"Watch out?"
Everyone's expression changed in an instant.
Cough! Cough!
Whitebeard suddenly dropped to one knee, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
Luo Yu's arrival had indeed altered the course of events.
But Whitebeard's aged, wounded body—already betrayed by a sneak attack—remained unchanged.
Faced with Akainu's relentless, all-out assault, his body had clearly reached its limit.
"Pops!" Marco's face paled as he cried out, rushing forward to heal him.
But before he could take more than a step, two beams of light pierced through his body.
"Hehe… Marco, now's not the time to be distracted."
Kizaru's eerie voice rang out as he appeared behind Marco like a ghost.
Marco's expression shifted. He quickly activated his Phoenix powers to heal the wounds—
But the regeneration halted abruptly.
"Sorry, Marco. You're under arrest."
Onigumo clamped a pair of seastone cuffs onto Marco's arm, his voice cold and sharp.
The sudden ambush shocked everyone.
As the First Division Commander, Marco was nearly as important as Whitebeard himself.
His capture was a devastating blow to morale.
"Marco! I'm coming!"
Diamond Jozu roared, smashing aside anyone in his path.
But before he could move, a wave of icy cold swept over half his body.
A blade of ice came crashing down.
CRACK!
An arm—frozen solid—was severed and sent flying.
Blood sprayed across the battlefield.
Just moments ago, Whitebeard had been wounded, and Marco captured.
Now Jozu had lost an arm.
It was a crushing blow.
"Whitebeard, your era is over. Now die!"
Akainu roared, erupting from the ground.
His magma fist slammed into Whitebeard's chest.
The searing sound of burning flesh echoed across the battlefield.
Everything froze.
Whitebeard's chest had been pierced.
Everyone stared in shock.
"Pops!"
Ace screamed, tears streaming down his face.
From atop the execution platform, he had the clearest view—
And yet, he was the most powerless.
All he could do was watch as his comrades died to save him.
"Fall, Whitebeard Pirates!"
Akainu roared again, ready to strike once more.
The tension was unbearable.
But before he could land another blow—
Whitebeard, bloodied and battered, suddenly looked up.
With a snap of his jaw, he crushed three differently colored pills.
"Heh… no idea if this modified stuff works on non-Zoan users, but I'm betting it all."
"Don't forget—I'm Whitebeard!"
With a roar, Whitebeard's muscles bulged like stone.
Veins popped across his body like centipedes.
Blood oozed from his skin, dyeing him crimson.
Then—
The power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit erupted uncontrollably from within.
BOOM!
A massive shockwave exploded outward like a hurricane.
Akainu, just inches away, took the full brunt of it.
He spat blood and was blasted away like a cannonball—
Crashing straight into the execution platform.
Everything within a kilometer was flattened.
Marineford shook like a giant had risen from the earth.
Jozu and Marco were flung away by the shockwave.
As they steadied themselves, unfamiliar faces rushed toward them.
But they couldn't care less.
They stared at Whitebeard—now blood-red, muscles swollen, veins bulging, like a berserker.
They were stunned.
No—
This was beyond anything they could've imagined.
Only Marco, pale and grief-stricken, spoke:
"I didn't think it would come to this… It's my fault—I wasn't strong enough."
"Marco, what happened? Why is Pops like this?"
Jozu shouted, ignoring his severed arm.
All eyes turned to Marco.
This development had blindsided them all.
"He took the drug," Marco said, fists clenched, eyes brimming with tears.
"He made up his mind before we came. It's a modified version of the Rumble Ball—originally for Zoan users. Chopper and I adjusted the formula."
"But we didn't know what it would do. I told him not to take it. I didn't think he'd actually bring it…"
"A drug that forces a Devil Fruit rampage?"
Jozu's face went pale. He grabbed Marco's arm and shouted:
"Are you insane?! You'll kill him!"
Everyone was stunned.
No one expected Whitebeard—the strongest of the Four Emperors—to go this far.
A berserk transformation?
If that wasn't madness, what was?
Even Sengoku and Garp were speechless.
"Jozu, shut up!"
Whitebeard's hoarse roar cut through the chaos.
He looked up, bloodshot eyes wide, and every movement sent shockwaves rippling outward.
No—
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit's power was now completely out of control.
Every gesture shattered the world around him.
He looked toward the execution platform, gripped his naginata, and roared:
"Enough talk! I'm Whitebeard! This is still my era!"
"My sons—don't stop! Tear open a path to the platform!"
"Earthquake!"
Whitebeard slammed his naginata into the ground.
BOOM!
Marineford exploded like thunder.
Shockwaves rippled outward from Whitebeard, shattering the earth beneath him.
The tremors surged toward the execution platform.
The battlefield descended into chaos.
Everything in their path was obliterated.
Even the execution platform and Marine HQ buildings collapsed under the force.