The first to lose patience wasn't one of the famous pirates, but a streak of blue flame cutting across the sky.
"Oh yeah!"
Young Marco's figure shot like a blue meteor from the Moby Dick's deck, instantly spreading magnificent wings of blue flame behind him.
He didn't go after Roger or Rayleigh, but charged straight for the red-haired kid about his age on deck.
Claws of condensed flame, trailing scorching air, swooped down from above!
"Bring it on!"
Fighting spirit blazed in Shanks' eyes. Facing this sudden fierce attack, he tapped his toe and pulled back half a step, just barely avoiding the razor-sharp claws. His sword—still a bit heavy for him—swept upward at a tricky angle.
Clang!
Blade met flame claw with a crisp ring of metal.
The first strike failed, so Marco flapped his wings and nimbly flipped in midair before landing steadily on deck. Those perpetually sleepy eyes now held a hint of respect for his opponent.
Meanwhile, a stocky, square-jawed youth also jumped onto the Oro Jackson's deck—"Diamond" Jozu.
He didn't rush to attack, just stood with arms crossed, his skin showing a faint, crystal-clear gleam in the sunlight.
"Hey... hey, Shanks, that guy looks like he's made of stone!" Buggy hid behind Shanks, nervously swallowing.
But the next second, when Jozu rolled his neck, a ray of sunlight hit his shoulder and refracted into dazzling rainbow colors.
Diamond?!
Buggy's eyes lit up instantly.
All thoughts of fear and danger vanished, replaced by visions of mountains of berries and endless treasure.
I'm rich! If I could just... pry off a tiny piece from that guy! Just a tiny piece!
"Die! You walking treasure chest!"
Buggy let out a weird yell, circled around Shanks, and lunged at Jozu's back with both daggers.
"Hm?" Jozu sensed movement behind him but didn't turn around, just shifted his shoulder slightly.
Clang! Clang!
Two sharp sounds, and Buggy felt like he'd stabbed the hardest substance in the world. The massive recoil made his arms go numb and his eyes see stars.
"So... so hard!"
Seeing his sneak attack fail, Buggy didn't run—instead, he clung on with hands and feet, trying to bite and claw, his treasure-crazed antics leaving the surrounding pirates speechless.
With these kids making the first move, the young blood on both ships boiled over completely.
The teenage squad from the Whitebeard Pirates and the apprentice crew members from the Roger Pirates roared as they charged each other. The clang of weapons mixed with crude teenage curses instantly echoed across the entire deck.
Kyle leaned against the ship's rail, watching this "kindergarten brawl" with interest, an amused smile playing at his lips.
Go Shanks!
Shanks used Slash Attack!
It's super effective!
Marco used Claw Strike!
MISS!
His gaze swept over the energetic little devils before settling on a young man with a thin mustache and rapier at his waist, standing beside Whitebeard.
"Flower Sword" Vista.
Seeming to sense Kyle's stare, Vista looked back at him, his eyes holding the sharpness unique to swordsmen.
Kyle grinned and made a "please" gesture, as if inviting him to some elegant pre-dinner exercise.
Well, well~ It's not that I'm bullying kids—I just can't find anyone else to spar with~
Just then, two auras that ruled over all finally reached their limit.
"Gu ha ha ha! Warm-up's over, Newgate!"
"Gurararara! Now the main course begins, Roger!"
Roger and Whitebeard both burst into earth-shaking laughter, their figures vanishing from their respective figureheads. The next moment, they collided head-on in midair between the ships!
Roger's sword Ace, wreathed in visible black-red Conqueror's Haki, roaring downward!
Whitebeard's supreme grade blade, Murakumogiri, was wrapped in a layer of pure white light as he swung!
Whooom—!
With their weapons' clash as the center, the atmosphere... cracked!
Atmosphere: I'm cracking up!
Clear white fractures spread through the air like a spider web, as if the entire space had been shattered into fragile glass by this single blow.
The clouds in the sky were instantly dispersed by invisible force, and even the sea surface below mysteriously sank into a huge arc that couldn't recover for ages.
So this was the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit?
After one collision, both men were knocked back, landing steadily on each other's decks.
"What terrifying power, Newgate!" Roger shook his slightly numb arm, his smile growing even brighter.
"Your Haki's getting more ridiculous by the day, Roger!" Whitebeard was equally fired up, slamming Murakumogiri heavily on the deck.
Crack!
"Hey! Pops! You're stepping on our ship!"
"Roger! Do you know how much deck repairs cost?!"
Crew members from both sides wailed in unison.
The kids who'd been fighting tooth and nail moments before had completely stopped moving.
Shanks, Buggy, Marco, Jozu... they all stood dumbstruck, gazing up at those two god-like figures.
What level of battle was that? Just the aftershocks of their clash were enough to change the color of heaven and earth!
Gone was their earlier competitive spirit—only pure shock and awe remained in their eyes.
"Hey there, kiddo."
Kyle's voice drifted over. Somehow he'd appeared in front of Vista, his black-gold naginata spinning lightly, the blade tracing a smooth arc of light in the sun.
"Interested in some orange juice?"
Vista's pride wouldn't let him be looked down on like this, even if his opponent was the famous "The Big Boss," Kyle, with his billion-berry bounty!
Those sharp eyes belonging to a future great swordsman blazed with fire. Without wasting words, his rapier "Hakugyo" flashed from its sheath like silver lightning, thrusting straight for Kyle's throat.
The sword was lightning-fast, its tip humming through the air and stirring up scattered rose petals—a phenomenon of his swordsmanship and the beginnings of his "Flower Sword" reputation.
