"You think I didn't notice you?!" Diamond Jozu shouted as he charged toward Aokiji, his diamond body infused with Haki. "I won't let you disturb Pops and the others!"
"Sparkling Impact!"
With a tremendous crash, Jozu's diamond form slammed into Aokiji, sending the admiral flying backward.
"Boom!"
Aokiji smashed through a massive iceberg upon impact.
"Diamond... Jozu," Aokiji muttered, frowning as he stood and observed the man now completely encased in diamond. "As expected of a Whitebeard Pirate. His Haki is formidable," he thought.
However, Aokiji had no intention of engaging in a prolonged fight. After a brief glance, he shifted his focus and leaped into the air.
"Moonwalk!"
With practiced ease, Aokiji began maneuvering through the sky, heading straight for the Moby Dick.
"Damn it, he's moving through the air," Jozu grumbled, veins bulging on his forehead in frustration. Ground-bound, he had no means to intercept Aokiji mid-air.
"If only Marco were here," Jozu thought. "With his Phoenix Fruit, he could easily knock that guy out of the sky." But Marco was currently occupied, helping Pops fend off Kizaru within a water sphere and unable to break free to confront Aokiji. "We'll have to rely on Izo and the others," Jozu murmured to himself. Perhaps their long-range attacks could bring Aokiji down.
As Jozu turned to look for Izo, a massive, pale golden figure caught his eye.
"Is that... the Blood-Eyed Ninja?!"
"Get down here!" Meiser yelled, having used Kuma's ability to propel himself toward Aokiji. He manipulated his Susanoo to swing the TimePiercingSpearOfToki directly at the admiral.
"Blood-Eyed Ninja?!" Aokiji exclaimed, seeing the attack closing in. Without hesitation, he infused his arms with Haki and crossed them in front of his chest.
"Crash!"
The heavy spear struck Aokiji, sending him plummeting from the sky like a deflated ball.
"Boom!"
The impact shattered the ice below, and Aokiji, struck squarely, fragmented into shards of ice to dissipate the force. Utilizing his Logia Devil Fruit ability, he reformed on the ice surface, body fully restored.
Gazing up at the approaching Meiser, Aokiji asked, "Is that pale golden giant another form of your Ninjutsu?"
He had been knocked out of the air in one blow—the power behind this attack far exceeded anything he had faced before.
"Why should I tell you?" Meiser retorted.
Aokiji fell silent. This guy really didn't play by the rules.
At this moment, shouldn't he be proudly showing off his abilities to gain fame?
But this guy—
"Enough, stop trying to pry information from me," Meiser said. "I have no interest in explaining things to you."
As he spoke, Meiser manipulated Susanoo to raise its spear and thrust it directly at Aokiji!
Seeing this, Aokiji stopped wasting words and immediately activated his Devil Fruit ability!
"Ice Pheasant Beak!"
Chilling air erupted from his right hand, instantly forming a massive ice bird!
The next moment—
"Clang!"
"Boom!!"
The spear and ice bird collided, creating a terrifying shockwave that sent all the nearby pirates who had come to help flying backward!
"Ah!"
The pirates cried out as they were thrown onto the ice, each looking more miserable than the last.
"Infused with Haki?"
Meiser narrowed his eyes, observing the energy enveloping the Ice Pheasant Beak. "No wonder it's so tough."
If Aokiji hadn't reinforced the ice with Haki, his spear would have shattered it in a single strike.
"Ara ara, if I didn't use Haki, my ice would be broken by you," Aokiji remarked.
This time, Meiser merely nodded without responding.
Just then, a fearsome chill surged from the ice bird, traveling along the spear toward Susanoo!
"Crack, crack, crack—" Frost rapidly spread across the pale golden spear, climbing upward at an alarming speed.
'So fast?'
Meiser's eyes flickered with surprise as the frost reached Susanoo's arm in an instant.
This guy's ability... is quite terrifying.
The next moment—
"Crack!"
