Black and red lightning flickered constantly in the void, stirring up monstrous waves across the sea. Above, the clouds churned and rapidly converged into a massive black vortex that blotted out the sky.
A fierce gale roared amid the crackling thunder, forcing everyone aboard the Moby Dick to go pale. The weaker ones couldn't withstand the overwhelming pressure pressing down on their souls and spirits—they dropped to one knee, gasping for breath.
Marco and the others stared in shock at Roger, who was shrouded in arcs of black and red lightning. They clenched their jaws, cold sweat running down their backs.
That overwhelming presence, that godlike aura... no matter how many times they witnessed it, it never failed to shake them to the core!
"Oi oi oi, is blasting your Haki around like that the moment we meet really a good habit?!"
Whitebeard, seated at the head, spoke up with displeasure. Chapters first released on NoveIꜰire.net
The instant his words fell, his golden eyes snapped open wide, and a powerful aura burst from his towering frame, visible to the naked eye.
Black lightning exploded forth, roaring like a beast unleashed.
Two immense, abyssal forces clashed in the space between Roger and Whitebeard!
Countless bolts of black lightning shot into the sky as a massive shockwave tore upward, piercing straight through the cloud layer.
The sea of clouds trembled violently—breaking apart, recondensing, then breaking again.
The sky and the earth changed color.
In the stunned eyes of both pirate crews, it felt as though the entire world flipped upside down. All color faded, leaving only stark black and white.
A massive tremor, like the earth itself groaning, rocked the Moby Dick and the Oro Jackson.
Towering tsunamis, dozens of meters high, surged upward and outward from the two pirate ships, rolling across the ocean in every direction, engulfing a radius of several dozen nautical miles.
At that moment, the two legendary pirates, radiating awe-inspiring might, moved simultaneously.
As their supreme grade swords were drawn, Roger and Whitebeard leapt forward in unison, slashing with full force!
Silence fell in an instant.
Black and red lightning compressed wildly between their two peerless blades, forming a dense sphere of energy. The violent wind blew their captain's hats off at once, sending their black and golden hair whipping through the storm.
Flashes of lightning illuminated their faces—alight with battle spirit and bursting with hearty laughter.
"Hahaha! Newgate! Besides Garp, only you can make my blood boil !"
Roger grinned wide, his face glowing with the unfiltered joy of a child finally getting to play with a long-coveted toy.
"It's been ages, and the moment we meet again, you greet me with your sword... This how you say hello, Roger?"
Whitebeard's gaze burned with fighting spirit, his white captain's cloak billowing behind him.
"Roger, that's enough!! Don't forget why we're here!!" Rayleigh suddenly appeared on the deck of the Moby Dick, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Oyaji, if this keeps up, our ship's going down!!" Marco called out anxiously.
Just as the two of them shouted, the energy sphere compressed between the two supreme blades finally detonated.
A blinding white light swallowed everything, turning the pitch-black night into broad daylight for an instant.
The sea churned even more violently, howling under the sheer dominance of the two kings.
It's unclear how much time passed, but eventually, calm returned to the world.
The waves eased, and the sea turned clear and blue once more.
As Roger and Whitebeard slowly lowered their weapons, both pirate crews let out a collective sigh of relief, choosing to ignore the massive rift torn across the sky above.
A tear in the sky? They'd seen that too many times to be surprised anymore...
"Tch! What a buzzkill!"
Roger sheathed his sword, grumbling in frustration—only to shrink back when Rayleigh shot him a deadly glare.
Whitebeard, too, looked displeased as he turned to his sons, but before he could say anything, Marco cut in with a deadpan, "We don't have the money to fix the ship."
Whitebeard choked on his words and begrudgingly held his tongue.
Watching the two of them sulk like children, both Marco and Rayleigh twitched at the corners of their mouths.
'Seriously... what a handful of an old man/captain...'
The same thought crossed their minds as they exchanged apologetic smiles.
"So tell me, Roger—what exactly did you come to me for this time?"
Whitebeard pulled out a massive jar of sake, nearly half a man's height. He poured a large bowl for Roger before sitting down on the spot and taking a swig, clearly impatient.
Roger's eyes lit up at the sight of the sake. Grinning, he grabbed the bowl and chugged it all in one go. Then, with a shameless grin, he nudged the empty bowl back toward Whitebeard.
"No rush. It's been ages since we last met—let's drink first."
Seeing the empty bowl and Roger's eager face, Whitebeard couldn't help but wonder if this guy was broke and had come here just to mooch some sake.
Sighing, he refilled the bowl for Roger, then spoke with a pointed tone.
"Our time is short. Garp and Sengoku already brought their elite forces to the New World. I only just managed to shake them off."
Whitebeard wasn't afraid of Garp or Sengoku, but if it could be avoided, he didn't want to spark a full-blown clash with the Marine's main force.
The Marines were strong, backed by the World Government. A fight like that would drag on endlessly and achieve nothing.
More importantly, he didn't want to see anyone from his "family" hurt—or worse.
No matter how powerful he was, a war with the Marines would leave him unable to protect everyone.
He wasn't like the reckless fool sitting across from him, who could sail the seas without a care in the world.
The bigger the crew, the larger the territory, the greater the responsibility. It wasn't just strength—it was a burden that bound him.
"What's there to be scared of? Worst case, we just go all out and have a good fight with them..."
Roger chuckled, unconcerned.
Rayleigh smacked him on the head with a hand chop, leaving a smoking lump behind.
"Stick to the point!"
Rayleigh growled through clenched teeth.
Roger winced in pain, rubbing his head. Slowly, his expression turned serious.
"Newgate... you know I've been searching for the end of this sea..."
p@treon com / PinkSnake