The explosion struck without warning.
High in the air, Kaido's pupils shrank as he watched the massive Ancient Weapon release a blinding white light. In the next instant, a terrifying shockwave and scorching heat engulfed his entire body.
Even the Three Emperors Alliance, who had already put distance between themselves and Egghead Island, were not spared. Aboard their fleet of twenty-nine warships, the pirates were instantly blinded by the overwhelming light. A deafening roar followed, crushing their hearing, and then the shockwave arrived.
The sea erupted.
A violent storm surged outward, flipping twenty-eight warships in an instant.
Only one remained.
The lone surviving ship was the one carrying the ancient robot, Emit.
At the bow, Emit stood tall with both arms spread wide. Despite having claimed earlier that his energy was depleted, he now projected a powerful energy barrier, identical to that of the Ancient Weapon, shielding the ship from the devastating shockwave.
Even so, the impact forced the warship to retreat violently, pushed back tens of kilometers across the raging sea.
Meanwhile, the explosion consumed Egghead Island entirely. Flames of extreme temperature swept across the land, instantly vaporizing parts of the island along with everything caught within.
Minutes passed.
Ace slowly forced his eyes open. The sight before him made his heart drop.
A towering mushroom cloud stretched into the sky. The entire island was engulfed in flames, and what remained of the Ancient Weapon burned within the inferno.
"What... happened..."
His voice trembled.
The sea around him was releasing thick steam, as if it had begun to boil. The fleet that once surrounded him was gone. Not completely vanished, but reduced to scattered debris floating across the water.
At the bow stood the massive figure of Emit. Ace recalled, through the haze, that the robot had deployed a barrier at the last moment, saving them.
One by one, the pirates aboard the ship began to regain consciousness.
Yamato's voice rang out, filled with shock. "What is going on?!"
"Yamato, are you alright?" Ace asked immediately, turning to her.
She nodded stiffly, her eyes fixed on the burning horizon. "That power... I've never seen anything like it."
Her voice carried disbelief.
"Where is everyone? What happened to the others?"
Ace's expression darkened. Out of twenty-nine warships, only theirs remained, and even that was thanks to Emit. The rest had been completely overturned, their crews nowhere in sight.
At that moment, Emit slowly lowered himself, sitting down heavily. The red light in his eyes flickered weakly.
"Emit, are you alright?" Ace rushed forward.
The robot's voice came out broken and unstable. "Energy... completely... depleted..."
Yamato stepped forward, her tone filled with gratitude. "You saved us. Thank you, Emit."
Then confusion crossed her face. "But you removed your energy core earlier. How were you still able to protect us?"
Emit responded with difficulty. "Backup... energy... main energy... exhausted... eight hundred years ago..."
His voice grew weaker.
"Please... Marco... find... new energy..."
As the final words left him, the light in his eyes faded completely. The glow vanished, and his massive body went still.
"Emit!" Yamato called out, but there was no response this time.
Ace placed a hand on her shoulder. "He is not gone. He is just out of energy. Once we find Dr. Vegapunk, there will be a way to restore him."
Yamato took a deep breath and nodded, steadying herself.
At that moment, Jozu and Vista approached, their expressions grim.
"Did the Ancient Weapon self-destruct?" Vista asked quietly.
Jozu clenched his fists. "Marco will not die. He is the Phoenix."
Ace looked out over the sea. "Aside from us, every other ship was hit by that shockwave and tsunami. I do not know how many survived."
Jozu spoke again, though uncertainty lingered in his voice. "Jinbe and Namur have already gone into the sea to search. The Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates have Fish-Men among them. They might have a chance."
Even as he said it, doubt remained.
The explosion had been overwhelming. Blinding light, deafening sound, and disorienting force all struck at once. Anyone thrown into the sea under those conditions would struggle to survive, especially Devil Fruit users.
Suddenly, a massive black dragon descended rapidly from the sky.
The crew tensed for a moment before recognizing it.
"It is Kaido," Ace said.
The dragon crashed onto the deck, and in the next moment, Kaido returned to his human form.
He looked terrible.
Nearly his entire body was covered in severe burns. His hair and beard were completely gone, and his skin was charred black.
Yamato burst into laughter. "Look at you, old man. You look miserable."
Kaido struggled to breathe, glaring at her. "Shut up, Yamato..."
He had been too close to the explosion. When Uranus detonated, he had no chance to escape and was fully caught in the blast.
He had barely managed to stay conscious, forcing himself not to fall into the sea.
Yamato crossed her arms, clearly amused. "So this is the strongest creature on land, sea, and air? You look half-dead."
"Yamato, you..." Kaido tried to respond, anger rising, but suddenly his expression changed.
"Cough... cough..."
A mouthful of blood burst from his lips.
His body trembled violently as his breathing became unstable. His vision blurred, and his strength gave out.
With a heavy thud, Kaido collapsed to his knees.
Then everything went dark.
He fell forward and lost consciousness on the deck.