"Wororororo, the warm-up ends here." Kaidou retracted his Spiked Club, his hearty laughter echoing across the sea. He gazed at the still-standing Whitebeard in the distance, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
The aftermath of the battle continued to spread across the icy surface. Instead of immediately launching another assault, Kaidou turned his attention to Kuzan at the edge of the battlefield. The Marine Admiral stood with his hands in his pockets, calmly observing the situation.
Kuzan nodded in understanding and adjusted his sunglasses. The entire battlefield had been constructed using his Ice-Freeze Fruit ability. Though it appeared as solid as an island, the ice had already been shattered to pieces under the clash of two Yonko-level powerhouses. Deep seawater seeped through countless cracks, threatening to swallow the battlefield at any moment.
"Ice Age!"
With Kuzan's low shout, piercing cold erupted abruptly. Azure ice crystals rapidly spread from him as the center, instantly refreezing the entire sea area. This time, the ice layer was even thicker than before, gleaming with a cold light under the sun.
The moment the battlefield stabilized, Kaidou eagerly launched his attack. "Roaring Thunder·Bagua!" he roared, Conqueror's Haki swirling like flames around his Hassaikai. His figure flashed, moving more than twice as fast as in his human form, instantly appearing before Whitebeard.
"Gurararara! Just what I wanted!" Whitebeard laughed heartily as he swung Ame-no-Habakiri, the massive blade tearing through the air with a sharp whistling sound.
BOOM!
Two world-shattering forces collided once again. Violent shockwaves exploded from the two combatants as the newly formed ice layer proved unable to withstand this power. The ice surface for hundreds of meters around cracked like a spiderweb. Shattered ice flew everywhere, refracting brilliant light under the sun.
Fortunately, Kuzan had given his all this time, creating an astonishing hundred-meter thick ice layer. Though the surface was severely fractured, the underlying foundation remained stable, successfully preventing seawater from gushing out.
On the frozen sea surface, Kaidou wielded his massive Hassaikai while Newgate tightly gripped Ame-no-Habakiri. The two legendary weapons continuously clashed in the sky, producing deafening roars.
Every exchange generated violent air currents, with shockwaves spreading out like physical forces, shattering the ice surface for hundreds of meters around.
"Hahaha! Magnificent!" Kaidou laughed wildly, his dragon-scale covered body gleaming with a metallic luster under the sunlight. "Whitebeard, you truly haven't disappointed me!"
Newgate's lips curled slightly, his white beard flowing in the wind. "Not bad yourself, brat Kaidou."
The battle had lasted for a long time, yet neither side showed any decrease in momentum. Kaidou's eyes blazed with fervent fighting spirit as he suddenly altered the trajectory of his Hassaikai, attempting to catch Newgate off guard with a flank attack.
However, "Whitebeard" Newgate was experienced and shrewd. With a flash of sharp light in his eyes, he immediately saw through his opponent's intention.
But this legendary pirate was no coward. Not only did he not retreat, he accelerated his blade's swing instead. Ame-no-Habakiri tore through the air with a sharp shriek, heading straight for Kaidou's shoulder.
Clang—!
A crisp metallic clang resounded across the battlefield. The vibration force imbued in Ame-no-Habakiri erupted completely at this moment, the high-frequency vibrating blade forcibly tearing through Kaidou's proud Armament Haki defense. The sharp edge cut into the tough dragon scales, leaving a bone-deep wound on Kaidou's shoulder as blood instantly gushed out.
"Argh! Yamāntaka Thunder: Eight Trigrams!" Bearing the intense pain, Kaidou roared furiously. Hassaikai wrapped in black-red lightning smashed toward Newgate's defending arm with overwhelming force.
This strike contained the power of Conqueror's Haki, blasting Whitebeard hundreds of meters away. Newgate adjusted his posture mid-air, his feet carving hundred-meter-deep trenches into the ice before he barely came to a stop. His left arm was twisted and deformed, rendered unusable for the time being.
Kaidou touched the wound on his shoulder, blood still flowing incessantly. He snorted coldly and activated Life Return, forcibly stopping the bleeding. An injury of this level was hardly worth mentioning to him now.
"Newgate, did you skip a meal? You hit like you've got no strength!" Kaidou bellowed, his dragon tail whipping behind him and stirring up a cloud of ice shards.
Newgate slowly straightened up, the muscles in his right arm bulging: "Brat, you're still far from ready!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Kaidou charged at Newgate again, Hassaikai emitting a bloodthirsty hum in his grasp as if craving more battle. Facing the ferociously advancing Kaidou, Newgate made an unexpected move. He tossed Ame-no-Habakiri high into the air, clenched his right fist, and tensed his entire body's muscles to the limit.
This time, he didn't choose to shatter the air to create shockwaves. Instead, he concentrated all his vibration power into his fist. The moment his fist shot forward, an unprecedented terrifying shockwave erupted through the air, pulverizing all ice in its path into dust as it shot straight toward Kaidou.
Where the shockwave passed, even the air distorted. Kaidou's pupils contracted slightly as he immediately crossed Hassaikai in front of his chest to defend. The terrifying impact struck Kaidou directly, sending him flying hundreds of meters while the vibration left every muscle in his body aching.
"Damn old man!" Kaidou tumbled through the air, fine cracks appearing on his dragon scales.
But Kaidou had no attention to spare for that now. He saw Newgate catch the falling Ame-no-Habakiri with one hand, leap high, and then—the vibration wave carried on the blade's surface detached as the weapon swung.
With every inch the Vibration Wave traveled after leaving Ame-no-Habakiri, it expanded, until by the time it reached Kaidou it had become a vibrating sphere over twenty meters in diameter.
"Yamāntaka Thunder: Eight Trigrams!"
Kaidou gripped Hassaikai with both hands, the weapon wrapped in Conqueror's Haki, and smashed it directly into the sphere's center.
Boom—!
The moment Hassaikai collided with the sphere, the terrifying vibration force transmitted through the weapon nearly tore it from Kaidou's grasp. The skin at the base of Kaidou's thumbs split open, blood streaming down Hassaikai' handle.
"Scatter for me!" Kaidou roared, putting his full strength into a sweeping blow that shattered the vibrating energy sphere. But this strike came at a cost—the muscle fibers in both his arms suffered tears.
Yet immediately after, Ame-no-Habakiri shot straight for Kaidou's head under Newgate's terrifying brute force. In his haste, Kaidou could only block with his Spiked Club, but how could a rushed defense withstand Newgate's fully charged attack?
As expected, Kaidou was sent flying, dragon scale fragments scattering through the air. While airborne, he forcibly stabilized his posture before leaping backward, using the force of the extensively shattering ice beneath his feet to smash down toward the charging Newgate.
Their attacks once again caused the surrounding ice to fracture across a wide area.