One Piece : Glory To The Fleet Admiral

Chapter 488: Farewell, Father!

Under the global broadcast, the cherry blossom grove on Sphinx Island appeared as beautiful as a painting.

Orion and Whitebeard sitting on the ground seemed not like mortal enemies, but rather old friends reunited after years apart.

The eyes of the entire world focused on this tranquility through countless screens.

Whitebeard set down the enormous empty barrel he had been drinking from.

He rose slowly, his massive frame resembling a waking volcano.

The mere act of standing caused the ground beneath him to tremble slightly.

Then, he grasped his naginata planted in the earth, and an overwhelming aura erupted from within him, making the cloak behind him - symbolizing an entire era - flutter violently in the wind.

Countless viewers before their screens, even through the broadcast, seemed to feel that suffocating pressure.

Following this, Whitebeard threw his head back and unleashed his signature hearty laughter.

"Gurarararara!"

"The Fleet Admiral himself comes to see off this remnant of the old era! I've not lived in vain!"

"Come then, Fleet Admiral Orion! Let us battle to our hearts' content!"

"Gladly!" Orion responded without the slightest hesitation, immediately rising to his feet and grasping the hilt at his waist.

With a clear ring of steel, his blade left its sheath in one fluid motion.

Centered around Orion, the invisible three-color Haki instantly transformed into a tangible domain, the air around him distorted, and cherry blossom petals entering his Haki Domain were instantly pulverized into dust.

"Hmm? Is this Conqueror's Haki?" Whitebeard's pupils contracted. "No, it's not just Conqueror's Haki. You've actually mastered the three types of Haki and created a Haki Domain!"

Despite his words, he showed no fear, instead his fighting spirit burned brighter.

Gripping his naginata with one hand, he formed his other hand into a fist, veins bulging along his arm as he punched forward into the empty air before him.

"CRACK—"

Space shattered like glass.

He unleashed the full power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, a pure white shockwave tearing through the earth as it carried world-shattering force straight toward Orion.

Yet the terrifying seismic wave capable of overturning islands and tearing apart everything in its path, upon entering the invisible realm around Orion, vanished like clay oxen entering the sea - disappearing without a trace, silently neutralized.

"What?!"

This scene drew cries of alarm from the Whitebeard Pirates' division commanders.

Whitebeard himself was profoundly shaken, yet his assault never ceased.

Raising his naginata high, he brought it down with full force upon Orion's head!

This single strike held power enough to shatter heaven and earth, stirring the seas into hundred-meter tidal waves.

Yet Orion merely stood his ground calmly, not even raising his blade to defend himself.

The naginata enveloped in a white halo, at the very moment it was about to touch his forehead, was once again blocked by that invisible domain.

The blade halted mid-air, unable to advance even an inch further.

The destructive power triggered by the Tremor-Tremor Fruit was completely suppressed by Orion's Haki Domain, leaving no trace of its force.

Not only did it fail to cause earthquakes or tsunamis, but even the slightest tremor failed to manifest.

"Gurararara…"

Witnessing this silent and eerie scene, Whitebeard suddenly laughed.

"So that's how it is. A Haki Domain developed through the three types of Haki truly lives up to the reputation of the ultimate power standing at the world's peak!"

Orion nodded lightly. "Without invincible strength, how would I dare to arrogantly claim to end the Great Pirate Era?"

Hearing this and realizing that his Devil Fruit ability had become meaningless within this domain, Whitebeard abandoned its use. Instead, he channeled all the Armament and Conqueror's Haki he had honed over his lifetime into his naginata, transforming it into pure, unadulterated power, and pressed down with immense force!

Orion finally moved.

He raised the longsword in his hand and met the attack with effortless ease.

There was no earth-shattering roar, only a crisp clang of collision.

At the instant the two supreme-grade swords crossed, their extreme forces imploded inward before violently erupting outward.

An indescribable, terrifying power surged back along the naginata in an instant.

Whitebeard's pupils contracted sharply.

He wanted to evade, but it was already too late.

He could only watch helplessly as the overwhelming force enveloped him.

The next second, his massive body was sent flying as if struck by a cannonball.

With a thunderous crash, he shattered the boundary of the cherry blossom forest, tumbling and rolling until he landed heavily on the open ground before Marco and the others.

The earth collapsed, forming a massive crater.

The shockwave that spread out sent Marco, Jozu, Vista, and all the other division commanders flying, leaving them sprawled on the ground in disarray.

"How is this possible! He defeated Oyaji with just one move—"

Everyone's expressions shifted drastically as they watched Whitebeard struggling to rise from the crater, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

"Bastard! Let's attack together!" Diamond Jozu roared, ready to charge forward.

"That's right! We'll fight him to the death!"

The division commanders' eyes burned crimson, unable to accept that their invincible Oyaji had been defeated so easily.

"All of you, stand down!"

A weak yet still authoritative shout came from the depths of the crater.

At Whitebeard's command, everyone halted. Marco and several other commanders instantly flashed to his side.

Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Whitebeard glanced at his sons' faces, full of worry and grief, and a gentle smile appeared on his weathered face.

Then, he spread his arms and tightly embraced Marco, Jozu, and the others who had rushed to his side.

