Wood's recovery abilities and vitality, comparable to Kaido's, were due to the healing magic circle engraved on his body. However, every time he used it, it consumed an enormous amount of magic power.
As for his physical strength, which could rival Big Mom's, that came from the power of the Heart of the Gods.
But magic power is limited, and the life force consumed by the Heart of the Gods is even more so.
Big Mom and Kaido could maintain this high-intensity battle for over half a month, but could Wood do the same?
The answer was no. He might be able to match the Yonko for a short time using the Heart of the Gods and his magic, even gaining the upper hand in the battle.
But if the fight dragged on without him defeating either of them, the one who would eventually fall would be him.
It was obvious. A technique like the Heart of the Gods, which burns both energy and life force, wasn't something he could use endlessly—he didn't have that much life to burn.
This was why Wood had said before that even facing either Kaido or Big Mom alone would be a tough challenge for him.
With limited magic power and life force, Wood simply couldn't sustain such a high-intensity fight for long.
Now that he had wounded both Big Mom and Kaido, and the system had confirmed the task completion, Wood decided it was time to withdraw from the battlefield. With a few swift "Shave" steps, he prepared to escape.
"You think you can run, brat?"
"Haven't had a fight this good in a long time, and you think you're just going to leave?"
Wood's sudden attempt to flee caught Big Mom and Kaido's attention. Both, having suffered at his hands, weren't about to let him slip away so easily.
"Conqueror's Sea! x2"
Despite their ongoing battle, Big Mom and Kaido exchanged a glance, and in a rare moment of unspoken agreement, they stopped fighting each other and unleashed a combined attack on Wood!
Conqueror's Sea was a technique similar to Elbaf's Spear: Ikoku. However, since this move was used jointly by Big Mom and Kaido, its power far exceeded that of Ikoku.
Seeing the massive energy wave sweeping toward him, Wood cursed silently and had no choice but to turn and defend himself.
The runes on his chest shone with unprecedented brilliance, and as his life force burned, the power granted by the Heart of the Gods reached its maximum.
"A Yonko-level combo attack, huh? They really think highly of me!"
"Hyakki Yagyō Two-Sword Style: Ice Attribute—Snow Woman!"
Hyakki Yagyō's advanced version combined swordsmanship with magic, creating magical sword techniques that fused the speed of swordsmanship with the power of magic.
The "Snow Woman" technique that Wood had used before contained ice magic at the "Imperial" level. This time, the magic infused into his slash had reached the "God" level.
Though Wood's magical abilities weren't enough to use "God-level" magic on their own, with the power of the Heart of the Gods burning his life force, he could temporarily unleash such a strike.
As his twin blades were drawn, a stunning woman dressed in a white kimono appeared, her graceful smile freezing the surrounding space and time for a brief moment.
In this frozen moment, the ethereal Snow Woman reached out and touched the massive Conqueror's Sea energy wave, splitting the towering wave cleanly in two.
The silver-blue slash transformed into the ethereal Snow Woman, who continued forward after splitting the energy wave, her momentum carrying her toward Big Mom and Kaido.
As the Snow Woman passed through, everything was plunged into a wintry stillness. The roiling sea froze in an instant, and even the moisture in the air turned into falling snowflakes.
When the Snow Woman passed between Big Mom and Kaido, thick layers of frost rapidly encased both of them.
The island they stood on and the surrounding sea were instantly frozen solid!
Having unleashed this strike, Wood felt as if most of the strength had drained from his body. The runes on his chest dimmed, but he forced himself to suppress the fatigue and weakness, using Moonwalk to return swiftly to Cake Island, where he landed beside Nico Robin.
"Let's leave," Wood said.
Robin didn't question him. Without hesitation, she used her powers to sprout wings, gently supporting Wood as they took to the sky.
Neither the Big Mom Pirates nor the underworld figures like Doflamingo dared to stop Wood and Robin.
Though it was clear that Wood was exhausted, even in his weakened state, he was still the man who had shattered the combined attack of two Yonko and turned the surrounding battlefield into an icy wasteland.
No one wanted to be the one to provoke him now. They could only watch as Wood and Robin left.
Not even a minute after Wood and Robin departed, the ice encasing Big Mom and Kaido shattered, and both let out enraged roars!
While Big Mom and Kaido wanted to settle the score with Wood, Robin had already carried him far from the Whole Cake Island territory.
With the vast sea stretching out in every direction, and no Vivre Card to track him, finding Wood would be next to impossible.
Unable to find their target, and with no outlet for their anger, Big Mom and Kaido naturally resumed fighting each other, venting their frustration.
Days later, Wood found himself on a tourist island in the first half of the Grand Line. The island, famous as a summer resort, was fully open to visitors.
Wood was lounging by a pool, sitting on a beach chair under the shade of a parasol, reading the latest newspaper with great interest.
"Yonko Big Mom and Kaido's Fierce Battle—The Man the World Underestimated!"
Just from the headline, it was clear that Morgans, the journalist, had gone full clickbait mode. However, the battle between two Yonko had indeed captured global attention, ensuring that Morgans' newspaper had sold out almost immediately.
