43 Stopping Aokiji
"Garp!" Sengoku called out anxiously, his face a portrait of shock and concern.
These two had been friends for many years, and Sengoku knew Garp well enough to understand that Garp wasn't one to show mercy easily. But today was different. Even Garp had been sent flying by a single punch from Whitebeard.
What did this show? It was a clear testament to the fact that Whitebeard's strength had undergone a dramatic increase, reaching a level where even Garp's might couldn't stand against it.
Perplexity, doubt, and anxiety swirled in Sengoku's heart like a storm. He struggled to wrap his head around how Whitebeard had become so incredibly powerful in such a short span of time.
Then, a cough cut through the tense atmosphere. Garp, who had been blasted away into the ruins, pushed aside the rocks covering his body and slowly managed to stand up. His eyes locked onto Whitebeard, and his expression turned grim.
"What happened?" Sengoku inquired in a deep, concerned voice.
"I don't know, but that punch from Whitebeard surpassed anything I've ever experienced before. It felt like I was facing two Whitebeards!" Garp shook his head, his tone heavy with the weight of the revelation.
"Two Whitebeards?" Sengoku gasped.
Dealing with a single Whitebeard had already given them a monumental headache. If Whitebeard's strength had truly doubled, the situation was going to be even more dire.
But just when Garp and Sengoku were grappling with this shocking revelation, a deep voice boomed across the sky, capturing everyone's attention. They all gazed upward and saw Whitebeard, the man who had sent Garp flying, leaping forward once more.
His haki surged like a violent storm, enveloping his fist with blinding light from his vibration ability as he unleashed a devastating blow toward Aokiji.
"Not good!" Sengoku and Garp's faces contorted with worry. They desperately wanted to support Aokiji, but time was not on their side.
Aokiji, who had been using his ice powers to freeze the massive wave, found himself taken aback. Without a moment's hesitation, he swiftly withdrew his arm and thrust forward.
"Ice Age!" Aokiji unleashed the full extent of his Ice-Ice Fruit powers to the extreme.
With a powerful push, the moisture in the air instantaneously froze, and a frosty mist shot through the air toward Whitebeard. Simultaneously, a massive wall of ice materialized before Aokiji, serving as a formidable shield against the impending attack.
BOOM! The collision between the ice and shock waves produced a deafening, continuous rumbling noise.
Under the horrified gaze of the onlookers, the frost exploded violently, shattering into countless icy fragments that scattered in all directions.
At the same time, the massive ice shield in front of Aokiji met its own fate. With a single punch from Whitebeard, it shattered with a resounding crack.
Cracks appeared on the steel-hard ice shield, which then exploded into a burst of fragments.
Under Whitebeard's mighty punch, even Aokiji was left stunned and astonished. A dreadful vibration coursed through his body, and the astonishment on Aokiji's face swiftly transformed into sheer horror.
Whitebeard was incredibly strong, and even an Admiral felt overpowered and helpless in the face of such power.
BOOM! Aokiji's body fell like a cannonball, and the battle raged on.
Amidst the deafening roar and thunderous crash, Whitebeard's devastating punch struck the ruins with tremendous force, kicking up a massive cloud of dust that hung in the air like a shroud of despair. The soldiers, already in a state of despair due to Garp's earlier onslaught, were struck once again, their spirits crushed under the immense weight of Whitebeard's unparalleled power.
Whitebeard's immense strength repeatedly pushed the limits of their imagination. It was a peak power that left them devoid of any courage to resist. A low groan filled the air, and all eyes turned in its direction. From the rubble emerged Aokiji, battered and bruised, struggling to rise with crimson blood trickling from his mouth.
The punch delivered by Whitebeard moments ago was a display of his full power, a peak state that incorporated double the strength. Even as an Admiral, Aokiji had suffered immensely from that punch, a fact that sent shockwaves through the ranks of the Marines.
Smoker trembled, feeling a surge of powerlessness in his heart. Because Aokiji was an Admiral, one of the world's top powerhouses, and even he had been severely injured. The severity of the injury left everyone both absurdly stunned and terrified of Whitebeard's overwhelming might.
"Is the strongest man in the world truly that powerful?" Smoker wondered aloud.
Vice Admiral Doberman stared blankly at Whitebeard, and his fighting spirit slowly faded away. "Damn it!" The other Vice Admirals shook their heads, gritted their teeth, and their eyes were filled with deep reluctance.
The injury suffered by Admiral Aokiji made one thing abundantly clear: they were going to lose this war. Aokiji, as a strategic Admiral, had the power to freeze the sea and create land. With his severe injury, he could no longer prevent the island from sinking and the massive waves from engulfing it. The only option left was a temporary evacuation.
Doflamingo, who still hadn't left, burst into wild laughter. He knew that after this war, Whitebeard's name would surpass all others and become the most renowned king in the New World.
Whitebeard, triumphant, landed on the ground and raised his hand, his Naginata pointing directly at Sengoku. As he declared his victory, the resounding roar of the enormous wave echoed through the air. Aokiji's attempt to unleash the Ice Age was halted by Whitebeard, leaving only half of the surroundings frozen, while the remaining half of the sea surged, threatening to engulf the entire island.
The Marines faced a difficult choice once again. They could order the Marine soldiers to engage Whitebeard and sacrifice their lives to bring him down, or they could choose to evacuate and regroup on the warship before continuing the pursuit. There was simply no other choice available.
"Sengoku!!!" Sengoku clenched his teeth, his chest rising and falling with intense anger, his face turning purple.
"Sengoku, we must retreat," Garp sighed. With the island on the brink of sinking and Aokiji taking another devastating blow, they had no choice but to evacuate immediately with no place to stay. Staying would mean being buried with the sinking island for everyone present.
Certainly, the island's fate was not the most important concern at this point. What truly mattered was that pursuing Whitebeard wouldn't be that simple once they returned to the warship. This war... it was they who had lost!
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