On the giant Moby Dick, Whitebeard glanced towards Luo Chen's location, somewhat curious.
'How did this kid deceive the Marines?'
Sengoku, Aokiji, and the others being fooled twice in a row definitely didn't mean the Marines were stupid.
Rather, Luo Chen was exceptionally clever.
Whitebeard was certain of this.
There wasn't a single fool among the Marine high command.
Even Garp, who usually seemed silly, was sharp on the inside.
Seeing the two Admirals and Garp surrounding Luo Chen, he couldn't help but laugh loudly:
"Marines, you really don't take me seriously!"
Whitebeard leaped high from the bow of the Moby Dick, plunging into the battlefield.
"Letting Aokiji, Garp, and Kizaru gang up on a rookie kid. Sengoku, are you going to stop me yourself?"
Whitebeard threw a punch. A giant Vice Admiral in front of him was instantly killed.
His armor shattered, and he flew backward, spitting blood, landing unconscious on the ground.
Holding "Murakumogiri," he seemed like a resurrected war god, striding toward the execution platform.
Originally, Whitebeard had planned to wait.
But Luo Chen's appearance had diverted three of the Marines' top combatants.
He felt the opportunity had arrived.
On the execution platform, Sengoku's expression was ugly.
Luo Chen's appearance was completely unexpected.
Now, he had to deal with Luo Chen and stop Whitebeard simultaneously.
The only one still free...
"Leave it to me." Akainu rose from his chair, his black gloves slowly transforming into dark red magma.
Magma dripped down, and white smoke rose from the ground beneath his feet.
His figure flashed and disappeared, reappearing in front of Whitebeard.
"Great Eruption!"
Akainu's right arm manifested a massive amount of magma, forming a giant magma fist dozens of meters wide.
He punched out.
Whitebeard was about to activate the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit to strike back.
Suddenly, a figure rushed forward from the side, holding a long sword, and slashed at the giant magma fist.
Whitebeard's expression changed. He quickly withdrew his attack, moved beside the person, and kicked him away.
The giant magma fist was right upon him.
Because Whitebeard had just dispersed his attack to save the man, he didn't have time to gather power again.
He hastily coated his left fist in Armament Haki and punched at the giant magma fist.
Boom! The giant magma fist exploded into countless scalding rocks, scattering everywhere like celestial flowers.
Whitebeard's body staggered back a step.
Akainu pressed his advantage, closing in. His right arm quickly turned into magma, forming into the shape of a dog's head, extending, and striking out.
It was so fast that Whitebeard didn't even have time to dodge.
He barely managed to turn his head. Half of his white mustache was burned away by the magma dog head.
His left cheek was also burned by the magma, turning charred black, the blood instantly drying up.
"Pops!" Cries of alarm rose from Whitebeard's commanders and crew members.
Some glared angrily at Squard, whom Whitebeard had kicked away to save.
'Is Squard insane?'
'What kind of strength does he have to dare interfere in the battle between Akainu and Pops?'
If Pops hadn't kicked him away, Akainu's "Great Eruption" would have been enough to incinerate Squard.
Although Squard was unharmed, Pops had been injured by Akainu while saving him.
"Bastard! How dare you hurt Pops!" Squard scrambled up from the ice nearby, his face crazed with vengeance as he charged at Akainu again.
Whitebeard was about to activate the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
Squard closing in at this moment forced him to stop again.
The range of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit was extremely wide.
If he didn't stop, he would definitely injure Squard.
He shouted, "Stand down! I'm fine!"
Whitebeard intended for Squard to back off so he could fight Akainu with his full strength.
However, Squard seemed to have lost his mind, charging recklessly.
Frustrated, Whitebeard had no choice but to give up using the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. He coated his blade in Armament Haki and slashed down.
"Dark Hound!" Akainu struck again with the incredibly fast Dark Hound.
This was the punch that had injured Whitebeard's left face just moments ago.
Unfortunately, it was just slightly off. If it had been a bit faster, half of Whitebeard's head would have disappeared.
"Akainu, I'll kill you!" Squard's furious roar sounded from behind, the bright blade reflecting in Whitebeard's peripheral vision.
