One Piece - Heaven Defying Comprehension!

On this day, the sky was filled with news birds, delivering freshly printed bounty posters across the world.

Thanks to the widespread efforts of the World Government and the Naval Headquarters, a bounty was placed on every member of the Entei Pirates, and the news of the birth of the fifth emperor of the sea quickly spread around the globe!

Even the Calm Belt, which news birds rarely reach, received this shocking information through the special channels of the Naval Headquarters.

The entire sea was in an uproar!

---

East Blue - Windmill Village

"Second Gear!" 

"Armament!" 

"Gomu Gomu no Jet Gatling Gun!"

Luffy, covered in steam and glowing red, roared with anger as his fists turned into a rain of punches aimed at Garp.

"Hmph! Luffy, you're still too young to defeat your grandpa!"

Garp laughed heartily, his fist coated with Haki as he struck back forcefully.

Boom!

"It hurts!" Luffy cried, dropping out of Second Gear and holding his head in pain.

"Why? This is a move that Ace and I created together. Why can't I land a hit on you?"

Luffy shouted in frustration.

"Hahaha! It's because your Haki still needs more training, Luffy," Garp replied, laughing. Despite his laughter, his eyes softened with pride.

It seemed that Ace had been a better teacher than he could ever be. Luffy's progress had surpassed Garp's expectations. Not only had he developed the second and third gears of the Gomu Gomu no Mi, but he had also learned both Armament and Observation Haki.

At his current level, Luffy's strength was no less than a Vice Admiral of the Naval Headquarters.

Of course, compared to that rascal Ace, he still had some catching up to do.

---

"Garp-san! Luffy!"

From the distance, Makino approached, carrying a food box, her steps slightly unsteady.

"Oh! Makino, did you bring food? Thank you! Shishishi!" Luffy's mood immediately shifted from defeat to delight at the sight of food.

After all, when you're hungry, nothing is more important than eating—a belief shared by both him and Ace.

"Garp-san, Luffy, Dadan... Ace, Ace…"

Makino panted as she tried to catch her breath.

"What happened to Ace?" Dadan asked, her voice tinged with nervousness.

"Is there more news about Ace?" Luffy's face lit up with excitement.

"Ace… Ace has been named the fifth emperor of the sea! His bounty…"

Makino was so flustered that she fumbled to reveal the bounty poster.

Luffy, unable to contain his curiosity, moved closer to take a look. Garp's expression turned a bit complicated but was soon replaced by a relieved smile.

The day had finally come.

---

"The Fifth Emperor of the Sea: The Emperor of Flame!?"

"The Bounty… bounty…" Dadan's eyes widened, her entire body trembling as she read the numbers aloud.

"One billion, one hundred and eighty million berries!!!" she shouted, her eyes nearly popping out of her head in shock.

"Hahaha! The fifth emperor of the sea is Ace, so cool!" Luffy laughed loudly.

"And look at this—Ace has found such incredible crewmates. That's amazing!" Luffy added, flipping through the bounty posters, a grin plastered on his face.

"Ace, wait for me. When I turn seventeen, I'm going out to sea too. I'll become the Pirate King! The freest man on the seas!" Luffy declared with a wide smile, looking up at the sky as if he could see Ace's face smiling back at him.

"Then, Ace, as your brother, I'll stand by your side as your right-hand man. Together, we'll create the world we dreamed of!"

With a renewed sense of determination, Luffy quickly devoured all the food Makino had brought.

"Ah! My lunch!" Garp cried in dismay.

"Come on, Grandpa! Let's keep training! Gomu Gomu no Rocket!" Luffy, full of energy, was ready to continue.

---

Syrup Village

"Usopp! Did the great pirate Portgas D. Ace really train you?" three wide-eyed children asked, gazing at Usopp in awe.

"Hahaha, of course! Why do you think my sniper skills have improved so much? I told Ace I, Usopp, would one day become a true warrior of the sea, and he believed in me!"

Usopp grinned proudly as he regaled the children with tales of his adventures. "I once fought a giant goldfish bigger than an island for three days and nights! Of course, I won!"

"Wow! You're amazing, Usopp, the brave warrior of the sea!" the children exclaimed, hanging on his every word.

Usopp, with his hands on his hips, laughed without an ounce of shame. After all, even Ace had acknowledged his potential as a future brave warrior of the sea.

---

Cocoyasi Village

"Hey, everyone! Nami and Nojiko have become famous pirates!"

Genzo ran from door to door, laughing as he showed the bounty posters to the villagers.

"Nojiko, also known as 'Black Rose,' has a bounty of 180 million berries!"

"And Nami, the wielder of the Thunder Fruit, has a bounty of 500 million berries!" Genzo exclaimed, beaming with pride.

The villagers were in shock, but their smiles grew wider as they processed the news.

"They've really become legendary pirates! That's our Nami and Nojiko!" they laughed, proud of their village heroes.

"And don't forget Ace, who saved us! His bounty is a staggering 1.18 billion berries! The fifth emperor of the sea!"

But Genzo wasn't done. "Look! Nami and Nojiko are showing off their Entei Pirates tattoos in the photos. Just look at how happy they are!"

Tears welled up in Genzo's eyes as he laughed, and the entire village joined in with their joyful celebration.

"Hahaha! Let's have a feast tonight!" they shouted.

---

Alabasta

"Your Majesty! Look at this!"

Chaka burst into the king's office, clutching a stack of bounty posters, his voice laced with urgency.

Behind him followed Pell, Igaram, and the speedy duck Karu, all trying to keep pace.

"I've already seen them," Cobra remarked, standing by the window, gazing into the distance. A gentle smile played on his lips as he turned toward his desk.

