2025, not a good start, with my family getting sick, the forest fire happening, politics and such, but hopefully it'll get better. Today is also my birthday, so this is a little present for me.

It's time for the war that changed the pirate era to begin! So many changes happened during the Paramount War. And not a lot of them were good.

Whelp, go ahead and enjoy!

Chapter 9: The War Begins

The Marines on the front lines watched with wide eyes as a giant tsunami was coming towards them. They've seen tsunamis before, but never at this magnitude, and certainly never one caused by a single man.

"Oh crap!"

"How the hell did he made that!?"

"Whitebeard's a monster!"

While the lower-ranked Marines were panicking and crying, the ranked captain and above were calm, so were the Seven Warlords, with a few of them grinning in anticipation.

"So, that's the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit?" Doflamingo said with a chuckle. "My, the old monster isn't holding back."

Suddenly, near the scaffolding, Aokiji, a tall, tanned man with curly, black hair and black eyes wearing a white button vest, blue, long-sleeved shirt, white pants, white shoes, a Marine coat over his shoulders, and a sleeping mask resting on his head, stood up from his seat and jumped.

The Marines watched as Aokiji was at the center, frost covered his body as he crossed his arms.

"Ice Age!" he said as he threw his arms to the side, turning into ice that extended towards the incoming waves. The moment the ice touched the waves, it instantly froze.

"Tch, damn brat," Whitebeard said with an annoyed smirk as he saw his attack stopped by Aokiji.

"Admiral Aokiji froze the tsunami!"

"That was too close!"

"Kuzan saved our butts!"

Aokiji then aimed at Whitebeard, firing frozen spears towards him.

"Partisan!" he shouted as the spears flew towards Whitebeard.

Whitebeard threw his right fist towards the spears, cracking the air and sent a shockwave, destroying the spears and going towards Aokiji.

"Not good," he said as he quickly turned to ice as the shockwave hit him, turning him into shards of ice.

The shards fell towards the sea, and the Marines looked shocked and worried that he would drown, but the moment the shards touched the water, it made a frozen platform. Aokiji reassembled himself and touched the water with his frozen hand, freezing the ocean. The Moby Dick was now stuck at the ocean, and the allied ships were also stuck at the edge of the bay.

"The whole bay is iced over!" a pirate exclaimed.

"The ship's locked in. We can't even move."

Seeing the pirates stopped in their tracks by one of their Admirals, the Marines slowly grew confident.

"L-look! We don't have to be afraid! We have the three Admirals on our side! They're the greatest power we have!"

"T-that's right! We can beat these pirates!"

"Quick! Fire! Sink the Moby Dick!"

With the Whitebeard Pirates stuck on the water, they all aimed their cannons at the Moby Dick and fired. The cannonballs flew towards the trapped ships as Whitebeard stood still, a smirk on his face as his crew readied their weapons.

"Well, we ain't just gonna stand here and let them shoot at us," a pirate said, readying his weapon.

"We got somethin' to stand on now, so let's move!"

"Let's show them what we can do, gentlemen!" Vista, a tall, broad-shouldered man with black eyes and a curly, black mustache, wearing an opened dark-blue shirt that reveals his hairy chest, a coat hanging on his shoulders, white gloves, light blue pants, black shoes, a blue top hat, and two brown sheaths, declared as he pulled two sabers from his hips.

With a roar of agreement, the Pirates all jumped off their ship and rushed forward, using the ice as footing. The Marines also rushed forward, shouting as they met the pirates head on. Soon, the sounds of swords, bullets, and cannon fire filled the air. Screams of anger and pain followed soon as Marines and Pirates clashed, blood staining the frozen sea beneath them.

Tashigi sliced the pirates with her sword before three of them jumped at her from behind. Suddenly, white smoke tackled the three away from her, forming into Smoker, who used his jute to smack the pirates away. Hina, a tall, slim woman with long, pink hair and dark brown eyes, wearing red lipstick, a burgundy-purple suit over a white blouse, dark-brown shoes, a pair of dark gloves, a Marine coat over her shoulder, and a pair shades over her head, with a lit cigarette in her mouth, threw her arms and unleashed iron bars that caught the Pirates in rings of iron. Tsuru saw multiple Pirates charged at her, unbothered by the fact that she was an old woman, but in a blink of an eye, Tsuru was patting her hands while the Pirates were hanging like freshly washed laundry, clean and sparkly. The rest of the Vice Admirals were blocking the cannons the Pirates were firing while retaliating with their weapons and powers.

