Marineford War: I Will Stand in the Sky

Standing at the pinnacle of piracy, Shanks undoubtedly possesses an exceptional physique and unparalleled mastery of Conqueror's Haki, making his speed and slashing abilities terrifyingly powerful.

It's terrifying... Even with Kaido's "Beasts" body, it might be able to cut through it, let alone Aon.

Witnessing this scene, the other six Shichibukai closest to Aon's eyes lit up, and they all wanted to step forward to help Aon.

However, Yann, who had been observing the overall situation, raised his hand to stop the six Shichibukai from their plans and spoke up.

"This is my battle with Shanks. You are not allowed to interfere. If you really can't suppress your fighting impulse, then go and help take care of the 'Beasts Pirates'."

For a moment, the eyes of the six Shichibukai all flickered.

On the surface, most of these six Shichibukai have a rather strained relationship with Arn, and their relationship with the Navy is merely one of equal cooperation. Their participation in this war is nothing more than a deal with the Navy.

In reality, they were all subordinates who obeyed Yann's orders to some extent, so they knew very well that this was Yann's latest instruction to them, forbidding them from interfering in "Red-Haired" Shanks' battle.

In fact, Yann knew very well that Shanks was a sitting duck at the moment, and there was no need to give Shanks the opportunity to take down a few Shichibukai.

On the contrary, if Yann only needs to delay the end of the time that "Red-Haired" Shanks maintains his status as "at the pinnacle of piracy," then the journey of the pirate named "Red-Haired" Shanks on this sea will be completely over.

Just like Roger, the "Pirate King" who once stood at the pinnacle of piracy!

Immediately, under Yann's orders, all five Shichibukai except for "Pirate Empress" Hancock, who remained to deal with the unexpected situation, joined the war against the "Beasts Pirates".

Of course, to outsiders, this was more of an excuse given to the Seven Warlords of the Sea, an excuse to stay away from the terrifyingly powerful "Red-Haired" Shanks at this moment.

Only Hancock, the "Pirate Empress" who truly cared about Aon, risked staying near the battlefield between Aon and "Red-Haired" Shanks.

As soon as Yann finished speaking, "Red-Haired" Shanks made another move, closing in on Yann with incredible speed.

"boom!"

As the "Famous Sword Griffin" fell, vast swathes of land vanished once more.

As Yann narrowly dodged the slash, numerous swords imbued with "Conqueror's Haki" surrounded Shanks from all directions.

The sword, imbued with "Conqueror's Haki," possesses terrifying destructive power.

Even if Yann doesn't have "Conqueror's Domain" and can't imbue his flying slash with "Conqueror's Haki," the blade itself is still incredibly terrifying, enough to injure "Red-Haired" Shanks.

"Ding Ding Ding!"

However, the hundreds of swords imbued with "Conqueror's Haki" were instantly shattered by "Red-Haired" Shanks, who then leaped towards Arn once more.

"Lieutenant General Yann, is all you can do is run away? Show me the power of your legendary 'White Emperor Sword' and let me witness the power of 'one hundred million cuts in one cut'!"

As Shanks' voice faded, the legendary sword Griffin continued to slash at Yann.

In his "standing at the pinnacle of the pirate world" state, his crimson form made "Red-Haired" Shanks resemble an extremely terrifying red demon, with the fangs formed by the "Famous Sword Griffin" seemingly ready to completely devour Yann at any moment.

However, at this moment, Aon was only displaying unparalleled speed and agility. Unlike the straightforward "Naval Six Styles: Shave", Aon's absolute flexibility made him seem like a cherry blossom falling and dancing on the Red Oni's fangs.

As for the "Final View: White Emperor Sword" mentioned by "Red-Haired" Shanks, Arn understands that the destructive power possessed by maintaining that state might indeed be enough to contend with "Red-Haired" Shanks.

However, given the insurmountable gap in physical strength, Arn knew very well that even if he maintained the "Final View: White Emperor Sword," he would still be no match for "Red-Haired" Shanks at this moment.

Or rather, "Red-Haired" Shanks, while maintaining his position at the pinnacle of piracy, is undoubtedly the strongest known pirate in the entire sea.

Therefore, Yann could only maintain "Senbonzakura Kageyoshi", constantly dodging Shanks's slashes with "Shunpo" while manipulating a large number of blades that maintained "Conqueror's Haki" to attack Shanks.

