A violent gale swept across Fire Country's coast.
But the sea did not move.
Everything here had already been frozen solid.
"An… island in the sky…"
The people of Fire Country trembled as they looked up, fear written all over their faces.
What descended from the horizon was no ordinary sight—
it was a vast cluster of floating islands.
They drifted through the sky like a dream.
At the center floated one especially magnificent island, surrounded by the others like stars around the moon. Golden palaces stood across it, grand and imposing, like an ancient imperial court suspended in the heavens.
And at the very front of that palace—
stood an old man with wild golden hair, like a lion in human form.
His laughter shook the world.
His long hair billowed, and a crimson light flickered in his eyes.
He was none other than Golden Lion Shiki.
And at this moment, this legendary monster from Roger's era had extended an invitation to Kairos—
an offer to join forces.
Countless people held their breath.
One was Kairos, who had just defeated Admiral Aokiji.
The other was Golden Lion Shiki, the man who had once stormed Marine Headquarters alone and smashed half of Marineford to pieces.
If those two truly joined hands…
What kind of disaster would that unleash upon the Grand Line?
Upon the entire world?
For the first time, Shiki's words about ruling the world no longer sounded like madness.
They sounded possible.
Kuzan moved.
He exhaled a stream of white mist. Frost spread over his wounds, forcibly sealing them to stop the bleeding.
Even in his weakened state, battle intent rose from him once more.
As one of the three Marine Admirals, he would never stand by and watch two monsters form an alliance that could threaten the balance of the world.
The freezing aura that could lock down all creation began gathering again.
But the moment Kuzan tried to force it—
the wounds across his body tore open once more.
He staggered, coughed up blood, and the frost gathering around him shattered and dispersed.
"Kairos, what do you say?"
Shiki's smile never faded.
He did not spare the wounded Kuzan a second glance. His eyes remained fixed on Kairos, sharp and bright.
Kairos lifted his head and met Shiki's gaze.
Then a smile slowly appeared on his face.
"Join forces? Sure."
His voice was soft.
But those words made every heart clench.
"You agree?"
Shiki's eyes widened slightly, his voice booming like a bell.
Kuzan's heart sank with it.
Though unwilling, he had no strength left to fight.
If Kairos truly agreed, then all he could do was watch.
Across Fire Country, countless people went pale, already imagining Kairos and Golden Lion joining hands to overturn the world.
And just as the fear peaked—
Kairos spoke again.
His tone shifted.
"On one condition."
He smiled.
"You have to beat me first."
The moment those words fell—
an icy chill spread across the battlefield.
This cold was different from Kuzan's.
Kuzan's frost could freeze all things.
But what now spread from Kairos…
felt like it could freeze the soul itself.
The source of that bone-deep cold was none other than Kairos.
Toshiro Hitsugaya Card — Complete Bankai. Activated.
"You want to fight me?"
A fierce glint surfaced in Shiki's eyes, the savage pride of a true overlord laid bare.
Kairos said nothing more.
He simply stepped forward.
The instant that step fell—
a long, slender blade appeared in his hand.
Hyorinmaru.
All the cold in heaven and earth began rushing toward him.
Shiki narrowed his eyes.
"So he uses ice too?"
Kuzan, clutching his wounds, stared in disbelief.
This entire time, the power Kairos had shown against him had been swordsmanship.
To defeat an Admiral with swordsmanship alone before the age of twenty was already absurd enough.
Anyone would assume that someone like Kairos must have poured every waking moment into the sword, leaving no room for anything else.
And yet now—
he revealed a second power.
Ice.
And not ordinary ice, either.
This freezing power was every bit as terrifying as his swordsmanship.
That thought made Kuzan's mind shake.
Had the power Kairos used against him… truly been his limit?
Then—
a low chant drifted through the air.
"Sit upon the frozen heavens… Hyorinmaru."
The words echoed softly across the battlefield.
Snow began to fall.
Fine white flakes drifted from the sky in silent waves, beautiful and chilling all at once.
"Snow…?"
Kuzan's eyes widened.
"How can he use ice?"
At that moment, all the cold in the world converged on Kairos.
He was swallowed by glowing frost and drifting shards of ice, his figure reduced to a blur within the storm.
Then—
Boom!
All of it compressed inward at once.
The blizzard-like frost collapsed onto his body, hardening into crystalline ice.
A pair of enormous ice wings unfurled from his back, each several meters long, spreading wide and covering most of his body.
With those wings framing him, Kairos looked less like a man and more like an ice dragon descending upon the world.
But the thing that shook Kuzan most was not the appearance—
it was the temperature.
The cold pouring from Kairos now was so intense that even Kuzan, the user of the Ice-Ice Fruit, felt his heart tighten.
This chill was not inferior to his own.
"He can control ice too?"
Kuzan's thoughts wavered.
Kairos' swordsmanship was already monstrous.
And now his ice abilities were just as overwhelming.
A man under twenty had mastered both to this level?
That thought alone was enough to make anyone's scalp go numb.
Then suddenly—
a terrifying roar split the sky, dragging Kuzan's attention back to the present.
Kairos' ice wings beat once.
He shot upward like a dragon taking flight, straight toward Shiki's floating island.
"Then come!"
Shiki threw back his head and laughed.
"I won't disappoint you!"
His aura exploded.
Crimson light flashed deep in his eyes as a violent, overwhelming battle spirit erupted from him. He looked like a lion roaring at the heavens—golden hair flying wildly, every inch of him radiating savage dominance.
The battle between Kairos and Golden Lion Shiki—
was about to begin.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios