"We are the Whitebeard Pirates!!!"
Even in the face of Shiryu of the Rain and Basco Shot the Big Barrel,
the captains of the Whitebeard Pirates stood firm — utterly unshaken.
Their eyes burned with fury as they closed ranks,
encircling the four infamous criminals in a merciless formation.
Seeing this, Shiryu of the Rain finally lost his composure.
For the first time, surprise and rage flickered across his cold face.
Bang!!!
Gunfire roared.
A bullet wrapped in Armament Haki expanded in his pupils.
It came from the sixteenth division's captain, hidden among the chaos.
"Let's go, boys! We can't let Marco and the others steal all the glory again!"
shouted Braman, the Sixth Division captain.
"Threatening us, huh? You lot really don't know whether to live or die!"
"I've always wondered — what's the level of those who crawled out of Eternal Hell?"
"We don't even have a grudge with you! If you want to blame someone,
blame yourselves for following the wrong man!"
"You should've stayed rotting in Impel Down! Then none of this would've happened!"
Namur of the Eighth Division, Curiel of the Tenth, Haruta of the Twelfth,
and more than a dozen other Whitebeard captains surged forward,
scrambling to bring down Shiryu and his crew.
"Damn you, Whitebeard Pirates! You'll pay a terrible price for this!!!"
roared the Evil King, Avalo Pizarro, his fury echoing across the battlefield.
But in the very next heartbeat—
his arrogance vanished.
All that followed was screaming.
Those who had escaped from the sixth level of Impel Down were powerful, no doubt —
but not powerful enough.
Two years later, after consuming their Devil Fruits,
they might have become fearsome commanders under the Blackbeard banner,
capable of contending with the top five captains of the Whitebeard crew.
But right now, stripped of those powers,
they were no match even for a single division captain —
let alone the combined might of more than a dozen.
Two-on-one. Three-on-one.
In mere moments, Avalo Pizarro, Catarina Devon,
and Basco Shot were crushed — utterly defeated.
Only Shiryu of the Rain managed to endure a little longer,
finding small openings to fight back amidst the onslaught.
"How dare you resist!?"
"Brothers, together—get him!!!"
"Take him down!!!"
The Seventh Division Captain, Rakuyo, bellowed as they charged.
Even Shiryu, as strong and ruthless as he was,
could not withstand the beating from captains who cared nothing for fairness.
"Damn it!!!"
he roared, his final cry drowned beneath the storm of blows.
And with that, Shiryu of the Rain — the once-feared warden of Impel Down — fell.
"It's over, Teach!!!"
Vista, the fourth division captain, stepped forward,
standing beside Whitebeard, who towered over the dying Blackbeard Teach.
"Cough… no… don't… please… forgive me…"
Even now, in his final moments, Teach clung desperately to life,
his voice trembling, his eyes wild with terror.
But Whitebeard showed no hesitation.
There would be no forgiveness.
Slash!!!
The blade of the supreme-grade sword Cong Yunqie pierced through his chest,
shattering his heart.
Then, without a word, Whitebeard raised the blade once more —
and severed Blackbeard's head, ending his life completely.
And thus—
White and black were finally, and forever, divided.
"What are you looking at, Roger!?"
A booming voice cut through the air — Vice Admiral Garp,
his tone filled with fiery indignation.
He was still battered and bruised from his earlier clash with Sugisawa Yuuto,
yet his spirit blazed undiminished.
Across from him, Gol D. Roger, the once and now resurrected Pirate King,
laughed heartily, his energy fully restored.
"Hahaha! Don't be so tense, Garp!
If anything, I should be the one thanking you!"
"Thanking me? For what, you bastard!?"
Garp barked back, fists clenching.
"For raising Ace," Roger said simply, his grin softening.
"Enough of that sentimental crap! Just shut up and take this punch!!!"
Garp's embarrassment flared into fury.
Lightning crackled around his arm as he swung with all his might,
his fist wrapped in thick, dense Haki.
The air shattered with the blow —
and for the first time in over twenty years,
Roger and Garp clashed once again.
"Then let's begin as well," Sugisawa Yuuto said quietly,
a faint smile curving his lips as his gaze fixed on Peter,
one of the Five Elders of Jupiter.
Since war had already been declared, there was no turning back.
Something monumental had to happen today.
For example—
taking the head of the world's highest authority,
and declaring the true beginning of the Great War.