"Screech!!"
A phoenix's cry rang across the sky.
"My Phoenix Fruit?" Wings sprouted from Marco's back, his pupils contracting as he looked at the phoenix in the sky.
"Whatever you are." Whitebeard gripped Murakumogiri tightly. "You dared kill my son. Whoever you are, you're going to die here!!"
He leaped straight up.
Hyuga Akira descended straight from the sky, burning with ghostly blue flames.
His body slammed into the leaping Whitebeard.
Ghostly blue flames spread in every direction, and the surging shock wave cleared the clouds from the sky.
"Not bad!" Hyuga Akira's voice rang out from within the Netherworld Phoenix. "Of all these people, you're the only one who's actually hurt me. No wonder they call you the strongest man on the seas."
Under his opponent's attack, powerful tremors coursed through his body, rapidly damaging it.
But they could not keep up with his recovery.
His opponent's Tremor-Tremor Fruit was simply too powerful when it came to delivering force.
His burning wings strained against Whitebeard's Murakumogiri, but Hyuga Akira's strength still fell short of Whitebeard's immense power. He barely held on with Wind Release.
The flames on his body suddenly grew fiercer.
"Two-Sword Style: Five Extremes: Death Nether Phoenix!!" Hyuga Akira's body grew even larger. Burning Wood Release fueled fiercer flames, while Wind Release further strengthened the raging fire on his body.
He instantly became an even larger phoenix of flame, its strength multiplying.
Whitebeard felt it most keenly. The force of his leap was diminishing, while his opponent's strength was increasing.
But even so-
"I'm Whitebeard!!!" Whitebeard roared. Conqueror's Haki, Armament Haki, even the Tremor-Tremor Fruit-he unleashed everything he had.
Yet he still could not withstand Hyuga Akira's growing strength.
"Whoosh!"
Finally, Hyuga Akira plunged straight down, landing directly on the ship.
"Boom!!"
The entire ship split in