Although Nami didn't let Ryuen watch by himself, she never said others couldn't watch with him.
So, Nami opened the alternate dimension, and she, Ryuen, Daisy, and Boa Hancock stepped inside.
The others weren't too interested.
At this point, the battle at Marine Headquarters had reached a stalemate. With all three Marine Admirals fighting at full force, Whitebeard had also stepped onto the battlefield.
"This isn't right… Whitebeard doesn't seem as powerful as he did at the start," Kuina said, frowning in thought.
"Squard is a well-known pirate, after all. That stab just now went straight through Whitebeard. And I heard Whitebeard has been relying on medicine all this time. There's no way it didn't affect him," Nojiko said quietly.
"Kuina, your childhood friend is improving fast. He's already reached the level where he can cut through iron, hasn't he?" Anya asked, surprised as she watched Zoro wield his Three-Sword Style.
"That's right."
"Zoro seems to have found a shortcut to getting stronger," Kuina said, clearly happy with his progress.
"A shortcut?" Hogg asked, puzzled.
"Exactly."
"I actually figured this out when we were kids—Zoro can only get stronger by constantly fighting.
That's the only way he can push his limits and grow quickly.
But this method has a big weakness: he's great at close combat, but terrible at fighting from a distance.
His sword slashes… they're kind of flashy but not very effective.
If he ever fights someone and gets forced into a ranged battle, he'll have a really hard time winning," Kuina analyzed calmly.
"Kuina, how long do you think it'll take for him to reach your level?" Nojiko asked curiously.
Kuina was silent for a moment before shaking her head. "I can't say for sure. But one thing is clear—unless he fights strong opponents nonstop for at least two years, he won't catch up to me."
"Hiss…"
"Poor Zoro. His goal now is to be the strongest swordsman, which means Mihawk. But I feel like, in the future, his goal will be to surpass you instead," Nojiko teased.
"Not necessarily. To be honest, I'm not strong enough to beat Mihawk yet. At least, not until my Wado Ichimonji becomes a black blade," Kuina admitted.
"I remember Ryuen once said something about Mihawk. He said Mihawk has been the world's greatest swordsman for too long—he's lost the drive to improve.
More importantly, as a pirate, he doesn't even care about finding One Piece. He lacks the ambition to fight for the top."
"If he wants to grow stronger again, he'll probably need someone to defeat him first. Only then might he rediscover his original goal," Hogg said flatly.
"Look!"
"Whitebeard got hit by Akainu!"
Leah suddenly pointed at the battlefield below, gasping in shock.
Everyone's attention immediately shifted to Whitebeard and Akainu. Akainu's punch had clearly weakened Whitebeard a lot!
"This… the Whitebeard Pirates are going to lose their minds over this…" Hogg muttered.
"I finally understand why Ryuen said the Marines would do whatever it takes to win this war."
"Look at the execution platform! Sengoku has already given the order to execute Ace!"
"With Whitebeard badly injured, if Ace is executed too, the Whitebeard Pirates will lose most of their fighting spirit!" Nojiko said in a serious tone.
It wasn't just the Dream Pirates—everyone involved in the rescue mission noticed that the Marines had moved up the execution time!
Before anyone could react, the two executioners were already stepping onto the platform.
The rescuers went wild at the sight, charging forward with everything they had, desperate to break through the Marines' defenses.
The sheer force of their assault even managed to break through the Marine front lines for a moment, putting enormous pressure on the Marine forces.
At that moment, all three Marine Admirals abandoned their previous targets and focused entirely on stopping the rampaging Whitebeard Pirates.
"Gurararara!"
"Sengoku, you're still playing your little tricks!" Whitebeard roared in anger.
Suddenly, he struck with his elbow, activating the power of the Quake-Quake Fruit.
"Crack… crack… crack…"
Under everyone's stunned gaze, space itself fractured from Whitebeard's attack. The cracking sound echoed throughout the entire Marine Headquarters building!
The entire battlefield began to shake. Everyone fighting suddenly stopped, stumbling left and right, unable to keep their balance.
Seeing Whitebeard make his move, Rayleigh, who had been about to unleash his Conqueror's Haki, halted for a moment. But then, he suddenly leaped into the air, heading straight for the execution platform!
At the same time, Marco shifted into his full beast form, flapping his wings as he rushed toward the platform at high speed!
"Don't let them near the execution platform!"
"Fire!"
"Everyone, open fire!"
A Marine Vice Admiral saw the two approaching and immediately ordered the Marines to shoot.
But it didn't slow Rayleigh and Marco down at all. In fact, Rayleigh was moving even faster than Marco!
Just then, a golden light flashed. Sengoku, who had been sitting calmly, suddenly activated his ability.
At the same time, Garp, who had been sitting on the platform, stood up as well—his eyes locked onto Marco, who was charging toward them.
"Do it now!"
Sengoku gave the order to the executioners.
"Yes, sir!"
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku!" the two executioners responded.
Hearing this, Garp clenched his fists in pain. He felt like something was boiling inside him, something he wanted to release immediately.
"Great Buddha Palm!"
Sengoku suddenly roared, and a massive golden Buddha palm came crashing down toward Rayleigh with terrifying force!
"Dark King!!"
Rayleigh didn't back down!
He swung his sword, sending a powerful slash toward the incoming Buddha palm!
Meanwhile, on the other side, Garp leaped forward in anger, his fist coated in jet-black Haki as he aimed a punch at Marco!
"Phoenix Seal!"
Marco remained unfazed, launching a devastating shockwave toward Garp!
For a brief moment, the entire battlefield fell silent—all eyes fixed on the execution platform.
*BOOM!!!*
*BANG!!!*
Four powerful attacks clashed, sending two deafening shockwaves roaring through the sky. Invisible energy burst outward in all directions!
At the same time, the executioners' blades were just about to pierce Ace's back!
"You bastards!"
"Stop—right now!!!"
At that critical moment, Luffy let out an earth-shaking roar.
A burst of unconscious Conqueror's Haki instantly spread across all of Marineford!
The two executioners, hit by the full force of it, immediately collapsed, knocked out cold!
But at that very moment, the execution platform could no longer withstand the collision of energy from four top-tier fighters.
Under the immense shockwaves, the entire platform collapsed with a thunderous crash!
Rayleigh reacted instantly, shifting direction in midair. Amidst the falling debris, he reached out and caught Ace as they plummeted downward!
"You bastard!"
"Put him down!!"
"Shockwave!"
Furious, Sengoku immediately unleashed a powerful shockwave toward Rayleigh and Ace in the chaos!
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