Marineford War

Blackbeard and the others, temporarily forgotten by both sides, once again brought Impel Down unforgettable pain.

At the entrance to Level Six of Impel Down, former Head Jailer Shiryu of the Rain led Blackbeard and three others here. Released by Magellan, he had not dealt with the rioting intruders as agreed. Instead, he had used antidote serum to save the three of them.

Blackbeard Teach let out an unpleasant laugh and peered through the cut-open gate. The constantly clamoring prisoners filled him with excitement.

Though he had repeatedly encountered setbacks, he had still carried out his plan nearly perfectly. Perhaps there was one tiny flaw: Sal and his group had slaughtered two of his companions.

"Zehahahaha, Shiryu, as the Head Jailer, why are you helping me?"

Dressed in a black military uniform and cloak, Shiryu gave off a cold, cruel impression. He calmly wiped the bloodstained blade in his hand. Just moments ago, he had used that sword to kill several former subordinates who knew nothing.

"I've grown tired of Impel Down. I'm planning to go out and see the world."

Seeing this, Blackbeard laughed even more wildly.

"Zehahaha! Welcome to my pirate crew, Shiryu."

"That will depend on your strength, Captain. Otherwise, don't blame me for taking your life."

The icy gleam of the blade made Blackbeard's heart tighten. His current strength might not be enough to suppress this newly joined crew member. He could only place his hopes on the old man's legacy.

Blackbeard and the others entered Level Six, stirring the prisoners who had already fallen into despair. They began calling out requests to submit and join him, but Blackbeard merely gave a cruel order.

"Fight. Whoever survives by slaughtering the others can join my pirate crew."

The moment those words fell, Level Six went silent for several breaths. Then, as the cells were opened, slaughter began. The scene was evil enough to resemble hell itself.

Sal's consciousness returned to his body. He opened his eyes and awoke from his sleep. Not far away, Rayleigh was still steering the ship. Seeing Sal awaken, he complained.

"You're finally awake. I nearly couldn't stop myself from throwing you into the sea. Tell me, what was going on with you?"

"Nothing much. I just caused trouble in Impel Down using a special method and recruited some outside help."

"..."

Rayleigh could not imagine what kind of method Sal had used to wreak havoc in Impel Down when Sal's body had been right beside him the whole time.

Sal did not want to explain further. He grabbed some food and began wolfing it down. Before battle arrived, he needed to replenish his strength properly. Then the system's notifications suddenly appeared.

[SS-rank character Sengoku has developed negative emotions toward the host. Moderate hostility. Reward: 20,000 EXP]

[SS-rank character Tsuru has developed negative emotions toward the host. Moderate hostility. Reward: 20,000 EXP]

[SS-rank character Akainu has developed negative emotions toward the host. Moderate hostility. Reward: 20,000 EXP]

[SS-rank character Aokiji has developed negative emotions toward the host. Minor hostility. Reward: 10,000 EXP]

[S-rank Headquarters Vice Admiral has developed negative emotions toward the host. Minor and moderate hostility. Reward: 1,000 EXP x6, 2,000 EXP x5]

[Level up: Level 63, 94,539/110,000]

"..."

The sudden emotions from the Marine higher-ups made Sal realize that news of Impel Down's fall had already reached Marineford. Just as war was about to break out, the crucial great prison beneath the sea had been raided. This was a disgrace to the Marines.

And Sal would certainly be treated as the mastermind. After all, Luffy was Garp's grandson, and his strength was far inferior to Sal's. With a more suitable suspect available, they would naturally try to minimize Luffy's presence.

In truth, Sengoku had his own concerns. Ace, Garp's grandson, was about to be executed. If he also issued the harshest punishment for Luffy, he did not want to push his old friend too hard. He truly feared that his strong old comrade would collapse.

As the Hero of the Marines, Garp was only a Vice Admiral because he had refused promotion to Admiral and refused to wipe the Celestial Dragons' asses.

Garp's influence and prestige within the Marines surpassed even the Three Admirals. He was not inferior in the slightest even to the Fleet Admiral.

Countless Marines had been trained by Garp. Aokiji, one of the Three Admirals, was effectively his disciple. Garp could also command the special unit SWORD, which existed outside the Marine hierarchy.

So if the hero showed even the slightest sign of something being wrong, it would be an enormous blow to Marine morale.

But Tsuru, the Marine strategist, was actually rated SS-rank. It seemed her profession came with many bonuses. Still, that made sense. A Marine strategist was slightly more important than even the Three Admirals.

Sal recalled that if the Marine higher-ups already knew, then what about the World Government?

Sure enough, it did not take long for the World Government's system notifications to appear.

[SS-rank character Five Elders have developed negative emotions toward the host. Moderate hostility. Reward: 20,000 EXP x5]

[S-rank characters have developed negative emotions toward the host. Minor and moderate hostility. Reward: 1,000 EXP x21, 2,000 EXP x29]

[Level up: Level 63, 99,739/110,000]

Rising two levels in a row put Sal in an excellent mood. The system would occasionally produce single EXP notifications as well. Once the Impel Down incident spread, there should be considerable EXP income to follow.

Unfortunately, he would soon have to take part in the Marineford War, which would overlap with the Impel Down incident. His EXP gains would not be maximized. If only he could wait until emotions reset a month later.

Though Rayleigh did not understand why Sal had suddenly become happy, he still reminded him.

"Be careful. We'll reach Marineford in fifteen minutes. If everyone focuses fire on you at your current strength, you'll be in serious trouble."

"Don't worry, Rayleigh. With you here, why would I be afraid of them ganging up on me? Hahaha."

Sal's carefree smile looked so familiar to Rayleigh. Though he had not seen that smile in twenty years, he had faced it for decades.

Marine Headquarters, Marineford

To deal with the war against the Whitebeard Pirates, the World Government had assembled forty thousand elite Marines, along with nearly sixty thousand ordinary Marines to assist them.

This was the full force the Marines could mobilize, including eighty percent of their elite troops. Other important strongholds were left with only the bare minimum of defenders.

As the most important Marine Headquarters, Marineford's island had been shaped into sheer cliffs that were difficult to climb on all sides.

Fifty large warships stood ready around the island, each guarded by at least one Headquarters Commodore. Only the concave semicircular bay at the front of the island was suitable for landing.

As the main battlefield for Ace's execution, the bay was heavily defended. Twenty thousand elite Marines waited in silence, including nearly a thousand officer-rank Marines.

Even ordinary branch Vice Admirals could only hide among the crowd. Only Headquarters Vice Admirals were allowed to wait atop the artillery platforms.

As the strongest fighting force below the Three Admirals, Headquarters Vice Admirals were a vital and powerful force within the Marines. Every Headquarters Vice Admiral was qualified to lead a fleet into war.

The eight Giant Vice Admirals at the very front of the execution platform were the most conspicuous. Most of them came from Sheep's House, an orphanage founded decades ago by Mother Carmel.

Mother Carmel, the previous user of the Soul-Soul Fruit, had possessed stunning beauty in her youth. In reality, she was a vicious human trafficker.

She was highly skilled at disguising herself. Decades ago, she had put on an act with the World Government and saved the Giant Tribe, earning their friendship and the right to establish an orphanage in Elbaf.

Using that disguise, she adopted Giant orphans before selling them to the World Government.

Charlotte Linlin, one of the Four Emperors, had once been an orphan of Sheep's House.

And what was thought-provoking was that Charlotte Linlin was the current user of the Soul-Soul Fruit. From the day Mother Carmel disappeared, she had gained the Soul-Soul Fruit's power.