Seeing Oden leap down from the Moby Dick, Whitebeard's face showed not a trace of joy, but pure horror as he roared,
"Don't come over, Oden!"
Whitebeard already had a grim understanding of Lloyd's strength, and precisely because of that he knew Oden stood no real chance against Lloyd.
Furthermore, Lloyd's unmatched speed meant Oden rushing in would only make things worse.
But Oden ignored Whitebeard's warning. In his mind, he had only lost his sword earlier due to one fleeting mistake. He could not believe Lloyd had surpassed him in just three short years.
On the Moby Dick, Momonosuke cupped his hands around his mouth like a little trumpet and cheered up toward Oden,
"Go, Dad!"
Hearing his son's voice brought a faint lift to Oden's expression. He raised Murakumogiri, its blade shimmering with Armament Haki, planted his sole remaining right foot heavily on the deck, and launched himself toward Lloyd with a roar,
"One Sword Style, Togen…"
Before he could finish, Oden's eyes widened in shock. He looked down at his waist in disbelief to see two intersecting sword lacerations, one black and one red.
Lloyd's back was turned to him as he spoke softly,
"One Sword Style, White Chapter."
Flesh tore with a wet sound. Oden's body was severed cleanly at the waist, and his upper body collapsed heavily to the deck.
Kozuki Toki and Momonosuke, held in her arms, witnessed it all. Their faces drained of color as they screamed in terror,
"Oden!!!"
"Dad!!!"
Whitebeard finally reached the scene. His eyes were bloodshot with rage. He swung Murakumogiri and slashed at Lloyd's waist. Lloyd did not even turn to dodge, letting the strike pass through his body while he simply stood with his hands in his pockets, watching Kozuki Toki and little Momonosuke on the Moby Dick.
Whitebeard's entire body trembled with wrath as he unleashed a flurry of furious strikes. Countless winds of sword energy sliced through the battlefield, tearing dark cracks in the earth.
Oden, lying on the deck, let out a muffled groan and coughed up a mouthful of blood as he whispered weakly,
"Lloyd…"
Those guttural syllables stopped Whitebeard mid‑swing. He knelt down beside Oden and checked his breathing. A flicker of relief appeared on his face.
Lloyd turned his head and glanced at them without a hint of malice, merely smiling.
"Your vitality is incredibly tenacious. Good, you'll get to see quite the show."
Oden's consciousness was already hazy. Hearing Lloyd's words, a chill of dread climbed his spine.
He struggled to open his eyes and whispered hoarsely,
"You… what do you intend to do?"
Whitebeard's voice was swift and firm,
"Oden, don't speak yet! I'll call Marco!"
Whitebeard shouted toward Marco, who was locked in battle with Lucia, then shielded Oden with his massive frame to keep Lloyd at bay.
Marco's face blanched when he saw Oden's condition. He unleashed the full force of his blue flame wings, driving Lucia back and then flying toward them.
Lloyd's gaze shifted once toward Marco. In the eyes of Kozuki Toki, Lloyd suddenly appeared before her.
Then, in the next instant, Kozuki Toki's arms felt empty. Lloyd was lifting Momonosuke by the topknot, hoisting him into the air.
Momonosuke was so terrified he screamed, and in his struggling, a sharp tearing pain crawled through his skull.
Kozuki Toki lunged toward Lloyd in frantic desperation, but before she could take more than a step, a dark orb materialized in Lloyd's hand. Momonosuke's eyes bulged as he gurgled in terror.
Kozuki Toki's steps faltered, and she fell to the deck with a heavy thud. When she lifted her head again, Momonosuke's entire face was grotesquely twisted, then,
"Pfft!"
Momonosuke's head burst like ripe fruit, scattering red and white everywhere. His body dropped to the deck, bounced twice, and finally rolled to a stop in front of Kozuki Toki.
At the top of the fallen body, the neck‑stub was twisted like a pretzel.
Kozuki Toki stared numbly at the headless corpse before her. After a breathless moment of silence, she let out a heart‑shattering scream,
"No!!!"
Oden was already receiving what little aid Marco's Phoenix flames could afford. The miraculous regenerative fire had barely kept him alive.
But before he could recover, he heard Kozuki Toki's scream.
Now bodyless below the waist, Oden tried to lift himself up to see what had occurred on the Moby Dick, but he could not. He could only ask Whitebeard weakly,
"Whitebeard, what happened to Toki?"
Whitebeard's entire body trembled. He couldn't bear to speak of Momonosuke's fate and instead stood in stunned silence.
But the more he hesitated, the more uneasy Oden became. He placed a trembling hand on Marco's shoulder, struggling to push himself up.
Marco quickly held him back and warned,
"Captain Oden, your condition is still critical. Do not move recklessly!"
Oden ignored the warning. His veins bulged as he used Marco's shoulder for support and lifted his torso into the air.
Before him was Kozuki Toki, her face streaming with tears, clutching something. She knelt on the deck of the Moby Dick, and Lloyd stood not far in front of her.
In that moment, Oden saw Lloyd greet him with a cold smile.
Oden had no strength to remain airborne. Before he could shout, his body slipped downward. Fortunately, Marco caught him in his arms just in time.
As Marco cradled Oden, he instinctively sought to turn and fly away.
Oden gripped Marco's clothes tightly and insisted,
"Marco, take me there! Toki is in danger!"
Whitebeard, below on the deck, was already charging toward the Moby Dick. But Lloyd had reached Kozuki Toki first, savoring the utter despair etched on her face and the grief in Oden's family.
Kozuki Toki lifted her tear‑streaked face, her eyes burning with monstrous hatred. She rasped through sobs,
"May you die a terrible death!"
Lloyd shrugged, as uninterested as ever, and then raised a finger toward Kozuki Toki's forehead, ready to end her in the moment.
Just then, someone arrived and swept Kozuki Toki up into his arms before teleporting to the side of the battlefield.
It was Roger.
He had been the one to save Oden earlier, and now it was he who saved Oden's wife.
Roger's gaze fell upon the headless form Kozuki Toki clutched. His expression grimly hardened as he faced Lloyd and said in a deep voice,
"As a Marine, your cruelty knows no bounds!"
Lloyd merely sneered,
"You arrived just in time. Anyone who did not know might think that was your wife."
With that, Lloyd reached out again into the air and activated Almighty Pull, dragging Marco — still holding Oden — toward himself.
Lloyd's lips formed a cold smile as he declared,
"With such a spectacular show, how could I miss the most important audience member?"