In fact, that was exactly what happened.
A sharp sound tore through the air, and a black shadow suddenly leapt up from the execution platform.
Garp's face was twisted in fury as he sprang forward. The moment he blocked Marco's path, he hurled out a vicious heavy punch!
Boom—!
That blow, wrapped in two colors of Haki, blasted Marco's head apart on the spot, then sent the entire phoenix flying.
Blue flames intertwined and rolled, finally reforming into Marco's body on the ground. He looked utterly battered.
As the user of the Zoan-Type Devil Fruit, Tori Tori no Mi, Model: Phoenix, he possessed extraordinarily powerful regeneration.
Wherever those flames passed, flesh, bone, and blood would be reborn from the fire.
Even so, he had almost failed to withstand Garp's savage heavy punch!
"Garp…"
Marco climbed up from the ground in a miserable state, glaring fiercely at that roadblock of a man, then immediately pulled back.
The obstacle on the execution platform was no easier than the Three Admirals who had been pinned down elsewhere.
Marine Hero Garp.
He had once been promoted to admiral several times, only to personally refuse the advancement each time.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku the Buddha. The foremost admiral of the previous generation, and the fleet admiral of this one.
Although his strength had already begun to decline due to age, he was still not someone Marco could break through easily.
"Oh my. I can't let you run wild."
A yellow flash appeared. Kizaru raised a finger, and a low-powered laser pierced through Marco's head.
Just as he intended to maintain the offensive, pin down one of the enemy's major forces here, and then surround and kill him—
A bullet that had come from who-knew-where pierced through his head once again. Marco took the chance to turn into blue flames, sweeping over the ground and widening the distance.
'How annoying. A sniper under Red-Hair's command?'
Kizaru crooked his mouth, his gaze sweeping into the distance.
Yet at that moment, the packed Marine formation in front of him was overturned. Over a hundred Marines were sent flying, scattering down like a flock of falling birds.
Benn Beckman stepped out from the gap, a gun in one hand and a blade in the other, his indifferent gaze falling on Kizaru.
"You want to go after our sniper? Get through me first."
"Benn Beckman…"
Kizaru narrowed his eyes, his expression showing a rare trace of wariness.
The greatest reason the Red-Haired Pirates had earned the name of an impenetrable, balanced iron wall was because of this man, a powerhouse comparable to Red-Hair himself.
So… this was not an opponent he could ignore.
"How troublesome. Can't you people just give up on this target?"
"Sorry. It's the captain's order."
Beckman said coldly, "Don't worry. You won't have the chance to feel troubled anymore.
"I've calculated it. In this war, one of the uncertain factors is you. You're a Light Human who ate the Logia-Type Glint-Glint Fruit.
"You can turn any part of your body into light, possess the speed of light, and perform light-speed attacks and movement.
"Though it can't be compared to true light, it is still a form of extreme speed.
"So from now on, Yasopp and I will be taking care of you together. And—him!"
The moment his voice fell,
Rayleigh appeared silently with his sword in hand, watching his prey like a leopard in the jungle.
He was already old. There was no way he could truly fight an admiral head-on.
What he could do now was put aside his dignity and entangle Kizaru together with these younger men.
"Oh my. This is… truly giving me a headache."
Kizaru's mouth crooked even further. Then he raised his hand and fired a laser!
At this stage, he could no longer hold back in order to avoid injuring other Marines. These opponents were not people he could afford to ignore.
One was the vice captain of the Red-Haired Pirates, another was the legendary pirate Dark King Rayleigh, and there was also a sniper with superb marksmanship watching him.
One careless move, and it would be hard to say whether he could get away unscathed.
At the same time, Kizaru could not leave this place. Right now, the most important thing was still Ace on the execution platform.
The laser shot forward.
Beckman advanced instead of retreating, slashing forward with his blade, while Rayleigh circled around from the side and launched his attack.
Boom—!
An enormous blaze exploded amid the screams of the Marines.
Beckman forcibly cut open the laser's explosion, while in his sight, Kizaru was cut in two by Rayleigh's blade.
Kizaru had elementalized in advance to avoid the slash, and then another bullet hole appeared in the center of his brow.
Yasopp had made his move silently, but this time, the bullet was not wrapped in Armament Haki.
Clearly… this was a kind of psychological tactic!
No matter what, the first battle on the admiral level had begun.
Meanwhile, on the other side,
Kuzan pursed his lips. Bits of cold air seeped from between his teeth, his expression incomparably grave.
Because standing before him was Red-Haired Shanks, holding Gryphon!
"Could you let me pass?"
Shanks said with some distress, "I don't really want to cause too great an impact on this world, but I can't just sit by and watch the captain's bloodline be cut off either.
"I can guarantee that after I take him away, I won't allow a second Pirate King to appear. Even so, you still won't let me through?"
"That's something you should say to the World Government."
Kuzan clenched his five fingers, and an ice saber appeared in his hand. "What I need to do is stop you from advancing."
Bone-chilling cold spread through the surroundings at that moment. Whether pirates or Marines, both sides tacitly left the area.
An admiral's battlefield was not something small fry like them could interfere with.
The only ones who could lend a hand at all were those Marine vice admirals, but they also had opponents they needed to face.
The Whitebeard Pirates' forces were the largest, and the strength of their internal commanders was by no means weak.
At the very least, the vice admirals visible at a glance had basically all fallen into bitter battles.
Most importantly, there were no longer enough elite Marines available to help them wear down the enemy's stamina.
The two waves of Conqueror's Haki clashing had caused many Marines who could not withstand it to collapse.
That made the situation even more precarious.
As the person most concerned with this war, Akainu had no way to stop it, no matter how enraged and anxious he felt inside.
Because standing in front of him was Whitebeard, who was grinning viciously!
"Gurararara! Brat who plays with fire, you should go light candles on a birthday cake!"
Whitebeard held Murakumogiri, blew out the molten lava flowing over the blade, then revealed a mocking smile. "What are you going to do next?
"We're both Devil Fruit users with overwhelming destructive power. If we use even a little too much strength, we'll cause irreversible damage.
"My children can withstand it. I wonder if you Marines can withstand your magma?"
"…"
Akainu said nothing. He merely stared coldly at Whitebeard.
There was no way the other party was as indifferent to his family as he claimed. The reason Whitebeard had appeared here was to limit him, the combatant with the greatest destructive power.
If he went all out, with no equal powerhouse blocking him, the Whitebeard Pirates would definitely suffer disastrous losses.
But… the same logic applied to the other side.
The most important thing was still to pin down this strongest man.
So the two sides had currently fallen into a state of mutual deterrence.
No Marines dared approach at that moment. In fact, there were no extra Marine forces left.
More Marines had gathered in the area before the execution platform, desperately blocking the pirates charging up.
Gaban was mixed among them, harvesting Marine lives as his twin axes danced.
The members of the Red-Haired Pirates were also displaying their various abilities.
This forced nearly every vice admiral on the Marine side to face an opponent of equal or even superior strength.
In the end, even Tsuru had no choice but to enter the field herself.
From the overall situation, there were basically no spare forces left among the vice admiral class.
There were still some elite officers on the next level down, but they could not play a decisive role on the battlefield.
At the Sabaody Archipelago broadcast center, all the reporters watched this almost insane scene with their hearts in their throats.
No one had expected this war to evolve into the terrifying situation of Marine Headquarters versus two Emperors.
Perhaps Marine Headquarters would be defeated in the next moment, causing great waves to sweep across the world.
But it was also possible that the Marines would have the last laugh, and the world would suddenly lose two Yonko, which would likewise stir up a massive storm across the world.
"The Marines… should win, right?"
One reporter murmured, "This is a scene of massive change. There's no way the World Government would just sit back and watch Marine Headquarters be besieged by two Yonko, right?"
The reporters who heard this were stunned for a moment, then also thought of that point.
Marine Headquarters was the greatest fist under the World Government's institutions, but that did not mean the World Government only had this one fist.
The Cipher Pol agencies, the legendary God Knights, and even the strength of the member nations all seemed to be factors outside the field that could intervene.
But…
"Can they make it in time?"
One reporter could not help frowning as he asked.
"Not necessarily. Those are all monsters who can fight for days and nights."
The reporter who had spoken first said with a heated tone, "Maybe this war will last more than a day?"
"If there are no accidents, then the Marines will definitely win."
"If there are no accidents…"
Standing on the execution platform, Sengoku clenched his fist, yet did not dare voice the second half of his judgment.
The current situation was wrong.
Out of a hundred points, it was a hundred points wrong!
Kizaru had been pinned down, but conversely, he had also pinned down Beckman, Rayleigh, and Yasopp.
In fact, as the battle continued, Kizaru's speed grew faster and faster, and other Red-Haired officers also joined in the battle to entangle him.
Kuzan had also been pinned down, but conversely, he had pinned down Red-Hair, an extremely powerful combatant.
Akainu was the same. He had pinned down Whitebeard, the strongest man here.
The other areas were similar. The vice admirals were fighting pirate commanders, while those extra commanders were being tangled up and blocked by elite Marines.
There were not many characters who could threaten the execution platform.
And here, he and Garp were still holding the line. Ordinary people had no way to break through this checkpoint.
But they must not forget: Whitebeard's goal was one hundred percent to rescue Ace!
He could not, and should not, be "rescuing" him this way.
It seemed more like… he was executing a strategy of attrition in order to achieve some purpose, while also avoiding catastrophic losses!
The problem was—
What was Whitebeard waiting for?!
'What else is there…?'
The ominous premonition in Sengoku's heart grew stronger and stronger. His rich experience and ability allowed him to vaguely sense it.
Behind this major event planned by the Marines, there was another "existence" pushing the tide from behind the scenes.
Because of this existence, Whitebeard had become unimaginably powerful.
Because of this existence, Red-Hair, who should not have come, had appeared with Roger's old crew.
Because of this existence, the scene had strangely fallen into a deadlock…
But, what exactly was this existence?
Sengoku had no clue at all, but the feeling of having fallen into a spiderweb was so clear.
He could even sense that the time until that existence appeared was drawing closer and closer!
(End of Chapter)