The Pirates kept charging relentlessly. Vista swung his sabers at the Marines, rose petals as sharp as knives flying out of him as he slashed at his enemies. Namur, a Shark Fishman with sharp teeth protruding from his lower jaw, three gills on his neck, spikey hair pointing upwards, black eyes, a gray shark fin on his back and a number '8' tattooed on the left side of his neck, wearing a white shirt with blue sleeves and a star logo on the chest, gray pants held by a belt, punched a Marine soldier before biting another one. Rakuyo, a tall man with dark blond dreadlocks, a mustache angled diagonally, and black eyes, wearing a yellow coat with green linings, a green vest under an unbuttoned shirt a light green sash, square-patterned pants, brown boots, and a yellow and purple headband with Whitebeard's mark on it, was throwing his signature weapon, a giant spiked ball and chain with a face on it, the mouth opening and grabbing a Marine before throwing him to a group of Marines. Izo, a feminine man with a pale complexion, black eyes, and black hair styled like a geisha, with a lock of loose hair falling over the right side of his eyes, wearing a pink and purple kimono tied by a scarlet obi with black spots around his waist, wielded two pistols, shooting the Marines, never missing his target.

As this was happening, the Warlords of the Sea watched the battle unfold.

"Kishishishishi!" Moriah laughed. "So many dead bodies to play with!"

"How fun," Doflamingo commented as he licked his lips. Suddenly, he saw some movement. He turned his head and saw Mihawk walking forward. "Oh? Gonna grace them with your sword, Hawkeye?"

"I'm just gauging the distance," Mihawk replied calmly.

Hancock turned her head to see Mihawk, a tall, lean, muscular man with a fair complexion, short-cropped black hair that was slicked back, a short beard, mustache, and V-shaped sideburns, but his most unique feature was his piercing yellow eyes with rings around the pupil, wearing a black and red ornament coat with floral patterns on the sleeves, a gold cross pendant, a wide-brimmed black hat with a large plume, white pants held by a decorated belt, and large boots, stepped forward, pulling out a giant cruciform, ornated curved sword with a single black edge with a long, bandaged wrapped hilt, a blue hilt.

"So, even the Strongest Swordman in the World is moved to face Whitebeard," Hancock thought. "That icy gaze of his could even make a hardened warrior quake in fear. Who could withstand his gaze?"

"Well, how unusual~," Kizaru, a tall, slim middle-aged man with short, curly black hair and a thin beard, wearing a yellow stripped suit, amber-tinted sunglasses, white shoes, and a Marine coat over his shoulder, commented with a relaxed grin on his face as he looked at Mihawk.

"So, they managed to peak his attention," Akainu, a tall, muscular man with light skin, short black hair and black eyes, wearing a standard Marine cap, a crimson, double-breasted suit with a decorated pink rose on the left buttonhole, with the suit slightly open, revealing a tattoo on the left side of his collarbone, a Marine coat over his shoulder, and brown shoes, said, though he was still looking at the battle.

"It's strange," Mihawk said as his gaze focused on Whitebeard. "He's in front of us, but he feels so close…I wonder, how far is the distance between us."

Tashigi looked at the sword in Mihawk's hand, a hint of admiration for the sword. Smoker followed her gaze, looking at the sword.

"The famous black sword," he commented.

"To be precise, its name is Night," Tashigi explained. "There are only twelve like it in the world, bearing the highest grade. See the dark edge of the blade, the temper line, the cloved pattern. An ornate design suitable for only the greatest swordsman in the world."

With a mighty swing from his sword, Mihawk unleashed his attack, going straight towards Whitebeard. The Marines quickly moved away as the wave of destruction headed towards the Strongest Pirate in the World. The Pirates tried to block the attack, using shields and swords, but the waves went through them, like they were made of butter.

"We can't stop it!"

"No! Pops, look out!"

But before it could reach Whitebeard, it was stopped. Mihawk looked at the one who stopped his attack. It was a big, muscular, broad-chested man with dark-skin and black hair and a black beard, wearing dark armor with red-bolted dark shoulder pads, a rusty red cuirass held by metal straps, a gold studded belt around his waist, black studded pants and matching back boots. Half of his body was made of diamond, using that to redirect Mihawk's attack to the air, harmlessly dispersing it, much to the shock of the Marines and Pirates.

"He stopped Mihawk's attack!"

"Look! His body! It turned into diamonds!"

"That's 'Diamond' Jozu! The Third Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates!"

"Alright! Commander Jozu stopped Hawkeyes' attack!"

"Even the Strongest Swordman can't cut diamonds!"

Jozu grinned as he saw Mihawk's annoyed frown. Invigorated by stopping an attack from the Strongest Swordman in the World, the Whitebeard Pirates continued their relentless assault to get to the plaza as the Marines gritted their teeth and tried to hold them off.

On top of the scaffolding, Sengoku merely scoffed as he held a Transponder Snail.

"Damn fools, they're trying to break through the front," he commented before turning to the Transponder Snail. "Artillery Unit, open fire on all enemy ships, as well as the approaching Pirates!"

