Aokiji's Mercy and Compassion!
"Heh--heh--heh--"
The Chinjao stood atop a huge block of ice, its back slightly bent, breathing in the icy air with the help of its bellows-like chest.
He no longer possessed the imposing aura he had six days prior; the anger in his eyes had long since dissipated, replaced by weariness.
Chinjao is very tired now; fatigue seeps into her skin, bones, and spirit from her feet.
My vision was blurry, and I couldn't see clearly because the rapidly swirling snow around me was so dense that visibility was less than two meters.
But that's alright, his Observation Haki provides him with clearer perception. The only thing that's really bothersome and troublesome is the frost clinging to his neck, beard, and chest.
They were so cold; the chill was like fine hairs constantly eroding the defenses of Armament Haki. After so long, his fingers, joints, and muscles had begun to feel stiff.
This frost was not there at first, but it gradually appeared on the third day of the battle.
This forced him to maintain the Hardening of Armament Haki, otherwise the continuously emitted ultra-low temperature would freeze his body completely in a short time.
The two sides are currently fighting on the 'Treasure Jade Iceberg'.
But now there was nothing left radiating golden light, because it had long been buried beneath the ice blocks of varying sizes piled up at their feet.
As early as the second day of the battle, a towering, massive Iceburg rose from the ground, but on the Four Heavens, it was completely smashed into ruins in the fierce fighting.
Meanwhile, a fierce Blizzard enveloped the entire battlefield.
Today.
It's already the seventh day of the 'Battle of the Two Blues'!
[Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!]
Suddenly, a series of three sharp whistling sounds as if the wind and snow were being torn apart rang out. Although Chinjao's Observation Haki was not as good as his Armament Haki, he still sensed the direction from which the attack was coming in the first instant.
His slightly dimmed but still determined gaze swept to the right, and sure enough, he saw three spears made entirely of ice flying rapidly in a triangular formation.
"Hasshoken!"
Chinjao, who had completely turned into a 'black man' due to maintaining his full-body Armament Haki Hardening, raised his right arm, which was as thick as a cannon barrel, and swung it over.
[Boom--]
The moment the fist made contact with the first ice spear, a spreading Shockwave erupted, shattering all the ice spears into dust.
At the same time.
Aokiji appeared silently behind Chinjao under the cover of the wind and snow, slicing through the already frozen green coat with his irregularly shaped 'Black Blade'.
[Whoosh--Pfft!!]
"Snort"
With a suppressed groan of pain, Chinjao's Armament Haki broke through his defenses, and Aokiji's blade slashed open a long, bloody gash. The hot blood that splattered out was instantly frozen into blood beads by the low temperature environment as it fell to the ground and shattered into even more pulverized blood powder.
He had actually sensed the latter's presence, but just as he was about to turn around and retaliate, his legs suddenly became immobile. Looking down, he found himself bound by layers of ice.
Was I careless?
That's not quite right; it's just that Chinjao's attention was somewhat scattered under the combined effects of fatigue and cold.
Ultimately, after Garp punched his "Chin-Jao the Drill" flat, he not only lost his strongest weapon, but also lost much of his fighting spirit.
Not to mention, he was engaged in Admiral protracted and high-intensity war of attrition against a Logia Ice-Ice Devil Fruit User in an environment like the Polar Ice Continent.
"Ice Time!"
At this moment, Aokiji, who was also panting heavily due to excessive exertion, took advantage of the fact that Aokiji was temporarily unable to move or dodge, and released a surge of cold air that froze Chinjao's entire body inside a large Ice Ball.
Given the latter's current state, the possibility of it getting out is extremely low, which finally relieved Aokiji. He looked at the Chinjao in the ice and exhaled a breath of cold, misty air.
This battle was truly exhausting!
To be honest...
Newgate, who lived through the same era as top-tier fighters of the previous generation, including Fleet Admiral Sengoku Garp, Admiral Garp, Admiral Shiki, Zephyr the Golden Lion, Whitebeard the Edward, and the One Piece Roger, is far superior to Chinjao in terms of Haki, Physical Arts, and combat experience. He is simply no match for Chinjao in a head-on confrontation.
However, the final outcome of a battle is not necessarily determined by who looks stronger; it is closely related to factors such as circumstances, mindset, age, and compatibility of abilities.
With his abilities Awakening and in the completely frozen environment, it took him a full seven days to finally defeat this tough opponent!
"Oh dear, we're sorry, but we'll accept your treasure. We believe it will be used for many other things."
Aokiji knew that the Chinjao inside was actually conscious and could hear what he was saying, but although he apologized, he didn't really feel guilty.
After all, Chinjao's massive treasure was acquired over decades as One Piece, and it was essentially ill-gotten gains that couldn't be cleaned up. As a Marine, there was nothing wrong with him confiscating it.
At the same time.
The power of the Ice-Ice Fruit activated again, and the snowstorm that had enveloped the entire 'Treasure Jade Iceberg' quickly dissipated. Brilliant sunlight once again poured down from the sky, illuminating the densely packed, broken ice blocks until they sparkled and shimmered.
[Click--click--click--]
Sudden.
Without any visible movement from Aokiji, all the remaining ice fragments around him automatically moved in all directions, merging and converging together in the process.
Soon, an ice ring about ten meters high formed, encircling a large area, which made the entire environment clean again, and countless dazzling golden rays shone through the transparent ice layer.
The 'Treasure Jade Iceberg' reappeared before the two of them.
That's right.
At this moment, Chinjao was frozen inside the Ice Ball and unable to move, could also see all of this. However, the ice that Aokiji had created was clearly not as pure as the ice layer in front of him, which made his vision somewhat blurry.
But when Aokiji took a few steps forward, then slowly squatted down with his back to him, Setsuna his right palm on the transparent ice, Chinjao's heart trembled.
This was because the veteran pillar of the Happo Navy felt a strong sense of unease.
"Could it be that he wants to!"
The next moment, the entire icy land began to shake violently as if a massive earthquake had suddenly struck.
Soon, under Chinjao's equally trembling gaze, the 'Treasure Jade Ice Bed' he had been longing for split open to both sides at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Suddenly, the seemingly endless gold and jewels reappeared in the light, their surging brilliance almost materializing into a radiant glow.
"My treasure!!"
Chinjao's emotions soared to their peak, and he tried to break free of the Ice Ball's Binding once more. Sure enough, fine cracks began to appear on the Ice Ball.
Unfortunately, Aokiji wasn't going to just stand by and do nothing. He turned around and unleashed another burst of cold air, intensifying the Ice Ball attack.
"Alalala, please behave yourself. I'll let you see the last moment these treasures disappear, as a way of saying goodbye to them, and as the last act of mercy I can show you."
Kuzan, hands in his white pockets, gazed up at the sun and sighed to himself. Even with his hot-blooded nature, he couldn't be as ruthless as Sakazuki, who could still harbor a degree of kindness even towards One Piece and enemies.
He was grateful to the crane for this; it was the crane's earnest teachings that instilled in him a sense of compassion.
Behind him, in the large Ice Ball, Chinjao's face, frozen in ice, stared expressionlessly at Aokiji's back, listening to Aokiji words.
"."
He was so angry he couldn't speak.