"Your ability isn't that impressive."
"I thought you'd be stronger…"
Yoriichi Tsugikuni (Jiguo Yuanyi) shook his head, looking disappointed.
Although he didn't finish his words, Bista could already guess what he meant—and that only made the sting worse.
Never in his life had he imagined that there still existed swordsmen of such overwhelming power!
"It's time to end this."
"Breath of the Sun—"
"Slash!"
Swish!
Yoriichi's figure burst forward with terrifying speed!
The blazing sword glow, carrying the aura of the sun itself, cut across Bista's body in an instant.
It was all… too fast.
Too fast to react.
On Bista's chest, a deep sword mark appeared, blood spilling freely.
"I… lost…?"
Muttering those words, Bista collapsed to the ground, unwillingness still in his eyes, before losing consciousness completely.
Whether he was alive or dead in that moment, no one could tell—
But one thing was certain: Bista's defeat marked a massive shift in the battle!
Within the Whitebeard Pirates, Bista was a major figure, highly respected and influential.
And now, he had been crushed…
The morale of many crewmates began to waver. Thoughts they had never dared to entertain before started creeping into their minds.
Should we retreat?
Once that thought took root, it spread like wildfire.
The more they thought about it, the more powerless they felt—like the tide of battle had already turned against them.
The other Whitebeard division commanders were equally shaken. None of them had expected Bista to fall so quickly—less than ten minutes had passed, and he was already defeated.
One small relief was that Bista had been pulled back in time, his life barely saved. But he was still in a deep coma—unable to stand, unable to fight again.
Seeing the tide of battle turning against him, Whitebeard himself could no longer stay still. His eyes flashed with resolve!
"It can't go on like this!"
He gritted his teeth, clenching his massive fist.
Gura Gura no Mi—Activate!
His quake-imbued fist smashed into the air, cracks spreading like shattered glass!
BOOM!
An invisible but devastating shockwave roared forward, rippling through the battlefield as it flew toward Yoriichi!
Whitebeard had decided—Yoriichi would be the first to fall!
Yoriichi frowned, raising his blade to intercept the incoming blow.
But suddenly—
A mocking, arrogant voice rang out across the battlefield.
"Oh? Whitebeard, can't hold on anymore?"
"You didn't think I'd just stand by while you targeted one of my crew, did you?"
As the voice fell, a dark figure appeared out of nowhere. Landing calmly, he threw a single ferocious punch—smashing apart Whitebeard's titanic shockwave as though it were nothing!
The man who had arrived at this critical moment was none other than the captain of the Kamui Pirates—
Kronos!
"Yoriichi, go support the others for now," Kronos said calmly, not even looking back. "This man… is mine."
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