Crack!
After Admiral Aokiji froze the massive tsunami waves unleashed by Whitebeard, he was struck directly by Whitebeard himself, shattered like crushed ice and blasted into the sea.
Crack, crack...
From the area where Admiral Aokiji fell, bone‑chilling frost rapidly spread across the surface of the water. In a matter of moments, the entire crescent‑shaped inner bay surrounding Marineford's docks was solid ice.
With the sea thoroughly frozen, some of the Whitebeard Pirates' leading pirate ships, along with Marine warships, were trapped in the ice. Their ability to maneuver to avoid cannon fire was gone.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The previously silent Marine cannons erupted into action.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
From both Marineford and the Marine fleet, enormous cannon muzzles spewed scorching flame. Relentlessly, terrifying shells blasted toward the pirate fleet.
Rumble! Rumble, rumble!
Black, thunderous cannonballs plowed into the frozen pirate ships, detonating on contact and tearing holes in hulls. Some were intercepted and exploded in the air by powerful pirate forces.
"Fire the cannons! Counter the Marine bombardment! Destroy their fortifications!"
"Boom!"
"Rumble!"
"Bang!"
The pirates refused to be passive. Their own cannons trained on the Marine artillery positions and Marine warships, returning fire with volleys of dark shot.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Some shots collided in mid‑air, creating enormous explosions.
Boom!
Marine warships groaned under constant bombardment, struck and set aflame.
"Don't retreat! The Vice Admirals are doing everything they can to help block these falling shots!"
"For Justice! Shatter the ships of these despicable pirates!"
"Justice will prevail!"
Even though the Marines' artillery held an advantage, both sides were locked in fierce conflict. The naval infantry and artillery crews at Marineford roared as they fired relentlessly at the Whitebeard Pirates' forces. Each cannon loader wished for another arm to keep feeding the shells into the muzzles.
"Damn it! We're frozen in place, we can't dodge!"
"The fire won't stop, this ship is wrecked! Brothers, charge with me! The ice is our path, we strike Marineford!"
Many of the Whitebeard Pirates' vessels were shattered and immobilized, prevented from sinking only by the frozen sea. The Whitebeard Commanders who had reached Marineford's inner bay leapt from their own ships, leading charges toward the Marine positions.
"Charge! Charge Marineford! Rescue Ace!"
"Charge! Destroy these filthy Marines! Ace, we're coming!"
"Kill these Marine sons of bitches! How dare they trouble the Whitebeard Pirates? They're asking for death!"
Clusters of pirates surged forward alongside the Commanders.
"Charge! The Commanders are in, follow them and attack!"
"Go! Kill those Marines! I've plundered many, but never Marineford! Charge! Plunder them!"
Pirates from other ships abandoned their vessels and poured onto the ice, launching a savage assault even as Marine bullets rained down.
On the Marine side, Vice Admirals instantly leapt onto the ice, meeting the pirate commanders head‑on.
Swish! Swish!
Several Marine Vice Admirals stood at the front lines. Calm, composed, some smoking cigars or cigarettes, they wielded their weapons with unshakeable focus and drove back the pirate commanders.
"This path is blocked!"
"Forget it! We will not let you through!"
"Whitebeard Pirates' Commanders, this is your grave!"
"Trash pirates, you die here!"
Thus began a bloody, close‑quarters melee on the frozen surface of the inner harbor. Marines and pirate leaders clashed, commander against commander. The battlefield stretched far and wide.
As the Marine Vice Admirals led their forces, the hundred thousand Marines who had stood in the plaza rushed down onto the ice. They engaged the ferocious and savage pirates, creating chaotic skirmishes that multiplied across the battlefield.
From above, the scene was a mass of white‑clad Marines colliding with the multicolored ranks of pirates. The two forces intertwined, indistinguishable in the frenzy of battle.
For now it seemed the pirates held the upper hand. In the first lines of contact, the white ranks of Marines had already fallen back in great numbers. The pirates' momentum was overwhelming.
Part of this advantage came from the Marines' forces being spread too thin, and the Marines had yet to unleash their most powerful assets. The few Seven Warlords of the Sea present, each capable of extraordinary feats, remained motionless behind the lines, watching the carnage with something close to cold amusement instead of stepping forward to fight.
"Interesting! Very interesting!"
On the VIP observation deck in Marineford's secure zone, Shirogai Yamikuro had his legs propped up on a dining table. He munched on an apple, smiling as he watched the chaotic ice battlefield unfold in the distance.
Although he had seen the Marineford War in the anime before, observing it from within the actual world was an entirely different experience.
"What a fascinating battle…"
As wreckage littered the ice and crimson stained the white surface, Shirogai's smile deepened.
