Chapter 17

Markus smiled as he listened to Whitebeard and Ace arguing. Whitebeard was blatantly rewriting history by claiming he sent Ace after Blackbeard, even dragging Marco into it for confirmation. While they chatted, Markus expanded his Observation Haki and started cataloging any information he found relevant. The war had been long and complicated in his memories so he couldn't remember every last detail. Since he couldn't remember, he would just sniff out all of their secrets and plans now!

Markus found a few interesting things around him and planned to deal with them before they became an issue. In his memories, Sengoku's plan was rather ingenious and effective but this time, Markus would blow the plan to pieces and laugh in Sengoku's face. With everything he planned to do, he wasn't certain if Whitebeard would be considered the most dangerous man in this war anymore.

With his scanning complete, Markus sat back and relaxed as two massive tsunami waves came crashing toward Marineford. Whitebeard's previous attack had set them up. Marines began to panic as the waves drew closer. Seeing the waves, Sengoku addressed his Marines, "Don't go thinking we can overcome him with sheer military force! We might actually be the ones to meet our end. That man... holds the power to destroy the world!"

Of course, the Marines weren't just going to let Whitebeard wipe them out so easily. One of the three Admirals, Aokiji, shot into the air. He held his hands out on opposite sides and aimed them at the two massive walls of water. From each hand, a long stream of ice was launched out while his body began to frost over. Once the streams of ice contacted the tsunamis, they began to freeze, "ICE AGE!"

In seconds the tsunamis turned into walls of solid ice. Aokiji wasn't done. He took the initiative to conjure up spears of ice and launch them at Whitebeard. Whitebeard just snorted, "You little rascal."

The next moment, Whitebeard punched the air causing it to shatter. His attack completely destroyed Aokiji's ice spears and knocked him back. Aokiji fell toward the sea and made no effort to stop himself. As he landed on the water it instantly began to freeze. His ice spread fast until it covered the entire bay of Marineford and even extended out the opening to surround some of the island.

Markus decided now was time to make his appearance but first, he pulled out his two crates of fruit and hide them in a corner by the stairs leading to the top of the figurehead. With a flashy show of lightning, he moved from his spot below the figurehead to a little to the side of Whitebeard. His sudden appearance caused a wave of shock to travel through the Marines.

"Th-that's Thunder Beast Markus!"

"What's he doing here?!"

"Is he an ally of Whitebeard?!"

Seeing Markus caused Sengoku to grit his teeth. No one could have expected that Markus would show up right next to Whitebeard. Defeating Whitebeard and his men would be hard enough as it was. Adding Markus into the mix made things exponentially harder. After all, Markus was a man who could singlehandedly stop a Buster Call and send ten Vice Admirals running for their lives. Markus stood on the figurehead and looked directly at Sengoku. It was time for him to start throwing wrenches, "So, you're Sengoku, eh? I'm not impressed."

His words caused an uproar among the Marines. Markus could practically hear Sengoku grinding his teeth in annoyance. Markus wasn't finished though, "But, out of the kindness of my heart, I'm going to give you two choices. First, release Ace unharmed before kneeling down and begging for forgiveness from Whitebeard and Ace for daring to touch him."

Again, his words caused outrage among the Marines. Akainu looked absolutely furious and ready to blow at any moment. Kizaru, he just had a stupid look on his face. Aokiji looked concerned and wary. He hadn't forgotten what Markus had done to him with relative ease and it didn't take a genius to figure out that Markus was even stronger now. Truly, the rate at which Markus grew astounded Aokiji.

Tired of the screaming from the Marine lackeys, Markus took a deep breath and shouted while amplifying his voice, "SHUT UP! I'M NOT FINISHED YET!"

His powerful voice silenced the Marines, if for no other reason than shock at how loudly he shouted. Markus focused on Sengoku once again, "Your second choice is to watch, helpless, as the Marines suffer the worst defeat in their history under your hands. Whatever tricks, plans, or strategies you have... I will destroy them all! Whichever path you chose, you will be the one to lose the most! This I swear on my life!"

