At this moment, the once-calm waters were already trembling. A colossal tsunami—stretching for thousands of meters and towering hundreds of meters high—swept across the sea, crashing down toward Elior's ship.
The ocean roared and churned violently.
And riding atop this massive wave, staring down at Elior and his crew, were three grotesque, menacing faces.
They were living "Homies" born from Big Mom's powers — just like Zeus or Prometheus—manifestations of her very soul with wicked personalities of their own.
"The tsunami's coming!"
"What's insane is that it's got faces—three nasty-looking faces!"
"Ugly enough to make you want to punch them!"
"Is she… controlling the sea like this?"
"That crazy woman's Soul-Soul Fruit… it's probably awakened!"
The Elior Pirates exchanged uneasy glances. The monstrous wall of water was terrifying on its own, but under the eerie glare of those evil faces—especially at night—it became something far more unnerving.
The swells grew nearer, rocking Elior's ship. For a weaker crew, this would have been a death sentence—completely swallowed in an instant.
But Elior was not like other pirates.
Standing at the bow, he drew his two blades. The instant they were in his hands, his entire presence shifted. A fearsome aura, the mark of a true master swordsman, erupted from him, and the air seemed to ripple outward in waves. Even Bullet and the others on deck felt the gusts from his unleashed spirit.
"Captain… you're going dual-sword style? And both of them are famous blades!"
"Isn't it obvious?"
"What a terrifying presence… I feel like an insect standing behind him!"
"It's time to move!"
Without another word, Elior crossed his blades behind him—then unleashed them in a twin strike. Two massive tornado-like shockwaves roared forth, tearing across the frozen air toward the incoming tsunami.
"Napoleon! Zeus!" Big Mom's three grotesque faces howled from the wave.
But when Elior's twin slashes met them, the collision shattered the Homies' forms in an ear-splitting wail. The monstrous faces vanished, and the tsunami instantly collapsed into a surge of harmless seawater.
The slashes didn't stop there—they ripped onward, straight toward Whole Cake Island.
Big Mom's eyes narrowed. "Zeus! Napoleon!"
Zeus transformed into a black thundercloud, Napoleon into a massive blade. Both bore the same sinister grins as their master.
Big Mom leapt onto Zeus, Prometheus bursting into flames to crown her hair in fire. With Napoleon gripped in both hands, she bellowed:
"Ikoku Sovereignty!"
A titanic slash erupted, tearing the sea apart. A move on par with the mightiest of giants—and in Big Mom's hands, even more devastating.
Her attack clashed with Elior's midair.
BOOM!
The impact blasted a crater into the ocean between them, sending waves hundreds of meters high surging outward like the world itself had been flattened.
"It's starting!"
The Sweet Commanders tensed. Even the Charlotte family members, who had been cheering moments before, now fell silent at the sheer force of the clash.
Then—crrrk!—a sharp crackling filled the air. Before their eyes, the sea froze solid at incredible speed.
"That's right" Elior said coldly. "Let's begin. Don't kill her… but don't get yourselves killed either."
Their mission wasn't to execute Big Mom—it was to subdue her. Of course, if a few of her subordinates died in the process, so be it.
Elior wanted a partnership with the Big Mom Pirates. And for that, Linlin had to be brought to her knees. There was no sitting down to negotiate with a monster like her—she'd have to be beaten first.
Later, she would serve him.
This was Elior's aim.
Defeat Big Mom… then crush the Red-Hair Pirates. Big Mom could live—Shanks had to die.
With Geppo, Elior shot into the air toward her.
Big Mom came charging in return — Napoleon raised high, Zeus under her feet, Prometheus blazing in her hair. She looked like some hellish witch from a nightmare.
"Brat! Here I come! Mama-mama-mama!" Her laugh echoed across the frozen sea.
Their blades met with a thunderous crack—Enma in Elior's right hand against Napoleon's steel—sending a shockwave so strong it shattered parts of the ice below.
"I didn't expect you to strike first," she growled. "But even if you're strong, I'm not going down easy!"
"She really is the woman with the greatest natural strength in the world…" Elior thought, his fighting spirit surging. At his level, worthy opponents were rare—and this one thrilled him.
The two titans clashed again and again, each blow shaking the air, the force spilling down into the frozen sea.
Meanwhile, Bullet led the Elior Pirates straight into battle against Katakuri and the Big Mom Pirates.
Elior's crew was outnumbered, but in terms of top-tier combat strength, they easily outclassed their foes.