"Ice Age!"
At that very moment, Aokiji appeared beside Rosinante with unimaginable speed. A freezing chill swept through the air, instantly locking everything in frost. His ice rapidly spread toward Rosinante's body.
The timing was flawless—right after Rosinante had thrown a punch, before new strength had surged and the old had fully dissipated. Though Rosinante realized the danger and tried to dodge, it was too late—he had no leverage to move properly at that critical instant.
This time, Aokiji's Ice Age expanded even faster. In an instant, the frost engulfed Rosinante, sealing him in thick ice. Powerful cold erupted from Rosinante's body, creating a towering iceberg around him.
An Admiral—a new Admiral-level powerhouse had been born.
Even Aokiji himself likely hadn't expected it. Because of the life-threatening crisis Akainu faced, Aokiji had broken through his own limits, stepping into the realm of the Admirals.
Though Aokiji and Akainu often clashed and their ideologies couldn't be more opposed, the bond they shared was forged in blood and fire. They were comrades who had once entrusted their backs to one another on the battlefield.
So when Akainu's life was in danger, Aokiji's instincts surged, pushing him past his bottleneck.
After freezing Rosinante, Aokiji didn't spare him another glance and strode directly toward Akainu.
He was confident in his Ice Age. This move was strong enough to freeze the sea itself. Even with Rosinante's strength, breaking out of it wouldn't be easy.
Right now, he was more concerned about Akainu's survival.
From the wreckage of the explosion, a figure climbed out—blood streaming from the corners of his mouth, face, and all over his body.
"Ah... what a mess," Aokiji said, expressionless. "This is probably the first time I've seen you so disheveled."
Akainu looked up at Aokiji and let out a low chuckle. "Looks like you've broken through."
"But even with your breakthrough, if you took that punch head-on, I bet you'd be in worse shape than I am," he added with a grin.
"Well, too bad I didn't get the chance. Rosinante's frozen solid in my Ice Age. Not even someone like him could break free easily," Aokiji said as he stepped aside, allowing Akainu to face the frozen Rosinante directly.
Akainu rose to his feet and looked at the iceberg. From inside, waves of molten magma pulsed outward.
"Don't do anything rash," Aokiji warned. "Even though I've sealed him for now, we don't know his exact condition. If you try to smash the ice open, you might actually help him escape."
"Your ice is useless. He can suppress your cold aura. Sooner or later, he'll break out. We should execute him now while he's immobilized," Akainu insisted.
Aokiji shook his head. "This is only a temporary measure. We'll notify Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp. No matter how strong he is, he won't escape their combined might."
"To capture one Rosinante, we have to call in Sengoku and Garp? What, is the rest of the Navy full of useless trash?" Akainu scoffed.
"I think it's wise to wait for Admiral Sengoku's decision. That guy's ability is tricky to deal with..." Vice Admiral Momonga said as he walked over.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Suddenly, gunshots rang out. Several bullets appeared out of thin air and blasted straight into Akainu and Aokiji's heads.
"Akainu! Aokiji! What the hell?! Who fired those shots?!" Momonga instantly unsheathed his long blade, eyes sweeping the surroundings in full alert.
"That would be Rosinante's subordinate—the Dimensional Knight, Bins," Akainu said coolly. His head, blown apart by the bullets, reformed from flowing magma in an instant.
"What a troublesome ability! Those bullets were fired from a very long distance. Even with Observation Haki, all we could detect was that they appeared out of nowhere. The guns must have been modified. The speed and power were insane. If it were a regular person, they'd be dead," Aokiji remarked as cold mist gathered and his own shattered head reconstituted.
Both of them were Logia-type Devil Fruit users. Though the bullets were coated in Armament Haki, it wasn't strong enough to cause real harm. Even if the bullets had enough Haki, these two had sensed the incoming attack the moment it was fired. At their level, that was enough to dodge or mitigate the damage.
"A terrifying ability," Momonga admitted. "If those had hit me... I'd be done for."
Hearing that, Akainu and Aokiji exchanged a silent, grim glance. As powerful as they were, they couldn't strike back through space to reach Bins.
"Stay sharp. That guy will attack again," Aokiji warned.
Elsewhere, Bins looked incredibly anxious. Rosinante was sealed inside the ice, and his condition was unknown. Even though Bins' Hole-Hole Fruit could create portals within the iceberg, he couldn't pinpoint Rosinante's exact location.
Moreover, the extreme cold of the iceberg made it impossible to get close. Even the portals he created were frozen instantly by the intense chill.
"I don't know what condition His Majesty is in. But since our healing seals haven't malfunctioned, I'm guessing he's still alive. Right now, the most important thing is to stop them from calling in the Admirals. I'll hold them off—Ryan, go find the Katakuri. He's the only one who can handle two Admiral-level monsters," Bins instructed firmly.
Facing two Logia-type Admiral-level foes made Bins feel like he was trying to bite into a blade—painful and futile.
"Understood! I'll go get the Katakuri right away!" Ryan responded quickly and ran off without hesitation.
"How's Rosinante doing right now?" Robin asked.
Though she wasn't sure what was happening on the battlefield, Bins' words made it clear that Rosinante wasn't in good shape.
"Don't worry. His Majesty will be fine," said Shaxia with confidence. "He's not someone who dies that easily!"
"Snipers, prepare to fire again. Keep them pinned down—don't let them rest!" Bins ordered.
Aokiji, Akainu, and Momonga stood alert, scanning their surroundings.
Suddenly, another wave of bullets shot at them from all directions—so fast they struck before they could react.
Clang!
One bullet slammed into Momonga's head, sparking off his Haki-covered scalp.
Though he managed to coat his head in Armament Haki at the last second, the impact still made blood trickle down his face. The Haki had protected him, but the sheer force had still broken the skin.
"These aren't ordinary guns... not even the Navy's enhanced sniper rifles have this much firepower!" Momonga said grimly.
His expression hardened as he spoke. He wrapped his blade in Armament Haki—he wasn't going to take another bullet with just his body.
With a swift slash, he knocked an incoming bullet aside.
Just then, a dark portal appeared—a black, powerful fist launched out of the wormhole straight at Momonga.
Yes—a fist, with no arm or body attached. Just a punch, out of thin air.
"Mocha Cake!"
Momonga swung his blade to block, but the force behind the punch was overwhelming. His body was flung backward like a ragdoll, crashing heavily into a boulder.
Pfft! Blood sprayed from his mouth.
The black portal expanded—and from it, a man slowly emerged...