As the head of the news agency and a witness to the battle, Morgans hadn't let this scoop slip away. After leaving Cake Island, he personally penned the article.
It was through this newspaper that Wood learned what had transpired after the battle.
According to the article, after Wood and Robin escaped, Big Mom and Kaido resumed fighting, and the battle raged for three days and nights before finally coming to an end.
The paper didn't specify a clear winner, but it mentioned that Kaido had left Whole Cake Island injured.
The Big Mom Pirates had suffered the greatest losses. Of the 34 islands that originally made up Whole Cake Island, 24 had been completely destroyed in the battle.
Though the main Cake Island remained intact, Big Mom had lost more than half of her territory.
As a result, the Big Mom Pirates officially declared war on the Beasts Pirates. After all, their captain had come uninvited, wreaked havoc in their homeland, and then left without a care in the world.
And to make matters worse, Morgans had published the whole event in his newspaper. If the Big Mom Pirates didn't respond, they would become the laughingstock of the seas.
During the battle between Big Mom and Kaido, Big Mom had gained the upper hand, thanks to the intervention of the Sweet Commanders.
Normally, the Sweet Commanders wouldn't be able to stand up to either Kaido or Big Mom. But even a creature as strong as Kaido would eventually grow tired after fighting for so long.
With the Big Mom Pirates seizing the opportunity to strike, Kaido had been forced to flee the battlefield with injuries.
Had it been anyone else, they would have been dead long ago.
In conclusion, neither side truly came out ahead in this fight.
Big Mom had lost half of her homeland, and Kaido had been injured. The growing tension between the two Yonko crews meant that a full-scale conflict was only a matter of time.
"I didn't expect Big Mom and Kaido to keep fighting even after we left.
"What do you think, Robin? If the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates go to war, who will come out on top?"
Wearing a white bikini that highlighted her alluring figure, Robin handed Wood a glass of juice and asked with a smile.
"It doesn't really matter who wins," Wood replied. "Either way, it's not our concern. I've already accomplished my goal of stirring up conflict between them—if anything, I've exceeded expectations.
"And why are you giving me juice? I'm not a kid. I asked for booze."
Wood took a sip of the juice and frowned in disappointment.
He was nearly forty years old, after all. Why was Robin giving him sugary juice fit for a child?
"Don't think I don't know," Robin said, "Every time you use that power, it takes a toll on your body.
"The fact that you didn't pass out this time is already an improvement. So no alcohol for you—only juice. If you don't like this flavor, there are others."
Wood briefly considered resisting Robin's authority, but after the intense battle and his use of the Heart of the Gods, his body ached all over. In his current state, he probably couldn't beat her in an argument, let alone a fight.
"If the Big Mom Pirates or the Beasts Pirates win, we'll probably be their next target," Robin continued. "The newspaper calls you 'the Navy traitor Wood, the man the world underestimated.'
"Morgans wrote that you're a powerhouse rivaling the Yonko."
The article in the newspaper had lavished praise on Wood's strength, with Morgans acknowledging Wood's power as comparable to that of the Yonko.
Normally, Robin wasn't a fan of Morgans' flowery writing style, but she had to admit that the piece about Wood was quite well-written. She had even decided to cut out the article and save it as a keepsake.
Not that this was unusual. Anyone who knew Robin's little secret was aware that she had a habit of clipping out and saving any article about Wood, regardless of whether it painted him in a positive light.
Of course, if the article made Wood out to be too monstrous or villainous, Robin would tweak it a bit with her own writing skills before keeping it.
This time, though, she was fully satisfied with Morgans' piece. A little touch-up here and there, and it would be perfect for her collection.
"But I didn't expect that Fire Fist Ace, who we met in Alabasta, would get captured by the Navy. Quite the twist of fate, huh?" Robin remarked offhandedly.
Her casual comment caused Wood, who had been about to close his eyes for a nap, to sit up in surprise.
"Where did you hear that? We've been together this whole time."
Robin was puzzled by Wood's reaction. As far as she knew, Wood didn't have much of a relationship with the Whitebeard Pirates, and his encounter with their Second Division Commander, Fire Fist Ace, had been brief and insignificant.
"Do I need intel for that? It was in the newspaper you were just reading.
"Whitebeard's commander, Fire Fist Ace, was captured. Some guy named Blackbeard took Crocodile's place and became one of the new Warlords of the Sea."
Wood had been so focused on the aftermath of the Yonko battle that he hadn't paid attention to the rest of the paper.
Normally, news about someone like Fire Fist Ace getting captured would make the headlines. But this time, with the Yonko clash taking center stage, Ace's story had been pushed to the side.
"Where's that newspaper? Let me see it again." Wood sat up straight and reached out to Robin.
"I threw it away. If you want, I can go buy you a new one."
"Don't give me that. I saw you tuck it away earlier. Stop wasting time and let me see that news."
Wood had thought that Ace's involvement in the Alabasta incident might have altered his fate, preventing him from going after Blackbeard. But history, it seemed, had a way of repeating itself. Ace had still ended up in Blackbeard's hands.
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Don't forget to give Power Stone
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