[Chapter 507. The Hidden Secret]

In an instant, the battle between "Red-Haired" Shanks and Yann completely escalated into the most intense close combat.

Like falling cherry blossoms, countless blades flew and swirled around Arn at all times, sometimes falling like a torrential rain, sometimes circling like birds, flashing with cold light and entwined with Conqueror's Haki. The power of each blade was enough to cut the earth in two.

Meanwhile, "Red-Haired" Shanks seems to have transformed into a domineering and rampaging red demon, his entire body crimson, and every move he makes causes the earth to crumble. When the famous sword "Griffin" bursts out with flying slashes that soar into the sky, it tears the heavens apart.

The entire island is collapsing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

……

Outside the island, Vice Admiral Tsuru's expression was grave. He quickly ordered warships to meet the naval forces evacuating from the island, while also creating an opening to allow the Red-Haired Pirates' ships to escape directly from the encirclement.

There is no doubt that Lieutenant General Yann's judgment was correct.

If the Navy forcibly blocks the Red-Haired Pirates from leaving, then all the warships surrounding the island from all directions could be sunk by Shanks.

The missing piece of this 5,000-square-kilometer island before us is not only an attack on Enel, but also a warning to the Navy, proving the terrifying power that "Red-Haired" Shanks himself possesses.

"The intelligence department should all be punished! How could they have been completely unaware of such crucial intelligence related to 'Pirate King' Roger? They didn't even notice that 'Red-Haired' Shanks was hiding this ability?"

As Lieutenant General Tsuru looked at the intelligence reports sent back from the battlefield, she, who was usually mild-mannered, couldn't help but curse out loud.

The so-called "standing at the pinnacle of piracy" stance has undoubtedly reached an extreme in terms of lethality and destructive power, even more terrifying than Edward Newgate, the "Whitebeard" whom the Navy has always been wary of.

Edward Newgate's "Tremor-Tremor Fruit" is said to be able to destroy the world, but the extremely destructive methods it causes, such as earthquakes, sea tremors, and air tremors, are all traceable and there are ways to resist them.

According to the information that has been transmitted back so far, "Red-Haired" Shanks, in his "standing at the pinnacle of the pirate world" posture, can kill anyone who lacks the temperament, will, and physique in his presence.

Even though Vice Admiral Tsuru felt a chill run down his spine and knew that this naval fleet had almost been completely annihilated, he could only do his best to deal with the sudden situation while reporting the relevant information back to Marineford at the Navy Headquarters so that Fleet Admiral Sengoku could make a decision as soon as possible.

……

On another small to medium-sized deserted island not far from the Whitebeard Pirates' territory, the island, which was originally mainly composed of bare, exposed rocks, was now in ruins.

Numerous spiderweb-like cracks cover the entire island, which is on the verge of disintegration. Without external forces, it may gradually sink into the sea and disappear completely within a few years.

However, due to the lingering effects of the ongoing battle between Vice Admiral Garp and Whitebeard on this island, its lifespan may end completely today.

"Bru bru~"

Just as the two sides had been fighting for half a day and were gradually entering a heated phase where both sides were starting to get hurt, the sound of a Den Den Mushi (snail phone) rang out in Vice Admiral Garp's inner pocket.

"Wait, Whitebeard~"

Vice Admiral Garp paused in his punching motion and raised his hand to signal, "It's Sengoku's Den Den Mushi. Let me take this call."

Whitebeard's expression betrayed a hint of dissatisfaction, but the long-handled sword that had been condensing the white ball of light formed by the "Tremor-Tremor Fruit" stopped, and he shouted.

"If you have any last words, tell them to the Sengoku period as soon as possible."

"Tsk~"

Vice Admiral Garp didn't answer Sengoku. Instead, he took out a Den Den Mushi he had been carefully protecting from his inner pocket, answered the call, and said casually.

"Warring States Period, what's the matter?"

After a pause, Lieutenant General Garp added a pre-emptive statement.

"I'm fighting Whitebeard right now, I'm not wandering off to sleep somewhere. If you don't believe me, I'll let you hear Whitebeard's voice."

However, the voice of the Fleet Admiral Sengoku suppressed a surge of rage as he bluntly asked, "Garp, you bastard, are you hiding something?"

"Huh?" Lieutenant General Garp was taken aback.

"Is there some important information you're hiding about Roger?"

As Fleet Admiral Sengoku uttered his next words, Vice Admiral Garp's expression immediately changed. His first instinctive thought was that the secret that his adopted son, Portgas D. Ace, was Roger's son had been exposed.

