Akainu's Magma-Magma Fruit was the superior counterpart to Ace's Flame-Flame Fruit.
On top of that, in every aspect—strength, endurance, Haki—Akainu surpassed Ace.
So there was no suspense.
When the magma fist and the flaming fist collided, Akainu utterly overwhelmed him, blasting Ace away.
"Die, son of the Pirate King! The evil blood in your veins should be eradicated completely!"
Akainu leapt forward, his fist blazing with molten magma, and smashed down toward Ace once more.
The Whitebeard commanders were horrified.
Marco was the fastest to react. Transforming into a phoenix, he intercepted the attack with his blue flames.
But even Marco struggled.
The terrifying heat of the magma was something even his regenerative flames found hard to endure.
He shouted urgently:
"Ace, run! Don't fall for Akainu's trick!"
Ace clenched his teeth, his face filled with unwillingness and fury.
That bastard Akainu had insulted his old man—
How could he tolerate that?
He got back on his feet, refusing to retreat like this.
That moment of hesitation was enough.
Marco could no longer hold back the magma and was blasted away.
Akainu pressed the attack relentlessly, charging toward Ace again as he sneered:
"You inherited Roger's blood, yet your strength is this pathetic. That must be Whitebeard's fault—he really is a complete failure!"
Ace's eyes turned completely red as he roared hoarsely:
"You bastard! Don't you dare speak about my old man like that—I'll kill you!"
Blinded by rage, Ace ignored the desperate shouts of the other commanders and charged straight at Akainu.
But he was no match.
In just a few exchanges, he was already in grave danger.
Akainu's attacks were ruthless—every strike aimed to kill.
Several times, Ace narrowly avoided death.
Seeing this, even Whitebeard could no longer remain calm.
Dragging his heavily injured body, he moved toward Ace.
Garp, still torn between justice and family, did not stop him.
But Sengoku, standing on the execution platform and observing everything, would not allow it.
In his golden Buddha form, Sengoku leapt into the air and struck down at Whitebeard.
A terrifying shockwave gathered in his palm.
"Whitebeard! Whether it's you or Roger's son—today, you both fall!"
With Sengoku personally blocking him, Whitebeard had no choice but to stop.
His fist, wrapped in a translucent quake force, clashed with Sengoku's shockwave.
BOOM!
The air shattered as violent winds surged outward.
With Whitebeard held back—
Akainu no longer had any concerns.
He unleashed his full power without restraint.
Using the awakened ability of his Magma-Magma Fruit, he turned the ground beneath Ace into molten magma.
Before Ace could react—
Akainu struck.
"Inugami Guren!"
The magma attack bit into Ace's shoulder, locking him in place.
Then—
A blazing magma fist pierced straight through Ace's chest—
Bursting out from his back.
Ace's eyes widened in disbelief.
He slowly lowered his head, staring at the magma arm impaling him.
The intense heat had already melted his heart.
He wasn't a monster like Whitebeard, who could keep fighting after being struck by Meigō.
Nor was he like Jack the Drought, whose durability let him endure magma itself.
He had no overwhelming advantage.
His Flame-Flame Fruit was something anyone could use to produce fire.
And in terms of Haki—
He hadn't inherited Roger's talent.
To ordinary people, he was powerful.
But in the eyes of true top-tier monsters—
He simply wasn't enough.
Even with Whitebeard's support—
The throne of Pirate King remained impossibly distant.
Akainu coldly withdrew his fist.
Ace's body collapsed to the ground—
Then was swallowed by the magma beneath, burned away completely—
Leaving not even ashes behind.
The entire battlefield fell into dead silence.
The Whitebeard Pirates' eyes were filled with fury and disbelief.
They couldn't accept it.
After everything—
After finally rescuing Ace—
He had died just like that?
Whitebeard, still clashing with Sengoku, felt his heart twist in agony.
His vision blurred.
For a man like him—
There was no greater pain than outliving his son.
Grief surged—
And with it—
An unprecedented killing intent erupted from his body.
Sabaody Archipelago.
Luo Xing felt nothing at Ace's death.
What interested him more—
Was that the world's strongest man, Whitebeard, was finally about to unleash his full fury.
Behind him, Jinbe stood in silent grief.
He didn't blame Luo Xing.
On the contrary—
He was grateful.
After all, it had been Luo Xing's order that allowed Moria to free Ace from the execution platform.
It was Ace himself who fell for Akainu's provocation and ignored Marco's warnings.
That was what led to his death.
Jinbe then looked toward Whitebeard with concern.
Earlier, Whitebeard had taken a direct Meigō to the chest, leaving a massive, bloody hole.
Anyone else would have died instantly.
Yet Whitebeard still stood—
Still wielding power that shook the world.
But how long could he last?
The raging fury and killing intent now erupting from him—
Might very well be the final blaze of this strongest man.
Meanwhile—
Behind the Marineford headquarters.
Moria remained hidden.
He had not left.
He still had another task—
To keep an eye on Blackbeard.
"Luo Xing said Blackbeard would sneak in from behind Marineford… I wonder if that's really true."
Moria was a bit skeptical.
After all, Luo Xing wasn't inside Blackbeard's head.
How could he predict his movements so precisely?
But soon—
Moria's doubts vanished completely.
Because—
The Blackbeard Pirates had appeared on the sea.
At present, they had only five members:
Blackbeard, Burgess, Lafitte, Doc Q, and Van Augur.
Originally, Blackbeard had planned to recruit prisoners from Level 6 of Impel Down, doubling his crew.
But that plan had been ruined by Luo Xing.
He was furious—
Yet helpless.
This war at Marineford had been his grand stage—
His chance to make his name known to the world.
At first, everything had gone perfectly.
It was as if fate itself was on his side.
But ever since encountering Luo Xing—
Nothing had gone right.
Every time he faced him, he failed and ended up running away.
For someone as ambitious and arrogant as Blackbeard—
That humiliation was unbearable.
He had already decided—
Once he obtained Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit—
He would settle the score with Luo Xing.
Full of determination, Blackbeard rushed from Impel Down to Marineford—
Taking a long detour to land from the rear.
Standing on the shore, he burst into wild laughter.
"Zehahahaha! We've finally arrived!"
"The Whitebeard Pirates and the Marines must have worn each other out by now—it's time for me to reap the rewards!"
"Once I have both the Dark-Dark Fruit and the Tremor-Tremor Fruit…"
"Kaido, Luo Xing—none of you will stand against me!"
"The future belongs to me—Blackbeard!!"
He was ecstatic.
Excited.
As long as he obtained Whitebeard's power—
Everything he had suffered at Luo Xing's hands would be repaid.
But just as Blackbeard was reveling in his fantasies—
A mocking voice suddenly rang out behind him.
"Hey, hey… you little black brat."
"You really think Luo Xing will be your defeated opponent? That the future belongs to you?"
"Did your brain get crushed by a door or something?"
"In broad daylight, you're already dreaming?"
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