"Where's Whitebeard? Has he made any moves yet?"
Fire Fist Ace's expression turned serious as he looked at Miss Friday.
"The Whitebeard Pirates haven't made any moves so far."
Ace quietly let out a breath of relief.
Kizaru and Aokiji also relaxed slightly.
If Whitebeard decided to join the chaos as well, the entire sea would fall into complete disorder.
Ryūjin, however, was not surprised in the slightest.
Whitebeard was never the type to chase ambition or power. Becoming Pirate King meant nothing to him. All the old man wanted was to drink with his sons and live peacefully with his family.
"What about the situation between the Red Hair Pirates, Kaido, and Big Mom?" Aokiji asked.
Any movement involving the Four Emperors was considered top-level intelligence by the Marines. Even a simple meeting between Emperors would make the Navy Headquarters nervous, let alone an actual battle.
Naturally, Aokiji wanted a clear answer.
"Red Hair first tried to contact Kaido and Big Mom, then a battle broke out between them," Miss Friyaa replied.
Ryūjin instantly understood what had happened.
Red Hair Shanks was the type who loved sticking his nose into trouble. Once news spread that three Marine Admirals had been captured, Kaido and Big Mom definitely would not stay quiet.
Shanks probably tried to stop them from taking action.
Unfortunately for him, his famous "giving face" routine likely failed this time. Kaido and Big Mom were not the kind of people who would obediently back down.
"So Kaido, Big Mom, and Red Hair are all heading toward Marineford?" Ryūjin's eyes lit up slightly. "Looks like things are finally getting interesting."
He was genuinely curious about monsters like the Four Emperors.
Whether it was terrifying Devil Fruits or overwhelming Haki, they stood at the absolute peak of the sea.
Especially Kaido and Big Mom.
One possessed abilities closely tied to Yin Release, while the other leaned heavily toward Yang Release. Both of them were important pieces for Ryūjin's future Six Paths plans.
As for Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit, Ryūjin did not care much about it.
The same went for Shanks' swordsmanship.
Still, improving his Haki through battles with monsters like them sounded worthwhile.
"Crocodile, keep track of Kaido, Big Mom, and Red Hair," Ryūjin ordered casually.
"Understood, Lord Ryūjin."
Crocodile accepted the order immediately.
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin, are you planning to target the Four Emperors?" Kizaru asked from the side.
Aokiji also stared at Ryūjin carefully.
"Why are you two so tense?" Ryūjin shrugged. "I'm just going to say hello."
Neither Admiral believed him.
The two of them felt their headaches getting worse.
Unfortunately, with their Devil Fruit abilities completely sealed, there was nothing they could do to stop him.
The voyage continued.
Three days later.
"Ryūjin, we've entered Pops' territory," Ace said while observing the sea ahead.
Ryūjin immediately became interested.
"So we're finally meeting Whitebeard."
At long last, the moment had arrived.
...
On the Moby Dick.
Whitebeard sat on deck with several IV tubes connected to his body. Age had taken its toll on him, and his condition worsened with each passing year.
Still, his presence remained overwhelming.
"Pops, Kaido, Big Mom, and Red Hair have all started moving. Red Hair even fought with the other two," Marco reported.
"Gurararara!" Whitebeard laughed while taking a large gulp of sake. "What a noisy bunch. Let them do whatever they want. It has nothing to do with us."
"Pops! Something's wrong!"
Oars Jr. suddenly rushed over in panic.
"What happened, Oars?" Marco asked lazily.
"Oars, my son, speak properly," Whitebeard said.
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin is here!"
The moment those words fell, the atmosphere exploded.
"What?!"
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin?!"
"He actually came here?!"
Marco, Vista, Jozu, and the other commanders all changed expressions immediately.
Nobody could remain relaxed after hearing that name.
Even Whitebeard became serious.
"Ryūjin..." Whitebeard narrowed his eyes. "What does he want?"
The relaxed expression on his face disappeared instantly.
He tore off the IV tubes connected to his body and slowly stood up.
"Pops... Ace is also on his ship," Oars Jr. added carefully.
"Ace?"
Whitebeard's gaze sharpened immediately.
His sons were the only thing he truly cared about.
Without hesitation, Whitebeard spread out his Observation Haki and quickly sensed Ryūjin's ship more than ten kilometers away.
Then his expression shifted slightly.
Ace was not restrained.
In fact, he was laughing and talking normally with Ryūjin.
Whitebeard quietly relaxed.
Soon after, he noticed something even stranger.
Two Marine Admirals, Aokiji and Kizaru, were also onboard.
Not imprisoned.
Not chained.
