Summit War · The Pursuit

"Boom!"

A tremendous crash rang out as Whitebeard and Sengoku, in his transformed state, collided. A massive shockwave burst from the point of impact and spread outward.

The Marines who had been closing in were all swept off their feet by the powerful shockwave.

Of course, the clash didn't last long. Sengoku was sent flying, while Whitebeard merely staggered back a few steps.

"Gurararara! Sengoku, looks like you've gotten old! You're a lot weaker than you used to be!"

Once he had steadied himself, Whitebeard laughed as he looked at Sengoku, whom he had sent flying.

"Yasakani no Magatama!"

"Ice Block: Partisan!"

Whitebeard was given little time to spare. The instant Sengoku was sent flying, Aokiji and Kizaru spotted what was happening and rushed over to help.

Unfortunately, just as their attacks were about to reach Whitebeard, he spun the Guan Dao in his hands and easily blocked them.

After stopping their attacks, he planted the Guan Dao in the ground and threw another punch. A tremendous tremor spread toward the two Admirals who had just attacked. Seeing trouble coming, Kizaru turned into light, but he was still a fraction too slow. Whitebeard struck him out of his elemental form and sent him crashing into the wall ahead.

Aokiji was farther away, and when Whitebeard attacked, he reacted swiftly and escaped on a sheet of ice. But the ground where he had been standing was still split apart by the blow.

"Buddha Shockwave!"

At that moment, Sengoku, who had been sent flying earlier, appeared again. His golden figure struck toward Whitebeard with another palm.

As he thrust it forward, a huge swastika formed in his palm and slammed toward Whitebeard.

"Gurararara! Just in time!"

Seeing Sengoku appear again, Whitebeard showed no fear. He raised his Guan Dao, leaped from the ground, and slashed straight into the center of the symbol.

"Crack!"

The sound of space splitting rang out again. The symbol lasted only a few seconds before it was shattered and scattered, and Sengoku was sent flying once more.

"You're old now. You can't beat me on your own!"

"What if I join in?"

Just as Whitebeard sent Sengoku flying again, Garp, who had disappeared after Chen Qiang spoke to him, appeared out of nowhere and stepped in front of Whitebeard.

"Garp! You finally showed up!"

Whitebeard wasn't surprised to see Garp. In fact, his smile grew even wider.

Earlier, when Chen Qiang had provoked Garp into leaving while they were trying to rescue Ace, Whitebeard had known that Garp hadn't gone far. Garp had been torn between his grandson and the Marines he had sworn to serve, unsure which side to choose. When Chen Qiang had goaded him, Garp had taken the opportunity to leave. After all, out of sight, out of mind.

Whitebeard knew the old man well enough to understand that Garp had used Chen Qiang's words as an excuse to leave. Sengoku, who had been friends with Garp for many years, understood him just as well.

Garp might seem impulsive most of the time, but he knew how to distinguish between different matters. By attacking Chen Qiang, he had shown that he stood with the Marines. Then he had left after Chen Qiang spoke, showing that he was a grandfather. That had given him a way to save face, and Sengoku couldn't very well criticize him for it.

Now that Garp had appeared again, he was here as a Marine, to keep Whitebeard from causing widespread destruction. After all, both his grandsons had already escaped. By stepping in now, he could stop Whitebeard—and perhaps vent some of his own frustration, too.

"Iron Fist!"

So Garp didn't waste time talking to anyone after showing up. He went straight for Whitebeard.

"Gurararara! Just in time! Let's make this the final battle of the old era and fight to our hearts' content!"

Watching Garp charge straight at him, Whitebeard laughed again and met him with a punch.

For a time, Whitebeard stood alone against Garp the Hero, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, and the two Admirals, Aokiji and Kizaru.

The battle raged across the plaza, and explosions rang out one after another. The Marines who had been there kept retreating under the relentless shockwaves. They couldn't get anywhere near the fight.

On the other side, Whitebeard had thrown Chen Qiang in the direction Ace and the others were fleeing. Without hesitation, Ace leaped up and caught Chen Qiang in midair.

"Little Ivankov, come check on Chen Qiang! What happened to him?"

As Ace caught Chen Qiang, Luffy hurried over to check on him. He also called out to Ivankov, the King of Okama, who was retreating on the other side.

"He's fine! Chen Qiang just used up too much energy. With his recovery ability, he should be back on his feet soon!"

Ivankov hurried over at Luffy's call and quickly examined Chen Qiang. He found no injuries on him. Chen Qiang had merely fainted from severe mental exhaustion.

"Great Eruption!"

Just as Ace and the others were carrying Chen Qiang toward the sea, huge fists of magma flew into the air and rapidly split into countless smaller ones, raining down from the sky.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "..."

Magma kept crashing into the ground, leaving huge craters everywhere. It continued to burn where it landed, turning the entire battlefield into a sea of flames.

"You think you can escape just like that? Dream on!"

As the magma blocked Ace and the others' path, Akainu dropped from the sky and landed directly in front of Luffy and the others.

But at first, Ace and the others had no intention of fighting Akainu head-on. They simply changed direction and kept running.

Akainu didn't pursue them. Instead, he began taunting Whitebeard, which struck a nerve with Ace. Ace turned back and fought him.

Unfortunately, Ace was no match for Akainu. After only a few exchanges, he was sent flying.

"Anyone can escape from here, but not you two!"

After saying this, Akainu ignored Ace, who had been sent flying. He leaped over Ace's head, turned his hand into magma, and attacked Luffy.

Luffy was carrying Chen Qiang, and his body was covered in injuries. He had no strength left to dodge Akainu's attack.

At that moment, Ace suddenly vanished from where he stood. When he reappeared, he was in front of Luffy, taking Akainu's attack for him.