He didn't think much of it, focusing entirely on Akainu's movements.
He had to deal with Akainu and protect Squard in the midst of battle.
The instant the great blade "Murakumogiri" clashed with Dark Hound...
Squard thrust his sword forward.
Stab...
Blood spurted from Whitebeard's chest.
The bright sword tip was stained red with blood.
Whitebeard turned his head in disbelief.
Squard, whom he considered family, had actually stabbed him from behind.
In that instant, countless thoughts connected.
'No wonder Squard was so irrationally trying to fight Akainu... it was to find an opportunity to assassinate me.'
Pain filled Whitebeard's eyes.
It wasn't just physical pain.
The betrayal by Squard, whom he regarded as a son, caused him heart-wrenching agony.
"Die, Whitebeard!" Akainu roared.
With Squard's critical sneak attack, he easily knocked Whitebeard's great blade away.
He unleashed another full-power Dark Hound punch.
Whitebeard coughed up blood, barely managing to clench his fist, trying to activate his fruit power.
Squard roared with tears streaming down his face, twisting the blade still lodged in Whitebeard's chest.
A large amount of blood spilled from the corner of Whitebeard's mouth, and the milky-white Tremor-Tremor Fruit power on his fist dissipated.
Just as the Dark Hound was about to hit, a blue figure rushed over.
Marco, in his phoenix form, flapped his wings of blue flame, rescuing Pops in the nick of time.
He brought Whitebeard back onto the ship and used the regenerative flames of the Phoenix Fruit to heal the wound on Pops's chest.
All the pirates under Whitebeard stared at Squard, shocked and filled with killing intent.
'This animal actually betrayed Pops!'
Squard was about to explain.
Admiral Akainu had told him that Sengoku and Whitebeard had secretly reached an agreement.
The Marines would not kill Ace or the Whitebeard Pirates.
In exchange, the forty-three New World pirate crews under Whitebeard, like his, were to be eliminated.
"Dark Hound!"
Akainu punched right through Squard's chest.
"You..." Squard turned his head in disbelief.
Seeing the coldness in Akainu's eyes, he suddenly understood. He had been tricked.
Akainu might have been lying from the start.
After all, he had said that if he assassinated Whitebeard, they would let him and his men go.
But now, he still killed him.
Just like how he had sneak-attacked Whitebeard, a fatal blow from behind.
"All pirates deserve to die," Akainu said icily, magma erupting from his fist.
Squard let out a pained roar, his body exploding into countless charred pieces of flesh, leaving no corpse behind.
This scene stunned many onlookers.
Squard had inexplicably attacked Whitebeard.
Then he was killed by Admiral Akainu.
In the end... the Marines had gained a huge advantage.
Squard's stab had directly inflicted a severe, life-threatening wound on Whitebeard.
Even now, Whitebeard was still sitting on the bow of the Moby Dick, unable to stand, receiving treatment from Marco.
On the execution platform, Sengoku used the amplifier, shouting:
"All forces, heed my command! Eliminate all pirates!"
"The pirates are fighting amongst themselves! Whitebeard is a spent force! Begin the full counterattack!"
"Admiral Aokiji, Kizaru, and Vice Admiral Garp are about to finish off Luo Chen and will soon rejoin the battle!"
"Victory in this war belongs to the Marines! To Justice!"
His voice spread throughout the plaza, boosting the Marines' morale.
Many Marines looked at the heavily wounded Whitebeard, then towards Luo Chen's location, their spirits instantly lifted.
Just as Fleet Admiral Sengoku said, Luo Chen was about to be defeated.
...
In one part of the battlefield, Luo Chen's clone's trench coat was tattered. His exposed upper body was covered in frostbite and burn marks.
There were also several dark red fist prints on his chest and abdomen.
Both his arms were broken, hanging limply at his sides.
He was being beaten by Aokiji, Kizaru, and Garp, surrounded by the three.
But hearing Sengoku's words, Luo Chen's clone revealed a meaningful smile.
He was about to be defeated?
No, more accurately, it was time for a swap.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]