How could he have been exposed? Ace had always lived in Windmill Village...

Wait, did Ace secretly go to sea and become a pirate before the Navy noticed him?

Lieutenant General Garp felt his head buzzing and his dry throat made him completely unable to utter a sound.

Meanwhile, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, far away at Marineford, watched the Den Den Mushi mimicking Garp's expression and realized that Vice Admiral Garp definitely knew some information.

"Damn Garp, whatever your past personal relationship with Roger may be, why did you have to hide such crucial information? Don't you understand that this could very well lead to the annihilation of the entire navy fleet and the loss of countless marines?"

The Warring States Marshal was furious and cursed loudly, his tone more severe than ever before.

Upon hearing this, Vice Admiral Garp was completely dumbfounded.

"what?"

Even if Ace, as Roger's biological son, inherited Roger's bloodline and awakened Conqueror's Haki at a young age, it shouldn't be enough to cause the destruction of an entire navy fleet just as he reached the age to go to sea.

"Huh? Isn't Ace still in the East Blue? What does that have to do with the fleet's destruction?" Vice Admiral Garp asked instinctively.

Upon hearing this, the Sengoku commander asked, puzzled, "Ace? What Ace?"

Oh no?!

In an instant, Vice Admiral Garp realized that he seemed to have inadvertently let slip that what Fleet Admiral Sengoku wanted to ask about was not Ace.

However, Fleet Admiral Sengoku was currently preoccupied with the affairs of the naval fleet, and with doubts arising in his mind, he did not have the time to delve into Vice Admiral Garp's inexplicable words, and went straight to asking.

"Did you get dazed from fighting Whitebeard? I'm asking you about the ability to 'stand at the pinnacle of piracy,' do you even know that, you bastard?"

However, Vice Admiral Garp appeared even more guilty in response to these words.

[Chapter 508. Garp's Deal with Roger]

"As expected, you bastard knew."

At that moment, seeing Garp's expression mimicked by the Den Den Mushi, Fleet Admiral Sengoku was so angry he was practically fuming.

Vice Admiral Garp glanced at Whitebeard standing not far in front of him and answered somewhat guiltily, "I am... well, I know a little bit..."

After a pause, Vice Admiral Garp quickly said, "But Roger is already dead, isn't he? There's not much point in delving deeper into his abilities, is there?"

Fleet Admiral Sengoku said with a grim expression, "'Red-Haired' Shanks inherited this ability."

Upon hearing this, Lieutenant General Garp instinctively denied it, saying, "Impossible..."

“How is it impossible? This is the latest intelligence that Vice Admiral Tsuru has sent back. The situation on the battlefield has changed drastically. As a result, Vice Admiral Yann had to make the decision to allow the rest of the Red-Haired Pirates crew, except for Red-Haired Shanks, to retreat, and he continued to fight Red-Haired Shanks alone, who was now in great danger.”

Hearing Fleet Admiral Sengoku's voice, which seemed to contain a raging storm, Vice Admiral Garp swallowed hard, realizing that Fleet Admiral Sengoku was truly enraged this time.

After all, the information he had concealed this time not only seriously affected the navy's major strategies and fleet, but also implicated the son of the Sengoku period marshal.

Immediately, Lieutenant General Garp dared not be evasive any longer and answered directly.

“I do know a little about the information about ‘standing at the pinnacle of piracy,’ but I never expected that the ability of ‘standing at the pinnacle of piracy’ would appear in this way.”

"Because this is a special stance developed based on the 'Conqueror's Territory,' it not only has extremely high requirements for the development level of the 'Conqueror's Territory,' but more importantly, it puts a very heavy burden on the body and causes extremely serious damage."

"Even with Roger's monstrous physique, he only used 'Conqueror's Domain' once before it caused irreversible damage to his body, leading to an incurable disease that was difficult to cure later on."

The Warring States Marshal frowned slightly and asked directly, "What are your weaknesses? What flaws do you have?"

"I only learned this information from Roger; I don't know the specific weaknesses..."

After a pause, Lieutenant General Garp continued.

"However, according to Roger's description, as long as that state is maintained, one's combat power is, as the name suggests, 'standing at the pinnacle of pirates'."

"The only weakness is the burden on the body and the duration of the treatment. If it were a normal person's body, maintaining this for even a second would require paying tens of thousands of times the lifespan as a price."