"My power's data?"
Whitebeard's golden-flamed eyes narrowed slightly. He could sense that the word "data" in Lucian Thorn's mouth was far more than a simple display of energy.
His overwhelming aura did not lessen in the slightest, but his voice rumbled steady as bedrock beneath the sea.
"How do I give it to you?"
That question—was exactly the final gateway Lucian had been waiting for.
Facing scrutiny that could crush any man, Lucian showed not fear but a smile bordering on fanatic.
"Power shed passively is too weak, too chaotic."
Lucian's tone was calm, but every word dropped like a stone into deep waters, sending ripples outward.
"If I want to raise the Analysis percentage quickly enough to open the 'Gate of Time and Space,' what I need is the most concentrated, the purest, the truest force that represents your peak!"
"And that kind of power…"
He paused, then lifted his gaze, speaking each word with weight heavy enough to freeze Marco's soul.
"Can only be born in battle!"
BOOM!
Marco's mind crashed in that instant.
Battle?
With who?
With Pops?!
The very thought emerged—only for him to crush it down with all his might.
Impossible!
This kid was insane! Completely insane!
"Lucian! Do you even know what you're saying?!"
Marco could no longer stay silent. He shot forward in a flash, trying to pull Lucian behind him, his voice shrill from sheer shock.
"That's Pops!
The Strongest Man in the World!
You want him to attack you?
Even old and ill, he's not someone you can oppose!
Are you mad?!
Are you trying to throw your life away?!"
But Lucian's eyes and expression remained unshakably firm.
He didn't even spare Marco a glance. His focus was locked entirely on the silent, mountain-like man before him.
Because he knew—Whitebeard understood.
Whitebeard's silence was proof enough.
"Marco, you're wrong."
Lucian's voice was calm, but carried an edge of finality that could not be denied.
"I don't want to die."
I want to use this chance…
"To see just how far I am from the strongest force on these seas!"
He turned to Marco's anxious face, then back to Whitebeard, his voice suddenly rising, blazing with battle intent.
"If we want to win this war, if we want to rescue Ace, this is a step we must take!"
"So, Pops!"
"I need you, at your strongest state as you are now—hold nothing back! I need to face death itself in order to analyze, to absorb, and to replicate the power that can shake the entire world!"
"Especially…"
Lucian's gaze burned hot.
"Your Tremor-Tremor Fruit!"
"In the next clash, I want you to unleash it fully—let that destructive force become the core of my analysis!"
Every word struck the deck like a hammer.
Marco was stunned speechless, his mouth open yet voiceless.
Looking at Lucian's young but unyielding face, he suddenly felt as though staring at a stranger.
This wasn't the timid recruit who had once boarded their ship.
This was a madman daring to face down a lion—and even challenge it head-on!
But more terrifying than the madman… was Whitebeard's response.
He wasn't angry.
In those deep eyes, the emotions shifted—from scrutiny, to shock, and finally into something indescribable… admiration.
Staring at the small figure before him, he seemed to glimpse his own younger self decades ago—fearless, reckless, daring to challenge the impossible.
Lucian gave them no more time to react.
He stepped forward, aura surging to its peak.
Straightening his spine, he shouted with all the strength of his soul at the emperor before him—
"So come, Pops!"
"Here and now!"
"Fight me!"
…
Silence.
The deck was so still even the wind seemed to vanish.
Marco stood frozen like stone.
Challenge Whitebeard?
Never, in the decades-long history of the Whitebeard Pirates, had anyone dared imagine such a thing!
And yet, within that silence—
"Gu…"
A low rumble escaped Whitebeard's throat.
He lowered his massive head slowly.
In his eyes, shock and admiration gave way to something else—an unprecedented, blazing light called fighting spirit.
"Gu ra…"
"Gu ra ra ra…"
"GU RA RA RA RA RA RA!!!"
The laugh rose from low to wild, exploding at last into a roar that shook the world!
BOOM—!
The laughter itself became shockwaves, pressing the ocean around the Moby Dick into a massive depression before rebounding upward into towering waves!
Marco stumbled back, eyes wide as he watched his Pops laugh with such force.
He had returned!
That Whitebeard of old—who once scorned the world, proud and unmatched—had returned in this moment!
"Interesting!"
"Far too interesting! Gu ra ra ra ra!"
Whitebeard grasped Murakumo Giri, ripping it from the deck and hefting it onto his shoulder, his massive body trembling with excitement.
"I've ruled these seas for decades, taken countless sons under my wing—"
"But this is the first time one has stood before me and dared me to strike with all my strength!"
He lowered his head, his shadow engulfing Lucian. Flames burned in his eyes, hot enough to scorch.
"Good!"
"Truly worthy of being my son!"
Whitebeard's grin bared white teeth, wild and exultant, the joy of a warrior burning bright.
"Since you've said it…"
"I'll grant your wish!"
At those words, an indescribable aura exploded from him—
Conqueror's Haki.
The purest will of a king who had ruled the seas for decades, unleashed in response to a challenger!
The very air froze.