All of the Marines were furious. Insults came flying from their mouths toward Markus, but he simply ignored them. Sengoku's hands curled into tight fists as veins throbbed on his forehead, "What right does a little rookie like you have to dictate terms to me?!"

"Right?" Markus grinned, "Let me show you my right."

Markus finally turned his attention away from Sengoku and looked at the last four remaining Shichibukai. It was his first time seeing two of them and they drew his attention. The first was a person that Markus despised, Donquixote Doflamingo, aka Mingo. Mingo was tall, ten feet tall, with light blonde hair and a very lean and muscular body. He dressed flamboyantly, his pink feather coat was beyond gaudy.

Not too far away from Mingo stood the only other Shichibukai present that he hadn't met, Boa Hancock. Markus had to admit, Hancock was drop-dead gorgeous. Tall, slender, excellent proportions, a slender waist, and a large bust. She was a bit tall, at a little over six feet, with long black hair down past her waist with fringes on the side of her face to frame it. For a microsecond, he was a bit jealous of Luffy, but then he remembered her attitude and it was gone.

The other two Shichibukai were people that Markus had previously met, Dracule "Hawk-Eyes" Mihawk and Bartholomew Kuma. Though at this point, Kuma's mind had been destroyed and he was nothing more than a Pacifista. As Markus looked at them, sparks flashed on his hands as he withdrew two objects from his inventory. One large, a cannonball, and one small, a bullet. Thick streams of electricity began to erupt from his body as he charged his Railgun to full capacity on both pieces of ammunition.

At the same time, he coated both objects with the most powerful layer of Armament Haki he was capable of at the moment. The next instant, there was a massive sonic boom as two streaks of red light flew through the air. The cannonball produced a much larger visible streak and hid the much smaller trail of the bullet. Not that it mattered. The two projectiles, powered by a level 63 Railgun Skill, traveled at multiple times the speed projectiles had when he shot Aokiji.

In microseconds, the projectiles reached their targets simultaneously. The first projectile, the cannonball, was aimed directly at Kuma and slammed into his chest right in the center of the crosshair shaped design. The cannonball struck Kuma with so much force that the shockwave of the impact could be felt throughout the entire island. Kuma's exoskeleton was crushed, his internals were crushed, and his body was bent over the cannonball as it carried him through the air. He flew over the heads of the Marines and slammed into the Main Building of the Marine Headquarters behind him. His journey didn't stop there as the force of the blow violently pushed him through the wall and carried him for a great distance while destroying everything in his path.

At the same moment that the cannonball struck Kuma, the bullet found it's intended victim, Mingo. No matter how advanced one's Observation Haki was if they couldn't see the future there was simply no way to dodge the shot fired by Markus. No matter how little time it took for their brain to register the threat, it still took time. It then took even more time to formulate a counter. Lastly, it took time to initiate that counter, whatever it might be. The microseconds from the moment Markus fired to the moment the bullet arrived in front of Mingo was simply far too little time for anyone to react. Not even Markus could react to it, in his base state.

Just as Kuma was inevitably hit with the cannonball, Mingo was struck by the bullet. A small hole opened up in his forehead, right between his eyes. The next instant the back of his head exploded as the bullet easily passed through his body. The resistance Mingo's head provided against the shot was minimal as the bullet continued to fly. The small bullet's kinetic energy was monstrous as it blasted its way through the Marinford base. Every time it struck a wall it caused more and more damage to pile up as it dragged more debris behind it. When all was said and done, that little bullet had blasted an ever-widening trench of destruction through the entire length of the island.

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You have defeated Bartholomew Kuma (PX-0), +350,000 experience.

You have leveled up! Hit Points and Willpower fully restored. You have gained 5 attribute points.

You have killed Donquixote Doflamingo, +550,000 experience.

You have leveled up! Hit Points and Willpower fully restored. You have gained 5 attribute points.

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There was absolute silence as the scene of two Shichibukai being instantly demolished along with large chunks of their base sank into the minds of the Marines. Markus lowered his hands and turned his attention back to Sengoku, "I think I've proven my right to speak, don't you?"

