Sailing: I was falsely accused of watching Nami bathe, but I'm blind.

Just as Ace's body was pierced by lava, and his life force was about to be extinguished like a candle in the wind, but had not yet completely dissipated;

Just as Luffy was witnessing this horrific scene, his mind went blank, and he was on the verge of a complete breakdown;

Just as everyone around, whether marines or pirates, was stunned by this sudden turn of events, their attention completely focused on Ace and Akainu, ignoring everything else...

Kai!

His Observation Haki, as precise as the most sophisticated instrument, keenly detected an extremely brief, fleeting, yet flawless opportunity to intervene!

This is the perfect moment! It's when Akainu has just delivered the fatal blow, his old strength exhausted and new strength yet to be generated, making him at his lowest point in terms of defense and vigilance!

It was also the moment when Ace was critically injured and his life force was about to be exhausted, but his heart was probably still beating for the last time!

It was a moment when everyone's attention (including Luffy, Akainu, and even the powerful figures around them) was drawn to the horrific scene before them, completely ignoring the potential threats from other directions!

It's now! ! !

In Kai's heart, the idea of ​​"necessary evil," which had been brewing for a long time and was filled with cold determination, erupted completely like a beast that had broken free of all its shackles!

He no longer hesitated! He no longer struggled!

He wants to... completely sever this causal link!

He wants to... put an end to this chaotic era of great piracy in his own way!

He wants to... make Straw Hat Luffy completely lose one of his most important pillars of support! To let him taste... the pain and despair of losing someone important!

All of this is "necessary"! It is the price that must be paid to establish that stronger and more stable "new order"!

Kai moved!

His figure, like a ghost, shot out silently from his carefully chosen, extremely well-hidden ambush point, not far from the center of the battlefield, at a speed beyond the limits of the naked eye!

He had already used his Observation Haki to simulate the maneuver countless times in his mind! He had planned the fastest, most concealed, and least detectable route of advance!

He used the smoke and dust on the battlefield, the aftershocks of explosions, and blind spots in the crowd's vision and perception as cover!

His footsteps were so light that they made no sound at all!

His aura was completely contained, as if it had merged into the dust in the air!

Even the slight airflow caused by his high-speed movement was smoothed out by his exquisite and domineering control!

He was like a... true messenger of death from the deepest hell!

Almost in the blink of an eye!

He appeared as if by teleportation... beside Ace, who was shielding Luffy with his body as his life was about to fade away!

The distance was so close! Even Akainu, who was right next to Luffy and had just withdrawn his Lava Fist, and Luffy, whose mind was blank and eyes were empty, did not react immediately!

then!

The "Tranquility" cane knife in Kai's hand, like the fangs of a viper, was silently drawn from its sheath!

The blade was covered with the most powerful, refined, and coldest Armament Haki he could currently muster! Its obsidian-like luster shimmered with a chilling light amidst the chaotic light!

Without the slightest hesitation! Without the slightest emotional fluctuation! Only... absolute calmness and... icy resolve!

Poof! ! !

A faint sound, almost drowned out by the noise of the battlefield, rang out—the sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh!

Kai's "Tranquility" staff-blade, at an extremely tricky and precise angle, with unparalleled penetrating power... pierced Ace's heart, which had already been severely injured by Akainu's Lava Fist, but might still be beating its last...!!

(Or perhaps, it flashed like lightning, severing Ace's carotid artery—in any case, delivering an absolutely fatal blow!)

His movements were lightning fast! The angles were incredibly tricky! And his timing was absolutely perfect!

Even Akainu and Luffy, who were right next to him, couldn't see (or rather, couldn't react) the black figure that appeared like a ghost, and that... cold blade stained with Ace's last blood!

Everything happened in the blink of an eye!

The complete end of a life.

The complete end of an era (at least in Kai's view).

And... the bloody beginning of a darker, more cruel, and more unpredictable new era!

Kai, in his own way, with this bloodstained slash, officially intervened in the Marineford War! And completely and irrevocably, he tied his fate to that of the Straw Hat crew, making them irreconcilable enemies!

Chapter 241: The Frozen Flame and the Shattered Heart

Time seemed to freeze completely the instant Kai's cold, merciless blade pierced Ace's heart.

All the noise, shouts, explosions, and collisions on the battlefield seemed to mysteriously disappear at this moment.

All that remained was a suffocating, deathly silence.

Kai could clearly "see" (perceive) that the final expression on Ace's face, which had been contorted in pain from being pierced by lava, was frozen in a kind of...unbelievable, mixed with excruciating pain and a hint of bewilderment.

