Aoki Shiraishi's sudden appearance completely derailed the plans and tactical deployments of Akainu and Aokiji.
Yet, as newly appointed Admirals of Marine Headquarters, neither man was inclined to back down in the face of direct provocation.
Aside from his old acquaintance Sakazuki, this was Shiraishi's first time crossing blades with Aokiji Kuzan—a notoriously laid-back man whose personal naval motto was "Lazy Justice."
Originally, Kuzan had championed "Passionate Justice." However, after a long period of internal conflict, he resolved to uphold a more relaxed interpretation of justice.
He believed that justice varied depending on one's standing and perspective, changing with one's circumstances; thus, he never questioned the personal justice of others.
This was an alternate interpretation of the middle way—avoiding extreme fanaticism. Yet, whenever someone directly obstructed his own brand of justice, Kuzan showed no hesitation in bringing them down.
An ice blade formed within Kuzan's palm. Shiraishi descended onto the frozen sea amidst a swirling blizzard: "Aokiji... in your current state, you are no match for me."
Kuzan possessed the Logia-type Ice-Ice Fruit (Hie Hie no Mi), allowing him to transform any part of his body into ice, emit sub-zero freezing mist to encase everything he touched, and remain immune to conventional physical strikes.
He could freeze any matter solid and forge deadly weaponry from concentrated frost. Living beings caught in his freeze lost consciousness, falling into a state of suspended animation as their flesh hardened into solid ice.
The Ice-Ice Fruit was a top-tier Logia capability that stood on equal footing with the Mag-Mag Fruit (Magu Magu no Mi). At Kuzan's peak, he could effortlessly freeze natural volcanic eruptions and airborne lava bombs.
Mastering the Ice-Ice Fruit to its absolute pinnacle could even permanently alter an island's geological climate.
In the original timeline, during their duel for the position of Fleet Admiral on Punk Hazard, Kuzan and Sakazuki clashed so violently that the island's climate was permanently rewritten—turning one half into a frozen wasteland of glacial peaks and the other into a raging inferno of volcanic craters.
At this stage, however, Kuzan's Devil Fruit mastery had not yet matured to its zenith; he was simply not Shiraishi's equal.
Kuzan lunged forward with his ice blade, but Shiraishi made no attempt to dodge. A cold glint flared in his eyes as an explosive wave of frost erupted outward.
Throughout Shiraishi and Kuzan's exchange, Sakazuki held back, letting scorching magma drip continuously from his fists. He was biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike a decisive, fatal blow.
Evidently, Sakazuki intended to let Kuzan draw out Shiraishi's momentum to pinpoint a fatal opening in the Emperor's guard.
Seeing this, Shiraishi unleashed a massive surge of glacial wind to knock Kuzan back, swinging his silver blade to release a crisp, razor-sharp arc of sword energy: "Sakazuki... are you simply going to stand there and watch your comrade fight a battle to the death without lifting a finger?"
Shiraishi's words were calculated psychological disruption. While Kuzan remained unfazed, the surrounding Marine officers hesitated, exchanging uneasy glances over Sakazuki's cold detachment.
Everyone understood Sakazuki's tactical pragmatism, yet laid bare on the battlefield, many found his lack of camaraderie emotionally difficult to stomach.
Had their roles been reversed, Kuzan would have stepped in to support Sakazuki without a second thought!
"Aoki Shiraishi... what is your true objective in appearing here?!"
"My objective? Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?"
Shiraishi turned his blade. In an instant, the surrounding ocean fell under an absolute sub-zero domain. Raising a single palm toward the sky, he concentrated his pure cryo-energy into a colossal pillar of freezing light that seemed ready to split the very ocean in two.
This pure freezing beam carried enough power to permanently influence the surrounding sea. Even Kuzan, with his Ice-Ice Fruit, knew he could not withstand such a direct blast.
"Evacuate the ship! Retreat!"
As the pillar of light descended upon the Marine warship, Sakazuki erupted with an explosive surge of molten magma, forcing himself forward to hold off Shiraishi's towering beam. In an instant, the ocean boiled as blinding fiery light collided with sub-zero frost across the sky.
"Admiral Sakazuki...!"
