I'm the Great Pirate, and I'm waging the Holy Grail War!

Chapter 308 The Final Battle Begins!

Dressrosa, the port.

The morning mist had not yet dissipated.

Luffy sat at the bow of the Sunny, a piece of meat in his mouth, but his eyes were fixed on the sea.

Roger leaned against the mainmast, slowly wiping his sword. Zoro dozed off in a corner of the deck, Sanji prepared breakfast in the galley, and the others were busy with their own things.

The Den Den Mushi rang.

Brooke answered the phone, listened for a couple of sentences, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"Mr. Luffy!" he shouted, "It's Sabo!"

Luffy jumped up and snatched the Den Den Mushi.

"Sabo!"

"Luffy." Sabo's voice came through, tinged with fatigue, but steady.

"Our operation needs to be brought forward. The situation has changed; the navy is moving faster than expected, and we must assemble as soon as possible."

"When?"

"Can you get there before sunset tomorrow?"

Luffy looked at Nami. Nami had already spread out the sea chart, her fingers flying across the map as she calculated.

"At full speed—barely." She looked up, "But you know the weather in the New World, what if—"

"Full speed ahead!" Luffy shouted into the Den Den Mushi, "We'll definitely be there!"

"Okay." Sabo paused. "And—be careful. We've received intelligence that all three admirals of the Navy have acquired new Heroic Spirits."

"Kizaru and Green Bull's whereabouts are unknown, and Fujitora may already be patrolling the waters near the South China Sea."

"knew!"

The phone hangs up.

Roger stood up and sheathed his sword.

"Did you hear that?" He looked at everyone. "It's time to get serious."

Franky charged towards the engine room: "Supe!!! Full power!"

The Sunny began to turn around, its sails billowing and its outer wheels roaring.

On the other side, aboard the Polar Diving vessel.

Luo listened to Asclepius's report with a furrowed brow.

"The data analysis will take at least three more days," the doctor said. "If we stop now, all the previous progress may be wasted."

"There's no time." Luo picked up the Ghost Cry device. "Back up the data, take the core information. The rest—destroy."

.

Are you sure?

"I'm pretty sure that's why," Luo interrupted him, his eyes cold.

"I can't let these things fall into the hands of the government. And—if we lose this war, all talk of resurrection is just empty talk."

The divine physician remained silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Understood. Initiate emergency backup and destruction procedures."

The Crusaders' ships are also being prepared.

Doflamingo stood on the dock, watching his men unload supplies. Hawkeye, holding the black sword Yoru, leaned against the wall.

"Fufu-ee—it's finally starting." Doflamingo laughed. "What kind of cards will be revealed in this game that's staked on the world?"

Hawkeye didn't speak, he just looked south.

There, in the direction of the South China Sea.

Elbaf, the Cliff of Kings.

The wind was strong, making people's robes flutter loudly.

Odin stood on the edge of the cliff, Loki behind him. Shanks, Beckman, and Merlin stood on the other side.

"Four years ago," Loki suddenly spoke, his voice slightly distorted by the wind.

"Do you remember what I said when you locked me up here?"

Shanks gripped Griffin's sword hilt.

"You called me a fool who was being deceived, and said I was helping the murderer cover up the truth." He paused.

"I thought you were crazy. Dilt—that arbitrator, he was clearly maintaining order, he was nowhere near as extreme as Lockes, and he had absolutely no ambition."

"Maintaining order?" Loki laughed, a somewhat desolate laugh.

"You have no idea what he is. He's not maintaining; he's observing and nurturing."

Merlin's eyes sharpened.

"Growth requires variables, conflict, and possibilities. Perhaps he himself doesn't even know what he's doing."

Loki turned and stared at Shanks.

"He threw in Heroic Spirits and the rules of the Holy Grail War, not to solve the problem, but to let it escalate to its extreme."

"Then let's see what kind of answers this world can produce."

He raised his hand, and the Command Seals gleamed with a blood-red light in the sunlight.

"My father and I, our race of giants, were the first to realize this."

"My father tried to stop it using extreme methods, but he failed. I tried to warn the world in an even more brutal way, but no one listened."

"Even you locked me up like I'm crazy—"

"Perhaps I really am a madman—that's my way of life. It's my destiny!"

"Perhaps many years ago, there were no Heroic Spirits and no Holy Grail War. It was our actions in the past that led to the present situation—"

"But that is indeed fate—"

Shanks' fingers tightened.

"So all that killing—"

"It's to force him to show himself!" Loki growled.

"I thought that if I created enough chaos, he would eventually intervene and expose his true purpose—but I was wrong."

"He doesn't care about local chaos at all; he cares about the direction of the entire world."

Odin's single eye gazed at the sky, his voice like muffled thunder.

