Even Sengoku and Kaido failing to pierce Ashveil's defense could be understood — but Kong?
The man whose monstrous physique and extreme mastery of Armament Haki had once shaken the world?
The very Marine who had mentored him — yet now, even his legendary strike couldn't breach Ashveil's barrier?
Even Whitebeard couldn't hide his astonishment.
"Thorne Ashveil… just how high has your strength reached?" the old pirate murmured, his deep voice echoing with awe. "Even I can no longer see your limit."
Across the battlefield, Marco and Kizaru clashed, light and flame exploding upon impact. As the two broke apart, both caught sight of the figure at the center of the storm.
Marco's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Captain Ashveil… those blue flames… they feel exactly like my Phoenix Flames!"
Kizaru, his golden form flickering, stared with slackened jaw.
"What kind of monster are we dealing with? How could anyone survive a direct hit from those three?"
Douglas Bullet, locked in his own fierce battle, froze mid-strike, his face twisting in shock before a grin spread across it.
"Ashveil… I didn't think you'd be this strong. Fine then — from now on, my goal is to surpass you!"
The entire Marineford trembled under the force of Ashveil's clash with the three legends. His survival — no, his dominance — sent an electric surge through the pirate ranks.
Though their numbers were few, the pirates' spirits soared.
Roars filled the sky, shaking the heavens themselves as the Marines' morale began to crumble.
At the center of the devastation, Ashveil stood calm amidst the storm, stretching lazily as if waking from a nap.
"I say," he muttered, voice carrying through the wind, "don't you have anything new? This kind of joint attack doesn't work on me anymore."
He tilted his head, his faint smile returning.
"The only reason I didn't strike earlier, Kaido, was because I was waiting for all three of you to step into my range."
Dark energy pulsed outward from his body. Once again, a shimmering layer of Conqueror's Haki flared into being, forming a protective shell around him.
"Then farewell," he said lightly, his blue eyes glowing like embers. "You've bored me enough."
[Shinra Tensei]
The barrier flashed brilliantly, and his Conqueror's Haki burst outward like a raging tempest.
Kaido, Sengoku, and Kong — their energy still unsteady after their last attack — couldn't dodge in time. Forced to defend, they coated their bodies in Armament Haki.
It didn't matter.
Against Ashveil's full-force Shinra Tensei, even the strongest defense was meaningless.
This time, the attack was amplified — infused with the very essence of his Phoenix Flames. The explosion that followed shook the world.
A deafening roar thundered across Marineford.
The clouds above were ripped apart, leaving a gaping hole in the sky. Thunder rumbled, rain crashed down, and light from the explosion engulfed the island.
Hurricanes raged through the fortress. The mighty Navy Headquarters Building collapsed in a roar of destruction, its reinforced walls of Sea Stone crumbling into rubble. The debris scattered like ashes in a storm.
Flame-laced aftershocks tore through the ground, scorching vast craters into the island. Marineford looked as though meteors had rained down upon it.
The sea itself rebelled — waves surged high as Aokiji was forced to raise his hands.
"Ice Age!"
Instantly, the turbulent waters froze, preventing the ocean from swallowing Marineford whole.
Ashveil's power had carved his name into the hearts of every soul present.
The Marines could only stare, stunned, as they struggled to stay upright against the raging winds. Dust and rain whipped across their faces.
Onigumo's expression was grim, his voice trembling.
"Is… is this still human power?"
Even Kizaru had stopped fighting, his usual laziness gone as he looked toward the collapsed fortress.
"I can't believe this… That much power, and all from a single attack? The Navy Headquarters was reinforced dozens of times with Sea Stone, and yet it still fell…"
He swallowed hard. "Even someone like Kong couldn't have withstood that, could he?"
But no matter how far his Observation Haki stretched — he couldn't sense Kong's presence.
Across the chaos, Dracule Mihawk cut through Aokiji's ice wall in one clean motion. His sharp eyes gleamed with excitement as he turned toward Ashveil.
"Magnificent! Ashveil, your power surpasses reason. I'll have to cross blades with you one day — I look forward to it."
Diamond Jozu, frozen mid-combat, swallowed heavily.
"I… I can't believe it. Our Zero Division Captain… was hiding this much strength? Everything before this… was only a fraction of what he can do?"
Deep within the ruins of the Marine building, Red Count's laughter echoed through the dark. He held a gleaming fragment between his fingers — the Uranus Key Fragment.
"Hahaha! Finally! I have it!" he exulted.
But as the building trembled, his expression shifted. His Observation Haki surged, and his face twisted with disbelief.
"Impossible… Kaido, Sengoku, and Kong together — and they still couldn't shake him?"
He smirked darkly, eyes glinting with ambition.
"Thorne Ashveil… you're terrifying. Even Rocks D. Xebec himself might not have reached such power."
Red Count tucked the fragment away, lips curling.
"But no matter how strong a man becomes, he can't defeat Uranus. Not even you."
With that, his body dissolved into a swarm of bats, vanishing into the storm.
As the dust settled, the battlefield revealed its aftermath.
Kaido, who had taken the brunt of the explosion, lay embedded deep within the shattered Marine building. Blood streamed down his face; his eyes were rolled back as he lay unconscious.
Sengoku had fared only slightly better — his golden Buddha form cracked, his body half-buried in the ruined ground. Slowly, he forced himself to stand, blood dripping from his lip.
"If I hadn't activated my Buddha form, I'd be done for," he muttered, breathing heavily. "That boy… to still have such a trump card after his Conqueror's barrier broke…?"
Touching the blood on his chin, Sengoku's eyes narrowed with a mixture of shock and grudging respect.
"Thorne Ashveil… just what kind of monster are you?"
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