Taking advantage of the brief lull, Marco immediately opened his attribute panel.
Haki Upgrade:
Conqueror's Haki (Entry) → Conqueror's Haki (Elementary).
Without the slightest hesitation, he selected Upgrade.
'Conqueror's Haki (Elementary): consumes 100 attribute points. Confirm?'
"Yes."
A surge of pressure rippled faintly from Marco's body as the upgrade completed. When he attempted to push it further, the system prompt appeared again:
'Conqueror's Haki (Intermediate): requires 500 attribute points.'
Marco frowned slightly. He didn't have enough.
"No choice, then…"
He dumped every remaining attribute point into Strength.
In an instant, Marco's Strength rose to 7,322—more than double the 3,500 he'd started with.
After Sengoku issued the order, the Marine Colonel in charge of Marineford's power grid immediately rerouted all electricity toward the encirclement system. With that immense energy supply, the ice beneath Crescent Bay began to tremble violently.
Rumble… rumble…
Cracks spread as massive, solid walls slowly rose from beneath the ice—towering, thick, and reinforced.
The encirclement wall had begun to activate.
The moment he saw it, Whitebeard didn't hesitate.
"Now!" he roared. "Little Oars—full speed! Push those walls down!"
"Yes, Pops!"
Little Oars surged forward like a living mountain, every step shaking the battlefield as he charged straight toward the rising barriers.
Whitebeard's voice thundered again:
"All Whitebeard Pirates, listen up! This is our one and only chance! Follow me—break through the encirclement and charge straight into the plaza!"
"What?!" Sengoku's face drained of color.
Whitebeard had called the encirclement wall by name.
In that instant, everything clicked.
So that's it…
Our plan… exposed.
A single thought flashed through Sengoku's mind—and through the minds of every Marine officer present.
There's a mole.
But it was already too late.
The walls continued rising.
The Marines' overwhelming firepower—once their greatest advantage—was instantly rendered useless, blocked off the moment the encirclement sealed. Even if they wanted to stop Little Oars now, they simply couldn't.
BOOM!
The encirclement walls locked into place, towering fifty meters high.
At Whitebeard's command, the division commanders leapt onto Little Oars' massive body one after another.
Seizing the moment, Marco shot through the air, grabbed Straw Hat Luffy and Jinbe, and carried them straight onto Little Oars' shoulder.
As they landed, Luffy blinked, still confused by the sudden turn of events.
Marco grabbed him immediately.
"Luffy—you have the key to Ace's handcuffs, right?!"
"Huh?" Luffy scratched his head. "Yeah… how'd you know? And who are you, anyway?"
"You really do have it?!" Jozu exclaimed, his face lighting up.
Marco didn't waste time explaining. His voice was sharp and urgent.
"I'm Ace's comrade. Pops and I already have a plan. Whether Ace lives or dies depends on this single moment. Hand over the key—now!"
Marco didn't intend to gamble on luck.
In the original timeline, even with Luffy holding the key, it had been destroyed by Kizaru's laser. Ace was only freed thanks to Mr. 3's Wax-Wax Fruit—but Mr. 3 should already be frozen solid by Aokiji.
This time, Marco wasn't leaving Ace's fate to coincidence or protagonist miracles.
I'll do it myself.
At the very least, he was confident in one thing—
If Kizaru fired that laser again, he would block it.
Luffy met Marco's unwavering gaze, then reached into his pocket and pulled out the key. He pressed it into Marco's hand and grinned.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Pineapple Head."
Marco ignored the nickname completely. Clutching the key, he turned to Whitebeard with a solemn expression.
"Pops, next I'll take Luffy and Jinbe straight to the execution platform. I'll need everyone to hold the Marines back while we do it."
Whitebeard nodded without hesitation.
"Mm. I'll leave it to you."
Marco moved quickly, issuing orders with crisp clarity.
"Luffy—when we get there, Garp is yours. Among us, only you can stop him."
He turned to Jinbe.
"Jinbe, I need you to block Sengoku for a few seconds. Just enough time for me to unlock Ace."
"Leave it to me," Jinbe replied gravely.
Luffy clenched his fist and nodded.
"You'd better save Ace, Pineapple Head."
Just as Oars closed in on the encirclement walls, Kizaru suddenly leapt into the sky. His eyes narrowed as he took in the massive giant barreling forward—Oars was taller than the wall itself.
"I won't let you reach the execution platform," Kizaru said lazily.
Golden light gathered at his fingertips.
"Yata no Kagami—"
"Don't even think about stopping us!" Marco roared as he shot forward, blue Undying Flames erupting around him.
"Undying Thistle!"
A massive barrier of phoenix fire bloomed into existence. Countless light particles slammed into it—only to be completely blocked.
"Damn it!" Sengoku's face darkened as he barked, "Sakazuki—melt the ice, now!"
Akainu's fists turned molten as he roared.
"Meteor Volcano!"
Magma shot into the sky like a rain of hellfire—but it was already too late.
Oars was there.
The Whitebeard Pirates watched with bated breath, voices rising in excitement.
"It's up to you, Oars!"
"Smash it!"
BOOOOM!
With unstoppable force, Oars slammed into the fifty-meter-tall encirclement wall. It shattered instantly, exploding into fragments and debris that rained down like a storm. Marines hiding behind it were thrown into chaos, crushed, scattered, and sent fleeing in all directions.
Little Oars staggered under the recoil, stumbled a few steps, and collapsed heavily onto the ground.
"Run!"
"That demon's falling!"
"Move if you don't want to get flattened!"
Marine ranks broke completely, panic spreading like wildfire.
Sengoku stared at the scene, his expression turning icy and grim. His meticulously prepared encirclement strategy—his masterpiece—had been destroyed in an instant. After a lifetime of outmaneuvering others, he had been completely outplayed by Whitebeard.
The humiliation burned.
"Stop them!" Sengoku roared. "Don't let them get anywhere near the execution platform!"
Ace watched everything unfold, shock flooding his eyes. Though he had already resigned himself to death, seeing Pops and everyone fighting so fiercely reignited a desperate will to live.
At that moment, Whitebeard and his commanders leapt from Little Oars' collapsing body, soaring into the air.
Whitebeard's voice thundered across Marineford:
"My sons—charge with me!"
"Save Ace!"
"Crush the Marines!"
"OOOOHHHHH—!"
With earth-shaking battle cries, the Whitebeard Pirates surged forward, riding the chaos as they smashed through the Marine defenses, taking full advantage of the shattered formation and plunging straight toward the heart of Marineford.