Linlin gripped Emperor Sword Napoleon with both hands, channeling Thunder-Fire Storm into the blade while wrapping it with Haki, then—
"Might Country—!!!"
She swung down!
A massive Sword Qi carrying Thunder-Fire Storm swept toward the Navy fleet like an overwhelming black cloud!
Wherever the Sword Qi passed, seawater evaporated into white steam.
Two devastating attacks, one from each side, charged straight at the Navy fleet!
On the flagship, Garp and Zephyr moved simultaneously.
"I'll take the one on the right!" Garp roared, kicking off the deck and shooting out like a cannonball!
He leaped into mid-air, the muscles in his right arm bulging to their limit!
Armament Haki flowed like molten iron, rapidly covering his entire arm from the knuckles.
Conqueror's Haki also wrapped around it, dark red arcs of electricity dancing across his fist!
"Meteor Fist—!"
He threw a punch!
The air in front of his fist compressed to its limit, forming a visible conical Shockwave.
The punch collided directly with Whitebeard's Vibration Wave!
BOOM—!!!
The moment the two forces met, the sky and earth seemed to change colors!
Shockwaves spread outward like a hurricane!
The sea below was forcibly pressed into a depression hundreds of meters wide, seawater violently rushing back in from all sides!
At the same time, Zephyr met Linlin's Might Country.
"Black Arm Fist Gun—!"
Both his arms were coated in jet-black Armament Haki, muscles swelling to their limit.
Though his Conqueror's Haki wasn't as strong as Garp's, it was enough to withstand Linlin's strike!
He threw both fists forward, slamming into the Might Country Sword Qi!
BOOM—!!!
The attacks of all four figures converged mid-air, erupting into a staggering energy Shockwave!
The sea churned violently, waves rising like mountains!
"Close in on them!" Sengoku ordered sharply. "All hands, prepare for boarding combat!"
Twenty warships accelerated, charging straight between the two fleets!
"Sons!" Whitebeard bellowed. "Engage!"
"Yes, Father!!!"
The Whitebeard Pirates turned as one, abandoning their conflict with the Big Mom Pirates and aiming their cannons squarely at the Navy!
"Children!" Linlin commanded. "Take out these Marines!"
"As you command, Mother!"
Katakuri, Perospero, and the other children likewise shifted direction, charging toward the Navy warships!
Three fleets descended into chaotic battle across the sea!
"Gurararara! Garp! Long time no see."
Whitebeard leaped from the Moby Dick, raising Cloud Cutter overhead before bringing it down toward Garp!
Garp threw a punch, precisely blocking the blade!
"Whitebeard! You won't escape this time!"
"Escape?" Whitebeard grinned. "I never considered it!"
He sliced through Garp's fist, Cloud Cutter carving a half-circle in the air before striking down again!
Meanwhile, Linlin and Zephyr clashed.
"Might Country!" Linlin swung her sword, thunder and fire coiling around it!
Zephyr met it with both fists, Haki colliding with a sizzling crackle!
"Linlin! Your era is over!" Zephyr roared.
"Mamamamama! My era is just beginning!"
The great battle raged for a full hour.
Warship wreckage floated across the sea, blood staining vast stretches of water red.
The battle between Garp and Whitebeard had reached a fever pitch.
Both were covered in wounds, panting heavily, yet neither was willing to retreat even half a step.
"Gurarara... Garp, your fists... are still as hard as ever..."
"Cut the crap... I train... every single day..."
Zephyr and Linlin's battlefield had shifted to a warship on the verge of sinking.
The deck of the warship was cracked by the shockwaves of their Haki, the hull tilting, ready to sink at any moment.
Zzzap—
A crackling sound of an electric arc suddenly rang out in mid-air.
Everyone present—whether it was Whitebeard swinging his bisento, Linlin raising her Emperor Sword high, or Garp's Iron Fist about to strike down—all froze.
Everyone felt an immense oppressive force, as if something terrifying was about to appear.
Hum—!!!
The next moment, the heavens and earth changed color.
In the sky, countless black-red Conqueror's Haki Arcs danced wildly like frenzied serpents, crackling and exploding in all directions!
Crackle! Zzzap!
Each leap tore fine black fissures in the air!
Immediately after, an overwhelming spiritual shock swept down like a hurricane.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
One by one, everyone present began to collapse.
Those who fell shared a common trait—their eyes rolled back, foam spewed from their mouths, and their bodies went limp as if their bones had been removed.
In an instant, the sea that had been roaring with battle was left with only the sound of waves crashing against the ships.
Fewer than ten people remained standing.
Whitebeard, Linlin, Garp, Sengoku, Zephyr.
And a handful of top Officers from both sides—Marco, Jozu, Vista, Katakuri, Perospero.
Though they barely maintained consciousness, they were on one knee, drenched in cold sweat, gasping for breath.
At that very moment.
In the sky, a spatial ripple slowly expanded.
Like a stone dropped into a calm lake, ripples spread out in circles.
At the center of the ripple, space parted like curtains to either side, and a black figure emerged from the void, gradually solidifying.
It was a young, handsome man.
His hair was black as ink, his eyes crimson like blood.
His face was cold and stern, devoid of expression or emotion, like a deity gazing down upon the mortal world.
He wore a black and gold imperial robe, embroidered with nine coiling dragons in golden thread, their heads held high, vivid and lifelike.
At his waist hung a pitch-black longsword, its scabbard plain and unadorned.
He hovered in mid-air, surrounded by a sky full of black-red Conqueror's Haki Arcs.
The first Emperor of the Sea.
The World's Strongest Man.
The master of the Fengtian Empire.
The God Slayer with a Bounty of 5 billion Belly.
Raiver.
"Raiver—!!!"
The pupils of every strong individual present contracted sharply at the same time.
Whitebeard was the first to regain his composure.
He looked up at the old friend who had fought alongside him on the same ship six years ago, his gaze complex.
He glanced around the deck, littered with his sons lying in disarray, foaming at the mouth.
"Gurarara..." Whitebeard's laughter grew a bit lower, tinged with a hint of helplessness:
"Raiver, kid, what's the meaning of this? Knocking out all my sons."
His tone held no real anger, only more confusion.
Sengoku furrowed his brows, his clenched fist slowly relaxing.
He did not order an attack, nor did he even consider it.
As a Marine Admiral, he understood better than anyone:
Standing before them now was an existence even the Five Elders had ordered to "absolutely avoid conflict with."
"Raiver," Sengoku spoke gravely, "what do you intend to do?"
Raiver looked down from above and slowly spoke.
"Could you give me face? Cease this war. Everyone return to where you belong."
As his words fell, the battlefield plunged into momentary dead silence.
So that's how it is—understanding dawned on everyone present.
He hadn't come to declare war, nor to reap benefits—he had come to mediate.
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