Chapter 205: Intensification
Hawkeye appeared somewhat stunned, seemingly dissatisfied. If Whitebeard himself had blocked the strike, he wouldn't have objected—but being stopped by one of Whitebeard's division commanders left him unsettled.
However, he didn't continue his assault. Instead, he stepped back and sheathed his black blade, Yoru.
Seeing this, Diamond Jozu, who'd successfully deflected Hawkeye's slash, smiled and breathed a sigh of relief.
In their strategic planning, most of the other Shichibukai could be ignored or easily defended against. Only this World's Greatest Swordsman—who frequently dueled with Red-Haired Shanks—was the one everyone feared most.
Now it seemed Hawkeye wasn't planning further attacks, which naturally constituted excellent news for Whitebeard's forces.
With this exchange complete, the battlefield reached a small crescendo, with pirates and Marines clashing ferociously.
However, in Rhodes's assessment, this war of attrition effectively amounted to slow death for Whitebeard's side.
Ace, witnessing this carnage, looked increasingly anguished. The pools of blood and scattered corpses seemed to whip his heart, causing excruciating pain as he realized the disastrous consequences of his recklessness.
Choosing direct confrontation? How foolish!
Standing atop the execution platform, Sengoku maintained a clear view of the entire battle and ordered the outer warships to blockade the Whitebeard Pirates' advance beyond the harbor.
However, the Whitebeard Pirates' fleet—capable of dominating the New World—was no pushover. Through a series of agile maneuvers, they steadily approached headquarters, and two icebreaker vessels even broke through the artillery barrage to join the battle on the frozen surface.
The conflict raged intensely. Under their division commanders' leadership, the Whitebeard Pirates, despite suffering heavy casualties, continued pushing their front line forward relentlessly.
In this situation, Kizaru rose from his seat beneath the execution platform.
"As expected of the Whitebeard Pirates—each one strong as a monster. To minimize our losses, we must capture their leader first."
With that declaration, Kizaru's body radiated golden light, then in a flash, he materialized high in the sky before Whitebeard.
"Yasakani no Magatama!"
A devastating barrage of light beams rained down upon Whitebeard.
Seeing this, Rhodes's expression shifted slightly. The destructive power of that attack was remarkable—even sufficient to suppress his own Lightning Release techniques.
The lasers weren't merely fast and numerous, but also possessed incredible destructive force.
However, this assault still failed to reach Whitebeard, being completely intercepted by First Division Commander Marco the Phoenix.
Marco then transformed into his phoenix form and engaged Kizaru in aerial combat.
Rhodes sensed that neither combatant was fighting seriously—probably because the war had only just begun.
Simultaneously, Diamond Jozu once again displayed his world-class physical prowess.
He punched the ice surface, creating an irregular circular fracture. Then, Jozu gripped the mountain-sized ice chunk and hurled it viciously toward the execution platform.
Before the massive iceberg even arrived, incredibly intense wind pressure swept forward, causing Marines below to feel suffocated, their faces displaying absolute horror.
"It should be quite satisfying to cut through that thing," Rhodes commented, drawing his sword and stepping forward.
Hancock, Hawkeye, and the others turned their attention toward him expectantly.
Almost instantly, Rhodes unleashed a sword strike that seemed to materialize from nowhere.
One-Sword Style: Thunder Dragon.
A surge of violent lightning power manifested on the battlefield for the first time, its intense brilliance immediately drawing everyone's attention.
Under countless gazes, a majestic dragon formed entirely from crackling lightning surged skyward, shattering the iceberg. Then the lightning detonated, releasing terrifying electrical heat.
The massive iceberg vanished without a trace—as if a celestial brush had appeared and erased the enormous ice block in a single stroke.
Only afterward did the booming thunder gradually reverberate, shaking the surrounding area.
Akainu, who'd just begun rising from his seat, immediately displayed displeasure but could only sit back down.
Whitebeard, standing steadily at the Moby Dick's bow, also noticed this spectacle.