"I have seen such beings as observers and experimenters. They see no good or evil, only results."

Beckman exhaled a puff of smoke.

"It's no use talking about this now. The key is what we should do."

"To the South China Sea," Shanks said in a deep voice.

"Luffy and his crew, the Revolutionary Army, all those who resist—they're all gathering there. We're going there to tell them everything we know. And then—"

He looked at Loki.

"Then together we will face the test subjects, whether it be the king above the World Government or the Arbitrator."

Loki remained silent for a long time before finally nodding.

"The ship is ready," he said. "We can set sail anytime."

Mary Geoise, deep within Pangaea.

Im stood motionless in front of the huge straw hat.

The grotesque, wicked shadow of humanity was curled up on his shoulder, as if asleep, or as if digesting something.

The Five Elders stood behind them, waiting quietly.

"Thirty-six now," Im suddenly said.

The five elders, wielding knives, stepped forward: "Thirteen more anchor points are needed to complete the ritual."

"Too slow," Im said. "The commotion in the South China Sea is too great. The Revolutionary Army, the Crusaders, the Straw Hat Pirates..."

Red hair—all the variables are converging there.

"Do we need to start the plan ahead of schedule?"

"No," Im shook his head. "Let them gather together. The more concentrated they are, the easier it will be to harvest them."

He turned around, the outline of the straw hat reflected in his eyes.

"Give the Navy an order to send Kizaru, Green Bull, and Fujitora with their new heroic spirits to the South China Sea."

"And—let that ally make a move too. It's time to add fuel to the fire of this farce."

"Yes."

The Five Elders withdrew.

The stubborn, decaying phantom stirred and emitted a sound like it was eating something in a dream.

"Raising poisonous insects—the one that survives to the end is the fattest—"

Im did not respond.

He just stared at the straw hat for a long time.

Meanwhile, in another part of the South China Sea.

Kizaru's warship is sailing at full speed.

Achilles stood at the bow of the ship, his green hair flying in the wind, his face full of excitement.

"Hurry up! Hurry up! At this rate, when will we get to the battlefield?"

Kizaru was lounging on a recliner, wearing sunglasses.

"What's the rush? We'll be fighting anyway, so isn't it better to conserve our energy?"

"Conserve your energy?" Achilles turned and glared at him. "A warrior's passion cools down! Right now, my whole body is screaming to charge!"

"Oh my gosh—young people are so energetic." Kizaru yawned. "But, there seems to be a customer up ahead."

A fleet appeared on the distant sea.

The revolutionary army's fleet.

At the bow of the flagship, Saab and Napoleon stood side by side.

Behind them were neatly lined-up Revolutionary Army soldiers, as well as several wild Masters and their heroic spirits who had just been brought in from various places and were still wounded.

"Admiral Kizaru—" Sabo narrowed his eyes, "He's been sent after all."

Napoleon's hand rested on the hilt of his sword, his expression calm.

"As expected. According to the plan, we only need to hold him off and buy time for the main fleet to enter the fortress."

"But Kizaru's speed—"

"So we need a strategy." Napoleon raised his hand. "Order the third and fifth squadrons to deploy and form an ambush. The rest of the fleet, continue at full speed."

Upon receiving the order, the revolutionary fleet quickly changed formation.

Kizaru's warship is getting closer and closer.

Achilles could no longer contain himself, and a blazing white light began to emanate from his body.

"Master! I'll go first!"

"Wait—" Before Kizaru could finish speaking, Achilles had already transformed into a shooting star and rushed out across the sea.

"Seriously—" Kizaru stood up helplessly. "Well then—let's stretch a bit."

His body dissipated into golden light and disappeared from the spot.

Sabo's pupils contracted.

"They're here!"

On the sea, Achilles cut into the revolutionary fleet like lightning, a long spear suddenly appearing in his hand. With a single sweep, the shockwave capsized three small speedboats.

The heroic spirits summoned by the revolutionary army immediately rushed forward.

A heroic spirit that manipulates water creates giant waves, while another heroic spirit skilled in defense deploys a shield. But Achilles is too fast; his spear is like a dragon, breaking through the interception almost instantly.

"Too slow! Too slow!" Achilles laughed. "How can such speed make you a match for me?"

Just then, Napoleon's voice resounded across the sea via a loudspeaker Den Den Mushi.

"All units, heed my command—change formation, net!"

The revolutionary fleet suddenly dispersed, seemingly in chaos, but in reality, each ship was stuck in a specific position.

On the sea, countless specially made steel cables mixed with sea stone powder shot out from the side of the ship, intertwining in the air to form a huge net that covered Achilles.

Achilles raised an eyebrow, his speed undiminished, light gathering on his spear as he prepared to forcefully break through.

But the next second, Kizaru appeared in front of him, golden light condensing into the Ame-no-Murakumo sword, which severed several main steel cables with a single strike.

