Summit War 37
Even though he has always disagreed with Garp's ideas, he has to show genuine respect for the veteran today.
But respect is one thing, military discipline is another.
For a marine to publicly disobey orders from his superiors is already a major taboo, let alone to threaten a Vice Admiral by invoking the name of his superior—such an act would cross a line in any military.
Garp opened his mouth, his throat choked with a thousand words, but he couldn't utter a single one.
He knew Akainu was right. The Vice Admiral hadn't done anything wrong—he was saving thousands of lives on the ship.
And Coby, the clumsy boy he mentored who always said he wanted to become the strongest Marine, learned to use his name to intimidate others when Coby wasn't around.
His clenched fist slowly loosened and hung at his sides. The anger in his old eyes gradually subsided, leaving only a look of utter exhaustion.
On the other side, the sea around the Moby Dick was a scene of chaotic evacuation.
Uchiha Fugaku stood between the eyebrows of the Complete Susanoo, his Mangekyō Sharingan sweeping across the chaotic ice below, and immediately spotted Oars's massive figure.
This descendant of the giant, who grew up on Whitebeard's ship, was now covered in pirates, with several Division Commander riding on his shoulders and a dense mass of people on his back, and was striding wildly toward the Moby Dick.
But at his speed, he couldn't outrun that ripple.
Without hesitation, Fugaku Susanoo out his arm and scooped up Oars along with the hundreds of pirates on his body.
At the same time, the pair of dark golden wings that blotted out the sky suddenly unfolded, and the gale blew up all the rubble on the ice.
The Susanoo, grabbed Oars and, along with thousands of pirates clinging tightly to its armor on the deck, roared into the air and glided towards the Moby Dick.
On the other side of the bay, Uchiha Yaoyu's Semi-Complete Susanoo stretched out its arm at the last moment.
Whitebeard glanced back at the disappearing ice, then at the Susanoo's outstretched hand, and finally gritted his teeth to grasp the giant Chakra.
Susanoo grabbed him and hundreds of pirates and leaped onto the deck of the Moby Dick.
On another large ship, Uchiha Yakumi boarded with his Uchiha clan, the recently rescued Ace, and a large group of pirates.
Uchiha Kei was originally the fastest runner, leading over a hundred companions at the forefront, when suddenly he caught a glimpse of several figures sprinting desperately to his side.
Doflamingo's pink feather coat was nowhere to be found; his two long legs were tumbling around like propellers.
Hancock kicked off her high heels and ran faster than anyone else, barefoot on the broken ice;
Crocodile transformed into half a sandstorm, not forgetting to use the sand to drag Moria, who was stunned by the shockwave, away as well.
Luffy peeked out from beside Ace and called out to Qi, "Uncle! Hancock and Crocodile are my friends! Hancock even helped me rescue Ace from Impel Down after she heard that Ace knew you guys. Please, take them with you!"
Qi frowned slightly, but his hands didn't stop moving.
Susanoo grabbed Crocodile, Hancock, and Moria, and turned to charge again, when a shrill, distorted scream came from behind, "Wait! Uchiha Clan lord! I'm Natsu's dog--!"
Doflamingo scrambled to Susanoo's feet and pulled a token from his pocket.
The token was engraved with the Uchiha Clan's Gunbai emblem, which gleamed with a cold, eerie light in the Kakkō.
At this moment, he no longer cared about the humiliation he felt when Natsu mocked him earlier—face? Could face be worth more than life itself?
Qi looked at the token, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
He did remember that Natsu had mentioned it—that he had acquired a barely usable dog in Dressrosa.
With a dark expression, he grabbed Doflamingo, who was already flying in mid-air, and threw him onto Susanoo's shoulder. Without even glancing at him, he turned and leaped onto the deck of a ship belonging to a pirate crew under Whitebeard's command.
Whitebeard stood at the stern of the Moby Dick, gazing at the thousands of figures on the ice who hadn't yet boarded, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the Murakumogiri.
Among those people were his old subordinates who had followed him for over a decade, and newcomers who had just joined. Every single one of them had once called him "Pops" under his banner.
His mouth opened and closed, and his white beard trembled in the wind.
But he did not order the ship to stop—as captain, he could not make the entire crew stop for those who had already missed their chance to board.
Fugaku made the decision for him.
Susanoo's palms pressed against the stern of the Moby Dick, and dark golden Chakra light exploded in its palms. The giant ship was propelled forward by an irresistible force, its bow cleaving through the waves as it sped away from Marineford.
Seeing this, the other pirate ships could only grit their teeth, raise their sails, and follow the Moby Dick away from the devastating sea.
On the ice, those left behind looked up at the departing ship; some knelt down, some cursed, and some clung to their companions.
They stopped shouting, because they knew it was pointless.
And that silent ripple was slowly spreading from behind.
Invisible ripples silently spread across the sea, swallowing up the last remaining reef of Marineford along with the figures on the ice who hadn't had time to evacuate.
Everything within a radius of hundreds of kilometers—steel, rocks, seawater, life—was wiped clean in that instant, leaving not a trace.
A huge hole even appeared on the sea surface; before the seawater could flow back in, it was evaporated into a white mist by the residual energy.
On the deck of the Moby Dick, everyone anxiously gazed at the distant horizon shrouded in thick fog.
Whitebeard held onto Murakumogiri tightly, Marco's blue flames flickered on his shoulder, Jozu's Diamond arms remained in a defensive stance, and Vista's twin swords hung at his sides.
No one spoke; the only sounds on the ship were the muffled crashing of waves against the hull and the creaking of the ropes on the mast as the wind blew.
They were waiting—waiting for the thick fog to dissipate, waiting for that figure to reappear, or perhaps never to appear again.
Uchiha Fugaku stood at the bow of the ship, his Mangekyō Sharingan fixed on the depths of the thick fog, his Susanoo's Chakra still surging around him, ready to charge in again at any moment.
Then he froze.
A voice rang in his mind—not heard by his ears, but appearing directly in the depths of his consciousness.
Hurry up.
Let Newgate take the Whitebeard Pirates back to Origin Island.
It was Natsu.
The voice was clear, as calm as ever, carrying the unquestionable weight of an order.
But Fugaku could hear the barely concealed weakness beneath that voice.
He opened his mouth, wanting to ask, "How are you?", but that consciousness had already receded like the tide, leaving no trace.