"Hmph. What a useless piece of trash," Sengoku muttered coldly as he watched the scene unfold on the Moby Dick. "I never truly expected a worm like that to succeed in assassinating Whitebeard. Still… I didn't think you'd see through my scheme so quickly, Whitebeard."
His eyes narrowed. The plan meant to shatter morale had instead ignited it.
"Tch… so be it." Sengoku's lips curled into a thin smile. "The balance of power still favors us. In the end, victory will belong to the Marines."
He turned sharply and barked an order:
"Activate the encirclement wall—immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
On the Moby Dick, Squard collapsed to his knees.
Tears and mucus streamed down his face as his body shook with sobs. Regret tore through him like a blade.
"W-what have I done…?" he choked. "I'm sorry, Pops… I'm sorry, Ace…"
Whitebeard looked down at him, his expression stern but not cruel.
"Enough of this sniveling, Squard." he said firmly. "Didn't I just tell you I'm fine? Did you really think a blade like that could wound me?"
He snorted.
"You were simply fooled by Marine scum."
Squard's trembling stopped.
His eyes hardened as rage replaced despair. He rose to his feet, gripping his long sword until his knuckles whitened.
"I understand, Pops," he said through clenched teeth. "I'll make them pay. I'll slaughter those filthy Marines—and I'll rescue Ace."
With that, Squard charged back into the fray.
Only by cutting down Marines could he begin to atone for his sin.
Whitebeard stepped forward, ready to join the battle—
Thud. Thud.
Heavy footsteps sounded behind him.
"Pops…"
Whitebeard turned to see Oars standing there. His massive body was riddled with gruesome wounds, blood pouring from dozens of charred holes. The sight was enough to make even veterans wince.
"Oars…" Whitebeard said quietly.
Oars bowed his head beside the Moby Dick.
"Pops, Marco told me to come here. Pops… I want to save Ace."
Whitebeard understood at once.
With the Marines' human weapons deployed at the bay entrance, Oars' size made him an easy target. That was why Marco had pulled him back.
"We will save Ace," Whitebeard said gravely. "But you have an even more important role to play next. Stay by my side—for now."
"…Yes, Pops," Oars replied.
Though his heart burned to rush forward, he obeyed.
At that moment, the Marines began withdrawing from the ice field, retreating toward the plaza. The sudden pullback allowed the Whitebeard Pirates to advance more freely.
Sengoku frowned, irritation flashing across his face.
"Why hasn't the encirclement wall been raised yet?"
A Marine reported quickly, "The ice layer is too thick, sir. It's delaying deployment."
Sengoku's expression darkened.
"Tch… then we'll have to buy more time."
He raised his voice without hesitation:
"Giant unit—move out. Hold back the Whitebeard Pirates."
"Yes!"
Eight Giant Vice Admirals stormed across the plaza and stepped onto the ice, their colossal forms casting long shadows as they moved to block Whitebeard's advance.
At that moment, Marco streaked back from the outskirts of Crescent Bay, wings cutting through the air as he disengaged from the three Marine vice admirals. He had no intention of wasting another second on them.
Landing beside the Moby Dick, he called out,
"Pops."
"Marco, you're back," Whitebeard said, a faint smile tugging at his lips. If Marco hadn't uncovered the Marines' scheme in advance, they would have been dragged around by the nose.
"Pops, what's our next move?" Marco asked bluntly. The closer things came to the decisive moment, the more uneasy he felt—especially since events were already diverging from the original timeline.
Whitebeard's lips curved into a confident arc.
"Since we already know the Marines' plan, we'll simply turn it against them. They've retreated to the plaza and will soon activate that so-called surrounding wall. The moment it rises, their artillery advantage disappears. More importantly…"
His eyes gleamed.
"That instant—when they believe they've won—is when they'll be most careless. That's when we strike."
"I understand," Marco replied, nodding.
He was confident in Oars' role. In the original battle, Oars had prevented the wall from rising through sheer mass alone. As an ancient giant with overwhelming strength, pushing it down—or even using his body as a living bridge—was well within reason.
Blocked by the Giant Vice Admirals, the Whitebeard Pirates still couldn't advance onto the plaza.
As Vice Admiral John Giant closed in, Oars stepped forward, shielding Whitebeard with his massive body and roaring,
"Don't come any closer, Marine! Pops is behind me!"
His blade swung down.
Against ordinary opponents, a Giant Vice Admiral was overwhelming—but against someone even larger, it meant nothing. John Giant was struck hard, his grip breaking as the massive saber slipped from his hands and crashed onto the ice.
Marco instantly seized the opening.
He swooped down, grabbed the enormous blade, and shouted,
"Little Oars—pin him!"
Understanding immediately, Little Oars stepped forward and slammed the wounded Vice Admiral to the ground.
Shing!
The blade plunged straight through John Giant's throat.
'Killed a Marine Vice Admiral—reward: 100 attribute points.'
Oars turned, ready to press the attack on the remaining Giants—but suddenly felt weight settle on his right shoulder.
"Pops…?"
Whitebeard had leapt down from the Moby Dick, standing firmly atop Oars' shoulder.
"Stay here for now," Whitebeard said gravely. "Your moment will come later."
"…Yes, Pops," Oars replied, nodding.
Marco followed, landing beside Whitebeard on Oars' shoulder.
"I think I understand your plan now, Pops. You want to break into the plaza in one push while the wall is activating—and rescue Ace before they can react."
"Exactly," Whitebeard replied.
Marco grinned.
"Then leave Ace to me. But Pops—when the time comes, I'll need you to hold off the Admirals. Especially Kizaru. That bastard's speed is a nightmare."
Whitebeard nodded without hesitation.
On the execution platform, Sengoku suddenly felt an inexplicable chill crawl up his spine.
Something's wrong.
Whitebeard was moving too calmly—too deliberately.
But Sengoku clenched his fists. Whatever scheme Whitebeard was plotting, once the encirclement wall rose, the outcome would be decided.
"Has the encirclement wall still not been activated?" Sengoku barked.
The Marines below hesitated, their expressions stiff.
Sengoku's face darkened instantly.
"So that's it…"
He roared,
"Cut power to the entire town! Redirect everything to the encirclement wall! Activate it immediately—no matter the cost!"
"Yes, sir!"
The final trap was being forced into motion.