A purple figure descended from the sky—it was none other than the newly appointed Marine Admiral, known to many as a monster—Fujitora.
At the port.
The moment the Marines spotted Fujitora, their spirits lifted.
In contrast, Urouge, Hawkins, and the others instinctively tensed up, readying themselves for battle.
Maude, watching Fujitora's approach, remained unfazed.
Now that Fujitora was a Marine Admiral, and with other Marines present at the port, Maude couldn't afford to display any overt familiarity.
Besides, Fujitora would likely prioritize his position over personal relationships.
Mid-air, Fujitora gazed in the direction of the port. In his pitch-black vision, hazy silhouettes appeared—each radiating a different level of presence and strength.
"Hmm..."
He let out a low murmur and suddenly drew his blade.
Gravity Blade: Fierce Tiger!
Violet spirals coiled around the sword's edge as Fujitora swung it in a wide arc.
A horizontal gravity wave surged forward, tearing across the ocean's surface, sending towering waves rolling toward Urouge and the others on the right side of the port.
"Waaah!"
The forceful wave of gravity struck with pinpoint accuracy, repelling everyone—except Maude.
As the residual force dissipated, Maude surveyed his surroundings.
Everywhere except where he stood, the stone-paved ground had been upheaved by the Gravity Blade: Fierce Tiger, carving a semi-circular trench leading toward the town.
Even Urouge and the others had been pushed back, let alone the bodies that had been lying on the ground. They were sent flying into the distance, vanishing beneath piles of shattered rock and sand.
Unsure of Fujitora's intentions, Maude remained silent, his right hand resting on the hilt of Shusui, calmly watching as Fujitora descended from the air.
With Fujitora's arrival, the Marines near Chaton instinctively gravitated toward him, as though they had found their backbone, waiting to gauge the situation.
Hina, however, remained by Smoker's side, quietly observing the tension between Maude and Fujitora.
Fujitora landed but did not sheathe his cane-sword. Instead, he gave a slight nod and, despite his blindness, made a deliberate motion as if looking at Maude.
From Fujitora's mannerisms, Maude could sense something and let out a helpless sigh.
"Uncle Issho, I really don't want to fight you."
Despite his words, Maude subtly pushed the hilt of Shusui with his thumb, loosening it slightly.
As he expected, in a setting like this, Fujitora would adhere to his duty and rank first.
"Duty calls..."
Fujitora positioned his blade horizontally in front of him and slightly opened his usually closed eyes, revealing a hint of white.
Seeing this, Maude exhaled softly. His fingers, which had been resting on Shusui's hilt, slowly pressed down, gripping the sheath tightly. A red gleam flickered in his eyes.
Both their auras surged instantly.
Around them.
Chaton and the Marines, as well as the Maude Pirates who had regained their footing, held their breath, eyes fixed on the impending clash.
The tension in the air grew heavier.
Fujitora was the first to move. With a powerful step, he shot forward like an arrow aimed straight at Maude.
Maude's gaze sharpened. He drew Shusui, the sword singing as it left the scabbard.
Yet, just as half of the blade was unsheathed, the sound abruptly ceased.
Watching Fujitora's rapid approach, Maude calmly slid the partially drawn Shusui back into its sheath.
Fujitora's brow twitched almost imperceptibly, his Observation Haki locked onto Maude suddenly shifting to the side.
"Ice Age!"
At that moment, a bone-chilling cold erupted like a tidal wave, instantly forming a colossal glacier that tore through the entire port, standing in Fujitora's path.
The unexpected development caused everyone present to react slightly, their gazes shifting to the enormous ice formation that had appeared out of nowhere.
This was Kuzan's ability.
Fujitora halted in time, his expression remaining calm as he "looked" at the glacier before him.
Wisps of cold mist, like strands of white smoke, gently brushed against his face.
"Hmm..."
Fujitora murmured, a ring of purple gravitational waves rippling around his feet, expanding rapidly toward the glacier before him.
Inferno Journey!
With Fujitora's mental command, the gravity within the surrounding area suddenly intensified, pressing down from above onto the massive glacier.
Crack! Snap!—
Under the immense gravitational force, visible cracks swiftly spread across the ice.
Accompanied by a continuous rumble, the glacier crumbled, reduced to countless shards crushed further into the ground by the gravity's relentless pressure.
