Chapter 258
Chapter 258
"You’re that legendary super rookie who has now become the Fifth Emperor — ’Golden Lion II’ Rorschach, right?"
"You’re really similar to that old man. Just as reckless, coming here alone to join this war. Are you that confident in your own strength?"
Shanks turned his head toward Rorschach. His expression was relatively friendly, and his tone carried a hint of surprise.
Rorschach had always been a mysterious and unpredictable figure. Since his debut, no one had been able to track his sailing route. On top of that, his actions were far from ordinary — the incident at Sabaody Archipelago alone proved he wasn’t the type to stay out of trouble.
Moreover, he was extremely strategic. Every move he made had a clear purpose; he never acted without reason.
(Rorschach: Have I? I didn’t notice.)
Shanks glanced at the black box beside Rorschach. Whitebeard’s body was inside, wasn’t it?
With his sharp eyesight, he immediately recognized that the box was made of seastone. Was Rorschach’s goal in coming here to obtain Whitebeard’s corpse?
But what use would that even have?
Shanks couldn’t quite figure it out.
"The title of super rookie doesn’t suit me. I just came to join the fun. As for strength... I wouldn’t say I’m particularly confident."
Rorschach replied casually, sounding almost modest to anyone who didn’t know him.
"No. Being able to hold off Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Hero Garp by yourself means your strength has already reached the pinnacle of this world. You might even be stronger than me."
Shanks refuted him.
He was genuinely happy that such a powerful newcomer had appeared on the seas.
This was exactly what Captain Roger had hoped for.
The stronger the new generation became, the more likely the captain’s wish would be fulfilled.
"I wouldn’t dare claim that. I only wanted to join the excitement. As for strength, I can’t say I’m confident or anything."
Rorschach spoke in a relaxed tone. To those who didn’t know him, he sounded quite humble.
"No. Anyone who can single-handedly stall both Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Hero Garp has already reached the top of this world. You might even be stronger than I am."
Shanks countered.
He was truly pleased that such a powerful newcomer had appeared on the seas.
This was exactly what Captain Roger had hoped to see.
The stronger the new generation became, the greater the chance of fulfilling the captain’s wish.
"Could I ask everyone here to give me some face?"
"Would you be willing to hand over Whitebeard’s body? We’ll handle his funeral."
"The images of this war have already been broadcast across the entire world. I won’t allow anyone to defile their deaths any further."
Shanks looked at Rorschach with a sharp gaze.
In response, Rorschach opened the black box and took out Whitebeard’s body.
His sharp eyes had already noticed that one of the fruits inside the box had changed.
Whitebeard’s corpse was no longer useful to him. Handing it over to Shanks to hold a proper funeral was fine. He had no interest in dealing with such matters.
"Then I’ll leave it to you. It saves me the trouble. I’ve already fulfilled that old man’s dying wish. You can handle the rest."
Using the Float-Float Fruit, Rorschach made Whitebeard’s body float toward Shanks.
A living body couldn’t be moved with the Float-Float Fruit’s power, but a dead one could.
This scene also confirmed Whitebeard’s death for Sengoku and the others watching.
"What are you deciding on your own?! Whitebeard’s body, along with the heads of Fire Fist Ace and Straw Hat Luffy — we’re taking all of them. We’ll display them publicly."
"Only then can this be called a complete victory for the Marines."
Doberman, a Headquarters Vice Admiral and a staunch hawk within the Marines, spoke up firmly.
Having fought in countless battles and being one of the Marines’ core pillars, he wasn’t afraid of Shanks — especially here at Marine Headquarters.
"It’s fine."
However, Sengoku spoke up at that moment to stop him.
"Fleet Admiral!"
Doberman and several other Marines turned around in surprise.
"Just hand it over, Red-Hair."
"Fleet Admiral, if we do that..."
"It doesn’t matter. I’ll take responsibility."
Faced with their concerns, Sengoku spoke calmly.
He then looked toward Shanks and continued.
"You were able to protect the son of evil, Ace, once. But you can’t protect him forever, can you? One day, we will capture him and execute him again — to show the entire world the strength of the Marines."
Shanks lowered his head slightly with his eyes closed, as if offering thanks, then replied:
"Thank you. If he really gets captured again, then that’s simply his fate. Ace has his own will. I can’t control it. If he’s captured again, I won’t interfere. That’s my promise to you."
Hearing this, Sengoku nodded.
Shanks’ identity was somewhat complicated, and Sengoku knew a little about it.
It was connected to the Five Elders.
That was why he chose to end the war at this moment.
"The war is over!"
Sengoku shouted loudly, his voice echoing across the entire battlefield.
The Marines cheered.
The medical units also began moving in to treat the surviving Marine soldiers.
However, there was one group that was trembling with fear.
It was the remaining members of Blackbeard’s crew.
Blackbeard Teach was currently unconscious.
The others were enemies to both Shanks, the Marines, and Rorschach.
Their current situation was extremely bad.
"This doesn’t look good... Did I make the wrong choice?"
Shiryu was sweating nervously. He glanced at the unconscious Blackbeard on the ground and muttered regretfully.
"Teach..."
Shanks also noticed the unconscious Blackbeard and murmured to himself.
He had always felt that this man was extremely ambitious, but he never expected him to be defeated by Rorschach here.
And it looked like he was taken down without even injuring Rorschach. This gave Shanks a much deeper understanding of Rorschach’s strength.
"Shiryu... It’s time we settled our score."
Sengoku and Garp slowly approached with a group of soldiers.
This made the pirates who had just escaped from Impel Down even more nervous.
They had just escaped that hellhole. The last thing they wanted was to go back.
"Captain! Wake up!"
Burgess shook Blackbeard’s body violently, but the man remained unconscious.
"Damn it."
Burgess turned around to face the Marines.
At that moment, Rorschach suddenly made a move. He directly grabbed "Crescent Moon Hunter" Catarina Devon.
He showed no mercy — her long nose was broken as he grabbed her by the head.
"It hurts! It hurts! Let go of me!"
Catarina Devon cried out in pain.
No matter how hard she struggled, the hand gripping her face remained locked like an iron clamp.
"I’ll take this one. Do what you want with the others."
Rorschach spoke in a calm tone.
However, his actions caused everyone else’s expressions to turn strange.
They all knew that Rorschach was extremely fond of women.
Now he was taking Catarina Devon... Was he planning to do that with her?
But Catarina Devon looked rather... rough. Could it be that Rorschach was into this kind of thing?
Boa Hancock was so jealous that she bit down on her sleeve, her eyes turning blood-red with killing intent.
"Why... Why her? Is this Empress not good enough? Why would you choose such an ugly woman?"
Hancock muttered jealously.
Of course, Rorschach heard every word. No matter how quietly Hancock spoke, with his Observation Haki, it sounded like she was shouting right next to his ear.
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