After a long silence.
Suddenly—
Ice Pheasant Beak!!!
Cold air condensed on Aokiji's right arm, quickly forming a sharp ice bird under his precise control. The creature shot straight toward Kairos Flint, freezing everything in its path.
Facing this close-range attack, Kairos calmly raised his hand and clenched it into a fist.
Armament Haki surged, hardening and coating his fist.
Then—
Boom!!!
He threw a powerful punch forward. Instantly, Aokiji's ice bird shattered into glimmering shards, scattering across the sky and ground like glass fragments.
The admiral's attack?
In front of Kairos Flint, it was laughable.
If this was the strategy Aokiji thought would work against him, then it was foolish—though Kairos knew Aokiji wasn't that naive.
Clearly, this was only a test. But an utterly ineffective one.
"What a terrifying attack! I was so scared," Kairos said with mocking exaggeration, imitating Kizaru's infamous tone.
Hearing this, Aokiji's expression shifted. He knew that voice.
"You bastard… why are you mimicking Kizaru?!"
Before Aokiji could finish his sentence—
Kairos was already in front of him.
Divine Technique: Tyrannosaurus Fist!!!
His arm pulled back, his fist crackling with intense Conqueror's Haki. The sheer volume of Haki compressed into his punch made crimson-black lightning arc around it.
Seeing this, the laziness in Aokiji's eyes vanished instantly.
Conqueror's Haki entwined with Armament Haki—
This was the true counter to Logia-type Devil Fruit users like himself.
He reacted quickly.
But in the very next instant—
BOOM!!!
Kairos's punch landed with meteoric force, slamming into the ground like a small meteor dropped from Fujitora himself. The earth exploded in all directions, forming a wide crater veined with spider-web cracks.
"You dodged? Not bad, Aokiji."
Kairos turned his head toward a nearby icy mist. From it, a humanoid shape slowly formed—ice first, then flesh. Aokiji reappeared, reshaping himself from frozen shards.
"The Godslayer... really is terrifying. If I hadn't gone intangible in time, I might've died right then."
Aokiji's voice was serious now. This was no ordinary opponent—any carelessness could cost him his life.
A droplet of blood trickled down the shoulder of his white coat, soaking into his collar and splattering onto the ground.
He was bleeding.
A Marine Admiral, wounded by one clash with Kairos Flint.
Shock rippled through the crowd of Marine officers, the Warlords of the Sea, and the many powerful factions watching the live broadcast.
Aokiji—an admiral with decades of reputation and strength—had relied on his Logia fruit for years. His control over the Ice-Ice Fruit was nearly peerless. And yet, with just one move, he was injured.
Even if Kairos wasn't quite at a Four Emperors level…
He had to be at peak admiral-tier at the very least—maybe even half a step into Emperor-tier.
That Kairos could break through Aokiji's elemental defenses was shocking.
This…
was too much.
To the powers watching, it was clear:
Kairos Flint—the Godslayer—was no newly-risen Emperor.
He was already several steps into the Emperor class.
—
Far away:
"I definitely didn't come here for nothing!"
Morgans was excited, observing the battle at Marine G-2 base from afar. Holding a Den Den Mushi broadcasting the fight live, he muttered excitedly to himself.
"If the Marines start losing, the World Government will definitely cut their broadcast. But my stream will keep running—and become the only one!"
"This is huge. This is real news."
He had a hunch Kairos Flint wasn't reckless enough to lose.
That's why he placed his bet:
Kairos Flint will defeat the Navy.
His broadcasts were linked to networks in multiple countries, even those under tight World Government control. He'd even predicted how they'd respond to a defeat.
And so far?
Totally worth it.
Kairos had only just started to fight—
And already, one of the Marine Admirals was bleeding.
Incredible.
Morgans's heart pounded with journalistic glee.
—
"Frozen Time Capsule!!!"
Aokiji fired a wave of icy air toward Kairos, trying to trap him completely.
But—
Shinra Tensei!!! (Heavenly Repulsion)
Kairos merely raised one hand.
A sudden burst of gravitational repulsion exploded from him, smashing into Aokiji's ice wave.
BOOM!!!
The ice shattered instantly, unable to withstand Kairos's power.
But Kairos didn't stop there.
Bang!!!
The repulsion wave slammed into Aokiji again, blasting him apart into chunks of ice. The frozen shards clattered to the ground, then reformed into his human body.
Elementalization.
This was the power of Logia fruits. Like Kizaru, Aokiji could sense enemy attacks with Observation Haki and enter an intangible form just before a hit landed. It was what made Logia users so hard to damage.
But elementalization wasn't invincible.
Earlier, Aokiji had tried to dodge.
He'd sensed the danger and used his Logia form to disperse.
But Kairos's Conqueror's Haki disrupted even elemental bodies.
Some of Aokiji's form had been caught—resulting in a genuine wound.
A lucky break for him.
—
"Yo yo yo! Godslayer Kairos! You seem to have forgotten—I'm also an admiral."
Suddenly, a voice came from behind him.
Kizaru, now fully photonic, raised one glowing leg.
"You're busy fighting Aokiji, huh? How about saying hi to an old friend?"
Light-Speed Kick!!!
A golden flash exploded toward Kairos.
But—
Divine Technique: Fire Dragon Kick!!!
Kairos spun around and countered with a flaming kick. Fire wrapped around his leg, igniting instantly.
The two kicks collided—
BOOM!!!!
A fiery shockwave erupted at impact, sending a mushroom cloud billowing from their clash point.
From the explosion's center, a figure flew out violently—slamming into the G-2 base building.
Crash!
A massive hole opened in the base's walls.
The figure got up, limping slightly.
Everyone watching recognized him immediately.
Kizaru.
In their brief clash, Kizaru had been sent flying.
And he was now… limping?
That was insane.
All Kairos did was block one kick—and this was the result?
But Kizaru knew exactly how dangerous it was.
The instant explosion of flame…
If he hadn't surrendered his footing and gone flying, it could've been far worse.
That wasn't just a kick.
That was death in disguise.
The pain in his leg told the story.
Armament Haki, combined with flame and sheer physical might—
Kairos's attack had nearly shattered his bones.
Terrifying.
Kizaru now understood:
This man wasn't just a master swordsman.
He had top-tier physical combat skills.
His Haki rivaled the Four Emperors.
And his repulsion and fire abilities…
Kairos Flint wasn't some rookie Emperor.
He was an Emperor among Emperors.
—
"Kizaru, I was just saying hello. No need to start limping."
Kairos chuckled, stepping forward.
Kizaru's expression darkened.
Being mocked by an enemy stung, no matter how composed he tried to appear.
And then—
Akainu stepped forward.
He'd had enough.
If this fight continued, the Navy would be humiliated.
"Pirate scum, don't get cocky!"
"I'll personally send you—a fool who knows nothing of the world—to hell!!!"
Magma surged across his shoulders, dripping hot stone as he walked forward. His face was grim, and his eyes murderous.
Looking at him, Kairos only smiled.
"If you think you can... then bring it."