While the battle in Level 6 of Impel Down raged on, the scene in the rooms on the sea-level floor above was completely different.
Marshall D. Teach, known as [Blackbeard], the traitor from the Whitebeard Pirates, the son of the legendary great pirate Rocks, and the captain of the Blackbeard Pirates, was currently sitting on a rather ornate sofa.
He picked up the glass of red wine in front of him and took a big gulp. A barely noticeable look of distaste immediately flashed across Teach's face.
"If you don't like it, just put it down."
Upon hearing the sudden, steady male voice, the distaste on Teach's face instantly transformed into a shrewd, ingratiating smile.
"Zehahahaha! A lowly pirate like me doesn't get many chances to enjoy fine wines like you important folks."
Although that's what he said, Teach privately thought that this expensive red wine, which cost enough per bottle to buy two or three of his ships, tasted even worse than rum from a tavern.
After taking a couple more symbolic sips, Teach finally put the glass down and turned to look at the figure who had just spoken.
It was a tall man dressed in knight's attire.
This man stood tall and straight, his aura extraordinary. The most crucial thing was his face.
To be honest, if Teach didn't clearly remember scratching three scars onto Shanks' face himself, he might have mistaken this man for him.
Saint Figarland Shamrock.
Apart from a name, Teach had received no further information.
However, that was enough to confirm the other's identity.
Celestial Dragon.
'So, did that guy Shanks have a twin brother after all?'
Looking at the face almost identical to Shanks', Teach couldn't help but let his thoughts wander, 'So that means… that guy was a Celestial Dragon too?'
'Zehahaha, how interesting.'
How did things develop to this point, and why was Teach sitting alone with this Shamrock? Everything traces back to that operation to capture [Fire Fist] Ace.
…
Back then, Blackbeard, confident after obtaining the Yami Yami no Mi, had already prepared to use Ace as a bargaining chip.
Capturing Ace would not only earn him a Warlord title but also attract that man who extremely doted on his 'sons'.
Killing two birds with one stone.
After Whitebeard and the Marines fought to the death, he would emerge to use the Yami Yami no Mi to seize the Gura Gura no Mi's power.
By then, he would surpass Edward Newgate and become a new Emperor... No, even becoming the new Pirate King wasn't impossible!
Originally, everything was planned perfectly.
But, as luck would have it, before Ace could come deliver himself, he received a thorough education from a kind-hearted uncle.
Afterwards, a cautious Ace didn't let his guard down. Realizing he was at a disadvantage, he decisively chose to escape despite his injuries, even destroying one of Teach's hearts.
Teach initially thought that with Doc Q's poison, the kid wouldn't get far.
But Teach had underestimated Ace's determination.
The guy actually raced all the way, stubbornly fleeing from the East Blue back to the Grand Line.
Teach and his crew could only chase desperately, even forgoing the chance to capture Trafalgar D. Water Law to get a new heart for himself.
In a way, Ace helped Law avoid the misfortune of being captured… though Ace was the cause of it in the first place.
The Mera Mera no Mi might not be the strongest in a fight, but when going all out for escape, ordinary ships simply couldn't keep up.
Teach watched helplessly as the traces Ace left behind became older and older, meaning the distance between them was growing larger.
But there was nothing he could do… he could only continue the chase, burning with anxiety.
On Ace's side, he rushed headlong towards Sabaody Archipelago.
Once he reached Fish-Man Island below Sabaody, members of the Whitebeard Pirates would be there to receive him, and he could rest easy temporarily.
The two sides chased and fled, seemingly heading towards Ace's successful escape.
But things went contrary to wishes.
When Ace arrived at Sabaody Archipelago, he happened to encounter a full-island lockdown. Even the old guy Rayleigh had chosen to temporarily hide on another island, just missing Ace.
Incidentally, this was closely related to Naruto.
It was precisely because he attacked Mary Geoise and crippled Akainu on Sabaody that both the World Government and the Marines were so furious.
The Marines sent Garp and others to 'pursue' Naruto, while the World Government tasked Shamrock and several other God's Knights with the investigation.
The death of Killingham not only meant the first casualty for the God's Knights in many years but was also a provocation against the Celestial Dragons' bottom line.
Imu wasn't willing to appear personally, so the matter fell to the remaining God's Knights.
After hastily gathering all God's Knights, Shamrock also left Mary Geoise and came to Sabaody Archipelago.
There, he ran into Ace, who had wasted time hiding and was finally caught up by Blackbeard.
The outcome was without a doubt.
Neither the current Ace nor Teach stood a chance against Shamrock.
Teach's Yami Yami no Mi was somewhat effective against other Devil Fruit Users, but against Shamrock, whose only fruit ability was in his sword, it was quite useless.
Afterwards, Blackbeard, about to be killed as an ordinary pirate by Shamrock, had a quick wit in a moment of crisis and found a way out.
Having learned some rumors during the pursuit and combining them with his own guesses, Teach boldly deduced that Shamrock's target was Naruto.
The guy who had exposed him in front of Whitebeard.
So he decisively revealed the connection between Ace and Naruto and took the opportunity to propose his 'transaction'.
The final result is what we see now.
Our Captain Blackbeard, Teach, is now one of the World Government-recognized Warlord.
The price was that he had to be responsible for planning, perfecting, and overseeing the implementation of the entire [Great Sinner Capture Plan].
This was both the condition of the transaction and Shamrock's blatant threat.
If the plan failed, even if Blackbeard had captured the sinful bloodline, Roger's son, he would still be executed alongside them.
-He wouldn't even qualify for imprisonment in Impel Down's Level 6, as he already knew too much.
Suddenly, a slight tremor passed through, causing ripples in the remaining wine in the glass.
"He's here."
Shamrock's eyes seemed to see through the entire prison, straight down to Level 6, the Infinite Hell.
Teach looked at the other belatedly.
The next moment, Shamrock directly took Teach to the main monitoring room.
Casually killing the dozing government agent, Shamrock's gaze quickly swept across the hundreds of screens.
But, under Teach's meaningful gaze, the footage on every screen appeared completely normal.
Even the large monitor Den Den Mushi, which served as the 'terminal', remained lazy and sluggish.
Logically, if someone damaged a surveillance Den Den Mushi, the large one should have reacted.
Just as Teach was about to make some sarcastic remarks, another, stronger tremor came…
Followed by continuous vibrations.
This time, even Teach couldn't claim nothing was happening.
As the primary architect of the plan, he knew that prisoners on Level 6 couldn't attack each other, nor could they damage the environment outside of combat.
Therefore, tremors strong enough to reach the sea surface could only be caused by an outsider.
Although he didn't know how that terrifying guy reached Level 6 without passing through Level 1, Teach understood that the key point now was that he had arrived.
However, neither Teach nor Shamrock seemed particularly anxious after confirming the intrusion.
As if... all of this was within the plan.
"So, what's next?"
"Wait for her news. If she can do it, then letting her go is fine."
Shamrock spoke indifferently, but in his heart, he had already conceived another idea.
He summoned another agent, whispered a few instructions, and sent him away.
Catching this out of the corner of his eye, Teach, for some reason, felt his hair stand on end.
If it were any other time, the moment he had such a reaction, he would decisively follow his intuition and choose to run.
But right now, his crew members and potential future recruits were all under the other party's control, so he couldn't just run.
Moreover, even if he truly abandoned the others and fled alone, could he really escape unscathed from this man beside him?