"Don't let this guy get near Pops!"
The Whitebeard Pirates members moved in to defend, surrounding Sand Crocodile Crocodile.
"Is this Ace's little brother? He's pretty capable." Phoenix Marco, the ship's doctor, smiled.
That hat.
Whitebeard recalled what Red-Hair had said while they drank together.
I bet this arm on the new era.
The new era?
"Hey, brat." Whitebeard looked down at Luffy. "That hat looks a lot like the one Red-Hair used to wear."
"Shanks asked me to hold onto it for him."
"Pops, look, this is my little brother."
Whitebeard stared at Luffy's back, recalling the scene of Ace proudly showing him a wanted poster.
A faint smile unconsciously appeared at the corner of his mouth.
So that was it—the new era.
"Are you here to save your brother?"
"Do you know who your enemy is? Going in like this will get you killed!"
There was a trace of intimidation in Whitebeard's words and bearing. His great blade slammed into the ground with a boom, and a storm erupted around him.
Ivankov, Buggy, and the others stood with their jaws hanging open, too frightened to speak. Even from so far away, Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki was overwhelmingly oppressive.
"You're so annoying, old man." Luffy grabbed his Straw Hat with his right hand and put it on. "No matter how many times you ask, my answer's the same."
Rumble—
"The one who'll become One Piece is me!"
A dark crimson storm suddenly spread out from Straw Hat Kid, Monkey D. Luffy, sweeping across all of Marineford in an instant. The moment it collided with the two storms, countless Marines and pirates rolled their eyes back and collapsed!
"Conqueror's Haki?!"
"Who was that?!"
"It was Whitebeard and the Straw Hat Kid!"
The two astonishing presences collided and scraped against each other—the manifestation of the will of conquerors.
"Conqueror's Haki? Garp, you bastard!" Sengoku gritted his teeth, grabbed Garp by the collar, and shook him fiercely. "When did your grandson learn Haki? And it's Conqueror's Haki, too! You let him become a pirate?!"
"You let a grandson with that kind of talent become a pirate! You bastard!"
Garp was dumbfounded as well and had no idea how to answer Sengoku, but then—
"Good!!!"
"As expected of my grandson! Hahahaha..."
Veins bulged on Sengoku's forehead. He was practically driven mad with rage.
"Gar—p!"
Sengoku shook Garp's collar even harder, making Garp's head blur into afterimages. "If you weren't a hero of the Marines, I'd make you take responsibility for your whole damn family!"
This guy was a hero of the Marines, yet his family upbringing was a complete disaster.
"Conqueror's... Haki?"
"Ace's little brother!"
"That is proof of the qualities of a king, possessed by only one in a million."
"The same Haki as Pops."
"That Straw Hat Kid?!"
Whether they were members of the Whitebeard Pirates or Prisoners from Impel Down, they all stared toward Luffy in shock.
For a moment, the slaughter and conflict across the battlefield came to a brief halt because of the release of that Conqueror's Haki.
Even the Marines were immensely shocked.
"Straw Hat Kid..." Smoker had a cigar clenched between his teeth as he casually knocked down a pirate attempting a sneak attack. He looked over in disbelief. "So not capturing him back then really did leave behind a future threat."
"Luffy, as expected of the man I love. You've already mastered Conqueror's Haki."
"Ah~, what an astonishing speed."
Boa Hancock held her flushed cheeks as she looked at Luffy, her heart brimming with joy. The man she loved was truly so outstanding.
"How terrifying~, Straw Hat Kid." Kizaru still spoke in that lazy tone, though it was impossible to tell what he meant.
"The grandson of Hero Garp, the son of the revolutionary Dragon." Akainu made up his mind to erase the threat of Straw Hat Kid here at Marineford.
Aokiji remained silent and simply continued fighting.
"A clash of Conqueror's Haki!!!"
"Isn't this just like last time with Red-Hair?!"
The Whitebeard Pirates members recalled the commotion caused when Red-Hair had come before.
Whitebeard raised an eyebrow in surprise. The coat behind him rustled in the airflow stirred up by Luffy. "Interesting!"
What emanated from Straw Hat Kid was—
the scent of a Monster.
However, after only a few brief seconds, both of them reined in their Haki.
"Hmph, do whatever you want, brat." Whitebeard smiled. "Just don't die on the battlefield."
"Heh, I'll be the one to save Ace."
Luffy lowered the brim of his hat, turned, and charged toward the execution platform.
"Wait for me, Ace!"
Sengoku, things were no longer developing in a way you could control.
Let me see this new era you're talking about, Red-Hair...
Whitebeard found it rather interesting.
"Everyone! Cover Ace's little brother!"
The pirates were immediately fired up.
"Well done, Ace's little brother!"
"We underestimated you, Straw Hat Kid!"
Their side had gained another member capable of using Conqueror's Haki, and the recent clash of Haki had taken out quite a few Marines.
As for the Whitebeard Pirates, even if they had suffered losses, there were few, and they would wake up soon enough. Everyone was already used to life under the intimidation of Conqueror's Haki.
After all, during banquets, whenever Pops got happy—or drank too much—he would unleash it every now and then.
Quite a few of the Prisoners who had escaped from Impel Down had not fallen either. They were all people of relatively strong constitution.
"Stop him!"
The Marines began gathering forces and redeploying. The Straw Hat Kid was now the greater threat.
And over on Su Lin's side—
"Your Excellency Su Lin, please stay near me for a while."
Su Lin heard someone calling him and turned to see Jinbe.
"Shouldn't you be helping your captain?"
"Our captain is already very strong. Even a Yonko would struggle against so many high-level Marine forces at once, but I believe in him." Jinbe shook his head. "Besides, I promised you that your safety would be my top priority now."
Noticing that Su Lin looked somewhat nervous, Jinbe tried to persuade him.
"How about you go rest in the rear for a while, Your Excellency Su Lin?"
Jinbe had seen it before coming here: Su Lin had no experience in battle. There were no signs that he had trained, and he might not even have done much physical labor—not by Pirate World standards, at least. His physique might not even compare to that of some ordinary people.
As an experienced veteran, Jinbe could tell that this man who knew Luffy and had suddenly appeared bore no ill intent. At his core, he was a good person.
Remembering that Su Lin's Devil Fruit ability was copying, Jinbe guessed that his main purpose in coming to the Summit War at Marineford was likely to collect abilities.
Even so, Jinbe was deeply grateful to the man before him.
"It's fine." Su Lin waved his hand. "Jinbe, go help Luffy. I'll be fine here."
"You'll be fine?" Jinbe hesitated. He had promised to keep Su Lin safe before coming here.
"It doesn't matter anymore." Su Lin pointed ahead.
A figure was shining in midair over there. It was Kizaru.
Before Su Lin had even finished speaking, he had already turned into particles of light and appeared on Jinbe's other side.
"If that's the case, then I'm going. Your Excellency Su Lin, please be careful."
That ability was utterly ridiculous.
Cold sweat streamed down Jinbe's head.
(End of chapter)