His eyes, burning with flames, didn't look at Akainu or Luffy in their final light, but rather... with an incomprehensible confusion, they were cast upon the... the blind man who had suddenly appeared beside him, the one who had delivered the final fatal blow... a stranger who also seemed somewhat familiar.

Then, that life force, as intense as the sun, was extinguished quickly and completely, like a candle flame blown out by a gale.

Portgas D. Ace, the posthumous son of Gol D. Roger, the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, and the sworn brother of Straw Hat Luffy... fell in such an abrupt, cruel, and even ironically dark way before the execution platform at Marineford.

He did not die from execution by the navy.

He didn't die from Admiral Akainu's lava.

Instead, he died from the finishing blow of an unidentified, suddenly appearing "ghost"!

This sudden and completely unexpected turn of events plunged the entire battlefield into a...absurd stagnation.

Luffy, who was closest to the scene, seemed unable to fully focus his eyes, which had become empty and lifeless after witnessing his brother being pierced by lava, and he didn't seem to fully understand what had just happened.

He just stared blankly at the ever-expanding blood hole on Ace's body (the wound caused by the Kai knife), at the last glimmer of light in Ace's eyes, his entire brain... seemed to have completely stopped functioning.

Akainu, having just withdrawn his magma fist, still wore a cold smile on his face, as if he had landed a successful blow.

But when he saw Kai appear like a ghost and deliver that "extra" blow, his smile froze on his face! A fleeting look of...extreme surprise and...annoyance at having his "execution" pleasure interrupted flashed in his eyes? Who is this blind man?! Why did he do this?!

The Marines and Whitebeard Pirates members fighting nearby instinctively stopped what they were doing! They stared at the scene in disbelief! Ace... was dead?! Killed by that blind man?!

Meanwhile, people around the world who were watching the war through various means, and those who "saw" this scene through the Den Den Mushi (snail phone) broadcast, were completely shocked and in uproar!

"What just happened?!"

"Who is that blind man?! Why did he kill Fire Fist?!"

"Could he be... a secret weapon sent by the Navy?!"

"No! That's not right! He doesn't seem to be... a member of the Navy?"

Countless questions and speculations spread like wildfire across the globe, like a virus!

The instigator of all this chaos and shock—Kay—did not feel the expected sense of accomplishment or satisfaction of "performing justice" the moment he delivered the fatal blow.

There was only one kind of... cold, empty, numbness, as if some predetermined program had been completed.

He could clearly sense the moment when Ace's life force completely dissipated.

He could clearly sense Luffy's heart shattering in an instant, his spirit plunging into boundless darkness in despair.

He could clearly sense the countless gazes (perceptions) from all around him, filled with shock, anger, fear, hatred, and intense killing intent!

Especially those coming from the direction of the Whitebeard Pirates!

Marco! Jozu! Vista! And all the captains and members of the Whitebeard Pirates! Their overwhelming rage and killing intent, as if they wanted to devour him alive and grind his bones to dust, slammed into his senses like tangible hailstones!

He knew what his stab meant.

This means he has completely stood on the opposite side of the Whitebeard Pirates! He has become their mortal enemy!

This means that he has completely cemented his reputation as a "cold-blooded and ruthless" and "traitor"!

This means that he has completely pushed himself to the opposite side of the world!

But... he doesn't regret it.

This is the "path" he chose.

This is the price he must pay to achieve that "necessary evil" and to end this chaotic era of great piracy!

Although...deep down, there seemed to be a faint tremor, one that even he himself was unwilling to acknowledge...?

Perhaps it was because of... Ace's incomprehensible gaze before he died?

Perhaps it was because of... Luffy's sudden, shattering, deathly despair?

Perhaps it's because... he ultimately... personally ended the life of someone who had a brief (albeit negative) connection with him in the novel group 3 (part 2) jiu 1 9?

No! I can't think about these things!

Kai shook his head violently, forcibly dispelling these useless emotional fragments!

The most important thing right now is... evacuation!!!

He knew very well that his earth-shattering strike, while achieving its goal, had also completely exposed him to the sight of all the top-tier powerhouses! He had to leave immediately! Otherwise, he would face endless pursuit from both the Navy and the Whitebeard Pirates (and perhaps other forces)!

Almost at the same time as he drew the "Tranquility" staff, Kai's Observation Haki had already reached its peak! He didn't even look at (perceive) the reactions of the people around him; his body shot off like an arrow towards the most likely escape route that he had planned in advance!

However, he was fast, but someone was faster than him!

"asshole--!!!"

A fierce roar, filled with endless anger and grief, like the cry of a phoenix piercing blood, resounded!