After Kaido the Beast King descended upon the frozen wasteland and took on his human form, his calamities — Jin the Wildfire and Jack the Drought — gathered by his side, joined by the Four Sky Kings, each reporting their devastating losses.
Nearby, Cracker, one of the Sweet Commanders, barely managed to shatter the icy prison cast by Aokiji Kuzan. He stumbled to his feet, face pale and grim, and regrouped with Big Mom.
Even Baron Tamago, who had been slashed apart by Shourou the Holy Knight, somehow clung to life. Now evolved into Count Hiyoko, he dragged a half-dead Peckhams back to their side.
The lion mink's berserk Sulong state had finally faded, and thanks to the defensive powers of his Turtle-Turtle Fruit, he'd miraculously survived the Marines' relentless onslaught.
The remnants of Souta Kiryuu's Aradrake Fleet were also regrouping, gathering around the colossal crimson dragon that loomed at their center.
Only three airships from their fleet remained afloat.
The rest had been torn apart or blasted from the sky — their losses were catastrophic.
"The red-haired pirates' dragon was too fast. We couldn't catch it," Souta Kiryuu replied coldly to Big Mom's furious question, his gaze fixed on the sky where the scarlet wyvern had already vanished beyond the clouds.
His eyes then turned toward the fleeing Marines, sharp and dangerous — clearly contemplating pursuit.
The Whitebeard remnants, however, had already begun their retreat the moment Imu's shadow world sealed the glacial battlefield. They seemed to have abandoned any hope of reclaiming their captain's body.
Still, as long as they remained in the New World, none of them would escape Kiryuu's reach.
"Then we go after the Navy," Big Mom snarled, her voice dripping with rage. "I want that bastard Garp's head!"
Several of her children had died today. Without a trophy worthy of her vengeance, she refused to retreat.
"Then let's strike while they're broken," Souta said. "We'll drive the Navy out of the New World entirely."
Once the Pirate Empress, the Crimson Earl, Barrett, Kuma, Blackbeard, and the Six Paths of Souta regrouped with him, Kiryuu began preparing the next wave of pursuit.
At that moment, Perona the Ghost Princess flew down in a panic, whispering something into Kiryuu's ear. His expression hardened.
Without a word, he grabbed Blackbeard Teach and leapt onto one of the airships. The Empress jumped onto Kiryuu's draconic shoulder, and together they ascended into the sky. The Crimson Earl and Kuma soon followed, vanishing into the clouds.
Below, Kaido and Big Mom looked up at the three remaining skyships.
"Kaido," Big Mom said cautiously, "that bastard Kiryuu's gathering too many forces. We need our own smaller alliance inside this one — otherwise his crew might swallow us whole."
She spoke with thinly veiled wariness. For all her pride, she still shared a strange sense of camaraderie with Kaido — a relic of their past.
"Kiryuu's even stronger than Rocks ever was," Kaido muttered coldly.
Part of him admired Souta's mastery over primordial power, but another part feared it. He'd once bowed to Rocks D. Xebec, and he had no intention of serving under another tyrant.
"The World Government still stands," Big Mom said confidently. "As long as we're allied, Kiryuu won't dare cross us. You were already planning to marry your daughter to him — I'll do the same. Two bloodlines, one bond."
Her grin turned sharp and calculating. Together, their three powers could form an unbreakable economic and military pact — one even Souta Kiryuu might hesitate to betray.
"For now," she added, "let's discuss how we'll divide Whitebeard and Red-Hair's territory… and the Navy's waters too."
Her face twisted into greed and malice, eerily reminiscent of the treacherous nun Carmel from her past. They'd lost too much today — and she intended to reclaim every ounce of it in profit.
High above, aboard one of the surviving airships, Souta Kiryuu stood before the dying forms of Shiki the Golden Lion and Bundy Walde. His expression softened, tinged with regret.
These two legends, over seventy years old, had reached their limit.
The powers of Imu's shadows and Shourou's ghostly marrow, fueled by death itself, had pushed their life force to the edge.
They would not live to see Law, the man with the Surgical Fruit, nor the completion of Kiryuu's Pure Gold Ring Project.
"Even Man Shirley's healing can't save them," said Nico Robin, her tone heavy with disbelief. "That power Imu used… it destroys everything — even erases other abilities."
The mysterious arrow of shadow energy had consumed the healing light entirely, leaving both veterans beyond salvation.
"I didn't think I'd witness three old legends fall in one day," murmured Redfield, who now looked youthful again thanks to the Vampire Fruit. He'd fought alongside Whitebeard, Shiki, and Walde in their prime. Watching them fade stirred something deep in him.
Had he not regained his youth, his fate might have been the same.
"Recover their Devil Fruits," Souta ordered quietly. His voice was calm, but his eyes betrayed a flicker of sadness.
If they couldn't be saved, their powers would live on.
Teach nodded, dragging the two into a sealed chamber and producing a set of specially-prepared fruits.
Each Devil Fruit had its own affinity — a preferred host fruit for its rebirth. That was why the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia existed: to catalog every pattern, every resemblance.
If each rebirth changed completely, the book would be meaningless.
That was also why Teach had memorized the shape and species of every fruit in existence. Matching fruits, random rebirths, and the Dark-Dark Fruit's unique gravitational power — these were the key to stealing abilities.
In the original timeline, Champion Burgess had even carried a bag of special fruits in hopes of snatching Straw Hat Luffy's power.
Sometimes fate smiled on fools — a lucky shopper might just stumble across a reborn fruit and change the course of their life.
"Akainu's body is monstrous," Robin said after a pause. "His regeneration, his Haki, and the blood-crystal dandelions — all of it's helping him burn away Imu's corruption, little by little."
The air grew heavy. The fall of two great pirates had shaken everyone aboard.
"It's fine," Souta said at last. "Rest up. The fight isn't over yet."
He mourned Shiki and Walde, but not for long. They would be replaced soon enough — by Warden Isaac, King Rida, Black Arm Zephyr, and other powerful captives already under his command.
Especially Isaac — that man's strength eclipsed even Shiki's.
If Souta wished, he could rewrite Zephyr's memories and grant him new powers from the Float-Float or Clone-Clone Fruits, forging him into another unstoppable weapon.
The Kiryuu Fleet would not weaken. It would only grow stronger.
"Boss Kami!" Enel shouted from the deck, sparks crackling around him. "Do we chase the Navy next? The Five Elders fled, but the Adams Kingdom and G-9 Fortress are still ours for the taking!"
His voice crackled with fanatic excitement. He wanted total annihilation — to wipe the Navy from the New World and seize every inch of Whitebeard and Red-Hair's former domain.
Only then, he believed, would Souta Kiryuu stand as the undisputed ruler of the seas.