Susanoo, now encased in the freezing energy, was turned into an ice sculpture by Aokiji.
Witnessing this, Hancock's expression darkened, though she remained more composed than before and refrained from immediately launching an attack.
'Meiser has an undying body; he won't be killed by this move,' Hancock reassured herself inwardly.
With that thought, she calmed down considerably.
Of course, if an opportunity arose... she wouldn't hesitate to kick that Aokiji!
"Fufufufufu—"
"Frozen into an ice sculpture?" Doflamingo grinned widely. "I wonder if your undying body will still work now?"
He was... deeply curious!
Meanwhile, the Whitebeard Pirates, upon seeing this, immediately grabbed their weapons and charged forward, shouting, "Hurry, rescue the Blood-Eyed Ninja!"
"Right!"
Although the Blood-Eyed Ninja possessed an undying body, being trapped in ice might prevent him from using his abilities.
So... they had to save this powerful ally!
Aokiji showed no reaction to their cries, merely glancing at them before turning his attention back to the frozen Susanoo.
"Well, that should keep you restrained for a while," he murmured.
Even if Meiser could still move inside the ice, as long as he was delayed, Aokiji could accomplish his mission!
At that moment, Jozu rushed over, slamming his elbow toward Aokiji.
"Take this!!"
Faced with such an attack, Aokiji did not choose to defend or counterattack. Instead, he directly used the Navy Six Styles to dash into the air. The next moment, Jozu charged through the spot where he had just been, smashing directly into a massive block of ice and shattering it to pieces!
"BOOM!!"
"Did I use too much force?"
After a quick glance at Jozu, Aokiji withdrew his gaze and then fixed his eyes on the water sphere outside the Moby Dick.
"Let me..."
Before he could finish his sentence, a series of cracking sounds reached his ears.
"Hmm?"
As if realizing something, Aokiji immediately looked down from the air and discovered that the man who should have been trapped in the ice had now vanished without a trace!
"Where did he go?" Aokiji frowned.
His Observation Haki had been active the entire time, but at this moment, he couldn't pinpoint the other's exact location!
It was as if... the other had disappeared into thin air!
"Could he be underwater?"
Thinking this, Aokiji immediately extended his Observation Haki beneath the ice surface, but still found nothing.
Just then, his Observation Haki detected a figure.
"He's actually behind me?!"
Noticing the familiar presence appearing in the air behind him, Aokiji's pupils instantly contracted.
Without hesitation, the man turned around, simultaneously forming an ice spear in his hand.
The next moment— "CLANG!"
Their weapons collided fiercely in mid-air, emitting a terrifying metallic clash.
Then, with no leverage to brace himself, Aokiji was forced downward by Meiser toward the ice surface below.
Seizing the opportunity, Diamond Jozu on the ground didn't hold back. The moment Aokiji descended, he launched an elbow strike at him.
"Sparkling Elbow!"
"THUD!!"
The elbow strike, imbued with Armament Haki, slammed hard into Aokiji's abdomen, sending him flying straight toward the Marine Headquarters plaza!
"WHOOSH— BOOM!!"
At the same time, Meiser's spear thrust forcefully into the ice below, shattering the entire surface!
"BOOM!!"
"Hey!"
Realizing the ice beneath his feet had been completely shattered, Diamond Jozu froze in panic.
As a Devil Fruit Ability User, falling into the sea meant certain death!
Watching the sea draw nearer below, Diamond Jozu felt as if he could see Death beckoning to him.
It's over...
If Marine Admiral Aokiji were to freeze the ice surface again at this moment, he would undoubtedly drown!
At this thought, Diamond Jozu's pupils contracted sharply.
Just then, a large hand reached out from the side, grabbing Diamond Jozu firmly.
"Huh?!"
Catching sight of the familiar pale gold Giant, Diamond Jozu immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
"Sa... saved..."
"When I'm fighting, you'd better stay far away," Meiser, who had grabbed Diamond Jozu, said. "Otherwise, I might not have time to save you next time."
