Chapter 157: Burning the City
Impel Down – Surface, Main Gate
Chief Guard Sadie-chan and her Jailer Beasts had already been defeated. The massive iron gate of Impel Down stood shattered.
The situation within the prison had spiraled beyond control: the Main Control Room had been taken over by Inazuma and the Okama troops under Emporio Ivankov, who now held command over the mechanisms to open the Gate of Justice.
Meanwhile, outside the prison fortress, the battle raged across the sea. Dozens of warships that once surrounded the deep-sea prison had been sunk, overwhelmed by the combined might of Crocodile and Jinbe. Amid the wreckage, they had seized an intact Marine vessel, preparing to use it to break away toward Marineford.
All that remained was for Portgas D. Ace to emerge from the prison. Then, their escape could begin.
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"Inazuma! It's time! Open the Gate of Justice!"
Ivankov's booming voice carried across the prison corridors as he and Ace ascended from Level 5 – Freezing Hell and passed by the control room.
"Understood, Lord Ivankov!" Inazuma replied sharply. His giant scissors-arm clicked as he sliced through the levers, activating the massive mechanism. Far above, the enormous Gate of Justice groaned and began to swing open.
Without wasting a moment, Inazuma abandoned the control room, rejoining Ace and Ivankov. The three bolted together toward the ruined main gate of Impel Down.
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On the warship outside, Daz Bones gazed at the monumental doors slowly parting in the distance.
"Boss… the Gate of Justice is opening."
Crocodile exhaled smoke from his cigar, the golden hook on his left arm glinting. "Heh. Looks like everything's proceeding smoothly. Next stop—Marineford. I'll be the one to personally rip Whitebeard's head from his shoulders."
Jinbe, standing at the helm, gave him a sharp look. His face remained calm, but his silence spoke volumes.
Endure, Jinbe. For now, he's an ally. At Marineford… if he dares to raise a hand against Father, I'll strike him down myself.
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BOOM!!
A thunderous explosion rocked the entrance. From the shattered gates, Ace burst forth, dragging Ivankov and Inazuma with him.
Behind them, an enraged roar shook the fortress:
"Portgas D. Ace!! STOP!"
Riding atop his towering Venom Demon, Magellan gave chase, his crimson poison giant shaking the ground with every step.
"Even if it costs me my life, I will never allow you to escape this prison!!"
Ace glanced back, smirking defiantly. In each hand, he gripped Ivankov and Inazuma, hoisting them aloft. With a surge of flames, he rocketed upward, leaving Magellan behind.
"I've saved who I came to save! I've got no reason to keep fighting you, Magellan! This is goodbye!"
With that, Ace carried his allies toward the waiting warship.
Magellan, staring at Ace's receding figure, trembled with fury. His mind flashed back to the shameful moment earlier—frozen in fear as Ace walked past him unscathed. His expression hardened.
Grabbing a Den Den Mushi, he growled into the receiver:
"Send me a warship. I'll pursue them to Marineford if I must."
"Understood, Vice Admiral," came the voice on the other end.
Magellan's eyes blazed. "At the cost of my life and Impel Down's honor… I'll personally take your head, Portgas D. Ace!!"
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Back aboard the warship, Jinbe muttered darkly as he spotted Magellan at the gates in the distance:
"Brother Ace… Magellan doesn't look ready to give up. He may chase us all the way."
Ace adjusted the brim of his hat, his expression firm. "Then I'll make sure he can't."
He stepped to the edge of the deck, his body turning to flames as he shot into the sky above Impel Down.
"H-hey! Ace-boy! What are you planning?!" Ivankov shouted after him.
Jinbe tilted his head upward, eyes narrowing. "…Whatever it is, I fear it'll be something overwhelming."
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High above the fortress, Ace spread his arms wide.
"Enkai… Great Flame Commandment!!"
His body ignited into a blazing inferno, flames spiraling outward into a massive ring in the sky. The fiery circle expanded until it encircled the entirety of Impel Down like a halo.
"Entei Kokuin – Burning the City!!"
With both hands, Ace forced the ring downward.
The sky itself seemed to collapse as walls of fire descended, slamming around the perimeter of Impel Down. In an instant, the fortress was surrounded by a blazing barrier: a city wall of pure fire.
The flames roared skyward, one hundred meters high, twenty meters thick, and unbroken—sealing the prison in a dome of hellfire.
"GYAAAAHHHH!!" Even Ivankov's bulging eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Ace-boy!! You built a wall of flames around the whole prison!!"
"Hahaha!" Jinbe bellowed with amazement, raising a thumbs-up. "As expected of Brother Ace! A wall of fire… it's unbelievable!"
Even Crocodile and Daz Bones, stoic as ever, could not hide the flicker of shock in their eyes.
Ace descended back onto the warship, wiping sweat from his brow. He grinned as he admired his work.
"Height: one hundred meters. Thickness: twenty meters. Duration: at least six hours. Even an entire Marine fleet will struggle to break through that. Not even Magellan will be leaving anytime soon."
Jinbe nodded grimly. "Unless someone like Admiral Aokiji appears, it would be nearly impossible to breach."
Ace smiled, but deep inside, his thoughts were darker. This wall isn't just for Magellan. It's for him.
Teach.
Ace knew Blackbeard was on the move. The bastard would be heading toward Impel Down, seeking his own recruits. Ace couldn't be there to stop him—but this fiery barricade might delay him, might sap his strength, might spare lives.
Yet fate was cruel. Ace did not know that Blackbeard had claimed the power of Shiki the Golden Lion—and with it, the ability to make his ship soar through the skies. For Teach, Ace's wall of fire would be meaningless.
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The Gate of Justice opened wide, and their captured Marine warship entered the Government's Sea Current, the exclusive channel that would carry them straight to Marineford.
Even with its acceleration, it would take hours before they arrived.
On deck, Ace and his companions sat in silence, regaining their strength. Ahead lay the true battlefield—the War of the Best.
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