Teach's Ultimate Move: Fruit Awakening

"The navy is here!"

"All fleets prepare to seize the upper hand!"

Not far from Whole Cake Chateau, the newly assembled Blackbeard Pirates fleet collided with the Navy, which had breached the outer defenses. Without needing to say more, the mere sight of their respective flags determined that one of them must sink to the bottom of the sea!

The pirates' side was a chaotic mess of various large and medium-sized armed sailing ships. Apart from Blackbeard's three-skull pirate flag, all sorts of flags and symbols were scattered all over the ship, with bizarre and varied shapes. The people on the deck were roaring and provoking, displaying their ferocity... and their appearances were indescribable.

On the other hand, the Marines had uniform ironclad warships, uniform seagull flags, and soldiers all wearing white naval uniforms. Those wearing overcoats were field officers, and those wearing civilian clothes under their overcoats were generals. It was easy to tell them apart, and their military bearing was impeccable! Even though their numbers were only one-third of the pirates', no one from the bottom up was afraid.

"All ships, maintain formation, turn right!"

"Artillery squad, take your positions! On my command, prepare to fire!"

"Charge! Charge! Charge!"

"Hahaha, kill them all!"

Hundreds of warships of different styles encountered each other at sea. Against the backdrop of the azure sea, the decks, floating and sinking, had a thick, greasy texture. With cannons standing tall, the ships of both sides twisted in unison, and the two fleets bit each other like a Tai Chi symbol, or like two schools of agile fish swimming back and forth. The battle line stretched for more than forty miles, which was extremely spectacular.

This is what a 'normal' naval battle is like, where warships charge forward... that only happens when chasing the Straw Hat crew, otherwise naval battles aren't like driving tanks! Meanwhile:

"Geppo!"

One by one, figures clad in naval coats leaped from the warships. Although the Marine warship was far smaller than Blackbeard's, its technology was unmatched by pirates. To name a few examples: one side had steel warships, the other wooden sailing ships...

So, upon discovering that their long-range volleys were being mercilessly suppressed, the pirates' skilled fighters immediately jumped into the sea, scuba dived, and even some attempted to board the Marine warship using a half-baked, illegible version of "Geppo," preparing for a solo assault. Unfortunately:

"Shigan - Lotus!"

"Chaos Blade!"

"Wave Breaker Slash— "

The Marines officers, who rose into the air, unleashed a barrage of ranged attacks, causing a group of skilled pirates to perish before they could even begin their mission.

Of course, we can't rule out the possibility that they deliberately "paddled" in the sea. After all, everyone saw it: it's not that we don't try, it's just that there are too many skilled naval personnel.

In a one-on-one battle, the combat strength of the Navy and the pirates is roughly equal. However, once the numbers are greater, the Navy can easily overwhelm the pirates. Anyone who has played multiplayer games knows that sometimes, having 'teammates' is—worse than having none at all!

And most of the 'free-spirited' and undisciplined pirates are terrible teammates. At least that's how Koby sees it:

"The Blackbeard Pirates' formation is in disarray,"

After being hit by a barrage of cannon fire, and following the failed attempt by the skilled crew to board, the massive Blackbeard Grand Fleet's circling formation suddenly crumbled: some continued to maintain their formation and exchange fire with the navy, some were slowed considerably by too many cannon shots, some were on fire and leaking, and some, unable to bear the losses, even began to turn to the other side...

"Looks like there aren't any experts... Oh no!"

Koby changed his expression. His side didn't have any strong fighters, which meant:

"The experts are all with Roman,"

'Momousagi' Gion and 'Chaton' Kake a glance, then their gazes fell on the white doves on the deck.

"No need... Well, you two can move a little closer to Whole Cake Chateau,"

The White Dove 'Roman No. 1' felt it best not to make any absolute statements; if a crisis did arise, seeking help from the Navy wasn't out of the question. After all:

Luffy's grandfather is Marine Hero, and the Marines who came this time are all from Garp's faction. Besides, given Roman's status, it's only natural that the Marines would come to his rescue in a critical moment. Of course:

The navy should only intervene as a last resort; in the present situation:

"Wait a minute, I feel..."

"Rubber····"

"Hahaha~~ Useless!!"

As the fist, imbued with the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, crashed down, the very space seemed to crack open, revealing jagged, dark wounds! Following the trajectory of Teach's punch, a shattered world vanished in a flash.

Even Roman's invisible Armament Haki was violently distorted by the Tremor-Tremor -Devil Fruit ability, as if it would shatter at any moment! Although Luffy immediately met the attack with a fist wrapped in Conqueror's Haki, he was still forced backward by Ti's attack, his feet carving a deep trench in the ground.

"Luffy, don't fight him head-on, use your Haki— "

"I see,"

Luffy, who had already deactivated Luffy Fourth Gear, dodged Teach's fist to the side. Luffy's Armament Haki had entered its 'cooldown' phase. Although Roman was in slightly better condition than Luffy, his 'armor' against various attacks had reached its limit.

"Gear Second!"

Although Gear Second doesn't require the support of Haki, continuing to use Gear Second after Fourth Gear is essentially risking your lifespan in the process.

"It's better than death, isn't it?"

