Sea Circle Calendar, year 1520, one day before Ace's public execution.
Marineford, the most heavily guarded steel fortress on the seas, had fully entered a state of war.
Inside the harbor, fifty mainline Marine warships stood in a single row, every cannon aimed out to sea, their dark barrels gleaming coldly in the sunset. From the harbor to the plaza, three steel defensive barriers rose from the ground, with trenches, gun emplacements, and lookout towers packed densely together. One hundred thousand elite Marines, dressed in white uniforms and holding rifles, stood in orderly ranks stretching from the port to the foot of the Execution Platform, their formations immaculate and their killing intent soaring.
Atop the Execution Platform, two executioners were already in position, and the shackles forged from Seastone were ready. Seats for the Shichibukai had been prepared on either side of the raised platform. Hawk-Eye, Doflamingo, Moria, Hancock, and Kuma-all five were already in place. Only Jinbe remained locked inside the underwater prison of Impel Down.
Directly behind the Execution Platform, inside the Fleet Admiral's Office, Sengoku stood at the enormous floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the Marine forces poised for battle, his brows tightly knitted and his expression livid.
Granny Tsuru stood beside him, holding the latest intelligence report, and spoke slowly. "Sengoku, the latest news is that Whitebeard's fleet has disappeared from the waters of the New World. Our observation ships have completely lost track of them."
Sengoku spun around and slammed his fist onto the desk, instantly smashing the sturdy solid-wood desk to pieces. "Damn it! Edward Newgate! That old bastard! What the hell is he planning?!"
"He knows our defenses very well. He won't foolishly charge in from the front," Granny Tsuru said evenly. "Whitebeard has lived for so many years and fought wars all