New World, Sub-b Island.
The first line of defense for the Red-Haired Pirates against the Marines.
Countless pirates gathered at the port rushed towards their ships. How could they remain calm when their captain was so insulted by the Marines?
Ship after ship, led by the great pirates under Shanks, sailed towards the Marine base.
The shouts of battle boiled on the sea, and no one noticed the approaching danger...
----
Thousands of meters above, deep within the clouds.
The entire fleet confronting the Red-Haired Pirates' first line had gathered here.
Sot's face was grim as he controlled the fleet, hidden behind the clouds, moving slightly ahead of the pirate fleet on the sea below...
When the pirate ships departing the island became fewer and fewer...
Sot felt the time was right and his clear voice transmitted through the Den Den Mushi to the entire fleet:
"All hands, enter combat status, prepare to drop ordnance."
Using Observation Haki to sense the air and wind direction below...
The fleet quickly adjusted under their abilities. When it was almost time, Sot raised his right hand and waved forcefully:
"Release!!!"
This floating fleet, composed of dozens of warships each equipped with a thousand soldiers, poured out with full force, making the entire sky seem covered by dark clouds...
----
The pirates below.
They only felt the sudden darkness until a frightened shout...
"Look at the sky!!!!"
Pirates kept looking up, their eyes widening in fury...
"Run!!!"
Boom boom boom boom—
Explosions erupted, striking the landless sea and the pirate ships.
Above the pirate fleet, bubbles, cotton, or wild sword energy began to appear, blocking the cannonballs.
The leading great pirate, a user of the Paramecia-type Bubble-Bubble Fruit, Wallis, shouted:
"All ships, scatter!!!"
With a wave of his hand, countless bubbles emerged, covering the fleet. Cannonballs that fell into the bubbles had their force dissipated, drifting peacefully towards the sea before exploding.
After a brief moment of panic and correct orders, all ships scattered, and the casualties from the scattered cannonballs were effectively reduced.
But in this short time, one-third of the pirates' massive fleet was destroyed...
----
Above the clouds.
Seeing the pirate fleet scattered below and no longer posing an effective threat, Sot commanded:
"Everyone! Prepare!!!"
The soldiers orderly organized the ammunition boxes, stacked them securely, and waited...
When it was almost time, dozens of warships abruptly lurched, then dove down at extreme speed.
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—
The sound of warships breaking through the clouds echoed, and ship after ship, with an unstoppable aura, charged towards the sea...
Sot smiled and nodded to Ain beside him.
Ain also smiled, walked behind Sot, and jumped directly, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Sot's entire body floated, drawing a perfect arc as they dove down, the Justice cloaks behind them fluttering rapidly in the wind, accompanied by a hail of cannonballs...
Sot, with Ain, led the dive, clearly able to target the surviving pirate ships.
Swish swish swish—
The cannonballs behind them converged into strings, flying towards the pirate ships below.
But most were blocked by bubbles or exploding cotton. Wallis's enraged voice boomed:
"You're asking for death!!!"
A giant bubble rose into the air, charging towards Sot.
Boom—！！！！
A fierce explosion, compressed airflow raged, and Sot was momentarily halted.
Beneath the explosion, several powerful pirates broke through the airflow and rushed forward.
Sot parried the attacks of the two advancing figures, batted them away, surged forward, broke through them, and charged towards Wallis, who was emitting the bubbles.
Clang!
Fist against fist, imbued with Armament Haki, collided.
Sot flipped his hands, directly gripping Wallis's wrist tightly.
Wallis's mouth parted slightly, and a maximally compressed bubble appeared from his mouth...
Ain suddenly floated out from behind Sot, her hands imbued with her ability, pressing them onto Wallis:
"Retrograde, retrograde!!"
Wallis's pupils constricted as his bodily functions continuously regressed, a strong sense of discomfort arising.
This made him unable to control his body or the bubble in his mouth...
He watched helplessly as Sot's fingers pierced his heart... and darkness engulfed him.
Bang!
The bubble exploded, his head splitting like a watermelon, turning into a mist of blood.
Ain soared into the sky, floating at the edge of the battlefield.
The pirates, lacking information, were ambushed and killed by Ain, an inconspicuous, transparent figure within the Marines...
The remaining individuals who had surrounded them paused:
"Don't let that woman touch you!!!"
Then they attacked Sot again, sword energy and abilities exploding, while Ain occasionally emerged to interfere...
Below.
The close-quarters combat between the Marines and pirates was about to begin...
Boom boom boom—
Explosions erupted everywhere, and some of the diving warships crashed directly onto those pirate ships.
Under immense pressure, the pirate ships were snapped in half and sank into the sea, but many that missed their targets crashed near the pirate ships.
The powerful impact made all the soldiers somewhat uncomfortable, but after much training, they were accustomed to it. While the pirates were still shocked and stunned.
The officers on the warships recovered first, drawing their swords and shouting:
"For Justice!!!"
With a stomp of their feet, they charged out, killing their way towards the pirates.
Continual shouts brought the soldiers back to their senses, and they picked up their weapons and charged towards the adjacent pirate ships.
"Kill!!!!"
------------
New World, Unnamed Sea.
On the Red-Haired Pirates' ship, the Red Force.
Crimson and deep blue Haki clashed here, the fierce battle causing extensive damage to the ship's hull.
At times, domineering red Haki pressed down, almost tangible.
At times, deep blue phantom demons roared and swept back in counterattack.
Barrett had entered the Great Ashura King's demonic energy mode, his face like an Asura. Several wounds marred his body, some deep enough to expose bone, all from sword strikes.
With the speed boost from the Amplify-Amplify Fruit, almost no one could land a hit on him except Shanks.
Shanks could cut Barrett only because Barrett's Observation Haki couldn't sense Shanks's presence. When Barrett was evading or attacking others, Shanks would deliver a finishing blow...
This was the terrifying effect of Observation Killing; even someone as strong as Barrett couldn't sense it...
However, reinforcements had arrived...
The dark clouds shattered by Conqueror's Haki in the sky had somehow reformed, flashing with lightning.
Rumble—
A deafening sound swept across the sea.
A long spear, wreathed in countless bolts of lightning, descended from the sky:
"Spear of Thunder!!!"