"Keep close surveillance on Wano Country! Report any concerning developments to me immediately!"
In the Fleet Admiral's office at Marine Headquarters, Sengoku gently hung up his Den Den Mushi communication, exhaustion clearly written across his weathered features.
Seeing him lean back in his chair while rubbing his temples wearily, Vice Admiral Tsuru—who had been sitting quietly on the nearby sofa—spoke with a voice like a gentle spring breeze, breaking the heavy silence that had settled over the room.
"Three of the Four Emperors' crews have converged in Wano Country, with the Black Star Pirates serving as the catalyst for this unprecedented gathering. It appears the power structure of the New World is about to undergo a complete reorganization."
Hearing Vice Admiral Tsuru's astute observation, Sengoku took a deep breath and responded: "Indeed. That troublemaker Jerry has a genuine talent for creating chaos that spirals beyond anyone's control. One incident leads to another, and now I fear this situation may escalate beyond our ability to manage."
"That outcome was perhaps inevitable," Vice Admiral Tsuru replied, shaking her head while her eyes gleamed with sharp intelligence. She spoke in hesitant, lowered tones: "Sengoku, I've been sensing that our world may be undergoing fundamental changes. Perhaps..."
Upon hearing this cryptic observation, Sengoku suddenly released his Observation Haki in a sweeping arc around their immediate area. After confirming they weren't being monitored, he nodded seriously to Vice Admiral Tsuru but chose not to elaborate further. The two veteran officers clearly shared deep understanding on certain sensitive topics that couldn't be discussed openly.
"We'll simply have to observe how events unfold," Sengoku said while tapping his fingers rhythmically against his desk. "The speed at which this young man has climbed to his current position exceeds our most ambitious projections."
Beneath his finger lay Jerry's bounty poster, displaying a reward amount that was truly staggering—an astronomical 4 billion berries.
Beyond the Marines, the World Government was also monitoring Onigashima's battle situation closely through infiltrated agents and contacts within the CP organizations.
Outside official channels, anyone possessing significant resources and quality intelligence networks had already focused their attention on Onigashima's developments.
After all, regardless of which faction ultimately emerged victorious, the New World would inevitably experience tremendous upheaval.
Wano Country, Onigashima
The night sky grew increasingly dark, yet it couldn't conceal the explosive flashes of combat and supernatural phenomena erupting across every section of the island.
On the pirate ships positioned before the island and along the coastline, division commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates fought alongside elite Mink Tribe warriors in desperate battles against Big Mom's numerous children.
On the western front, Cavendish and King engaged in combat that ranged from aerial duels among the clouds to ground-based confrontations across the terrain.
Beneath the massive opening of the skull fortress, Brook and Queen clashed in spectacular displays of supernatural ice meeting mechanical fire.
On the eastern coastline, Carrot's body radiated brilliant electrical energy as her electrified claws sparked violently against Jack's twin blades in their ongoing duel.
"Tama, are you alright? Please wake up!" Aboard the Black Star, Carina shook her dizzy head while surveying the large numbers of people who had collapsed unconscious across the battlefield. She gently patted Tama, who had been rendered unconscious by Big Mom's overwhelming Conqueror's Haki, but received no response.
After carefully observing Tama's peaceful expression and confirming she was safe, Carina looked up and nodded toward Skull: "I'll leave Tama in your care for now."
"Whew... Big Mom seems to have forgotten about me entirely," Skull muttered with obvious relief. "She didn't come after me again—that's definitely good news."
Then Skull refocused his attention and patted his chest confidently: "No problem at all! She'll be completely safe aboard the Black Star, but you need to be careful out there too."
"Don't worry about me," Carina replied, displaying a brilliant smile filled with absolute confidence.
The two exchanged these brief words before Carina crouched low and disappeared into the darkness to continue her mission.
Inside the Skull Dome
Big Mom descended rapidly, feeling the powerful wind against her face as she observed Kaido and Jerry—both still engaged in fierce combat and bearing numerous battle scars across their bodies. She burst into hearty laughter: "Mamamamaha! Kaido, you're not performing very impressively either!"
"Linlin! Stop bullshitting—what are you doing in my territory?!" Kaido cast a cold glance toward the rotund elderly woman before raising his kanabo and swinging it with tremendous force.
However, when his attack was launched, he was shocked to discover that the Jerry in front of him was merely an afterimage.
"Friendship-Breaking Face Punch!"
An iron fist emerged like a dragon from its cave, suddenly breaking through the air to strike Kaido's face without the slightest mercy.
