Meanwhile, on Beehive Island, Wang Zhi had been restless for days.
Scouts had returned one after another with grim reports—dozens of pirate ships had gathered at Shihblan Island and were now advancing straight toward Beehive Island. There was no doubt about it.
The war had arrived.
Along the island's coastline, hundreds of cannons had already been positioned. Three heavily armed pirate battleships and dozens of smaller vessels stood ready, their crews tense and awaiting orders.
Then—
On the distant horizon, silhouettes appeared one after another.
"The Phoenix Pirates are here!" someone shouted in alarm.
Wang Zhi's voice rang out without hesitation.
"Fire! Don't let their ships get close!"
The next moment, thunderous cannon fire erupted, shaking the shoreline as shells screamed across the sea.
Yet in a head-on clash, the gap was immediately apparent.
In warships, artillery, manpower—and especially high-end combat power—the Phoenix Pirates completely outclassed the Wang Zhi Pirates.
"Brothers, charge with me!"
Ace didn't wait another second.
He leapt from his ship straight onto his rocket boat, flames erupting beneath him as it shot forward like a blazing comet, instantly leaving the rest of the fleet behind.
"Commander Ace—!"
Watching him rush ahead so recklessly, several crew members could only sigh helplessly.
Rakyō shook his head with a wry smile.
"He really has no patience at all. Still… with Ace's strength, even if he runs into Wang Zhi himself, he won't be helpless."
Ace weaved effortlessly through the incoming cannon fire, his rocket boat twisting and darting across the waves. Flames coiled around his fist as he roared:
"Fire Fist!"
Whoooosh!
A massive column of flame—dozens of meters thick—blasted forward, instantly engulfing a battleship. The ship vanished in an inferno, reduced to scrap in a heartbeat.
The flames didn't stop there.
They continued roaring toward Beehive Island itself.
Just as the attack was about to crash into the island, the ground suddenly shifted.
From beneath the earth, a colossal stone arm—over a hundred meters thick—burst upward and met Ace's Fire Fist head-on.
BOOM!
The collision shook the sea. The stone arm shattered instantly, exploding into burning rubble and molten fragments that rained down into the water below.
"…What the hell is that?" someone muttered.
As the Phoenix Pirates drew closer, the full sight revealed itself.
From the heart of Beehive Island, an enormous stone giant began to rise—hundreds of meters tall, its body seemingly carved directly from the island itself.
"What is that thing?!"
"Is that Wang Zhi?!"
"Is this his Devil Fruit ability?!"
"Calm down!" someone shouted. "That's the Island–Island Fruit! Wang Zhi is an Island Man—this entire island is under his control!"
Faces across the Phoenix Pirates' fleet darkened as they stared at the towering stone colossus, well over five hundred meters tall.
Marco's eyes narrowed as he activated his detection ability.
Wang Zhi
Devil Fruit: Paramecia — Island–Island Fruit
Estimated Strength: Strong Yonko Commander Level (Peak: Weak Emperor Level)
Moments later, the stone giant's eyes slowly opened.
Its voice boomed across the battlefield, deep and heavy, as if the island itself were speaking.
"Marco… it's not too late to turn back."
"I've already informed Kaido and Linlin of what's happening here. If you're wise, you'll retreat immediately."
"This is Beehive Island—my territory."
"It's not something you can afford to attack."
Wang Zhi's strategy was brutally simple.
Defend Beehive Island to the last.
Here, on this island he controlled completely, he possessed an overwhelming geographical advantage. As long as he could hold out for two or three months, Wang Zhi firmly believed the Phoenix Pirates would have no choice but to withdraw.
This was a war of endurance.
And he was betting everything on time.
After gauging Wang Zhi's strength, Marco didn't take him seriously at all.
Strong Yonko commander level, at best.
Not to mention Marco himself—even his commanders were more than capable of handling an opponent like this.
His voice rang out cold and clear across the battlefield.
"Wang Zhi, you've been a pirate for decades. You should understand one thing better than anyone else—there's no such thing as regret in this world."
"When you attacked us back then, you should've already been prepared for this day."
Marco paused briefly, then added calmly,
"Still, I'll give you one chance. Hand over Beehive Island willingly and submit as an affiliated crew of the Phoenix Pirates. Do that, and I'll spare your life."
For a split second, Wang Zhi was stunned—
Then he burst out laughing.
"Gyahahahaha!"
"Little brat! When I was ruling the seas, you were probably still rolling around in the mud!"
His voice turned savage.
"Even when Whitebeard was alive, I never considered bowing my head to him—let alone to some wet-behind-the-ears upstart like you!"
The stone giant's eyes flared.
"Watch carefully. I'll start by smashing your ships to pieces!"
As his words fell, the giant stone arm swelled larger and thicker, swelling with island-mass power as it swung straight toward the Moby Dick.
A flicker of tension crossed some of the Phoenix Pirates' faces—but only for a moment.
