The banquet lasted for nearly half a day before finally coming to an end.
Both the Whitebeard Pirates and Ryūjin's group enjoyed themselves thoroughly. The atmosphere remained lively from beginning to end, and everyone left satisfied.
Especially Nami.
Right now, she was sitting on the ship of one of the Four Emperors, drinking and chatting with Whitebeard's commanders like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Her vanity as a money-loving navigator was completely fulfilled.
This was Whitebeard.
One of the rulers of the sea.
Most people could spend their entire lives without even seeing him once, yet she was casually drinking on the Moby Dick itself.
"Whitebeard," Ryūjin suddenly said after finishing another cup of alcohol, "your name shook the seas when I first came out here. Now that we're finally meeting face to face, I kind of want to fight you."
Whitebeard's eyes immediately brightened.
"Gurararara! It's been a long time since my blood started boiling like this!"
A fierce battle intent rose from his body.
Whitebeard had no interest in treasure or the empty title of Pirate King, but that did not mean he lacked pride as a warrior.
Facing someone like Demonic Eye Ryūjin, a monster whose bounty surpassed even his own by nearly two billion berries, there was no way Whitebeard would not feel the urge to fight.
"Pops!"
Marco's expression changed immediately.
"Your body can't handle that!"
"Yeah, Pops, maybe you shouldn't fight right now," another commander added.
The commanders wanted to witness this battle too.
Who would not want to see Whitebeard clash against Demonic Eye Ryūjin?
But compared to their excitement, Whitebeard's health mattered far more.
The strongest man in the world was no longer the unstoppable monster from his youth.
Now he needed IV drips just to maintain his condition.
Every serious battle only pushed his body closer to collapse.
"What, you brats think I'm finished already?" Whitebeard snorted as he planted Murakumogiri heavily onto the deck.
Boom!
The entire ship trembled slightly.
"Pops, that's not what we mean," Marco said helplessly. "But if you and Ryūjin fight seriously, forget the enemy, even our ships probably won't survive."
Whitebeard paused.
That point actually made sense.
With his power and Ryūjin's destructive abilities, even small islands could be destroyed, let alone a fleet of pirate ships.
"I already thought about that."
Ryūjin smiled faintly.
The next moment, his figure disappeared from the deck.
Swish!
He instantly appeared on the surface of the sea.
Standing there effortlessly.
As if the ocean beneath his feet were solid ground.
"What kind of ability is that?"
"He's standing on the sea?"
"As expected of Ryūjin…"
The Whitebeard Pirates stared in disbelief.
Even among Devil Fruit users, standing and walking on seawater like this was absurd.
Nobody understood what Ryūjin intended to do.
Then Ryūjin slowly crouched down and placed his hand on the sea surface.
Ice Release activated instantly.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
A layer of ice rapidly spread outward from beneath his palm.
The freezing speed was terrifying.
Within moments, the ocean covering several kilometers had completely transformed into a massive frozen battlefield.
"The sea froze?!"
"That's Admiral Aokiji's ability!"
"How can Ryūjin use it too?!"
The Whitebeard Pirates were stunned.
Even Whitebeard narrowed his eyes slightly.
Then everyone instinctively looked toward Aokiji, who remained on Ryūjin's ship.
After all, only Admiral Aokiji possessed the power to instantly freeze the sea like this.
But Devil Fruits were unique.
There could never be two users with the same ability at the same time.
Yet Aokiji was sitting there perfectly fine.
So how exactly was Ryūjin doing this?
Aokiji himself looked even more shaken than the others.
"How the hell is this possible…" he muttered.
Kizaru's expression also became unusually serious.
The more abilities Ryūjin revealed, the more terrifying he became.
Wood Release.
Space-time abilities.
Insane physical strength.
Now ice abilities rivaling Aokiji himself.
Every single one of those powers alone could create a top-tier monster capable of dominating the Grand Line.
Yet all of them belonged to one person.
The truly terrifying part was that nobody believed this was Ryūjin's limit.
"How many abilities does that bastard actually have…" Aokiji's face darkened.
Then an even more horrifying thought appeared in his mind.
Could Ryūjin steal Devil Fruit powers?
His own abilities had disappeared, while Ryūjin could suddenly use ice powers almost identical to his.
Combined with Ryūjin's countless other abilities, the idea became increasingly terrifying.
