A dazzling golden light flashed across the sky above Marine Headquarters and disappeared in an instant, and finally, Admiral Kizaru chose to take action.
After all, he had a good private relationship with Akainu.
Fortunately, Akainu's warship had a location coordinate, and Kizaru could use a designated pointer, as long as he flew in one direction.
As time ticked away, the towering red land continent seemed non-existent in front of Kizaru.
Crossing the red line, Kizaru murmured with a bit of worry, "The resurrected Whitebeard doesn't seem so easy to deal with... Really, now I have to work overtime!"
...
On the other side, somewhere in the New World.
The battle between Whitebeard and Akainu had reached a fever pitch, and the confrontation had been going on for nearly an hour.
The terrifying aftermath of the battle forced the Moby Dick to retreat another ten kilometers to finally enter a safe zone.
"The sea is boiling..."
Kakashi peered down and saw bubbles gurgling up from the sea surface, he exclaimed in awe, "Such outrageous Devil Fruit power! Is this the power of a Logia?"
Then he looked towards the distant battlefield and said, "Water, which is the natural enemy of magma, yet that Marine admiral, with his formidable strength, has made magma the bane of water."
Katakuri squinted his eyes, noting, "Whitebeard seems to deliberately avoid physical contact in this battle with Akainu."
He observed that even when Whitebeard exchanged blows with Akainu, it was through the use of Devil Fruit powers, or wrapped in Conqueror's Haki, or using Armament Haki.
Marco, although reluctant to admit it, had to say in a grave voice, "That bastard's magma attacks can't be blocked by the flesh."
Marco quickly added, "However, Pops' Quake-Quake Fruit awakening ability, that magma bastard can't handle it either."
At this point, Marco's face showed a bit of confidence in his own Pops.
If it were during the Summit War period, letting Pops fight that magma bastard one-on-one, Marco would definitely worry about Pops.
After all, he knew Pops' physical condition was very poor, and he was aware of Pops' advanced age at that time.
But now it was different.
When he learned that Pops' hidden illness had fully recovered, and even his physical fitness had returned to its peak state, even stronger than before...
Marco felt that there was no one in the entire sea who could match Pops!
Big Mom, Blackbeard, they were proof of that!
Vista spoke up, "Tsk... that magma bastard seems to be even more formidable than Big Mom..."
Smoothie raised an eyebrow, immediately voicing her objection: "The bare-chested, dual-sword-wielding maniac, some things shouldn't be said carelessly, mom is much stronger than him!"
...
"Whitebeard! The justice of the Marines will not fall here!"
Akainu roared as he launched a fierce magma fist at Whitebeard, the rolling magma carrying the terrifying might of a volcanic eruption, forcing Whitebeard to immediately raise his sword in defense.
A droplet of the splashing magma landed on Whitebeard's shoulder, burning a large hole through his cloak.
Whitebeard's eyes flashed coldly: "Gurara! You magma brat, this cloak was personally sewn for me by my beloved daughter!"
With quick reflexes, Whitebeard counterattacked with a slash towards Akainu, so fast that even Akainu's observation Haki could barely react.
The sharp edge of Murakumogiri just grazed Akainu's face, the wrapped Armament Haki capturing the physical form of the Logia user.
Hiss—
A bit of blood splattered from Akainu's face, leaving a deep, bone-deep scar across Akainu's face.
The scar ran from below the eyelid down to the jawline, narrowly missing blinding one of his eyes.
Akainu completely ignored the wound on his face, seizing the moment Whitebeard made his move to strike back fiercely.
"Dog Bite Crimson Lotus!!!"
His arm transformed into the ferocious shape of a lava hound, extending rapidly like a piercing lance towards Whitebeard.
The speed of the attack was also extreme; Whitebeard had already tilted his head in time, but his headband was still touched by the magma, leaving a burn mark near his ear.
"The same moves... are useless against me! You magma brat!"
Whitebeard unleashed a horizontal slash, instantly activating the awakening power of the Quake-Quake Fruit, the intense tremor splitting the sky.
"Puwa!!!"
Akainu was sent flying by Whitebeard's slash, coughing up crimson blood.