"Don't be impulsive," Kizaru said lazily. "This net is a bit troublesome; getting caught on it will affect our speed."

Achilles clicked his tongue, but finally stopped.

"What can we do? Just watch them run away?"

"They can't escape." Kizaru looked towards the Revolutionary Army's flagship. "Look over there."

Behind the flagship where Sabo and Napoleon were, the sea suddenly exploded.

Green Bull Wild Pasture rises from underwater, stepping on a giant plant platform.

Beside him, Fenrir's giant wolf shadow howled to the sky, unleashing a terrifying devouring force field that caused the surrounding seawater to surge backwards into its mouth.

"Oh dear, looks like I've made it in time!" Green Bull laughed. "We can't waste so much nutrition!"

Chaos reigned behind the revolutionary fleet.

Napoleon's expression finally changed.

"Green Bull—and another Heroic Spirit I've never seen before—this is troublesome."

Sabo gritted his teeth: "Splitting the forces! I'll lead the men to hold off Green Bull, you continue commanding the fleet to break through!"

"No." Napoleon drew his pistol. "You command, I'll go. I have more experience dealing with those beasts than you."

He leaped forward, actually stepping onto the sea and charging directly towards Green Bull. The longsword in his hand gleamed; it was a strike enhanced by imperial privilege and military strategy, seemingly simple, yet it sealed off all possible angles from which Green Bull could retaliate.

The green bull grinned, and the plant vines grew wildly, heading towards Napoleon.

Fenrir didn't even glance at Napoleon; he opened his massive jaws and lunged at the nearest revolutionary warship.

On that ship, a wild Master was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground; his Heroic Spirit.

A knight wielding a lance stood in front of the ship, gritting his teeth. He thrust out his lance, but it was like a mud ox sinking into the sea. Fenrir swallowed him whole, lance and all.

The sound of chewing. A teeth-grinding sound of chewing.

Then, Fenrir's body seemed to grow even larger, and the hunger in his eyes intensified.

"Delicious—" it growled, "not enough—more is needed—"

Liberation of the fortress, command center.

One Den Den Mushi after another rang, and intelligence poured in like snowflakes.

"Fujitora's fleet spotted in the eastern waters! Approaching!"

"In the western sea! Kizaru and Green Bull have appeared simultaneously! They are intercepting my main fleet! General Napoleon has personally engaged Green Bull in battle!"

Sabo stood in front of the map, his fists clenched so tightly they turned white.

"We're surrounded from both sides."

The staff officers looked grim.

"The fortress's defenses are not yet fully completed, and we're facing so many enemies at the same time—"

"No." Sabo suddenly looked up, a resolute glint in his eyes. "This isn't an attack, this is coercion. They're forcing us to fight an early decisive battle."

He looked at the South China Sea on the map, then at the new world further away, and at the red earth continent.

"Then—as they wish."

He picked up the Den Den Mushi (communication phone) and connected to all channels.

"This is Sabo, the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army."

"I hereby declare, in my capacity as the interim commander of the Free Will League—"

"The South China Sea Campaign begins now."

"All units, act according to the final plan. Our objective is not defense, nor is it to break through."

"It's about crushing all invading enemies, and then—"

He paused, his voice carrying across every ship and every outpost.

"Marching towards the Red Line!"

The moment the order was given, the entire South China Sea seemed to tremble.

All the fortress's gun emplacements simultaneously turned and recharged.

Beneath the sea surface, the revolutionary army's submarine force, which had been lying in wait for a long time, began to surface.

Further into the sky, the clouds were torn apart, and several enormous shadows, resembling both airships and magical creations, slowly emerged.

That was a sky fortress secretly built by the Revolutionary Army in cooperation with Merlin.

Meanwhile, aboard the Sunny in Dressrosa, Luffy looked at the Eternal Pointer in his hand, which had suddenly begun to heat up. The pointer was no longer pointing to the South Blue, but was pointing straight up towards the Red Line.

Roger walked up to him and grinned.

"It seems someone has sounded the horn for us."

Luffy looked somewhat serious, as if he had thought of something.

"But—should we go straight to the Red Line? We haven't reclaimed the Heart of the Cloud Sea from Blackbeard's side yet—"

Roger laughed heartily, staring intently at Luffy's straw hat, and finally couldn't resist touching it.

"You have your destiny, and they have theirs over there. My son has always possessed the heart of a king, and he will create his own destiny."

Luffy gripped the pointer tightly, his eyes shining frighteningly bright beneath his straw hat.

"Then—let's go!"

"Go and end all of this!"

The sea breeze carries the smell of gunpowder and waves.

The first step in the final battle has already been taken.

On the chessboard, all the pieces begin to move towards the king in the center.