High above Marineford, the figures of Shanks and Shamrock clashed once again.
Blade ground against blade, sending blinding sparks flying.
Black and red lightning of Conqueror's Haki tore through the ice on the ground below.
Looking at the face identical to his own, Shanks felt a stormy sea of shock churning in his heart.
"Why are you here? Why is the World Government interfering in today's battle?"
However, Shamrock did not answer. He merely continued to swing his sword, relentlessly attacking Shanks.
Yet, before the crowd could recover from the immense shock of this "clash of Emperors"...
Several equally terrifying auras descended from the sky without warning.
At that moment, the sky completely darkened.
It wasn't that dark clouds were obscuring the sun.
Rather, some higher-dimensional existence had used its supreme will to forcibly strip the light from this world.
Nine other figures appeared on the battlefield.
They varied in appearance, both men and women, but the oppressive auras they exuded were equally terrifying.
Every single one of them possessed at least the strength of an Emperor's first commander, and several among them had reached Emperor-level combat power.
Leading them was a tall old man wearing sunglasses, his white hair and beard shaped like crescent moons.
He wore a black trench coat and wielded a long sword. This man was none other than the Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights, Saint Figarland Garling.
Their appearance brought a momentary silence to the entire battlefield.
Immediately after.
*BOOM—!!!*
Nine powerful bursts of Conqueror's Haki erupted from the nine figures simultaneously!
They transformed into a physical storm, sweeping across all of Marineford.
The howling gales blew so fiercely that people couldn't even open their eyes.
The previously shattered ice surface completely disintegrated under the impact.
On the execution platform, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, who had just been overwhelmed by the out-of-control situation, instantly felt relieved upon seeing these nine figures.
He let out a long, heavy breath, his entire body relaxing.
*They're here. They're finally here.*
*The World Government has made its move.*
Sengoku's eyes flickered. Perhaps this mysterious group helping Whitebeard could test the true depths of the World Government's power.
Saint Garling looked down from above, his gaze indifferent as he surveyed the crowd below.
His eyes swept past the fully restored Whitebeard, ultimately landing on Yang Yi.
"Those who dare to despise the gods."
"Your farce ends here."
"Hand over Nika, and hand over the secret to duplicating Devil Fruits."
"We can give you a chance to join the Holy Knights and serve the gods."
The Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
In the center of power, the five old men watched the nine sovereign figures on the live broadcast screen, victorious smiles appearing on their faces.
These nine members of the Holy Knights were the sharpest blades in their hands.
Furthermore, they possessed the ability to set up teleportation arrays. Even if they couldn't detain this mysterious group, the five of them could quickly teleport over.
When they joined forces, no one in this world would be able to escape them.
As far as they were concerned, this farce was already over.
Meanwhile, in the New World, Totto Land, Whole Cake Island.
Big Mom, Charlotte Linlin, who was enjoying her morning tea, was watching the scenes at Marineford through the live broadcast.
She hadn't expected this war to be fought so fiercely. Whitebeard had come, Kaido had come, and Red-Haired had come.
Now, even those old fogeys from the World Government who hid behind the scenes were personally taking the field.
Her face instantly fell, and the cake in her mouth suddenly lost its flavor.
"Mamamama!"
"To think they didn't invite me to such a lively party!"
She slammed her hand on the table, causing the entirety of Whole Cake Island to tremble.
"Listen up, boys! Prepare to set sail!"
"How can a world-shaking battle like this happen without me?!"
Back on the Marineford battlefield.
Facing Saint Garling's "ultimatum" that sounded like a divine judgment.
Yang Yi didn't show the slightest bit of fear; instead, it was as if he had just heard the greatest joke in the world.
"Pfft..."
Unable to hold it in, he burst out laughing.
"Just the few of you?"
He pointed a finger at the nine arrogant figures in the sky without a shred of respect.
"You don't actually think you're strong, do you?"
These words caused the faces of the nine Holy Knights in the sky to instantly darken.
Yang Yi, however, acted as if he hadn't noticed their murderous intent.
Instead, he smiled at Lu Mingfei, Chu Zihang, and the others behind him.
"See that? That's the Celestial Dragons' mysterious unit that appears late in the manga, the Holy Knights!"
Lu Mingfei picked his ear and grumbled, "That's it? That's it? They don't look like much."
After that remark, the members of the Holy Knights could no longer hold back.
"You bastards! You don't know what's good for you!"
Among the Holy Knights, a masked man could no longer suppress the fury in his heart.
Swinging the twin swords in his hands, he sent two massive flying slashes hurtling toward Yang Yi!
Chu Zihang took a step forward, blocking in front of Yang Yi.
*Hum—!*
The demonic sword Murasame, which had accompanied him for so long, instantly appeared in his hand, and he swung it to parry the attack.
He had been interested in the swordsmanship of the One Piece world for a long time. Now, a great swordsman whose strength might be on par with Hawkeye had appeared right on cue, which suited him perfectly.
Watching Chu Zihang, who seemed to be merely toying with the masked man, Saint Garling's expression completely sank.
Just what kind of monsters were they facing? It was one thing for their Devil Fruit abilities and Haki to suppress Marine Admirals, but their swordsmanship could even suppress a great swordsman!
The thought of directly summoning the Five Elders had already sprouted in his mind.
Yang Yi, however, seemed to see right through him. He suddenly raised his head, his gaze bypassing Saint Garling as if piercing through space itself to lock eyes directly with the Five Elders on the other side of the screen.
"It's just calling for backup, right?"
"When it comes to that, I've never lost."
As soon as his voice fell, Yang Yi raised his right hand and slapped the empty air in front of him.
The space before him caved in from the strike, then shattered to form a spatial portal.
A completely new energy system, entirely distinct from Haki and Devil Fruits, surged out wildly from behind the door.
That energy was known as—Chakra.
This spatial portal and the aura emanating from within made all the powerhouses present feel an instinctive sense of vigilance.
Lu Mingfei, Xia Mi, and the others stared at the door, collectively dumbfounded by the familiar art style and the recognizable Hokage Rock behind it.
Lu Mingfei subconsciously muttered to himself.
"Holy crap... No way..."
"He can even summon *them*?"
The next second, a figure slowly walked out from the portal.
He wore a set of dark red layered armor, his arms crossed over his chest, and his long black hair fluttered wildly in the windless void.
As for his eyes, one was a Rinnegan, covered in eerie purple ripples.
The other was an Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, crimson as blood.
He looked down upon the world, solitary and peerless.
"Hmph?"
He swept his gaze over the battlefield below, a wildly arrogant smirk curling the corners of his mouth.
"Are the small fry of another world dancing as well?"
Uchiha Madara had descended.
Immediately after.
A man with horns on his forehead and a massive Wood Golem manifesting behind him stepped out into the air.
A golden figure draped in a Nine-Tails Chakra Mode haori flickered into existence.
A cold, stern young man wielding the Sword of Kusanagi, with a Rinnegan in his left eye and an Eternal Mangekyo in his right, followed closely behind.
A sunny, handsome man wearing a "Fourth Hokage" cloak and holding a specialized kunai smiled and waved at the crowd.
Watching these familiar faces step out from their childhood manga one after another, stars instantly burst forth in Erii and Xia Mi's eyes.
And the entirety of Marineford fell into silence due to the powerful auras radiating from them.