Chapter 346: ICISEI Episode 332

Episode 332: At This Very Moment... Jashin-chan...

『 Kizaru looked down at Luffy, who was sprawled on the ground, a mocking smile on his face.

"Is this all you’ve got? An Ability User of a Devil Fruit, yet beaten to such a pathetic state~" Kizaru spoke in a sarcastic tone. "Having courage alone isn’t enough~"

Luffy’s breathing was faint, and his eyes were so heavy they were almost completely closed.

He knew Kizaru was right beside him and desperately wanted to escape, but his body wouldn’t budge at all.

Even with Luffy’s recovery speed, at this very moment, he had no choice but to stop and rest!

Exerting a massive amount of effort just to open his eyes, he could just barely make out the figures of Ace and Garp on the execution platform.

By the time he managed to open his eyes a second time, he saw the pirates locked in fierce combat.

Using the absolute last ounce of strength in his body, Luffy attempted to stand up!

"Straw Hat Luffy. Without strength, mere effort and conviction won’t achieve your goals. Struggling like this is just futile~" Seeing Luffy still trying to get up, Kizaru’s face filled with displeasure. Raising his voice, he shouted, "Why don’t you just disappear completely!"

Immediately, a light flared at the tip of Kizaru’s toe. If this strike hit, Luffy would have absolutely no chance of survival.

Kizaru kicked out, and in that dazzling beam of light, Luffy’s body was sent flying like a bullet! 』

『 .....』

?Dimensional livestream, Chat Room?

[ Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece): "Wow, that’s flying so fast." ]

[ Ronoroa Zoro (One Piece): "You idiot, you’re the one being kicked flying right now!" ]

[ Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece): "Well, well, what does it matter? Anyway, that’s the future me. What does it have to do with the current me?" ]

[ Paimon (Genshin Impact): "Although it’s weird, it actually makes a lot of sense." ]

[ Whitebeard (One Piece): "Gurararara, very good, brat." ]

[ .....]

『 However, along the path of Luffy’s flight, there was another giant-like existence—Whitebeard!

Whitebeard reached out, his hand making a catching motion, easily catching Luffy with just one hand.

Luffy’s small, thin body looked incredibly pitiful in front of his massive frame.

Whitebeard lifted him up. Seeing the semi-conscious Luffy still calling out Ace’s name, and realizing he didn’t have any severe injuries that would be immediately life-threatening, Whitebeard’s expression didn’t change in the slightest!

"Hey, hey, I didn’t expect you to have gone senile too, Whitebeard, actually letting such a reckless brat act as the vanguard~"

Luffy gradually regained consciousness and coughed up a mouthful of blood. Whitebeard looked at him again. Although his expression remained unchanged, the speed with which he shifted his attention back to Luffy fully demonstrated his concern for the boy.

Kizaru raised his hand once more, light shining from his fingertips.

Seeing Kizaru making a move on Whitebeard, the pirates immediately blocked the path in front of Whitebeard, shouting loudly, "Don’t even think about hurting Pops unless you step over our corpses!"

"My, how touching~"

Although Kizaru spoke words of praise, the energy between his fingers grew larger and larger, forming several pillars of light around him. Just as they were about to fire, a loud shout suddenly echoed from the sky: "Found him! Straw Hat is over here!"

Interrupted!

The energy at Kizaru’s fingertips vanished instantly. He looked up at the massive head, completely stunned.

He muttered in a low voice, "Now that is terrifying~"

Ivankov’s massive head appeared on the city wall. His body seemed to have enlarged by more than tenfold, with his head occupying two-thirds of his entire body.

Leaning over the wall, this scene looked like a reenactment of the terrifying era of being ruled by giants! 』

『 .....』

?Dimensional livestream, Chat Room?

[ Chika Fujiwara (Love Is War): "So ugly, not cute at all." ]

[ Levi Ackerman (Attack on Titan): This appearance is somewhat disgusting. ]

[ Hange Zoe (Attack on Titan): "Hehehe, looks interesting." ]

[ Mikasa Ackerman (Attack on Titan): "..." ]

[ .....]

