One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

But whenever people thought of Luo Xia, their enthusiasm and excitement would vanish as if doused with ice water.

Can Luffy really defeat that Demon King?

No matter how unwilling they were, there was nothing they could do.

While Sanji and the others were in a daze, they suddenly heard a series of thunderous cheers coming from ahead.

The enormous noise woke them up.

Looking up, I saw that on the main street of Rogge Town ahead, shopkeepers and pedestrians on both sides of the road were waving and cheering, wondering what joyous occasion had occurred.

Sanji even saw several marines laughing and excitedly hugging passersby.

"what happened?"

He looked at Luffy and Issho, who were walking at the front, with a puzzled expression.

Then Sanji noticed that Luffy, who was carrying Barto's ice coffin, was trembling. He smiled silently, with a hint of guilt in his expression.

Sanji was puzzled and listened carefully. When he heard the cheers from the people in Loguetown, he, like Nami, Usopp, Chopper, Robin, Franky, and the others, froze on the spot.

"Whoa! That damned Bartolomeo is finally dead! Thank goodness! God has eyes!"

"I'm going to throw a banquet to celebrate this! Ever since Lord Smoker left the East Blue, that bastard has been bullying civilians everywhere, treating us cruelly if we don't pay protection money! That damned cannibal, all he knows is bullying his own people, now he's getting his comeuppance as a pirate, serves him right!"

"I heard it was Enel, the Thor from the G5 branch, who killed him! Long live the Thor! Long live the G5 branch! Long live the hero Rorschach!"

"How come the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates didn't die? That Straw Hat Luffy is a disgrace to the East Blue! How could he recruit a beast like Barto the Cannibal into his crew? I originally thought they were a group of kind pirates, but now it seems they're all birds of a feather!"

"By the way, I heard that the Straw Hat Pirates' captain is named Monkey D. Luffy. Do you guys think he's really Vice Admiral Garp's grandson?"

"How could that be? Vice Admiral Garp is the guardian of our East Blue, a hero of the previous generation of naval forces! How could his grandson be a pirate who can't distinguish between good and evil?"

"That's true. Anyway, let's celebrate the death of the cannibal Barto!"

Chapter 643 Public Execution of Ace... and Blackbeard

"Attention, everyone! This is the final test to qualify for combat! Anyone who can't hold up, regardless of rank, will be eliminated and sent back to where they came from! If you don't want to bring shame to your unit, give it your all! Whether you can etch your name in the glorious history of the Navy and join the strongest marine corps in history depends on your abilities!"

The roar of Lieutenant General Longz echoed through the crowded square in Marineford.

The enormous sound waves made the eardrums of the marines gathered in the square, who were like a white ocean, ring.

At this moment, the elite marines recruited from naval branches all over the world, under the general mobilization order, have basically completed their assembly.

The elite warriors, numbering approximately 100,000, were arranged in huge fan-shaped formations, neatly and orderly arranged in the square.

From above, the 100,000 elite troops formed a giant disc.

The ranks of the marines on the disc are distributed outwards from the center.

The closer to the center, the higher the rank and the stronger the marine.

The closer to the edge of the disc, the lower the rank of the marines and the weaker their strength.

At the center of this huge white disc stood a tall, silver-haired lieutenant general, about three meters tall.

Standing around the silver-haired vice admiral were the core commanders participating in this battle: vice admirals, rear admirals, and commodores from major naval branches around the world.

Among them, a dozen or so tall, giant lieutenant generals stood out from the crowd, appearing very conspicuous.

However, at this moment, these high-ranking officers in the entire navy all solemnly fixed their gazes on the silver-haired vice admiral in the center, not daring to be presumptuous because of their rank and position.

At the top of the fortress, several of the highest-ranking officers from the Navy Headquarters stood on the balcony, overlooking the grand spectacle in Marineford Square.

"The personnel are basically all here; this is the final selection. After this, the personnel who can participate in the war will be determined, and then the various units will begin their final integration, trying to make the cooperation between the units as perfect as possible. When the war begins, our losses will be minimized. I must say, Luo Xia's method is very good."

This was a rare instance in the Warring States period where Rorschach was praised.

"Using Conqueror's Haki to select elites is indeed a good method."

The release of Conqueror's Haki is equivalent to a high-intensity energy shock; the closer one is to the user of Conqueror's Haki, the stronger the impact.

This formation, arranged according to rank and strength, ensures that everyone experiences roughly the same level of impact.

This screening method, which can test both mental and physical abilities, is better than simply screening based on strength.

War is not just about strength; mentality and spirit are often more important factors in winning.

Even those with immense strength might falter and crumble in the face of mountains of corpses and seas of blood if they lack sufficient willpower.

Garp seemed to be in pretty good spirits today. Although there was deep fatigue hidden in his eyes, he had a rare smile on his face.

As one of the most senior veterans in the Navy, Garp felt extremely gratified to see the Navy develop to such a massive scale.

Although Ace's situation left him exhausted, Garp never forgot his identity as a veteran.

At this moment, Lunds's roar resounded once again like thunder above Marineford Square.

"Lieutenant General Lan Lin! We may begin!"

With Ronz's roar, the 100,000 elite soldiers standing in the square tensed up, their muscles taut and their minds sharp, preparing to meet the impending onslaught of Conqueror's Haki.

They were no strangers to this scene, as they had experienced similar moments many times over the past month.

