"Step…"
"Step… step…"
Slowly, irregular footsteps echoed through the area.
Is had no intention of waiting passively. He leapt straight into the air.
In midair, a pair of flaming wings burst open behind him.
Just as he was about to ascend higher—
from within a massive, dense tree, a figure suddenly shot out.
Holding a naginata, the man swung it midair, Armament Haki coating the blade.
The moment the figure came into view—
Is froze.
"Edward Newgate?!"
The name slipped out of his mouth without warning.
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't understand why Whitebeard would appear here.
At this point, he almost felt cursed—why was he constantly running into members of the Rocks Pirates lately?
"Hah!"
Whitebeard swung his Haki-coated naginata, slashing straight toward Is in the air.
Is immediately cast aside all distractions. His body erupted into countless sheets of paper, forming a massive shield.
"Boom!"
The naginata struck the shield, and a violent shockwave exploded outward from the point of impact.
Nearby trees bent and snapped, while sand and debris flew wildly across the ground.
"Whoosh!"
The impact forced Is down to the ground. His feet scraped against the earth before he stabilized himself.
Meanwhile, Whitebeard also descended due to inertia, landing heavily.
"Aurelius D. Virel Is… I thought you were just some figure the World Government hyped up for propaganda. But now it seems… that's not the case."
"So that means your pursuit of Charlotte Linlin was real."
"Heh… hard to believe that Shiki and Charlotte Linlin actually lied through their teeth."
"Gurararara!"
Whitebeard burst into loud laughter.
"…"
Is stared at him, speechless.
"Rocks sent you to kill me?"
Faced with the question, Whitebeard didn't bother hiding anything.
"No. This is just a coincidence. You happened to show up, so I figured I'd find some answers from you."
"Answers? What answers could I possibly have?"
Whitebeard grinned, then rushed forward, swinging his naginata again.
Young—he was still young.
Compared to the version Is remembered from before transmigrating—the one he had seen on screen—this Whitebeard was completely different.
Though already massive in build, his agility far surpassed what most people could imagine.
Is waved his right hand, and within his palm, countless rotating paper blades ignited with flames.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh—!"
The spinning paper surged forward like a tidal wave toward Whitebeard.
Whitebeard swayed left and right, flipping through the air, dodging most of them.
"Slash! Slash! Slash!"
Those that passed him sliced through the massive trees behind, shattered rocks, and carved deep gashes into the ground.
As for the ones he couldn't dodge—
his free hand formed a white shockwave bubble. With a single punch—
"Crack!"
The air fractured, and the incoming paper blades were blasted out of the sky.
Clearly, this was the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
A fruit hailed as the strongest Paramecia—
capable of generating vibrations at will, with adjustable intensity.
It could shake the atmosphere, split the seas, rattle the sky, and even trigger massive tsunamis.
The shockwaves it produced were powerful enough to overturn entire islands. In the original story, Sengoku had even described it as a power capable of destroying the world.
Seeing his attack ineffective, Is waved his hand again. The paper reformed into a long blade, instantly coated with Armament Haki.
"Bang—!"
"Bang—!"
"Bang—!"
Each clash produced violent shockwaves.
Each impact shattered the ground beneath their feet.
In just a short time, the surrounding area had already been reduced to chaos by the aftermath of their battle.
Meanwhile—
on the other side of the royal capital, another fight had already begun.
Yes—
Uchiha Madara and Garp.
After seeing Is leave, Madara took the opportunity to resume their unfinished battle from earlier.
As for Acnologia—
he had somehow been appointed as the referee.
"Garp! Hurry up and defeat Madara so I can take my turn!" Acnologia shouted from above.
"…"
Madara glanced at him speechlessly but said nothing.
After all, after spending so much time together, he had already gotten used to Acnologia's personality.
"You can keep dreaming, Acnologia!" Madara shot back before refocusing on the fight.
As for Tatsumaki—
things were much more peaceful on her side.
Under the queen's guidance, she and Roz·Meini were out shopping.
"Everything here is really free?" Tatsumaki asked again, looking at the goods lining the streets.
"Yes, truly," the queen replied with a gentle smile.
"Then thank you. Meini, let's go pick out some nice clothes for Is," Tatsumaki suggested.
The queen's expression changed slightly.
"…Is it really okay for you to address Saint Aurelius D. Virel Is so casually?"
"It's fine. That's how we've always called him," Tatsumaki said with a cheerful smile.
"And what is your relationship with Saint Aurelius D. Virel Is? His wife?"
"Why don't you guess, Your Majesty?" Roz·Meini replied with a soft smile.
…
Half an hour later—
Back on Is's side—
his battle with Whitebeard had grown even more intense.
As expected of the man who would one day be known as the strongest in the world—
even now, his Devil Fruit mastery, physical combat, and Armament Haki were all monstrously powerful.
"Two Devil Fruit abilities?! I never thought such a thing could exist in this world!"
During the fight, Whitebeard had already confirmed that Is possessed two Devil Fruits—and he was visibly shocked.
"You… just how did you do it? How did you break such a taboo?!"
"You tell me."
Is replied calmly.
"Gurararara!"
"You're getting more and more interesting…"
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