On the deserted islands surrounding Puerco, Marine forces lay in ambush, positioned according to Fleet Admiral Sengoku's strategy. They awaited the admirals' command to completely cut off Doflamingo's retreat.
High above, at an altitude of ten thousand meters, the Ark Maxim hovered. Doflamingo was using his exceptionally powerful and wide-ranging Observation Haki to probe the Marines' movements.
"Found them," Doflamingo said, retracting his Haki and turning to Enel, who was waiting at his side.
"Time to have some fun!" Enel declared excitedly.
"There are Marines hidden on the eastern and northern deserted islands," Doflamingo informed him, outlining the mission. "We'll each take one. Finish them quickly."
"Right!" No longer willing to wait, Enel leaped from the deck, falling from the sky with a look of pure, leisurely enjoyment.
Seeing Enel descend towards the north, Doflamingo began his own move. He transformed into a flash of lightning and shot toward the east.
On Puerco Island, using the Greatsword Pirates as their cover, Diamante, Pica, and the others began their operation.
Following Diamante's orders, Pica began his performance. He merged seamlessly with the island's terrain, rapidly gathering stone and earth to form his colossal giant body.
Rumble... rumble...
The formation of the giant created a tremendous commotion on Puerco, drawing the attention of countless people.
"Wh-what is that thing?!"
"A monster!"
The island's inhabitants stared as the stone giant rose from the earth, their mouths agape in terror, many collapsing to the ground in fear.
In the face of disaster, the weak always pray for the help of others or the protection of gods. But for these ants, who would truly care?
It is always best to hold one's destiny in one's own hands; entrusting it to others is ultimately a mistake.
The hidden Marines also noticed Pica's move and immediately reported to the two admirals.
"Ara, ara... So Doflamingo and his crew have finally shown themselves? How arrogant of them, walking right into our trap." Aokiji lazily rose from the sofa and stepped outside, his eyes landing on the enormous stone giant.
Kizaru appeared directly at his side. They stood shoulder to shoulder, looking up at the stone giant that soared into the clouds. "Ooooh, how scary," Kizaru drawled. "The Donquixote Pirates..."
The other Marines followed in the admirals' footsteps, watching the stone giant's movements from behind their leaders.
"He's spotted us?" Aokiji asked with a lazy drawl as a giant stone hand fell toward them. He seemed completely unconcerned by the attack.
Kizaru was equally unfazed. But the others were not admirals; they didn't possess such overwhelming power and couldn't afford to be so casual.
"Admiral Kizaru! Admiral Aokiji!"
The Marines cried out the admirals' names, hoping to draw some courage to face the terror before them.
"Ara, ara... I can't let you keep destroying the island like this," Aokiji said lazily, his hands remaining casually tucked in his pockets.
Kizaru wore his usual sly grin. If Aokiji wanted to take the lead, that was fine by him. He was happy to enjoy the leisure time.
"Die, Marines!" In control of the stone giant, Pica showed no mercy the moment he saw the naval forces. He brought his massive hand down on the group with clean, decisive force.
"Ice Age!"
A vast wave of cold air shot out from Aokiji's position, surging across the ground and rapidly climbing the stone giant's body. The colossal hand, which had been descending with ferocious speed, was frozen solid in an instant. Under the sunlight, a magnificent ice sculpture of a giant was revealed to the world.
"So strong!" someone whispered, the awe in their voice slightly disrupting the silent appreciation of this beautiful, deadly art.
"Pica!"
Below the giant, Diamante shouted in alarm. In a single, sudden moment, the towering stone giant had been frozen by the Marines, utterly powerless to resist. He was deeply worried for Pica, who was encased within the stone.
Crack!
The surface layer of ice on the stone giant began to splinter. Under Pica's effort, shards of ice rained down from the colossus, crashing to the earth with tremendous roars.
Embedded within the stone, Pica was naturally unharmed by the ice attack. Aokiji's assault, though incredibly swift, had only managed to immobilize the stone giant; it hadn't hurt Pica himself.
Diamante dodged the falling ice blocks, relieved. He then turned his attention to the advancing Marines and launched his own attack.
"It's the Donquixote Pirates! For justice, get them!"
The Marines, guardians of justice, recognized the members of the Donquixote family. After all, a giant white bear was a rather obvious landmark.
"A-cha!"
Bepo didn't hesitate, unleashing a fluid flurry of Bruce Lee-style martial arts. One should never underestimate a pet—especially one that knows kung fu.
"Nice one, Bepo!" Gladius praised, watching Bepo cleanly knock down several Marines. Of course, his own hands weren't idle. He began setting off his explosions; against these grunts, his Devil Fruit was a truly devastating weapon.
"Charge! Engage the Donquixote Pirates! Show them the justice of the Marines!"
A massive wave of Marines surged forward, a seemingly endless tide of soldiers.
Diamante, Bepo, Gladius, and the other members of the Donquixote family met them head-on. The two sides clashed in a chaotic and ferocious melee.
Aokiji, Kizaru, and the other top-tier combatants naturally paid no mind to the battle of grunts. Their concern was Doflamingo's whereabouts. His crew members had appeared, so why hadn't he? Was he plotting something in the shadows?