The two Admirals were freely moving around the ship and casually chatting with each other.
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin..." Whitebeard grinned slightly. "Interesting brat."
"Pops, I'll go check things out," Marco volunteered as blue phoenix flames appeared around his body.
"Don't rush."
Whitebeard stopped him.
Then he looked toward the crew.
"My sons, prepare to welcome our guest!"
Although Whitebeard had no idea why Ryūjin came here, Ace clearly held no hostility toward him.
That alone was enough.
Anyone who saved his son was a guest of the Whitebeard Pirates.
Soon, under the watchful eyes of the crew, Ryūjin's ship slowly approached the Moby Dick before finally stopping nearby.
Every commander remained tense.
A man whose bounty surpassed Whitebeard's by nearly two billion berries was not someone they could casually ignore.
Then suddenly, a figure jumped from Ryūjin's ship.
"Ace!"
Ace landed directly on the deck with a huge grin.
"Pops, I'm back!"
"Ace, my son!"
Whitebeard laughed loudly.
The unease he had carried ever since Ace chased after Blackbeard finally disappeared completely.
"Ace is back!"
"Captain Ace!"
The crew immediately surrounded him excitedly.
The atmosphere on the Moby Dick became lively again.
After the greetings settled down, Whitebeard looked at Ace seriously.
"How did you end up with Demonic Eye Ryūjin?"
Ace scratched his head awkwardly.
"To be honest, Pops... I failed to capture Teach."
"Not only that, I lost to him."
"If Ryūjin hadn't stepped in and beaten Teach, I probably would've already been handed over to the Marines and locked inside Impel Down."
The expressions of the commanders changed slightly.
"Why would someone like Demonic Eye Ryūjin save you?" Marco asked cautiously.
Ace answered honestly.
"Ryūjin is my brother's friend."
Everyone froze for a moment.
Ace's younger brother actually knew a monster like Demonic Eye Ryūjin?
"Gurararara!" Whitebeard burst into laughter. "Marco, stop overthinking things. Ryūjin saved Ace, which means he's our friend!"
Then Whitebeard looked toward Ryūjin directly.
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin, thank you for saving my son. Come aboard and have a drink with us!"
"Sounds good," Ryūjin replied casually. "I wanted to see the famous Moby Dick anyway."
He clapped his hands lightly.
Wood Release activated instantly.
A massive wooden bridge stretched between the two ships.
Ryūjin walked across first.
Behind him followed Crocodile, Nami, and Nico Robin.
Aokiji and Kizaru remained onboard Ryūjin's ship.
As Marines, they still had their own positions.
The Whitebeard Pirates also noticed that the two Admirals were strangely obedient despite not being restrained by Seastone.
Clearly, Ryūjin had some other method of controlling them.
Whitebeard simply glanced at them before ignoring the matter entirely.
"Whitebeard, I've heard a lot about you," Ryūjin said after boarding.
"Gurararara! These days, your reputation is even bigger than mine, brat!"
The tense atmosphere gradually faded.
Once everyone realized Ryūjin truly had no hostile intentions, the pressure hanging over the ship finally disappeared.
"Oh right."
Ryūjin suddenly looked toward Ace.
"Ace, this guy should belong to you."
His Mangekyō Sharingan spun slowly.
A spatial vortex appeared beside him.
Buzz!
As the distortion vanished, a figure fell heavily onto the deck.
The Whitebeard Pirates stared in shock.
"Teach?!"
Everyone's expressions darkened instantly.
Blackbeard looked around in confusion after finally escaping the endless darkness of Kamui space.
Then he saw Whitebeard.
His entire body stiffened.
"P-Pops..."
Whitebeard looked down at him with disappointment.
"Teach."
"I could forgive many things."
"But killing your own comrade is the one rule that can never be broken."
"You are no longer my son."
Blackbeard immediately panicked.
"Pops! I know I was wrong! Please give me another chance!"
"Shut the hell up!"
Ace slammed a punch directly into Blackbeard's stomach.
Blackbeard collapsed while coughing violently.
Whitebeard waved his hand casually.
"Take him away. Don't ruin the mood while we have guests here."
Blackbeard was dragged away like a dead dog.
Nobody needed to guess what kind of fate awaited him.
Soon, the mood on the ship recovered once more.
To welcome Ryūjin and thank him for saving Ace, the Whitebeard Pirates held a massive banquet.
The Moby Dick became noisy and lively again.
Ryūjin drank with Whitebeard, talked nonsense with the commanders, and listened to the crew argue loudly around him.
Even Nami and Robin gradually relaxed.
The atmosphere was surprisingly enjoyable.
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