Faced with Luffy's chuckling words, Roman was speechless. Just as he was considering whether to immediately call Momousagi and the others to 'help':

"Hahaha, victory is mine!!"

Teach laughed wildly and pounced again, completely abandoning any defense. His fists slammed down like a landslide, instantly engulfing Luffy and Roman! The ground they were standing on cracked and sank, instantly turning into a huge basin.

Boom boom boom boom boom!!!

"As long as the power is strong enough to crush everything, then any struggle or resistance is futile! That's just how the world is—"

"I will create a free world!!"

With his fists clasped together, Teach leaped into the air and shouted, while simultaneously, Lia on his left shoulder reached forward and placed her hands over Teach's left fist. Instantly, darkness crept up his fist! Then:

The shockwaves that shattered everything and the subtle power that devoured everything merged together. The space around Teach's fists suddenly contracted, as if the entire world had been compressed into a single mass. Then, as his clasped fists slammed down, the space itself seemed to be torn apart like a curtain! It transformed into a jet-black light and hurtled towards Luffy and Roman below.

"Air Quake, Darkness, Space Annihilation!"

With a deafening roar, the sky collapsed and the earth shook violently!

The sky trembled in fear, the earth groaned in agony, and the sea boiled and howled. A terrifying sound, so immense that it could not be heard or described in words, resounded for miles around!

A beam of light, a blend of black and white, shot straight into the sky thousands of meters high. The thunderclouds created by Nami in the sky seemed to be ignited like cotton wool, instantly burning out a huge circular hole nearly a hundred miles wide, allowing sunlight to fall on this ravaged land.

Because the power of this attack was mainly concentrated in one area, Whole Cake Chateau remained largely intact. However, where Roman and Luffy had just been, only a huge, unfathomable black crater remained, seemingly leading all the way to the Earth's core! This gave everyone watching the battlefield a sudden jolt.

"Luffy!"

"Roman?!"

"How so······"

"As expected of the Admiral, this power is truly formidable!"

Judging by the force of this all-out attack, it's likely to blast through the earth's crust; the Straw Hat crew's captain and strategist are doomed.

"It's not over yet!!"

With Luffy's roar, a pair of tattered wings carried him out of the bottomless pit and landed on the other side.

Snap,

Despite his shaky and battered armor, Teach never fell, Luffy Teach on the other side to the brink of madness!

"Phew, how come you two can still stand up?!"

Under such intense combat, even Teach was struggling to keep up. The kind of battle that lasts 'ten days and ten nights' only occurs between two highly skilled opponents who genuinely respect each other; in other words, it's about keeping the intensity of the fight within a certain range.

For example, there's the friendly sparring between Ace and Jinbe, the ideological clash between Akainu and Aokiji, and Kaido and Big Mom who only use basic attacks throughout—

If they had unleashed powerful attacks like Emperor Yan, the Hell Hound, and the Shining Light Cannon right from the start... there wouldn't have been days and nights of fighting. The battle would have been decided long ago... or rather, a fight to the death.

Ha~ha~~ha~~

Across the massive crater, Luffy, panting heavily Luffy his knees, his body covered in bruises and swelling from the Tremor-Tremor Fruit's blast! But:

"Are you alright, Roman?!"

Now that Luffy is seriously injured and can't even stand up, then the armor for defense:

"Don't panic,"

On the tattered white armor, a drowsy white dove shook its head, still unable to stop nodding.

"I think I heard singing..."

"Aaaaah!! Roman, now's not the time to sleep—"

Even if Luffy, his tattered armor is still Roman's body, and the white dove's expression, as if it could already hear the rushing waters of the River Styx, only makes him panic and lose his composure. However:

While maintaining his paper-like ' Elementalization, Roman could completely reassemble himself no matter how much paper he lost. What truly caused his abnormality was that the intense clashes of the Three Types of Haki and the Tremor-Tremor Ability during the battle, while repeatedly impacting and damaging Roman's paper-like body, also made him perceive unusual sounds:

How should I put it?

As Teach unleashed his ultimate attack, the paper continued to crumble. The closer Roman got to death, the more he 'heard' the melodious music!

Like countless tiny wind chimes playing a long, melodious tune, growing clearer and louder, it seemed as if billions of people were playing a magnificent and stirring symphony in unison, its grandeur and magnificence growing stronger with each passing moment...

This is a tremor and resonance from countless cells throughout the body, a chorus of countless cells!

In the midst of intense conflict and the ever-approaching limits of both body and mind, Roman heard the 'Song of Life' hidden deep within his body.

Like a conductor standing atop trillion performers, Roman listened intently to the sound emanating from every cell in his body. The sound was so powerful, it seemed to extend beyond his own body, even reaching:

Infecting everything?

As Roman 'subconsciously' waved his Tact, guiding the sound in the direction he desired—

Splash splash~~~

?!

"This is·····"

Barely standing beside the enormous crater Luffy watched as everything around him transformed into sheets of pure white paper, fluttering about in a bizarre manner, as if the very ground beneath his feet had become a world made of paper. The swirling, snowflake-like sheets of paper soared into the sky, painting the entire battlefield a pristine white.

"Paper Dance: Awakening"

In the eyes of the white dove on his shoulder, which suddenly opened, was the spirited Roman!

"Pure White World!"