"Sir!" the unit replied with a salute before turning to the cannons. Soon, cannonballs were raining towards the ships belonging to Whitebeard and his allies, causing the sea to shake uncontrollably as the Pirates countered by firing back.

"Forward Units, block off all access to this plaza!"

"Sir!"

Soon, the cannonballs were now raining towards the charging Pirates, who had no cover. They all screamed in pain as the ground they were running out exploded. Despite that, the Whitebeard Pirates were still relentless, following their commanders as they battled through the Marines.

"My, my~," Kizaru commented as he stood up, hands in his pockets. "Whitebeard's Commanders are a frightening bunch of monsters, aren't they~? Though, I do admit, they put on a good show~."

He then stepped forward as he looked at Whitebeard, who was still on his ship.

"Still, if we want to stop this party before they wreck the place, we simply need to remove the head of this unruly behemoth~," he said before his body turned into light and teleported away from his place. Soon, he was in front of Whitebeard, who wasn't' fazed by the bright light.

"Crap! It's Kizaru!" a Pirate cried out in fear as Kizaru smirked and crossed his arms.

"Yasakani Sacred Jewels!" he exclaimed before firing a barrage of light bullets towards Whitebeard, who just looked annoyed.

"It's too bright!" he exclaimed. "Can you tone it down a little, pal?"

Before the bullets could hit him, a figure flew towards the bullets on blue, flaming wings. The figure got in front of Whitebeard, blocking the bullets and stopping the assault. Kizaru and the Marines looked surprised as the barrage stopped, leaving only a cloud of smoke.

"Admiral Kizaru's attack was stopped!?" a Marine exclaimed in shock.

"But how!?" Another one asked.

When the smoke cleared, the figure was revealed to be Marco, whose arms were transformed into wings made of blue and yellow fire.

"Ha~? Well, fancy that~," Kizaru said as Marco smirked at him. "The First Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, Marco 'The Phoenix'."

"He took on Admiral Kizaru's attack head on, but he's just floating there!"

"He's on fire!? But how!? I thought the Flare-Flare Fruit was Fire Fist's power?"

"I don't know what Devil Fruit that is, but I don't like it!"

"Even rarer that Logia-Type Devil Fruits, you've eaten the Mythical-Type Zoan Devil Fruit, the Tweet-Tweet Fruit, Phoenix Edition~," Kizaru said as he saw the holes on Marco's body healing.

"Look! His body is healing!"

"It didn't hurt him at all!?"

"Don't worry, it did," Marco said with a smirk aimed at Kizaru, who smirked back.

"C'mon now, don't lie to protect my pride~," he said.

Marco flew up into the sky and his body transformed, turning into a phoenix with blue and yellow flames. He then flew straight towards Kizaru, who fired a barrage of light bullets. Marco ignored them as the bullets just went through him. Once he was close enough, Marco turned back into his hybrid form and did an overhead kick, which Kizaru blocked.

"Well now~, that's quite the painful kick~," he said with a smirk.

"Look who's lying now!" Marco exclaimed before putting more power into his attack "Crane Talon!"

With a powerful kick, he managed to send Kizaru flying back to the plaza. He quickly turned into light as he hit a wall, causing a big explosion that nearly blinded everyone looking at it. The Marines all looked shocked to see Kizaru being pushed back.

"Damn, it's dangerous just standing here!" a Marine exclaimed.

"Is Admiral Kizaru alright!?" another exclaimed.

Suddenly, Kizaru appeared next to the Marines, hands in his pockets, not a scratch on him. He looked at Marco, who was flying high in the sky.

"That was my bad, I should have known better~," he commented with a smirk. "If your boss was that easy to kill, you wouldn't be here right now~."

Marco simply smirked at Kizaru, who turned his attention to the giant Marines.

"Giant Unit, keep your eyes on the skies from now on, got it~!" he ordered.

"Sir!" they exclaimed as they readied their massive weapons. With eager grins on their faces, the Giant Marines started moving forward, causing the Pirates to panic.

"Shit! The Giants are coming!" a Pirate exclaimed in worry.

"Don't falter! Knocked them down! Aim for the feet!" another Pirate shouted. The Pirates all shouted and were about to recklessly charge towards the Giant Marines.

"Outta the way!" Jozu ordered as he rushed forward. The Pirates quickly got out of his way as he turned his right arm into diamond. With a powerful punch, he strikes at the frozen ground, the people around him feeling the ground shake.

"What's he doing?" a Marine asked.

"Is he breaking the ice?" another asked.

Cracks appeared from the ground Jozu punched. The Pirates immediately retreated as a giant chunk of ice broke from the ground. Jozu then grabbed the chunk from the ground, and pulled it up, much to the shock of the Marines.

"Try blocking this!" Jozu exclaimed as he threw the chunk towards the Giants, who looked shocked since the chunk was several times their size.

"Its gonna crush us!"