It didn't take an ounce of Markus's ability to detect emotions to know just how furious Sengoku was at that moment. His red face and throbbing forehead vein said it all. Not only did Markus wipe out two Shichibukai in an instant, he did so live to all the reporters watching over on Sabaody through the video Den Den Mushi. While Sengoku raged silently, Whitebeard looked over at Markus from the corner of his eyes, "Gurarara, not bad, kid."

Markus smiled and shook his head, "I might have power but..." He looked at the top of one of the frozen tsunami waves, "Wait until you meet my captain. He's stronger than me, in a different way."

Markus's statement intrigued Whitebeard but before they could continue their conversation, Sengoku shouted, "BOMBARD THEM!! DESTROY THE MOBY DICK! DESTROY THEM ALL!!"

Markus sighed, "So that's your answer, Sengoku? I gave you a chance..."

Electricity ripped out of Markus's body and burned the surface of the whale figurehead. He thrust his right hand out launching a small ball of dark purple electricity into the air. At the same time the cannons fired, the ball exploded into a wide net of electricity that created a dome around the entire interior of the bay. Markus had launched his Electro-Repulsive Net with half of his Willpower.

As the cannonballs collided with the net, they froze in the air for a brief moment before they were repulsed. Every cannonball fired returned on the exact opposite trajectory with more than double the force they were fired with. Explosions rang out constantly as the cannons that fired on the pirates were obliterated with their own cannonballs. Markus lowered his hand and shouted over the noise, "WRONG CHOICE SENGOKU! NOW YOU HAVE NO ONE TO BLAME BUT YOURSELF!"

Sengoku was taken aback by what he was seeing. It was one thing to read a report about what happened at Enies Lobby, it was another to see it in person. As the Marines screamed in a panic over the deflected cannonballs, the Whitebeard pirates cheered loudly. They began leaping off of their ships onto the ice to charge toward the Marine base.

Markus wasn't done. He felt a little bad for the marines so he planned to do his best to kill as few as possible. However, this was war and it was impossible to prevent casualties on either side. Markus crossed his arms horizontally over his chest, much like Whitebeard had done, as more and more arcs of electricity flew off of his body. With a shout, he swung his arms open. A massive wave of rippling, screeching, electricity flew from his arms as he launched a Lightning Blast with the equivalent of nearly seven thousand Willpower pumped into it.

The lightning started out as thick bolts but rapidly split up into thousands of smaller ones. They scattered through the air and passed harmlessly through his net. Thousands of lightning bolts struck into the massive crowd of Marines. Every bolt found and target and struck in the blink of an eye. Markus might not be able to move at his full speed of 220 million miles per hour, but his attacks could!

Without being able to respond, thousands of Marines were stuck by millions of volts each. Markus had focused on amping up his voltage and keeping the amperage from going too high. His goal was to paralyze as many as he could but it was inevitable that many of the much weaker Marines would die from the attack.

Horror filled the Marines that managed to not get attacked as thousands of their companions fell to the ground smoking and incapable of fighting anymore. Sengoku's eyes were wide in shock as so many troops got taken out so easily without a single casualty on the pirate's side. Meanwhile, Markus was grinning brilliantly as he constantly heard notifications for defeating Marines and leveling up. His Willpower was instantly refilled.

With that power at his disposal, Markus crossed his arms once again and built up even more power for his second attack. After the first attack, the Admirals weren't just going to sit back and let it happen. When they saw Markus charging up for a second attack, they all moved at once.

Kizaru transformed into light and charged at the net of electricity. Akainu transformed his arms into magma and began launching a barrage of magma fists at the net. Aokiji launched himself into the air and conjured dozens of ice spears that he launched directly at Markus. Seeing this only made Markus smirk, "Fools."

As Markus threw his arms open and launched a wave of electricity with power equivalent to nearly 14,000 Willpower, Kizaru slammed into his Electro-Repulsive net and stopped as the electricity trapped him. As the wave of electricity began to strike Marines, Akainu's lava fists suffered the same fate as Kizaru's body. While tens of thousands of bolts struck Marines and removed them from the fight, Aokiji's spears hit the net and came to a complete stop.

