"This should be called annihilation. That name fits it better," Rosinante said.
To be honest, even Rosinante himself was surprised by this change in the Silent Silent Fruit's power.
All along, no matter how hard he pushed the development of the Silent Silent Fruit, the abilities he obtained had always leaned toward support or restriction.
There had never been a single ability with direct killing power.
Yet the power he had just used was undeniably destructive in nature, a true offensive force.
Erasure, a power that wipes out all energy, causing all matter to fall into annihilation.
This was an extremely terrifying force, one that even Rosinante himself found shocking.
Thinking about it, this ability reminded Rosinante of an anime he had watched in his previous life, A Certain Magical Index, and the protagonist's power, Imagine Breaker.
However, unlike Touma's ability, Rosinante's power did not merely erase energy or laws. It could even erase life itself, as well as matter.
It could annihilate everything, reducing all things to nothing. It was an absolutely destructive power.
Of course, although it could annihilate all matter, the price was the consumption of annihilation power, and the cost was terrifyingly high.
Annihilation power was formed by compressing and fusing the will of eternal silence.
Do not be fooled by the small purple glow that had just appeared in Rosinante's hand. That tiny light had fused together all the power released by his Devil Fruit awakening.
After erasing the vibration unleashed by Whitebeard, the awakened Devil Fruit power was completely depleted as well.
In other words, that single strike had consumed all the energy produced by the Silent Silent Fruit's awakening. After that blow, Rosinante was temporarily unable to use the Silent Silent Fruit's ability unless he was willing to expend an enormous amount of physical stamina.
From this alone, it was clear that even if this ability could be refined in the future, it was not something that could be used casually.
Still, it was enough. With Rosinante's current strength, there would be very few situations in the future that could force him to use such a power.
Only when facing the absolute top-tier monsters like Whitebeard, Sengoku, or Garp would such a need arise.
"Speak, kid. What's your purpose in coming here?" Whitebeard asked after the test, no longer pressing the attack.
Whitebeard had also sensed how dangerous Rosinante's ability was just now. If they truly fought without restraint, his crew would be caught in the aftermath, something he absolutely did not want to see.
"Aren't you going to invite me for a drink?" Rosinante said with a smile.
"Brats, bring the booze. Don't let anyone say we can't even serve a guest a cup of cheap liquor," Whitebeard said.
Soon, the Whitebeard Pirates brought out the wine. Rosinante took a sip, then set the cup down.
"I came this time to invite you to attend the opening ceremony of Nightless City," Rosinante said.
"Kuhahaha. If it's just the opening of Nightless City, you wouldn't need to make the trip personally. Your men already delivered the invitation, and I've replied. If I have time, I'll go," Whitebeard said.
"Besides the opening ceremony, I intend to take this opportunity to sign a Four Emperors Agreement together with your Whitebeard Pirates, the Big Mom Pirates, and the Beasts Pirates. We will jointly protect the rules of Nightless City from being violated by anyone, and announce to all forces in the world that the era of the Four Emperors has officially begun," Rosinante said.
"Kurararara. It's true that the seas are gradually forming four great pirate powers, and that in the future it will be a standoff between the four pirate groups and the Marines. But why should I sign an agreement with you to protect your Nightless City?" Whitebeard said with a wide grin.
"Once this agreement is signed, one-tenth of Nightless City's annual revenue will belong to the Whitebeard Pirates. I know you don't care about money, old man, but you have so many sons and such a huge crew. Expenses are unavoidable. I've also heard that you subsidize poor villages. All of that costs money. Of course, none of that is the key point. What matters is that Nightless City conducts legitimate business," Rosinante said.
"Kuhahaha. Legitimate business? Is there even such a thing as legitimate business in this world? And even if there is, can you guarantee that Nightless City will always conduct legitimate business in the future?" Whitebeard asked.
"I can guarantee it. And if one day you discover that Nightless City has done something truly unforgivable, you can refuse to acknowledge this agreement," Rosinante said.
"Interesting. Just for that phrase, legitimate business, I'll agree!" Whitebeard said.
In this world, gambling was absolutely considered legitimate business. No one thought there was anything wrong with gambling. The values of this world were simply like that.