Whitebeard the Third, Arrives!

"Whitebeard has breached Marine Headquarters!"

"Whitebeard is attacking the Red Line Continent!"

"Whitebeard has destroyed the World Government!"

Shrill, terrified screams rose and fell across the training grounds of Headquarters, spreading outward and propagating at breakneck speed.

Having witnessed "Whitebeard's" appearance with her own eyes, and now subjected to the "piercing demonic noise" of the onlookers, Peacock was momentarily startled.

But once she got a clear look at the so-called "Whitebeard," she was left utterly speechless.

His head was round and smooth, his belly like a rubber ball.

His entire appearance was a pallid, nondescript white.

To put it bluntly.

He looked like a shoddy clay doll churned out by some no-name workshop.

Aside from that white crescent-moon mustache.

This "Whitebeard" before Peacock's eyes had none of the World's Strongest Man's imposing presence or style!

'This Whitebeard has to be Storm playing tricks, right?!'

Inheriting Vice Admiral Tsuru's sharp mind, Peacock instantly assessed the situation.

'This ability... could it be the [Clay Fruit] that Admiral Kuzan mentioned before?!'

Storm had no time to mind the reactions of the surrounding Marines.

All his focus was on controlling "Whitebeard."

He had already realized the problem back when he created the "Little White Dragon" out of clay.

The [Demon Ring] allowed him to use the power of a Devil Fruit without any cost.

But it couldn't instantly elevate his mastery of that Devil Fruit.

A Nine-Star [Demon Ring] did not mean Nine-Star-level Devil Fruit development!

Big Trophy had already made clear Storm's level of mastery over the [Clay Fruit].

[Devil Fruit · Clay Fruit: ☆]

At a "☆" level of mastery, what manifested in actual combat was this low-grade version of "Whitebeard."

To be fair.

Storm himself felt that the "Whitebeard Clay Doll" he had just created was of a very low quality.

It vaguely carried a certain aesthetic of "imitating Whitebeard, becoming Whitebeard, but not quite matching Whitebeard the Second."

But caught in the heat of battle, he couldn't spare the time to meticulously refine this "Whitebeard the Third."

Time to move!

Peacock's earlier whip strike had failed to inflict any damage on "Whitebeard the Third."

On the contrary, because of "Whitebeard the Third's" appearance, Peacock's whip had embedded itself deep into his left arm.

Storm manipulated "Whitebeard the Third," extending his left hand, gripping the whip tightly, and yanking it with force.

Peacock immediately felt a tremendous pull, and the whip nearly slipped from her grasp.

She gritted her teeth and deactivated her ability.

The impossibly long whip then shortened and reverted to its original form.

A gleaming sword appeared in Peacock's hand.

Just as Storm had speculated earlier.

Peacock had joined the SWORD Unit after him and had also consumed that [Whip-Whip Fruit].

But because she had only just eaten the fruit and lacked sufficient development of its ability, she couldn't fully bring out the [Whip-Whip Fruit's] controlling effects.

By degrading the "whip" back into a "longsword," Peacock took the chance to reclaim her weapon.

Storm wasn't discouraged. He manipulated "Whitebeard the Third," striding forward on thick, elephant-like legs, charging straight at Peacock.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

With every step "Whitebeard the Third" took, a tremendous roar echoed, and a series of large footprints were left on the ground.

The observing "Headquarters elites" once again erupted in demonic noise.

This time, Peacock's mind was as still water, unaffected by those around her.

"Whitebeard the Third" raised his millstone-sized giant palm and slammed it down toward Peacock, stirring up a fierce gust of wind.

Peacock showed no panic. She stomped hard on the ground, borrowing force from the invisible air.

Like a bird, she soared into the sky, dodging "Whitebeard the Third's" strike.

Rokushiki: Geppo!

"You bastard!"

Peacock looked down from on high at the white giant below.

"Who the hell is that?!"

"Whitebeard the Third!"

Storm raised his head, once again swinging his massive palm to swat at Peacock in the air.

"Edward Teach!"

"Who the hell is this guy?!"

Peacock let out a delicate shout.

She gathered all her strength into her leg, rapidly contracting it before instantly extending, kicking out a supersonic, powerful strike.

"Rankyaku: Flying Crane!"

Screech—

A short, piercing crane cry seemed to echo across the headquarters training ground.

Peacock's heavy kick churned the surrounding air, condensing it into a sharp, crane-shaped slash wave.

"Rankyaku: Flying Crane" moved at incredible speed.

In an instant, it flew from the sky straight to "Whitebeard the Third."

Storm, transformed into "Whitebeard the Third," had lost the nimble speed he should have possessed due to his massive size.

"Whitebeard the Third" couldn't react in time; still maintaining his original posture, he was directly hit by "Rankyaku: Flying Crane."

The sharp vacuum slash easily tore through the soft clay.

"Whitebeard the Third's" right arm, from the elbow down, snapped off on the spot.