"We can't outrun it!"

"There's no escape!"

Jozu smirked as he saw the ice reaching the plaza. Suddenly, Akainu stood up, frowning as he looked at the ice.

"Damn hotheads, leaving their post like that," he said as he stepped forward. "What were they thinking?"

Clenching his fists, they suddenly turned into magma.

"If I've gone with them, there'd be no one here to do the job!" he exclaimed as he created a giant fist made of magma. "Great Eruption!"

The fist made of magma hit the giant chunk of ice. The intense heat of the magma melted the ice, causing it to break easily, much to the shock of Jozu and the Pirates.

"He broke that giant chunk of ice!"

"He didn't just break the ice, he evaporated it!"

Suddenly, the giant fist of magma exploded, sending balls of molten lava towards the Pirates, much to their horror. They quickly scattered as the balls of lava hit the frozen land, creating a giant fire that surrounded the Pirates. Suddenly, one of Whitebeard's ships was hit, causing it to burn.

"One of the ships have been hit!"

"Everyone, back away!"

The Pirates who managed to jump off the ship before it got hit quickly ran away to a safer distance. Suddenly, another ball of lava was flying towards Whitebeard. The Pirate used his weapon to skewer the ball of molten lava, looking annoyed at it.

"Damn brats, always so flashy," he said before he blew away the ball of lava, quickly cooling it off.

Akainu pulled back his fist as he looked at the destruction he caused, though he was frowning as he saw Whitebeard chucking away the cooled lava ball like it was nothing. Meanwhile, the Marines quickly took advantage of the situation and started firing at the pirates, cannonballs flying through the air.

In Sabaody Archipelago, the reporters, locals, and Pirates were watching the horror of the war unfold on their screens.

"I knew a war with Whitebeard would be devastating, but this is just apocalyptic…" a reported commented, stunned at what he witnessed.

Back at Marineford, the Pirates were quickly recovering from the assault and were countering. Jozu and Marco were using their powers to block the cannonballs while the rest of the Commanders were facing the Giants. Meanwhile, the Marines were focusing on the weaker Pirates, easily taking them down while they were recovering.

Amidst all this, Coby was standing, horrified at what he was witnessing. He was standing among the bodies of fall Marines, clenching his fists as he tried to move his shaky legs. He watched as more Marines were either getting cut by blades or gunned down by Pirates. As the Pirates got closer, Coby slowly stepped back.

"This…This isn't a training exercise…this is war…" he said as he watched Marines and Pirates battle to the death. "I…I can't move!"

"It's pointless," Helmeppo said behind him as he fell on his knees. Coby turned his head to look at his friend, who was also horrified. "These Pirates would slaughter us without a second glance! I mean, just look around you!"

Coby's body shook in response, seeing that in this war, he was just a small nobody. He clenched his fists, both in fear and frustration as he recalled his promise to Luffy.

"One day…I'll become Fleet Admiral of the Marines and capture you!...Wah! S-sorry! I don't know what I was saying! It's just, I've seen after such a long time that I started babbling a-and-!"

"Coby, that's good. You gotta be Fleet Admiral if you want to capture the King of the Pirates!"

He vowed to Luffy that he would be strong enough to become Fleet Admiral, yet here he was, cowering like a newborn baby amidst a war that would decide the fate of the Marines.

"We need to get to somewhere safe!" Helmeppo exclaimed, shaking Coby out of his thoughts.

"I can't!" Coby exclaimed. "If I run away, my dream…"

"Your dream won't matter if you're laying on the ground, bleeding and dead!" Helmeppo exclaimed, trying to convince his friend to see reason. "If you die here, you'll never be Fleet Admiral!"

Coby looked at his friend, his expression frightened. Lowering his head, Coby nodded, and the two quickly retreated to the plaza, the safest place in Marineford right now.

Meanwhile, the tides of battle were going in favor of the Marines, due to the Giants joining the battle, easily sending the Pirates flying.

"Yes! As long as we have the Giant Unit, we can beat them!" a Marine cheered, getting others to cheer as well.

As the Marines cheered, Whitebeard looked over his shoulder, seeing the other ships getting closer. He noticed one of them finally moving.

From the mist rising over the sea, a giant shadow could be seen. The Marines stopped their pursuit as they saw a giant figure appear from the mist and walk on the frozen land. He was a giant, three times bigger than the Giant Marines, with yellow-green skin, long, orange hair that reached his legs, black eyes, large forearms and hands, a small-lower body, a barrel-like gut, black, triangular marks above his eyes and some stubble on his chin, wearing black, open jacket, samurai-like armor plates over his chest and back held by black chains, three big skulls around his neck like held by beads, a loincloth made from a Marine ship's sail held by a fur-lined belt, a kasa hat resting on his back, and a massive broad blade resting in his hand.

