"Mama--Mama!!"
"Well!"
Linlin's voice had lost its previous sweetness, replaced by pure madness.
"Looks like you've got me cornered!"
The flames and lightning on Napoleon's sword surged once more.
Prometheus burned to the extreme, the flames turning half the sky red.
Zeus's Inazuma crackled, and arcs of electricity danced around Linlin.
The Conqueror's Haki exploded one last time, and arcs of purplish-black electricity swept across the icy plain, blasting away all the surrounding ice shards.
This is a desperate struggle, a last stand by a cornered beast.
Katakuri stood at the edge of the ice field, looking at his mother who was surrounded in the center of the battlefield in the distance.
His Observation Haki was frantically warning him that his mother was surrounded with no way out, and in her current state, she was no match for ten people attacking her.
He wanted to rush over.
But as soon as he took a step, Ember descended from the sky and landed in front of him.
Flames wreathed the blade, and its eyes calmly gazed at him.
"Boss Kaido made a promise,"
Jin's voice wasn't loud, but every word pierced Katakuri's heart like a nail.
"Make sure your people leave safely."
Are you sure you want to rush through?
Katakuri was trembling all over.
The fingernails of the hand gripping the Mole dug into the palm, drawing blood.
His Observation Haki told him that what Jin said was true.
Kaido did promise to let them leave safely.
But if he rushes over there, that promise might not stand.
Smoothie grabbed his arm from behind. "Brother... we..."
Perospero, biting his lollipop cane, lowered his head.
The smile on his face was long gone, replaced by a deep sense of powerlessness.
"Rushing over there now will only make Mom's sacrifice go to waste," Perospero said, his voice hoarse.
Katakuri closed his eyes.
His fists were clenched so tightly they cracked, and his teeth were almost ground to powder.
But he didn't rush over.
He turned around and slammed his fist into the ice.
The ice surface exploded with large cracks, and shards of ice flew dozens of meters away.
His fist was covered in blood; it was impossible to tell whether it was from ice shards or from him biting himself.
"Let's go," Katakuri said.
There is only one word.
But his voice was trembling.
Smoothie supported Katakuri's arm, while Perospero directed the fleet from behind.
Cracker brought up the rear, while Brownie and Cinnamon supported their injured siblings.
One by one, the members of the Totto Land Fleet boarded the ship.
No one spoke.
Katakuri stood at the stern of the flagship, looking at his mother who was surrounded in the distance.
His Observation Haki could no longer sense his mother's presence, not because she had been defeated, but because she was too far away.
But he can still see.
The obese figure was surrounded by ten people, and the flames on Napoleon's sword could still be seen in the morning light.
Katakuri stood motionless at the stern of the ship.
His scarf was blown up by the sea breeze, revealing his face covered in stitches.
His eyes were bloodshot, but there were no tears.
There was only one kind of deep, suppressed determination.
The Totto Land will not end here.
The moment the encirclement was formed, Charlotte Linlin knew she had no way out.
But she is, after all, Big Mom, the sea empire who has reigned over the ocean for decades, a veteran powerhouse who has lived since the time of Rocks.
Even if there is no way out, she will not surrender.
" Emperor Sword - Break."
Flames and lightning surged simultaneously on Napoleon's sword, turning the blade a deep red-hot.
Lightning crackled within the flames, Conqueror's Haki transformed into a purplish-black halo that enveloped the three of them.
The three forces merged together, forming a massive, purplish-black slash that cleaved down towards Roy.
The power of this strike was greater than any before.
Linlin poured all her remaining strength into this one strike.
Roy stood still.
Telekinesis: Barrier unfolded in front of him.
boom--
The purplish-black slash struck the Telekinesis: Barrier, causing it to tremble violently and develop spiderweb-like cracks on its surface.
However, the crack did not continue to expand; instead, it slowly closed up under the power of Telekinesis.
Roy was knocked back half a step, but that was all.
He swung his sword back with a backhand strike.
The Shusui Blade was crackling with dark red Conqueror's Haki electricity, and its strike transformed into a black crescent moon, flying towards Linlin's neck.
Linlin swung her knife to block, and the black crescent blade struck the Napoleon sword, exploding into a shower of sparks.
At the very moment she parried, Bullet rushed in from the side.
The giant fist in the White Tiger Model was enveloped in a massive amount of Armament Haki, and the black Armament Haki covering the fist was as thick as armor.
Bullet punched Linlin in the side.
Linlin was thrown several meters to the side by the impact, her feet carving two deep furrows in the ice.
Her Iron Balloon blocked most of the impact, but Bullet's punch was so powerful that it made her internal organs churn.
"Mama--" Linlin roared, and Napoleon slashed horizontally, forcing Bullet back.
Hawk Eyes's knife has arrived.
The Black Blade Yoru's slashes were silent and so fast that the naked eye could not even catch the trajectory of the blade's light.
A green blade of light swept across the ice field, flying in from Linlin's left.
Linlin's Observation Haki detected it, but her body couldn't keep up with the reaction of her Observation Haki.
The blade struck Linlin's right shoulder, leaving a deep white gash on her Iron Balloon.
If it weren't for her abnormally high defense, that strike would have been enough to sever one of her arms.
Crocodile cut in from the side, his right-hand sand blade slashing across the ice beneath Linlin's feet.
The ice was sliced open by the sand blades, and Linlin's footing vanished instantly. Her body swayed, and her stance was disrupted.
Kuma seized the opportunity and unleashed an air cannon from the front.
The compressed air condensed into a nearly transparent sphere at the muzzle, and then suddenly exploded.
BOOM--!!!
The air cannon struck Linlin squarely in the chest, blasting her several meters away.
She rolled twice on the ice before stopping, and when she got up, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
Tesoro's golden lightning descended from the sky.
Lightning accurately locked onto Linlin's movement trajectory and struck before she could even regain her footing.
Golden arcs of electricity danced across Linlin's body, causing her to freeze for a moment.
Kyros's greatsword moved like the wind, slicing in from the side.
He didn't attack head-on; instead, he targeted Linlin's joints.
Knees, elbows, wrists—every moving joint was his target.
The greatsword struck Linlin behind her knee. Although it failed to break through her defense, it caused her knee to bend slightly and her center of gravity to shift.
Moria brandished his longsword, and shadow bats flew out from the blade, coiling around Linlin.
These shadow bats were not offensive, but they clung to Linlin, interfering with her senses.
Linlin's Observation Haki was never as good as Katakuri's, and it was further weakened after being interfered with by the Shadow Bat.
Lucci's Shigan stabbed at him from behind.
The Six Powers, combined with the explosive power of the human-beast form, make the Shigan move so fast that it's invisible to the naked eye.
The Shigan's aim was terrifyingly precise—eyes, throat, temples—all the most vulnerable spots on the human body.
Linlin closed her eyes.
The Iron Balloon on her eyelid blocked Lucci's Shigan, but her eyeballs were jolted painfully, and tears streamed down her cheeks.
Ten people took turns attacking.
Even with Linlin's strong Iron Balloon defense, it couldn't withstand attacks from ten people simultaneously.
Moreover, her condition is steadily declining.
After fighting for a whole day and night, I was already exhausted.
Now surrounded by ten people, every second is draining her already dwindling energy.
Prometheus's flames are getting weaker and weaker. Before, they could burn a sea of fire, but now they can only maintain a small flame above Linlin's head.
Zeus's speed has also slowed down considerably. He used to be able to move back and forth within the encirclement, but now he can only barely carry Linlin to avoid attacks.
Napoleon's counterattacks became increasingly feeble, with each strike less powerful than the last.