At the rail of the Moby Dick, Leno stood side by side with Whitebeard, both watching the two figures clashing fiercely on the frozen sea.
Although the two of them had exchanged a move earlier, a real fight had never broken out.
First, to avoid causing massive destruction, both sides had deliberately held back during that brief exchange.
Second, neither of them actually had a reason to fight, and neither was a battle maniac.
In the end, Leno paid several crates of wine in exchange for a sparring match between the two crews.
When it came to sparring, Yamato was the first to jump out without hesitation, choosing the biggest opponent present—Jozu.
Leno had no objections to her choice.
In fact, he also wanted to see just how far Jozu, who possessed the power of the Diamond-Diamond Fruit, could push Yamato.
'I just hope he can force her to go all out.'
As the battle between the two grew increasingly intense, the frozen sea shattered piece by piece, and waves of shockwaves swept outward in layers.
The exaggerated spectacle of the fight left the surrounding spectators stunned.
The adventurers were relatively calm; they all knew Yamato's strength, so none of them were too surprised.
But the members of Whitebeard's crew were a different story.
Jozu was the captain of their Third Division, one of the strongest fighters in the entire crew.
Yet now, a random young woman from the adventurers' side was not only fighting him evenly, but even seemed to be gradually gaining the upper hand.
It sounded like pure fantasy.
Whitebeard watched Yamato closely, noticing her obvious racial traits and those familiar attack techniques. His eyebrow twitched slightly.
"Kid, that girl is Kaido's daughter, isn't she?"
"That's right. Her name is Yamato. She's Kaido's daughter."
Leno glanced at Whitebeard's calm face and nodded with a smile, pride clear in his tone.
"I had quite a hard time inviting her onto my ship. Now she's basically the main combat powerhouse of our crew."
Upon hearing this, Ace—who was squatting on the other side of the rail—twitched at the corner of his mouth. He turned to Leno with a strange look and finally couldn't help asking,
"Mr. Leno, I heard that you kidnapped her onto the ship. Because of that, Kaido even fought you over it?"
Whitebeard also shifted his gaze, looking at Leno with great interest, his eyes full of amusement.
This brat had some nerve—running all the way to Onigashima to snatch someone's daughter. In some ways, he was even more of a pirate than Whitebeard himself.
Hearing Ace's curious question, Leno's smile froze. Several black lines instantly appeared across his forehead.
He turned to Ace and gritted his teeth.
"Which bastard spread that rumor? That's pure slander!"
"Huh? Isn't that what happened?" Ace scratched his head in confusion and muttered, "But that's what everyone outside is saying..."
Hearing him mumble, Leno pressed a hand to his forehead helplessly, completely out of energy to complain.
Which damned idiot started that rumor? He was clearly rescuing a girl from suffering.
Those busybodies really had nothing better to do.
After spending quite a while mentally calming himself down, Leno finally turned his attention back to the battlefield.
On the field, Yamato had just been blasted far away by a punch from Jozu.
Already in her human-beast form, she stared ahead with a face full of excitement.
Looking at Jozu, whose arms had transformed into diamonds, Yamato felt her blood boiling, her fighting spirit rising higher than ever.
The Kanabo in her hands had turned pitch black, occasionally flashing with crimson lightning.
The instant she landed, her calves exerted slight force.
With a crack, the ice beneath her feet shattered in a fan-shaped pattern, and her figure shot forward again like a streak of white light.
"Thunder Bagua!"
Watching Yamato get blasted away again and again, only to charge back every time, Jozu began to sweat slightly.
'Is this girl crazy? This is just a spar. Why is she fighting like her life depends on it?'
But facing Yamato's ferocious assault—and that massive club wrapped in Armament Haki—Jozu didn't dare be careless.
He bent his arm slightly, the diamond surface blazing brilliantly, and slammed forward.
"Brilliant Impact!"
Clang!
The explosive roar was sharp and deafening. The ice beneath them shattered like a spiderweb as terrifying soundwaves spread outward from the center of the clash.
Shockwaves mixed with broken ice and mist surged forward.
The spectators watching nearby had to raise their hands to shield their eyes.
The violent impact forced Yamato two steps back.
Feeling the immense force transmitted through her Kanabo, the light in her eyes burned even brighter.
"Haha... this is awesome. Again!"
"Tch, what a crazy girl..."
Facing the black club that blurred with afterimages, Jozu clenched his teeth and swung his diamond fists with equal force.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Endless metallic collisions rang out, sparks occasionally bursting into the air.
The two figures constantly shifted positions across the ice, and the commotion they created grew increasingly violent.
The already battered frozen sea continued to shatter and reform as their battle raged on.
Feeling the waves of pressure rushing toward him, Leno crossed his arms and curled the corner of his mouth upward.
He glanced sideways at Whitebeard and said smugly,
"So, old man, the girl on my ship is pretty strong, right?"
"Not bad. But compared to Jozu, she's still lacking..."
Whitebeard leaned slightly on his naginata and nodded, clearly favoring his own son.
Leno rolled his eyes internally, feeling speechless.
'What a good dad. I wonder what kind of reaction you'll have when your beloved son loses later.'
Leno smacked his lips, an amused glint flashing in his eyes.
"Keep talking tough. I think Yamato has a very good chance of winning this spar."
"..."
Whitebeard no longer wanted to talk. Today he had truly seen just how arrogant this brat could be.
The more he looked at him, the more annoying he seemed.
His own sons were still better.
Leno's voice wasn't quiet, and the people around them immediately became displeased.
Especially the members of the Third Division. Anger appeared on their faces, though they didn't dare vent it toward Leno.
So they placed all their hopes on their captain and began cheering loudly.
"Come on, Captain Jozu!"
"Defeat that woman!"
"Show them the power of the Whitebeard Pirates!"
"..."
Watching the sudden scene unfold, Leno paused for a moment before laughing.
What a naive bunch.
If cheering worked, why would anyone bother training?
Did they really think he was Nika—who becomes invincible just by getting fired up?
...
...