Flower Sword Joins the Fight, Akainu Enraged!

"Gurararara!"

"Garp! You're here too!"

"Long time no see!"

"You and Sengoku aren't dead yet, so why would I die?"

Standing on the prow of his ship, Whitebeard looked toward Garp, who stood on the prow of the dog-headed battleship, a familiar smile on his face.

"Hahaha! I thought that Sanders guy killed you. I even rushed over, thinking I'd see you one last time. Didn't expect you'd still be alive and kicking."

Garp laughed heartily, casually digging his nose with fingers as thick as radishes. With a flick, a small unidentifiable object flew into the sea.

Akainu's face darkened.So this is our Navy hero? How embarrassing.

"Where's Sanders? Did you kill him?" Garp asked, pretending to look around for him.

Sengoku had told Garp that Sanders and Whitebeard had a massive fight, and Garp had been sent to support Akainu. But upon arriving, he didn't find Sanders or a battle between him and Whitebeard. Instead, he saw Akainu getting pummeled.

That old man Whitebeard didn't seem to hold back, either. Every move aimed to kill Akainu, who was already bloodied.

"He won and then left!" Whitebeard replied nonchalantly, not bothering to hide the fact that he had lost.

After all, Sanders wasn't someone only he couldn't beat—no one on this sea could stand up to Sanders.

"He won?!"

Garp's eyes widened in disbelief. No one understood the power of the towering man before him better than Garp did. Yet, here he was, hearing that Sanders had defeated him.

And yet…

Garp glanced at Whitebeard, who didn't look like someone who had been beaten. He was as energetic as ever, far from showing signs of defeat.

Akainu was equally incredulous.Sanders won, yet Whitebeard looks completely fine?

At this moment, Akainu stood on the sole remaining battleship from his fleet. Every other ship had been swallowed by the sea.

Whitebeard, uninterested in further explanations, grabbed his Murakumogiri and leaped into the air.

"Garp, since you're here, let's see if you've gotten rusty!"

Since Garp had shown up, Whitebeard decided it was time for an old friend to settle some scores.

Garp's expression grew serious as he too jumped into the air, his fist wrapped in Armament Haki, swinging it directly at Whitebeard. He also wanted to test how much strength Whitebeard still had.

Seeing this, Akainu prepared to join in. The grudge from being beaten earlier and the destruction of his fleet was still fresh, and now that Garp was here, it seemed like the perfect opportunity.

Though Akainu and Garp didn't always see eye to eye, they were both Marines, and their common enemy was the Whitebeard Pirates. Cooperation was only logical.

As for fighting two against one—Fairness?Who cares?

All Akainu wanted was to take down Whitebeard.

But before Akainu could make his move, Marco, in his hybrid phoenix form, blocked his way.

"Akainu, I can't let you interfere with our father's fight!" Marco said firmly.

Although Whitebeard claimed he was fine, Marco wasn't going to allow the Navy to gang up on him.

"Marco!" Akainu growled through gritted teeth.

"You're courting death! Hellhound!"

Akainu's magma-covered arm transformed into the shape of a dog's head, stretching toward Marco.

Fully aware of Akainu's immense strength, Marco readied himself. His talon-like legs, infused with Armament Haki, struck out to counter Akainu's attack.

The two of them clashed once again.

Meanwhile, the battle between Garp and Whitebeard had already begun.

After exchanging just a few blows, Garp could gauge Whitebeard's current condition.

This is Whitebeard after fighting Sanders and losing?Why doesn't it seem like he's weakened at all?

Were those two just playing house earlier?

Garp couldn't make sense of it. Facing Whitebeard, however, he didn't dare let his guard down.

On the Moby Dick, Jozu glanced at the ongoing battles—first toward Whitebeard's clash, then at Marco's struggle—and turned to ask Vista:

"Should we step in and help?"

"Akainu's incredibly strong. Marco might not be able to handle him alone."

The situation on the battlefield was clear at a glance.

Whitebeard's fight seemed evenly matched, but Marco's was going poorly. Akainu, furious from being beaten by Whitebeard, had become dangerously aggressive. Despite Marco's advantage of flight, he was still being overpowered. On land, he might already have been injured by now.

"Of course, we'll help!" Vista replied without hesitation.

"That guy Akainu even tried to gang up on the old man! Sanders came to challenge the old man for a duel of strength, but the Navy doesn't play by the same rules."

The Whitebeard Pirates prided themselves on their reputation on the seas and wouldn't resort to ganging up on their enemies unless absolutely necessary.

But Akainu was different—he was a Marine. Even if they all fought him at once, no one would criticize them. It was common knowledge: Marines fighting pirates, pirates fighting pirates—nobody cares about fairness.

Without waiting for further discussion, Vista drew his twin rapiers from his waist and leaped into the air.

"Marco!" Vista called out, giving his comrade a heads-up as he unleashed a flurry of strikes midair.

"Rose Whirlwind!"

A barrage of crimson rose petals materialized, swirling toward Akainu. Taking advantage of the distraction, Marco flapped his wings and quickly distanced himself.

Hovering in midair using Moonwalk, Akainu raised his magma-infused arm to shield himself. The petals collided with the magma, sending molten globs raining down into the sea below. Hissing steam and white smoke rose where the magma met the water.

"Whitebeard Pirates' 5th Division Captain, Vista the Flower Sword!" Akainu growled, a cigar clenched between his teeth. His expression was dark and full of disdain.

"Are you here to die too?"

"I'm flattered that a Marine admiral knows my name," Vista retorted with a smirk. The smirk quickly disappeared as he steadied his swords in front of him.

"Maybe it's you who's looking to die, Admiral Sakazuki! Did you think the Whitebeard Pirates wouldn't stand together?"

Marco rejoined Vista, landing beside him in midair. With a powerful kick, Marco propelled Vista forward like an arrow fired from a bow.

"Rose Bloom!"

Vista spun rapidly as he hurtled toward Akainu, his twin swords cloaked in blackened Armament Haki. The sharp blades gleamed ominously as they neared their target.

Akainu sneered, magma churning around his body.

"Ganging up on me? Hmph! Bring it on! Great Eruption!"

A colossal fist of magma erupted like a volcanic blast, surging toward Vista.

"Blossoming Rose!"

Undeterred, Vista twisted his body mid-flight, spinning even faster. A tightly wound bud of rose petals unfurled as he rotated, creating a cyclone of petals and sword energy. Breaking through the magma fist, Vista charged straight at Akainu.

In an instant, Vista's blade slashed through Akainu's body, slicing him cleanly in half.

"An Admiral has been killed!"

"Nice one, Captain Vista! That's our man!"

The crew members aboard the Moby Dick erupted into cheers, believing Vista had struck down one of the Navy's top officers.

"Shut up! Admirals don't go down that easily," one of the division commanders reprimanded, exasperated by their crew's naivety.

"But Captain Vista used Armament Haki, didn't he? Doesn't that work against Logia users?" one of the younger crew members asked, still confused.

"He used Observation Haki to preemptively elementalize his body and avoid the hit," the commander explained with a sigh.

Sure enough, high above, Akainu's molten form reassembled, his face twisted with rage.

"Damn pirates! You're asking for death! Meteor Volcano!"

Countless magma fists erupted from Akainu's body, raining down toward the battlefield like a fiery inferno.

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T/N:

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