The moment Aokiji saw Suzumebachi's transformation, a storm of new thoughts rushed through his mind.
"Just now, Kuchiki Rukia's blade also changed shape. Don't tell me these swords are some kind of mass-produced special weapons?"
The more Aokiji interacted with Oguro's group, the more questions piled up in his head.
Unfortunately for him, Soifon didn't give him any time to think.
Whoosh.
Soifon pushed Shunpo to its absolute limit. Her figure vanished on the spot.
A moment later, every hair on Aokiji's body stood up. He didn't even have time to process what was happening. His instincts kicked in and he used Soru to move.
Tss.
A faint scraping sound reached his ear.
At some point, Soifon had already appeared behind him. Suzumebachi flashed past.
A shallow cut opened on Aokiji's right shoulder, The wound healed in less than a second, because his elemental body.
"So fast…"
Aokiji felt cold sweat slide down his forehead.
In pure speed, this woman wasn't any weaker than Kizaru.
Thankfully, speed-types could be countered with Observation Haki.
As a Marine Admiral, Observation Haki was mandatory training.
"But compared to using that weapon… why isn't she using that 'Hadō' thing she used earlier?"
Aokiji frowned. Logia users naturally counter all physical attacks through intangibility.
He didn't believe she would make such a basic mistake.
His gaze drifted toward his right shoulder… and his expression instantly changed.
"What is that?"
Only now did he notice a hornet-pattern mark forming on his shoulder.
Aokiji wasn't some idiot like Crocodile. Without hesitation he elementalized again, separating the entire affected area from his body.
A piece of ice fell away… yet the hornet mark remained on him.
Soifon let out a mocking smirk.
Suzumebachi's ability targeted the soul.
The real Hornet Crest was carved directly into the enemy's soul.
The one visible on the body was only its projection.
Even if he cut off the entire arm, the mark wouldn't disappear.
Aokiji panicked, wanting to eliminate the threat. But Soifon didn't give him a chance. She stepped again, her Shunpo ghostly and relentless as she launched a vicious assault.
Boom.
Aokiji blocked her kick with his arm.
The sheer power ran down his body and into the ground, shattering it. A massive crater opened beneath their feet.
Her strike didn't land, but Soifon didn't relent. She twisted lightly in midair, her right hand—still holding Suzumebachi—lunging for Aokiji's head like a dragon piercing through the clouds.
Tchss!
The blow missed.
What Soifon never expected was that the reason her attack whiffed was because Aokiji had deliberately turned the targeted part of his head into ice and dispersed it.
Leaving a hole in his own skull.
"Ice Blade."
At some point, a sword of condensed frost had formed in Aokiji's hand. He slashed directly toward Soifon's right arm.
Soifon was shocked. She didn't have intangibility to cheat death.
If that blade connected, her arm was absolutely gone.
But Aokiji's timing was perfect.
Observation Haki combined with Logia intangibility… the mark of a true top-tier fighter.
He cleverly avoided her strike, then countered in the exact instant she overextended. No one could react in time.
This was the power and experience of a Marine Admiral.
When he went all out, even other Admirals like Akainu and Kizaru would struggle to break through his defenses.
Crack.
The ice blade sliced through her arm… or so it seemed, splitting a sleeve clean in half.
Aokiji's smile appeared.
But a second later, it froze on his face.
A captain's haori fell from the sky, its sleeve severed.
Soifon herself had vanished.
Just a discarded shell.
"As expected of the Marine Admiral praised repeatedly by the Soul King. Your strength is not to be underestimated."
A few meters away, Soifon stood unharmed, having shed her haori.
She even had the leisure to compliment him.
Far in the distance, Oguro nodded in approval.
This move was clearly Shunshin Yoruichi's signature technique… Shunpo Utsusemi.
By slipping away at a special frequency of Shunpo and leaving a piece of clothing behind, an enemy believed they struck the body when they only hit the garment.
In the original series, only Byakuya Kuchiki used it.
But as someone raised directly under Shunshin Yoruichi, Soifon absolutely should know it.
And at a critical moment like this, it worked perfectly.
"What a troublesome opponent…"
Aokiji sighed. The empty part of his head regenerated instantly.
Speed-type opponents were simply unfair. No matter how strong you were, it meant nothing if you couldn't land a hit.
Soifon looked calm, but her eyes were sharp. Aokiji's strength was putting a heavy strain on her.
"If normal methods won't work… then I'll have to try this."
Boom.
A surge of spiritual pressure erupted from her body. High-density compressed Kidō gathered on her back and shoulders.
Even though she didn't release it yet, the destructive force radiating from it was terrifying.
Shunko.
She wanted to see whether this so-called "elemental body" could withstand spiritual pressure and Kidō head-on.
Aokiji grew tense.
His Observation Haki screamed warnings at him. Whatever she was preparing was dangerous.
Soifon vanished and charged straight toward him. Shunko flowed into her left fist.
She struck.
Observation Haki stabbed into Aokiji's skull like needles. He didn't hesitate. He used Soru to flee far away.
Boom!
A monstrous shockwave exploded outward, sweeping the entire area like a tidal wave. The ground trembled, earth split apart, and several buildings near the harbor were flattened instantly.
"Damn it… what kind of Devil Fruit ability is that? Is she a Paramecia user?"
Deep down, Aokiji still believed these people's powers came from Devil Fruits.
After all, a non-fruit user's limit was Haki.
"Admiral, you won't win if you only run."
Soifon stepped forward with Shunpo, appearing right in front of him again.
Kidō swirled around her right leg. She flipped in the air and slammed the attack down like a thunderbolt.
"Shunko… Raifūsha!"
The strike dropped like divine lightning.
"Ice Gauntlets!"
Aokiji raised both hands, his body turning fully into ice.
Power surged into his arms, turning them pitch black.
Armament Haki Hardening.
"You're far from beating me."
Aokiji went all in, pouring Armament Haki into his fists.
Despite being a Logia user, he had trained Haki rigorously under Black Arm Zephyr and alongside Garp himself.
The Ice Gauntlets were the combination of Armament Haki and Garp's signature Iron Fist.
Aokiji was confident. This technique could suppress over ninety percent of strong fighters on the sea.
Boom!
The two secret arts finally collided.
***
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