One Piece - Heaven Defying Comprehension!

The moment Smoker, Hina, and the crew heard the voice emanating from the transponder snail, a chill shot through them, their bodies betraying them with uncontrollable sweats. This voice was unmistakable—one the entire world had come to know all too well during the live broadcasts of the Flame Emperor event.

This was the man who single-handedly incited the incident that shocked the globe: the Flame Emperor.

The conclusion of the Flame Emperor incident was a chilling display of immense power—one that embodied the scorching force of the sun itself. 

In the aftermath, Sengoku stepped down as Fleet Admiral, and both Aokiji and Zephyr resigned from the Marines. All were casualties of the upheaval this man had brought. His actions had even opened a vacancy among the Seven Warlords of the Sea after he killed Crocodile, compelling the government to appoint a replacement. It was the appointment of Whitebeard Jr. to this position that ultimately drove Zephyr away from the Marines.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that this man is the force behind the current storms raging across the seas. Standing at the pinnacle of this era, his mere voice brought an oppressive pressure upon everyone present.

These Marines, seasoned and hardened, had witnessed firsthand the carnage of the Flame Emperor incident and felt the brutal strength this man wielded. Not one of them could claim immunity; even the mere reverberation of his Conqueror's Haki roar had rendered them unconscious on that battlefield.

To those who bore witness, not even a Rear Admiral nor a Headquarters officer could maintain consciousness in his presence. 

And now, this man, the Flame Emperor himself, had summoned Aokiji, the former Admiral of the Marines and once the world government's highest combatant, issuing a command as Captain. Was he about to reignite the chaos of the seas?

"Flame Emperor!" Smoker's eyes burned red as he stared at the transponder snail in Kuzan's hand, his jaw clenched tightly, blood seeping from the corners of his mouth. He would not give in—he *refused* to give in!

Smoker had been there during the Flame Emperor incident, standing on the sidelines of the Sabaody Archipelago battlefield. With unwavering resolve, he had set out to confront Portgas D. Ace. But the brutal reality left even Smoker, known for his iron will, feeling a taste of despair.

He had not even been worthy of setting foot on that battlefield.

Portgas D. Ace—Entei—had used the Mera-Mera Fruit to unleash the sun's power. The entire battleground became a blazing hell, sweltering at tens of thousands of degrees, leaving nothing but scorched earth in his wake.

In such a terrifying environment, no Logia Devil Fruit could unleash its full potential.

For Smoker, wielding the Smoke-Smoke Fruit, this infernal domain of lava rendered his own powers nearly useless. He couldn't even achieve full elementalization within the overwhelming heat. The sheer dominance of Ace's Devil Fruit ability on the battlefield stifled any other power in its wake, leaving them weak and suppressed. In the face of this blazing inferno, other Devil Fruit users could only watch as their abilities fell short, utterly eclipsed by the might of Ace's Mera-Mera Fruit.

It was as if Ace's power transcended all other Devil Fruits—like he was the reigning king of them all.

Smoker, as a fellow Logia user, felt this keenly. In the heart of this scorching battlefield, Ace's ability filled the air with a searing presence that Smoker could not contest. Even approaching this battlefield was beyond his reach; without the strength needed to withstand such heat, stepping into that hell was nothing short of suicidal. The very temperature would be enough to evaporate all moisture from his body before he could even consider facing Ace.

In light of this, Fleet Admiral Sengoku had ordered Marines adept in Haki to envelop their bodies and form a vanguard to penetrate the blistering defense Ace had created. Only those with Haki powerful enough to protect their entire bodies could hope to endure the conditions Ace's Mera-Mera Fruit imposed. But Smoker's Haki fell short; he couldn't sustain it to that level, nor did he possess the strength needed to stand in Ace's presence. 

Inevitably, like many others, he was struck unconscious by the roar of Ace's Conqueror's Haki, a force so immense it could strip the senses from even the strongest of wills. It brought him back to that fateful day in Loguetown when he first felt powerless against Ace. 

Smoker clenched his fists, his gloved nails digging into the flesh of his palms. Ever since his inability to withstand Ace's Conqueror Haki in Loguetown, he had committed himself to intense training back at headquarters. After a year of relentless practice, he had grown far stronger, confident that he'd narrowed the gap between them. But today, he realized that not only had he failed to bridge that distance—it had grown even wider.

Ace's Conqueror's Haki didn't even need to target him directly; just the residual force was enough to knock him out, leaving him defenseless. The gap in their power, now even greater than before, was undeniable. Here was the man who stood above even the Four Emperors, the supreme force of this era—the strongest man in the world. The very thought of his titles left Smoker feeling crushed, but still, he refused to yield.

A gnawing frustration ate away at him: Why had Tashigi, whom he had mentored, chosen to follow Ace so wholeheartedly? Since the end of the Flame Emperor incident, Smoker had been closely monitoring Tashigi's reports. She had become a user of the Transparent-Transparent Fruit, an ability that allowed the Entei Pirates to infiltrate Marine defenses unnoticed. With it, they slipped into the heart of the Sabaody Archipelago and struck down three Celestial Dragons. This power had shattered Marine Headquarters' strategies, leaving them vulnerable even before the battle had begun.

Now, Tashigi was a leading figure within the Entei Pirates, known across the seas as the 'Flame Silent Swordsman,' with a bounty of 450 million beli on her head—a formidable pirate, and an enemy of justice.

And it wasn't just her. Smoker's respected senior and friend, Kuzan, once a distinguished Marine Admiral, had also left the Marines, choosing instead to serve under Ace. Smoker couldn't shake the feeling that, should Ace command it, Tashigi would strike him down without a second thought, and Kuzan would wield his Frozen-Frozen Fruit against him just as ruthlessly.

