At the same moment, Marco stopped tangling with Sakazuki and Gion. Seizing an opening, he flapped his wings and shot straight into the sky, swiftly disengaging from the battle.
To be fair, the ability to fly really was convenient. For a while, even Sakazuki and Gion, using Geppo, couldn't catch up to him.
Marco wasn't the only one. Jozu and the others also quickly broke away from their opponents, preparing to retreat.
With his Observation Haki covering the entire battlefield, Ortoren naturally noticed this and felt a flicker of surprise.
Seriously? They're just leaving like that?
Weren't they supposed to be crying and insisting on fighting on, like in the original story?
But thinking it over, it made sense. In the original story, Ace was the one on the execution platform. This time, it was Momonosuke and his group.
Marco and the others had no real bond or emotional connection with that kid. With Kozuki Oden dead and Whitebeard's order given, choosing to retreat was perfectly reasonable.
Nothing strange about it.
Soon enough, though, Ortoren noticed something else.
Whether it was Marco or Jozu, all of them were retreating in the direction of Newgate.
Clearly, they intended to withdraw, but they had no intention of abandoning their old man.
Newgate naturally noticed this as well. Before Marco and the others could rush over, he suddenly punched into the air at his side.
The tremor force tore through the battlefield, shattering the ground. A massive chasm split the island, completely cutting off the hundred-meter area around him and Ortoren.
That single move triggered magma deep beneath Aquino Island. In the blink of an eye, the split abyss was flooded with searing lava, forming something like a moat.
Marco could have flown across, but Newgate's action made his intent unmistakably clear.
"Dad!?" Marco stared at Whitebeard in disbelief.
"Don't come over!" Newgate said without turning his head. "You still need to protect the fleet, break through the Marines' encirclement, and link up with the support forces. Don't worry about me!"
"Dad, we won't—" Jozu immediately tried to object.
Before he could finish, Newgate burst out laughing.
"No need to worry. Once I finish dealing with this guy, I'll leave on my own. Do you really think I'd lose?"
For a moment, Marco and the others fell silent.
Then Newgate's voice turned heavy.
"This is the captain's order!!!"
A captain's order could not be disobeyed. That was pirate tradition. To ignore it was no different from betraying the crew.
But Marco and the others weren't fools. They knew full well that once they withdrew, Whitebeard wouldn't just be facing Ortoren alone. The Marines' top fighters would all turn their attention to their old man.
No matter how strong he was, that would be extremely dangerous.
Because of that, they hesitated, unable to make up their minds.
...
Then, in the very next moment, the situation changed abruptly, leaving them no decision to make at all.
Over the once-turbulent sea, a piercing cold wind suddenly swept past. In an instant, the surface of the ocean froze solid.
"Ara ara… has it really only been this long?"
A man riding a bicycle slowly appeared on the frozen shoreline, looking over the chaotic battlefield with mild astonishment.
The newcomer was none other than Marine Admiral Aokiji, Kuzan.
Kuzan was genuinely surprised. He didn't think he'd been slacking off. He'd planned to arrive fashionably at the height of the battle and deliver a decisive blow.
Yet here they were. How long had the fighting even lasted? And the Whitebeard Pirates were already retreating?
After parking his bicycle on the ice, Kuzan looked toward the battlefield, scratched his head, and spoke with a puzzled tone.
"That support force you mentioned earlier… wouldn't it be those pirate fleets lingering at the edge of this sea? Sorry about that. I took care of them all on my way here."
On the execution platform, Tokikake watched this scene unfold and slowly lowered the Den Den Mushi in his hand.
Although Ortoren was somewhat surprised by Kuzan's arrival, it also spared him a great deal of trouble.
The Marines hadn't held those long meetings for nothing. They had naturally prepared contingency plans for all kinds of situations that might arise on the battlefield.
This included the exact scenario they were facing now: what to do if the Whitebeard Pirates chose to retreat.
Tokikake had been stationed at the execution platform precisely so he could issue new orders at moments like this.
