The snow fell silently over the bay.
"No way..."
"Is it... Admiral Rosen?"
In the world of One Piece, aside from Admiral Aokiji, only one man possessed the power to command ice so effortlessly. That was Admiral Rosen and his terrifying Zanpakutō, Hyōrinmaru—the blade that had frozen the entire Beehive Island and buried the Ochoku Pirates beneath a glacier.
Faced with the sudden snowstorm descending upon the Judge's Forbidden Zone, the Red-Haired Pirates who had just set foot on the beach instinctively braced themselves. Fear—cold and primal—gripped their hearts.
Until a figure emerged from the frozen surf. Ethereal, masked, and radiating killing intent. It wasn't Rosen.
Yasopp let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "Thank the seas... it's not him."
He raised his rifle, finger hovering over the trigger. Beside him, Lucky Roux tensed, barbecue forgotten in his hand. Even Ben Beckman's eyes narrowed.
"Is this the Marines' hidden force?" Yasopp muttered.
"Of course it is," Lucky Roux growled. "This is the Judge's Forbidden Zone. Second only to Marine Headquarters in importance. Rosen wouldn't leave it undefended."
---
The masked figure stood unmoving on the ice.
In their hands—though the gender was unclear beneath the plain kimono—gleamed a blade of pure ice. Its design was unmistakable.
Hongo, the Red-Haired Pirates' sniper and intelligence officer, felt a jolt of recognition. He reached into his coat, fingers brushing against the small notebook he carried everywhere. Every page was a record of Rosen's arsenal: names, drawings, abilities.
He flipped to page five.
The others glanced over. Drawn in ink was a white ice blade—identical to the one before them.
"That's..." Lucky Roux's voice cracked. "That's Sode no Shirayuki. Rosen's Zanpakutō. But..."
"How is that possible?" Yasopp's gun didn't waver, but his eyes darted between the blade and Hongo's notebook. "Zanpakutō are unique to Rosen. His Arms-Arms Fruit creates them—they're extensions of his will. No one else should be able to wield them."
"Unless..." Hongo's voice was grim. "Unless Rosen has advanced his Devil Fruit to the point where he can grant others access to his weapons."
The implications were staggering.
A Zanpakutō in the hands of a Marine wasn't just a weapon—it was a force multiplier. Sode no Shirayuki alone could freeze Vice Admiral-level opponents. In the right hands, it could tip the balance of an entire battle.
"Doesn't matter," Ben Beckman called from the rear, his cigarette glow in the dim light. "Zanpakutō or not, we're getting through. The Admiral isn't here."
The masked figure moved.
---
"Scatter, Senbonzakura."
The words cut through the air like a blade. The masked samurai reversed their grip, blade pointing downward, and released it.
It didn't clatter against the ice. Instead, it sank—vanishing into the frozen surface as if it were water.
"Bankai," Hongo breathed.
From the ice, hundreds of massive blades erupted, each as tall as a giant. They shattered into millions of cherry blossom petals, forming a tornado of razor-sharp steel that swallowed the beach.
"Move!" Ben Beckman barked.
Yasopp and Lucky Roux fired simultaneously. Two Armament Haki-infused bullets tore through the air, shattering against the petal storm. The explosion of force shattered hundreds of blades, but the curtain held.
The masked samurai stood untouched behind it, mask glinting in the pale light.
"Those who cross the line," the voice said, cold as the ice itself. "Die."
---
The Red-Haired Pirates exchanged glances.
They had fought Rosen before. They knew what Zanpakutō could do. But this—this was different. The masked samurai's control over Senbonzakura was crude compared to Rosen's mastery. Where Rosen could split his blades into billions of petals, this one barely managed thousands.
"The power depends on the user," Ben Beckman observed, his sharp eyes analyzing the situation. "This one's not on Rosen's level. But they're still dangerous."
"Then we take the blade," Lucky Roux said, a predatory grin spreading across his face. "If Marines other than Rosen can use Zanpakutō, so can we. Imagine it—we could study it, find a way to counter Rosen's abilities. Maybe even replicate them."
The idea was intoxicating.
A Zanpakutō was effectively a Devil Fruit—without the weakness to seawater. And if they could claim one, they'd gain a weapon that could turn the tide against Rosen himself.
"You want my blade?" The masked samurai's voice dropped several degrees. Ice crystals formed on the words. "Then come and take it."
---
"Hongo, charge forward," Ben Beckman ordered, not taking his eyes off the masked figure. "Yasopp, Lucky—keep them busy. We release Kaido and capture Judge, then we're gone. No lingering."
Hongo nodded and surged forward, his movements swift and precise.
The masked samurai moved to intercept, but Yasopp's bullet arrived first—a crack of thunder that split the air. The samurai twisted, blade flashing up to parry. The impact sent them skidding back across the ice.
"Pathetic," Yasopp spat. "If Rosen were here, he'd have turned us into ice sculptures by now."
"Perhaps." The masked figure straightened, adjusting their grip. "But I am not Rosen. And you will not pass."
Behind them, the kimono-clad woman who had wielded Sode no Shirayuki stepped forward. Her presence was a silent challenge, the ice blade humming with restrained power.
Ben Beckman's eyes narrowed. Two opponents. Both armed with Zanpakutō. Both dangerous.
But the Red-Haired Pirates had faced worse.
"Let's finish this quickly," he said, and the battle exploded into motion.
Bullets rang against blade-petals. Ice met Armament Haki in a clash of power that shook the frozen bay. And somewhere in the chaos, Hongo slipped past, heading for the base's interior—where Kaido's prison and Vinsmoke Judge awaited.
The line had been crossed.
Now they would pay the price.
—-
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