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Outside the Thunder God Sea, the Sun Pirates—an army composed entirely of Fish-Men—were besieging the stronghold!
Further out, the silhouette of a colossal three-masted ship was faintly visible, flanked by a massive fleet formed by an alliance of countless smaller pirate crews.
"Big Bro Jinbe, what are you hesitating for??" Arlong, the sawshark Fish-Man, wore a savage, terrifying expression, his patience wearing thin.
"Boss Jinbe, stop waiting... We've endured the blood debt of Big Brother Tiger for three whole years!"
"The disappearance of the Thunder Emperor is the greatest gift the Sea God could have bestowed upon us!!"
"We'll take revenge on the Thunder God Pirates! We'll kill every last one of those filthy humans!!"
Dozens of Fish-Men looked with burning intensity at Jinbe, the current leader of Fish-Man District who had taken up the mantle of Fisher Tiger, waiting for his command.
Jinbe was indeed the leader of the Fish-Men, but he was also a moderate who sought peace with humans and agreed with Queen Otohime's ideology.
If they took this huge risk to join the swarm of pirates attacking the Thunder God Pirates, and failed to exterminate every single member, would Fish-Man Island face ruthless retaliation in the future?
His subordinates could afford to be reckless, but as their leader, he could not! He had to consider whether this action would bring ruin to their homeland.
Surrounded by the Sun Pirates, Jinbe felt a headache coming on. These foolish Fish-Men were making things difficult.
It wasn't that he was cowardly. He was trying to find a balance: upholding the Fish-Men's pride without sacrificing the safety of Fish-Man Island amidst this turbulence.
"Attack!" Jinbe's expression hardened into solemn resolve as he sighed.
"Once this war is over, I will immediately accept the Navy's invitation to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea (Shichibukai)!"
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Thriller Bark, The Moria Pirates!
One by one, zombies with stitched-together limbs clawed their way out of the dirt. Before long, they had assembled into a massive undead army.
Gecko Moria looked at his masterpiece with excitement. Flanking him were Absalom and the genius surgeon, Dr. Hogback, who had joined the crew early for unknown reasons.
At the forefront of the zombie legion stood the samurai Ryuma from Wano Country, Captain John, and other Zombie Generals reeking of rot and decay.
"The death of my partners really crushed me back then... but so what? No matter how many of these zombies—made from shadows and corpses—die, I won't feel a thing!!" Moria raised his sharp, clawed hands, his face twisted in fanatical zeal.
Moria might look terrifying, but he had once cared for his subordinates more than anyone.
Years ago, when he prepared to enter the New World, his crew had been decimated by disease, forced to kill each other under Doflamingo's manipulation, and finally slaughtered by Shiryu, the First Division Captain of the Thunder God Pirates. He had left the New World in disgrace.
But this time... he looked at the masterpiece completed with Hogback's assistance.
"Be drowned by an endless tide of zombies, Thunder God Pirates! Kishishishishishi!"
"Once we conquer the Thunder God Sea, the Moria Pirates will become the rulers of the New World!!"
"Attack!!"
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!
The massive ship, Thriller Bark, slammed violently into the outer islands of the Thunder God Sea. The ocean of zombies surged onto the shore like a tsunami, clashing with the pirates garrisoned there!
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The Whitebeard Pirates, The Moby Dick!
"KILL!!!"
"Kill Whitebeard! Become the overlord of the New World and make your name ring across the seas!!"
Countless ships engaged the dozens of vessels in the Whitebeard Grand Fleet. Pirates, fearless of death, staked their lives to challenge the Strongest Man in the World.
However, most didn't even get to see Whitebeard's face. They were slaughtered and sent packing by the fleet formed by his "sons."
"Desert Spada (Desert Sword)!!"
An arm transformed into sand, shaping into a massive blade that slashed outward. The deck of a pirate ship was sliced cleanly in half. The terrifying sharpness rivaled even that of a master swordsman's slash.
Crocodile broke through the siege and boarded the Moby Dick!
"Pops! That sand-gator is back to challenge you again!"
On the entire ship, only Whitebeard and Marco remained stationary, watching the chaos like it was a farce.
Whitebeard sat imposingly on his throne, chugging sake from a massive jug. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at Crocodile, who was panting heavily as he approached step by step.
"Playing the clown again, sand-gator? One breath and your sand scatters to the wind."
"Guhahahaha! Save the big talk, Whitebeard..." Crocodile bit down on his cigar, unable to suppress the thrill coursing through him. After years of challenging him, this was the closest he had ever gotten to Whitebeard.
"Desert Grande Espada (Desert Great Sword)!!"
Sand gathered from thin air formed a colossal blade that thrust toward Whitebeard. It closed the distance instantly, threatening to pierce right between his brows.
Blue flames ignited on Marco's arms as he prepared to intercept the sand, but his "Pops" pressed a hand down, keeping him in place. Whitebeard didn't even bat an eyelid as Marco deactivated his Phoenix transformation.
CRACK—
The atmosphere shattered.
Before anyone could blink, Crocodile's body was sent flying at an impossible speed, smashing through the railing of the Moby Dick and plunging into the sea.
"Zehahahahahaha! What a magnificent era! Even pirates too weak to truss a chicken have the guts to attack the Four Emperors and vie for supreme power!"
Watching from a distance, Blackbeard Teach laughed, blood dripping from the metal claws on his hand.
"Pops' legendary name isn't enough to suppress this crazy era anymore!!"
"I can't wait to see... who will claim the title of the Four Emperors in the end!"
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Across the New World, fierce wars were erupting everywhere.
Pirates flooding into this sea, driven by desires for wealth, power, and fame, chose their opponents—either alone or in alliances.
Endless waves of pirates frantically plundered territories and recruited men, all for the singular goal of knocking down the overlords at the summit and becoming the new rule-makers.
The Big Mom Pirates, the Beast Pirates, the Thunder God Pirates, and the Whitebeard Pirates! It was as if the pirate world had conspired together; the territories of the four great overlords were under siege like never before!
The fighting was incredibly intense. This massive war sweeping through the New World was destined to dye the ocean red with blood...
The pirates, eyes red with bloodlust, had completely forgotten the terror of the overlords. They gathered like a flood, encircling the seas of the four powers.
But among the terrifying battles, the situation for the Thunder God Pirates was the most dire!
Whitebeard, Big Mom, and Kaido possessed overwhelming personal strength and dismissed the challengers with disdain.
But the Thunder God Pirates were missing their anchor—the Thunder Emperor. Their Vice Captain, Redfield, had turned traitor. The remaining forces had to defend against the external pirate invasion while the Division Captains were tied down fighting the internal rebellion. They had absolutely no strength to spare!
No one knew how long this "Battle for the Four Emperors"—the war for the supreme hegemony of the New World—would last. But everyone knew one thing for certain:
If the Thunder Emperor was truly dead, the Thunder God Pirates would undoubtedly disintegrate in this war.
Without the power to suppress everything, there was no way to withstand the endless onslaught!
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