Naval Headquarters — atop the battered battlefield.
"Ku la la la la! May martial might flourish!"
As he watched Sugisawa Yuuto disappear into the distant sky, Whitebeard threw his head back and laughed, raising his massive arms in triumph.
"Martial might flourish!"
Marco, Jozu, Bista, and the other surviving members of the Whitebeard Pirates echoed the cry with renewed spirit.
"What an unbelievable man… If it's him, he might actually be able to succeed where the liberation fighters failed — he might really change the world."
Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, spoke in a quiet, stunned voice.
"Ahh… Mr. Sengoku, it looks like that man wasn't joking. What do we do now?"
Admiral Aokiji asked, watching the sky with his usual lazy expression — though even he looked uneasy.
Marshal Sengoku clenched his fists so tightly the veins stood out.
He didn't respond.
Instead, he turned his gaze to Admiral Kizaru.
At this moment, among the entire Marine force, the only person capable of catching up to Sugisawa Yuuto was Kizaru, with his power of the Glint-Glint Fruit.
By the time the other eight hundred sixty-seven officers arrived, it would already be far too late.
Feeling Sengoku's eyes on him, Kizaru abruptly turned his head away — refusing to make eye contact.
Seeing this, Sengoku exhaled helplessly.
"Forget it… It's already over."
He let out a weary sigh — one that made him seem decades older in an instant.
At this point, they were powerless to change anything.
Even the most fearsome existence of this era — the President of Fairy Tail — had left.
Overlords of an age long past, like Ocean Overlord Rocks and Pirate King Roger, had also disappeared into the sky.
And yet… nothing truly changed.
Even if they could still manage the Whitebeard Pirates alone…
Now the Red-Hair Pirates were here as well.
And countless Fairy Tail elites still stood on the battlefield.
Now that Yuuto had declared the battle over…
If the Marines stubbornly insisted on continuing the war, there was no guarantee Fairy Tail wouldn't join in again.
After all, it would be a direct slap in Sugisawa Yuuto's face.
In the end, Sengoku decided to give Yuuto the respect he demanded.
After everything that had happened, no one could predict what might follow next.
He didn't want Marines and Fairy Tail to become irreconcilable enemies.
Hearing Sengoku's decision, the still-standing Marine elites breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Even the hardline faction — led by Admiral Akainu — understood there was nothing more they could do.
The war was over.
Marines and pirates alike began carrying away the injured and unconscious.
At the same time — the Holy Land Mariejois, deep within the palace of absolute power.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"
"That man — that bastard—!"
"It wasn't enough for him to destroy Naval Headquarters — he even dares to wreak havoc in the Holy Land?!"
The remaining three Five Elders, the world's highest authorities, roared in fury.
"And not only that Fairy Tail brat…"
"He's bringing the red-haired devil from thirty-six years ago… and Pirate King Gol D. Roger… All those undead are coming too!"
Saturn — one of the Five Elders — was visibly trembling.
The situation had spiraled far beyond their control.
It wasn't just Sugisawa Yuuto, whose power surpassed Admirals and even the Four Emperors.
The terrifying undead he commanded were an unimaginable threat as well.
"Fine! Fine! If they're here to die, then let them come!"
Mars — the Five Elder Mark Kamasus — clenched both fists, forcing composure over the flicker of fear in his eyes.
"No one runs wild in the Holy Land. This is the palace of the World's King!"
Mercury, the third Five Elder, radiated cold killing intent.
But—
They didn't have to wait long.
Suddenly, a suffocating aura of terror washed over the Holy Land.
As if something monstrous was about to burst into their world.
The Five Elders' expressions changed instantly.
The next second—
BOOM!!!
A deafening explosion tore through Mariejois.
The entire magnificent city shook violently.
Alarms screamed inside their minds as a wave of dread crashed into them.
Without hesitation, the three Five Elders launched themselves upward, landing on the highest point — the roof of Pangaea Castle.
From there, they saw it all:
The raging storm winds sweeping across Mariejois.
The colossal stone mass obliterating the slave arena.
The undead, roaring with laughter atop the massive airborne vessel.
And then—
Fear
pure, instinctive fear
seized their bodies.
A chill from the soles of their feet raced all the way to the crown of their heads.
"He came so fast…"
Saturn's pupils tightened to pinpoints.
Sugisawa Yuuto had arrived even sooner than they expected.
"Damn him! Damn him!"
Mars cursed through gritted teeth.
"Hahahahahaha!!"
A wild, domineering laugh shook the Holy Land — the unmistakable voice of Rocks, the old era's terror and overlord, reveling in chaos.