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In the moment, no one can quite believe their eyes.
“Absolutely disgraceful- a PUBLIC execution, for all and sundry to witness! That’s just- that’s simply- it’s BARBARIC, especially for a so-called centralized government!”
Most of the den-den mushi capturing footage and broadcasting to the central relay on Sabaody have ceased functioning during the terrifying battle, as attacks are cast, damage strewn, bodies thrown. And of course, once it seemed Firefist Ace might actually escape alive, the order went for the remaining snails to be shut down, to prevent their worldwide audience from witnessing such a failure of the marines.
But there is still one signal going out when the whole battlefield comes to a crashing standstill. When a bright yellow vessel bursts out of the water in the center of the bay-
-and transforms.
“Alright, everyone secure? Excellent- brace yourselves, this is quite faster than I’ve gone in some time!”
“I know it’s a bit late to be asking, but do you really NEED to launch yourself into the sky for this?!”
“Of course, Shachi! This is the most important thing for activating my transformation sequence - presentation!”
A massive, gleaming robot lands in a crouch upon the ground, surrounded by stunned marines and pirates alike. Within a split second, the entity straightens, lifts its arms, and launches a pair of torpedoes dead ahead.
Directly at where Admiral Akainu is pursuing Firefist Ace and Strawhat Luffy.
Granted, all three of them froze just like everyone else at the sudden, unexpected arrival of this unknown construct. And despite flinching, none of their attempts to scramble out of the path of those incoming projectiles works.
Meaning, that when the torpedoes hit stone and explode with their payloads, Strawhat, Firefist, and Akainu are all slammed and toppled over by a rush of released seawater.
“HAH! Two points for the Waterbombs! Brilliant idea, Beluga, and excellent execution, Ikakku!”
“Thanks- can we just grab these guys and get the hell out of here now??”
“Ah, of course, of course- in position, Captain?”
“Just do it, Tang.”
Further explosives are almost casually tossed about by the robot as it strides across the panicking battleground, both of the normal variety and more loaded with seawater, inciting further chaos as normal combatants and Devil Fruit Users alike are unable to approach the interloper.
And then, to the horror of some and confusion of all, the robot reaches down towards Firefist and Strawhat, still clinging to each other where they fell, coughing and attempting to stand, to defend themselves.
Yellow and grey metal does not touch them.
Instead, that massive hand pauses with some distance still to go between it and the pirates - only for that space to suddenly flare with bright blue light, a huge glowing sphere, both Firefist and Strawhat within its boundary.
They vanish.
The sphere blinks away.
And just like that, the robot turns to retreat towards the sea, leaving behind only an unnoticed pair of bolts on the ground.
“-just settle down, Firefist, before I have to hit you with a sedative-”
“What- who- what the HELL is going on, where are we?!”
“Oh, hey, I know you!”
“Same goes for you, Strawhat, just hold-” Thud. “-still. Shit.”
“Luffy? LUFFY-!”
“Oh for-”
Uncertain of what to do with their targets vanished, most marines hold back from pursuing the robot as it strides back towards the shoreline.
Most. But not all.
Admiral Akainu surges forward after somewhat recovering from being doused with seawater, too furious to wait any longer. His magma collides with bright yellow metal, intent upon melting and tearing it open, unable to detect any trace of Firefist with haki but certain he must be inside somewhere-
The robot reaches down again. This time it does grab. And it speaks, as well. “Little fleshbag, I take baths in molten rock far more potent than your lukewarm lava.”
And with that, the robot extends its arm, still gripping tight an alarmed and struggling Akainu, and FLINGS him so hard the man vanishes from sight, far out over the rolling ocean waves.
With an alarmed yelp, Admiral Kizaru zips away, chasing after his colleague. Which leaves the Whitebeard First Division Commander, Marco the Phoenix, perfectly available to fly straight up to the robot’s scowling face. Clearly taking Akainu as an example, the man talks before attacking. “Where is my little brother?”
Glowing blue eyes, just a few shades paler than the earlier sphere, turn in his direction. The scowl eases. The robot says, “Inside. My crew are tending to him and Strawhat.”
“Inside- you? Who- what are you?”
Still striding forward, only a few steps away from the iced-over edge of the bay, the robot sounds almost amused. “I am Tang. The Polar Tang, if you like. And I am a member of the Heart Pirates.” Nearby, Whitebeard himself shifts, clearly ready to leap forward just as Akainu did, and just as obviously waiting for Marco’s signal. “We’ll get Firefist and Strawhat out of here. Those bastards pretending to be law enforcement cannot follow me near as easily as they can any of you.”
Marco hovers, face twisted up, unhappy but aware the robot is right. “Why, yoi?”
The smile he’s offered is too wide, too sharp, too downright vicious to be considered comforting, to say nothing of how it’s also made of metal. But the steadfast conviction in the robot’s answer is enough to keep the man from protesting any further:
“Because even pirate doctors want to help people.”
“Brace yourselves!”
“Oh not again-”
Just as abruptly as it first appeared, the robot leaps, twists midair, and returns to the shape of a yellow submarine before diving neatly into the waves, vanishing almost right away into the depths below Marineford. Marco the Phoenix gives a sharp whistle; all across the battlefield, his siblings and their allies disengage, some more reluctantly than others, and bid a hasty retreat to the Moby Dick or their own ships further out in the water.
Whitebeard is nearly the very last to go, bellowing out for all to hear as a final message for the marines and that lone remaining snail that the One Piece is real! And that nearly, nearly costs him, Admiral Aokiji firing off one last ice blast-
-which is sliced neatly in two by a massive sword strike from Red-Haired Shanks, appearing from nowhere at the eleventh hour, he and his crewmates happily making a nuisance of themselves to cover the Whitebeard Fleet’s retreat from Marineford.
The day ends.
To the world at large, there seemed to be no clear victor. Certainly not the marines, who’d failed to execute a single, now-infamous prisoner, but neither the pirates, unsuccessful in their rescue and forced to retreat with grievous wounds and losses.
For anyone who’d witnessed the footage live or who see scattered recordings of it afterward, for every person across the planet who would read the coming News Coo headlines, there remained three all important questions:
Where did Firefist Ace and Strawhat Luffy go?
When would they next appear?
And, perhaps most pressing of all, WHAT was that transforming robot?!
“Hm.”
“...Tang? Are you alright?”
“Hm? Oh- yes, Jean Bart, I’m quite alright. We simply seem to have a tagalong.”
“Should I alert the captain-?”
“Oh no no, Law is still busy sorting out what happened with Strawhat’s hormone levels, no need to bother him. Suppose I had better fetch a few of the others, though, I think we’ll want to surface and let this fellow in - he has been quite persistent, swimming after us all this way.”
Former Warlord Jinbei, Captain of the Sun Pirates, all-around generally Unflappable Guy, still raises a single brow when informed Tang is a mechanical lifeform from another planet. But seeing as it was her idea to simply walk into Marineford, and pluck Ace and Luffy out of harm’s way, he decides she fits in quite well with all the other insanity of their own world.