Everyone stood frozen, heads tilted back and pupils contracted as they stared at the two figures locked in a blinding clash across the sky. Their blood seemed to turn to ice.
The earlier assault by countless weapons and the exchange of long-range attacks had already pushed the limits of what they could comprehend. This close-quarters battle at impossible speed had gone far beyond anything they understood as "fighting."
Sengoku's entire body was taut. Cold sweat had soaked his back, and he clenched his hands so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
As Fleet Admiral, he commanded the forces that shaped the balance of power across the seas. Never had he imagined a battle could be this dangerous, this violent.
The faintest shockwave from each collision could have flattened a town in an instant. Locked in an unrelenting fight at arm's length, the two were walking natural disasters.
Vice Admiral Tsuru pressed her lips together, her eyes filled with profound gravity and helplessness.
She saw the heart of the contest clearly: Imu held the advantage in the Authority of Heaven and Earth, the suppression of natural laws, and seemingly limitless reserves;
Madara Uchiha held the advantage in physical might, peerless combat skill, undying fighting spirit, and extraordinary endurance.
This was no simple contest of strength. It was a mortal who had reached the pinnacle of slaughter defying a god of heaven and earth.
Aokiji hovered in midair, every trace of his former ease gone. Cold poured off him as layers of ice formed beneath his feet in empty space, only to shatter at once.
He had considered his movement and speed unrivaled on the seas. Yet before the sheer speed of their attacks and defenses, he could barely follow the transitions between moves. The shock overturned everything he thought he knew.