Within mere seconds, the towering glacier had been pulverized into ice fragments, covering the port's surface.
"Arara..."
Watching as his glacier was shattered in mere moments, Kuzan scratched his cheek and sighed, "So much for a smooth departure."
As he spoke, Kuzan leisurely walked to Maude's side, his entire body exuding an almost tangible cold mist.
At that very moment, the Grand Line's ever-changing weather took a dramatic turn.
Fierce winds rose in an instant, thick clusters of dark clouds rushing in from all directions, gathering above Dressrosa, blanketing every visible stretch of sky.
The daylight dimmed, and the ocean grew increasingly turbulent.
Maude looked up at the sudden shift in weather, his gaze passing over the Thriller Bark suspended above the port. Upon closer inspection, he noticed the massive ship swaying slightly in the wind.
Even a vessel as enormous as the Thriller Bark, nearly the size of a small island, could be toppled by the raging storm while airborne under the Float-Float Fruit's power.
"Kuzan, take the others and leave first."
Before the weather worsened, Maude made a decisive call—to stay behind and cover their retreat while Kuzan and the rest set sail.
After all, with his Shadow Swap ability, he could return to the Thriller Bark in an instant with minimal effort.
"I think I'll stay."
Kuzan slowly lowered his hand, his sunglasses reflecting Fujitora's image. In a calm voice, he said, "After all, he's quite the 'monster' himself."
With that, Kuzan stepped forward, placing himself in front of Maude.
The cold mist radiating from him spread silently, forming a semi-transparent veil of protection around Maude.
This was what a subordinate was supposed to do.
Fujitora silently "watched" as Kuzan shielded Maude, while Kuzan himself remained wordless, staring back at Fujitora.
One was a current Marine Admiral, the other a former Admiral.
As they stood in silent confrontation, memories surfaced in their minds.
They had faced each other like this before.
Only this time...
Kuzan was the one standing in front of Maude.
"Fate is unpredictable..."
Fujitora sighed internally, just as he was about to engage Kuzan in battle—
A massive tornado suddenly crashed against the mushroom-shaped rock formations on Dressrosa's coastline.
Violent winds swept outward, carrying several figures who were flung onto the rocks before being launched high into the air, their screams echoing as they plummeted onto the ice-covered ground below.
Boom!—
The impact left a crater where they landed.
"Damn, that hurt! But at least we made it ashore—Ze~hahaha!!!"
Moments later, the unmistakable laughter of Blackbeard echoed from within the massive crater.
"Cough, cough... What rotten luck we have, running into remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates in the open sea. But I suppose, in a way, this 'storm' has delivered us here. Cough, cough..."
Doc Q wheezed between his words, as if he might breathe his last at any moment.
"Everything is guided by fate," Van Augur stated calmly.
"My new clothes got ruined. Now who am I supposed to blame for that?" The Crescent Moon Hunter grumbled, her tone full of complaint.
"Zehahaha! Looks like it's time we found ourselves a competent navigator."
Blackbeard, unbothered, began climbing out of the deep crater, making his way up the steep slope.
Halfway up, his laughter suddenly ceased.
It was only now, after being hurled across the sea by the tornado, that the Blackbeard Pirates finally noticed the group of monstrous figures standing at the harbor.
Facing each other in tense confrontation were Maude, Aokiji, and Fujitora. Scattered around them were the members of the Maude Pirates, while a group of Marines led by Vice Admiral Chaton stood at the ready. Every single person had their eyes locked onto the Blackbeard Pirates, who had inexplicably fallen from the sky.
Emerging halfway from the crater, Blackbeard froze, eyes wide and mouth agape, looking utterly ridiculous.
Shiryu of the Rain stood beside him, his expression unreadable. "I'd say we've landed ourselves in a pretty bad spot."
"Fate seems to be playing a cruel joke on us... Cough, cough..."
Doc Q's hollow gaze swept across the battlefield, falling upon the three monstrous figures—Maude, Aokiji, and Fujitora.
Encountering just one of them under normal circumstances would already be troublesome enough.
But all three at once?
Could things possibly get any worse?
Van Augur's icy gaze settled on Maude, who stood behind Aokiji. His hand tilted his rifle slightly, keeping it primed for a quick shot at any moment.
"Hey, hey, this has got to be a joke... We've always had good luck, so why does it feel like our fortune's turning?"