Good! What kind of young person would you be if you didn't have fighting spirit!
Facing this swift and gorgeous thrust, Kyle didn't even move his feet—just lifted his orange juice cup slightly upward.
Ting!
Vista's sure-kill sword tip was steadily blocked by that seemingly fragile wooden cup.
The orange juice inside didn't even ripple.
Behold! The Supreme Grade Orange Juice!
"Your wrist is too stiff," Kyle advised patiently. "Seeking only speed but losing variation—that won't do."
Vista's pupils contracted sharply. With a flick of his wrist, his blade twisted like a serpent, circling around the cup rim to slice diagonally at Kyle's cup-holding wrist. The sword path was so cunning that it already showed master-level promise.
But Kyle simply lowered the cup and gave his wrist a light twist.
Ting!
Another crisp sound as Vista's blade was deflected by the cup's bottom.
Kyle even had the leisure to bring the cup to his lips, making a motion to take a sip through the swirling sword light.
"Bastard!"
Young Vista was thoroughly enraged, his sword technique suddenly turning violent.
In an instant, countless silver sword lights engulfed Kyle like a storm. Blade shadows crisscrossed, like a metal rose blooming and withering in a single moment, every petal a deadly edge.
"Rose Wheel Dance!"
This was his signature technique, still imperfect, but now unleashed beyond its limits by his fury.
On deck, a Whitebeard Pirates member, trading axe blows with Gaban, saw this and cheered: "Nice work, Vista! Kill that show-off!"
However, Kyle stood unmoved at the center of the blade storm.
His orange juice cup seemed to come alive—sometimes tapping, sometimes parrying, sometimes drawing circles—always intercepting Vista's sword at the most impossible angles at just the right moments.
Ting! Ting! Clang! Clang! Ting!
Through the rain-like clashing sounds, Kyle strolled casually, even having attention to spare for commentary:
"Not bad, this move's interesting. Too bad the power's too scattered—all flash, no substance."
"Oh? Attacking below the belt isn't very gentlemanly!"
"Hey, hey, don't use so much force—you'll dirty my cup."
Finally, after a series of dense exchanges, Kyle seemed to grow impatient.
He sidestepped a deadly slash and lightly tapped Vista's sword-holding wrist with his orange juice at an incredible speed.
Tap!
A light sound.
Vista felt his wrist go numb as a strange vibration frequency traveled up the sword hilt, instantly making him lose control of "Hakugyo."
The rapier flew from his grip, arcing through the air to stick precisely into a nearby mast, its handle still humming.
Everyone around stared at this scene in stunned silence.
That black-haired, golden-eyed man had barely moved a few steps from start to finish, using nothing but a wooden cup of orange juice to casually defeat their side's gifted young swordsman.
Kyle calmly pulled back his cup, looking at the dazed Vista with an apologetic smile.
"Ah, sorry, got a bit serious there." He swirled his cup—the orange juice still perfectly intact. "The thing is... I couldn't find a smaller cup than this."
Mihawk: Those are all my lines!
Vista flushed red from his ears to his neck. His opponent's strength was beyond anything he could currently comprehend.
Just as this "pre-dinner exercise" concluded, the other battle was also winding down.
"Divine Departure!"
Roger's figure appeared ghost-like behind and to the side of Whitebeard, Ace wreathed in black-red lightning sweeping out!
Talk about a signature move that never gets old!
"Gurararara!"
Without turning his head, Whitebeard clenched his left fist, arm muscles bulging as he threw a mighty punch at the empty air behind him!
Crack—!
Pure white tremor light spread from his fist as the center, space-shattering like a mirror.
Two invisible forces of destruction collided in midair, the resulting shockwave making both massive pirate ships groan under the strain.
"Hey! You two bastards! If you're gonna fight, take it to the sky!" Rayleigh deflected a captain's attack while roaring at the heavens.
"Gu ha ha ha! Nice Devil Fruit power, Newgate!" Roger's strike failed, so he used the recoil to leap high. Ace already raised overhead again.
"Quit yapping, Roger! Your Conqueror's Haki is getting more monstrous!" Whitebeard was equally battle-ready, gripping Murakumogiri with both hands as the white tremor light on the blade grew more solid, seeming capable of tearing through anything.
Neither held back anymore, pouring out their full power without reservation.
Blade light interwove with shockwaves; Haki clashed against Haki.
The entire sea trembled, cracks in the sky refused to heal, and the waters below were pushed aside by invisible force!
This was no longer battle—this was natural disaster.
Finally, the two figures separated again, each landing on their own ship.
Roger's pink shirt was torn in several places by the fierce winds, his breathing slightly labored, but his eyes blazed brighter than ever.
Whitebeard's massive frame also showed minor wounds, veins pulsing slightly in the arm gripping Murakumogiri.
After a brief silence, Whitebeard suddenly opened his mouth wide and let out his signature laugh.
"Gurararara..."
He hefted the mountain-heavy Murakumogiri onto his shoulder, looking at Roger across the way. His eyes held no loser's resentment—only the pure satisfaction of meeting a worthy opponent.
"Roger, this time... you win!"
He admitted it openly, his voice still booming: "But you're only stronger by this much."
"Gu ha ha ha!" Roger threw back his head and laughed, pointing at Whitebeard with Ace's hilt. "Next time might be different, Newgate!"
The legendary duel ended in the most pirate-like way possible.
Kyle leaned against the ship's rail, sending the last drop of orange juice into his mouth, the sweet taste blooming on his tongue.
He watched those two men looking at each other and laughing, then looked at the wreckage covering the deck and the kids still dizzy from the shockwaves, his smile growing even more pleased.