Along the towering walls of the war fortress, almost every stretch of battlements was guarded by a Giant Vice Admiral.
Each of the Giant officers stood ramrod-straight, faces grim and heavy, like pillars hammered into the stone.
Beside them, Marines draped in Justice coats waited in perfect formation. The air itself felt weighed down, tight with pressure.
At the highest point of G-1 Base, in front of the tallest building, Fleet Admiral "Steel Bone" Kong stood with arms crossed. The thick cords of muscle on his forearms bulged as his sharp gaze locked onto the sea.
"Pirate fleet spotted!"
The lookout's report sent a ripple through the entire base. The Marines' throats went dry. Sweat beaded on faces almost instantly.
Through the telescope
The moment the lookout caught sight of that familiar figure, he shouted hoarsely, "It's Golden Lion Shiki, a captain of the Rocks Pirates!"
"And Bloodhand Tengetsu Ares, Kaido the Beast !"
"Other than them… we don't see Rocks, Whitebeard, or the others!"
The lookout relayed every recognizable name he could make out, voice tight with urgency.
"Looks like the vanguard force," Kong said, pulling out a Den Den Mushi to issue orders. "All units, hold your sectors. Stay alert for an ambush from Rocks's main force."
Then his command followed, cold and precise:
"Do not fire until the enemy enters artillery range!"
Out at Sea
Twenty to thirty pirate ships advanced across the waves like a moving steel beast no attempt at concealment. They sailed straight into the Navy's field of vision.
On the flagship of Shiki's fleet
Kaido, his kanabo slung over his shoulder, couldn't hide his excitement. He stepped forward and asked eagerly:
"Captain Shiki, let me take the lead! I'll break G-1 open for you!"
The scent of war made his blood surge.
And if he earned merit at the front, he'd take the biggest slice of spoils too.
"Fine," Shiki grinned. "You'll lead the first charge."
He knew Kaido's strength. This kid was already not weaker than some captain-level monsters and his reputation as a brute wasn't exaggerated.
With Kaido smashing the front, breaking into G-1 should be smooth.
Kaido's face lit up at once. He laughed, wild and loud.
"Wororororo… it's just a Marine base! When we attack Mary Geoise one day, I'll be the vanguard too I'll fight until my bones sing!"
"Watch me tear G-1 apart!"
Shiki was just as arrogant. A mere base wasn't worth fearing.
"Shihahahaha… G-1 is only an appetizer. Rocks has declared full-scale war on the World Government."
"Bigger wars are waiting for us."
"Take G-1 first give the Marines and the World Government a slap to the face!"
The pirates on deck howled like a pack of wolves.
And then
A thunderous roar rolled in.
The cannons of G-1 fired.
Boom ! Boom !
In the blink of an eye, dozens of shells tore through the sky. Each one was several times larger than a standard round, and the power matched its size.
Boom ! Boom !
The pirate ships bucked violently in the roughened sea. Waves exploded up and drenched the decks, soaking pirates from head to toe.
Worse still two ships were hit cleanly.
Wood splintered into storms. Thick black smoke rose. Screams and wailing filled the air, and pirates tumbled into the sea, flailing like drowning birds.
Some pirate ships returned fire, cannon mouths belching dark shells.
Boom ! Boom !
But not a single shot landed on the walls.
Every shell fell short, blasting craters into the ground instead.
The Navy's technology was far ahead. Their artillery range and firepower crushed the pirates' cannons outright.
"Full speed ahead!"
"Evade the cannon fire!"
Shiki's expression darkened as he barked orders. There was only one solution close the distance, land troops, seize the walls.
As for the ships being sunk?
Shiki didn't care.
He didn't order rescues. In his eyes, there was only one goal take G-1 Base.
Shiki turned toward Ares.
"Getting pounded like this is unacceptable. When did pirates ever fight so damned suffocated?"
"Ares use your power. Hit them from long range. Show the Marines some color!"
The Navy was using firepower to suppress them.
Then the pirates would suppress the Navy with firepower.
But in that category…
They needed the Azure Dragon.
"Alright."
