Crack!
Dozens of meters thick, the solid ice beneath them suddenly shattered with a deafening crash, unable to withstand the overwhelming force of Luffy's aura. The sea surged up through the fractured ice under immense pressure, flooding the surface.
"Absolute Zero!"
Momentarily dazed by the sudden burst of Conqueror's Haki, Aokiji staggered on the swaying ice. Nearly tumbling into the frigid sea, he urgently activated his Devil Fruit ability, freezing the ocean surface again just in time.
"Get back to the island, now!" Luffy shouted to the three Devil Fruit users behind him.
He knew full well that on his own, he wasn't a match for Aokiji.
But if the battle took place at sea, Luffy's attacks could easily melt the ice beneath them, risking a fall into the ocean, and Aokiji would seize any such opening to knock out the others, making things worse.
So Luffy planned to lure Aokiji away and fight him directly, giving the others a chance to regroup back on Thriller Bark and strike together.
"Luffy-san!" Brook suddenly stepped forward, his electric guitar transforming back into his skeletal sword. The blazing white tiger of ghostfire that had flanked him faded into ethereal energy and vanished into the air.
"Luffy-san, I can help expand the battlefield!"
With that, Brook slashed his sword. A stream of ghostly blue flames erupted from the blade, spreading across the frozen sea and igniting fiercely atop the ice.
In moments, the ice thickened and rose again, radiating an eerie, bone-chilling cold, as if it had emerged from the depths of the underworld. The air grew heavy with an unsettling aura.
"Oh?" Luffy tapped the ice with his foot, then held his Haki-imbued, flame-wreathed palm close to the surface.
Though the ice still melted visibly under his heat, it didn't turn back into seawater. Instead, it vaporized into wisps of frigid mist and drifted upward into the sky, vanishing.
Perfect, no more danger of Brook and the others falling into the sea.
"Nice work," Luffy said, smiling as he gave Brook an approving glance.
Though Brook hadn't gained as many stat boosts as Zoro, even while the latter was still asleep, his unique and inventive powers had grown considerably.
Moria stepped forward with a grin. "Heheheh… Brook-san, you're getting better and better!"
The frozen Doppelman at his feet suddenly melted into a pool of black mist, seemingly losing its physical form. It slithered back to Moria's side like a living shadow.
Hancock, ever proud, gave a light huff but said nothing. She simply stepped forward, her Haki-clad heels clicking against the ice, and stood beside Luffy and Moria, shoulder to shoulder.
"Pirate Empress Boa Hancock. Great Pirate Gecko Moria. An unknown but powerful young man… and that strange skeleton."
Aokiji called them out one by one, almost like a roll call. Then, in a voice so quiet only he could hear, he murmured, "So this is the place you've found for yourself…"
"Ice Age!"
Without warning, Aokiji unleashed a wave of biting cold. The sudden and apocalyptic chill swept across the battlefield, engulfing Luffy and the others.
"Flame Shield!"
Whoosh! Luffy flung his arms outward, and searing flames burst from his armored gauntlets, rising like a screen of fire that shielded them from the oncoming cold.
Moments later, Aokiji exhaled a frosty breath and peered through the flames. Seeing his enemies unharmed, he withdrew his hand, feigning fatigue as he sighed. "Tough crowd…"
Luffy dismissed the flames just as calmly, then turned to Brook. "Get ready, Brook!"
"On it!" Brook answered instantly, his skeletal voice tinged with excitement as he chuckled.
His bone sword ignited in eerie green flames, the fire dancing wildly in the air. The blade began to melt, reshaping itself into a tall skeletal harp.
The instrument landed upright before Brook, who flexed his long, bony fingers and began to strum the harp's ghostly strings.
A heavy, resonant melody rang out. With each vibration of the strings, a tiny skull atop the harp lit up with a ghostly green flame, like a soul flickering inside.
The skull began to emit a strange green mist, which slowly expanded in the air until it engulfed Luffy, Moria, and Hancock.
"Soulguard Hymn: Black Tortoise Guardian!"
At Brook's shout, the green energy in the air suddenly contracted, then surged upward. It condensed into the form of a massive beast, dragon head, turtle shell, serpent tail, and a dark back: the mythical Black Tortoise.
Hissss!
With a serpent-like hiss, the creature spewed a torrent of ghostly green fire from its thick shell. The flames poured downward and spread, reinforcing the ice underfoot once more.
Brook's eyes gleamed with green light as he turned to Luffy. "Luffy-san! The battlefield is ready!"
"Perfect!" Luffy grinned, his eyes sharpening as he turned to Hancock and Moria.
"Let's go!"
Aokiji, meanwhile, hadn't said a word, his calm demeanor unchanged, as if he hadn't taken them seriously at all.
The truth was… the gap in power was just that wide.
"Shadow Bat Swarm!"
Moria, despite his usual arrogance, showed no hesitation. Facing such a formidable opponent, he immediately flung his hand forward, scattering shadow bats to surround Aokiji.
"Slave Arrow!"
Hancock also struck without delay, firing a storm of arrows made from hardened love energy. They rained toward Aokiji like a meteor shower.
Both of them started strong, hoping to wear Aokiji down by forcing him to expend energy.
Only Luffy remained still.
He knew better, Aokiji wasn't someone who could be defeated through stamina attrition.
This was the man who had once fought Akainu on Punk Hazard for ten straight days and nights, reshaping the entire island in the process.
Trying to outlast that kind of monster? Suicide.
Sure enough, facing a sky full of arrows and shadows, Aokiji showed no concern about conserving his strength. Instead, he raised his arms and unleashed another wide-range technique.
"Ice Age!"
With a surge of frost from his body, the skies howled with arctic wind. Snow and gales whirled through the air in an apocalyptic storm.
"What the…?" Hancock and Moria's eyes widened as they witnessed the storm erupt from Aokiji's hands.
They couldn't believe it, he was still willing to unleash such massive attacks, even against the three of them at once!
The arrow barrage and shadow bats were quickly swallowed by the blizzard. Layers of ice encased them midair, neutralizing their momentum and causing them to crash to the ground like heavy rain, thump, thump, crash, shattering the ice below.
"Tch!"
But the storm wasn't done. The fierce cold wind turned toward Hancock and Moria.
They quickly retreated, and Luffy rushed in, launching another massive surge of fire to shield them.
The blizzard, under Aokiji's control, surged forward still, clashing with Luffy's flames in midair.
Above the battlefield, two forces collided: blazing red fire and freezing blue cold, fusing, pushing, canceling each other out in a stunning display of elemental warfare.
Luffy clenched his teeth.
Aokiji was trying to drag things out and exhaust him.
"Cover me when I move!" Luffy suddenly shouted to Moria and Hancock. "I'll find an opening to attack!"
"Got it!" Moria replied instantly, eyes flashing with colorful glints as he watched the sky.
"Tch." Hancock didn't respond verbally, but the sharp hiss through her teeth told Luffy she agreed.
"Good!"
Luffy roared, his aura surging to the max. He poured Armament Haki and his life-force energy into the Sky Flame.
In that moment, he unleashed everything he had, blazing toward the blizzard and Aokiji with overwhelming force.
The admiral's advance paused, if only slightly.
Luffy saw the moment and shouted with all his might:
"Now! Go!!"
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