No matter how hard they tried to suppress it, those images grew clearer and clearer in everyone's minds.
They simply couldn't shake them off.
Unconsciously, their thoughts began to run wild, weaving one absurd scenario after another. Even Hawkeye Mihawk, who had always been calm and aloof, found it increasingly difficult to maintain his composure.
Just imagining a stern, cold, impeccably righteous Navy Admiral secretly having an affair with a ewe—
Even knowing it was nonsense—
Was unbearably hilarious.
For a moment, the corners of everyone's mouths twitched uncontrollably, as if their facial muscles had betrayed them.
Hancock was the first to lose control.
She burst out laughing, and as if a strange switch had been flipped, several other members of the Seven Warlords followed suit, laughter echoing loudly across the execution grounds.
The sudden sound shattered the tense, oppressive atmosphere.
Nearby soldiers and officers instinctively turned their heads, stunned.
This was Marineford.
This was the execution platform.
The Whitebeard Pirates loomed like an apocalyptic shadow overhead, pressing down on everyone's nerves until they could barely breathe.
And yet—
Why were these Shichibukai laughing so freely?
Did they truly fear nothing?
Just then—
A terrifying pressure descended silently.
The Navy's highest combat power had arrived.
The three Admirals appeared.
In an instant, it was as if a stimulant had been injected directly into the veins of every Marine present.
Morale exploded.
Roars erupted from the crowd, waves of blood-boiling fervor surging through the battlefield. The entire plaza fell into a near-fanatical frenzy.
The Shichibukai immediately stopped laughing and straightened their posture.
Even they knew better than to show disrespect at this moment.
Moments later, the central figure of the execution was escorted forward.
Portgas D. Ace.
Bruised, shackled, and visibly exhausted, he stumbled under the guard of multiple executioners and was forced onto the platform. Heavy cuffs locked around his wrists with a dull metallic clang.
Sengoku and Garp stepped forward, den-den mushi in hand.
"Ace!" Sengoku's voice thundered.
"State your father's name!"
Then—
The truth was unveiled before the entire world.
Ace was the son of the late Pirate King.
"One year and three months after his father's death," Sengoku declared coldly,
"this child—who inherited the most dangerous bloodline in the world—was born."
What followed was even more chilling.
To give birth to him, Ace's mother had forcibly extended her pregnancy to twenty months,
She had evaded the Navy's pursuit—
And died immediately afterward, her life burned out completely.
Under the live broadcast of the Black Sun Religion, the world fell silent.
Streets, taverns, ships at sea—everywhere, people froze in disbelief.
The bloodline of the Pirate King…
Had never disappeared.
It had grown.
Into a terrifyingly powerful pirate.
Some had once questioned the Navy's decision to provoke Whitebeard so directly.
But now—
Many secretly felt relieved.
Ace's execution was no longer merely punishment.
It was eradication.
As long as this bloodline vanished, so too would the shadow of Roger's legacy.
"If allowed to continue growing," Sengoku roared,
"with talent that transcends eras and reaches the pinnacle of piracy, you would inevitably plunge the world into chaos!"
"That is why—"
"You must die today!"
"Even if it means an all-out war with the Whitebeard Pirates—
we will never retreat!"
The crowd erupted.
Fueled by Sengoku's words, the Marines felt reborn.
This was no longer a political execution.
This was a holy war.
They believed—truly believed—that they were eradicating the greatest evil in the world.
Even death felt meaningful.
"The bloodline of the Pirate King…"
Doflamingo glanced at Ace, then slowly turned his head toward Xiao.
"You were the one who captured him," he said with a thin smile.
"So tell me—how did a simple Shichibukai appointment earn you that much attention from the Five Elders?"
"Ah."
Xiao chuckled lazily.
"There's no point denying it."
Hancock's expression hardened.
"What exactly are you planning?" she demanded.
For once, her gaze was filled not with disdain—but vigilance.
Xiao looked at her quietly.
Then, instead of answering, he asked softly:
"Have you… seen Luffy recently?"
Hancock's pupils contracted.
Xiao had noticed it instantly.
Her concern wasn't for Ace alone.
It was for Luffy.
Even though Charros had been executed and Sabaody had become forbidden ground for Celestial Dragons—
Luffy had still encountered Bartholomew Kuma.
Still been scattered.
Still landed on Amazon Lily.
Still met Hancock.
"…What nonsense are you talking about?!"
Hancock snapped, frowning deeply.
"Answer me at once!"
Her tone was sharp—but her unease betrayed her.
"Jie… jie… jie…"
Xiao laughed darkly, deliberately raising his voice.
"I just want to see it for myself."
"To see whether the so-called Hero of the Navy—"
"Can still cling to the justice in his heart…"
"After both of Garp's grandsons are dead."
Before the words even fully settled—
Garp snapped his head toward Xiao.
Rage flashed in his eyes like lightning.
This bastard…
He really has the worst taste imaginable.
Mihawk muttered under his breath and subtly shifted away.
Several other Shichibukai followed suit.
Distance.
They finally understood.
This Blackbeard—
Was a complete lunatic.
He didn't chase wealth or power in any normal sense.
He tested people.
He poked at human weakness, twisted morality, and watched chaos bloom.
First Sengoku—forcing him to choose between reputation and humiliation.
Now Garp—forcing him to choose between justice and blood.
Once this man targeted you—
Death was mercy.
He would make sure you lived long enough to suffer.
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