『 "Over there, Jinbe!"

Jinbe stood beside Ivankov. Even with his large build, he looked utterly insignificant next to Ivankov.

The pirates turned their heads in surprise.

"It’s Ivankov of the Revolutionary Army!"

"How did his head get so big?"

"What a freak!"

"What on earth happened?"

Seeing Luffy’s state, Jinbe was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, quickly leaping down from the wall.

Ivankov shouted loudly, "Straw Hat boy, are you alright?"

Hearing their voices, Luffy answered weakly, "Iva-san, Jinbe!"

Hearing Luffy’s voice, Ivankov immediately felt much more at ease.

However, because he relaxed too quickly, he lost his balance and fell heavily onto the plaza, pinning several pirates underneath him.

He shouted, "Sorry, my head is too big, hard to keep my balance!"

Looking at Ivankov, Whitebeard muttered, "What a noisy bunch of people."

Seeing the two of them, Luffy realized he was being held in Whitebeard’s hand. Struggling, he shouted, "Old man, put me down!"

"Hurry up and let me down, I have to go save Ace!"

Whitebeard said coldly, "He has already done well enough. Treat his wounds first!"

With that, Whitebeard threw Luffy to the surrounding pirates.

Although someone caught Luffy, because he still wanted to rush forward and fight, it took four or five people working together to hold him down.

"Let go of me! I have to save Ace!"

"Let go, I don’t need treatment!"

"Ace is my brother! My only family in this world! I must... I must..."

With that, Luffy gave a hard struggle, breaking free from everyone’s grip.

Under everyone’s gaze, he dragged his heavily injured body forward.

This scene was quite similar to Oars’ situation earlier!

Only, after taking just a few steps, Luffy collapsed, losing consciousness.

Jinbe and several pirates immediately rushed to Luffy’s side.

"Luffy-kun!"

"This is bad."

Jinbe said anxiously, "Doctor, I am terribly sorry, but please, save his life no matter what!"

Looking at the unconscious Luffy with disappointment, Whitebeard said disdainfully, "A brat who only knows how to talk big, childish, and simple-minded..."

Then he raised his head, looking at the anxious Ace.

His gaze instantly turned warm.

"But I just happen to like this kind of reckless brat!"

Whitebeard stood in front of a massive crowd of Marines, his body exuding the aura of a wild beast. He tightly gripped Murakumogiri, his eyes as sharp as knives.

He roared loudly, "Anyone who doesn’t value their life, come at me!"

Around him, the Marines not only didn’t dare to rush forward, but instead retreated step by step. One had to know, this was the legendary Whitebeard. Who would dare to face him head-on!

"It’s over! Whitebeard is going to attack us!"

"What do we do now?"

"Can we even go back alive? The opponent is Whitebeard!"

The Marines were trembling, constantly backing away.

No one could truly understand how intense the fear in these people’s hearts was!

Whitebeard raised his long blade, once again gathering that energy onto the blade.

Then, he swung violently. This strike was enough to sweep away all the Marines in front of him, and might even overturn the execution platform along with them!

But at the exact moment Whitebeard swung his blade, a red leg suddenly appeared, blocking his massive blade.

Who was this?

It was impossible to tell this person’s true identity from just a foot, but at a time like this, there were only a handful of people who could stand against Whitebeard.

Next scene—

A massive explosion suddenly occurred in the center of the plaza, kicking up a high cloud of dust that rose dozens of meters high.

Subsequently, a terrifying aura spread out in all directions from the place where the two clashed. In that rapidly swirling air, Akainu’s eyes were fierce as he said in a low voice, "You can’t keep running rampant like this. This island can’t withstand such power!"

He had actually stopped the massive blade in Whitebeard’s hand with a single foot!

Akainu’s strength far exceeded everyone’s expectations!

Hearing his words, Whitebeard smiled disdainfully and said, "Then you’d better guard it carefully. I won’t be holding back!"

In front of the powerful auras of these two, everyone around them seemed extremely insignificant.

