"Bankai!"
The moment Bai Ye spoke, the seemingly endless orange-red flames engulfing Mariejois suddenly froze.
In the next instant, as his voice fell, an astonishing scene unfolded.
The towering pillars of flame, the unrelenting inferno consuming Mariejois, and the searing heat radiating from Ryūjin Jakka — all of it vanished in an instant. The roaring flames disappeared as if they had never existed.
Left in Bai Ye's hand was a single scorched blade, a katana that looked as if it might crumble into ash at any moment.
"Th-The flames... they're gone?!"
"The fire in Mariejois has vanished!"
"Did that man give up the fight after witnessing the power of 'God'?"
Countless onlookers, both within and outside Mariejois, were stunned by the sudden turn of events. Murmurs of disbelief spread like wildfire.
Meanwhile, in a small town near the Grand Line, a pirate was enjoying his drink when he noticed something strange.
"That man might've realized it's hopeless," a pirate speculated while raising his glass. "The World Government has a monster equivalent to a god. There's no defeating that."
Just as he took a sip, his expression darkened. "Hey! Where's my drink?!" he roared, slamming his fist on the table. "Who's messing with me?! You think I'm an easy mark? Do you know who I am? I've got a bounty of over 20 million Baileys!"
The bar staff trembled at the pirate's anger and scrambled to pour another glass. But as they turned to the barrel, their hands froze.
"What... what's going on?" the bartender stammered. "There was still wine in here a moment ago!"
To their horror, the liquid in the nearby glasses began to disappear. Even the plants in the bar wilted as though they had been drained of water.
The bartender's legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground, his voice shaking. "No... this can't be happening…!"
Outside, another pirate burst into the bar, his face pale with terror.
"Captain! We've got a problem!"
"What now?!" barked the burly captain, clearly irritated.
"Our ship!" the panicked pirate cried. "The sea's boiling! The ship can't sail in those conditions!"
The bar fell silent, and every pirate's face turned grim. Rushing outside, they saw the harbor shrouded in dense white steam. The water was literally boiling.
Back on the Grand Line, islands far and wide felt the effects of Bai Ye's Bankai.
"What's happening?!"
"This heat... I can feel the water in my body evaporating!"
"But this island is supposed to be snow-covered year-round…!"
People everywhere were horrified as the temperature rose to unprecedented levels.
At Naval Headquarters Marineford, Fleet Admiral Sengoku watched the events on the projection screen with a mix of confusion and dread.
"All the flames on Mariejois are gone? Could it be that he's given up?"
His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of white steam rising from the sea outside Marineford. The warships docked in the harbor began to burn, their sails catching fire one after another.
"Kuzan! Put out the fire!" Sengoku shouted at Aokiji.
But Aokiji stood motionless, his face pale.
"What's wrong, Kuzan?!" Sengoku demanded.
"...I can't," Aokiji said, his voice filled with disbelief. "The cold air from my Devil Fruit… it evaporates before I can even release it."
Sengoku froze, his eyes wide with shock.
"Is this... all because of him?" Aokiji murmured, staring at Bai Ye's figure on the screen.
Near Mariejois, Magellan, the warden of Impel Down, was leading reinforcements. As his warship approached, steam began to rise from the ocean around them.
"Director Magellan!" a jailer shouted, running onto the deck. "The ship... it's melting!"
Magellan's eyes widened as he watched the warship disintegrate beneath his feet.
"What kind of power is this?!" he muttered, cold sweat dripping down his face.
At Mariejois, the Five Elders sneered at Bai Ye.
"Is this supposed to be your trump card?" the elder with the fluffy beard mocked. "That pathetic little sword? How ridiculous!"
Ignoring their taunts, Bai Ye gripped Ryūjin Jakka tightly and locked eyes with Im.
"You feel it, don't you?" Bai Ye said softly. "Come. Experience true hell."
As he raised the blade, the Five Elders watched in confusion. The katana didn't emit flames or heat, but when the tip touched the air, the entire Mariejois began to tremble violently.
In a moment that would be remembered as the birth of a nightmare, the unthinkable happened.
A scorching abyss, kilometers wide, appeared where Mariejois once stood. The Red Line itself was obliterated as if carved away by an impossibly sharp blade.
Everything — the Celestial Dragons, the World Government's elite, and even the very land they stood on — was gone, erased as if they had never existed.