Smoker could only wonder what sort of influence Ace held over these two, how he had managed to turn both Tashigi and Kuzan completely against Marine justice, embracing the life of piracy so thoroughly.

"A familiar voice… Smoker, it's been a while."

Ace's voice was warm, as if greeting an old friend, and he smiled lightly as he spoke.

"Are you kidding?! We're enemies, Flame Emperor!" Smoker's voice cracked, his eyes steeling as he shouted, barely containing his rage.

"Enemies?" Ace's tone was calm, dismissive even. "Tell me, is there truly an absolute and unchangeable enemy in this world? Your perspective remains...limited, Smoker."

Ace reclined slightly, leaning back against Robin's lap as he held the transponder snail with a light, easy smile. Smoker clenched his fists in response but found himself at a loss for words. There was no way to argue with this man's reasoning. The reality that one of his former comrades now served under Ace's command unsettled him deeply. It felt as if everything had flipped, their allegiances profoundly changed.

Driven by this unease, Smoker had forced his way onto Hina's warship, intent on confronting Kuzan.

"Captain," Kuzan murmured, eyes narrowing as he exhaled a cold breath, his gaze hidden behind his sunglasses but flashing with a deadly chill. "Do you want me to get rid of them?"

The words were blunt, devoid of any hesitation. From the moment he'd joined the Entei Pirates, Kuzan had resolved himself to the path Ace had chosen. If reforming the world required bloodshed, so be it. Long ago, he had cast aside any naive ideals.

Now, even when facing former comrades and friends, he wouldn't hesitate to carry out Ace's orders. The restraint he'd once shown, his reluctance to fight those he once called allies, was gone. For Kuzan, Ace's command was absolute. And with Smoker and Hina aware of this order, they risked jeopardizing Ace's future plans.

Anything or anyone that obstructed Ace's path would face the icy force of Kuzan's powers.

The air around him grew colder and more foreboding, an unmistakable aura of intent that made Smoker and Hina shudder, their faces taut with shock and disbelief. Kuzan would truly kill them if need be.

Zephyr, standing nearby, watched Kuzan with a mixture of surprise and disbelief. Kuzan had been his disciple, the young man he'd taken under his wing after joining the Marines. Zephyr had always known Kuzan as someone who, despite wielding the icy powers of the Frozen-Frozen Fruit, was warm-hearted, deeply committed to his own brand of justice. He protected civilians, cared for his subordinates, and held to his convictions.

After the Ohara incident, Kuzan had developed doubts about the government's justice, retreating into a philosophy of "lazy justice." Yet he had never abandoned his duty to defend the people or his concern for those he led.

But now, he was casually suggesting dealing with Smoker and the others with lethal intent. What kind of resolve could lead to such a transformation?

Could it be…was it Ace, this man who made Kuzan envision a different future?

"A formidable aura is around you. Given what happened, I'd say it's the former Admiral 'Black Arm' Zephyr by your side, isn't it?" Ace's voice carried a hint of amusement as his Observation Haki traced over Zephyr through the transponder snail, feeling his distinct presence.

Though Ace had never met Zephyr in person, his Observation Haki allowed him to discern Zephyr's unique aura, unfamiliar but unmistakable. A little "deduction" was all it took to reach his conclusion.

"Not weak for someone who's stepped out of the spotlight." 

Zephyr fell silent at Ace's words. Though age had begun to take its toll, his mastery of Haki and martial arts remained intact. And with the seastone-equipped mechanical arm, "Crusher," he was still a force to be reckoned with.

Though Zephyr could no longer match the full strength of an Admiral, his power still surpassed that of an Admiral candidate. Yet from this man, Ace, all he received was a simple "not weak" as an appraisal.

But Ace had every right to pass such judgment—after all, he was the man standing at the peak of this era.

"Yes, the former Marine Headquarters Admiral, 'Black Arm' Zephyr, along with his students and subordinates who've left the Marines," Kuzan said, his tone still casual. "I was hoping for a word with him, but do we need to get rid of him as well?"

Kuzan nodded and asked back. 

Though Zephyr had aged, he remained a formidable fighter, a powerful force who had once embodied Marine justice. Withdrawing from the Marines only made his motives all the more intriguing. If their goals aligned, Kuzan wouldn't mind bringing him and his strength into Ace's first division. But since Zephyr had overheard Ace's command, he wanted to clarify with Ace whether to move forward with a confrontation.

"Don't be so arrogant!" Ain, the user of the Return-Return Fruit, shouted in outrage, eyeing Kuzan with a warning glare. 

"It seems you're different now, Kuzan," Zephyr interjected fiercely, fists clenched and coated with powerful Armament Haki. "But call me Z."

"Z?" Ace's lips curled into a faint smile. "Fine, then. Z it is. I take it you plan to use the dyna stones to bring down the New World, correct?"

Zephyr's pupils contracted in shock. How could Ace know his plan? He hadn't even revealed it to Ain or anyone else. His intention was to harness the power of the dyna stones to trigger volcanic eruptions across the New World, wiping it out to bury all pirates once and for all. This drastic measure, conceived after Whitebeard II joined the Seven Warlords, was his way of ending the era of pirates in one sweeping blow.

"Dyna Stones? Now, that's a dangerous idea, Zephyr-sensei... or rather, Z," Kuzan remarked, his Observation Haki picking up the intense wave of emotion radiating from Zephyr, confirming Ace's insight. 

Ace's smile broadened. "Bring them back in ice, Kuzan. Let's avoid letting them escape. dyna stones are a potential threat we can't ignore."

"And the one who spoke earlier—someone with the ability to rewind age? A useful skill, I'd say. Let's bring her along as well."

"Understood." 

Kuzan exhaled a chilling breath, the air around him turning frigid as he prepared to carry out Ace's orders.