Aokiji no longer dared to think further.
Naturally, his assumption was completely wrong.
What Ryūjin used was Ice Release from the Shinobi world.
Combined with his enhanced Sage Body and Ten-Tails chakra, freezing several kilometers of ocean became effortless.
For anyone else, such a thing would be impossible.
Swish!
After creating the battlefield, Ryūjin returned to the Moby Dick in an instant.
"Now there's no problem, right?" he asked casually while clapping the frost off his hands.
"Gurararara! Impressive!" Whitebeard praised sincerely.
Then he grabbed Murakumogiri tightly.
"I'm already getting impatient."
"Wait a second."
Ryūjin suddenly stopped him.
"A fight should be fair."
Whitebeard frowned slightly.
Before anyone could react, Ryūjin reached out and grabbed Whitebeard's wrist.
The commanders instantly became tense.
But Whitebeard did not move.
His Observation Haki sensed no hostility from Ryūjin.
Then suddenly, Whitebeard's eyes widened.
The countless hidden injuries inside his body rapidly healed.
His aging organs regained vitality.
The weakness weighing down his body disappeared completely.
At the same time, Marco and the others clearly sensed Whitebeard's aura changing.
The weakened old man from moments ago vanished.
In his place stood the terrifying monster who once rivaled Roger.
"Pops?!"
Marco rushed over immediately.
After checking Whitebeard's condition, he froze completely.
Restoration.
Whitebeard's body had truly returned to its peak.
"Pops recovered?!"
"No way!"
"Hahaha! Pops is back!"
The entire Whitebeard Pirates erupted with excitement.
For years, Whitebeard's declining health had been their greatest concern.
Now that burden had disappeared.
At this moment, every member of the crew looked at Ryūjin with genuine gratitude.
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin…" Marco said seriously, "thank you."
Whitebeard himself clenched his fist slowly, feeling the overwhelming strength flowing through his body again.
"What a ridiculous ability," he said with a grin. "Feels like I got a second life."
Then he looked directly at Ryūjin.
"In that case, I won't hold back."
"Good," Ryūjin replied casually. "I'd be disappointed otherwise."
Swish!
His figure vanished instantly.
The next moment, he appeared on the frozen battlefield.
Whitebeard laughed loudly and launched himself forward using Geppo.
Boom!
The massive old man landed heavily onto the ice.
"Demonic Eye Ryūjin!" Whitebeard shouted excitedly. "I'm starting now!"
Without hesitation, he swung Murakumogiri directly at Ryūjin.
Clang!
Ryūjin casually raised one hand and caught the blade barehanded.
"What?!"
The commanders nearly lost their minds.
That was Whitebeard's full-strength attack.
And Ryūjin stopped it with one hand.
"Whitebeard," Ryūjin said with a faint smirk, "that's not enough."
Boom!
His body suddenly blurred forward like a black flash.
Then he threw a punch directly at Whitebeard.
Whitebeard's pupils shrank.
Ryūjin's speed was absurdly fast.
He barely managed to raise Murakumogiri in time.
Bang!
Ryūjin's fist slammed into the weapon.
A terrifying shockwave exploded outward.
Whitebeard was pushed backward several steps across the ice before stabilizing himself.
The Whitebeard Pirates fell silent again.
Even after returning to his peak, Whitebeard was still being suppressed.
"As expected of Demonic Eye Ryūjin!" Whitebeard laughed loudly.
He slammed Murakumogiri into the ice to stabilize himself completely.
Then his expression finally became serious.
Without hesitation, Whitebeard clenched his fist and punched toward Ryūjin from a distance.
Crack!
Crack!!
The atmosphere itself shattered.
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit unleashed its full destructive force.
Massive shockwaves tore across the battlefield.
The frozen sea instantly shattered apart.
Huge waves surged upward while cracks spread across several kilometers of ice.
Boom!!!
The entire frozen battlefield exploded into countless fragments.
"Pops is back!"
"That's the power of Whitebeard!"
The crew roared excitedly.
This was the monster who could destroy the world.
Even Kizaru and Aokiji looked shocked from Ryūjin's ship.
Although they knew Whitebeard's reputation, witnessing his true power personally was an entirely different experience.
No wonder Sengoku feared him so much.
One punch from Whitebeard truly possessed the power to destroy everything.