At that moment, a thunderous explosion echoed across the sea surrounding Paradise Island. Countless people rushed to the coast, eyes wide as they watched towering waves erupt dozens of meters into the sky. The calm sea had been torn apart by sheer force, now trembling with violent ripples.
For ordinary onlookers, it was a scene so unreal that it left them paralyzed in awe.
Kaido had been knocked into the sea by Elior's strike!
"That's… Kaido-sama!"
"Kaido-sama's been taken down!"
"Is he going to be alright?!"
Farther out at sea, sixteen massive ships approached. They bore the blackened sails of the Beast Pirates.
The moment they witnessed Kaido crashing into the sea from midair, the crew froze in disbelief. Unease spread like wildfire.
After all… Kaido was a Devil Fruit user.
"If something like this could finish him off, then he wouldn't be the so-called 'Strongest Creature Alive' now would he?" said King, his voice laced with disdain at his crewmates' panic.
Despite being a Devil Fruit user, Kaido wasn't like others. Sea water didn't weaken him the same way—it never had. That was part of what made him so terrifying. He once jumped from 20,000 meters in the air and crashed straight into the ocean without a scratch. That was the Kaido of the Beasts—more monster than man.
Nearby, Jack and the other Calamities were already gearing up, eyes locked on the frozen sea.
"That guy… he's no joke. He really sent the boss flying."
"And it's not just him. His crew includes the Bullet, a monster who once sailed under Gol D. Roger! The guy could go toe-to-toe with Rayleigh back in the day!"
"Sure, he's been rotting in Impel Down for twenty years, so maybe he's weaker now… but still, this isn't someone we can underestimate."
The Beast Pirates were murmuring anxiously as they prepared to land and wipe out Elior's crew.
But just then, Elior ceased his Geppo and began descending toward the sea. His body seemed weightless, his descent serene. The moment he was about to touch the water, he raised a hand—and a torrent of freezing energy exploded outward.
It was like Aokiji's legendary Ice Age technique.
In seconds, kilometers of ocean froze solid. Waves became walls of ice. The sea, once turbulent, turned into a frozen battlefield. The Beast Pirates' ships were caught in the sudden freeze, held fast in glacial chains. A numbing cold surged over everything.
"What… the hell?"
"This freezing power… even from the deck I can feel it tearing into my bones!"
"If Aokiji weren't alive, I'd swear this was the Ice-Ice Fruit!"
"No… it feels different. A unique power. But definitely on the same level!"
"To freeze a stretch of sea that fast… no wonder the guy's so confident!"
"It's catastrophic… like something from a natural disaster."
King, Queen, Jack — the Beast Pirates' strongest — could hardly believe what they were seeing. The entire sea within view was frozen solid. Their ships were stuck fast, unable to advance.
Even the stronger members began to feel the biting chill. The weaker ones? They were already on the verge of collapse.
Meanwhile, Elior stood on the ice, calmly waiting.
Waiting for Kaido.
Because he knew. Sea water alone wouldn't stop Kaido.
From beneath the ice came a thunderous dragon's roar. The surface trembled—then, suddenly, a section of ice exploded. From the depths emerged Kaido, reverting from his dragon form to his humanoid form as he burst into the air, before crashing down hard on the ice.
The force of his landing cracked the frozen surface.
Kaido stood tall, hulking, mace in hand. He looked like a demon risen from the underworld. Even standing still, his presence was overwhelming—crushing.
People on Paradise Island stared in silence. Many had heard tales of Kaido's fury, but few had seen him in the flesh. And now he stood before them, radiating power like a living apocalypse.
Bullet and the others readied themselves.
"This'll be our biggest battle yet" someone muttered.
Everyone understood. What they faced two days ago—wiping out a local power—was child's play. This? This was war.
"A pirate crew, barely ten days old… now about to face off against one of the Yonko?" said Crocodile, expression sharp.
The others froze. He was right.
They hadn't even existed for ten days. In fact, it had only been a week since their flag was first raised.
Their rise… had been meteoric.
"Let's go. The Beast Pirates are here!" called Shiryu, unsheathing his blade.
He was the first to step off Paradise Island.
The sea, now frozen, was a perfect battlefield. They knew fighting on the island would destroy it entirely—so the ice was the perfect stage.
One by one, the crew followed him, charging across the ice toward the frozen ships of the Beast Pirates.
The Beast Pirates charged forward too.
And then—
The war began.
On the other end of the battlefield, Elior squared off against Kaido once more.
"ROAR!!!"
Kaido let out an earth-shaking roar as he spun his mace, cracked the ice with one step, and launched himself at Elior.
But this time, Elior didn't draw the ice blade he had used earlier, the one covered in Armament Haki.
No.
He clenched his fists.
Both were now covered in Haki, black and glistening with power. And then, he charged.
As they clashed, the impact was like thunder made physical — deafening, explosive. The force of the collision sent a massive shockwave out in every direction. Within a radius of fifty meters, the ice shattered beneath them.
Elior's fists. Kaido's kanabo.
Two titans colliding on a frozen sea.
And the battle was only just beginning.