Watching Sakazuki use his own body and extreme heat to shield the fleet against Shiraishi's devastating beam, tears welled up in the eyes of numerous Marine soldiers.
"What are you crying for?! Get off the ship and retreat across the ice, you fools!"
Sakazuki barked at his subordinates, the magma across his body churning with even more violent intensity.
"Ha! Sakazuki, your strength has grown considerably over the years. You've pushed the Mag-Mag Fruit near its absolute limit."
A focused freezing beam of this magnitude was not something an ordinary combatant could block; even the current Kuzan could not take the blast head-on without sustaining severe damage.
"The Navy's Justice will never be desecrated by the likes of you!"
Sakazuki grit his teeth and glared furiously at Shiraishi, his magma boiling with ferocious heat. Though his flesh repeatedly froze and thawed beneath the descending beam of light, Shiraishi couldn't help but marvel at the man's sheer tenacity.
Such unyielding willpower and stubborn conviction—he was indeed worthy of becoming the future Fleet Admiral!
BOOM!
With a deafening explosion, Sakazuki was blown back by the light beam, multiple severe frostbite wounds carving across his body. Yet, relying on his raw magma output, he had managed to endure Shiraishi's assault.
"In that case... how will you withstand this next strike?"
As Shiraishi's voice echoed, the ocean and the sky trembled in unison. Amidst a heavy storm of falling snow, the pupils of both Aokiji and Akainu constricted in sheer horror.
Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion: Absolute Zero!(Kyokkan Tensei Baku)
A colossal sword of pure lunar ice light, descending like a divine judgment from tens of thousands of meters in the sky, dropped straight toward the two Marine Admirals!
Outside Fish-Man Island...
Having concluded the Four Emperors summit, Whitebeard was on his return voyage. The original plan called for Thatch, Commander of the 4th Division, to rendezvous and escort him back. Yet, while Thatch's vessel appeared on the horizon, the man standing at the bow was his subordinate, Marshall D. Teach.
"Pops! Commander Thatch fell ill, so he asked me to come and bring you home."
"Hmm..."
Gripping his bisento Murakumogiri, the moment Whitebeard stepped onto the deck, an overwhelming surge of Conqueror's pressure exploded from his blade, cleaving straight toward Teach without warning!
The devastating slash split the ocean winds. Teach's face contorted in shock as his body dissolved into a pool of pure darkness, narrowly absorbing Whitebeard's fatal blow.
"Pops... what is the meaning of this?!"
"Teach, you bastard... I will ask you one more time. Where is Thatch?!"
As the pinnacle powerhouse among the Four Emperors, Whitebeard rarely needed to deploy his Observation Haki in daily life. Yet the moment he stepped aboard Teach's ship, he sensed that something about Teach was fundamentally wrong compared to the past.
The ominous dread gnawing at his heart drove him to strike immediately.
Shrouded in an eerie, swirling vortex of darkness, a feral, murderous glint surfaced in Teach's eyes as a violent dark storm erupted around him: "Pops... you might never see Commander Thatch ever again."
"You traitorous bastard!"
Whitebeard swung his bisento, the terrifying blade carrying crushing, atmospheric shockwaves. Just as the strike was about to obliterate Teach, a devastating blast of scorching dragon breath erupted out of nowhere, detonating directly against the bisento and forcing Whitebeard's expression to shift.
"Kaido... you bastard!"
"Ghahahaha! Whitebeard, you old fossil! It's time you followed the Golden Lion, Roger, Patrick Redfield, and BIG MOM, and stepped off this historical stage for good!"
Radiating an ominous, terrifying aura, Hundred Beasts Kaido manifested as a colossal azure dragon, coiling menacingly across the heavens as he locked his gaze onto Whitebeard on the sea below.
"This Four Emperors summit at Fish-Man Island was prepared from the very beginning as your grand funeral, Whitebeard! Gaaaa-hahahaha!"
Kaido's crazed, booming laughter echoed across the vast ocean. As the conspiracy in the shadows finally unveiled itself, a shocking upheaval was about to send tremors through the entire world.
Blackbeard Teach had stepped onto the world's stage in this dishonorable, blood-soaked fashion.