Chapter 527: The Continuation of the War (5)
"Charge in and stabilize the lines! We can't let Pops down!"
With that, Jozu transformed into his diamond form and plunged into the fray. Seeing this, the others grit their teeth, grabbed their weapons, and followed him in.
The arrival of Jozu's fresh force quickly brought a semblance of order back to the Whitebeard Pirates' ranks, and they gradually settled into a war of attrition with the Marines once more. But in the brief period of chaos, the Marines had killed at least a thousand more pirates.
The war had now raged for a full day. The Marines had broken through the Whitebeard Pirates' formation multiple times, killing no fewer than ten thousand of their crew. In contrast, the Marines had lost only about a thousand men. This, of course, did not include the casualties from the Kingdom Allied Army.
A casualty ratio of nearly five to one.
Just over ten thousand Marines were firmly suppressing more than forty thousand Whitebeard Pirates. This outcome was far beyond what any of the Marines had expected.
Before the war began, every Marine had assumed that the toughest nuts to crack would be the Whitebeard Pirates and the Rockefeller Pirates. And they were half right; the Rockefeller Pirates lived up to their reputation as an iron-walled fortress, fighting the Marines to a standstill.
But what was going on with the Whitebeard Pirates? The fierce resistance they had anticipated never materialized. They crumbled at the first touch, a performance that utterly failed to match their formidable reputation.
Thinking of this, Vice Admiral Momonga glanced into the distance, where Whitebeard was locked in battle with the Marine Hero, Monkey D. Garp.
Perhaps, he mused, the only truly terrifying thing about the Whitebeard Pirates was Whitebeard himself.
With that thought, Momonga turned his attention back to the battlefield. He had to annihilate the Whitebeard Pirates and then move to support the other fronts. The report from the Big Mom Pirates' front had been clear: their resistance was incredibly strong. The fact that Vice Admiral Onigumo had already expended over twenty thousand allied soldiers without breaking their blockade of fire spoke volumes. Momonga knew Onigumo's capabilities were no less than his own; if even he was at a loss, their opponent's defense must be formidable.
So, what was the situation on the Rockefeller Pirates' front? Momonga didn't know the details, but he was certain they were no paper tiger like the Whitebeard crew.
The messenger quickly led the thirty thousand allied soldiers to Vice Admiral Onigumo's position. Onigumo was overjoyed to see these fresh troops. But then his thoughts turned to the Whitebeard front. For Momonga to send him so much support meant that his own offensive was going exceptionally well; he was confident enough to take on the Whitebeard Pirates with just over ten thousand men. Though Onigumo didn't know where Momonga got that confidence, he wasn't about to refuse the reinforcements that had been sent. He immediately began arranging the next wave of attacks.
This development did not go unnoticed by the Big Mom Pirates.
"Sister, the Marines have another thirty thousand reinforcements. This isn't looking good for us," one of the Charlotte children said, frowning at the dense mass of soldiers gathering in the distance.
"Damn it, what the hell are the Whitebeard Pirates doing?" Smoothie hissed, clearly seeing that the troops had come from that front. "How could they let the Marines spare so many men to deal with us? Are they trying to break the alliance?"
They were fighting on the open sea, and though the water was frozen, the view was vast. They could faintly make out the distant battlefield of the Whitebeard Pirates.
"Sister, now is not the time for that," Perospero said gravely, taking advantage of a lull in the fighting to relay a message from his subordinates. "Our ammunition won't last much longer. The Marines are attacking without any regard for their casualties. We've killed a lot of them, but we've expended a massive amount of ammo. If they keep up this intensity, we won't have enough to last through tomorrow!"
"What did you say, brother? We're low on ammo?" Smoothie shot up from her seat. The Big Mom Pirates' low casualty rate was entirely thanks to their overwhelming supply of ammunition. The news that it was running out was a shock she couldn't afford.
Perospero gave a bitter smile, pointing first to the mountain of corpses and then to a Gatling gun. "This thing is a money-eating beast. It fires six hundred rounds a minute. No amount of logistics can keep up with that!" he complained.
Smoothie was silent for a moment. "Tell the men to be more conservative with their shots," she said, waving her hand dismissively. In the end, it would come down to blades.
At this thought, Smoothie's hand went to the hilt of her sword. She glanced toward the Rockefeller Pirates' front. Through the faint, flickering firelight, she could see a cold, imposing young woman cut down countless lives with a single swing of her sword.
"Hah..." Smoothie sighed.
"The Marines are attacking! Everyone, be careful!" the lookout suddenly shouted.
Smoothie's expression instantly hardened. "All hands, prepare for battle!"
At her command, every fire point focused on the shadowy figures moving in the darkness.
"Fire!" Smoothie ordered.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
The muzzles flashed like serpents' tongues, spitting fire and reaping a harvest of lives in the night. Countless men fell under the hail of bullets.
Back in the Marine command tent, Vice Admiral Onigumo could clearly feel a change through his Observation Haki.
"The pirates' firepower seems to have weakened!" he said, a note of uncertainty in his voice.
"It has weakened," the three other Vice Admirals nodded in agreement.
"Excellent! The moment their fire stops, send in our Marine elites. This time, I'll wipe them out in one fell swoop!" Onigumo declared, striking his fist into his palm. To think that he, Onigumo, had been held up for so long by a single Big Mom crew, even having to call for reinforcements... it was a humiliation. He had to wash this shame away with the blood of the Big Mom Pirates.
Time trickled by. In the darkness, countless lives were extinguished on the path of the advance.
Slowly, the sky began to brighten as the first slivers of dawn appeared on the horizon. The road that Onigumo had paved with innumerable lives was finally open.
Click.
A machine gunner pulled the trigger, but the expected roar of gunfire never came.
"What's wrong? Is it jammed?" the gunner wondered aloud.
But when the other machine gunners around him also failed to fire, they all understood.
They were out of bullets.
"Smoothie, the ammunition is gone," Perospero reported, coming to her side.
Smoothie said nothing, but simply drew the longsword from her waist.
"We may be out of bullets, but we still have our swords! Big Mom Pirates, charge!" she roared to her crew.
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