Chapter 89
The gusts blew violently. The split-open sky revealed a bright sun, one that caused some to cover their eyes from the intensity.
BOOM! BOOM! One by one, the chunks of ice crashed onto various parts of Marineford. Shattering into pieces upon the collision, they bounced everywhere in a dangerous manner. Kuzan, standing in seriousness, held his hand out, instantly generating a large dome of ice from thin air—one in which the shards attached themselves upon contact.
Upon high in the air, the gigantic Moby Dick was falling right onto the bay of Marineford. Numerous marines and other combatants expressed nervousness as they locked their attention on it. Then, one among them shouted,
"T-There's more to them!!!"
Just as he said, along with multiple splashes and wild waves in the sea, numerous ships revealed themselves from the depth of the water.
"Lalalaaaaa~"
"Zazazazaza!!!"
"Where's my booze?!! I need my booze to fight!!!"
Bohemian Knight pirates. Thunder Lord pirates. Decalvan Brothers, Maelstrom Spider pirates, and more—ones that showed themselves in front of Marines and Government-associated warriors were the infamous pirates of the New World.
SPLASH!
And as Moby Dick landed right onto the bay, the water erupted up high. Sitting in front of all those ships, everyone got to understand, of what if means to offend the Whitebeard pirates.
Right under the sun, the clash seemed to have ended as Newgate's naginata separated from Garp's fist and Sengoku's palm. His eyes, filled with hard-earned wisdom, swept through the supposed 'Ice Witch' on the execution stand.
Tap. While Garp and Sengoku landed back on the execution stand, causing the wooden platform to wobble slightly, Newgate's face revealed that of amusement. As he did so, he was free-falling from the sky, and considering how huge he was in terms of size, of how his height reached over 6m, his descending form, to those below, seemed like a human meteorite.
BOOM!
Accelerating beyond imagination, Newgate landed on the plaza in a split second. The nearby ground broke into numerous pieces before blasting upward. The nearby individuals fell to their butts, being unable to maintain their balance on top of the quaking plain.
In the middle of this chaos, Newgate's eyes briefly landed on the white-haired woman—the true Whitey Bay. She, hiding her delight as much as she could, slowly began to sneak her way around.
And just at that moment, Kuzan appeared right in front of Newgate, expanding a chilly air around him and condensing air moisture into lethal lances of ice.
"Ice Block: Partisan!!"
Newgate simply grinned as the lances began flying right toward him. Standing with his naginata held upright, he didn't take any action, before—
"Oi!!"
BOOM!
With a swoosh, one blonde man with phoenix-like flame wings was suddenly floating in front of Newgate. The 1st division commander of the Whitebeard pirates, as well as one of those who are speculated to be the 2nd-in-command of Whitebeard pirates. Glaring at Kuzan, this man smirked,
"Haven't you played chess before? You don't attack the king right from the start!"
Kuzan, narrowing his eyes with a smile of his own, remarked, "...Marco the 'Phoenix.'"
The massive volume of blue flame suddenly swirled out of said Marco. Swirling as a whirlpool does, his technique successfully defended against the ice lances of Kuzan. And while all this was happening, Newgate marched forth, ignoring all those whom he considered as 'peasants.'
Crack. Crack. Each of his steps amplified the quake of the Marineford—once again reminding everyone why he was hailed as one of the three 'Catastrophes.' There was no fight, but the jaw-opening scenery of people abruptly fainting and falling with a thud.
From afar, Robin, watching Newgate's march, then realized that she was holding her breath. Her entire body, having grown goosebumps, was sweating profusely. Her face was pale, and her fingers felt cold. Wondering how she managed to maintain her consciousness, she turned and saw, Zephyr standing in front of all trainees with his arms crossed.
"...Heh, that Whitebeard," But even Zephyr seemed to be facing some extent of difficulty, as he wiped sweat on his forehead, "He hasn't changed... not by a single bit."
Crack.
"Let's go, boysss!!!"
"Kyakyakya!! Kill them all!!!"
As pirates swarmed out of their ships with their blades ready to slay, the war has officially come to a start.
CLANG CLANG CLANG!
And from afar, one CP0 agent spoke into his mini Den Den Mushi,
"Whitebeard has shown himself."
__________
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"...So it has begun," Said one old-aged man in a black suit—one among the Five Elders.
Currently in the renowned Pangaea Castle of the holy land Mariejois, the Five Elders were gathered in the room full of Den Den Mushis, paying attention to various on-going reports.
"How's the situation with two Warlords, 'Hawk-Eye' and 'Blackbeard?'"
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"What of the Impel Down then?"
<
One of the Five Elders, dressed up in white garments and characterized by round glasses, bald hair, and a sheathed katana nearby him, stated in a stern manner,
"You heard that."
<<...Yes, my lord.>>
__________
"...Yes, my lord."
Up high in the Impel Down, one mysterious man with the clown's mask, white hat, white suit, and white cloak around his shoulders—'Pierro' of the CP0, was found standing on one hot-balloon-like transport. With his hand raised up, he was currently speaking into his mini Den Den Mushi.
"Then, I shall start the operation."
Gazing down, Pierro watched as the forms of guards of the Impel Down suddenly became stiff, before they began walking away in a robotic manner. Another CP0 agent behind him then said,
"All clear."
Without any hesitation, Pierro jumped. Falling straight down from the sky, it seemed as if the man was going to crash right onto the ground—before he held his hand out at it.
"Open."
Surprisingly, a large-sized zipper was formed right on top of the ground, and as if it was a jacket, unzipped open—revealing the floor right underneath.
And that wasn't the end. The floor underneath, then underneath of that—as if generating a tunnel, the zippers subsequently appeared on the floor beneath and opened wide—all the way to the 6th Level of the Impel Down, the Eternal Hell.