"This is getting awfully boring, Doflamingo," Kizaru mused to himself, watching the battle with detached amusement while contemplating his target's next move.
Crack! Crack!
The stone giant finally broke free from the ice, returning to its former imposing state. It swung its massive fist, once again attacking Kizaru and the others.
"He really doesn't learn. With two admirals here, how could he possibly harm us?"
The common soldiers, protected by the two admirals, weren't the least bit flustered by Pica's attack. With these two powerhouses present, their safety was guaranteed.
Shhh!
The admirals had no intention of moving this time. It was Vice Admiral Onigumo who sprang into action. Unable to tolerate the enemy's repeated provocations, he drew his longswords and used Geppo to launch himself toward the giant's descending fist.
Against the colossal hand, Onigumo's figure seemed insignificant, utterly incomparable in size.
"Come out, you pirate!"
Onigumo swung his swords with all his might, clashing with Pica's giant stone hand.
BOOM!
The stone hand, sliced into several pieces by Onigumo, crashed down into the town, sending the inhabitants scattering and cursing the one who was carelessly throwing rocks.
"Excellent, Vice Admiral Onigumo!" Doberman shouted, excitedly praising the Vice Admiral for severing Pica's arm.
The two admirals remained unimpressed. Compared to them, Onigumo was still far behind. Such a minor feat was nothing in their eyes.
Sensing the tide was in his favor, Onigumo pressed his advantage, launching himself toward the giant's stone torso, intending to slice it in half at the waist.
But it wasn't that simple. The hand Pica had lost reformed in an instant and swung at the Vice Admiral.
The stone giant's body was enormous and its attacks powerful, but its speed was lacking. Vice Admiral Onigumo easily dodged, then leaped onto Pica's body, moving like a flea and greatly agitating him.
Onigumo had undoubtedly made the right choice. Since he couldn't cut through all the stone, there was no point in playing with it. He just needed to find the enemy's real body. Furthermore, by scrambling all over the giant, he made it impossible for Pica to effectively counterattack.
"You think you can force me out like this?" Pica, watching Onigumo's antics from within the stone, realized his opponent's strategy. But don't think I have no way to deal with you.
The giant Pica controlled stopped moving, its movements no longer fluid.
Vice Admiral Onigumo saw this and assumed his opponent had finally had enough and was preparing to reveal his true form to fight him.
Onigumo didn't let his guard down. He warily scanned his surroundings, trying to predict where the enemy would appear.
A thousand meters in the air, Vice Admiral Onigumo stood on the stone giant's shoulder, tensely awaiting the enemy's attack.
Shhhhh... A sound like rushing water echoed. From the giant's neck and shoulders, streams of stone like thick ropes began to flow, coiling towards Vice Admiral Onigumo, attempting to bind him to death.
"Here you come? Kami-e!" Unflustered, Vice Admiral Onigumo swiftly used the technique to evade the stone streams.
You think that's all? Pica watched Onigumo's movements from the shadows, a sneer on his face.
Vice Admiral Onigumo remained steady and composed under the assault of the stone streams. But just as he was distracted, the stone beneath his feet began to soften, threatening to slowly sink his body into the giant.
Realizing the danger, Onigumo tried to use Soru to escape, but the soft, yielding stone offered no purchase and instead absorbed the force of his kick. Unable to break free in time, he was caught by the ankles.
"You think you can catch me like this? In your dreams!" Seeing that he had fallen into the enemy's trap, Vice Admiral Onigumo quickly swung his swords, trying to free his lower body from the stone.
"Stone Impact!"
Several streams of mud and rock shot towards Onigumo, threatening to engulf him.
"Life Return: Sword Slash!"
No longer holding back, Onigumo unleashed one of his trump cards. His hair, now moving as if it had a life of its own, wielded his extra swords and unleashed several slashes of compressed air toward the oncoming mudslide.
BOOM!
The two attacks exploded in mid-air. Seizing the opportunity, Vice Admiral Onigumo used the swords in his hands to slice through the stone trapping him, successfully breaking free.
The moment he was free, Pica's next attack arrived.
"Stone Press!"
Two horizontal, cylindrical stone pillars appeared on either side of Vice Admiral Onigumo. The flat ends of the pillars were covered with dozens of sharp stone spikes. Using the sharpness of the spikes, Pica sent the two pillars rapidly closing in on the Vice Admiral, intending to crush him flat.
"Dammit! Life Return: Round Shield Defense!"
Vice Admiral Onigumo rapidly swung the swords in his hands and his hair, their swift movements forming a defensive shield.
The spiked stone pillars slammed heavily against the round shield.
Such heavy force, Onigumo thought grimly. Pushing with his hands and hair, he shifted from defense to offense, shattering the two stone pillars.
"Come out! Get out here and face me!" Onigumo roared in frustration. For this entire time, his opponent had been acting like a damned coward, only hiding and launching sneak attacks—a truly insidious old fox. The whole situation was driving him mad.
But Pica wasn't about to fall for it. Since he had the advantage, why would he abandon it? Just to engage the enemy in a head-on fight to prove his manliness?
While Pica kept Vice Admiral Onigumo occupied and Diamante and the others battled the Marines, a warship docked at the island's coast.
The Seven Warlords of the Sea had arrived.