Chapter 12: Are All the Members of This Guild Monsters?

It wasn't just Thatch who reacted.

With such a commotion, nearly all the captains of the Whitebeard fleet aboard the Moby Dick had awakened.

"Dad! What exactly is going on?!" A streak of flames blazed as Ace, wreathed in fire, rushed into Thatch's room with an urgent voice.

"Blackbeard Teach is planning to assassinate Thatch, the Fourth Division Commander, while he's drunk, steal the Devil Fruit Thatch obtained, and defect from the Whitebeard Pirates."

Whitebeard, expressionless, said word by word: "I gave Teach a chance! But he still betrayed my trust. Therefore, Teach is no longer my son!"

Gripping his naginata tightly, black Armament Haki gradually covered his body. His Observation Haki spread outward, and the instant Blackbeard was sent flying, Whitebeard locked onto him with unrelenting precision.

Whitebeard, who already knew the events preceding the Summit War, held no contempt for Teach. This man was cunning as a fox. Upon realizing his exposure, Blackbeard’s only thought was to seize every opportunity to escape.

Whitebeard even clearly understood that the reason Blackbeard had been so easily knocked back by a single punch was likely because he intended to use that very force to aid his escape.

"You think you can run, Teach?"

With a low roar, Whitebeard stomped down with both feet, his body sheathed in Armament Haki, and shot straight out from the Moby Dick.

"Teach... planning to assassinate Fourth Division Commander Thatch? That's impossible..."

Ace stood dazed, staring at Whitebeard's retreating back, deeply shaken. Teach had been part of Ace's own Second Division and had a good relationship with him. As for Thatch, he too was close friends with Ace.

In fact, Ace knew well that Thatch and Teach also shared a strong bond. Yet now, Teach intended to kill Thatch for a single Devil Fruit and betray the Whitebeard Pirates. This left Ace not only stunned but also ignited a flicker of anger within.

Because Teach’s actions completely trampled upon the rules of the Whitebeard Pirates and severed the bonds of friendship among its members.

"Teach," Ace practically spat the name through clenched teeth.

Thatch sat silently. After hearing Whitebeard’s words, he roughly understood what had happened. He turned slowly to look at the strange-shaped Devil Fruit behind him, his expression growing incredibly complex. His body trembled slightly.

"...Teach... why would you do this? If you wanted this Devil Fruit, you could have just told me! Do you really think I'd refuse to give it to you?"

Inside the guild livestream.

Everyone witnessed Whitebeard’s assault—truly oppressive. Each slash split the sea apart; each punch, even with just a sliver of force, shattered clouds in the sky.

His Tremor-Tremor Fruit activated at full power, filling the air with dense cracks.

Tony Not the Richest: "Can't handle it, can't handle it... Too damn powerful! One punch equals a nuclear explosion. Damn it, are all the big shots in the One Piece world this terrifying?"

Fallen Angel Twelve-Winged Black Cat: "...Whitebeard is known as the man who can destroy the world! Did you think 'destroying the world' was just an empty phrase? And this is only the power he can exert in his old age. If Whitebeard were in his prime, his strength would undoubtedly be even greater."

My Little Sister Is Super Unlovable: "From today onward... we're all Whitebeard stans!"

Symbol of Peace: "...This old man named Whitebeard is truly frighteningly strong! Even at my peak, I wouldn’t have absolute confidence facing him."

Shashiko: "..."

The usually sharp-tongued Shiga no Kana, suddenly felt uneasy inside. Holy crap, isn't this level of attack and destruction excessive? One punch equals one nuke?

What kind of guild had she actually joined? Were the people here with such destructive power even still human?

Recalling her past snarky remarks toward various powerful figures in the guild, Shiga no Kana suddenly realized how lucky she was to still be alive.

My Little Sister Is Super Unlovable: "Wait, wait a second. @Symbol of Peace... You're telling me that kind of one-punch-one-nuke destructive power is something you could achieve at your peak? Are you also a monster of that level? Does this guild have way too many monsters?"

Symbol of Peace: "..."

Symbol of Peace: "I'm strong, yes. But there's no need to call me a monster. I'm probably still within the realm of humanity."

Old Man Hou Jue: "Is such destructive power really that hard to achieve? Some of my Authorities can reach similar levels! Though I lack the power to destroy the world, obliterating a top-tier technological superpower in the real world would be no issue."

Daoist Priest Zhang Sanfeng: "Truly divine might, akin to immortals. Aside from aging and inability to attain immortality, there's little difference between him and a celestial being."

Su Xiao: "While you're all focused on Whitebeard's power, I'm focused on the fact that Whitebeard hasn't killed Blackbeard yet!"

Fallen Angel Twelve-Winged Black Cat: "..."

Tony Not the Richest: "..."

Old Man Hou Jue: "..."

Daoist Priest Zhang Sanfeng: "..."