With that, Meiser gave Diamond Jozu no chance to respond, lifting and hurling him away from below!
Diamond Jozu: ???
"Hey!"
Ignoring the other's reaction, Meiser returned to the ice surface not far away.
At that moment, Aokiji, who had been sitting motionless on the ground, slowly rose to his feet.
"Each one more terrifying than the last," Aokiji murmured to himself.
Glancing at Meiser, who was watching him with a faintly mocking expression, Aokiji felt a headache coming on.
If he fought with all his might, he was confident he could completely subdue his opponent here.
The problem was... his mission was to deal with that water sphere!
But judging by the Blood-Eyed Ninja's stance, he clearly had no intention of letting Aokiji approach the Moby Dick easily.
Hmm, and members of the Whitebeard Pirates were gradually closing in around them, obviously determined to prevent him from completing his mission.
"Don't let him get near Pops!" the pirates shouted.
"Right!"
"What the hell are those two playing at?" Akainu, who had been observing from a distance, frowned and said. "Are they even fighting seriously?!"
First, there was Borsalino!
From the beginning until now, he had only launched a few laser attacks, then spent the rest of the time bombarding the water surface with his Yasakani Sacred Jewel... But such attacks were completely useless against Marco the Phoenix!
What about the Sword of Gathering Clouds?
Why not use it to cut them down?
Although Borsalino wasn't a Sword Master on the same level as Hawkeye, his swordsmanship was still at the Great Sword Master level.
Couldn't a Great Sword Master-level slash cut through that water sphere?
'Or... has Borsalino discovered something, which is why he hasn't used the Sword of Gathering Clouds?' Akainu wondered silently.
Shaking his head, Akainu turned his attention to Aokiji.
"And this guy!"
With his abilities, couldn't he defeat a Blood-Eyed Ninja?
As someone who had fought the Blood-Eyed Ninja before, he could say with certainty that the opponent was no match for a Marine Admiral!!
Unless... unless the ninja's strength had improved dramatically in just a few days, but was that even possible?
However, recalling some reports from Impel Down, Akainu began to feel uncertain.
"Could it be because of his ninja bloodline?"
So this guy's strength could increase rapidly?
Thinking this, Akainu fell into deep thought.
"Hey, why hasn't the surrounding wall been raised yet?!" Sengoku asked a communications soldier.
"Fleet Admiral, the ice layer below is too thick!" the communications soldier replied with a grim expression. "We can't raise the surrounding wall."
They had tried their best, but Admiral Aokiji's ice was simply too thick—their current power couldn't possibly break through it.
Sengoku fell silent for a moment upon hearing this, then said, "Then transfer all the power from Marine Headquarters here."
"But Fleet Admiral, if we do that..."
"It's fine, just do as I say!" Sengoku insisted. "We must ensure the success of this operation!"
If they couldn't kill Whitebeard, whether Marineford could be saved would become a real question.
So... there was no need to worry too much about other things!
"Yes, sir!"
The communications soldier immediately turned and ran to carry out the order.
After watching him leave, Sengoku turned his gaze to Borsalino.
"It seems stopping the Blood-Eyed Ninja might be impossible after all," Sengoku murmured to himself.
"In that case... let's just consider the previous operation plan a failure!"
After shaking his head, Sengoku turned his gaze to the ice surface near the plaza, where only a few marines remained.
Perhaps it wouldn't be long before all the marines could retreat to the plaza!
As for those Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea...
Glancing at Bartholomew Kuma and Boa Hancock, Sengoku thought to himself: 'If you end up killed because of those blood-eyed Ninja, you can't blame us.
This way, even if Doflamingo and the others feel dissatisfied, they can't find any fault with us.
Perhaps noticing Sengoku's gaze, Boa Hancock glanced toward the execution platform.
"Although I don't know what they're planning, I have a bad feeling about these guys' intentions," Hancock murmured in her heart.