The world's strongest man, Whitebeard—
In his first clash with Maude, not only did he fail to gain the upper hand, but he was also left with multiple wounds from Maude's blade.
An unimaginable scene had unfolded before their eyes.
"Pops!!!"
"How is this possible…?"
On the battlefield, the pirates closest to Whitebeard were struck with disbelief, unable to trust what they had just witnessed.
They had already seen Maude's strength firsthand.
Even so, they never expected that Maude could wound Whitebeard in the very first exchange.
"Pops' body… after all…"
Their minds flashed back to the moment when Whitebeard coughed up a mouthful of blood after shattering the island with his Tremor-Tremor Fruit powers.
Plagued by illness and pushing his body to the limits with continuous use of his abilities, the burden was becoming too much to bear.
This was the only explanation they could accept for what had just transpired.
Otherwise, there was no way they could come to terms with the fact that Whitebeard had been injured in a direct clash with Maude.
"We need to go back and help Pops!"
The pirates who had been charging towards the Marine defenses hesitated.
Realizing the worsening state of Whitebeard's condition, they were unwilling to see him surrounded by both Akainu and Maude.
Even the 11th Division Commander, Kingdew, who had previously ordered them to follow Whitebeard's command, now found himself wavering.
Their squad was the closest to Whitebeard, meaning they could reach him the fastest.
However, Whitebeard had given a firm order to breach the Marine defenses.
As they hesitated, the battlefield shifted once again.
"You can manipulate your blade to evade weapon strikes… The Shadow-Shadow Fruit… In your hands, it's become quite the troublesome ability."
Whitebeard regarded Maude with an impassive gaze.
This young upstart, barely in his twenties, seemed to possess even greater talent and potential than Ace.
"It's not bad, I suppose."
Receiving Whitebeard's acknowledgment, Maude's expression remained calm as he poured all his strength into maintaining their clash. At the same time, he manipulated his shadow, aiming to wound Whitebeard once more.
But Whitebeard wouldn't let him succeed again.
With his right fist imbued with tremor power, he held off Maude's black blade, Shusui, while his left arm suddenly swung, dragging Murakumogiri along the ground before slashing upward at Maude.
"What a shame…"
Recognizing Whitebeard's countermeasure, Maude decisively abandoned the idea of landing another blow.
Both hands were occupied with his sword, leaving him no way to draw his guns.
So—
Shadow Clone!
The shadow behind him instantly took on solid form, appearing at Maude's side.
The moment it materialized, the clone had already gripped White Weasel, the renowned blade transformed from Bailey.
Then—
The shadow clone swung White Weasel, now coated in Armament Haki, and intercepted Whitebeard's rising slash.
Clang—!
Sparks flew.
The overwhelming force of Whitebeard's slash transferred through Murakumogiri, clashing violently against White Weasel.
Without any buffs to strengthen it, the shadow clone was sent flying by a single strike.
However, despite being launched into the air, the clone remained unharmed.
It quickly stabilized itself and then used Moonwalk to hover midair.
With two rapid taps of its index finger on the hilt, Bailey transformed from a long blade into dual pistols.
Gripping both guns, the shadow clone angled the barrels downward and fired a barrage of bullets toward the towering figure of Whitebeard.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Armament Haki-coated lead bullets shot through the air in straight trajectories, aimed directly at Whitebeard's face.
Yet Whitebeard didn't even attempt to dodge.
Sensing the bullets' paths through Observation Haki, he simply coated his face in Armament Haki before thrusting his naginata toward Maude.
"How ruthless…"
Maude had no desire to take a direct hit and swiftly withdrew his blade to retreat.
Clang! Clang!
The shadow bullets struck Whitebeard's face, but they barely left a scratch—nothing more than a dull impact.
Maude's timely retreat left Whitebeard's strike slicing through empty air.
However, the tremor energy that had built up in Whitebeard's right fist was then released as a shockwave, surging directly toward Maude.
Calmly, Maude countered by swinging his blade and unleashing a Hakoku shockwave to neutralize Whitebeard's attack.
As the opposing shockwaves collided and dissipated, smoke and dust filled the air.
Through the lingering haze, Whitebeard charged forward at an astonishing speed, completely unfitting for a man of his age and condition.
"This is hardly the state of a man suffering from organ failure… Good thing I never let Law 'treat' Whitebeard back then."
Even amidst battle, Maude found himself reflecting on unrelated matters.
"I can't recklessly swap places with the shadow clone…"
Against a master of supreme-grade Haki like Whitebeard, a careless swap would likely result in the clone being instantly cleaved apart by Whitebeard's Armament Haki.
Moreover, without his shadow in place, Maude wouldn't be able to inflict further wounds in a direct blade clash…
Whitebeard had likely realized this as well, which was why he refused to give Maude even a moment to breathe, pressing the assault relentlessly.
Maude's mind raced.
Whitebeard gripped his naginata tightly with both hands, raising it high above his head.
The blade of Murakumogiri, coated in Armament Haki, crackled with streaks of black and red lightning as it came crashing down toward Maude.
Maude's eyes sharpened. Stepping back slightly, he mirrored Whitebeard's stance, gripping Shusui tightly with both hands.
Hiss—!
His Armament Haki, dense and refined, coated his blade completely.
Then—
Pouring his full strength into the sword, Maude swung it upward in a motion akin to a baseball bat, clashing against the descending Murakumogiri.
Just before the blades made contact—
Their overwhelming Haki met first.
In an instant, countless black and red lightning arcs crackled at the collision point.
Despite the lack of direct blade contact, it was as if both weapons had struck an invisible force field, locked in a battle of sheer willpower.
The residual force of their clash sent powerful shockwaves outward, causing deep cracks to form in the ground beneath them.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The very next moment—
The cracked earth shattered completely, sending fragments flying several meters into the air.
"Blocked again, huh…?"
Amidst the fierce clash, Whitebeard silently regarded Maude.
This time, he hadn't used just one hand.
He hadn't relied solely on his fists.
He had swung with both hands, putting all his might into the strike.
And yet, this brat still managed to block him.
"How long has it been… since I've had such a blade-to-blade duel…"
Unconsciously, a familiar figure overlapped with Maude in Whitebeard's mind.
Just as Maude and Whitebeard engaged in their second blade clash—
A wave of searing heat engulfed them both.
Akainu's attack was incoming—
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