One Piece: Reborn as Enel

Chapter 288: Tremors, Flames and Passing

_________ POV Narration _________ 

The first thing Whitebeard did was to step forward and stare at the elders defiantly, the bubble of tremor that covered his body shook and quaked the ground all around him consistently.

This was a feat that he hadn't been able to perform during his older years due to the starting it put on the body and heart it was likely a huge reason for his aggravated sickness in what was supposed to be his last years.

'True Tremor Body' 

It was a simple name, but it was essentially Whitebeard using his entire body as a conduit, constantly releasing the full potential of his tremor fruit all around him.

In the past, even Roger had lost to that move sometimes, it was extremely deadly to even allies nearby.

Unfortunately, he had no time to worry about his allies. Protecting Marco was one of his greatest priorities, sure, but he couldn't do so without going all out.

"Marco! Flee for now! I'll stop them here!" Whitebeard immediately dashed forward like a demon, and he was immediately intercepted by Saint Warcury, who charged towards him at full speed as well.

The Tremor Pirate lashed out with a punch, meeting the elder's tough skull with a grim look on his face.

He could feel his knuckles breaking against the Elder's head, but he could also feel the Elder's skull splitting and his brains turning to mush.

The Boar Demon was sent flying backwards, but Whitebeard was given no time to recover.

A shadow sped past him and immediately slashed at his side, spilling blood everywhere as the half-transformed figure of Saint Nusjuro rushed past him.

The Elder's long blade was already stained with Whitebeard's blood, and he raised his hoofs, aiming to kick the legendary pirate's head and kill him in the same move.

Unfortunately, the sword-wielding elder didn't even manage to revel in that first hit properly before he received what was likely the most powerful kick he had ever felt, straight to the neck.

"Collier!"

The kick was delivered by none other than Sanji, ironically the Vinsmoke's greatest biological weapon ever invented. 

The Saint's neck was bent unnaturally against the powerful haki-enhanced leg, the elder could feel the bones in his neck cracking as he was sent flying, and Sanji immediately followed after him, giving Whitebeard a concerned look before rushing forward.

Saint Mars, the gigantic bird demon, tried to swoop down on Whitebeard and Sanji, but he was intercepted by the much smaller figure of a blue Pheonix. 

"MARCO! I TOLD YOU TO RUN!" Whitebeard shouted as he punched away the spider-like leg of one of the elders whilst getting swiped by the gigantic worm body of another. 

He was sent flying to the side as well, his muscles constricting and shifting to stem the bleeding from Saint Nusjuro's slash. 

"I won't let you fight alone Pop!" Marco shouted whilst doing his best to struggle against Saint Mars's powerful talons. 

The Blue Phoenix was far outmatched. Unlike Sanji, he couldn't fight against an Elder alone, he was far weaker.

But he was pulling through with sheer stubbornness and willpower, wanting to at least try to take some of the burden off of his father's back. 

Sanji had the same thought, he was also not enough to hold back an elder alone. He had gotten a lot stronger during his time on Raftel, but he was at best at the level of an old Big Mom, one without any devil fruit at that... 

Nusjuro's blade had already left a lot of gashes and cuts on his body, meanwhile his kicks only really did enough damage to push back the sword-wielding saint a few times. 

"Hmm... You seem proud of your legs. I will make sure to at least take them from you!" The Horse Demon Elder shouted, showcasing his bloodlust as he immediately became more aggressive. 

Sanji immediately scowled underneath his mask, but he struggled to match the Elder's intensity. 

Marco was not doing any better, having already gained a few injuries. But he could still heal himself thanks to his devil fruit powers. 

Whitebeard unfortunately also didn't have the time to worry about his son now, he was faced with two elders, both able to move faster than him, and both able to regenerate from attacks.

Saint Warcury also got up from the ground, shook his head and looked at the legendary pirate with a mad gaze. His tusks immediately turned into blades as he joined back into the fray.

'Shit... This may just be it...' 

Whitebeard could feel it. The end of his life was approaching.

He was not mad, not at all. He was prepared to give his life to help Enel's cause.

From the beginning, he was only alive and had managed to spend more time with his family thanks to Enel. 

The Tremor human didn't stop fighting however, not for one second did he flee, nor did he turn his back to his enemies, even when surrounded he dealt blow after blow to the Elders.

His body was filled with injuries and holes, cuts and bruises, but he kept fighting. A pool of blood accumulated on the broken ground underneath him as he growled and continued to struggle like a ferocious animal. 

But what broke him the most was certainly seeing Marco...

His first son, now a broken figure crashing into the ground right in front of him. He had also fought bravely, but he had eventually been skewered by one of the bird Saint's sharp talons. 

At that moment, Whitebeard gained a moment of clarity amid the chaos. The 3 Elders fighting him hadn't stopped, their strikes still hit the Emperor's body, but he didn't seem to register them.

Instead, he looked at the sky. And in an instant, his expression, which should have been one of a dying man, turned into that of primordial rage.

