but they did send some achievement points."
As Kuke spoke, Gion handed him the Supreme Grade blade Ace, which had been resting inside the cabin.
Placing the blade in his hand, Kuke smiled.
"The Navy is being too polite. Let's give them a proper reception."
"Kuke… are you serious?" Shakky asked in disbelief as she watched him, clearly excited by the situation.
"You know how powerful the admirals are. Why are you still thinking like this?"
"Are you really that determined to die?"
Shakky thought Kuke's eagerness was just reckless madness.
She no longer tried to convince him otherwise.
Taking a deep breath, her expression grew resolute as she exhaled a cloud of smoke. "In that case, I'll fight alongside the Sun and Moon Pirates."
"No! All of you need to leave now," Kuke said, looking at Shakky, then at Gion and the others.
Some of them, particularly Gion, were strong enough to hold their own against an admiral.
Gion, in particular, was now almost at the level of an admiral. She had already surpassed the strength of a Yonko commander.
Defeating her would take an admiral several days and a heavy price.
Stussy wasn't weak, either.
With the power of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, she had become one of the strongest Yonko commanders, capable of fighting on par with an admiral.
Hancock and Shakky could also hold their own, able to stall an admiral for a short time.
However, none of them were capable of killing an admiral outright.
Especially being so close to Marine Headquarters.
It would be foolish for the whole crew to engage.
"Leave, now. If you stay here, someone might actually die," Kuke urged them.
He wanted them to leave aboard the Radiant Eclipse.
"Kuke, I'm strong too. I won't hold you back," Stussy insisted.
"Kuke, I won't listen to you this time," Shakky added firmly. "You all came to Sabaody because of me. There's no way I'm just going to leave now."
She knew one thing for certain: if Kuke stayed behind alone, he would surely die.
And if she left, she would spend the rest of her life in guilt, unable to find peace.
"Sister Shakky, I'm the one who should apologize," Kuke said, jumping down from the Radiant Eclipse and walking past her.
"Today, your home will be destroyed, and you'll be marked by the Navy."
With that, he strode forward, heading directly toward the three admirals who had already reached Island 13.
"But…"
"Gion!" Kuke called.
Gion instantly appeared beside Shakky, whispering something in her ear.
Shakky stared at Kuke's back in disbelief.
Could this be true?
Is resurrection really possible?
Was this real, or were they just trying to comfort her so she would leave peacefully?
"Sister Shakky, do you really think we fear death?" Gion asked with a smile. "If it weren't true, do you think we'd be willing to leave?"
Shakky was convinced.
After spending months with them, she knew that every single crew member aboard the Radiant Eclipse was prepared to die for Kuke.
And now, as they waved him off, there was no sadness of parting, no fear of the final battle.
"Alright then, Captain. I'll be waiting for you on the ship," Shakky said, leaping back aboard the Radiant Eclipse.
As Kuke walked away, his back turned to the ship, he waved a hand casually.
"Let's go!"
Gion landed on the frozen sea, her body igniting with phoenix fire. Her flaming feathers unfurled, and the searing heat began to melt the ice around the Radiant Eclipse.
"One-Sword Style: Double Cut!"
Gion drew her blade, sending a massive flying slash across the ice, cutting through it all the way to the horizon.
A path was cleared on the frozen sea, giving the Radiant Eclipse a way out.
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P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 95+ at patreon.com/Emik01.