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On the Red Force (Red Hair Pirates's Ship.)
The Red-Haired Pirates' ship sailed the seas, the sound of a lively party echoing across the deck.
It's a common misconception that the Four Emperors live in lavish palaces.
Some do, of course. Charlotte Linlin, the matriarch of the Big Mom Pirates, ruled over a vast family and a sprawling territory of thirty-four islands from her castle on Whole Cake Island, indulging her insatiable craving for sweets. Kaido, of the Beasts Pirates, had been entrenched on Onigashima in Wano for years, plotting his next move.
But Shanks and his Red-Haired Pirates were different. They lived on their relatively small, dragon-headed ship, moving freely across the sea with their closest companions.
Shanks and Yasopp had just returned from the East Blue, and they were telling the crew about their time in Hannabal, about the changes in the East Blue, about all their adventures along the way.
"Captain! Big news!" a crewman shouted, running toward them.
"What is it?" Shanks asked, a grin on his face.
"Whitebeard's 5th Division Commander, Vista, and Fire Fist Ace have been arrested by the Marines! They're being held at the G-5 base!"
"HUH??"
A wave of shock and disbelief washed over the crew.
"G-5 has that kind of guts?"
"They dared to mess with him?"
"The Marines at G-5 are a different breed, more like pirates than Marines. But why would they provoke Whitebeard?" Beckman wondered.
"No, the new reports are saying it was that king from Paradise," the crewman explained. "He just arrived in the New World. He ran into Vista and Ace near G-5, captured them, and handed them over to the Marines."
"WHAT??"
The crew was even more stunned.
"Hey, hey, that king... it's not him, is it?"
"Just arrived in the New World, and he's already making such a bold move?"
"Hahaha...!" Shanks laughed. "Is he targeting Whitebeard too?"
That "too" reminded everyone of Ace.
A long time ago, when Ace had first entered the Grand Line, he had come to see Shanks. He had told them that he was going to take Whitebeard's head.
"My enemy is this entire world," Ace had said. "The Seven Warlords, the Four Emperors, even the Celestial Dragons... I will defeat them all. I will tear down all the 'pinnacles' of this world. And with this flame, my name will be known throughout the seas!"
In Shanks's eyes, he had seen a deep-seated resentment toward the world, an impatience born of youth. But that was how most rookie pirates were, wasn't it? Young, arrogant, eager to challenge the world...
"What do you think?" Shanks had asked his intelligent first mate.
"He says he's going to defeat Whitebeard," Beckman had replied, taking a drag from his cigarette. "But what then? I don't see any vision beyond that. He's at war with the entire world, which means he wants to tear down the world order, with the Celestial Dragons at the top. So he has to destroy the Four Emperors as well. That's what he's saying. But he's painting himself into a corner. If he continues like this, he'll never be more than the captain of a single ship."
Beckman hadn't seen the makings of a true leader in the young man named Ace.
"A fire doesn't just stay put," he had said. "It spreads, consuming everything in its path until the entire forest is nothing but ash. Only then does it die out. What does Ace plan to do after that?"
A few months later, he had become one of Whitebeard's crew...
Was it surprising?
Not at all.
"Hey! That guy actually wanted to take on Whitebeard!"
"Every year, a rookie like Ace comes to the New World, making a lot of noise," Beckman said. "And they're always put down, sooner or later. And now, here comes another one."
"They're not the same," Shanks said with a laugh. "It pains me to admit it, but that guy's spirit... it's not like Ace's. He sees the world for what it is."
Beckman was a little surprised. "Is that so?"
Shanks stood up and gazed out at the calm sea. "But... we can't just let him run wild in the New World either."
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G-5 Base.
All the civilians, including the non-combatant support staff, had been evacuated on the warships from G-14.
Those who remained set up their defensive positions.
After Vergo had personally executed a group of soldiers who had tried to desert, no one dared to treat the situation as a joke.
But they were all dejected, their confidence shattered.
Fight Whitebeard?
You've got to be kidding.
In the evening, Deuce, who had bravely sailed to the island in a small boat, was found by a patrol and brought before Jin.
He had already taken control of the island from Vergo.
"What do I want?" Jin said with a smile. "Whitebeard didn't send you, did he? He would never ask such a question."
"Eh??" Deuce was surprised. "Why?"
"Because you're not Whitebeard," Jin replied. "So you don't understand."
Whitebeard is old. Can he still fight?
If he didn't respond, how could he maintain his position in the New World?
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Night.
On the horizon, lightning flashed, illuminating the sea and the form of the Moby Dick.
It was like a great white whale, cutting through the waves, rapidly approaching the island.
The lighthouse siren blared, its beam cutting through the darkness and falling on the ship's channel.
A tall figure, like a demon god, stood on the whale's head.
He wore a greatcoat, similar to that of a Fleet Admiral, and a crescent-shaped white mustache.
His massive, powerful body stood tall, and he held a bisento of equal height, its blade like a ship's sail.
"Whitebeard!"
"It's Whitebeard...!"
A wave of panic spread through the base.
The name "Whitebeard" was known throughout the Four Blues. Even the children's nursery rhymes described him as "more terrifying than a monster."
The name alone was enough to make the soldiers tremble. Many of them collapsed to the ground in fear.
"Raise the gates!"
"Hold them back!"
"Open fire...!"
At Vergo's command, all the base's defenses were activated.
The steel net across the bay was raised. The cannons roared...
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The night was lit up by explosions.
"Gurarararara...!"
Faced with this barrage, Whitebeard just laughed.
He swung his bisento.
A terrifying slash of compressed air tore through the sky, shattering the cannonballs and cutting a white line across the surface of the sea.
The steel net tore like paper, and the Moby Dick surged into the bay.
"KILL!"
Marco and the other commanders leaped from the ship.
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