The elders around him all couldn't help but take a step back, as the tremors around Whitebeard became even stronger for that moment.

No, his very willpower seemed to have become stronger, every aspect of it enhanced by a great desire. To kill the one who had murdered his son. 

And in an instant, the Emperor was skybound. Jumping above Saint Mars, his Naginata held in both hands as he released a guttural scream. 

Saint Mars was too taken aback by the dying man's sudden increase in speed, he didn't manage to react in time.

But he felt it. 

Before the blade of Whitebeard's Murikumogiri even pierced his skin, all of the bones within his body shattered, turning to dust from the sheer strength of the condensed tremors within the Emperor's blade. 

In an instant, Saint Mars was split in two, right down the middle. But not just that, as the ark of the slash finished, the massive haki-enhanced tremours coursed through the Saint's body fully.

And it was at that moment he realized... There was no healing from that.

The other Saints realized it as well, all being stunned into silence by the sight in front of them. 

Whitebeard hadn't delivered a regular shock at all. Rather, every single particle in Saint Mars's body, every cell, was completely shattered, by an attack containing so much willpower that it was absurd. 

The only thing that Saint Mars felt during his last moments were pain... And fear. The expression of the dying Whitebeard would forever haunt him even in the afterlife. 

Before even reaching the ground, Whitebeard felt his strength leave his body as he watched the remains of the bird Saint disintegrate before his eyes.

His body was in a freefall, and he was fully expecting to land on Saint Saturn's spiked leg, which was already raised upwards, aiming to skewer him directly. 

"He seems to be spent already, but it's better to finish him off quickly." The Elders didn't seem too broken up by losing one of their own, just shocked at Whitebeard's strength more than anything. 

Whitebeard could sense that, he could feel slight fear emanating from them as he approached his last moments. It put a bloody smile on his lips. 

'Hah... I took one of them with me at least. I hope my other children are safe at least... Marco... I'm sorry...'

Whitebeard felt strange at that moment, both fulfillment and regret intertwined within the very bottom of his soul. 

Just as he felt the sharp tip of Saint Saturn's leg on his back, he heard a voice from the side.

"Ursus Shock!" 

In an instant, a gigantic paw print appeared in mid-air and slammed into the elder's body, sending him flying and subsequently slowing down Whitebeard's fall.

Kuma moved quicker than most, using his devil fruit to travel there as quickly as he could. 

And after him followed the others.

Francisco immediately jumped, catching Whitebeard's gigantic body and landing on the ground with a slight thud, before placing him down. 

Saint Saturn immediately recovered, his gigantic legs stretched to impale both Francisco and Whitebeard.

"God of Lightning Tenjin!" 

He didn't get close, as a gigantic cloud stretched above him and the other elders, bombarding all of them with lightning, courtesy of an enraged Big Mom who immediately swooped in and slashed half of Saturn's legs off. 

Saint Nusjuro was also interrupted from slashing both of Sanji's legs off, being skewered by a large dark blade, with Mihawk rushing at his side and being sent flying by a strangely rotating flying slash from Zoro, who also hurried to save his annoying crewmate. 

Saint Peter wanted to burrow into the ground now that Whitebeard was in no state to stop him, but he was stopped by the gigantic form of a western dragon with wings and lighting on its wings.

Dragon dug his large claws into Peter's worm-like body and forced him in place.

"Where do you think you're going?" The Revolutionary Dragon huffed, the wind from the beat of his wings further helped suppress Peter, as well as push Elder Warcury away.

Warcury tried to charge towards Big Mom, aiming to maim her at least as his tusks turned to blades once more. 

But he was stopped in his tracks by a flying slash, sent by Francisco, who was still standing crouched near Whitebeard.

"You look worse than ever old man..." Francisco muttered as he slowly gripped the handle of his blade, veins slowly bulging on his hand and arm.

But he didn't show that to his dying comrade, he just showed him a reassuring smile. 

"Heh-" Whitebeard coughed a bit of blood before continuing. "Francisco... Can you-" 

"Don't worry, I'll try and make sure that no further harm comes to your family." The old swordsman already knew Whitebeard best.

Even at the end of his life, there was only really one thing he cared about. 

"Then I'll leave it to you..." Whitebeard gave Francsico a bloody smile. The former First Hand of the Rocks slowly stood up and walked towards the Elders, the grip on his sabre tighter than ever before.

Whitebeard looked towards Marco's body for one last time. And just as the light was fading from his eyes, he thought he saw a spark of blue flame on the Pheonix fruit user's corpse. 

That blue spark turned into a bonfire, immediately swallowing up Marco's corpse. 

At the sight of that, a genuine smile filled with relief appeared on Whitebeard's face. 

'It was a good journey... Take care, everyone.' 

And just like that. A legend had passed away, and any regrets were washed away by a life well lived. 

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Hello there! 

Since I've finished this series on Patre-on I'll be uploading daily now till it's over here too. 

Anyway, this chapter was pretty nice to write, but also kinda sad. It's no secret that I love Whitebeard. This war isn't going to be free of casualties anyway 

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