The waves are rolling and the warships are approaching.
The huge "Moby d**k" as big as a mountain broke through the waves and slowly approached the shore. Whitebeard stepped down from the bow like Optimus Prime, and his huge body stepped onto the island reef. Every step seemed to step on the heart of the earth, shaking the entire island slightly.
He carried a naginata on his shoulder, his imposing presence was as powerful as a mountain, and the many captains behind him were awe-inspiring.
And Ace was now blocked behind him by a palm as broad as a wall, as if the protective gesture was some kind of belated fatherly love.
Ace was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head with a complicated expression and said nothing.
Rogge watched this scene from afar, his face expressionless, seemingly unmoved, but a cold glint of irony flashed in his eyes.
"He acted with all his heart."
"Boom..."
The two men approached step by step until they were only a dozen meters apart. Their auras surged like mountains and seas, and it seemed as if the heaven and earth were holding their breath for this confrontation.
Whitebeard spoke softly, his voice hoarse but like thunder:
"Kid, as a Marine Vice Admiral, you're trespassing into the Four Emperors' territory without permission. Aren't you afraid... that if word gets out, it might have a negative impact?"
Rogge stood with his hands behind his back, his tone cold and blunt, as if he didn't even take the other party's title of "World's Strongest" seriously:
"You are a thief, and I am a soldier."
"Do soldiers need a reason to catch thieves?"
"you--!!"
Captain Joz of the third division in the back shouted angrily and was about to step forward, but Whitebeard raised his hand to stop him.
Marco frowned and whispered, "Dad, he's deliberately provoking us to take action."
Whitebeard didn't answer, but his eyes were fixed on Rogge, his brows slightly furrowed.
He had understood from the Conqueror's collision just now:
This young Marine - his strength is extremely terrifying, even not inferior to the top emperor level!
What's even more terrifying is that his heart is as cold as a blade, and there is no hesitation or hesitation in his eyes.
If you really do it...
Not to mention Ace, even among his own children, I'm afraid only one in ten will survive!
"..."
He was silent for a moment, then gently pushed Ace back with his palm, his expression showing a rare heaviness.
And Rogge, as if seeing through his contemplation, said with a half-smile:
"Don't worry, it's not time to declare war yet."
He looked up at the distant sky, as if sensing something, and said in a playful tone:
"At the moment our Conquerors collided, Sengoku's Den Den Mushi... I think it must have broken its skin."
When Whitebeard heard this, he snorted in relief, and the murderous intent in his eyes faded slightly.
But - the next sentence made his hair stand on end and his murderous intent rose again!
Rogge's voice was low, yet sharp as ice, as if it reached only Whitebeard's ears:
"...But the 'Bloodline of the Pirate King' is right before my eyes."
"It would be a shame not to catch him..."
Whitebeard's pupils suddenly shrank, the air behind him rolled back, the ground cracked, and with a slight shake of his naginata, the ground collapsed inch by inch!
"What... do you want?"
Rogge finally raised his head and looked directly at the godlike old man. His gaze was unwavering, but his tone was surprisingly gentle:
"I want to try—"
"'The World's Strongest Man', is he worthy of my... full-strength attack?"
"——!!"
The world is silent, and the sea breeze reverses!
Lei Te took a deep breath, his knuckles turned white, and cold sweat broke out on his back: "Boss... this, this is going to happen here...?!"
Whitebeard took a deep breath, his eyes gradually changing from angry to cold and solemn.
He looked into Rogge's eyes, which were cold to the extreme, and realized clearly for the first time:
This Marine boy is here to test us.
He wants to sound the alarm for this era!
"Gulala…"
Whitebeard suddenly burst into laughter, and the captains behind him became tense and alert.
"You little brat, you're even more annoying than your uncle Sakazuki."
Rogge nodded slightly:
"So, I'm not 'Akainu'."
"I am—Rogge the Rectifier."
The wind suddenly stopped, and the murderous intent returned.
On the verge of breaking out.
And the entire New World's sky seemed to begin to tremble at this moment.