Swoosh! As Pierro dropped through the holes, the zippers above him closed immediately. It was one swift and efficient entry into the world's worst prison, one that would've caused the staff of the said facility to exhibit disbelief.
Tap.
And as the man landed lightly on the bottom-most floor, and the zipper on the ceiling zipped close, he was standing right in the middle. Upright and confident, he looked around at numerous cells that contained noteworthy pirates.
And at one shadowy area, his eyes narrowed as they sighted one familiar-faced individual, fully cuffed on all four limbs.
Splash. Splash. With casual yet refined steps, Pierro began walking at his destination. As he walked, the target's features: long and messy white hair reaching all the way to shoulder, hazel-coloured eyes, and muscular feature, all of them became apparent.
"So we meet again, Smoker."
Pierro stated impassively,
"Have you been enjoying your stay in our number one hotel?"
"...Hah,"
Smoker, ignoring Pierro's words, chuckled,
"What was that just now? Zipper? As in, one that's the part of a jacket?"
Pierro stood still, unbothered by Smoker's words.
"BWAHAHAHA!!!" Smoker then laughed, being unable to hold it in upon getting to know the truth, "The so-called 'Pierro' of CP0, a mere jester for the Celestial Dragons, turns out to be the Former Admiral of Marine!"
In one organization, he was sitting at the apex. But in another, he was nothing but a clown, a lowly being who existed only to give laughter out of the nobles. Smoker laughed, laughed so much that the tears came out of his eyes. However, it wasn't one filled with amusement only. No, rather than amusement, he found the rage filling up in his heart.
"...Why, I'm glad that you found it funny." Pierro, or Blaise, bowed elegantly, "But you must know also, of what it means to learn my identity behind the mask of a clown."
Then, Blaise snapped his fingers. Onto the metal bars of various cells, multiple zippers were formed before opening up by themselves. Just like that, many holes were generated in cells housing prisoners.
"H-Hey!" Then, one criminal exclaimed in confusion, as the chains locking him down were cut by the same zippers, and his body suddenly stood up on its own, "W-what's going on?!!"
"Gahh!! Why is my body moving on its own?!!"
"U-ughh, who do you think I am?!! I am the great—"
One by one, the prisoners moved out of their cells stiffly. With red faces, they tried their best to resist but to no avail. Their body moved regardless of their will, as if they were being hijacked and controlled.
Blaise, staring at Smoker through his mask, stood with his hands held together on his back. The prisoners, one by one, slowly walked toward Smoker's cell, one that was also ripped open by Blaise's ability.
"...Jacket, huh." Smoker muttered keenly, "You aren't controlling their bodies, but rather, the garments on them."
Blaise's eyes flashed coldly, "Does it matter if you know or not? Deadman speaks no words... I believe that this is the phrase that fits right in your case."
"Bwahahaha!" Smoker laughed, exhibiting no fear.
"...It seems that even your death is a form of entertainment for you."
Raising his eyebrow, Blaise briefly wondered if Smoker has some hidden scheme. But in the end, he deduced that such would be impossible, for the Cipher Pol agents had been watching him for days, ensuring that he came in contact with no one.
"Now, let's see." Blaise, rubbing his chin, hummed, "The cause of your death shall be... being pummelled by the prisoners who were accidentally freed by a novice staff."
Multiple prisoners, right in front of Smoker now, raised their fists up.
"You've been quite a trouble for us, but it's all over now. Farewell, 'White Snake'—"
"Are you filming, Gion?"
Blaise stopped as Smoker suddenly spoke up.
'Gion.' That name, Blaise remembered hearing some time ago in Marineford's restaurant. With an impending chill down his spine, he turned his head to where Smoker was staring at—the exact same place that Whitey Bay used to be cuffed until three days ago.
"Yes," And the feminine voice replied with her words trembling in anger, "Yes, everything's been filmed well."
One woman, whose hair was currently dyed purple, was holding onto a Visual Den Den Mushi named 'Cameko.' Brought in two days ago as part of the group of criminals that included the Cipher Pol agents, She was supposed to be Rumblebass the 'Manhunter,' one whom Vice Admiral Kuzan managed to catch—
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—all of a sudden, his mini Den Den Mushi cried. With a frown behind the mask, Blaise picked it up,
<
BOOM!
Just then, the prisoners under Blaise's control were suddenly blasted back, and from beyond, Smoker slowly stood up, easily cracking open the cuffs with his hands.
"..." Blaise stood still for few moments, processing the current situation. Then, still in a daze, he ended the call.
"..."
Slowly reaching for his mask, he came to laugh—in a silent manner. After a long silence, he finally said,
"...Amazing."
Blaise clapped.
"You've outplayed me, 'White Snake.' Entrapping me in this 'Snake Pit' of yours... I'm proud of you as a fellow snake."
But then, raising his arms up in a questioning manner, Blaise stated,
"But does this change anything? Regardless, you're a criminal—one who not only broke the laws set by the World Government, but also designed this pompous plan of revealing the ins of the Impel Down.
In the end, all that you succeeded in doing so is to publicize your execution."
"...Why, you seem confident."
Smoker grinned as he walked out of the cell,
"In the middle of the war, CP0 agent—one called 'Chief' by another—reveals himself in the depth of Impel Down to 'secretly' kill one former marine... hah, I won't be the judge."
Turning to the Den Den Mushi held by Gion, Smoker stated,
"Decide by yourselves, of who's in the right."
__________
"S-Smoker...?"
In the crowded Sabaody Archipelago, Koala, standing among the strangers, whispered with her eyes widened. The other too, momentarily forgetting that the horrifying wars were ongoing in Marineford and G-1, gazed at the screen in front of them with vivid confusion.
Currently, the whole world was witnessing—the clash of two snakes in the deepest hell of the world.