Chapter 528: The Continuation of the War (6)
With Katakuri otherwise engaged, Smoothie had taken command of the Big Mom Pirates. As her voice rang out, the crew's commanders, who had been waiting with weapons in hand, eagerly stepped forward.
"Hahahaha! I've been waiting all day for this! My hands have been itching for a fight!" Cracker exclaimed. He and Oven had been held back by Smoothie's orders, and now that she had finally given the command to attack, they were ecstatic.
On the other side, hearing the gunfire gradually die out, a smirk spread across Vice Admiral Onigumo's face. He drew the twin swords from his waist.
"Soldiers! Guardians of Justice!" he roared to the ten thousand elite Marines who had rested all night, poised for this moment. "The pirates have lost their sharpest fangs! Charge with me! Slay the pirates! For Justice!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill! For Justice!"
The three-part roar was a thunderous battle cry that thoroughly galvanized the morale of every Marine. The soldiers, who had been drowsy in the early morning light, were instantly filled with boiling passion. The earth-shaking shout drew the attention of everyone in the sea region to this, the main battlefield.
"Mamamamama!" Charlotte Linlin took a moment to glance over at her own crew. Seeing the field of bodies piled up before them, she let out a wicked laugh. It was clear the Big Mom Pirates had the advantage; the mountain of corpses exceeded forty thousand.
Sengoku also looked over, and a single glance was enough to make his face darken. What is Kizaru doing? How could so many have died? Even though the dead were all soldiers from the Kingdom Allied Army, such heavy losses would be difficult to explain later.
"Kill!"
Onigumo, oblivious to the Fleet Admiral's displeasure, charged excitedly towards the Big Mom Pirates.
Smoothie led Cracker, along with her many brothers, sisters, and their subordinate forces, to meet the Marine charge head-on. Although Smoothie's own strength was not on par with Cracker's—she was merely at the level of a master swordsman—she was in command for two reasons. First, Katakuri's final instruction was for everyone to listen to her. Second, Smoothie was level-headed and possessed sufficient strength. Katakuri was more at ease leaving the command to her than to the more impetuous Cracker or even Perospero.
The two armies officially clashed.
Cracker immediately locked onto Onigumo, who was leading the charge. In an instant, his Biscuit Soldiers swarmed forward, seeking to cut the Vice Admiral off from the rest of the Marine force. This was Smoothie's plan. After a full day and night of fighting, she knew exactly who her opponent was and understood their command structure. The plan was to have Cracker immediately tie down Onigumo, the enemy's main force.
As Cracker surrounded Onigumo, Smoothie, Perospero, Oven, and the others intercepted the other three Vice Admirals, instantly severing the Marine officers' control over their rank-and-file troops. Of course, this meant Smoothie and her commanders were also cut off from their own forces, but it was all going according to her plan, progressing step by step.
Onigumo watched the Biscuit Soldiers close in around him, his longswords flashing. But when his blades struck the biscuits, it was like hitting solid steel. The impact sent a numbing vibration up his arms.
A grin spread across Cracker's face. "Roll Pretzel!"
He spun his longsword, Pretzel, in a high-speed rotation, coating it with Armament Haki and thrusting forward. Onigumo quickly raised his swords to block. To his surprise, however, the surrounding Biscuit Soldiers mimicked Cracker's attack, thrusting their own swords at him. The Vice Admiral hastily rolled to parry, but a blade still managed to slice through his uniform.
"Heheheh, let's see how you like being swarmed!" Cracker cackled, pressing his attack. The Biscuit Soldiers relentlessly assaulted Onigumo from all sides. He was completely outnumbered, and the situation was becoming incredibly difficult. Facing the assault of one of the Big Mom Pirates' Three Sweet Commanders was taxing enough. As he dodged and weaved, Onigumo couldn't help but wish he had a few extra arms.
Despite the constant danger from Cracker's attacks, Onigumo managed to hold on, waiting for an opportunity, a flaw in the enemy's offense, or for reinforcements to arrive.
The Big Mom Pirates' plan was proceeding as intended, but it was clear that a decisive result would not come quickly. With the top-tier fighters on both sides locked in their own battles, the fight between the lower ranks began. Over thirty thousand of the Big Mom Pirates' soldiers clashed with more than ten thousand elite Marines. The scale and tenacity of this battle were beyond what the Marines had imagined. The two sides were locked in a brutal struggle, and it was impossible to gain an advantage. The battlefield had reached a stalemate.
With the Whitebeard Pirates in full retreat and the Big Mom Pirates locked in a stalemate, the scales of the entire war were now tipping towards the Rockefeller Pirates.
With Esdeath leading the charge and a fresh wave of rested soldiers entering the field, the Rockefeller Pirates tore through the Marines' final defensive formation like a hot knife through butter.
"Hold the line! Hold the line! To endure is to win!" the Marine Vice Admiral in command shouted desperately, but chaos was already spreading through the ranks.
Faced with wave after wave of attacks, with Esdeath acting as the arrowhead, one Marine after another was cut down. The formation collapsed in an instant.
"Kill!" Esdeath roared, seizing the opportunity to press her advantage. Raising her magnificent holy sword, Sanction, she charged toward the unfamiliar Vice Admiral at the heart of the Marine formation. He was clearly another of the older generation, a contemporary of Garp and Sengoku, pulled from the brink of retirement back onto the battlefield by Fleet Admiral Kong.
"Die!"
Her sword flashed out, moving with the speed of light to slice across the Vice Admiral's throat.
"No! Vice Admiral Dylan has been killed! The Ice Queen is coming! Run!" someone screamed.
The Marine soldiers, who had been barely holding together, broke and scattered in the next moment.
"Help me! Don't kill me!"
Countless fleeing soldiers fell under the swords of the Rockefeller Pirates.
"Kill!" Esdeath bellowed again, plunging into the routing army.
In that moment, the battlefield was filled with the silhouettes of fleeing Marines. Cries of agony and weeping filled the air, but the only answer they received was the cold, merciless steel of the Rockefeller Pirates and the icy edge of Esdeath's blade.
The slaughter was over quickly. The disorganized, fleeing army was like loose sand, easily wiped clean by the Rockefeller Pirates.
"Damn you, Rockefeller!"
Witnessing this scene, Fleet Admiral Kong roared, slamming a furious fist towards Charlotte.
A smirk played on Charlotte's lips as he dodged the blow rather than meeting it head-on. Only a fool would try to block that punch, fueled as it was by pure rage.
"Just watch, Kong, as your soldiers are slaughtered to the last man," Charlotte's arrogant voice echoed in Kong's ear. "You're about to become a Fleet Admiral with no fleet. Of course... whether or not you'll even make it back to be a Fleet Admiral is another question entirely."
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