Blackbeard slowly regained his senses, though his eyes remained wide in disbelief. He stared at Maude and the others as if their sudden appearance was the absurdity here—not realizing that it was, in fact, they who had arrived in the most inexplicable manner.
He had come to Dressrosa in pursuit of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, which had been consumed by Vergo. Determined to claim its power, Blackbeard and his crew had traveled across vast distances, only to run into an unfortunate encounter.
Just as they reached the waters off Dressrosa, they had the misfortune of crossing paths with the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates, led by Ace. Since the end of the Summit War, the two groups had been locked in an ongoing conflict.
Blackbeard had no interest in dealing with Ace and his crew—his only focus was obtaining the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. After a few half-hearted clashes, he had turned tail and fled, steering his ship straight toward Dressrosa.
His plan was simple: secure the Tremor-Tremor Fruit first. If a fight was inevitable, he'd be more than ready once he possessed both the Dark-Dark Fruit and the Tremor-Tremor Fruit's powers.
But the Whitebeard Pirates wouldn't let up.
As they were about to close in on his ship, the skies suddenly darkened, and a violent tornado materialized out of nowhere, tearing across the sea with impossible speed.
In the blink of an eye, Blackbeard's entire crew—ship and all—was sucked into the raging vortex and sent hurtling through the sky.
And so, completely by accident, the Blackbeard Pirates crash-landed in Dressrosa, arriving at their destination in the most unceremonious way possible.
At first, Blackbeard had thought his luck had turned.
But the moment he saw Maude, Aokiji, and Fujitora standing before him, he realized...
This wasn't luck.
This was a nightmare.
Fate had a cruel sense of humor.
That was, without a doubt, the sentiment shared by the Blackbeard Pirates in that moment.
For once, Blackbeard found himself unable to laugh.
What had he done to deserve this?
All he wanted was the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
The Blackbeard Pirates stood frozen in place, while Maude's side was equally taken aback.
What the hell is this?
Maude stared in shock at the Blackbeard Pirates, who had quite literally fallen from the sky.
He knew why Blackbeard was here, but he never expected him to make such a ridiculous entrance.
Kuzan, Fujitora, and everyone else present were just as stunned.
For a brief moment, an eerie silence blanketed the battlefield.
Then, the sound of flapping wings echoed from above, breaking the stillness.
A massive bird engulfed in brilliant blue flames soared toward them, illuminating the overcast sky with its shimmering fire.
Gripped in its talons were two figures.
One was shirtless, wearing a cowboy hat—Fire Fist Ace.
The other wore a deep blue, open-chested shirt beneath a black cape—Flower Sword Vista.
And there was no mistaking the identity of the great, blue-flame-covered bird—it was none other than Marco the Phoenix.
"The Marines... and the Maude Pirates...!"
Marco's half-lidded eyes widened in surprise as he took in the scene before him. He adjusted his flight path, descending toward a nearby rock formation.
Ace and Vista released their grip, landing ahead of Marco.
"This is... unexpected."
Vista stepped forward, standing at the edge of the rock formation. His steady gaze swept across the gathered warriors, each one a formidable force in their own right.
Ace remained silent, but his piercing eyes flicked between Maude and Blackbeard, sharp as daggers.
Shhkk—
A soft blue glow reflected off Ace and Vista.
"Of all the scenarios... why did it have to be this one?"
Marco landed beside them, his expression grave.
In this chase, he had used his flight ability to stay on Blackbeard's tail, bringing along the two strongest members of their group—Vista and Ace—to ensure their target had no chance to escape.
But never in their wildest dreams had they expected to run into both the Maude Pirates and a Marine force led by Admiral Fujitora.
One crisis after another...
Marco, Ace, and Vista's arrival drew the eyes of everyone present.
The sheer number of notorious pirates gathered in one place sent a chill through many of the Marines, filling them with unease.
"Now I'm really curious... Are you all planning to settle things here and now?"
Maude's voice carried across the battlefield, infused with the raw pressure of Conqueror's Haki.
Thud—
Several Marines, still recovering from their earlier injuries, collapsed unconscious once more under the overwhelming force of Maude's will.
The others gritted their teeth and stood firm, enduring the oppressive aura.
All eyes turned to Maude, their expressions a mix of wariness and tension.
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