They were no longer the pirates who had stumbled through the chaos after Marineford. After surviving the Marineford War, clashing with the Big Mom Pirates, and facing the Beasts Pirates head-on, their resolve had been tempered in blood.
Fear no longer ruled them.
"Don't think you'll get away with that!"
Ace, leading the charge at the front, showed not the slightest hesitation.
"Fire Fist!"
His flaming punch slammed directly into the descending stone arm.
BOOM!
The massive stone fist shattered apart mid-swing, exploding into fragments that rained down into the sea.
Ace didn't slow down for even a heartbeat.
"Crossfire Blast!"
"Firefly—Fire Swirl!"
"Mirror Flame!"
"Explosive Flame!"
One technique after another erupted from him in rapid succession. Blazing torrents tore across the battlefield, their destructive power far surpassing even the Phoenix Pirates' artillery.
In mere moments, every battleship on the water—and the coastal cannons lining Beehive Island—were reduced to smoldering wreckage.
"As expected of Ace!"
"Logia abilities really are terrifying!"
"Brothers—now! Release the surrender notices!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Cannon fire thundered—not toward the island, but into the sky above it. The shells burst midair, scattering thousands of surrender notices like falling snow across Beehive Island.
As the papers drifted down, unease spread among the Wang Zhi pirates. Some pirates hesitated, eyes flickering as dangerous thoughts took root.
At that moment, Doran rushed up to Wang Zhi, clutching one of the notices.
"Captain… look at this."
Wang Zhi snatched the paper and read it.
His face instantly turned livid.
"That damned Marco!" he roared. "To dare play such tricks on me!"
He crushed the notice in his hand.
"Burn them all! Immediately!"
His voice thundered with killing intent.
"Anyone who dares keep one—don't blame me for being ruthless!"
By then, the Phoenix Pirates' formation was complete.
More than forty pirate ships had fully encircled Beehive Island, sealing it off from every direction.
By now, surrender notices had been scattered across the waters and land surrounding Beehive Island for quite some time. Marco was certain that many among the Wang Zhi pirates had already read them.
Hovering in midair, Marco surveyed the battlefield below.
For the moment, the island appeared eerily calm. There was no visible chaos—yet. But Marco knew better. As long as pressure continued to build, even the slightest crack would trigger an internal collapse.
His eyes hardened.
"Time's up," Marco said calmly. "Order the brothers to attack. We finish this in one push—don't give them a chance to recover."
"Yes! Attack!"
The command was swiftly relayed through transponder snails. In the next instant, more than forty pirate ships opened fire simultaneously, launching a coordinated assault on Beehive Island from every direction.
Wang Zhi immediately sensed the shift and shouted in rage,
"Everyone! Retreat into the tunnels—now! If they come in, kill them!"
As Phoenix Pirates stormed ashore, bunkers and turrets began falling one after another.
These fortifications were deadly against ordinary pirates—but they were meaningless in the face of captain-level combatants. Against Ace in particular, they stood no chance. As a Logia user, immobile defenses were nothing more than fuel for his flames.
In just over an hour, every single one of the island's two hundred-plus bunkers and artillery towers was reduced to rubble.
The surface of Beehive Island was completely seized.
"Damn it!" Zack spat. "These bastards are cowards! They barely fought before running to hide!"
Despite occupying the island, the actual casualties inflicted were minimal—only a few hundred enemies had been taken out so far.
"I found a tunnel entrance here!"
"There's another one over here!"
"And one more on this side!"
Tunnel entrances began to surface one after another. Yet no one rushed inside. Everyone understood the danger—whatever lay below was unknown, and stepping inside could mean never coming back out.
Soon, the Phoenix Pirates had fully assembled on the island. The surface belonged entirely to them—but underground, the Wang Zhi pirates still lurked.
"Tch… hiding like rats."
"Hey! Wang Zhi Pirates—come out and fight!"
Pirates shouted insults down into the tunnels, but no response came.
Jozu stepped up beside Marco and asked quietly,
"Marco, what's our next move? Do we keep pushing?"
Marco exhaled slowly.
"I expected them to retreat underground—but I didn't think they'd commit so fully to tunnel warfare."
Vista's expression was grim.
"It's cowardly… but effective. If we charge in blindly, we'll walk straight into ambushes."
Marco nodded.
"And worse—we don't know where they'll emerge."
He raised his voice slightly.
"Tell everyone to stay alert. Wang Zhi controls the island itself. With his Devil Fruit, no one knows where he might appear."
Then Marco turned toward Ace and smiled faintly.
"Ace," he said, "they've buried themselves underground. This part's on you."
Ace grinned, flames already flickering in his eyes.
"Leave it to me. Do they really think tunnels can keep them safe?"
"My fire will chase them all the way through."
He stepped up to one of the tunnel entrances. Green flames ignited around his hands as he drew a deep breath.
"Firefly—"
In the next instant, countless green fireballs burst forth like swarming insects, diving deep into the tunnel.
A split second later—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions rippled through the underground passageways in rapid succession, flames roaring through the darkness as Ace's attack tore through the tunnels from within.
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