"That newly appointed Shichibukai? Impressive brat—so young yet possessing such strength."
Thinking this to himself, Whitebeard wasn't particularly concerned. Even the Marine Admirals were merely brats in his eyes, let alone Rhodes, a junior.
His nonchalance stemmed entirely from his own overwhelming power.
However, Diamond Jozu—and even Marco the Phoenix, currently locked in combat with Kizaru—felt somewhat astonished.
"If that kind of power were unleashed against us directly, it would be catastrophic."
Marco's concentration wavered momentarily, worry flickering through his thoughts.
The Whitebeard Pirates were already disadvantaged against the combined forces of the Marines and Seven Warlords—now with Rhodes added as an unpredictable variable, the situation grew increasingly dire.
"You dare let your attention wander while fighting me?"
Kizaru had been mentally prepared for Rhodes's capabilities and remained the calmest person on the battlefield. Seeing Marco distracted, he immediately delivered a light-speed kick, sending him hurtling through the air.
However, thanks to the Phoenix's absurd regenerative abilities, the injury from that kick wasn't serious and rapidly healed.
"Truly worthy of being a Mythical Zoan—even rarer than Logia types. How terrifying~"
Kizaru wore his characteristic nonchalant expression, seemingly wishing he could return to reading newspapers and sipping tea.
Meanwhile, Hawkeye, standing beside Rhodes, displayed a hint of confusion. Was this man truly a swordsman?
Why did his lightning abilities seem vastly stronger than his swordsmanship...?
Noticing Hawkeye's peculiar gaze, Rhodes felt slightly embarrassed. His lightning powers consistently overshadowing his sword techniques indeed made this genius swordsman feel somewhat ashamed.
After completing his attack, Rhodes sheathed his sword and continued observing from the elevated platform while simultaneously focusing his attention on his soul space.
He immediately noticed that the golden points on the world map had increased dramatically in that single instant.
As expected of a top-tier war that the entire world is watching...
Rhodes couldn't suppress a smile. At this rate, as long as he successfully executed his plan, he would most likely satisfy the advancement requirements for the Book of Knowledge.
However, Whitebeard's power somewhat exceeds expectations. I still need to accumulate more Yomi energy for future contingencies.
Rhodes stroked his chin thoughtfully, refining his strategy.
As he contemplated, the battlefield below intensified further—rivers of blood flowing, corpses strewn across the frozen ground.
THUMP... THUMP... THUMP...
Accompanied by thunderous footsteps, an enormous shadow slowly strode across the ice.
"Here comes our trump card!"
The towering figure was none other than Little Oars Jr. of the Whitebeard Pirates—a member of the Ancient Giant race, standing a full thirty-eight meters tall.
Such massive size made Little Oars Jr. virtually unstoppable, a walking catastrophe.
Even massive warships were cleaved in two with single strikes. The giant Vice Admiral deployed to stop him was overwhelmed within moments before being killed outright.
The Marines stood stunned—Little Oars Jr.'s size was simply too outrageous. The giant Vice Admiral looked like a child beside him, and ordinary soldiers couldn't even reach his knees jumping at full height.
"Ace is the kindest person I know—I'll never let him die!"
Little Oars Jr. continued his charge, his footsteps reverberating across the frozen harbor.
However, his massive frame made him an easy target. He was quickly devastated by Kuma's compressed air cannon, then Doflamingo severed his ankle with razor wire, sending him crashing thunderously to the ground.
Yet his fallen body became a bridge, allowing the Whitebeard Pirates to continue their advance toward the plaza.
Witnessing this, Ace atop the execution platform felt his heart shatter completely, tears streaming down his face.
At this moment, Rhodes finally decided to enter combat, having spotted Vista of the Flower Swords—deciding to test himself against the Fifth Division Commander.
This could serve as proper warm-up before eventually facing Whitebeard, while simultaneously gathering Yomi energy.
(End of Chapter)
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