Whitebeard's Request for an Alliance
At least Whitebeard himself believed he lacked the ability to withstand that old monster, Imu.
He didn't know the outcome of Natsu's battle with his opponent, but at the very least, the difference in their strength, even if there was one, wouldn't be too great.
It's probably like the gap between myself and that old Garp.
After a moment of silence, the Whitebeard said, "Alright! Since it's Natsu Yin who's asked, I naturally can't refuse! Fugaku! Besides that, there's something else I'd like to discuss with you."
"What is it?" Fugaku asked, frowning slightly in confusion upon hearing Newgate's words.
"An alliance! I want to form an alliance with your Uchiha Clan!" Faced with Fugaku's doubts, Newgate remained silent for a moment before speaking.
Upon hearing this, the other members of the Whitebeard Pirates around them also sat up, but their faces did not show resistance; instead, they showed some contemplation.
After all, the Uchiha Clan's formidable fighting power has already been demonstrated; a mere twenty-odd individuals could probably make the dozen or so Division Commander of the entire Whitebeard Pirates shudder.
Not to mention those three guys who made further breakthroughs earlier.
Uchiha Yaoyu, Uchiha Yakumi, and Uchiha Kei.
All told, these twenty-odd people alone include four Yonko Commander Level fighters and more than twenty Marine Vice Admiral.
Upon hearing this, Uchiha Fugaku frowned slightly, a hint of hesitation flashing across his face, before he spoke, "Newgate, it is not that I intend to refuse, but you are probably unaware of this."
Due to certain reasons in the past, no one except Natsu can make decisions unilaterally at the power center of the Uchiha Clan, not even myself.
"Unless the other Elder and I agree simultaneously, or Natsu personally approves, matters concerning clan affairs cannot be decided by any single person alone."
"Is that so? It doesn't matter anyway. The Whitebeard Pirates are going to the West Blue with you anyway. We can just ask that kid Natsu then, right?" Newgate frowned slightly upon hearing Fugaku's words, then looked at Fugaku and said.
Newgate raised an eyebrow, but didn't seem to take it to heart.
With the strongest member of the clan absent, it is only natural that the deputy would not dare to make decisions on their own.
He turned to Marco and shouted, "Marco, pass down the order: everyone, target the West Blue, move out!"
Marco rose from the shadow of the mast, a blue flame flickering on his shoulder.
"Yes, Pops!" Dozens of pirate ships slowly turned around in the afterglow of the setting sun, the Whitebeard skull flag on the masts fluttering in the sea breeze, and sailed majestically toward the West Blue.
There was nothing to be seen in the direction of Marineford.
The sea was shrouded in a gray fog, and even the sound of waves crashing against the rocks could not be heard.
That silent ripple erased not only the island and the ice surface, but also the pride that the Marine Headquarters had accumulated over decades.
No one spoke on the departing warships.
It's not that I don't want to talk, it's that I don't know what to say.
The coat of justice is still draped over his shoulders, but those two words now weigh heavily on him, making it hard to breathe.
Some people were sobbing softly, some had their faces buried in their palms, and some were still trembling with their hands gripping the hilt of their knives.
Onigumo is dead.
Steel Bone Kong is dead too.
One was an elite Vice Admiral from headquarters, the other was the commander-in-chief of the army, navy, and air force. One was their comrade-in-arms who fought side by side, and the other was a name they had heard veterans mention with reverence at the dinner table since they were young.
The former died from the combined attack of two Uchiha clansmen, while the latter was cleaved in two by the dark golden martial god, without even leaving a last word.
Sengoku sat in the cabin of the flagship, his back to everyone.
He wasn't wearing a military cap, and his gray hair looked somewhat disheveled in the dim light.
On the table lay the evacuation order, which had not yet been signed; the edges of the paper were deeply creased from someone's gripping.
His fingers rested on the table, with several dried bloodstains on his knuckles. These were cuts from metal splinters when he gripped the railing earlier; he had forgotten to treat them, and they no longer hurt.
Garp leaned against the ship's railing, arms crossed, and hadn't uttered a single word since boarding.
The old man's cloudy eyes stared at the churning seawater at the stern of the ship. His face showed no anger, no sadness, only an emptiness that no one could understand.
Of the new recruits he took out, less than half returned alive.
Coby, the clumsy boy he brought with him and whom he had personally picked up from the East Blue, was shot through the chest by a bullet from one of his own and sank to the bottom of the sea.
On the deck, a young lieutenant suddenly crouched down, covered his face, and began to cry.
No one comforted him, because everyone was enduring the same thing.
Several Vice Admiral gathered at the stern of the ship. One of them muttered something under his breath and then fell silent.
They were not afraid of death, but when "death" became a meaningless waste, when even a commander-in-chief level combatant couldn't withstand a single strike from that martial god, they began to doubt what they were fighting for and what they were defending.
Akainu sat in the corner of the cabin, arms crossed, his baseball cap pulled low, obscuring most of his face.
His hands still bore the charred marks left by the cooled lava, and a corner of his Justice Coat was burned off the hem.
He didn't look at the weeping soldiers, nor did he comfort anyone; he simply sat in silence.
He has never doubted "Absolute Justice" in his life, but watching Steel Bone Kong's figure being cut down with a single slash before his eyes, his clenched fist has never loosened.
Aokiji leaned against the mast, his blindfold pushed up to his forehead, and the white mist he exhaled was thicker than usual.
Kizaru sat atop the bridge, unusually without a cup of tea in his hand. His usually squinty eyes opened a crack as he gazed toward the stern, lost in thought.
Gion walked to the door of the Sengoku ship's cabin, stood for a moment, and then pushed the door open and went inside.
Sengoku didn't turn around; his voice sounded exceptionally aged in the cramped cabin, "Gion, tell me, what exactly are we fighting against?"
Gion opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a word.
The news of Steel Bone Kong's death weighed on everyone's chest like a stone.
He didn't die in a closely fought battle; he was crushed.
Like the Onigumo, like the Gunko, like Marineford that was cut in two.
This made every Navy Soldier think about one question: if even the Commander-in-Chief couldn't withstand a single blow, then what were they, these so-called elites, these so-called Headquarters Vice Admiral, Rear Admiral, and Colonels, compared to Uchiha Natsu?
No one asked this question aloud, but everyone asked themselves it countless times in their hearts.
Hahaha! Do you know how many words I wrote today?!
A full 30,000 words!!
I've posted these three chapters, and I still have eleven more chapters in reserve!
That's enough to keep you entertained for four whole days!
Hahahaha!! I, your humble servant, am still the eternal Immortal Venerable who reigns supreme over ten thousand men!!
Hahahaha!!