A puff of white smoke erupted from the Marine's chest, powder dusting the canvas of the ship. He fell like a bird, landing on the deck in a bloody mess.
"Sniper! It's a sniper!"
"Damn it, everyone on alert, prepare to fire!" Isuka watched as the man was carried below, feeling panicked. It was no longer time to think about the Spade Pirates; it was time to focus on this pirate crew.
"Report, it's the Devils Luck Pirates. Their captain, Devils Luck, has a bounty of around 50 million Berries, but they have a large number of fighters, over two hundred."
The intelligence officer immediately reported to Isuka.
"Two hundred, no problem, we're stronger! Fire, sink them!" Seeing the cannonballs loaded, Isuka didn't hesitate to draw her Marine sword, pointing towards the Devils Luck Pirates.
"Bang bang bang..." Continuous cannon fire erupted.
The accuracy of cannons in this era, combined with the waves, was questionable. Canons had a range of 500 meters, but Marine regulations stipulated 300 meters because accuracy was difficult to control. Isuka had given the order late; at 300 meters, they had two volleys, but at 200 meters, only one.
After one volley, they would have to prepare for boarding.
Most Marines didn't strictly follow this rule—because at sea, they were always chasing pirates.
Marines always wanted to fire as many volleys as possible.
But now, the enemy wasn't fleeing; they were slowly approaching, clearly with malicious intent. The boarding action was unavoidable.
The Marines were eager for battle, not afraid of boarding actions—even though most of them were cannon fodder at sea.
The cannonballs were unreliable. Ten cannons on one side only hit twice, one even tearing through the canvas and flying far away. Only one exploded near the bow of the opposing ship, sending splinters flying.
The flying wood chips and splinters flew everywhere, even Ace instinctively ducked, but he saw the pirates standing rigidly on deck, not a single one faltering.
"Amazing..." Even 'Teacher' Mihar had to admire the pirates' discipline. He didn't know what these pirates had been through, but this unwavering discipline alone surpassed most people in the world.
Several pirates were hit by splinters, bleeding profusely from their arms and bodies, but they gritted their teeth, remaining motionless.
Clearly, any movement would result in even more terrifying and painful treatment.
"Open fire!" When the two ships were a hundred meters apart, Alistair shouted.
Ten cannons, already positioned on this side, fully loaded, fired instantly. This time, four out of ten cannonballs hit their target, striking the enemy ship squarely.
The enemy warship's hull was instantly blasted with four large holes, swaying precariously, as if about to sink.
But four holes on the side were insufficient to sink a warship. The ship's waterline was also very high, so sinking it would require at least three or four volleys, and that's without considering Devil Fruit users, like Luffy, where cannons would be meaningless.
Therefore, cannon fire was rarely used as the primary means of attack, mostly for support.
After all, this was a world that valued individual strength.
Everyone firmly believed this.
No one believed in the power of the masses, the power of the weak, or the power of numbers.
But today, Alistair was going to change that.
"Close in! Don't be afraid!" Cannonballs that didn't explode on the deck were useless, only creating holes in the hull without affecting the Marines' combat ability.
Even now, the Marines had brought up the gunners from below. A 50 million Berry bounty pirate crew wasn't something they could handle by dividing their forces.
All the Marines were on high alert on the deck, their planks raised. Their ship was about a person's length from the other. Although their firepower was stronger, their ship was smaller and carried fewer troops.
This wasn't a disadvantage. First, Marine ships were fast. Second, in naval battles, they had a great advantage in both pursuit and escape. Finally, in large-scale naval battles, they could deploy more warships and troops in a small area, unlike pirates, where each ship was a fortress.
As the two ships drew closer, the silence from the other ship was unsettling, but Isuka gritted her teeth, charging forward with her sword.
Three large planks were lifted by a dozen men and placed on the other ship's railing, but no one came to try and destroy or block them. The silence was terrifying.
The Marines, wielding guns and swords, followed Isuka's lead, but were stunned by the sight before them.
Hundreds of neatly lined-up pirates, arranged by height and build, held rows of muskets. The first rank was half-crouching, the second rank aimed at them.
Sixteen muskets formed a wall of firepower. In the next second, countless blood blossoms erupted on the Marines, the seven or eight Marines who had charged forward instantly falling to the ground.
Some were dead, some injured, but it didn't matter.
More Marines charged from behind, but the sixteen pirates put away their guns, turning back without looking.
A Marine, still alive, struggled to his feet, watching sixteen others step forward, taking their previous positions, half-crouching and raising their guns, aiming without hesitation at the second wave of Marines. In less than a second, they completed a second volley…
The ranks behind them seemed endless. Sixteen more stepped out, aiming at the third wave of charging Marines…
"No! No!" Isuka, injured and fallen to the ground by the first volley, cried out in tears, "Don't come any closer!"
"Stop slaughtering my men!!"
Yes, this was nothing more than a massacre.
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