Jinbe’s eyes widened. He turned his head and said, "I’ll leave Luffy to you guys!"

The members of the Whitebeard Pirates all looked at Jinbe, their faces filled with surprise.

Because Jinbe’s words seemed to carry a sense of entrusting his final wishes!

Although Jinbe was not an official member of the Whitebeard Pirates, he had a very good relationship with everyone.

Jinbe lived to uphold justice, and Whitebeard also protected the peace of the islands under his banner. Although they were all pirates, they absolutely did not do evil deeds. This point allowed both sides to reach a consensus in their beliefs, which was why Jinbe also held very high prestige within this crew.

The doctor on the ship asked anxiously, "Jinbe, what are you going to do?"

Staring at the terrifying battle in front of him and the large number of Marines behind, Jinbe had already made his decision. He replied, "I have long since put aside thoughts of life and death. How can I stay out of a battle like this!"

On the other side—

After a brief confrontation between Whitebeard and Akainu, Akainu realized he couldn’t easily suppress Whitebeard, so he threw a punch, smashing it toward his opponent.

This was no ordinary fist. It constantly enlarged as it flew toward Whitebeard.

By the time this red fist made of magma arrived, its diameter was nearly two meters, its surface emitting intense heat, with flames boosting it from behind, making the power of this strike even more formidable.

Whitebeard was not to be outdone, throwing a punch of his own.

His movement was simple and direct. What seemed like a light punch made the air in front of him look like cracked glass, a powerful air current rushing forward. Whitebeard’s attack collided with Akainu’s massive fist, instantly producing a colossal shockwave.

Red energy and blue-white energy formed a wall between the two. The two sides were evenly matched, with the blue gaining the upper hand one moment, and the red flaring up the next.

Whether they were Marines or pirates, everyone was stunned by a battle of this level.

This clash made people realize that even though they were all humans, the gap between them was actually this immense!

"Get away, quick!"

"Careful not to get caught in it!"

"This kind of attack power is too terrifying!"

"Is this Admiral Akainu? No wonder they say he is the strongest, able to match Whitebeard on equal terms all by himself!"

"Is this even a fight between humans?"

Everyone marveled while retreating. If they were accidentally caught in the aftermath of this attack, they probably wouldn’t even have bones left!

The two were still locked in a stalemate, the rampaging energy in the surrounding air causing bursts of explosions, turning half the plaza into a danger zone!

Not only were Whitebeard and Akainu clashing, but the battle between the pirates and the Marines was also raging fiercely!

The Marines launched a fierce assault on the Okama Pirates, wave after wave, trying to wipe them out.

The pirates also fought back with their lives on the line, each one filled with murderous intent.

Hawkeye Mihawk stood quietly in the plaza. Three pirates, completely disregarding who was in front of them, rushed straight up to slash at him...

This kind of courage, born of overestimating their own abilities, actually made Mihawk pause.

He raised his black blade, easily blocking these attacks. With just a little force, he knocked the pirates to the ground, then swung his sword, pressing directly toward the three.

They were instantly blown away, crashing heavily onto the ground!

However, these three did not lose their lives. Mihawk had deliberately held back.

Slowly, the three struggled to climb back up. Although heavily injured, their resolve was not shaken.

Even though two of them could no longer lift their weapons, they still said firmly, "We must clear the path for Pops. Unless we die, no one can stop us!"

Hearing this, Hawkeye’s sharp eyes narrowed slightly as he muttered, "These people can be considered swordsmen. It’s just a pity they are too weak. On the battlefield, they are merely pitiful cannon fodder."

Seeing that they could barely even stand, Mihawk did not strike again.

On the other side of the screen—

A red skirt slithered through the crowd like a gliding snake, occasionally revealing long, slender legs. White and red flashed alternately, extremely alluring.

However, whether they were Marines or pirates, everyone around was sent flying.

Screams echoed everywhere!

They were considered lucky. Many people turned to stone the moment they touched the Pirate Empress, unable to move at all.

Having cleared the surrounding grunts, the Pirate Empress looked at Ace in the distance and shouted loudly, "Don’t plan on making way? I must get to Luffy. No matter who it is, no one can block my path!"