The residual momentum of "Rankyaku: Flying Crane" continued downward, carving a deep trench into the ground of the headquarters training ground.

Boom!

After the deafening roar.

"Whitebeard the Third's" severed right arm finally fell to the ground, smashing directly into a flat "white pancake."

"Huff... huff..."

After the full-force burst, Peacock couldn't help but breathe heavily.

She couldn't even maintain Geppo anymore, forced to fall from the sky.

But during this time, Peacock's eyes remained locked on "Whitebeard the Third," not missing a single move.

Even though his right arm had been kicked off, Storm was completely unaffected.

He didn't even feel the slightest bit of pain.

After all, it was "Whitebeard the Third" taking the beating—what did that have to do with Storm?

Seizing the brief moment of exhaustion after Peacock's outburst, Storm swung "Whitebeard the Third's" intact left arm, spinning it like a windmill on the spot.

"Tyrant Dragon Wings Fluttering Flight!"

The moment those words fell, "Whitebeard the Third's" left arm detached from his body, launching toward Peacock like a cannonball.

This white "clay cannonball" flew through the air.

It rapidly sprouted a head, a pair of wings, a tail, four short legs...

Like a legendary four-legged wyvern!

Dragon Impact!

The white giant dragon viciously crashed toward Peacock, who had landed on the ground.

But this overly obvious attack failed to achieve the desired effect.

Peacock nimbly dodged to the right, successfully evading the white dragon's charge.

Bang!

The white dragon ultimately slammed into the training ground's surface, instead shattering itself into a shapeless lump of clay.

Peacock listened to the "death wail" from behind, a faint curve lifting the corner of her mouth.

But just then, A rapid sound of air being split came from behind her.

'That white dragon just now—was it Storm—'

Sensing the approaching danger faintly, Peacock instinctively turned around, her peripheral vision catching a fist.

A fist, growing larger and larger—a human fist!

Intentional Punch!

Storm had somehow appeared behind Peacock without anyone noticing.

He raised a fist the size of a sandbag and drove it mercilessly into Peacock's stomach.

The smug, self-satisfied Peacock of a moment ago—

The next second, Storm's fist slammed into her gut.

The flamboyant "Peacock" instantly curled up like a "shrimp."

Struck in the abdomen, Peacock was sent stumbling backward.

And at the end of her "flight path" stood the still-unyielding "Whitebeard the Third."

Bam!

Peacock crashed straight into Whitebeard the Third's body, like a bird flying headlong into a trap.

She struggled weakly to resist, but the searing pain in her belly left her unable to move.

Worse still—

Whitebeard the Third was like a human prison, trapping her tight.

The more Peacock struggled, the greater the pressure from the surrounding clay.

In the end, she had no choice but to concede.

"You win!"

The moment Storm received Peacock's surrender signal—

A silver [Big Trophy] suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Silver Trophy: Peacock]

[Trophy Star Rating: ★★★]

'A three-star Silver Trophy? I get it for beating an opponent!'

Storm suppressed the urge to inspect the [Big Trophy] and walked calmly toward Whitebeard the Third.

Under his mental command—

Ripples of clay, like waves, spread across Whitebeard the Third's surface.

The next moment—

Peacock was "spit" out, collapsing weakly to the ground.

"Storm..."

Peacock gasped for air, just about to say something to the Storm in front of her—

A sudden roar from the distance cut her off.

"Whitebeard the Second!"

In the blink of an eye—

A burly, imposing figure appeared beside Storm and Peacock as if by teleportation.

The heavy, massive mechanical arm—"Crusher"—mounted on his right arm, smashed mercilessly into Whitebeard the Third.

Thud!

Whitebeard the Third's head took a direct hit, bursting apart like a firework.

In that moment, Zephyr—the one who threw the punch—froze.

He was known as the "Admiral Who Never Kills," having never taken a pirate's life in his entire career.

But this "Whitebeard the Second" in front of him—how could he be so fragile?

In that same moment, Storm also froze.

He turned around and saw Zephyr standing beside him.

And not far off, a row of big shots.

Watching from the sidelines were—

Fleet Admiral Sengoku;

Headquarters Admiral Aokiji;

Headquarters Admiral Kizaru;

Hero of the Marines, Garp;

And also Gion, Tsuru, and countless Vice Admirals.

Storm couldn't help but hold his breath.

Now that was a Marine all-star lineup~

With this combat power, could even a Yonko hold their ground?

"Storm! And Peacock!"

Zephyr's face was as dark as if it had been coated in Armament Haki.

"What the hell are you people playing at!?

"Why is everyone shouting that Whitebeard is here?"

Storm was just about to explain.

Peacock, who had already stood up beside him, raised a hand and patted his shoulder, "grandly" introducing him.

"The world's strongest pirate is right here!

"Zephyr-sensei, this is 'Whitebeard the Third'!

"Edward Teach!"

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