Thatch left to clear away the dishes, while Teach lay on the bow with his eyes closed, digesting his meal.
Whoosh!
Marco descended from the sky in his full phoenix form.
“Wow!
You two had a feast this early in the morning!” Marco complained.
“We’ll call you next time,” Teach said casually.
“That’s more like it…” “You went flying around so early.
Did you find something?” Teach asked.
Flying around every day had already become a habit for Marco.
The freedom of flight was truly addictive.
Teach suspected that Marco had discovered something.
Otherwise, he would not have landed beside him.
If nothing unusual had happened, Marco would have rushed straight to the dining hall, afraid that arriving late would leave him with nothing but leftovers.
“Yes.
There’s a pirate ship approaching from directly ahead.” “They seem to be fleeing for their lives.
The ship is covered in burn marks, and magma is still dripping from it,” Marco said gravely.
“Magma?
Is it that monster from the Marines’ new generation?” Teach asked.
“Mm.
It must be him!
I can’t stay and talk.
I need to inform Pops immediately.” Marco took off again.
“This is really troublesome,” Teach muttered.
Neither Teach nor Marco feared the future Marine Admiral, Sakazuki.
Although Sakazuki was currently stronger than both of them, if they joined forces and fought him to the death without retreating, they would probably still be beaten to death.
Escaping, however, would be possible, especially since Marco could fly.
Even though they could not defeat him, neither of them was afraid because Whitebeard was there.
Sakazuki was not yet thirty.
Whitebeard could easily suppress him at his current age.
At most, Sakazuki could rely on his elemental transformation to stall for time and barely preserve his life.
What they feared was the possible presence of a Marine Admiral.
They were currently deep within the New World, with no Marine base anywhere in the surrounding seas.
In this desolate region, far from civilization, if Sakazuki encountered danger, no one could arrive in time to support him.
No one trained a promising young Marine by throwing him alone into the depths of the New World before he had fully matured.
That would be no different from murder, and no one in the Marines would dare to do it.
Under these circumstances, if Sakazuki had appeared here, then an Admiral was undoubtedly accompanying him.
Everyone except the crew members required at their posts had gathered on the deck.
“Whitebeard, are Admirals really that terrifying?
Do we need to be this tense?” Oden asked in confusion.
He now possessed a basic understanding of the powers of the Grand Line and was certain that Whitebeard stood among the very strongest.
“Marine Admirals are known as the highest fighting force of the Marines and the World Government.
Their strength must never be underestimated.” “Even I wouldn’t dare claim that I could defeat an Admiral with absolute certainty,” Whitebeard explained seriously.
Whitebeard was being modest.
He might not be able to kill an Admiral, but he could defeat one.
The problem was that it would take far too long—possibly several days.
During that time, any accident could change the outcome.
A sudden shift in the weather might lead to his defeat, or both sides could lose to the sea and die together in an unexpected disaster.
Unless absolutely necessary, even Whitebeard, who was tacitly regarded as the strongest, was unwilling to clash with a Marine Admiral.
They were called the Marines’ highest fighting force for a reason.
Some people might be stronger than an Admiral, but never to the point of completely overwhelming one.
An Admiral might encounter an opponent they could not defeat, but there was no one they could not hold back.
Against any enemy, they could stall for several days.
That would give the Marines or the World Government more than enough time to send reinforcements and establish a numerical advantage.
Therefore, the Admirals’ reputation as the Marines’ highest fighting force—and as an effectively invincible power within the organization—was true to a certain extent.
As long as the Marines did not abandon an Admiral, that Admiral could not truly lose.
They only needed to endure until a continuous stream of reinforcements arrived.
“Pops, what should we do?” Vista asked nervously.
Whitebeard considered the situation for a moment before answering in a deep voice.
“Full speed ahead.
We’ll avoid the approaching Marines if possible!” “Once Marco returns, if we can’t avoid them, then we fight!
I want to see who dares venture this deep into the New World!” The vast Marines could immediately recruit replacements whenever they lost personnel, but the Whitebeard Pirates could not accept losing even one member of their family.
More importantly, there was nothing to gain from fighting the Marines.
Even if they won, they would receive no benefits and would still have to worry about being targeted afterward.
Losing would be even worse.
The Marines would press their advantage and pursue them, while rival pirates might seize the opportunity to attack them in their weakened state.
The Moby Dick accelerated at full speed, veering away from that stretch of sea.
Everyone aboard remained on high alert.
Cannons were pushed into suitable firing positions, and crates of cannonballs were stacked nearby.
They were prepared to fight if escape proved impossible.
For now, they could only wait for Marco to return from his aerial reconnaissance and decide what to do based on his report.
Oden wiped his two Great Grade Blades with a clean white cloth.
Whitebeard held Murakumogiri and adjusted his condition.
If a battle broke out, he would bear the greatest pressure, both physically and mentally.
He would have to suppress the Admiral who might appear while also protecting any of his sons who fell into danger.
“Teach, are you nervous?” Whitebeard asked, looking down at the son beside him in whom he had placed such great hopes.
“Yes!” Teach admitted it readily, then grinned.
“But although I’m nervous, I’m not afraid!
My ambition is to become the strongest!” “Gurararara!
Well said!” Whitebeard stepped forward and stood at the bow.
His Observation Haki detected two approaching ships.
The more distant vessel was comparable in size to the Moby Dick—another enormous sailing ship.
That settled it.
An Admiral was approaching.
Whitebeard simply did not know which one.
At their current distance, there was a nine-in-ten chance that escape was already impossible.
If he could sense their ship, then they could almost certainly sense the Moby Dick as well.
“Pops!” The phoenix descended from the sky.
“It’s Black Arm Zephyr!” Marco wasted no time and delivered the most important information clearly.
“And that’s not all.
The now-famous Rear Admiral Akainu is with him.
I didn’t see any Vice Admirals.” “Zephyr?
Is he training the new generation?” Whitebeard muttered.
Whitebeard had also heard about the shocking murder of the Admiral’s wife and child.
At the time, he had lamented that truly good people rarely met good ends.
The situation was now clear.
After suffering that tragedy, Zephyr had not resigned from his position as Admiral, but he had accepted almost no missions in recent years.
Even when a mission required an Admiral, the Marines generally would not send him.
Most likely, Zephyr had specifically brought Sakazuki into the New World aboard his Admiral’s warship to help him adapt to its style of combat.
“Stand back.
I’ll give Black Arm a welcoming gift first!” Although Whitebeard respected the man’s character, their positions were fundamentally opposed.
He would not hold back!
Whitebeard tightened his grip around Murakumogiri and adjusted his breathing, the muscles across his body subtly shifting.
He waited only for Zephyr to reveal himself before unleashing a ferocious attack.