The hat on Big Mom's head transformed into a long sword, which she gripped in her hand. Kaido, in his Azure Dragon form, shifted into his human form and grasped his club, Hassaikai.
'Elbaf's Spear: Ikoku Sovereignty', 'Thunder Bagua'.
Two attacks from the Four Emperors, infused with Haoshoku, struck toward Hera and Garp. The intense pressure, even before reaching the island, caused the ground where Hera and Garp stood to crack under the strain.
Facing the attacks of Big Mom and Kaido, Garp and Hera did not dare to be overconfident, and red-black Haoshoku coiled around their weapons.
'Fist Impact', 'Imperial Descent: Absolute Void-Time Slash'
Garp's fist met Linlin's emperor sword, while Hera's 'saikū' blocked Kaido's 'Hassaikai'.
A storm gathered around the four of them, and the impact of their clash directly triggered a tsunami.
Hera's clones emerged from the shadows, and the phantom of her ability loomed behind them, suppressing the aftershocks of the clash and preventing a disaster from occurring.
Ace watched as his younger sister's strength had grown to the point where she could clash with the Strongest Creature, Kaido, without being disadvantaged. While he breathed a sigh of relief, he also clenched his fists.
Shanks saw Ace's frustration and comforted him:
"She truly is a monster. Your strength is already very impressive for your age, but Hera is special; you don't need to compare yourself to her."
Beckman nodded. He no longer dared to say he could defeat his own student. However, seeing Hera use sword techniques to block Kaido's attack, he still muttered a comment:
"Why did she switch to using a sword? I was clearly her first teacher."
Yasopp heard his grumbling, patted his shoulder, and said with a laugh, "This is for the best. It looks like I can still be the World's Greatest Sniper for a long time."
Shanks' hand rested on gryphon as he jumped from the bow of the ship. "Alright, brothers, it's time for our entrance."
Just as Kaido and Big Mom wanted to continue the fight, Shanks and Ace arrived on the island.
Shanks unleashed a burst of Haoshoku to separate the two sides and said, "Give me some face; let your battle end here."
Kaido snorted coldly but still put away his club. "Since you can take this move, then you have the right to stand here."
Garp laughed loudly and said, "What do you say, Linlin? Do you want to keep fighting?"
Big Mom also put away her emperor sword, which transformed back into a hat and was placed on her head.
Hera looked regretfully at the calmed-down Big Mom. Since she was being so cooperative, Hera felt embarrassed to take Prometheus and Zeus away from her now.
Kaido took out his flask, took a swig of sake, and continued, "I can give you face, but how are we going to settle the matter between Ochoku and Ace?"
Shanks said, "I came here this time to resolve exactly that."
"Ultimately, this sea is ruled by strength. Since Ochoku wants to seize this position, he naturally has to prove he is stronger than Ace."
"Let's be direct. Let Ace and Ochoku have a fight. Whoever wins gets everything the loser has."
Suddenly, Shanks' Observation Haki detected something unusual. gryphon unsheathed instantly, blocking Garp's sneak attack.
Shanks looked helplessly at the old man who had ambushed him, having been forced back half a step by Garp's iron fist.
"Old man Garp, that's hardly necessary."
Garp snorted coldly. "Just seeing your face gives me a headache. It's because I didn't keep a close enough eye on my home that Ace and Luffy were led astray by you. Otherwise, there wouldn't be all these troubles."
Shanks smiled wryly and rubbed his face, feeling a faint ache. "You've been chasing and hitting me in the New World for so long; haven't you calmed down yet?"
"Fine, I'll give you face this time. For Ace's sake, I'll let you off."
Then, Garp patted Ace's shoulder. "Go on, don't embarrass me."
Ace nodded. His aura already told the many experts present that he was ready.
After seeing Garp and Shanks standing up for Ace, Ochoku actually felt a bit like retreating. Although he called himself the Pirate Progenitor...
He was also one of the Founding Seven of the Rocks Pirates, but having seen many powerhouses of that era, the fact that he still lacked Conqueror's Haki spoke volumes.
His ambition and Haki had been worn away after witnessing the many powerhouses of that era. Initially, he only wanted to be a local tyrant on Hachinosu.
Upon hearing the news of Whitebeard's death, he had only intended to get a piece of the pie. However, the subordinates of Kaido and Big Mom had found him, causing his ambition to burn once again.
Even that brat Shanks had made a name for himself on the sea; how could he be content to stay on Hachinosu forever, waiting to grow old?
Furthermore, he could already feel his strength declining. As a powerhouse who had dominated this sea for many years, he also understood that if he didn't take a gamble now, he would only be devoured by other ambitious pirates.
How could he accept such a fate—becoming a stepping stone for someone else to become a legend?
Therefore, with the support of Kaido and Big Mom, he also wanted to become an Emperor of the Sea and take the lead in swallowing up the Whitebeard Pirates' territory.
Hera was also a bit worried about Ace. From the shadows, while Garp's sneak attack on Shanks distracted everyone, several bullets containing her power slipped into Ace's hand.
To Hera's surprise, flames manifested in Ace's hand, incinerating the bullets she had sent over.
"Even if the opponent is from the Rocks Pirates, I won't lose. Trust me."
Ace decisively refused Hera's help. As the Captain of the Whitebeard Pirates, he would not allow himself to accept help from the Marine when facing an enemy challenging his status.
Hera looked at the bullets turned to ash, curled her lip, and grumbled, "What a waste. If you're not going to use them, don't use them, but why burn them? You should have let me take them back."
Hearing Hera's complaint, Ace scratched his head awkwardly. "Oh, they could be recycled? Next time, definitely next time."
Hera said, "Seriously, I'm going to be angry. If you want me to forgive you, then give me Ochoku's corpse as compensation."
Ace patted Hera's head and laughed heartily. "Alright, alright. I just hope he isn't too weak and gets burned to ash by my flames."
Ochoku, who was burly, wore yellow armor and a red-tasseled helmet, had a long beard and a long, forked tongue resembling a lizard, stepped forward and snorted coldly.
"Stubborn brat, I hope your strength is at least half as tough as your mouth."
"But for Roger's sake, remember to surrender early if you can't win. If you kneel and beg me, I might still give you a chance to be a commander under an Emperor of the Sea."
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