"Ace! I'm here to save you!" the giant declared, his voice deafening everyone within range.

"Oars!?" Ace exclaimed in shock to see the giant.

"Woah! He's huge! Even bigger than the Giant Unit!"

"He's Little Oars Jr.! He's infamous in the New World!"

"Give Ace back!" Oars Jr. exclaimed as he charged towards the plaza. "He's a nice guy!"

"Giant Unit, attack!"

All the Giants rushed at Oars Jr., brandishing their weapons at him, while the others aimed their cannons at Oars Jr., firing at him. Weapons and cannonballs struck the big giant, but he was undeterred. The Marines were shocked when Oars Jr. was barely phased by their attempts to stop him. He swung his sword, sending the Giant Unit flying off him, crashing onto the Marines. He then made his way to the plaza, cutting down the tiny Marines that were in his way, ignoring the cannonballs.

"Kishishishi! So, he is the unfamous descendant of Oars!" Moriah cackled in glee, watching the monstrous Giant rampage towards them. "He will make a fine replacement for Oars! I want his corpse!"

"He's as stubborn as always," Whitebeard muttered with a frown. "Getting yourself killed doesn't make you brave, Oars!"

"Don't try and stop me, Pops!" Oars Jr. exclaimed back as he kept moving forward. "I won't stop because I don't wanna stop! I won't stop until I save my bro!"

With a snort, Whitebeard turned to the rest of his crew.

"Everyone, cover Oars!" he ordered.

"Yeah!" the Pirates cried out before rushing forward, to take care of the Marines firing at him. While Oars Jr. was doing most of the damage, the rest rushed forward, getting closer to the plaza.

"Oars is one hell of a distraction!" one Pirate exclaimed, wearing a gatling gun for a glove, aiming it towards the Warlords. "Let's make our move!"

He fired giant bullets from his glove, which were flying towards Boa Hancock. Undeterred, she simply placed a finger on her lips, kissing it. She then pulled her finger back, creating a giant heart. And, like pulling a bowstring, she fired the heart, creating multiple, pink arrows.

"Slave Arrow!"

The arrows hit the bullets, turning them into stone and making them fall to the ground. Surprised, the Pirate got hit by the arrows, turning him into stone. He wasn't the only one, as his allies beside him also turned into stone.

"What the hell! They turned into statues!" one of them exclaimed in shock.

"She must be 'The Pirate Empress', Boa Hancock!" another exclaimed.

Suddenly, Hancock jumped into the fray, surprising the Pirates. With a graceful twirl, she kicked them, turning them into stone and cracking them.

"Perfume Femur!"

She spun around, a combination of grace and power, throwing powerful kicks to both Pirates and Marines that was in her way. She then somersaulted towards her giant snake, gracefully landing on it with one leg while lifting the other leg seductively.

"You bitch!" a Marine cried out, holding his crumbling stone arm. "Why are you attacking the Marines!? We're on the same side!"

"I may have agreed to aid you in your war against Whitebeard's crew, but I don't recall making any promises about collateral damage," she said in a haughty tone, shocking the dying crumbling Marines. "Allies or foes, all men are worthless before me…Well, except for one," she said with a graceful smirk.

The Marines that were hit all glared at her in anger, something she noticed as she put her hands on her hips.

"Cry all you want, you can't say I didn't keep my work," she said in a haughty tone.

"You…You're insane!" a Marine cried out, holding his crumbling face.

"Oh, but you will forgive my beauty, right~?" Hancock in a cutesy voice, her cheeks blushing and her eyes fluttering.

"Um…Yeah, sure…" the Marines said, blushing with hearts for eyes.

While this was going on, Oars Jr. finally reached it to the walls, just a few more steps to reach Ace, leaving a lot of beaten Giants and crushed Marines.

"I'm coming, Ace!" he called out.

"Oars…" Ace said, still shocked that the Giant would do all this for him. "No! Go back, Oars!"

On the walls, the Warlords were waiting for Oars Jr. to get closer. Moriah was cackling in glee, his eyes shining with anticipation, like a child getting a new toy.

"That's right, Oars! Come this way!" he called out, before someone stepped forward. He turned to his right and saw Bartolomew Kuma, an enormous man with ling, curly hair, tanned skin, a protruding chin, and paw pads on his palms, wearing a white hat with two round protrusions on the top, square glasses with mirror lenses, a black jacket with a white design of a coda sign, dark blue pants with brown spots, and brown shoes.

Kuma looked at Oars Jr. before he raised his arms above his head. Suddenly, the air on top of him started glowing as he used his powers to compress the air, creating a paw-shaped ball of condensed air, which kept getting smaller and smaller until his hands almost closed around it.

"Damn it!" Moriah exclaimed as he and the other Warlords jumped back and watched as Kuma stood still, waiting until Oars Jr. was in front of him.

