Arthur's strength was undeniably immense—but raw power alone didn't mean everything. In this era, the seas were overflowing with monsters of strength; but not every monster could climb to the top.
What truly unsettled Aokiji (Kuzan) wasn't Arthur's might—it was his mind.
That calm, calculating composure hidden beneath his youthful fire was what chilled him most.
Just moments ago, in the clash between them, Arthur had pulled back at the peak of advantage—a decision that spoke volumes.
He wasn't acting on instinct or panic.
He'd chosen to withdraw, before Aokiji had even executed his counterattack.
That could only mean one thing—this young man, not even twenty, had sensed danger purely from intuition, and retreated without hesitation.
To Aokiji, that said more than any flashy display of power.
It meant that Arthur—despite his age—possessed a level of mental discipline and foresight most veterans never achieved.
Because ordinarily, young warriors drunk on their own strength rarely pulled their punches.
Power breeds arrogance; arrogance breeds carelessness.
And carelessness in this world led to death—or capture.
But Arthur wasn't like that.
That retreat meant he would never strike unless he had absolute confidence in victory.
That single choice made Aokiji silently raise Arthur's danger level by several degrees.
While Aokiji pondered, Arthur's Observation Haki—extended far beyond the icy battlefield—finally picked up something across the frozen sea.
A clear, ethereal voice echoed faintly in his mind:
"Liufeng, I'm here to get you!"
At the same moment, Kizaru (Borsalino) delivered a kick of pure light-speed power—his shining leg colliding head-on with the Red Count's sword, Thunderstorm.
BOOM!
The clash sent a shockwave rippling through the frozen plain. The Red Count wasn't hurt, but the sheer kinetic force launched him backward like a cannonball.
He hurtled straight toward Crocodile and Waldo—just as five Vice Admirals were moving in to finish the two off.
The timing couldn't have been more perfect.
CLANG!
Using the momentum of Kizaru's strike, the Red Count twisted midair, blade flashing five times in an instant—intercepting the coordinated barrage of the Vice Admirals and scattering them.
Caught completely off guard, the Marines stumbled back, barely keeping their footing.
"Perfect," Arthur's eyes lit up.
Seeing his crew reunite, he stamped down hard—Armament Haki crackling through his leg—and kicked at the frozen ground.
BOOM!
A massive chunk of ice blasted up from the sea, shooting straight toward Aokiji.
The admiral didn't even flinch. He relaxed into Elementalization, letting the ice shatter harmlessly through his body.
Crash!
When he reformed again, Arthur and the others were already gone.
"Move it! The ship's here to pick us up!"
Arthur shouted, taking the lead as he sprinted toward the approaching sound.
The Red Count, Crocodile, and Waldo blinked in confusion for half a second—but after spending days with their unpredictable captain, they'd stopped questioning his bizarre calls.
Without a word, they followed close behind.
"Eh?"
This time, it was the Admirals and Vice Admirals who were dumbfounded.
They… ran?
Right in the middle of the fight?
And toward the open sea, no less—surrounded by Navy battleships?!
Were they insane?
Meanwhile, on the surrounding ships, the regular Marines—who'd kept a safe distance since Aokiji unleashed Ice Age—squinted across the frozen plain.
All they could see were tiny silhouettes clashing in the distance. When they finally spotted Arthur's group retreating, they instantly assumed the Admirals had won.
"Look! They're fleeing!"
"Their morale's broken! The Admirals have them on the ropes!"
A smug lieutenant commander puffed his chest out and barked orders, eyes gleaming with imagined glory.
"Men! The enemy's on the run! This is our moment of triumph! Capture them alive and the Fleet Admiral himself will reward us!"
"YEAH!"
The deck erupted.
Hundreds of Marines jumped overboard, weapons drawn, charging across the frozen sea like heroes in their own delusions.
Aokiji's eye twitched.
You've got to be kidding me.
Didn't he explicitly order them to stay on the ships and keep their distance?!
He could already imagine the paperwork.
The other Vice Admirals groaned too, running after the rookies while waving their arms desperately.
"Stop! Don't approach! Retreat—!"
But the soldiers only heard what they wanted to hear.
"Look! The Vice Admirals are waving for us to go faster!"
"Of course! They're cheering us on!"
"Yeah! Let's show them we're not useless grunts—charge!!"
"CHAAAAARGE!!"
Aokiji could only drag a hand down his face. Kizaru sighed lazily.
"Oh dear~ they really don't listen, do they…"
Within moments, chaos unfolded. The light-speed Admiral tried to intercept Arthur's group but found himself instantly pressured—Red Count's swordsmanship and Arthur's lightning-enhanced Haki forcing him back step by step, while Waldo kept throwing ice-hardened boulders wrapped in Armament from every direction.
For all his speed, Kizaru couldn't close in without taking hits.
The rookie Marines finally reached the scene—only to freeze in place, eyes bulging at the sight before them.
Their golden god of justice—Admiral Kizaru—was being driven back.
The Red Count and Arthur were pressing him hard, lightning and light clashing in a storm of destruction.
"This… this isn't what the reports said…"
"Weren't they supposed to be nearly dead?! Why does it look like they're beating him?!"
The realization hit like a cannonball.
They weren't charging into victory—they were charging straight into hell.
The sea breeze carried the faintest sound of the incoming ship's horn.
Arthur grinned over his shoulder.
"Let's go! Our ride's here!"
Behind him, the frozen plain was chaos—Admirals, Vice Admirals, and bewildered Marines all tangled in the wreckage of their own confusion.
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