Before everyone's eyes, Tengetsu Ares transformed his body surging and twisting into a majestic blue dragon, soaring into the sky.
The clear heavens turned in an instant.
Dark clouds rolled in like an iron tide, swallowing the sunlight until the entire island dimmed.
Lightning crawled through the clouds in tangled root-like veins.
The enormous blue dragon coiled within the thunderheads, hundreds of meters long, moving like an ancient feral beast that made the air itself feel thin.
Black clouds pressed down on the city like a collapsing sky.
Inside G-1 Base
Marines went pale. Cold sweat drenched their backs.
"So this is a Mythical Zoan… Azure Dragon…" Gion's face turned faintly white. Even from over a thousand meters away, that dragon's aura clawed at her chest, making her body stiffen.
Tsuru's expression tightened. Her voice sharpened.
"That is Bloodhand Tengetsu Ares. Once he uses his Devil Fruit, he'll unleash thunderous attacks. All units raise your defenses!"
"Do not let the pirates seize the momentum!"
As a Vice Admiral, she understood too well: at this level, a casual strike could wipe out thousands. One wrong response would cost the Navy dearly.
"Ares really came," Garp muttered, cracking his knuckles. Bone and tendon snapped with sharp sounds. "Then I'll show him what I've been grinding these days."
Garp was like Roger in that way each setback only made him fiercer.
Maybe it was simply how the Monkey family was built.
They didn't go down easily.
Even if they stumbled, they would claw their way up, becoming stronger until they crushed the obstacle in front of them.
Unbreakable. Unyielding.
After his last clash with Ares left him frustrated, Garp had trained like a madman forcing more power into his fists.
"Dragon… Breath!!!"
In the sky, Ares opened his maw fangs and jagged teeth bared.
A brilliant spark gathered deep in his throat.
Then
A beam of scorching flame erupted, like a blazing sword of light that pierced heaven and earth.
Orange-red fire lit up the world, stealing the minds of countless Marines painting their fear in merciless clarity.
Before such overwhelming force…
Even Marine Colonels, even Giant Vice Admirals and Vice Admirals, didn't know how to resist an attack that looked capable of ending the world.
In that instant, they understood their own smallness.
A cannon shell clipped the flaming beam
And vanished.
Melted into nothing.
Just as terror and despair spread through the ranks
A massive figure leapt into the air.
In the next heartbeat, that figure became a towering, radiant golden Buddha, solemn and majestic.
The Marines' spirits snapped upright. Their faces flared with relief.
The one who had moved was the Marine Admiral
Sengoku.
"Buddha… Shockwave!!!"
A palm of blinding golden light slammed forward.
A huge sphere of brilliance formed compressed air condensing within, carrying frightening destructive power.
It collided head-on with Ares's Dragon Breath.
BOOM !!
The explosion cracked the sky like a thunderbolt.
Fire erupted outward, splintering into massive blazing globes that rained down like a fiery snowstorm.
Some Marines couldn't dodge in time.
They were swallowed by flame, screamed a few times then fell silent forever.
Other officers struck the fireballs aside, or extinguished them.
Garp positioned himself in front of Tsuru and threw a punch at a descending fireball, shattering it midair.
"How terrifying…" Sweat slid down Gion's face. The flames reflected on her pale skin, tinting it red like polished ruby. "If Admiral Sengoku hadn't blocked it… that strike might've punched straight through G-1 Base…"
Her mood sank like stone.
"This is only the vanguard. And Ares alone is already this frightening…"
"If the full Rocks Pirates arrive… what kind of hell will this battlefield become?"
As a Marine Colonel, this was the first time she'd ever touched a war of this scale.
"Gion," Tsuru said quietly, a rare warmth in her sternness. "The strong on their side will be handled by the strong on ours."
"But the fighting will only grow more intense from here."
"On a battlefield like this, the only one who can truly protect you… is you."
"Be careful."
Even Tsuru couldn't promise she'd be able to shield Gion once chaos fully erupted.
Just then
Kong's voice came through the Den Den Mushi, hard as steel:
"All units, attention enemy ships have reached the shore!"
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