On the naval warship, a one-sided chase had finally reached its end.
After a fierce battle, Iggy and Ace collapsed onto the deck, lying on their backs like fish laid bare on a chopping block.
Akainu strode up to the two fallen pirates. His cold eyes showed no emotion as he looked down at their defiant gazes.
Without a word, he raised his magma-coated fist, ready to deliver a fatal blow.
"Enemies of justice must be destroyed!"
Akainu's fist—like a volcano erupting—came down with a thunderous roar, searing heat engulfing Iggy and Ace. Just as the molten lava descended, a flash of cyan light darted in front of them.
"Sorry, they're not dying today."
In the blink of an eye, Iggy and Ace felt their collars tighten as they were yanked away from death's edge.
The punch struck only air, sending a heat wave blasting across the deck. But when Akainu looked again, the two criminals had vanished.
"What…?"
He glanced around—the deck was strewn with fallen bodies, while the surviving naval soldiers cowered at a distance in fear. Above, a clear birdsong cut through the silence.
Looking up, Akainu saw a stunning cyan bird soaring through the sky. In its talons were Iggy and Ace.
The bird spread its wings wide, trailing light-blue flames like a phoenix and painting the sky with a blue arc.
"Marco!"
Among Akainu's guards, several veteran marines gasped.
Marco—First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates—was a Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit user: the Bird-Bird Fruit, Model: Phoenix.
Cloaked in healing blue flames, Marco had clashed with admirals before. His strength was formidable, and his speed unmatched.
"All units, target the air! Open fire!"
Akainu barked the order, swinging his arm with force. His voice thundered over the fleet.
At his command, the warships lining the horizon let loose a barrage of cannonfire. Massive artillery roared on both sides of the fleet, illuminating the skies.
As dozens of shells hurtled through the air, Marco twisted and turned, weaving through the sky to dodge the onslaught.
"Keep firing! If you can't hit him, don't bother coming back to Marineford!"
Under Akainu's iron will, the fleet snapped into relentless formation. Ships surged forward, slowly tightening their encirclement around the airborne target.
More cannons swiveled and fired, unleashing a storm of explosions.
"Tch…"
Marco grit his teeth as he realized they were closing in fast, boxing him into a deadly cage of artillery fire.
With a quiet breath, he gripped Iggy and Ace tightly and unfurled his ten-meter wings.
Curling midair, Marco wrapped both men inside his wings. Explosions boomed around them, black smoke engulfing the blue firebird.
"Hmph, that won't be enough to take me down."
Shrapnel and flames slammed into the phoenix, only to be consumed by his mystical fire. Two mighty flaps dispelled the smoke—until a scorching red glow pierced the haze.
"Damn it—again!"
From the smoke burst a column of molten fury—Akainu's lava attack—like the wrath of hell itself aimed straight at them.
Recognizing the danger, Marco banked hard. The molten blast grazed his wings, instantly vaporizing half of the blue flame.
"This place is too dangerous."
Without hesitation, his wings regenerated in a swirl of flames, and he shot upward with blinding speed.
The phoenix burst through the air, gliding past the fleet's two-kilometer encirclement.
"Trying to flee?"
Akainu's killing intent surged. Planting one foot on the ship's bow, he reeled his lava-coated fist backward, charging it with full power.
"Great Eruption: Red Dog!"
He hurled the massive fist skyward. It morphed into a monstrous canine made of lava—growing larger and more menacing with each passing second.
The hellhound of magma roared, dripping molten fury from its jaw as it lunged toward Marco.
Marco looked back—his sharp eyes caught sight of the giant lava beast closing in.
Its mouth stretched wide, ready to devour the phoenix and his wounded cargo.
But just before impact, a strange sound echoed—like cracking glass.
CRACK.
The hellhound froze in place midair. The air itself shattered like crystal, and the magma dog fractured into dozens of glowing shards.
At the epicenter of the rupture, a violent ripple spread through the sky, growing until it encompassed a kilometer-wide radius.
It was as if an invisible force had grabbed the beast and torn it apart like paper.
"Tch… still came, huh?"
Akainu clenched his jaw as his ultimate attack disintegrated into falling lava droplets, hissing as they struck the sea.
From the horizon, a massive ship emerged—a whale-shaped war vessel—carving through the waves like a mountain on water.
And seated atop its deck, on a throne as wide as the ship, was a giant of a man.
With a crescent-shaped white mustache, partially closed eyes, and a massive bisento resting beside him, he radiated power and authority.
"Whitebeard…"
The tide of war had shifted.
Akainu narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists, bracing for the next clash.
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