Undeterred, Oars Jr. ignored him and kept walking. Kuma then released the ball of compressed air, and it flew towards Oars Jr. It went inside the Giant, and a second later, the ball exploded, sending an explosion that made the ground shake and crack while Marines and Pirates tried to stand their ground, some being thrown off their feet from the shockwave of the explosion. Ace watched with wide eyes as he saw his friend take the damage, his hat flying off his back and landing on the ground.

When the explosion finally stopped, Oars Jr. was still standing, though not unharmed. He was bleeding from the mouth and nose, his body littered in wounds, and his armor barely holding on. He then fell to his knees, barely conscious.

"No! Captain Oars!" his crew cried out in shock and worry, to see their powerful captain on his knees.

"That's enough, Oars! Please, go back!" Ace cried out.

Oars Jr. slightly gained consciousness from hearing Ace's voice. Dazed, he moved his head, and he spotted his kusa hat.

"Here, Oars! Something to block the sun from the big head of yours!"

"You made this?"

"Yeah! I learned it from the folks in the Land of Wano! Try it on."

"I don't feel hot anymore! I like this!"

Oars Jr. slowly stood up back on his feet and shakily made his way towards the wall, shocking the Marines.

"Don't tell me he could still move!?" Sengoku cried out in shock.

"Lovely!" Moriah cried out excitedly. "He's as resilient as the other Oars!"

Despite being severely injured, Oars Jr. kept moving, ignoring the cannonballs hitting his wounds. One cannon aimed at his face and fired, hitting him in the eye. That was enough to make him falter. Yet, he persisted as he tried to reach for Ace, holding his hand towards him.

"I…still…can't…reach him…" he said as he saw he was still far away. He then turned to the Warlords within his reach. "If…I can't save you…I'll at least…take out…one of the Warlords!"

He steadied his ground and threw a punch towards the closest Warlord, which was Doflamingo, who just looked at him. With a roar, she smashed his fist to where Doflamingo was, destroying the wall. He blinked when he didn't see Doflamingo's flattened body in front of him. He looked around for the Warlord, but didn't see that he was on top of him, having escaped the giant fist. Doflamingo cackled as Oars Jr. realized that he couldn't move, like something was keeping him in place.

"Why'd you stop, big guy?" Doflamingo asked in a taunting tone. "Ace is right there, just a few feet away."

"My…foot!" Oars Jr. cried out as he tried to move his right leg. Suddenly, he felt intense pain as his right leg was cut off. He screamed as he fell towards the floor, with Doflamingo landing behind him.

"Now that was fun!" he said as he started laughing.

"Damn it, Doflamingo! Don't damage the body too badly!" Moriah exclaimed in irritation. "I want his body as pristine as possible!"

"Oars!" Ace exclaimed in horror.

"A…Ace!" Oars Jr. exclaimed as he caught himself and started moving again.

"He can still move!?"

"What the hell! He lost a leg, but he's still conscious!"

"Doppleman!" Moriah shouted and his shadow expanded below him. "Finish him! Sparky Shadow Lizard!"

From below, his shadow erupted as a spear and pierced Oars Jr.'s chest. With a gasp, Oars Jr. held out his hand for Ace, trying to reach him.

"A-Ace…I…Made it…" he said before finally falling into the ground, his body hanging on the destroyed wall.

"Oars! No!" Ace cried out, tears and snot dripping from his face.

"Captain Oars!"

"No! They took down Oars!"

Whitebeard just stood there, frowning as his crew were shocked and devastated by Oars Jr.'s defeat, while the Marines rejoiced at having defeated a major powerhouse from the enemy forces. So confident, a Giant Marine with a metal helmet rushed towards Whitebeard, raising his big ax.

"Take this, you old has-been!" he exclaimed as he swung his ax.

To his shock, Whitebeard caught the ax with his barehand. He tried to pull back, but Whitebeard was gripping on the blade, causing it to break into pieces. With a furious look on his face, Whitebeard jumped towards the Giant's head, grabbed his head, and slammed him on his ship. He tried to get free, but Whitebeard was holding his head tightly. Flexing his arm, Whitebeard activated his power, cracking the air around the Giant's head. He screamed as he felt like his head was getting torn apart by Whitebeard's power. His helmet broke into pieces as blood erupted from his mouth, nose, and eyes, with his teeth flying out of his mouth.

Once Whitebeard was done, he threw the Giant off his ship, his large body hitting the frozen ground with a shake. The Marines were terrified at how he easily beat one of their Giant Marines. Whitebeard then looked forward, staring at Oars Jr.

"My son…" he said softly, veins pulsing on his head. He then tightened the grip of his weapon. "Don't falter! Oars has given us a way to Ace! Use his body to climb towards the plaza!"

