Whitebeard's expression darkened.

He glanced at his crescent-shaped mustache—sure enough, one tip had been scorched.

In that recent clash with Uzumaki Naruto, he had gone all out, activating the full power of the Gura Gura no Mi (Tremor-Tremor Fruit), yet still couldn't fully block the flames.

"This golden-haired brat… his strength is terrifying..." Whitebeard felt a twinge of unease.

That single strike from Naruto, in his eyes, was already enough to match him blow for blow. If they kept fighting, the result would be uncertain.

Little did he know—Naruto's heart was also pounding. He had gone all out as well.

He had evaporated half the water content in his body, including his blood, just to unleash the overwhelming power of the Hirutora (Daytime Tiger).

"Right now... I probably can't even beat Marco. If this goes on, I might really have to open the Eighth Gate of Death..."

Naruto muttered internally. He wasn't even sure if his body could survive activating the Gate of Death.

The two of them stood there, locked in a silent standoff.

Meanwhile, the pirates—whose eyes had been unable to open against the raging winds—finally recovered and turned to look at the center of the battlefield.

And what they saw stunned them.

"Oi, oi, you serious!? That Devil's Child didn't get taken out!?"

"That punch from Oyaji was the strongest I've ever seen!"

"The ground's shattered—he punched ten meters deep into the ground! What kind of monsters were these two just now!?"

"No wonder they put a ten billion bounty on the Devil's Child. He fought Oyaji to a standstill."

"With that kind of strength, he could conquer any place he wanted—why fixate on Fishman Island? Just give it to him already…"

"…..."

Members of the Whitebeard Pirates were in uproar.

As proud sons of Whitebeard's crew, they had always believed Oyaji was the strongest man alive.

Four Emperors? Admirals? They were nothing compared to their old man—he simply had no interest in fighting them.

But now someone had gone head-to-head with Oyaji and wasn't losing.

"We'd better stop this fight. If it continues, Fishman Island might collapse," Water Buffalo Atmos said with concern.

"Yeah, the ground's cracked, and I saw the coating bubble overhead flickering too," said Blamenco grimly. "Even if the ground holds, the bubble surrounding the island might rupture."

Hearing their division leaders talk like this, the rest of the crew grew even more anxious.

Then suddenly—

A sharp female voice rang out: "Don't think you can just pass through! If Genjutsu won't stop you, how about this?!"

Naruto and Whitebeard turned to look.

They saw Marco and Jozu urgently rushing over to support Whitebeard—but standing in their way was Uchiha Izumi.

The Uchiha girl had blood trickling from the corner of her eye as she shouted with grit:

"Susanoo!!"

In that instant, dark chakra erupted from her body like flames, violently surging and wrapping around her form, taking shape into skeletal black bones.

First came the hand bones, then the ulna, the humerus, followed by the scapula and ribs—

A black skeletal giant formed, built entirely from that dark, burning chakra.

Soon, black ribs enveloped Uchiha Izumi, forming the core of the towering dark warrior that radiated dreadful pressure.

Armor began to manifest over the skeletal frame.

"What the hell is that!?"

Marco and Jozu's eyes widened in disbelief as they stared at the monstrous figure.

Even though it was only an upper body, it gave off an aura of overwhelming power—as if it could annihilate everything in its path.

Diamond Jozu was the first to snap back to his senses, glancing worriedly in Whitebeard's direction.

"Oyaji....…"

Gritting his teeth, he activated his full diamond form, his entire body shimmering like a gem, and hurled himself at Susanoo with a side-body charge.

"Don't care what you are—crack for me!!"

"Bring it on!"

Perched in the chest of the Susanoo, Izumi glared coldly with her blood-streaked crimson eyes.

"Let Susanoo crush you to pieces!"

The black Susanoo raised its massive fist, shrouded in the burning black flame of Amaterasu, and swung it down on Diamond Jozu.

BOOM!!

The ground shook violently with the impact.

When Susanoo raised its arm again, a massive crater remained below.

Diamond Jozu was nowhere in sight.

Marco's face went pale.

"Jozu! Are you okay!?"

He glared at the black skeletal warrior, his voice filled with disbelief.

"How is this even possible? One punch smashed Jozu!?"

But Izumi ignored him. Her red eyes focused on the cracks that had formed on Susanoo's arm.

"As expected of diamond hardness… even Susanoo's power couldn't fully break him…"

At that moment, a large diamond-coated hand burst from the earth and forcefully pulled its body out of the ground.

Its owner—Diamond Jozu.

"So he got smashed into the ground…" Marco sighed in relief. For a second, he thought even Jozu's diamond body had been shattered.

Which would've been absurd—after all, diamonds are the hardest substance in the world.

But Jozu himself wasn't smiling.

His expression was grim as he looked at his body.

"What insane strength… but even worse is this flame…"

Black fire still clung to his diamond form, burning with eerie intensity.

Even buried in soil, it hadn't gone out.

Though he had no combustible material on his body, the black flames kept burning.

It was as if they intended to turn even diamond into ash.

"I can't undo my diamond form… can't even deactivate my Haki..."

Jozu's expression grew darker as he clenched his fists again and charged toward Susanoo.

"If I smash you, this will all end!"

"Hmph!" Izumi snorted coldly, blood gushing from her eyes as a massive black sword appeared in Susanoo's hand.

"Go ahead and try—let's see if I can slice that diamond body in half!"

Marco was growing desperate. Ignoring his fatigue and injuries, he flared up in phoenix flames and soared into the sky.

"Oyaji! Uzumaki Naruto! Please—make them stop!"

Naruto gave a half-smile and looked toward Whitebeard.

"Whitebeard, are you going to let your man keep fighting? He's about to be burned to ashes."

Whitebeard scowled. "Jozu's body is diamond…"

"That's Amaterasu—a flame that won't extinguish."

Naruto's voice was calm: "Even if he defeats Izumi, that black flame will keep burning—until nothing is left but ashes."

Whitebeard's face changed.

If what Naruto said was true—then wouldn't that mean Jozu could only wait to die?

How could such an ability exist in this world?

But thinking back on the bizarre variety of Naruto's powers… Whitebeard had no choice but to believe it.

His face darkened.

"Jozu—stand down!!"

(End of Chapter)

[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/zaelum]

[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]

[Thank You For Your Support!]