The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

Gern took the full force of the air-shaking punch to the chest, and a mouthful of blood seeped uncontrollably from his jaw.

"Uh……"

But just as his body was leaning backward uncontrollably, a ruthless glint flashed in Gern's eyes. He forcefully twisted his body, and the shockwaves beneath his feet exploded in a series to offset some of the impact. At the same time, he clenched his right fist!

"Om-!"

Dark purple arcs of Conqueror's Haki coiled around his fist as if alive, while flowing cherry blossom-colored Armament Haki covered it like liquid metal.

"Black Shock..."

Whitebeard landed a punch and was about to follow up when he saw Gern withstand the damage and complete his counterattack, causing his pupils to shrink slightly.

"The Fallen God Nail!!"

With a roar, Gern slammed his fist, which contained all his strength, into Whitebeard's abdomen!

"Boom!!!"

A dark purple ring-shaped shockwave, visible to the naked eye, exploded violently from the point where the fist and abdomen met!

Each nail pierces through, creating ripples that twist and turn!

The white-bearded man's muscular body shuddered violently, he groaned, and a trail of bright red blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

However, this strongest man in the world only swayed slightly.

Those feet remained firmly planted on the ground, actually withstanding the blow that had struck Kizaru years ago, without moving an inch!

Immediately afterwards, Whitebeard looked down at Gern, who was standing very close.

"Kuralalala...that's powerful!! But it's still far from enough!"

With a roar, Whitebeard's left hand, which he had just retracted, became a blur as he threw a punch like a cannonball, wreathed in a white aura that seemed to shatter space.

With a simple, unadorned swing punch, he landed squarely on Gern's shoulder blade!

"boom!"

Gern was once again violently thrown back, crashing into a huge, collapsing fragment of an island in the distance, kicking up clouds of dust.

Before the smoke and dust had even cleared, the sound of something cutting through the air was already overhead!

Whitebeard gave Gern no chance to catch his breath, leaping high once more, completely blocking out the sunlight and casting a suffocating shadow.

Murakumogiri was raised high once more, its black and red Conqueror's Haki lightning intertwining with a destructive white aura, concentrating its power to its extreme.

It's still... a powerful strike that splits Mount Hua!

The terrifying pressure poured down like a tangible sea.

But at this moment, time seemed to flow backward.

Gern's pupils contracted slightly as the scene before him suddenly overlapped with a fragment from the depths of his memory.

Both were unparalleled strikes descending from the sky, both were due to a despairing disparity in power...

However, back then in the West Sea, the one who descended from the sky and swung that blade was Gern, but now it is Edward Newgate!

In the air, Whitebeard looked down at the seemingly tiny figure below.

I also saw the scene from when I first met Gern many years ago.

That brat who dared to draw his sword at him... the navy kid.

Suddenly, a surge of heroic spirit welled up within Whitebeard, and as his strike landed, he shouted...

"Navy brat!! State your name!!"

Below, upon hearing this, Gern's bloodied lips curled into a smile. He abruptly raised his hand and fiercely wiped away the blood overflowing from his lips with his sleeve.

The black blade, Bahuang, in his hand seemed to come alive, its blade emitting a thirsty hum.

It began to devour and absorb the surging Conqueror's Haki within Gern's body!

The jet-black blade grew even deeper, and the black and red arcs of electricity that once danced on its surface were no longer coiled.

Instead, it flowed and surged inside the blade like lava, emanating a terrifying aura of destruction!

Immediately afterwards, Gern raised his eyes, his gaze fixed on the white-bearded figure in the air, and his voice resounded through the heavens.

"Though a little late, its sound has already resounded throughout the sea..."

Each word was accompanied by a surge of Conqueror's Haki that sent ripples through the air!

"But I will tell you again!"

“My name is… Gern Reginald Sigma!!!”

"Is that so?!" Whitebeard let out a hearty laugh, "Kurararara!!!"

"This time, you deserve it!"

"Worth it, the world's strongest man, Edward Newgate the Whitebeard, will give you his name, and..."

"Give it your all!!!"

The final syllable exploded along with the slash!

Murakumogiri ripped through the sky, carrying the will to shatter everything, and fell straight down without any reservation!

Gern stood atop the shattered island rocks, his hands gripping the eight directions, and from below, he cleaved the heavens in reverse!

Chapter 465 Who is the strongest? (Part 1)

Twin swords clashing

Black, red, and dark purple flames clashed wildly, creating a deafening roar.

The island's remains, already split in two, beneath their feet could no longer withstand the pressure.

It disintegrated completely in the instant of the clash, turning into countless fragments of giant rocks that fell towards the surging sea below.

"Fighting that bastard Roger was also exhilarating, but it was more of a clash of domineering spirit!"

"But, Gern, you! You made me feel another version of myself on a higher level!!"

"So come on! Take the title of 'strongest' from me!!"

Whitebeard laughed wildly, and the Murakumogiri in his hand changed from a slash to a sweep, the naginata slashing horizontally towards Gern's waist.

