"Oh no, he shot!"
Nami instinctively closed her eyes as the gunfire rang out. A heavy sense of dread welled up in her chest.
But instead of pain, a chilling cold swept past her.
"Roar!!!"
A colossal creature let out a thunderous cry. Its massive Dragon Claw extended, freezing the incoming bullets mid-air in an instant.
"I... I'm not hurt?"
Nami opened her eyes. Before her soared a massive ice-blue dragon, its body circling majestically through the sky.
"A dragon? An Ice Dragon? That's Shirogai's ability?"
For a moment, she stood frozen in awe. Then it struck her.
This was the power of the Ice-Ice Fruit, an ability Shirogai had gained from Admiral Aokiji.
"Roar!"
After ensuring Nami was unharmed, the Ice Dragon rose higher, its cold gaze briefly sweeping past Wiper, who stood stunned behind her. Then, with a mighty flap of its wings, it turned towards the depths of Upper Yard.
"Roar!!!"
Its cry echoed across the skies, drawing the attention of the Four Priests.
High above, Shandia's warrior of the Ball Trial wobbled on a floating ball, eyes widening in fear.
"What is that monster?!"
"It looks like the legendary beast... a dragon!" Shura of the Rope Trial muttered, his brow furrowed.
"Oh no. It's heading for the temple!"
"Ohm, Iron Trial, to me!" In a flash, the stern swordsman mounted his canine partner, Holy, and shot forward.
"Stop it! Don't allow it to disturb God's rest!"
Gedatsu of the Swamp Trial activated his Jet Dial, rocketing upward as he shouted,
"Is this the power God mentioned? That pirate from the Blue Sea? Let me face him!"
…
Inside the temple, Enel's laughter rang out like rolling thunder.
"Interesting! Yeah ha ha ha ha!" He clapped his hands in amusement, lightning crackling across his skin.
"A blasphemer from the Blue Sea dares challenge this God? Then let this God give you the honor of facing me!"
…
The Four Priests pursued the Ice Dragon, intercepting it before it reached the temple. But as they confronted the beast, realization set in.
"It's not alive," Shura muttered.
Their eyes flickered with disappointment. This was not some legendary creature but a creation born from a Devil Fruit.
Still, its sheer presence radiated overwhelming power.
"Roar!"
The dragon circled above them, icy breath spilling into the air.
"So, that Blue Sea pirate is also a strong worthy being," Shura sneered, gripping his flaming spear. "Then I must be his natural enemy!"
His spear was outfitted with a Heat Dial, capable of producing blazing heat to pierce ordinary ice. His bird companion, Three-Headed Sky Rider, carried an Ignition Dial in its beak, able to spew flames hot enough to scorch the heavens.
"Don't underestimate it," the swordsman warned. His sharp senses detected the biting cold radiating from the beast. "That's no ordinary ice."
"Hah, coward!" Shura snarled. "I'll prove I'm the strongest!"
Kicking his mount into motion, Shura charged. His bird unleashed a torrent of fire while he lunged forward, thrusting his flaming spear at the dragon.
"Die!"
"Roar!!!"
The dragon's talons swept downward, but Shura's mount swerved, carrying him to the creature's back. With a triumphant cry, Shura drove his spear deep into the dragon's body.
"Now melt into nothingness!" he shouted as his spear burst into flames.
His mount joined in, spewing fire with all its might. But their victory never came.
The frost spread unnaturally fast. Shura's flames failed to melt even a single shard. Instead, his weapon froze over, ice crawling up the shaft until he was forced to let go or risk freezing with it.
"What… what kind of ice is this?!"
Even his bird's breath, searing hot, left not a single drop of melted water.
"Move!"
The dragon flicked its tail effortlessly, swatting the mount from the sky. With a crash, it fell through the treetops, slamming into the forest below.
"Damn it!" Shura leapt free just in time, rolling across the ground.
Above, the dragon clawed the spear from its back, casting a mocking gaze down at him. Its eyes gleamed with disdain.
Trash.
"Idiot," Ohm scoffed. "Did you really think the power of someone God himself called one-third of his strength could be so easily destroyed?"
The others laughed darkly, mocking Shura's failure.
Snarling, Shura roared back, "If you're so confident, then you try it! This monster fears no fire!"
Crack!
A bolt of lightning split the sky. Enel appeared, his body crackling with electricity as he lazily floated down.
The Four Priests immediately dropped to their knees.
"God!"
"Ya ha ha ha ha ha!" Enel grinned, biting into an apple. "Don't mind me. I came to watch. Keep going!"
The dragon regarded him with cold indifference. Bound by Shirogai's command, it ignored Enel and continued its game with the priests.
"Ohm!" Shandia barked. "We can't hold back while God watches!"
The priests gathered their strength, launching a full-scale assault.
Minutes later, the battlefield lay in ruin. Trees were encased in ice, and the once-majestic Ice Dragon had dissipated into the air.
The priests stood trembling, their arrogance shattered.
"Such power… that Blue Sea man is terrifying…"
If Enel had not stepped in, they would have been frozen alive.
High above, Enel raised his golden spear, stomping down on the dragon's melting remains with a grin.
"Blue Sea man, are you a god among your kind?"
"Yaha ha ha ha! Interesting. Very interesting!"
…
Not far away, six dark wings beat steadily against the sky. Hidden in the shadows, Shirogai hovered above, eyes fixed on Upper Yard.
"The Sandia Tribe…" he murmured with a faint smile. His gaze shifted toward the temple.
"The Ice Dragon's gone… Enel must have interfered."
Shirogai's lips curled upward.
On this sky island, only Enel could defeat an Ice Dragon of such scale.
_____
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