But now Kuzan had appeared out of nowhere and frozen the sea solid. The Whitebeard Pirates' fleet was instantly immobilized. How were they supposed to escape like this?
With naval artillery covering the area, they likely wouldn't even make it onto their ships before these frozen, stationary targets were blasted and sunk one by one.
No one paid Kuzan any attention, and Kuzan himself didn't seem awkward about it at all. After parking his bicycle, he took a casual step forward. The instant his shoe touched the ice, an intense wave of cold burst out from his body.
Behind him, thick ice rapidly spread across the surface under the reinforcement of Kuzan's power. In just two breaths, the entire perimeter of Aquino Island was surrounded by towering ice walls dozens of meters high and immensely thick.
From above, the overall situation on the battlefield was now perfectly clear.
On the Marine side, pursuit of the pirates had deliberately slowed. This had been part of the original plan, meant to herd the pirates together for a clean sweep. As a result, the area near the execution platform was now packed almost entirely with Marines, forming a massive formation.
Marco and the others were not far from this newly regrouped Marine force, and most of the Whitebeard Pirates' remaining strength had gathered around them.
To the side of Marco's group was a vacant zone encircled by a magma moat. It wasn't very large, only a little over a hundred meters across. This was where Ortoren and Newgate were facing each other.
Beyond that lay the coastline. Warships, surviving coastal artillery, and fortifications were all manned by Marines, clearly positioned to prevent any pirate retreat.
And now, Admiral Kuzan himself was present in that area, having frozen the surrounding sea and erected massive ice walls to seal everything off.
"No way out now, Whitebeard…" Ortoren said, a feral grin spreading across his face.
At the same time, Sakazuki had already stepped to the front of the Marines' regrouped formation. Looking at Marco and the other pirates gathered in the distance, he let out a cold snort and raised his arm.
"All units, annihilate the Whitebeard Pirates!!!"
"Kill them!"
"Wipe out the pirates!"
"Justice will prevail!!"
The Marines had essentially locked in their victory, and their morale surged accordingly.
Marco and the others were like cornered beasts. At this point, there was no need for words anymore. Fight. That was all there was left to do.
Newgate's expression grew heavy as powerful tremor energy instantly wrapped around his hands. He could shatter ice walls with a single strike, but… Kuzan could just recreate them just as easily.
"Still don't get it?" Ortoren interrupted, watching his movements. "All of that is meaningless. The key to breaking this situation is me, Whitebeard. Defeat me. Kill me. Then you'll be free to do what you want to do right now…"
As he spoke, the lightning around Ortoren thickened, turning into an endless flow of thunderous energy that seemed ready to submerge his entire body.
Newgate fell silent for a moment, then locked his gaze firmly back onto Ortoren.
"You're right…"
"But—" Ortoren cut him off before he could finish, his voice low and heavy. "Do you remember what I said earlier, Whitebeard? If this is truly your all, then everything ends here. And as for why…"
Before he could finish that sentence, Ortoren suddenly snapped his arms outward. The thunderous flow that had wrapped around him and nearly obscured his entire form instantly shattered, exploding into countless lightning dragons that scattered in all directions.
When the spectacle faded, Ortoren stood in the same place—but his appearance had changed completely.
Silver-white hair cascaded down to his waist. The horns atop his head were fierce and imposing, radiating overwhelming pressure. His eyes glowed crimson, and his already massive body had expanded even further. From over three meters tall, he now stood close to five.
Sharp, lethal energy radiated from his fingertips, which had fully transformed into claws. Even his teeth had become noticeably more pointed.
At this moment, he no longer looked like a user of the Goro Goro no Mi, but rather like a Zoan user who had entered a half-beast form.
This state was none other than the Mink Tribe's signature technique—Sulong!
"Because…" Ortoren clenched his fist, lightning dancing across it in a dazzling display.
"I have already reached the end of power. I've crossed to the other shore, Whitebeard."
...
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