Watching his opponent crash to the ground before bouncing back up and flying backward like a stone skipping across water, Jerry raised his hand and casually wiped blood from his own face.
"Damn it! I kept my face clean for years, and you still managed to mess it up."
Ace landed swiftly nearby, grinning as he offered good-natured teasing: "Haha, you can be surprisingly clumsy sometimes."
"There's nothing I can do about it," Jerry replied with a shrug. "His club is just ridiculously oversized. Everyone makes mistakes and even horses stumble occasionally."
The two exchanged casual banter for several moments before simultaneously turning their attention forward.
Kaido and Big Mom had been arguing with each other briefly, but now both displayed knowing smiles.
"Excellent! Linlin, you should have mentioned this earlier," Kaido declared with obvious enthusiasm. "As long as we form an alliance, there's nothing we can't accomplish together!"
"Mamamamaha! Naturally."
"Then let's begin immediately—defeat these ignorant brats, seize that pointer, and then conquer the entire world! Wororororo!"
After hearing this exchange between the two Emperors, Jerry and Ace looked at each other with obvious bewilderment.
"So... they formed an alliance just like that?" Jerry scratched his head in confusion. He had no idea what the two had discussed to reach such an agreement in mere moments.
Ace picked his nose with characteristic nonchalance: "Let them form whatever alliance they want. It wouldn't matter to us if they got married—they're our enemies regardless."
Jerry's eyes widened as he stared at Ace in genuine shock: "You're really a tactical genius, aren't you?"
Ace grinned broadly and was preparing to continue their irreverent commentary when Big Mom's voice suddenly boomed across the battlefield: "Show them what real power looks like, Kaido!"
"Wororororo! That's exactly what I had in mind!" Kaido responded with equally boisterous laughter.
After his declaration, a strange atmospheric pressure began spreading outward, making the air feel like a tranquil lake into which an enormous stone had been thrown, creating ripples of supernatural disturbance throughout the space.
Jerry and Ace felt momentarily startled and turned their heads to observe the two massive figures they had been casually mocking.
They discovered that Kaido and Big Mom had positioned themselves together at some point, each gripping their weapons with both hands while stepping sideways in preparation for coordinated assault. They had assumed perfectly symmetrical attacking stances—one on the left, one on the right.
Feeling the whistling wind gradually intensify into howling gales that shattered clouds overhead while stirring up debris from the ground below, Jerry suddenly remembered a legendary technique performed by these two and blurted out: "A combination attack?!"
Hearing this realization, Ace and Jerry exchanged determined glances before speaking with obvious eagerness: "When it comes to combination techniques, who should be afraid of whom?"
"Absolutely right! Let's show them what we can do!" Jerry naturally had no intention of backing down from such a challenge.
Before he finished speaking, both fighters positioned themselves opposite each other with perfect understanding, bending their legs and stepping backward while clenching their fists at waist level.
Water rapidly gathered around Jerry's form while golden-white flames surged across Ace's body.
At that moment, even though none of the four combatants had yet executed their techniques, the surrounding space seemed frozen in anticipation.
As the Conqueror's Haki emanating from all fighters exploded like thunder, crackling black lightning coiled around them like dragons while tremendous energy rolled wildly toward the sky. The phenomenon completely dispersed the remaining clouds overhead, allowing the full moon to hang prominently in the night sky and illuminate every corner of Onigashima.
"You little brats need to die!" The moment Big Mom's voice rang out, she and Kaido grinned simultaneously with predatory anticipation.
Both Emperors had condensed their auras to extraordinarily intense levels. The weapons gripped in their hands became wreathed in violent Conqueror's Haki as they swung forward in perfect coordination.
A devastating shockwave erupted rapidly, resembling high-energy artillery bombardment blasting straight ahead. If left unopposed, its destructive power was sufficient to obliterate everything within hundreds of kilometers.
Facing this apocalyptic assault, gleams of determination flashed in Jerry and Ace's eyes. Their expressions remained calm, showing no signs of tension or fear despite the overwhelming force approaching them.
As the "Hakai" shockwave rushed toward them instantaneously, Jerry and Ace moved like perfect mirror images, their actions completely synchronized.
Under Jerry's Haki guidance, the exploding Conqueror's Haki from both fighters—crackling like thunder dragons—actually merged into a single unified force. Then they took heavy steps forward, twisted their waists, and drove their fists outward with explosive power.
"Water God: Leviathan Judgement!"
"Fire Fist: Dragon Flame Supremacy!"
"Judgment of the Dragon Gods!"