Chapter 248

What met the eye was such a scene.

Above the frozen inland sea.

Marco and Jozu faced off against Aokiji and Kizaru.

Not far away, Whitebeard and Akainu were locked in fierce combat.

The lava battle shook the earth, the ice battle shattered diamonds, the gravity battle clashed with the Phoenix... the battlefield instantly became wildly chaotic, its momentum overwhelmingly grand.

On the square above the enclosing wall.

Garp and Luo En were trading brutal, flesh-to-flesh punches!

Each strike was immensely heavy, powerful enough to shatter mountains; every collision of their hardened Armament Haki-forged limbs produced a muffled thunderous boom, and the raging winds generated by the colliding, condensed terrifying pressure made it impossible for anyone to approach them.

The shockwaves from their punch clashes cracked the air into fissures, and the ground was peeled and sent flying in layers.

Navy elites and the Whitebeard Pirates clashed at the narrow fissure.

Boom! Boom!

Cannon fire roared.

The battles of others were also raging fiercely; Devil Fruit users unleashed a myriad of abilities, even massive floating stones became battlegrounds; throughout Marineford, countless roars and tremors made the island seem on the verge of overturning and sinking—this battle had reached its most intense, white-hot phase, both sides utterly bloodied and blinded by rage.

Blackbeard's crew stared at the battlefield before them, their expressions stunned and awestruck.

"This war... has escalated to this extent?"

"Captain, what should we do next?"

Bajees asked him.

Van Oka spoke up: "In my view, joining the fight now is not a wise choice."

"Wahahaha, that's right—we can only wait, then?"

Blackbeard laughed as he gazed toward Whitebeard, a glint of greed flashing in his eyes: "But... no matter what, I will obtain the Gura Gura no Mi!"

…………

Over the sea hundreds of kilometers from Marineford.

Lightning flashed, thunder roared, dark clouds filled the sky.

A colossal dragon soared through the clouds, its serpentine, massive body writhing as it headed toward Marineford.

Behind it, the Red Hair Pirates' ship chased the dragon, also heading toward Marineford.

Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, stood at the ship's bow, gazing at the colossal azure dragon in the sky—the other Emperor, Kaido—his hand resting on the hilt of his sword 'Griffin,' his expression solemn, his gaze icy, radiating overwhelming dominance.

214, Green Bull, Peach Rabbit move out

Navy Headquarters.

The sky above Marineford was thick with dark clouds, pressing down heavily.

Countless massive boulders hovered high in the air; some used them as battlegrounds for life-or-death duels.

On the square before the execution platform, Garp and Luo En were like two humanoid Tyrannosaurs, their fists—wrapped in Armament Haki and immense force—colliding with every strike.

"Kid."

Garp grinned broadly, his face alight with delight: "You can't beat me with just fists and Haki!"

As he spoke, the power in his jet-black iron fists surged violently, shattering Luo En's punch and slamming hard into Luo En's chest.

A brilliant flash lit Luo En's azure eyes, and his form vanished instantly.

Garp's punch struck empty air.

Terrifying power erupted; the air shattered like a single pane of glass, the ground sank and cracked outward in fragments.

"Dodged it?"

Garp grinned, turning his head toward a spot beside him.

"That wasn't Shave, was it? What technique is that?"

Luo En stepped out from the dust there.

He smiled at Garp: "Space teleportation."

"Space... teleportation?"

Garp's eyes flickered with surprise.

Then he grinned at Luo En: "No wonder Kizaru can't match your speed."

"Let me be clear—I won't hold back against you now."

"That's fine."

Luo En glanced at Ace on the execution platform, then at Sabo held back by Green Bull and Peach Rabbit, and smiled at him: "Grandpa Garp, you're truly strong—your Kenbunshoku Haki has reached the advanced third stage, and your Armament Haki must be nearly approaching the fourth stage, right?"

"You heard that from Lei Li, didn't you?"

Garp grinned wryly.

Luo En did not deny it; he stared straight at Garp, whose body was wrapped in invisible Ryuo Haki, and said: "Grandpa Garp, what kind of power is the fourth stage of Armament Haki?"

"The pinnacle of Armament Haki..."

Garp narrowed his eyes at him: "It's a power—immensely, immensely strong."

"Is that so..."

Luo En nodded, raising his hand toward Garp: "I wonder which is stronger—this power, or that one."

He activated his ocular power; a brilliant light flashed in his azure Rinnegan eyes.

"Shinra Tensei."

An invisible repulsive force surged toward the unprepared Garp, striking him and sending him flying, his eyes wide in shock.

"Vice Admiral Garp!"

Usopp couldn't help but cry out.

Just then, a dazzling streak of light flashed across the sky.

Huang Yuan, missing one leg, suddenly appeared in midair, both hands gripping a hundred-meter-long greatsword formed from gathered photons, and brought it down on Luo En from above.

"So you're still not dead after all… Logia users really aren't that easy to kill."

Luo En glanced up at Huang Yuan in the sky, drew his sword, and slashed out.

A blood-colored slash wreathed in black-flame Haki shot up into the sky, colliding violently with the light sword.

The shockwave from the clash of sword pressure sent a gale howling across the plaza.

Blazing streams of light spilled out in every direction, dazzling the onlookers so they could barely keep their eyes open.

"Old man…"

Sentomaru stared at the one-legged Huang Yuan in the sky, his teeth clenched in fury.

"That bastard actually…"

He glared furiously in the direction where Luo En was, waved a hand, and roared: "Pacifistas, attack the Traveler Luo En!"

Six Pacifistas, identical in appearance to Bartholomew Kuma, raised their hands toward Luo En, opened their mouths, and gathered lasers.

Empress Hancock, seeing this, narrowed her eyes.

"Don't even think about it!"

She lightly touched her lips with a finger, transformed into a giant pink heart-shaped substance, drew it back like a bow, and shot a volley of pink arrows toward Sentomaru and the Pacifistas.

"Slave Arrow!"

Even the non-living Pacifistas, once struck by those pink arrows, would instantly turn to stone.

"What are you doing? Pirate Empress!"

A Marine officer roared in rebuke.

Hancock cast him a cold glance: "Whether Marine or pirate, anyone who lays a hand on that man is this concubine's enemy!"

"Absurd!"

That Marine officer launched a furious attack at her.

Empress Hancock raised her long leg, hardened it with Armament Haki, and with a single kick shattered the blade in his hand before driving it heavily into his chest.

"Perfume Femur!"

……

"What an extraordinary battle indeed."

Luo, standing at a corner of the plaza with the long sword Kage-giri resting on his shoulder, watched the battlefield on the plaza and adjusted the hat on his head.

Having been conscripted by the Marines as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, he had already done his part by blocking the Straw Hat crew earlier; from here on, he had no reason to strike again.

Trafalgar Law stared intently at the distant figure wielding a blood-red blade and trading blows with Huang Yuan, his eyes carrying a complicated look.