As a sharp pair of eyes suddenly snapped open, Ozz immediately felt a fierce struggle erupt in his grasp.
This sword spirit had some real fight in it. But under Ozz's monstrous strength, all resistance was futile.
Even with a will of its own, Yoru couldn't escape from the palm of Ozz's hand. The only sign of its defiance was the trembling of its blade.
"What kind of dumb idea is this?! Give it back!!"
At Ozz's words, Mihawk's face instantly darkened. He snatched Yoru out of Ozz's hand in one swift motion.
However, whether it was Ozz's words that had provoked it or something else, Yoru was clearly furious.
The moment it returned to Mihawk's grip, before the Hawk-Eyed Swordsman could react, it dragged his arm into a sudden, vicious slash at Ozz.
Clang!
The ring of clashing steel exploded through the air.
"Still holding a grudge, huh? Just like you, little hawk."
Ozz's arm, coated in jet-black Armament Haki, intercepted the strike calmly in front of him. He didn't even flinch, he took a leisurely sip of his black tea.
Sweet stuff. Not bad at all.
"Mamamama~ Want me to extract the soul for you?" Big Mom offered helpfully, glancing at Ozz.
"No need. I believe it can be tamed… eventually," Ozz replied with a grin, shaking his head.
Sure enough, that one slash was all Yoru had in it. Mihawk quickly regained control.
After all, no matter how much will it had developed, it was still the blade of a master it had followed for years one intimately familiar with every breath, twitch, and flick of the wrist.
It quieted down.
But even so…
Mihawk looked down at the blade in his hand its aura returning to that icy aloofness and let out a helpless sigh.
It had been his companion for decades, the blade he vowed to wield as the world's greatest swordsman. He could guess what it was thinking.
Unless it encountered a swordsman truly worthy of its edge, it wouldn't bother waking up again.
It was much like Mihawk himself unwilling to draw his full strength against pretenders. A small blade was more than enough for small fry.
That little interlude aside, the tea party carried on as planned.
Sweets, performances, small talk...
The atmosphere was warm, joyful, even idyllic. Little Croc unknowingly ate several slices of cake.
But as they say no feast lasts forever.
No matter how delightful, the tea party had to come to an end.
As time ticked by, the less important guests began to quietly take their leave.
Only Big Mom's crew, Ozz's group, and a few of the underworld's key figures remained.
Noticing the shift, Little Croc set down his teacup. His once casually crossed legs now planted firmly on the floor. He cast a side glance toward Ozz at the head table.
Mihawk, too, set down his cutlery, dabbing the corner of his mouth with a napkin. His piercing eyes revealed nothing as they rested silently on the blade in his hand.
Ozz felt it too.
He let out a sigh in his heart.
So it's come to this after all. Guess I'll be enemies with Big Mom from now on.
He slowly finished his last sip of tea, mind turning over the idea of initiating a zero-frame strike to preemptively take control.
But before he could act, his Observation Haki picked up something else a familiar presence.
He focused on the shape.
Confirmed.
"So you're crashing the party now, huh… Ice Cream."
He chuckled to himself. His eyes flicked to Big Mom, whose appetite was already turning toward him. His thoughts spun like lightning.
Time to think like a schemer.
Ozz: (adjusts glasses, finger pointing upward like a meme)
He had just the idea a plan that would let him return to future tea parties, be adored, and eat more cake.
As if on cue...
A shadow hundreds of meters long barreled toward Totto Land.
The clouds churned. A colossal silhouette appeared overhead.
Not just Ozz everyone noticed it now.
Some of the younger or less experienced guests were so terrified they collapsed from their chairs.
Even Big Mom stood up abruptly when she saw it, her voice trembling with fury.
"HEY! KAIDO!! What the hell are you doing here now?!"
Only Ozz remained seated, legs crossed, his face obscured by shadow completely unreadable.
"Orahahahahaha! Old hag! Isn't it obvious?!"
Boom!
A deafening crash shook the island to its core as a towering figure landed, shrouded in smoke and flames.
A hulking man stepped forth, iron club slung across his shoulder, eyes glassy with drink.
"Of course I came to kill Ozz, that bastard!!!"
"You in or out, Linlin? Hic…"
Kaido the beast who craved only war and death made his entrance, and made his intentions clear. He turned to Big Mom with a wicked grin.
But whether he meant for her to help kill Ozz, or be killed with him, was... open to interpretation.
Ozz didn't give her the chance to answer.
"I see…"
He raised his head slowly, his expression sharp as a blade, murderous aura spilling forth.
"So this party… was just a trap to team up with Kaido and take me out?"
"No, that's not."
"Then die!"
Before Big Mom could finish, a streak of motion split the air a massive club swung down on Ozz.
Chaos exploded.
Mihawk and Crocodile were the first to retreat from the shockwave.
But others weren't so lucky several of the Charlotte children were caught in the blast. Katakuri's eyes went wide with rage as their fates remained uncertain.
"So be it. The two of you can come at me together."
Amid the crater formed by the crushing blow, two figures clashed.
Ozz, sword in hand, caught Kaido's strike head-on. Black-and-red lightning crackled from the clash, streaking across the sky.
Aside from Mihawk, Crocodile, Big Mom, and Katakuri, nearly everyone else was sent flying.
Despite the massive difference in size, Ozz didn't falter in the slightest. One hand gripping Ace, he matched Kaido's two-handed swing a moment frozen in visual awe.
No warm-up. No testing blows.
This was Conqueror's Haki against Conqueror's Haki.
"Orahahahaha! Just from that one blow, I acknowledge you, Ozz!!"
"Let's have ourselves a real slaughter!!!"
Kaido's body shifted, transformed, enhanced. His hybrid dragon form snapped into place.
"Thunder... Bagua!!!"
Another monstrous strike thundered forth, wrapped in Conqueror's Haki.
The air screamed. Buildings shattered. The very sky trembled under the force.
The same blow that once broke Yamato's spirit now came barreling toward Ozz.
And Ozz.
Ozz welcomed it.
It had been years.
Years since his blood last boiled like this.
"Come, then!!! Kaido of the Beasts! Big Mom!!"
"If it's war you want, then war you'll get!!!"
Lightning ran wild as supreme-grade Conqueror's Haki surged through Ace's blade. Ozz roared with fury and exhilaration.
"Shun... Divine Departure!!"
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