Thanks to Su Han pointing it out, everyone finally shifted their attention to Blackbeard, who was currently clashing head-on with Whitebeard.

After being punched away by Whitebeard, Blackbeard’s first instinct was indeed to use that devastating strike to escape. Seeing Whitebeard’s furious expression, he knew his plan was completely exposed, leaving him no room for侥幸.

If discovered by ordinary crew members within the Whitebeard Pirates, Blackbeard might still have managed to deceive them—after all, he had maintained decent relationships across the crew.

He figured that if it were just regular crewmen, division commanders, or even Father Whitebeard, there’d still be some chance they’d believe him.

But being caught directly by Whitebeard himself? No point explaining. Survival came first.

"Tich, you really disappoint me!"

Whitebeard's Armament Haki coated his naginata, his voice cold and grim.

Normally, Whitebeard's overwhelming Haki and killing intent were directed outward—to protect his sons. Thus, Tich was now experiencing for the first time that awe-inspiring, terrifying power of Whitebeard.

It was a destructive force.

"Damn it! Just one step away! If only I had obtained the Dark-Dark Fruit's power now, even if Whitebeard found out, it would merely be a flaw in the plan—escaping would still be possible..."

Blackbeard was utterly desperate now.

He hadn't seized the Dark-Dark Fruit, and had completely broken ties with Whitebeard.

Blackbeard clenched his teeth tightly. After a long silence, he burst into laughter: "Father Whitebeard! I've always had one question—could there be some misunderstanding? Maybe I was just drinking with Captain Thatch earlier, nothing more."

Whitebeard sneered, "Then the Dark-Dark Fruit was also just an accident, right?"

Blackbeard fell completely silent. The moment Whitebeard mentioned the Dark-Dark Fruit, he realized clearly that his entire plan had collapsed.

Now, only one doubt remained in his mind: how had Whitebeard known his target was the Dark-Dark Fruit?

"It makes no sense. Before this, I'd hidden myself perfectly. Within the entire Whitebeard Pirates, no one knew my true strength or my real goal. And I'd gotten along well with all the crew members..."

"Even though I once clashed with Red-Haired before joining the Whitebeard Pirates, someone like him... as long as I behaved myself within the crew, he wouldn't go report to Father. Besides, he shouldn't have known my goal was the Dark-Dark Fruit either."

Blackbeard's confusion might never be resolved, because Whitebeard had no intention of explaining anything to him.

Whitebeard tightened his grip on the naginata, covering the entire blade with Armament Haki.

"Boom!"

Whitebeard clenched his fist and suddenly struck both sides of the sea. The ocean trembled, raising towering waves that sealed off every escape route for Blackbeard.

Finally, Whitebeard slashed down with his blade.

"Damn it aaaahhh!"

Blackbeard narrowed his eyes, a flash of ferocity appearing in his narrow gaze.

Knowing he was cornered, he roared, crossing his arms above his head. Black Armament Haki covered his arms; despite his bulky frame, his reaction speed was astonishingly fast as he charged upward.

The sea cracked apart, waves surging skyward.

A scream tore from Blackbeard's throat. Under that terrifying slash, his Armament Haki couldn't withstand—the blood gushed wildly from his arms.

Moreover, under the immense pressure of the descending naginata, his entire body was flattened, driven straight into the deep seabed by that monstrous strike.

The shockwave from Whitebeard's terrifying slash spread outward, splitting the entire sea in two, revealing the damp seabed beneath.

And the lingering power imbued with the Tremor-Tremor Fruit's force continued onward, shattering the seafloor and creating a colossal underwater canyon.

One slash split the sea! One slash cracked the earth!

Whitebeard withdrew his naginata, breathing slightly harder, a rare look of fatigue flickering across his face.

Partly because those two furious slashes had consumed all his strength—he was old after all, so he felt a bit weary. But more importantly, he was still heartbroken over Blackbeard's betrayal.

"Pops!"

A loud bird cry echoed through the sky, sparks of flame burning in midair.

Marco transformed into the Phoenix, flying above Whitebeard, circling slowly. Witnessing the scene below, his eyes showed little surprise. As the son who had followed Whitebeard the longest, he deeply understood Whitebeard's power.

"What exactly happened here?"

Whitebeard spoke calmly: "Tich betrayed us! He planned to kill Thatch earlier. I received word of this beforehand, but didn't believe it—so while Tich and Thatch were drinking, I kept observing them using Observation Haki."

"Then I saw it—Tich really made his move."

Marco fell silent, unsure what to say. The only thing puzzling him was that Whitebeard hadn't left recently or visited any old friends—so who could have informed him about Tich's potential betrayal?

But Whitebeard didn't reveal anything else to Marco, merely waving his hand casually, "Go fish Tich out. My two strikes should have disabled his resistance, but he's probably not dead yet."