Chapter 561: The Cause and Effect (Part 1)
The Edd War Sea was a region of volatile weather, but in the New World, such volatile seas were plentiful; the Edd War Sea was nothing special.
Originally, this sea was just an obscure place in the New World, but over twenty years ago, the battle between the Pirate King Roger's crew and Golden Lion Shiki's crew in these waters made the area widely known to the world.
In that battle, the Golden Lion Pirates had overwhelming superiority in both troops and numbers over Roger's crew. However, during their engagement, a bizarre storm suddenly struck. The Golden Lion Pirates, with more ships, were affected more severely, while Roger had only one vessel. Seizing the chaos among the Golden Lion Pirates, Roger and his men successfully turned the tide and achieved a counterattack!
This naval battle became known to the world as the Battle of Edd War. It was a highly commemorative sea battle, not only representing a classic victory of the weak over the strong, but also because, after this battle, most of Golden Lion Shiki's fleet was sunk. The Golden Lion Pirates suffered a heavy blow, unable to stop Roger's advance any longer. After defeating Golden Lion Shiki, Roger crossed the New World's route, successfully reached the final island, Laugh Tale, and earned his title as the Pirate King.
Although not long after, Roger disbanded his crew and surrendered to the Marines, subsequently being executed in Loguetown, his title as Pirate King lasted only two or three years. Yet, whenever people mention Roger the Pirate King, they can't help but recall the Battle of Edd War...
Now, over twenty years later, this sea once again captured the world's attention, but this time it wasn't a clash between the Golden Lion Pirates and Roger's crew, but between the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates.
The Edd War Sea covered an area of several hundred square nautical miles. Every sea in the New World had its own characteristics, and the Edd War Sea was no exception. Its most famous feature was the reefs!
Yes, beneath the surface in many places lay endless coral reefs. These reefs had grown here for years, with no discernible pattern. Some were lower, tens or even hundreds of meters below the surface, while others were higher, protruding from the water to form oddly shaped rocks or even small islands.
But most were hidden just beneath the surface at a precarious depth. This meant that ships sailing in these waters—smaller ones might be fine, but larger ones had a high chance of running aground.
Over the years, countless pirate ships had sunk in this sea due to hitting these reefs.
Of course, this didn't mean the sea was completely unnavigable. In fact, while these reefs were widespread, they followed a certain pattern. They radiated outward from the central Edd War Reef Group, which gave the sea its name.
The Edd War Reef Group consisted of thousands of coral reefs, large and small, that broke the surface. Some were so small that only a few seals could rest on them, while others spanned several kilometers, qualifying as small islands.
Now, over five hundred Marine warships had formed a large circular formation here, completely surrounding the Edd War Reef Group.
Why was this? Because Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, was likely hiding on one of the small islands within this reef group!
It was worth noting that about two hundred nautical miles northwest of the Edd War Sea lay the Whitebeard Pirates' home base.
The Whitebeard Pirates' territory was vast. In the New World, a large portion of the area was claimed by Whitebeard as his domain. Additionally, throughout the Grand Line, there were exclaves like Fish-Man Island under his protection. These places flew the Whitebeard Pirates' flag, seeking his shelter. If all these exclaves were included, the Whitebeard Pirates' territory was unimaginably huge.
But despite such enormous territory, the Whitebeard Pirates had only one home base.
Now, Whitebeard Edward Newgate was not at his home base but hiding in the Edd War Reef Group. The reason was simple: they had fallen into an ambush!
Back when Blackbeard Teach killed the Fourth Division Commander, Thatch, stole the Devil Fruit, and defected from the Whitebeard Pirates, Whitebeard Old Man was furious. Ace felt responsible since Teach was a member of his second division, and as its commander, he bore the duty. So, the Old Man eventually allowed Ace to set out and capture Teach.
However, the Old Man had a bad feeling about it, so he told Ace to find Ian and set out with him to capture Teach.
This was a decision made by chance, but it saved Ace's life. Thanks to Ian's intervention, Ace successfully captured the Blackbeard Pirates.
