Chapter 63 : Whitebeard Dead!!

"Old man... Pops!"

Blackbeard's eyes were filled with terror as he stared at Whitebeard, who seemed to loom like a vengeful god. In all the decades Blackbeard had sailed under him, he had never witnessed Whitebeard radiating such a terrifying aura of pure rage.

This time, Whitebeard was furious—truly and completely enraged.

"Teach..." 

Whitebeard's gaze fell on Marco, whose life was slipping away with every passing second. A torrent of emotions surged within him, but he couldn't find the words. All that remained was the burning fury growing hotter and hotter.

Clenching his fists, Whitebeard didn't unleash his Gura Gura no Mi (Tremor-Tremor Fruit) powers; instead, sparks of lightning crackled ominously around him.

"Stop pretending, old man!" Blackbeard sneered, his voice filled with malice. "I know you're running out of steam! Why don't you just hurry up and die already!"

As he spoke, Blackbeard twisted his blade, plunging it deeper into Marco's chest, extinguishing the last flickers of life from him. He howled in triumph as he taunted Whitebeard.

"Die!!"

Without another word, Whitebeard let out a thunderous roar and hurled himself at Blackbeard with everything he had. 

But Blackbeard's eyes gleamed with a cunning light—he grabbed Marco's lifeless body and used it as a shield.

Rage burned in Whitebeard's eyes, but his fist came to a halt just inches from Marco's body.

The old man grunted and coughed up blood, the sudden halt taking a toll on his already failing body. He could feel his life force draining away rapidly.

Ignoring Blackbeard's taunts, Whitebeard carefully laid Marco's body on the ground with a solemn expression. He didn't linger—there was no time. Gathering every ounce of strength left in him, he strode toward Blackbeard with his right fist coiling with raw power.

"Buggy!"

Whitebeard took a deep breath, his voice calm but filled with the weight of the situation. "You already know Ace is Roger's son... And it was Teach who handed him over to the Navy. For Roger's sake, get out of the way!"

With a swift motion, Whitebeard raised his leg and kicked Blackbeard square in the chest, sending him flying backward.

Even though it was an attack made in haste, Blackbeard—caught off guard and too prideful to use the powers of the Yami Yami no Mi (Dark-Dark Fruit) for defense—felt Whitebeard's destructive power rip through him. His internal organs felt as though they had been crushed.

Blood dripped steadily from the corners of Blackbeard's mouth. Trembling, he tried to stand but failed. Panic flooded his expression as he looked up at Whitebeard, fear in his eyes. 

"Pops, I was wrong!" Blackbeard begged, his voice cracking. "I was really wrong! Please, spare me!"

Buggy grinned, exhaling softly, "Didn't I tell you? Blackbeard is mine!" He flexed his muscles as if ready for a fight, but then frowned. "It's a shame—I was just getting warmed up, and you've already lost steam!"

Taking advantage of the distraction, Blackbeard hurled Marco's lifeless body towards Whitebeard, laughing maniacally. With a swift motion, he pulled out a gleaming blade and plunged it into Whitebeard's abdomen!

*Bang!*

Just as the moment of impact seemed inevitable, a figure swooped down from the sky, landing between Whitebeard and Blackbeard with a gust of wind.

Blackbeard's face lit up with disbelief, his eyes nearly tearing up from the overwhelming relief.

Standing there, covered in dust and blood, his coat ripped and torn, Buggy looked battered but far from defeated. His eyes sparkled like stars, radiating defiance and resolve, though he seemed anything but serious.

Whitebeard halted his advance, his gaze steady on the man before him. "You... the brat from Roger's crew. Do you really intend to stop me?" he asked calmly.

Buggy laughed heartily. "Hahaha! That's why you'll never be the Pirate King, old man! In the real world, all you think about is honor and sake! Better accept your fate and die already!"

Whitebeard's chest heaved with exhaustion, his body on the verge of collapse. He knew he had only one final attack left in him. He couldn't afford to waste it on Buggy—his real target was Blackbeard.

Hoping to avoid unnecessary conflict, Whitebeard invoked Roger's name. "Out of respect for Roger, step aside, Buggy."

But Buggy merely shook his head. "What's done is done. Ace is in this mess because of his own choices. Don't forget—Teach's original target was Luffy, the Straw Hat kid. Ace got himself involved and paid the price."

Whitebeard fell silent, his heart heavy. Behind Buggy, Blackbeard seethed with fury, his teeth grinding together. 

Damn that snitch! 

Buggy knows even this! 

I'll make you pay!

Unbothered by the tension between the two, Buggy continued, "Anyway, I've already sent Ace to safety. Consider it my good deed for the day. Let's just hope he wises up after all this. If not, he might not be so lucky next time."

"Ace... has been saved?" Whitebeard whispered, his voice full of disbelief. The weight that had pressed on him loosened, and with it, his life force began to ebb away. The power he'd gathered in his fists dissipated, no longer driven by the need for vengeance.

With a heavy sigh, Whitebeard resigned himself to the inevitable. "Gurararara! It seems my time is up. But before I go..."

Whitebeard took a deep breath, preparing to speak his final words.

Buggy raised an eyebrow, a smirk forming on his lips. "Don't tell me... you're planning to reveal that the One Piece is real, huh?"

He chuckled lightly. "Hate to break it to you, but all the broadcasting equipment was destroyed by that Bullet guy. Even if you shout it to the sky, no one's going to hear you!"

Whitebeard froze for a moment upon hearing those words, then suddenly, his mighty form seemed to deflate like a punctured balloon.

"You brat... you're truly insufferable. Let this old man finally rest."

Whitebeard's voice grew weaker and weaker until it finally faded into silence.

The era of the legendary powerhouse, Edward Newgate—renowned as Whitebeard—had come to an end.

"Hahahaha! He's dead! He's finally dead! Pops is gone! And now, the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit is mine!"

Blackbeard, now standing, erupted into gleeful laughter, drunk on victory.

The power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit was right within his grasp!

Buggy watched Blackbeard bask in his moment of triumph and shook his head in disbelief. 

How on earth did someone as arrogant as Blackbeard manage to serve under Whitebeard for decades? 

Or maybe, did being under Whitebeard's thumb for so long drive him mad?

Still laughing maniacally, Blackbeard hadn't noticed Buggy's exasperation. Finally, Buggy couldn't hold back any longer and snapped, "Why are you still wasting time? The battle isn't over yet! Anything could happen at any moment!"

Blackbeard halted his laughter, glanced at Buggy, and said with a twisted grin, "Buggy, you're like a second father to me! I won't forget this favor!"

Buggy was taken aback, momentarily dazed. For a brief second, he imagined Blackbeard kneeling before him in some bizarre hallucination, clasping his hands in respect and declaring, "If you'd have me, I would gladly call you father!"

"Huh?!" Buggy inhaled sharply, snapping back to reality, his eyes narrowing as he studied Blackbeard with a mix of confusion and unease.

But Blackbeard paid no attention to Buggy's strange look. He turned toward Whitebeard's towering corpse, an insatiable greed glimmering in his eyes.

"Old man, here I come!" Blackbeard raised his hands, and from them billowed thick, swirling clouds of black smoke. The smoke enveloped both him and Whitebeard's lifeless body.

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