Despite having experienced it more than once, the feeling of being overwhelmed by Rorschach's Conqueror's Haki, the dizziness and weightlessness that followed, remained vivid in their memories.

Before everyone could fully recall that painful experience...

The next instant, a massive black and red energy storm suddenly erupted from Rorschach, who was standing at the center!

"Buzz buzz!"

The bluestone pavement beneath the feet of the nearest lieutenant generals exploded with a series of cracking sounds, and tiny cracks appeared in the hard ground.

In the navy, apart from a few staff officers, civilian officials, and logistics personnel, the vast majority of admirals still have to rely on their abilities to steadily rise in rank.

Therefore, at this moment, after being impacted by the Conqueror's Haki storm released by Rorschach, 95% of the officers with the rank of brigadier general or above did not collapse in disgrace.

As for the five percent who were stunned by Conqueror's Haki.

There are always people with connections, and the navy is no exception.

The Conqueror's Haki storm continued to spread outwards, with countless tiny black and red lightning bolts spreading above the marines' heads, delivering a storm-like impact to each and every one of them.

When Rorschach's Conqueror's Haki struck the ranks of colonels and lieutenants in the headquarters, a large number of marines immediately fell down.

Large numbers of marines rolled their eyes, their heads feeling as if they'd been hit by a hammer, unable to control their bodies, and fell to the ground in all directions.

Looking down from the top of the fortress, the fallen marines resembled a sinking white wave.

The square, where people gathered, resembled a wave-like sea.

Ten thousand, twenty thousand, thirty thousand...

The number of fallen marines surged, ranging from captains to colonels, and all ranks were represented.

On the edge of the marine corps, there were also some recruits from the class of 1520, as well as some marines among the lower-ranking soldiers who were more talented and capable, who were also being tested.

Among them, you can see Coby and Helmeppo, who have been training with Garp for some time.

Sengoku glanced at the two of them.

Because Garp was always nagging him that the two of them had the potential to be great generals.

But now, looking at them, the two were right on the edge of the area where Rorschach's Conqueror's Haki shockwave was spreading. They were so shocked that their eyes rolled back, they foamed at the mouth, and they fell down without hesitation.

Sengoku's face darkened, and he glanced sideways at Garp.

"Garp, is this what you call the potential of a great general?"

Garp, feeling somewhat embarrassed, glared fiercely at the spot where Coby and Helmeppo had collapsed before saying sullenly, "I never lie. Coby and Helmeppo definitely have the potential to become admirals. They just need some time to grow. Just you wait and see, I will definitely cultivate two... one of them who is no less than Rorschach, to become admirals."

Zhan Guo curled his lip, too lazy to expose him.

Not inferior to Rorschach?

Let's surpass those few fierce generals under that kid's command first.

Looking at the chaotic scene of people and horses falling over the square below, just as Sengoku was about to ask how to select the qualified people, he saw flashes of electricity appear on the bodies of the marines who had not fainted under Rorschach's Conqueror's Haki.

The electric sparks flashing on the bodies of tens of thousands of people formed a shimmering starry sky in the square, which was quite spectacular.

Aokiji pulled up his blindfold, his eyes reflecting the shimmering sea of ​​light below.

Akainu crossed his arms and a slight smile played on his lips.

Kizaru pouted and exclaimed, "That's amazing, Rorschach! He's thought of everything so thoroughly. It seems like his ability is already on the verge of awakening his Devil Fruit."

Lonzi's loud voice rang out immediately afterward.

"Alright! Everyone with electricity, stay where you are! Those without electricity, congratulations! You don't need to participate in this brutal war. You can go back to your respective units, drink tea, eat meat, stroll around the flower market, and wait for the triumphant bugle call to sound!"

As soon as Lonzi finished speaking, a chorus of shouts of shame, remorse, and distress erupted in the square.

"Please give me another chance! I almost... I almost held on!"

"Lieutenant General Lan Lin! Please do it again! I withstood all the Conqueror's Haki endurance training before today. Today I'm just a little excited and nervous. Give me another chance, I can definitely pass!"

"No! Let me fight! I don't want to go back and embarrass the army, waah, Lieutenant General Gumir will kill me..."

Hearing the boisterous cheers and cries below, the old face that had just shown a smile darkened again.

He slammed his hand on the balcony in front of him and roared, "Lontz! What nonsense are you spouting, you bastard? Get this under control, you idiot!"

He was so angry he wanted to run into the broadcasting studio, drag the big-mouthed Lunds out, and beat him up.

That bastard not only failed to comfort the marines who were rejected, but also took advantage of their misfortune to mock and ridicule them.

Is this something a veteran vice admiral would do?

"That bastard deserves to be a gatekeeper in Impel Down for the rest of his life!"

Sengoku flicked his sleeve, concealing his anger, and looked seriously at the three generals and Garp before him, saying, "Now that everything is ready, Garp, I am going to make a public announcement."

Garp's tall frame visibly trembled, and he said in a hoarse voice, "Let's go public. Since we've come this far, don't ask for my opinion anymore. Even if we don't go public, war is inevitable."

The Warring States period slowly nodded.

"Alright, it's decided then. Ten days from now, Fire Fist Ace and... Blackbeard Marshall D. Teach will be publicly executed at Marine Headquarters."

Chapter 644 Meeting of the Two Emperors

While the navy was making intensive preparations for the impending war, the situation in the New World was also far from peaceful.