Gern Reginald Sigmar stood where he was, silently watching as the Whitebeard Pirates withdrew into the distance.
"Pff—!"
At that moment, a mouthful of blood he had been suppressing for far too long finally burst from his lips. His body swayed, and the color drained from his face almost instantly.
"Gern!" Lipona cried out in alarm and tried to rush forward. Pain shot through her wounds, forcing her to grimace—but she still lunged toward him without hesitation.
"You and I together could've kept Whitebeard here," Douglas Barrett snorted coldly, lowering his gaze to Gern.
"Is that kind of victory really what you want?" Gern raised a hand to signal that he was fine, using his thumb to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Barrett frowned when he saw Gern's eyes. He, Douglas Barrett, wanted victory—true victory. One earned by his own strength alone. Only that counted.
And he wasn't a fool. He could tell that Gern intended to keep Whitebeard alive—to preserve a powerful enemy, maintaining a balance rather than erasing him.
Seeing Barrett fall silent, Gern smiled faintly and said nothing more. Then, as if something suddenly occurred to him, his expression sharpened.
He drew in a deep breath, gathered what little strength he had left, and used vibration as a medium—carrying his voice with absolute clarity across the battlefield and straight to Whitebeard's ears.
"Whitebeard!"
Whitebeard's departing steps paused slightly—but he did not turn around.
"Didn't you just mention your Second Division Commander?" Gern continued."The samurai who once challenged me alone years ago—the one I defeated. His name was Kozuki Oden, wasn't it?"
"…What are you trying to say?" Whitebeard asked.
"Kozuki Oden is dead."
This time, Gern did not direct his words solely to Whitebeard—but to everyone in the Whitebeard Pirates.
In an instant, every single person who had been retreating—captains and ordinary crew alike—froze in place.
Shock. Stupefaction. A numb disbelief spread across every face.
Kozuki Oden…That bold, radiant man, brilliant like the sun.The one who drank with them, laughed with them, and was acknowledged from the heart as a brother…
Dead?
Whitebeard's towering back shuddered violently.
He stopped.
Then—slowly, agonizingly—he turned around.
With a single powerful leap, he landed back on the shore, stopping fifty meters in front of Gern, his face dark and grim.
Whitebeard stared at Gern with terrifying intensity, as if trying to find even the smallest trace of deception on his face.
"What did you say?"His voice was terrifyingly low, every word carrying the weight of mountains.
"Gern… say that again.""Who… died?!"
As his emotions surged, his Conqueror's Haki erupted once more, spilling uncontrollably into the surroundings. The already fragile air wailed under the pressure.
Gern looked at the Whitebeard who was suppressing his fury—and remained calm. His voice was steady, unmistakably firm.
"Kozuki Oden.He died in Wano… about a month ago."
He paused briefly, then added the most critical sentence:
"Oh, and he lost in a one-on-one battle against Kaido of the Beasts."
"Impossible!" Whitebeard roared."After traveling with Roger, Oden's strength lived up to the title 'peerless under heaven'!Even Kaido today couldn't have killed him in a fair duel!!"
"Which is why," Gern replied evenly, "they relied on Wano's current shogun—Kurozumi Orochi—and…"
He laid out the truth completely.
"In the end, through a coordinated scheme, Kozuki Oden was sentenced to death by boiling."
Gern clicked his tongue lightly.
"And without Haki protecting the body… flesh doesn't last long at that temperature.He was probably boiled beyond recognition."
(In the pirate world, once a strong person loses their life, their body is no different from an ordinary human's—so Oden's body being boiled apart is entirely possible.)
"BOOM—!!!"
An even more terrifying wave of Haki exploded from Whitebeard's body. The ground beneath his feet shattered into countless cracks.
His grip on Murakumogiri turned bone-white, trembling violently.
Boiling.
That man…That man he admired so deeply…The one who always shouted "Pops!" with that foolish, radiant smile…
To die like that…?!
"KAIDO!!!"
Whitebeard forced the name through clenched teeth. His killing intent surged like a physical force, making everyone who felt it shiver to the core.
His bloodshot eyes snapped back to Gern.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?!!"
Gern met his gaze without flinching.
"Would you have believed me three days ago?""If I'd told you while we were locked in a fight to the death, what purpose would it have served—other than driving you completely insane and forcing us into mutual destruction?"
"I told you now because the battle is over.""You had the right to know the truth."
Then his eyes sharpened.
"And besides… the target of your revenge shouldn't be me."
Whitebeard's chest heaved violently as he stared at Gern.
But slowly, that world-shattering killing intent receded—replaced by something far deeper, heavier, and far more terrifying.
Grief.
A grief so profound it swallowed everything.
Whitebeard understood what Gern meant.
Yet one was a younger brother from the Rocks era…And the other was his brother.
Whitebeard closed his eyes slowly. The pain etched into his face made him look visibly older.
After a long time, he opened them again.
The raging flames of anger had been crushed into the coldest ice, buried beneath endless sorrow.
He did not look at Gern again.He did not say another word.
He turned abruptly, hoisted Murakumogiri onto his shoulder, and began walking toward the Moby Dick—his steps heavier, more resolute than before.
"Pops…" Marco stepped forward anxiously.
Whitebeard raised a hand to stop him. His voice was hoarse and exhausted—yet carried an unquestionable resolve.
"Back to the ship."
The Whitebeard Pirates followed in silence, each one drowning in the crushing grief and fury brought by Oden's death.
This time, their retreat was no longer defined by exhaustion or survival.
It was cloaked in overwhelming sorrow—
And an oppressive stillness, like a storm gathering on the horizon.
Gern stood where he was, watching the Whitebeard fleet slowly set sail… until it vanished beyond the horizon.
"…Will you make your move, Whitebeard?" he murmured.
"After all… you're not old yet.""And this time, you didn't learn the truth years too late."