Shinsō was inally a powerful on, but Cudius had tur into something even more devious—a tool for surprise attacks. Golden Lion Shiki had fallen for it, twice, resulting in a deep cut across his face. Cudius had exploited that moment to incapacitate Shiki, turning him into a perma resident of the infirmary at Marineford.

  And now, Patrick Redfield was fag the same predit. He'd never entered a on like Shinsō, a sword that could extend aract at will. The ued sting in his shoulder threw him off bance, just enough to hinder his dodge. Unlike Kong, who had mao avoid Cudius's Winter's Fury, Redfield wasn't as lucky.

  The cold ssh caught his left foot, instantly freezing his shoe and redug it to ice shards. His flesh wasn't spared either; frost spread across his foot, seizing up his muscles arig his movement. Though he mao shake off some of the damaged tissue, his mobility was now promised.

  As he shifted back, Redfield's mind was reeling. "What kind of abilities does this guy have?" he thought. One moment, Cudius was wielding frost power, and the , he was invisible. Then, there was that bizarre sword teique, gih as if it had a mind of its own. On their own, each power was strange, but together, they were almost inprehensible.

  Meanwhile, Kong had stepped back to avoid Cudius's Winter's Fury, and that gave Redfield a brief reprieve. Cudius, however, wasn't oo waste an opportunity. As soon as Shinsō retracted, Cudius pointed a fi Redfield.

  "Finger Pistol!" Cudius whispered.

  With his injured foot slowing him down, Redfield had no time to dodge. He crossed his arms over his chest, coating them in Armament Haki to block the blow. A sharp sting shot through his arms as Cudius's Finger Pistol teique hit home.

  Realizing he couldn't afford to let Cudius keep pressuring him from a distance, Redfield decided to close the gap. With a savage expression, he ighe pain in his foot and charged forward, prepared to endure whatever Kong threw at him if it meant sileng Cudius food.

  But just as he took his first steps, something pulled him back—thin, nearly invisible threads ed around his limbs, restraining his movement. Redfield's eyes darted around, and he spotted the source: Dofmingo standing off in the distance, his fiwitg as he maniputed the threads.

  "So, there's another one?" Redfield muttered, his instincts kig in just as a whip-like thread shed out, smashing through a frost-covered tree nearby.

  "Fufufufu… sharp reflexes," Dofmingo sneered, stepping out of the shadows.

  Redfield's eyes narrowed. He felt like he'd seen this man before, but he couldn't pce where. His immediate assumption was that Dofmingo was anover operative. Little did he know that his captor irate who'd once crossed into the New World.

  In that moment, Kong made his move. Using Soru, he appeared beside Redfield, throwing a powerful punch toward his head. Redfield, ed in Dofmingo's threads, lit sed too slow, and though he mao meet Kong's punch, he couldn't evade it entirely. The two exged brutal blows, both staggering back from the force.

  Kong was ko the ground, while Redfield took a powerful hit to his injured chest, coughing up blood and even fragments of his ans. Enraged, Redfield grabbed the threads binding him and yanked, pulling Dofmingo off bance.

  Dofmingo, whether from surprise ance, held onto the threads, and he ulled toward Redfield with shog speed.

  "Die!" Redfield roared, his hand transf into a cw, Armament Haki coating his fingers as he aimed for Dofmingo's heart.

  But as Redfield's cw closed in, Dofmingo twisted, ing himself around Redfield's body like an octopus. His face twisted into a wicked grin. "Cousin, now!" he shouted.

  "e String…" Cudius realized. In an instant, he used Soru to appear behind Redfield. Without hesitation, he drove his demon sword Shindō straight through both Redfield and Dofmingo.

  Redfield spat out blood as the bde pierced him, aried to retaliate. But Dofmingo's body began to unravel into tless white strings, binding Redfield tightly arig his movement. It wasn't Dofmingo at all—just his string e, an eborate ruse.

  For the real Dofmingo was a safe distance away, maniputing the strings with a grin on his face.

  Realizing he only had a few seds, Cudius tightened his grip on Redfield from behind, his muscles bulging with strain. "Embrace of Death!" Cudius growled, his arms flexing as he pinned Redfield in pce.

  Redfield's struggles grew weaker as an invisible force began to emanate from Cudius's body, his nitrogen powers sapping the air around them, creating a localized vacuum. It was as if all the oxygen had been drained, leaving Redfield gasping, yet uo draw a single breath.

  "What… what is this…?" Redfield choked, his voice barely audible. Panid disbelief filled his eyes as he felt the life draining out of him.

  Cudius's face was set in grim determination. He could feel Redfield's strength waning, his movements growing sluggish. They had almost won. Just a bit longer.

  In mere moments, from the time Kong had been knocked back, the tide had shifted dramatically. Kong staggered to his feet, steadying himself, and quickly closed the distao where Cudius had Redfield piogether, he and Cudius exerted their birength, ensuring that Redfield's st reserves were crushed.

  With Redfield's resistance fading, Cudius finally released his hold, stepping back to catch his breath. Blood was still dripping from his chest, but he managed a smile as he looked at Kong.

  "Redfield has been captured, Fleet Admiral Kong. I'd say that's a job well done."

  Kong grabbed Redfield by the neck, ensuring he was fully subdued. He looked over at Cudius, a weary but grateful smile crossing his face. "If it weren't for you and CP-X, this old man might've been outmatched. Thank you, Cudius."

  "What are you talking about? This was a joint missioween CP-X and Naval Headquarters. I just wao make sure you didn't take down Redfield so fast that I'd have no ce to show off," Cudius joked, his tone light but respectful, aowledging Kong's role without taking too much credit.

  Kong chuckled, appreciating the gesture. "Either way, I owe you one, Yhness. You saved me from a serious embarrassment."