Whitebeard planned to tank the laser with Armament Haki, then focus on dealing with the Magma Fist overhead.
But he had not expected the laser to explode the moment it hit him, leaving him briefly dazed. By then, the Magma Fist had already fallen.
Boom! A succession of violent impacts rang out, kicking up a cloud of smoke around Whitebeard.
The Three Admirals looked at that great cloud of smoke, their spirits soaring. We got him! Akainu was bursting with pride. Heh, my Meteor Volcano was what finished the job after all! I finally got to hold my head high!
Kizaru, meanwhile, thought, If my laser explosion hadn't distracted Whitebeard, that idiot Akainu's big move would definitely have missed!
Aokiji, on the other hand, believed that freezing Whitebeard's arm at the start had bought the precious time his teammates needed to land their attacks, so he deserved to be this round's MVP!
Clearly, however, none of them knew a certain principle called the "smoke means no damage" rule!
Sure enough, when the smoke cleared, Whitebeard stood surrounded by rock that had already cooled but still glowed faintly red. Apart from some burns on his left arm, he was largely unharmed.
But the look in Whitebeard's eyes was now terrifying, and that terrifying gaze was fixed on Akainu and the other two!
Akainu's thoughts at that moment were, Don't look at me, don't look at me! My Meteor Volcano had such a long windup! How could it possibly have hit anyone if Aokiji and Kizaru hadn't bought me time? Look at those two!
Aokiji thought, Fuck, all I did was freeze your arm! Kizaru and Akainu were the ones who pulled off that final attack! Don't look at me! Look at those two!
Kizaru, meanwhile, thought, *That old man's glare is