The surroundings were calm, the tides were no longer roaring, but the air was like a fully drawn bowstring that could break at any time.
Whitebeard held the naginata tightly in his right hand, staring deeply at the cold and fierce figure in front of him.
He was silent for five breaths, then suddenly turned his head.
"Marco, lead your men back five hundred meters."
"Dad!" Marco said urgently, "He is——"
"obedient."
Whitebeard's tone was low, but it contained an irresistible pressure.
Marco gritted his teeth and responded, leading the captains to quickly form a line.
In the trembling air, Rogge tilted his head and spoke lightly:
"Rhett."
Lei Te was shocked and immediately took a half step forward: "Boss, I will stay——"
"No need." Rogge did not allow any doubt, his expression stern.
Rhett was stunned, but was given a calm look by the other party.
That glance only contained absolute confidence.
It was as if saying, "This battle belongs only to me."
Rhett pursed his lips, and finally slowly stepped back, confronting Marco and the others from a distance.
The fighting forces of both sides withdrew completely, leaving only the center of the island, Rogge and Whitebeard. The two stood still like two celestial monuments, blocking the entire space with murderous intent.
"Bang!!"
Rogge took the first step, and the air suddenly roared and exploded. A circle of vacuum ripples spread out with him as the center, pressing the ground down inch by inch!
"Heavy air pressure, boundless."
The atmosphere around him suddenly collapsed, as if he had entered a silent underwater!
Whitebeard smiled slightly, his huge body shook, the ground beneath his feet cracked, and Haki rolled out!
"Gulala...Interesting."
He suddenly leaped up, and slashed down with his naginata, carrying the power of a mountain!
"Shock Sky Slash!!!"
The air was distorted before the blade even landed, and a crack appeared in the space!
This strike is a combination of Shock Fruit and Conqueror's Haki!
Rogge opened his palms slightly, the air fruit started to work instantly, and he pushed his hands forward!
"The gas bursts and the wall rises again!"
"boom!!!"
The impact exploded in the air, double Haki intertwined, the vacuum and shock forces tore each other apart, tearing through hundreds of meters of forest, and directly cut out a giant circular collapse pit in the center of the island!
Before the smoke and dust cleared, Whitebeard suddenly appeared behind Rogge and swept his naginata across!
Rogge turned around and froze in the air—
"Air Stagnation·Mirror Slash!"
In an instant, Whitebeard's movements seemed to be frozen by an invisible hand, and his speed dropped sharply!
Rogge stepped forward, clenched his right fist, and the air collapsed wildly and gathered at the tip of his fist!
"Compression Cannon!"
"boom!!"
Whitebeard gritted his teeth and swung his right fist to send out a shockwave to block it!
"Shatter!"
Punch hit punch, the sky and the earth exploded!
The sea water was shaken into an inverted waterfall, and a deep ravine was directly cracked in the center line of the entire island!
Everyone was shocked. Lei Te stared at the battlefield, his mouth twitching:
"This isn't a collision of humans at all... This is the disaster itself!!"
Whitebeard's expression grew colder, and the shocking power within him was no longer reserved.
He knew very well that the young man in front of him named "Rogge" not only possessed the hard power to oppress the emperor level, but even more terrifying was that each of his strikes was as precise as a blade, without wasting any energy.
Shock Fruit can shatter the structure of everything, even twisting space, but it will also be affected;
But Rogge's air fruit does not confront it head-on - instead, it directly suppresses the "structural formation" itself!
This is a showdown between "destruction" and "dissolution".
With every attack, the air controlled by Rogge was like a silent scalpel, precisely cutting off and blocking the explosion path, and then rewinding and diverting the force.
"Gulala... you are indeed qualified to compete with me."
Whitebeard laughed loudly towards the sky, raised the "naginata" in his hand high, and stomped hard!
"Shock Wave!!"
Five consecutive earthquake waves burst out from under his feet, tearing the surface of the earth, like five ancient beasts roaring and rushing straight to where Rogge was!
——And at this moment, Rogge moved.
He snapped his fingers, raised his toes, and the air around him suddenly stretched in the opposite direction!
