Crack!
A freezing wind sprang up, sweeping in every direction from Aokiji's right hand.
River's smile froze in place. The cold struck his entire body, turning him into an ice sculpture.
"Whew!"
Looking at the ice sculpture before him, Aokiji slowly exhaled a cloud of white mist.
His gaze sharpened slightly. He curled his index finger, ready to tap the sculpture, shatter it into ice chips, and make it vanish completely.
The cold unleashed by Ice Age surpassed every move he had used before. It was his most powerful technique.
Not only did it cover an enormous area, capable of freezing an entire stretch of sea in an instant, but it could also freeze an enemy completely, putting them into suspended animation.
Even someone as powerful as River could not withstand freezing of this magnitude. He could only be frozen solid in an instant.
"This ends here, River."
Speaking softly, Aokiji tapped the ice sculpture before him with his index finger.
Clang.
When his finger touched the sculpture, it produced a sound like a knock against steel.
Then the sculpture began to crack. A distinct fissure appeared on its surface, rapidly spreading and multiplying.
Like shattered porcelain, the surface of River's frozen form became covered in fine cracks.
Then, with a bang, ice chips scattered through the air.
The ice sculpture shattered, breaking apart.
Yet Aokiji's pupils suddenly contracted. He abruptly retreated, staring gravely at the figure standing motionless amid the flying ice chips, whose presence bore down on him like a mountain.
"Hmm!"
"Not bad, Kuzan!"
The figure amid the ice chips grinned, but that grin carried a sinister, savage menace that made it hard to breathe.
He was like a sleeping tiger that had awakened at that moment and begun to growl.
Crack!
River tilted his head slightly,