"Oh no!"

"Boa Hancock has started attacking indiscriminately again! Is she our ally or on Whitebeard’s side?!"

"What should we do about this unstable factor?"

The Pirate Empress lightly kissed her fingertip, and immediately, a massive heart pattern appeared in the air.

Everyone had seen this scene before. As long as they were struck by those small heart arrows, they would instantly turn to stone. It was extremely dangerous!

In order to expand her attack range, the Pirate Empress actually had Salome lift her up, launching attacks on the crowd below from a high vantage point.

In the blink of an eye, over a hundred people were turned into statues! 』

『 .....』

?Dimensional livestream, Chat Room?

[ Hancock (One Piece): "Fufufu, as expected of me." ]

[ Gotoh Hitori (Bocchi the Rock): "So, so scary." ]

[ Jashin-chan (Dropkick on My Devil): "What’s so interesting about this? It’s not even as good as my Medusa." ]

[ Medusa (Dropkick on My Devil): "You shouldn’t say that, Jashin-chan." ]

[ Jashin-chan (Dropkick on My Devil): "Tch..." ]

[ Yurine Hanazono (Dropkick on My Devil): "..." ]

[ .....]

『 Countless black bats flew in the sky. Gecko Moria had become exceptionally massive. In a battlefield like this, he felt extremely excited. To him, this was simply a paradise!

"More and more corpses!"

"Shadows! Puppets! Zombies!"

"My power is growing stronger and stronger!"

Gecko Moria appeared exceptionally thrilled, his smile stretching almost to his ears!

Looking at the chaos in front of him, Ace’s eyes were filled with pain.

Every time a pirate lost their life because of him, his heart felt like it was being pierced by knives.

If he hadn’t been captured in the first place, none of this would have happened!

The scene before him made it impossible for Ace to remain calm anymore. Only now did he realize how much weight he carried.

With so many people risking everything for him, he should also stand up for them. He couldn’t let tragedy happen again!

Garp’s expression was solemn, his lips trembling slightly.

He wanted to help, but at this moment, he was caught in a dilemma!

If he chose to support Ace and Luffy, with his current position, he could completely rescue Ace, ensure the battle ended, and guarantee the safe retreat of the Whitebeard Pirates.

But if he did that, he would never be able to face the word ’Justice’ again!

He let out a sigh, feeling utterly helpless!

On the battlefield below—

Kizaru was constantly launching attacks, moving casually as if taking a stroll in a courtyard.

With just a light flick of his finger, a massive explosion would occur around him. He was practically a mobile firing point!

Just as Kizaru was fighting with gusto, an iron ball suddenly passed through his body. However, in an instant, his figure turned into sparkling light, gradually disappearing from view.

He roared loudly, "No one is going to stop Pops!"

Kizaru suddenly materialized slowly from another spot. Turning his head to stare at him, he said, "Do you think Whitebeard can win if I don’t interfere? Akainu is not easy to deal with. Of course, this old man isn’t someone to be trifled with either!"

Faced with Kizaru’s cold aura, this pirate took a few steps back in fear, but still glared, preparing to take on Kizaru alone!

The Marines had a massive advantage in numbers. In comparison, Whitebeard’s side only had a few thousand people. The gap in strength between the two sides was very large.

During the battle, the pirates gradually fell into a disadvantage. At this moment, more pirates who hadn’t managed to board the ships in time arrived at the plaza, entering the Marine ranks as a fresh, almost intact force.

Looking at the chaotic battle in front of him, Sentomaru gritted his teeth and cursed, "Damn it, to think so many pirates managed to rush in. If this keeps up, Uncle is really going to be furious!"

Facing the three Pacifistas behind him, he ordered, "We have now entered a chaotic melee phase. Accidental friendly fire is unavoidable. Try your best to avoid hitting our own people while you attack!"

Just as his voice fell, the three Pacifistas behind him gathered energy spheres in their mouths, similar to Kizaru’s, and subsequently fired them downward. 』

『 .....』