"Decompression ring!"
The air under his feet was sucked away in an instant, forming a circle of "low-pressure vacuum twisted belt".
When the shock wave stepped onto that circle, the shock wave's impact force, which was originally as strong as a landslide, was instantly cut off by the "vacuum chain breaker"!
boom--!!
The first shockwave shattered, creating a huge crater, but failed to affect Rogge at all.
The second, the third... the chain of attacks continued, but Rogge always remained like a lone shadow in the wind, away from gravity, wandering outside the waves, neither dodging nor blocking, but no shock wave could get close to him!
The wind blew past, and Rogge said coldly:
"I'll give you one."
He raised his palm and swung it into the air!
"Air Blade Triple!!"
——Wow!!
Three Ultimate sharp vacuum slashes seemed to be split from the sky, carrying the air fault compressed to the Ultimate level, slashing down from top to bottom!
Each one is enough to cut through a hundred-meter-high rock and destroy an aircraft carrier!
Whitebeard roared, shook his feet, crossed his arms, and poured all his strength into the power of the Shock Fruit!
"Shatter!"
The shock wave exploded like a raging wave, smashing the first blow and taking the second one head-on!
"boom--!!!"
The air exploded, and a burst of wind and rain came from high altitude. The whole island shook violently and directly broke!
The third slash cut into the heart of the island, piercing through the mountain, leaving behind a huge crack that spanned hundreds of meters!
Smoke and dust rolled in, and the earth was devastated.
Whitebeard's mouth was bleeding and he was gasping for breath, but his eyes remained unyielding and his murderous intent had not ceased.
Rogge stood quietly in the wind, his body straight as a spear, the sleeve on his left shoulder was torn, and a crack on his chest was slowly oozing blood.
There is no winner or loser in this battle.
But everyone already knew:
Rogge is truly qualified to face off against the "Four Emperors".
"Gulala... As expected of 'Xuanlin'."
Whitebeard grinned. "Ten years ago, I might have fought you to the death."
Rogge's eyes were calm, but he said softly:
"You are old, Whitebeard."
"And I've only just begun."
These words caused a dead silence all around.
Even Marco showed an unprecedented heavy expression.
Whitebeard was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed, his laughter filled with forbearance and admiration:
"Kid, you're more of a 'Realizer' than a 'Marine'..."
Rogge said nothing, turned away, and said calmly:
"That's all for today."
"Next time—I will come and take away the sinner who carries the 'Blood of the Pirate King'."
Ace shuddered, his teeth clenched, his eyes filled with anger and unwillingness.
Whitebeard stood silently before him without saying another word.
In the sky, the wind swept away the remaining clouds. Rogge and Leiter flew away, leaving behind only a shocking and silent ruin.
Although the outcome of this confrontation has not yet been decided,
But the whole world has understood one thing: Xuanlin Rogge is qualified to challenge the "Four Emperors".
Above the sky, two figures broke through the clouds and walked on the wind.
Rhett was carried by Rogge on the air current. He adjusted his posture while rubbing his chest with a grimace: "Huh - every time I fly with you, I feel like my heart is about to jump out..."
As he spoke, he looked up at Rogge beside him, his eyes still filled with some lingering fear and confusion:
"Boss, Whitebeard was clearly injured just now. Why didn't you press on and pursue him?"
Rogge looked normal, but his tone was filled with disdain:
"Idiot, the whole group is here."
"If we keep fighting, it won't be a one-on-one fight anymore..."
Lei Te was stunned for a moment, then laughed dryly: "Hehe, that's true. I almost forgot we were on someone else's territory just now."
"I almost thought... we could sink the entire Moby d**k."
Rogge's lips curled up slightly, but he didn't laugh out loud. However, his eyes lit up a little, as deep as the stars in the night sky.
He looked towards the distant sky, his tone low and firm:
"No need to rush."
"I've already found out everything I wanted to find out."
"Next time..."
"That's when they—they're going to be wiped out."
The wind echoed, and the silhouette of the red fleet was vaguely revealed in front, piercing the morning mist like hellish magma.