But as he was sent flying, Akainu desperately counterattacked, the rolling magma forming an exaggeratedly long spear, shooting straight at Whitebeard.
Whitebeard tensed his muscles, smashing it with a fierce punch.
Crack—
The magma spear shattered, but Whitebeard was also pushed back dozens of meters in mid-air by the volcanic eruption-like force.
"It's really hot..."
Whitebeard glanced at the burn marks on his fist, almost forgetting how long it had been since he was last injured, not counting the times Tsunade treated him.
"Gurararararara! No wonder you can inherit the mantle of the old guys like Sengoku and Zephyr, you magma brat. As annoying as you are, you're still one of the peaks among the younger generation."
Whitebeard blew on his fist, dispersing the lingering smoke, the minor injury no different to him than a broken callus.
Meanwhile, Akainu, who had been sent flying into the distance, finally recovered.
Standing on the air, he steadied himself and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Then he realized that his entire face was drenched in blood, the wound on his face continuously bleeding.
"What an absurdly strong old man..." Akainu's eyes were filled with shadows and gravity: "I'm completely at a disadvantage, huh..."
In fact, the warships behind him had already fled far away, and Akainu could have turned and run at this point.
A powerhouse of his caliber, if he truly intended to flee, no one in the Whitebeard Pirates could stop him.
But...
"Tch!"
Akainu clenched his fists, his blood boiling: "If I could capture Whitebeard at his peak and throw him into Impel Down, it would surely be a crushing blow to the pirates at sea..."
He slowly took off the Marine cap on his head, and the justice cloak behind him danced wildly in the wind.
Choosing to become a Marine, he had already put life and death aside.
How could he possibly turn and run from pirates?
And how could he run?
If he ran, who would uphold the justice he stood for?
"Whitebeard!"
Akainu's forehead veins bulged as he roared and charged at Whitebeard again: "Let's settle this once and for all!"
The intensity of their battle escalated yet another level.
The erupting magma and the trembling space made two completely different natural disasters vividly present in the same place.
Five hours, ten hours...
The two had been fighting from evening until deep into the night.
Neither Whitebeard nor Akainu showed signs of fatigue.
The continuous, intense booming turned the area for miles around into a "no man's land," where any creature that entered would find no place to rest in peace.
The large amount of evaporated seawater, along with volcanic ash and other materials, had formed a thick black cloud in the sky, and the sun-blocking cloud plunged the sea area into an abyss-like darkness.
Only the red glow emitted by the magma allowed one to see the distant battle.
...
"Is Admiral Sakazuki really a match for Whitebeard? They've been fighting for too long, haven't they? If they keep going, it'll be dawn..."
An officer on a distant Marine warship couldn't help but swallow nervously.
Although Akainu had ordered them to leave quickly, they were still worried about him and stopped at a great distance.
Even from such a distance, they could still see the catastrophic scene in the distance.
"Why hasn't the support from Marine Headquarters arrived yet?" The Marine Rear Admiral on the warship was extremely anxious: "Didn't Fleet Admiral Sengoku say he sent Admiral Borsalino? With Admiral Borsalino's speed, he should be arriving soon, right?"
One Marine analyzed worriedly: "It's possible that the intensity of the battle between Admiral Sakazuki and Whitebeard is so great that it's disrupting the nearby magnetic field, causing problems with our warship's positioning. In that case, Admiral Borsalino might not be able to find us."
"Damn!" The Marine Rear Admiral broke out in a cold sweat: "If that's the case, then isn't Admiral Sakazuki going to be continuously attacked by a group of pirates from the Whitebeard Pirates?!"
These Marines all believed that Akainu was fighting alone against the entire Whitebeard Pirates, as in their rigid perception, despicable and shameless pirates would definitely choose to fight in greater numbers.
"No, not good!"
Suddenly, a lieutenant colonel with a large bump on his head ran out of the cabin: "The supernova that Admiral Sakazuki told us to watch has disappeared! I was bringing her food when suddenly I passed out! When I woke up, she was gone!"
Hearing this bad news, the Rear Admiral on the warship was overwhelmed.
He bellowed furiously: "Then go find her quickly!"
While the warship was in disarray, a golden flash lit up the sky, nearly blinding everyone.