Tens of thousands of Marines fell as the Admirals were unable to do anything to stop it. Kizaru was by far the most confused out of the three of them. His body had been stopped by the net and that should have been impossible! He didn't have much time to think about it before a powerful force ejected his body from the net and sent him crashing violently into the buildings behind him. Akainu's rage grew to extremes as he watched his own magma fists repelled by the barrier and crashing down into the marines. Aokiji's attack was the lighter of the two but it too caused damage to the Marines as they were reflected, to great effect.

As notifications once more rang in his ears and his level rose, Markus crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the Marines with pure condescension. Of course, he wasn't stupid enough to not prepare for them to do something! He'd happily added Armament Haki to his net to prevent Logia users from simply passing through it! If the Admirals had bothered to get off their high horses and use Haki to attack the net, they might have been able to break through it. Though, that required their Haki to be stronger than his own!

As his experience finished rolling in, Markus threw his head back and laughed loudly. He'd taken out somewhere around 45,000 of the 100,000 Marines at Marineford in moments. Tens of millions of experience points came rolling in as his level grew explosively. He was laughing because of the sheer power he felt flowing through his veins. His laughter echoed over the, once again, silent battlefield.

Sengoku was horrified. Whitebeard was already a monster in his own right but now there were two monsters he had to face at once! They had underestimated the Thunder Beast, massively. The price for their mistake was clear as day in front of him. Almost half of his troops had been taken out and it hadn't even been five minutes since the war started! The sound of Markus's laughter drove him the point that Markus still wasn't even taking them seriously!

Akainu was boiling with rage, literally, as he looked hatefully at Markus. This was supposed to be a moment of glory for the Marines. They would finally take down one of the Yonko and show their absolute justice to the world! Yet, one BOY had thrown a massive wrench in their plans and shown the world, live, that a single man could stand up to the full might of the Marines and laugh in their faces! Akainu was determined. Not only did Whitebeard need to die but Markus needed to join the old man in hell!

Markus finished laughing and calmed himself, he couldn't let all his power go to his head. That was a sure way to get himself killed. He took a deep breath and looked in the direction of Mihawk. As they locked eyes over the distance, Markus called out to him, "Mihawk! I give you a choice in honor of my friend Zoro. Leave now in peace, or suffer the same fate as that dead pink fool laying on the ground next to you."

Mihawk's eyes narrowed as he stared at Markus. Even he hadn't realized what happened to Mingo until it was far too late. If Markus chose to use a similar method of attack against him, could he protect himself? His thoughts raced as he tried to decide what to do. His pride told him to ignore Markus's threat and attack the little bastard. He wasn't afraid of death, he'd been prepared to die since the moment he picked up a sword. However, he wanted to die in a battle against a strong opponent as their blades clashed violently. He did not want to die in the way Doflamingo had. If he knew that Markus was just bluffing to get him to leave his decision would be much simpler.

Markus watched Mihawk closely. He could feel his emotions fluctuating and hoped Mihawk chose to retreat from a losing battle to fight another day. He wasn't a Marine and with there being only two Shichibukai left, what did the position matter anymore? Markus hoped Mihawk chose to leave, he still wanted him to teach Zoro on his island and make his friend stronger.

Time seemed to drag on for an eternity before Mihawk's eyes hardened. His decision was made and he was going to stay. Markus sighed in defeat as Mihawk gripped his sword, Yoru, tightly and drew it from his sheath to send a powerful flying slash at Markus's electrical net. Markus looked over at Whitebeard, "Well, I tried. I got other things to take care of to help out. I leave the next bit up to you and your boys."

Before Whitebeard could make a comment, Markus was coated in electricity and vanished from sight. He had more important things to do than tangle with Mihawk or the three Admirals. His first step, taking out the small army of Pacifista's hiding nearby before they could cause any damage. As he left the figurehead of the Moby Dick, his net disintegrated and the war was really on between the Whitebeard Pirates and the Marines left standing.