Chapter 115: Fighting the Fifth! Showdown at Banaro Island!

The town was a mess. Banaro island, the once great and proud fishing village that supplied produce to the Whitebeard Pirates, had been completely ransacked and set alight. Ace bent over and heaved several laboured breaths, as the scent of burning bodies caught in his nostrils. Another crime to add to Teach's ever growing list. This wasn't what being a pirate was about; Freedom, Adventure and Camaraderie. Teach had spat on each one of those three tenements. But now he had nowhere to run, Ace had finally found him.

Standing on a burning roof, Ace glared down at the man he had once called friend. Now however, all that man was; was a liar, a backstabber and a murderous traitor. Clenching his fists, the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, was involuntarily reminded of Thatch's mangled beaten body and the terror stricken face, and forever changed, Loren. And in that moment rage and fury were unleashed from Ace in the form of twin towers of fire. "Flame Emperor!"

The resulting attack virtually obliterated the surrounding building, levelling the area to the ground and burning the rubble away. Motioning to his subordinates, Blackbeard thumbed them away back to the ship, before grinning back at Ace. "Zehahaha! You should have joined me, commander, at least then I would have granted you a merciful death". The traitor laughed as his body began to grow taller and taller, until Teach stood fifty metres high.

"Now witness the my favourite feature of my God of War, devil fruit!" Horror spilled onto Ace's face as he saw Teach raise both hands out at his side; two green spirals appeared in each palm. "Legend Spell, Dreadnaught!" Hearing those ominous words made him suddenly nervous. 'Spell...When did he learn magic?' As if sensing his thoughts, Teach grinned as the two green spirals turned into full blown portals; from which charged humanoid creatures of a variety of sizes. "You like them, Ace? This is the power of the God of War, ancient zoan devil fruit. And it shall bring down the old man, both the Oni and the Dragon! And I'll take down all my rivals! The King of the Pirates will be me!"

As quickly as they appeared Ace propelled himself into the air with his fire boost, narrowly avoiding being grabbed by the largest of these humanoids. "Fire Fly! He yelled throwing out his hands and creating sparks of fire that fluttered down and burst into wildfire when touched by Teach's monsters. "You'll never win against me now, commander. Not since I have this fruits power! Zehahahaha!" Again the traitor laughed. "Once you're subjugated, I'll only have Straw Hat Luffy to target..." The man was cut off by a scything of fire hitting him directly across the chest, and sending him careening into the ruined buildings across the street. Renewed fury seethed through Ace as he gave up on any semblance of control and began to give way to his awakened devil fruit; turning the ground, sky and air into fire. "Don't you dare!" Ace screamed, generating a gigantic wave of fire to burst from the ground and engulf the giant Teach. "I won't let you lay a finger on Luffy!"

Blackbeard froze for a moment; confused but then grinned evilly. A huge familiar grin which split his face, making Ace feel sick.

"Well, Whada ya know, looks like you know the little brat!" Teach called up jovially. A tone that he had always thought of as friendly, but now he realised it was nothing but contemptuous. Once more Ace felt the need to burn Teach alive bubble up within him. "You know for the life of me I didn't know how to persuade the government to give me a Warlord position. But then it happened. Crocodile's death, and the bounty on Straw Hat Luffy. Three hundred million berries, a green fresh of the boat rookie, suddenly given such a bounty. If I give the government Straw Hat, they'll make me. Warlord! You're just the cherry on top, Portgas D Ace".

The laughter that spilled from Teach's mouth only infuriated him more. Made his blood boil, and his ire rise even more; and in response causing his awakened fire to turn from red to green. Deadlier, than normal fire. Teach's next words were worse, as if nothing had happened at all. "Come on Ace, lighten up. Tis good to see you again" Teach grinned throwing out his arms wide. "But as you are here, there's no point letting you go now", once more the largest humanoid reached up and this time grabbed Ace and flung him down on to the ground, with a sickening crack. "You never learn!" Tech spat, his huge body lumbering towards the spot Ace lay.

"Too reckless, never willing to think out proper plans, and way too trusting. And now your downfall is complete, oh how your father must be proud of you". That officially pushed Ace past his tolerance, Luffy, 'pops', his fellow whitebeard pirates, even Garp; to a certain extent, he would defend. But invoking his actual father, that was the one person who he would never defend and never love. Pushing himself upright, he raised his hands and pointed his two index fingers at Blackbeard. "Fire Gun!" He growled, unleashing volley of green fire bullets at the "traitorous cunt!"

"You fucking bastard!" Teach screamed, as fire tore through his chest. Burning his stomach, and staining his jacket with blood. "You love protecting people so much, let's see you try to protect the people of this island!" To Ace's horror, humanoids began turning away from him and began tuning at speed towards the port; where he had organised ships for evacuating the refugees. "Fire Fist!"

Throwing all of his rage and built up emotions into his green flames, Ace blasted Teach back into the ruined buildings; from which he had just climbed out of. Ace snorted at the sight of Teach writhing around pathetically, and this supposedly the ' god of war', that had killed Thatch. So undignified. Ace jumped down from the roof and walked through mass of green flames; drawing them back into his body. But still keeping his hands lit, as a self defence precaution. As he approached the quivering and panting traitor, he suddenly felt a sharp pain pierce his side, and looking down he saw a trail of blood seeping our from a wound to his lower abdomen.

Horrified by this sudden feeling, the first pain he'd felt in years, he began to feel queasy and seasick. '—Seasick', he realised just in time as a punch from another humanoid struck him in the back knocking him face first into the ground, before placing its foot down upon his back. Affixing him to the spot, just as Blackbeard reappeared before him, now holding a smoking pistol.

Ace watched, with utter contempt and fury, as the traitor crouched down in front of him and then suddenly withdrew a syringe, "enjoy your last sight of the sky Ace. For when you awaken, you'll never see it again". And then, deftly, Teach injected the liquid into Ace's body, making him shudder and then go limp. The last thoughts Ace had, before darkness took him were of Luffy; and their promise to meet again in the New World and then find Sabo and Koala. "I'm so sorry Luffy", Ace whispered as he lost consciousness, "I guess I wasn't strong enough. Please Luffy, please stay safe."