Shaking out of their shock, the Pirates turned to Oars Jr.'s body and saw that his body was acting like a bridge. With that in mind, the Pirates started rushing towards his body as the Marines tried to stop them.

As this was happening, Doflamingo was watching the carnage continue, chuckling in sadistic delight as he heard the screams of anguish and pain from both sides.

"Doflamingo, you bastard!" a voice exclaimed, causing him to turn to see Atmos, Thirteenth Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, glaring angrily at him. He was a big man, with long, mane-like black hair, an equally long beard, black eyes, and walrus-like teeth pointing upward, wearing a sleeveless golden and gray amor, a gray helmet with bull horns on top, black pants, and black shoes, with purple tattoos of Whitebeard's symbol on his arms, holding large swords. "You'll pay for what you did to Oars!"

"Oh?" Doflamingo said, tilting his head mockingly. "And are you going to do that?"

With a roar, he rushed towards Doflamingo, swinging his swords. Doflamingo just smirked as he raised his right hand, and his middle finger moved. Just as the sword was about to reach his head, Atmos stopped. The man looked surprised as his body shook while his comrades looked confused.

"Commander Atmos, are you okay?" one of them asked, wondering why he suddenly stopped.

Without warning, Atmos turned around and swung his swords and cut down his crewmates. Shocked, the Pirates watched with horror as their commander started cutting down his own men.

"Commander! What are you doing!?"

"Stop! Aagh!"

"No, Commander! Stop!"

"I can't stop!" Atmos cried as he was forced to cut down his own men, their blood covering his body. "My body is moving on its own!"

He then felt Doflamingo sitting on his back, laughing as he watched Atmos cut down his own crew. He kept moving his fingers, as if controlling the poor man.

"This is beautiful," he said with a chuckle, the carnage reflecting on his shades. "Don't you feel just wonderful standing in the fulcrum of history? After today, history will remember this as the changing of the tides!"

"Stop! Make it stop! You bastard!" Atmos cried, tears spilling from his eyes as he cut down another crewmate.

"Do you know what Justice truly means?" Doflamingo suddenly asked. "The lives of all people are different. A child raised by war would not understand the feeling of a warm bed, and a child raised in peace wouldn't understand the pains of sleeping on an empty stomach. Justice has nothing to do with good or evil, Justice is decided by the winner! Whoever wins this war will decide the meaning of Justice!"

Meanwhile, Coby and Helmeppo were running through the empty streets, away from the war. Despite gaining some distance, Coby could still hear the screams, feel the agony of the people around him. His eyes were wide as he grabbed his head, trying to block off the feeling.

"Hey, are you okay?" Helmeppo asked in a worried tone as he noticed Coby in pain.

"I…I can still hear them," Coby said, breathing rapidly. "We're so far away, but I can still hear their screams."

"You're just stressed out, Coby, relax," Helmeppo said, trying to help his friend relax. "We're far away right now. We should be safe here."

"Please, I can't take it anymore!"

The two jumped in surprise as they heard someone shout just around the corner. The two peeked at the corner and saw Akainu and a Marine soldier. Akainu had his arms crossed, sternly frowning at the Marine.

"This is too much! I've got a wife and kid! I can't die here!" the Marine cried out. "Please, let me go to them! I don't want to leave them alone!"

"You want to run home with your tail between your legs?" Akainu asked, a vein pulsing on his head. "You want to run away from your duty as a Marine? To abandon Justice?"

"Please! I don't want to die!" the Marine begged, crying.

"We are Marines, it is our sworn duty to uphold Justice," Akainu said as he started smoking. "To abandon that duty, you have no right to call yourself a Marine, or a man. You're just a waste of life. If you truly value your family like you claimed, then don't shame them by living."

The Marine, with a horrified look on his face, watched as Akainu threw a fist made of lava at him. He screamed in agony before dying. With a cold look, Akainu left the pile of molten lava as he returned to the battlefield, not noticing the two horrified recruits who witnessed the private execution.

"He…He killed his own men!?" Coby thought with a terrified look.

"Admiral Sakazuki!" a Marine soldier called out, running towards Akainu. "We're ready to proceed with the procedure!"

"Excellent, it's finally time," he said with a smirk as he left the area.

Back in the battle, the Pirates were slowly making progress as they occupied most of the bay. The allied Pirates were firing their cannons on the walls, making another entrance.

"Kee firing!" a Pirate exclaimed as they fired at the walls, but it barely made a scratch. "Damn it! The walls are too tough!"

"Leave it to me," Whitey Bay said as she ordered her ship to sail through the ice. Her ship easily cut through it and headed straight towards the wall, crashing into it and creating a new entrance shocking the Marines.

"An ice cutter!?"

"It's 'The Ice Witch', Whitey Bay!"

"Hmph, I've cut down icebergs tougher than this," she said with a smirk as her crew cheered. She then turned to her fellow captains. "Alright! The path is open! Let's move!"