A group of Marines looked on in bewilderment as the light gradually faded away.
There, a familiar figure appeared before them.
Instantly, the entire warship was abuzz.
"It's Admiral Borsalino!"
Indeed, the person who appeared on the warship was the hurriedly arriving Kizaru, standing straight at the bow of the ship.
Kizaru wiped the non-existent sweat from his brow, his face wearing a sleazy, punchable expression, muttering behind his sunglasses, "Really now... How did the compass fail halfway? It made me run around the New World for half a day..."
"I was supposed to work just a few extra hours, and now it's almost a whole day. Sengoku, you should give me a raise this month, shouldn't you?"
"Admiral Borsalino, please go and support Admiral Sakazuki!"
A Marine Rear Admiral hurriedly ran up behind Kizaru, shouting a reminder, "Admiral Sakazuki is fighting alone against all the pirates of the Whitebeard crew!"
Kizaru, hands in pockets, gazed at the terrifying scene in the distance.
Breathing in the sulfur-laden sea breeze, he said in a low voice, "What a terrifying battlefield, it's so scary I'm a bit afraid to get close."
Upon hearing this, a group of Marines on the ship exclaimed in unison with exaggerated expressions, "Please don't joke like that, Admiral Borsalino!"
Kizaru, with a relaxed posture, squinted and smiled, then said, "Don't worry, Sakazuki is in a one-on-one fight with Whitebeard. If he were alone against the entire Whitebeard crew, he might have been captured alive by now!"
Kizaru unabashedly teased his old colleague.
However, he did not stand idly by, after all, he was on a mission from Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
Kizaru's body slowly turned into a blinding golden light.
In the blink of an eye, he vanished.
...
On the other side, Whitebeard, who had been fighting Akainu for several hours, grabbed Akainu's head with one hand and roared as he stabbed towards Akainu's chest with his sword.
Akainu's eyes were bloodshot, his Observation Haki pushed to the limit, predicting the trajectory of Whitebeard's stab in advance and immediately turning into elements to dodge the strike.
But Whitebeard's vibrational power was activated at the same time, twisting Akainu's head.
"Pfft!!!"
A mouthful of fresh blood sprayed out, blood spurting from all of Akainu's orifices, but he still managed to throw a punch back with all his might.
The magma fist grazed Whitebeard's cheek, burning off a lot of sweat and nearly severing Whitebeard's crescent beard.
Whitebeard tossed Akainu upwards, then slashed down with both hands, cutting Akainu into the sea below for what seemed like the umpteenth time.
But each time, Akainu was able to instantly unleash the scorching power of magma, evaporating the seawater below.
This time was no exception, as Akainu crashed heavily onto the seabed, his entire body dispersing into a large mass of magma to withstand the impact.
When he finally reformed and tried to take a step forward, he stepped into thin air and fell to his knees on the spot.
Then another mouthful of fresh blood spurted out.
"Pfft!!!"
Feeling the agony of his organs shifting, Akainu clenched his teeth tightly, his current state far from presentable.
His whole body was bloodied, with many ferocious wounds, and his abdomen bore a very obvious, huge fist imprint.
The reason he stepped into thin air was that one of his feet had vanished without a trace!
"Heh... heh... monster," Akainu gasped, assessing Whitebeard.
It wasn't fatigue, but the injuries on his body that were taking their toll.
His body bore the marks of a fierce battle with Whitebeard that lasted for hours, wounds inflicted during their relentless clash.
The Whitebeard before him was a stark contrast to the one from the Summit War; Akainu found himself consistently overpowered.
Each time, Akainu could only hastily block or endure Whitebeard's attacks before being forced to counter.
"Gurara! You magma brat!" Whitebeard, too, bore numerous burn scars, his cloak nowhere to be seen, likely reduced to ashes.
Even his iconic crescent mustache was slightly twisted from the heat of the magma.
"You're still stronger than Linlin, aren't you? Alas, you're only fit to light my birthday candles now! Gurara!"
Whitebeard's right fist was enveloped in vibrating light waves as he laughed wildly.
"Magma brat! Can you withstand the blow from a remnant of the old era?"
...
...
(End of Chapter)
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