Before Marco and the others could react, Whitebeard's voice rang clearly in their ears:

"Though the sea is vast, there will always be a shore to dock at."

Whitebeard's voice was no longer as boisterous as before but carried the unique warmth of a father.

"My sons, Sphinx is the shore where you must dock."

After a brief pause, Whitebeard released them and stood upright.

He patted Marco's shoulder, and his familiar, hearty laughter resounded once more.

"Gurararara!"

Amidst roaring laughter, Whitebeard turned and spread his arms wide, fully exposing his defenseless chest to the young Fleet Admiral who was steadily approaching with a blade from the cherry blossom grove.

"Come, Orion!"

"In my decades traversing the Grand Line, my back has never borne a single wound from fleeing!"

Orion continued his advance without pause. He respected this king of the old era, and thus would grant him the most dignified curtain call.

In a flash, Orion materialized before Whitebeard.

"It ends here, Whitebeard!"

As the words rang out, Orion decisively raised his blade and delivered a clean, powerful slash across Whitebeard's broad chest.

The longsword fell, blood spraying through the air.

After the single decisive strike, Orion smoothly sheathed his blade and looked up at the towering figure now enveloped in a crimson mist rising from his chest.

"Gurararara~"

Whitebeard, arms still spread wide as blood mist swirled from his chest, released his trademark hearty laugh.

"Orion, you brat, you believe One Piece truly exists, don't you?!"

The sudden mention of One Piece caught everyone watching the live broadcast completely off guard, their eyes widening in anticipation of how Orion—the most powerful and influential young Fleet Admiral in naval history—would respond.

Orion nodded, then dropped a bombshell.

"Of course One Piece truly exists!"

The declaration instantly sent shockwaves across the world.

Whether ordinary citizens across the Grand Line and the Four Seas, naval officers and soldiers at their bases, or pirates following the broadcast—all were stunned into wide-eyed disbelief before plunging into unprecedented chaos.

The Fleet Admiral actually believed One Piece was real?

The most shocked were Saturn, Warcury, and Nusjuro in the Chamber of Authority.

Even Sengoku paused his rice cracker chewing, while Zephyr's eyes snapped open abruptly.

"Damn it, what is Orion doing!" Saturn was the first to stand, staring incredulously at the young Fleet Admiral on screen.

"We've given him authority over the World Government—why would he say such a thing?"

"Is Orion trying to shatter the delicate balance we've maintained?" Nusjuro also rose from his seat, gripping his sword hilt tightly, his gaze sharp.

Similarly, in the Flower Room, Gunko and Imu were caught completely off guard, their attention fixed on the screen before them.

"How could Orion-sama... how could he acknowledge One Piece's existence?" Gunko's voice trembled with anxiety.

"Imu-sama, what's happening?"

Though Imu hadn't anticipated Orion's acknowledgment of One Piece, she showed no thunderous rage, her voice remaining calm.

"Why are you panicking? Are you worried Orion will break with me, or that you won't be able to stay by his side anymore?"

"Imu-sama, I—"

Before Gunko could finish, Orion's voice amplified through the broadcast.

"To me, One Piece is neither some great treasure nor the historical truth Roger's crew witnessed at Laugh Tale!"

"In my eyes, One Piece represents freedom and harmony—a world where people live in peace and contentment, where officials fulfill their duties and citizens contribute their strengths!"

"The people living in peace and prosperity? How truly enviable!" Whitebeard murmured.

Immediately after, he lowered his head slowly while still gripping his naginata.

Though the breath of life was rapidly fading from him, his eyes shone with a longing he had never known before.

A sudden sea wind swept across, lifting the cloak from Whitebeard's shoulders.

Edward Newgate, who had dominated the Grand Line for decades, drew the curtain on his long life with yearning for the new era!

Yet, even as all signs of life vanished, his legs remained rooted to the spot like solid rock.

The world fell into dead silence at that moment.

Whether it was the Whitebeard Pirates members on Sphinx Island or the people watching through live broadcasts worldwide, all widened their eyes in unison, gazing at that man who stood proudly unyielding even in death.

After a brief silence—

"OYAJIIIIII—"

Heart-wrenching cries erupted from the mouths of all the Whitebeard Pirates' division commanders and dozens of affiliated captains.

The next second, they rushed toward Whitebeard like madmen.

"Everyone, stop!"

Marco shouted with all his might, using every ounce of strength to halt them all.

Standing among the ranks, his legs trembled weakly, barely able to support him.

Tears had long blurred his vision, but he knew this was the ending Oyaji had chosen for himself.

After stopping everyone, he took a deep breath and silently stepped out from the crowd.

Step by step, he approached that still-imposing figure and heavily knelt to the ground.

Then, he bent forward, pressing his forehead deeply against the earth.

Suppressing the tearing grief in his heart, he mustered all his strength and hoarsely shouted.

"All members of the Whitebeard Pirates!"

"Bidding farewell to Oyaji—"

Hearing this, all the emotionally charged, weeping Whitebeard Pirates members behind him—whether commanders or ordinary crew—simultaneously dropped to their knees.

A sky-shaking chorus of sobs converged into a mournful wail that pierced the heavens.

"Bidding farewell to Oyaji!!"