Ink Tide Island.
The thunderclouds slowly dispersed.
The purple-black lightning that had hung over the island for half a day finally receded bit by bit into the depths of the clouds.
The sea once again revealed its dark, somber color.
But that black tide was no longer as calm as it had been before the battle.
Broken planks drifted across the sea, while snapped masts bobbed half-submerged in the waves.
The black reefs along the harbor had been scorched and cracked by lightning and fire. The air still carried the mixed stench of burning, blood, and gunpowder.
Rock stood amid the fading afterimages of lightning.
His justice cloak was tattered beyond recognition, his shoulders, chest, and arms covered in blood and scorch marks.
The lightning around him had already withdrawn, yet the oppressive aura surrounding him had not faded.
Bullet walked over from behind, rolling his neck.
Blood still hung from the corner of his mouth, and his Fist Bone bore cracks left by Whitebeard's Final Tremor.
Yet not only did he show no sign of weakness, his grin grew even more savage.
He looked in the direction Kaido had fled and bared his teeth. "That loach ran pretty damn fast."
"If he'd been any slower, I would've snapped off his dragon horns."
Rock stared at the gradually calming sea in the distance without smiling.
Lightning still flickered in his eyes.
"That guy arrived far too conveniently."
As soon as he said that,
the smile on Bullet's face faded slightly.
Gion sheathed her sword as well, raising her eyes toward Rock with a faint frown.
"You mean..."
Rock did not answer.
He merely looked toward the point where sea met sky, his voice calm.
"It seems certain people are stirring things up from behind the scenes again."
Everyone present understood.