Killing a comrade was a grave crime, but when the Old Man actually saw Teach, his heart softened. For enemies, the Old Man could show no mercy, but for Teach, who had been like an adopted son on his ship for decades, he couldn't bear it.
His longing for family was something others couldn't understand. And as the saying goes, "If a child is not taught, it is the father's fault." During the time Ace was out capturing Teach, the Old Man thought a lot. In truth, he felt some guilt about the matter, but he didn't show it in front of his sons.
So, regarding whether to execute Teach, Whitebeard was deeply conflicted.
Even so, during the time Teach was captured, he suffered greatly. The Old Man had him hung from the mast of the Moby Dick and whipped him!
And the Old Man did it himself!
A father punishing his son was only natural. Coupled with Teach's crime of killing a comrade, Marco and the other commanders didn't plead for him. They just stood by with folded arms, watching coldly.
However, what they didn't know was that Teach, seeing this, only deepened his inner resentment.
The Old Man drank and whipped him, which looked like domestic violence, but in truth, who could understand Whitebeard's inner anguish? He was simply drowning his sorrows. He feared that without alcohol, he wouldn't have the heart to punish Teach harshly...
Teach was beaten for three full days. Those three days were pure torture for him. His Dark-Dark Fruit doubled the pain he felt, so one could imagine how unbearable those days were.
When he was finally let down, Teach was barely alive. He knelt weakly before Whitebeard, weeping and begging the Old Man for a chance to apologize alone.
What he didn't know was that after three days of beating, the Old Man's anger had mostly subsided. Deep down, he had already forgiven him.
Unfortunately, Teach didn't know this. Instead, the three days of torment fueled a massive rage within him, driving him to carry out his next plan without hesitation.
The Old Man also needed an excuse to back down, so he agreed to Teach's request, waving his hand to send Marco and Ace off the ship temporarily.
Teach's personality was truly complex—wild and crude, ambitious yet arrogant, and a master of acting. He had spent years in the Whitebeard Pirates, perfectly playing the role of a good-natured man. If not for the sudden appearance of the Dark-Dark Fruit, who would have known he could be ruthless enough to kill his own comrade?
This time was no different. He knelt, tears and snot streaming, confessing his mistakes. He told the Old Man that he had argued with Thatch and accidentally killed him, then fled the Whitebeard Pirates out of fear of punishment.
Because of Ian's presence, Teach hadn't captured Ace to trade with the Marines for a Warlord position, as in the original timeline. His reputation hadn't spread, leading the Old Man to severely underestimate the threat he posed. In the end, the Old Man believed his story.
Having beaten and scolded him, could the Old Man really harden his heart and kill his own son?
So, the Old Man sighed, walked over to Teach, bent down, and, just as he had welcomed Ace and other sons before, reached out his hand to take Teach back.
But it was at that moment that Teach suddenly struck. Freed from his Seastone Handcuffs, he pulled out a sailor's knife he had hidden in his Dark Space and viciously stabbed it into Whitebeard's chest!
Completely off guard, the Old Man was hit. As the blade pierced him, his towering body trembled. He stared in disbelief at Teach's twisted, ferocious face...
And Teach, after stabbing him, snapped back to reality. Seeing the anger building in the Old Man's eyes, he panicked. He quickly let go of Whitebeard and ran into the cabin to release his comrades, Lafitte and the others.
The Old Man clutched his chest, kneeling on the deck, his hands covered in blood. Watching them hurriedly lower a small boat to escape, Whitebeard, enraged, slammed a fist in their direction.
The five members of the Blackbeard Pirates were all sent flying by the shockwave, spitting blood as they fell off the Moby Dick. But the injury wasn't enough to kill them. The five struggled onto the small boat, using their last ounce of strength to row away into the distance.
This punch naturally alerted Marco and Ace, who were on the island. Sensing something was wrong, they rushed back to the ship, only to find Whitebeard collapsed on the deck, bleeding from his mouth...