"Please, fight to your heart's content! Kill! The more who fall, the better! The more brutal the battle, the better!"
His expression turned more unrestrained, almost maniacal, like a mastermind watching his grand design unfold.
"Die. The more who die, the better. This operation demands your frenzy."
"Huh?"
The Celestial Dragon Saint Izn Baron Vimicong, who had been cheering at the cannon fire, suddenly felt a chill. It was as if a monstrous presence stared directly at her.
She turned, confused, to see an empty seat beside her.
Then her vision shot upward.
At a high altitude, on the edge of the misty White Sea, a warship drifted quietly. Its hull bore a white dove insignia — a ship no one in the world had seen before.
"The Whitebeard Pirates have engaged the Marines!"
A dark figure stared at the image on the screen, a strange smile curling his lips.
"Are you ready?"
Another shadow stepped forward, voice low and confident.
"Fleet Admiral, according to the teacher's previous instructions, everything is prepared."
"That's good…"
The first figure focused on the clashes on the screen, grinning with menace.
"Everything is unfolding just as the man predicted. Our time to step onto the stage is nearly here."
He paused, then sneered with disdain.
"The era of the Marines' sole dominance and world supremacy is over. The 'Justice' they preach is nothing but a falsehood used to deceive the world."
Whoosh!
He flicked the white cape on his shoulder, full of self‑assured fervor.
"Only we, as envisioned by that man, are the future of this world. The word 'Justice' will be rewritten by us in a new chapter! The old Marines will be scorned and abandoned by all, buried like refuse in history!"
The figure behind him, eyes shining with admiration, spoke in a low voice.
"That's right! Teacher foresaw everything happening today long ago!"
As he stared at the battle scene, flames began to dance around his body.
Boom!
He murmured heatedly:
"True justice in this world is never born of weakness. The Marines' justice in the Blue Sea is no real justice; it is merely the hegemony of the powerful! Teacher, I will burn this world down and forge true rebirth through unyielding struggle!"
Boom!
The raging orange‑red flames illuminated his form, revealing his true appearance — a young man in white warrior attire, dark red hair and eyes full of fierce resolve.
This was the War Demon Wyper, a Shandia warrior!
Ten thousand meters above the ground, a colossal command ship shaped like a roaring cloud dragon floated silently above the White Sea.
Sixty Sky Island warships hovered in formation above it. On each deck stood Sky Island warriors and Shandia fighters, clad in uniform helmets and military attire, staring forward with calm determination.
Gone was the old racial hatred that once divided them. Those assembled were no longer Rangers, Priests, or Divine Soldiers. They shared a single identity: the Sky Island Air Force.
Fifty thousand strong and distributed among the sixty warships, the Air Force gripped golden‑glowing long spears — advanced weapons unique to Sky Island.
These "Cloud Spears" were hybrid arms, capable of firing projectiles at range and unleashing scorching flame in close quarters. The cloud shell components could extend the spear into a sword‑like form in battle.
These weapons were superior to ordinary firearms and blades used in the Blue Sea.
The Air Force also wore cloaks woven from special cloud shell silkworm fibers. Unlike Marine Justice cloaks, these bore the large characters "Peace" on their backs.
These Peace cloaks were strategic gear — lightweight but capable of absorbing and reflecting both impact and cutting force thanks to integrated Dial and Impact Dial technology.
If Marine Soldiers had such cloaks, the battle at Marineford might be completely different. The Whitebeard Pirates would be overwhelmed by the combined strength of the Sky Island Air Force.
At this moment, neither the Marines nor the Whitebeard Pirates knew that far above them a third force waited like a mantis stalking a cicada, eyes fixed greedily on the unfolding conflict.
They awaited the perfect moment to descend from the skies and seize ultimate victory.
No one on the battlefield below could have expected an enemy to appear not from the sea or underwater, but from above.
When the Sky Island Air Force finally made its presence known, the world itself would be shocked. Sea trade routes would no longer be the only option. The invention of traveling across the world through artificial cloud seas in the air would change everything.
Marine hegemony would crumble the moment the Sky Island Air Force descended.
Nations not allied with the World Government, once unable to survive without it, would gain their own secure networks and futures.
The World Government, having lost absolute control of the seas, would face backlash from all corners of the world.
Sky Island was no longer just a floating land. After the arrival of several mysterious scientists, it had rapidly developed technologies centuries ahead of the Blue Sea. The island's soil now supported green plants, and its inhabitants thrived without fear of famine or drought.
Gone were the days when Sky Island lived under divine rule. Now its people lived free lives shaped by their own efforts.
"God is no longer the faith Sky Island needs. Diligence is the faith Sky Island needs."
This phrase, spoken by the former "God" Gan Fall, had become deeply cherished across Sky Island.
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