"Sorry." Gern's eyes narrowed. He dared not take the attack head-on. The shockwave exploded beneath his feet, and his figure blurred instantly. He retreated backward by the slightest margin.

"The so-called 'strongest'... is already mine!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Gern sheathed his Eight Desolations Blade and activated his Observation Haki to predict Whitebeard's movements.

"Heavenly Tremor - Divine Sense..."

Before the blade is even drawn, the vibrating particles have already torn space apart along their future trajectories.

"cut!!"

The word "slash" was uttered, and a purple slash, wrapped in high-frequency shockwaves, was unleashed without the sword being drawn!

"Ha!" The white-bearded man neither dodged nor evaded, his left fist covered in a dense white light, and he slammed it forward!

"Crack!"

The space directly in front of them was shattered, instantly covered with spiderweb-like cracks, forming an invisible barrier.

The slash struck the barrier and shattered it!

But, just as the vibration barrier dissipated, Gern's figure transformed into vibrational particles and approached again through the dissipating molecular turbulence!

Taking advantage of the brief gap in Whitebeard's defense, he unleashed a shockwave!

"Black Shock - Consecutive Strike!"

Gern's fists became afterimages, and the compressed vibration particles on his fists caused the space around his fists to distort slightly.

Each punch contained the penetrating power of Ryuo and the destructive force of the high-frequency vibration core within, slamming into Whitebeard's chest and abdomen at high speed!

For a moment, Whitebeard was knocked back slightly, the impact of his Armament Haki and powerful physique producing a muffled thud.

However, his fighting spirit intensified, and he withstood Gern's relentless attacks, his right hand already swinging the Murakumo Slash.

The hilt of the knife, carrying a shockwave, slammed into the side of Gern's head!

"Break apart!!"

Gern quickly raised his arm to block!

"Boom!"

As his arm collided with the hilt of the knife, Gern felt an incredibly powerful shockwave penetrate his body.

His entire arm went numb instantly, his blood and qi surged, and he was sent flying horizontally by the immense force.

"It's not over yet!"

Whitebeard pressed his advantage relentlessly, displaying an agility disproportionate to his size.

With a single step, cracks and roars erupted beneath his feet, instantly catching up with the flying Gern.

Grip the Murakumogiri tightly with both hands, no longer chopping, but thrusting forward like a spear!

The tip of Murakumogiri's blade condensed into a point of extreme white light, and wherever it passed, a straight crack was pierced in the space that could not be healed for a long time!

A strong sense of impending death gripped Gern!

At the same time, with nowhere to land, he certainly couldn't exert his full strength to defend, so he shouted, "Tesoro!!"

Tezzolo instantly understood, and the golden passage beneath his feet rose up, forcefully creating a new stage above Marineford.

Seeing a foothold, Gern forcibly suppressed his surging blood and qi, twisted his body suddenly in mid-air, landed, and glided, with the Eight Desolations blocking his way!

"Clang!" The tip of the Murakumo-giri blade precisely struck the blade of the Eight Directions Crossbar, not immediately bouncing away but instead producing a teeth-grinding friction.

Gern's arms, which were holding the knife, trembled violently, and his hands split open again, the blood staining the hilt of the knife.

Propelled backward by this terrifying penetrating force, it continued to slide backward, leaving a long white trail of air behind it.

"Ha..." Gern growled, a hint of madness flashing in his eyes.

Instead of retreating to offset the force, he created another shockwave beneath his feet, forcefully halting his retreat.

Using the force of Whitebeard's thrust, his body spun like a top, and Hachiro unleashed a perfect circular slash!

"Earthquake - Ring Fault!!"

Whitebeard reacted with lightning speed, his thrusting Murakumogiri suddenly sinking, precisely blocking the incoming Hakō with the tsuba.

"boom!!"

Once again, a clash of unadorned Conqueror's Haki erupted, and the violent shockwave finally brought this makeshift stage to its complete end.

It crumbles inch by inch, starting from the center, but Tesoro won't let his power dissipate so easily.

And so, all the gold fragments liquefied once more and recast the stage, awaiting the return of the two.

At the same time, Gern and Whitebeard were pushed apart by the immense force of both sides, each falling onto a large, falling gold nugget.

"Kurarara! This thing under my feet is in my way!" The white-bearded man laughed heartily, not caring at all about where he was standing.

The panic caused by disappearing and falling into the sea made him slam the Murakumogiri in his hand down on his feet!

"Boom!"

It was standing upright in the air, yet it emitted a muffled sound that shook the very fabric of space!

Using the recoil, his massive body stabilized in mid-air. Then, he crossed his arms to gather strength, enveloped in a dense white aura.

Like drawing back a curtain, it slammed down hard onto the sea on either side of its body!

"Shock the sea and break it apart!"

"Crack—Boom!!!"

This is not a tsunami, but a far more terrifying sight!

Centered on the white beard, the sea surface within a radius of several thousand meters on both sides was violently torn apart!

The sea roared under its own weight, overwhelmed by an irresistible, brute force.

They were forcibly pushed apart to both sides, forming two enormous water walls that reached the sky and connected to the sea!