Before Nusjuro could reach Zaraki, Jinbe's massive blue figure burst into his path.
"Fish-Man Karate: Shark Brick Fist!"
His Armament-coated fist drove forward as Nusjuro drew Shodai Kitetsu in one smooth motion.
Steel met fist with a resounding clang, and a ring of compressed force exploded outward.
The pavement between them shattered, hurling stone fragments into the air as Jinbe was driven back several steps.
Nusjuro had barely moved, but Jinbe had accomplished what he intended: he had interrupted the Elder's advance.
Behind him, Zaraki covered the remaining distance to Teach in a burst of raw speed.
Dark-gold Reiatsu flickered around his body like lightning, though it carried no actual electricity.
By the time Teach looked up, Zaraki stood directly in front of him with Nozarashi already raised.
"Begging an Elder to save you?" A vicious smile crossed Zaraki's face. "Go explain that to Whitebeard after you get to hell."
Teach's face went white as Nusjuro's murderous aura erupted behind them.
"ZARAKI!" Nusjuro forced Jinbe aside and started forward, only to find Dorry, Brogy, and Mihawk moving into his path.
Dorry lowered his rebuilt sword, Brogy raised his bone-cored axe, and Mihawk drew Yoru from his back.
Jinbe recovered beside them, bringing the number of fighters standing between Nusjuro and Zaraki to four.
Nusjuro stopped and slowly looked across them.
"Vermin."
Cold spread along Shodai Kitetsu, white frost creeping from the blade toward the guard as the temperature across the shattered avenue dropped sharply.
"I gave you an opportunity to leave, and you refused."
He swung, releasing a slash that was nearly invisible, though the vast wave of freezing sword pressure following it was plain to see.
It tore across the avenue toward Jinbe, Mihawk, and the two Giants, encasing the shattered masonry in frost as it passed.
Dorry and Brogy exchanged a glance.
After a century of fighting beside and against each other, neither needed to say a word.
They raised their weapons together, their voices joining as sword and axe swept forward.
"Hakoku! SOVEREIGNTY!!"
Their combined shockwave met Nusjuro's freezing slash head-on.
For an instant, everything seemed to stop before the collision erupted with a deafening boom that shook Mary Geoise.
Frost shattered into glittering fragments as the Giants' shockwave ripped through the frozen air, and the recoil opened huge cracks in the white stone beneath everyone's feet.
Windows broke in the surrounding buildings, while walls weakened by the earlier battle finally collapsed.
Mihawk planted Yoru in the ground beside him to brace himself against the blast, and Jinbe crossed both arms in front of his body. Even Zaraki glanced back.
The freezing slash had been stopped, though Dorry and Brogy had not escaped unscathed.
Both had been driven backward across the stone, their boots carving deep trenches, but they remained on their feet.
"Gegyagyagyagya!" Dorry laughed. "That old man hits hard!"
"Gababababa! Good!" Brogy replied, baring his teeth.
Nusjuro's expression darkened as Zaraki looked from the Giants to the Elder.
'So that's what the cold was.' Zaraki found it interesting.
Nusjuro's swordsmanship alone was clearly monstrous, and he had yet to fully reveal whatever power was responsible for that freezing effect.
Zaraki's grin returned; this was finally becoming worthwhile.
...
As the frost and dust dispersed, Nusjuro remained at the far side of the ruined avenue.
Nothing about his thin frame suggested he could produce such force, yet the frost spreading around Shodai Kitetsu made it clear that he was still holding something back.
"So that is the swordsmanship of the Five Elders," Mihawk said, his hawk-like eyes considerably sharper now.
His voice held interest rather than fear.
Hancock stepped forward from the other side, her expression cold and her gaze fixed on Nusjuro.
"You have already turned this entire gathering into a disgrace. Do not assume everyone here intends to stand aside simply because you call yourself an Elder."
Kuma remained silent while Jinbe resumed his stance and Dorry and Brogy lifted their weapons again.
Moria, notably, kept his distance.
Zaraki looked around at them and frowned.
"Back off." As several gazes turned toward him, he rested Nozarashi against his shoulder. "This one's mine."
Mihawk raised an eyebrow. "You intend to fight him alone?"
"Yeah." Zaraki's grin widened as he looked directly at Nusjuro. "I've been looking for something worth cutting all day. Now I finally found it."
Nusjuro's expression chilled. "You remain incapable of understanding your position."
"Maybe." Zaraki rolled one shoulder. "But there are too many people here."
His gaze briefly passed over the route the royal delegations were taking toward the Bondola station.
Marines, kings, servants, and unconscious slaves were still being evacuated.
Even with most of them already withdrawing, Mary Geoise remained crowded with people who had no place near the fight he wanted, and he had no intention of wasting this opportunity by constantly restraining his swings.
He glanced toward the edge of the Red Line, beyond which the ocean stretched to the horizon far below.
During his approach to Mary Geoise, he had noticed several isolated black reefs well away from the shipping lanes. Empty and remote, they would be perfect.
"You wanted me dead badly enough to build this entire circus, right?" Zaraki asked, looking back at Nusjuro with a smile.
"Then come chase me."
The stone cracked beneath his foot as he accelerated across the ruined avenue before most of those present could react.
Dark-gold Reiatsu briefly flashed around him as he drove himself forward through raw physical strength.
"Assuming those old legs still work!"
"BRAT!" Nusjuro immediately gave chase.
Neither man transformed into lightning; they simply moved too fast for ordinary eyes to follow.
Zaraki crossed the remaining stretch of the Holy Land in rapid bursts, using buildings and open avenues for footing before leaping from the edge of the Red Line.
For several seconds, gravity did most of the work as he fell toward the ocean ten thousand meters below.
He controlled his descent with the imperfect Geppo he had already learned to use underwater and in the air, kicking against the atmosphere whenever he needed to adjust his trajectory.
Behind him, Nusjuro followed with equally unnatural ease, running through the air in rapid steps.