"We only want Fire Fist... Hand him over to us, and you can leave right now. Not only that, but we will provide the ships for your departure," Sengoku said, staring directly at Whitebeard.
"What did you say!?" Before Whitebeard could even respond, the Division Commanders erupted in fury.
"You want one of ours? You must be dreaming!" Marco snapped, showing zero courtesy.
"Hahaha..." The others burst into laughter alongside him.
"Did you hear that, Sengoku? There's your answer!" Whitebeard's lips curled into a smirk as he addressed the Fleet Admiral.
Sengoku's brow furrowed slightly. He shifted his gaze to Ace.
"And what do you think, Fire Fist...?"
The question sent a shockwave through the crew.
"Ace..." Drake, Sabo, and Luffy called out simultaneously, looking at him with concern. The Commanders' faces were equally grim; they knew Ace's character far too well—he would never abandon his comrades.
"I..." Ace turned to look at Whitebeard, his voice low. "The fact that everyone came to save me... it's made me so happy. Truly. From here on—"
"I know what you're going to say." Whitebeard cut him off mid-sentence, his smirk widening. "Who said we have no way to get back?"
"But..." Ace started to protest, but his words were drowned out by the sudden, frantic shouting of the Marines.
"What is that!?" "Something is coming up from under the sea!" SPLASH!!
With a thunderous roar, a massive geyser of water erupted from the bay. A dark silhouette slowly rose from the depths, eventually breaking the surface completely.
"It's a massive pirate ship!!" the Marines screamed in succession.
"What!" Sengoku's pupils shrank. Opposite him, Whitebeard let out a booming laugh.
"Gurararara... I never said my ships had all arrived... Sengoku!"
In his mind, Drake cursed his own stupidity. I forgot about this! In the original story, Whitebeard had kept a trump card—a hidden, paddle-wheel flagship for the final escape! No wonder the Commanders looked so unshakeable despite the fleet being decimated. They were prepared!
Man, I wasted so much energy worrying...
The Marines encircling the group looked at one another, a heavy sense of foreboding settling in their guts. Sure enough, Whitebeard's voice rang out across the harbor:
"My sons! Everyone, get on the ships!"
"All allied forces, retreat! The Whitebeard Pirates will hold the rear!"
The order left many of the allied pirates dazed. The captains of the subordinate crews looked at Whitebeard in disbelief. The Whitebeard Pirates are holding the rear?
"Don't worry about us! Go! Get back to the New World!"
"That's right, move out! Ace has been rescued thanks to all of you. Now, let us be the ones to settle the score!" Marco added, a faint smile on his face. The other Commanders remained silent, their resolute expressions speaking for them.
"Pops... Commanders..." The eyes of the allied pirates grew moist. They knew the strength of the main crew, and in this moment, the only way to honor them was to obey.
"Everyone!" Ace suddenly roared. The retreating pirates paused, their gazes softening as they looked at him. "I won't say 'thank you,' because we're past the point where we need words like that... but truly... I'm sorry for causing you all so much trouble!!"
With that, Ace bowed deeply toward the five departing pirate ships.
"Ace..." Marco closed his eyes, a small smile tugging at his lips.
"That idiot Ace... what is he doing... if he talks like that, I won't be able to hold it back," a pirate on one of the ships muttered, wiping his eyes.
"Damn it... why is the wind so strong today? Getting sand in my eyes..." "Exactly, Ace... there's no such thing as 'trouble' between us." "Seriously, saying that now... man, this wind just won't stop..."
"All units, listen to my command!" The various pirate captains finally shouted. "Full retreat!"
"Ace, we're heading out first." "We'll be waiting for you in the New World." "Pops, we're counting on you. You'd better come back alive!" Smack! "Why'd you hit me?" "Because you're talking nonsense! Of course Pops is coming back! Don't say useless things!" "Oh, right, right..."
"How could I let you escape so easily?" A figure suddenly leaped into the air.
"It's Admiral Aokiji!" the pirates cried in alarm.
"Ice Age!" Aokiji crossed his arms, firing two streaks of frost toward the sea to freeze the escape path.
"Sabo!" Ace yelled. He jumped into the sky, his body erupting in flames. Sabo adjusted his top hat, following with a fluid, identical motion, unleashing a torrent of fire.
"FIRE FIST!!" In perfect unison, their twin tidal waves of flame vaporized the encroaching ice instantly.
Ace watched the ships gain distance, whispering to himself, "Let me be the one to see you off..."
Aokiji landed back on the ice, his gaze lingering heavily on the two brothers. However, Kizaru suddenly leaped up, golden light swirling as he targeted the retreating ships.
"Yasakani no Magatama..."
VROOM! The moment Kizaru prepared to fire, Marco soared through the air, interposing his wings to block the light.
"Whitebeard...!" Sengoku manifested his Daibutsu form and thrust his right hand forward. A colossal shockwave roared toward the group.
The attack was large enough to swallow them all. Whitebeard stepped forward, meeting it with a left-handed punch.
"Gurararara!" BOOM!
Tremor energy clashed with the shockwave, clearing the immediate vicinity of everything else. Whitebeard grunted, exerting more force as the spatial fractures expanded, physically crushing Sengoku's shockwave.
KABOOM!!
The massive counter-shock rolled toward the Marines centered around Sengoku. The Fleet Admiral felt a bitter taste in his mouth; that was two consecutive failures in direct confrontation.
Ultimately, it fell to Garp to anchor the line. He met Whitebeard's force with a punch of his own, the two veterans colliding in a thunderous stalemate.
Rumble...
"Hmph..." Whitebeard smirked at Garp. "Sengoku is getting old too, it seems..."
"Whitebeard..." Garp remained expressionless, his emotions unreadable.
Drake, however, suspected Garp wasn't in a bad mood at all. After all, both Luffy and Ace were safe. As for the stoic face... well, he had a reputation to maintain.
"The Navy has mobilized their warships. They're starting the pursuit," Marco said, landing beside Whitebeard.
"Good." Whitebeard looked up at the hidden flagship. "Get on the ship!"
"Hold them back!"
The Division Commanders began leaping toward the flagship while Marco flew over the pursuing warships. "I can't let you pass quite so easily."
"Marco!" The Vice Admirals on the decks glared at him, their faces grim.
Watching everyone engage in their final tasks, Ace smiled. He turned to Sabo, Luffy, Drake, and Kenshin. "Let's go."
"Yeah."
"Jinbe..." Ace turned to the fishman. "Thanks for looking after Luffy earlier."
"Don't misunderstand, Ace. I did it because of the man Luffy is," Jinbe said, waving a hand dismissively.
"I know," Ace laughed. "Come on. Stay with the Whitebeard Pirates for a while."
With that, Ace led the group as they all leaped onto the deck of the Whitebeard flagship.
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