In the medical bay of the Black Nova, Ace and Cavendish lay unconscious, surrounded by various pieces of medical equipment arranged in orderly fashion.
Outside the medical room door, Deuce and several others stood in tense silence. The atmosphere among them carried none of their usual cheerfulness—instead, a heavy solemnity seemed to make the very air oppressive.
Skull stood directly in front of Deuce, gripping the navigator's shoulders tightly as he shouted with desperate hope, "Boss Deuce, don't talk like that! I know you must have a way to help them!"
"Yes, Big Brother Deuce!" Carrot nodded frantically beside him, looking anxious. "Your medical skills are amazing—you can definitely cure Big Brother Ace and Big Brother Cavendish!"
Carina and Brook also voiced their agreement, staring at Deuce expectantly without saying a word.
Deuce remained silent for a long moment before sighing heavily. "Cavendish will be fine. Although he has numerous deep sword wounds that won't heal easily, he just needs time to recover properly."
At this point, Deuce paused meaningfully before continuing with obvious gravity. "As for Ace... his liver and right lung were severely damaged, with some tissue nearly completely shattered. Fortunately, he managed to avoid the bullet aimed at his heart. Even so, the most I can do right now is temporarily stabilize his condition."
Deuce rubbed his temples wearily. "His situation remains critical. I need to monitor him constantly and perform several more rounds of treatment. Even if he survives, there may be permanent complications..."
After delivering this sobering assessment, he raised his hand to massage his forehead and sighed deeply.
"How could this happen..." Carrot bit her lower lip as tears gradually filled her wide eyes.
"Let's find someone who can help!" Skull suggested frantically, rapidly sorting through information in his mind. "Trafalgar Law with his Op-Op Fruit, or we could return to Dressrosa to find Princess Mansherry of the Tontatta!"
Carina nodded while comforting the distraught Carrot. "Yeah, the healing power of Devil Fruits should be sufficient, right?"
Deuce shook his head uncertainly. "I'm not sure, but the situation is extremely urgent. I don't know if Ace can hold on long enough for us to locate help."
Hearing this dire prognosis, Brook scratched his afro thoughtfully and asked, "Should I freeze him? Can preservation through refrigeration extend the time we have?"
Deuce rolled his eyes in exasperation. "He's not dead yet..."
Finally, Deuce exhaled with resignation. "I'll go back in to monitor him. After all, we have to wait until today's battle concludes and Jerry returns before we can make any major decisions."
Seeing Deuce turn around and walk back into the medical room, Skull and the others exchanged meaningful glances. "Yeah, let's go outside and check on the situation first."
"Okay. I hope Big Brother Jerry is safe," Carrot replied, immediately running toward the deck.
Brook and the others followed closely behind, heading topside to observe the ongoing battle.
On the sole remaining battlefield across the frozen wasteland, breathtaking waves of Conqueror's Haki collided violently, rising skyward and changing the very color of the heavens.
The dragon, with its graceful yet aggressive bearing, soared through the air with tremendous momentum before diving toward the brave and fearless griffin approaching from the opposite direction. Wherever it passed, violent winds howled continuously.
Jerry, enveloped within the dragon's energy, fixed his gaze on the rapidly approaching griffin. His piercing stare seemed capable of seeing through the surface manifestation of power as he engaged in a fierce visual confrontation with Shanks.
In an instant, dragon and griffin collided as Jerry and Shanks simultaneously launched their ultimate attacks.
"Water God: Leviathan Judgement!"
Adhering to the principle that power output was entirely dependent on volume, Jerry's battle cry shook earth and sky, reverberating through the air and even drowning out Shanks' own roar.
Unlike the griffin, which was purely Shanks' personal manifestation, the lifelike leviathan launched itself straight at the enemy with a silent but devastating roar.
Jerry, positioned within the dragon's form, followed closely behind as his Conqueror's Haki exploded outward. He extended his right leg and delivered a devastating kick that seemed capable of shattering the void itself.
Seeing this ultimate assault, Shanks—flying at low altitude—felt a dangerous gleam flash in his eyes. All his Haki concentrated in his remaining right arm as cold steel flashed and his blade cut through the sky.
At that critical moment, a thunderous crash shook the heavens.
An enormous leviathan erupted through the ice beneath Shanks' feet, approaching him at lightning speed with the power to swallow mountains and rivers. Its massive jaws snapped shut in an instant, attempting to devour him whole.
Since the predictive power of Observation Haki had proven ineffective between them, this surprise attack came without any warning, timed precisely for the moment when Shanks committed to his sword strike.
Shanks' pupils contracted as the giant water dragon mercilessly engulfed him without hesitation.
In the next moment, the water dragon began spinning at tremendous velocity, transforming into a violently rotating aquatic tornado in the blink of an eye.
Countless azure light particles appeared from thin air like water spirits, surrounding Shanks and making his movements feel sluggish and constrained.
At this moment, the energy dragon descended as Jerry's powerful kick arrived like a flash of divine lightning.
Shanks gritted his teeth and burst through the watery restraints with explosive force, delivering a sword slash that seemed capable of splitting the sky itself.
The massive blade energy spanned the heavens, carving what appeared to be a scar across the gradually darkening night sky.
The domineering dragon remained unstoppable, like a meteor streaking through the starry void as it swooped down toward the ice field.
For a moment, time seemed to cease its passage and the world fell completely silent.
Then a deafening sound like the roar of an ancient beast resounded through the sky, shocking the hearts of countless pirates watching from distant ships.
The air itself seemed to ignite as a powerful shockwave swept across everything in its path. Starting from the dragon's impact point, the ice field within a radius of thousands of meters instantly turned to powder. Countless cracks spread toward the horizon like enormous spider webs, completely obliterating the entire frozen battlefield.
Hurricane-force winds rushed forward like a mighty army, howling like thunder while shaking the vast space around them. Surging waves resembling a tsunami caused both the Red Force and Black Star to sway and drift involuntarily into the distance.
"Jerry!" "Boss!" "Brother!" "Captain!"
After this natural disaster-like scene gradually subsided, crews aboard both ships fought to stabilize their vessels, frantically adjusting rudders and sailing back toward the battle site while shouting desperately.
Soon afterward, both ships approached the former battlefield, now surrounded by countless floating ice chunks.
On one larger piece of frozen debris, two figures stood quietly, staring at each other in complete stillness.
When the crews drew close enough to observe clearly, they found the wounded Shanks lying flat like a beached fish, soaked from head to toe with his eyes fixed on the endless starry sky, lost in contemplation.
Beside the fallen Emperor stood Jerry, upright and victorious, with the tip of his fishing rod pointed directly at his defeated opponent.
Although Jerry's body was covered with battle scars—including a particularly striking sword wound across his ribs—and his overall appearance was thoroughly disheveled, he shone like the brightest star in that moment of triumph.
Sensing the approaching crowds, Jerry raised his left fist and announced with solemn pride:
"I won! From this day forward, my Supreme Fishing Rod reclaims its rightful place at the top of the legendary weapons ranking!"
After making this declaration, he turned his head to look at "Hawkeye" Mihawk, who was covered in wounds from Cavendish's lightning and blade work but still observing the battle's conclusion from the side of the Red Force despite his serious injuries.