Everyone's eyes shifted to the desk, where they saw a bounty poster of Princess Vivi, showing her summoning a storm of sand with a bright, heartfelt smile. The poster was carefully placed at the center of Cobra's desk. Beside it lay Ace's bounty notice.

"It's hard to believe that Ace has been named the Fifth Emperor of the Sea," Chaka muttered in disbelief.

"Princess Vivi's bounty has reached 350 million beli! That's multiple times what Crocodile's bounty was!" Igaram added, his voice filled with nervous tension.

Karu, too, fluttered its wings nervously, sensing the gravity of the situation.

Cobra, however, remained calm, a slight smile playing on his lips as he glanced at Vivi's bounty. "It doesn't matter. With Ace by her side, Vivi will be well taken care of. And…" Cobra's smile grew wider as he added, "Look at how happy she looks."

Chaka, Pell, Igaram, and even Karu all turned to look at Vivi's bounty again, and soon, smiles spread across their faces as well.

Princess Vivi was indeed happy.

"Ace, we're counting on you to protect her," they silently prayed.

---

Meanwhile, somewhere in the New World…

Aboard the Moby Dick, home of the Whitebeard Pirates, Marco held a stack of bounty posters, his expression serious.

"Dad, the seas are in total chaos. Portgas D. Ace wiped Enies Lobby off the map, challenged Kaido, and is now being called the Fifth Emperor by the World Government."

Whitebeard, with medical tubes attached to him, downed a large bottle of alcohol despite the protests of the surrounding medical staff. He burst into booming laughter. "Gurararara! The Fifth Emperor, huh? That boy's really something."

He held Ace's bounty poster in his massive hand, grinning. "The World Government must be desperate, thinking they can use us to take him down. Gurararara!"

Whitebeard, having sailed the seas for decades, knew the government's schemes all too well. 

If Ace hadn't destroyed Enies Lobby, taken out a Vice Admiral, gravely injured four others—including two Admiral candidates—there's no way they'd have acknowledged him as the Fifth Emperor.

Marco, looking down at the bounty poster, spoke with a serious expression, "The intel from the Marines says Ace killed a Vice Admiral single handedly, left two more on the brink of death, and gravely injured two Admiral candidates. 

Under his command, they have the powers of the Sand-Sand Fruit, the Thunder Fruit, the same as my own Bird-Bird Fruit, the Bird-Bird Fruit – Suzaku form, with power comparable to Kaido. Not to mention, he possesses the terrifying ability to hunt Devil Fruits."

With a deep breath, Marco added, "It's no exaggeration to call him the Fifth Emperor."

Whitebeard's gaze shifted, locking onto a man with missing teeth who had been standing in the corner: "Teach, what's with that look on your face?"

Blackbeard, his face twisted with forced cheerfulness, responded, "Ah, Dad, I was just thinking how arrogant this Portgas D. Ace is. Going after Kaido like that, it's as if he doesn't even see you as a threat. It's infuriating!"

Despite his smile, Teach's clenched fists told another story. Inwardly, he fumed. The rise of Ace, the emergence of the Thunder Fruit, the power to hunt Devil Fruits—all of it was gnawing at him. 

"Where is it? Where is the Dark-Dark Fruit, the most powerful of the Logia types? Why has this power fallen into that brat's hands instead of mine!?"

While his outer appearance remained cheerful, inside, Teach was seething.

Whitebeard, however, roared with laughter. "Gurararara! No need to worry, my son."

Teach's grin only grew wider as he basked in Whitebeard's words, though inside, his ambitions remained hidden.

---

Elsewhere, on a Pirate Island in the New World…

The Red-Haired Pirates were throwing a lively party.

"Hey, Captain, the Marines say Portgas D. Ace's Conqueror's Haki is just as strong as yours. They're calling him the Fifth Emperor now," one pirate said with a grin.

Hawkeye, sipping his drink, added, "The Marines wouldn't casually compare someone's Conqueror's Haki to yours unless they were serious. After all, that kind of power directly opposes their rule."

Shanks, looking slightly hungover, chuckled as he rubbed his head. "Conqueror's Haki, huh? The Fifth Emperor? The World Government's clearly trying to use Kaido to deal with Ace. That means they can't handle him on their own anymore."

Taking another swig, Shanks turned to Beckman, who puffed smoke from his cigarette as he studied Ace's bounty.

"If you look past their territories and crew sizes, the Entei Pirates are a legitimate, Emperor-level group," Beckman said.

Hawkeye, glancing at Shanks, nodded. "It's clear the Entei Pirates are taking the same elite route as your crew."

Shanks smiled. "What interests me most is this ability Ace has—hunting Devil Fruits. It's time we meet him face-to-face."

Shanks stood up suddenly, raising his voice. "Set sail!"

"Set sail? Where are we headed, boss?" Lucky Roux asked between bites of chicken.

"We're heading for the Grand Line. I want to meet Portgas… Ace."

The Red-Haired crew murmured excitedly among themselves. "Red-Haired and Entei meeting? The seas are going to explode into chaos!"

Hawkeye, intrigued, said, "Although that sounds fun, I'm not interested. Ace isn't a swordsman."

Beckman laughed, watching Hawkeye leave. "What a boring guy."

---

Meanwhile, in Dressrosa…

Doflamingo, one of the Seven Shichibukai of the Sea, sat with a cold sweat running down his face as he held a stack of bounty posters. His expression was dark as he listened to the voice on the other end of a transponder snail.

"Hey, you didn't warn me about this! What is this about Portgas D. Ace aiming to take down the Four Emperors, Joker?!" 

The voice belonged to Kaido of the Beasts.