"Right! Forward, to the bay!"

"Sir! I'm sorry, but the Pirates have entered the bay through two entrance points!" a Marine reported to Sengoku, who just watched the battle calmly. "There's nothing left to stop Whitebeard's allies from flooding the bay and getting into the plaza! What should we do now?"

"Don't worry about it," Sengoku said, confusing the Marine. He watched as the Fleet Admiral lifted the Transponder Snail. "We're ready, put the plan into action."

"It's about damn time," Tsuru said, surrounded by hanging Pirates, holding her Transponder Snail before changing the frequency. "Put a call out to all ships and soldiers!"

Whitebeard watched the battle as his forces steadily made progress by breaching the bay. Suddenly, he noticed a lot of Transponder Snails ringing. He watched as the Marines suddenly retreated quickly while the ships were moving far away. He turned his attention to Sengoku, eyes narrowing.

"Of course, he's always got a plan in his sleeves," he commented. "You've always been a resourceful buddha, Sengoku."

Garp pocketed his Transponder Snail, not looking very happy as he made his way up the scaffolding. For every step he took, flashes of memories popped into his head, from Ace's birth as his mother hugged him lovingly, to him carrying him gently as he vowed to watch over him. He remembered how Ace and Luffy met when they were kids, how they bonded with Sabo, how he trained them, to try to change their minds on becoming Pirates.

When he found himself next to Ace, standing beside him, his grandson noticing him as he tore his gaze from the battle and looked at him. So did Sengoku, the Fleet Admiral turned to look at his oldest acquaintance.

"Old man?" Ace asked in confusion.

"What are you doing, Garp?" Sengoku asked with a raised eyebrow. "Having second thoughts?"

"No," Garp assured him. "They've chosen to be Pirates. They brought this among themselves."

"In that cas-," Sengoku said.

"Shut up," Garp said, cutting Sengoku off. "I don't wanna talk. I just wanna sit here."

Garp sat next to Ace, watching the battle unfold. Ace looked at him, silent.

"…I don't have sympathy for criminals," Garp said lowly. "But…Family is a different story."

Ace's eyes widened when he saw Garp shedding tears, a conflicted expression on his face as his shoulder shook.

"Ace…Trust me on this, you and your brother should become Marine, okay?"

"I don't know what to do!?" he cried, his duty as a Marine raging against his role as a grandfather. "Ace, you fool! Why couldn't you have done what I asked!?"

"Old man…" Ace said, seeing his grandfather torn.

"If you're feeling doubt on what must be done, then I just can't take pity on you, Garp," Sengoku warned him as Garp dried his tears.

"If I had doubts, I woulda done something already," Garp said as he returned his gaze to the battle.

Meanwhile, Coby and Helmeppo were holding their Transponder Snails, both looking shock from the plan.

"Did you hear what I just heard, Helmeppo?" Coby asked, looking outraged. "What their strategy is?"

"Y-yeah," Helmeppo said.

"They're gonna bypass the schedule and immediately execute 'Fire Fist' Ace!" Coby cried out. "But if they do that…Huh?"

"What's that?" Helmeppo commented as they looked at the sky, seeing something falling.

Soon, a lot of people noticed something falling from the sky, briefly pausing their battle.

"What's that?"

"Something is falling from the sky!"

"It's gotta be another surprise attack from Whitebeard."

Soon, screams filled the sky as they saw people and a big ship falling, heading towards the frozen sea.

"This is your Death Wink's fault!"

"Oh, you're blaming me for all of this, Croco Boy!"

"Danny! Wake up! It's frozen down there! We're gonna die!"

As the screams got louder, the people below could clearly see what was falling. Crocodile, Daz Bones, Ivankov, Jinbei, Danny, Luffy, the Newkamas, the escaped inmates, and the stolen Marine ship were falling to the ground. Everyone: the Marines, Pirates, and Warlords all looked shocked and dumbfounded, except for Hancock, who looked happy to see Luffy alive.

"AAAAGH-! Wait! I'm made of rubber! I'll be fine!" Luffy exclaimed as he stopped screaming.

"Don't be selfish, Straw Boy!" Ivankov cried. "I don't want to die like this! Someone, help me! Please!"

"Last time I ever listen to you, Straw Hat!" Crocodile said, looking more annoyed than terrified.

Jinbie just had his arms crossed, looking calm despite falling to the frozen sea, while Danny was unconscious, a big lump on his head. As they all got closer to the ground, Luffy took a deep breath.

"ACE!" he shouted as Ace looked shocked and horrified to see Luffy here in Marineford.

First chapter of the year and posted on my birthday. Damn, I feel old. Anyway, we finally reached the war, and we've seen our heroes arrive at the midst of battle. Wondering why Danny is unconscious while falling from the sky? Find out next chapter! See you later!