The distance from Marineford to Mary Geoise isn't very far. At the Gale Breaker's full speed, it only takes a few hours.
What actually consumed a bit more time were the stationed Marines at Sabaody Archipelago and the subsequent ascent process.
At Sabaody, most of the stationed elite forces had been transferred to Marineford.
But this place was, after all, the port island with the largest flow of people on the sea before entering the New World. Even under such circumstances, some personnel still had to be left to maintain local order.
These Marines also learned about the events at Marineford through the worldwide broadcast.
However, the attitude they displayed showed some small differences compared to the Marine elites at Marineford.
On one hand, the Marines stationed here weren't a united bloc.
Alongside those oriented towards justice, there were naturally those who admired the Celestial Dragons and the nobility.
Moreover, Celestial Dragons frequently appeared here. Those Marines who truly upheld justice didn't want to see them, so the tasks of reception and protection logically fell to this latter group.
One side spent their days trying to curry favor with the powerful, while the other trained hard and fought criminals. The gap in strength between the two sides gradually widened.
During the Summit War, those justice-oriented Marines were almost all transferred away.
This resulted in most of the Marines left behind at Sabaody Archipelago being 'World Government faction'.
On the other hand, in the environment of the Summit War, setting aside the influence of the surrounding atmosphere, just having so many Marine high-command figures present naturally inclined the Marines there to follow the Fleet Admiral of justice.
Even if there were a few individuals with ulterior motives like Vergo or that mouse-like Captain, they wouldn't dare reveal themselves in that situation.
The garrison forces at Sabaody Archipelago, having seen via Den Den Mushi broadcast that the World Government and the Marines had officially split, also fell into chaos.
Some believed this was a collective Marine mutiny, while others thought the sins of the World Government over the years had finally exploded.
But no matter their disagreements, they were largely unified on one point.
That was the need to continue following the World Government.
There was no other way. The Den Den Mushi broadcast had been completely cut off not long after Imu appeared. They had no idea what happened at Marineford afterwards.
"Hey! Stop the ship!"
A Marine Lieutenant stationed on a Battleship shouted towards them. Simultaneously, the cannons on those Battleships were already aimed at the Gale Breaker.
Looking at the person across, Karin initially didn't plan to pay attention. But considering the current situation, the Marines should barely count as 'allies' against the World Government. So she slowed down, preparing to hear what the other side had to say.
It would have been better not to listen. Hearing it almost made Karin laugh in anger.
"Your ship is now commandeered! Stop immediately!"
As he said this, several Celestial Dragons wearing bubble helmets walked over under the protection of black-suited bodyguards, pointing at the Gale Breaker and saying something.
"You! Are you not done yet?"
"Almost done, Saint Philier!"
The Lieutenant, who had been bossy when shouting, immediately became obsequious before this snot-nosed Celestial Dragon.
The reason for stopping this ship was that the Gale Breaker wasn't flying a pirate flag.
The few 'masters' beside him had received messages from their families, ordering them to leave Sabaody Archipelago immediately and head towards the New World or the Four Blues.
Though unclear about the reason, due to the absolute hierarchy within the Celestial Dragon group, this Saint Philier had to reluctantly leave with his brothers.
Who knew that not long after sailing, the Celestial Dragons became dissatisfied with the facilities on the Marine Battleship?
It was no wonder. After all, it was a Battleship… it couldn't be as luxurious as the ships they usually traveled on.
So these lackey Marines set their sights on passing merchant ships.
-Why not attack pirate ships?
Don't be ridiculous. They wouldn't dare.
These spineless types could at most bully merchants or ordinary residents. They wouldn't dare to truly fight those vicious pirates capable of reaching Sabaody Archipelago.
Of course, their reason was high-sounding.
That was, "We cannot let the noble masters be endangered."
It should be mentioned here that after multiple repairs and fusion modifications, the Gale Breaker's appearance had changed considerably.
Naruto's naming ability might be inherited from the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, but his personal aesthetic sense was quite good.
The hull's monocoque design could be roughly seen as different from those medieval wooden sailing ships at a glance.
This naturally attracted the attention of flies.
Upon hearing the other side's words and clearly seeing the several Celestial Dragons beside him, Karin felt it was laughable that she had wasted time being delayed by these guys.
"Hey! I'm talking to you! Hurry up and-"
The Lieutenant wanted to say more, but saw Karin on the opposite ship suddenly radiate a golden light, transforming into a Valkyrie-like figure with a bird's head and a human body.
"Ah... seems familiar. I think I've seen it somewhere."
'Where had I seen it?'
'I remembered.'
'In the earlier broadcast.'
'In a fleeting scene, there was such a being who instantly destroyed an entire defensive line.'
That was the Lieutenant's last thought.
"Great Storm."
Strong winds, like two large hands, churned up the seawater, then swiftly enveloped the entire Battleship.
Before anyone aboard could react, this small Battleship was completely torn to shreds.
As for the noble Celestial Dragons, perhaps they had become fish food.
"Hmm? Karin, did something happen just now?"
Naruto was still covering his mouth. This discomfort made him forget to habitually use Observation Haki to observe the surroundings.
"No, nothing happened at all, Naruto-san."
Karin smiled sweetly, not showing at all that she had just utterly destroyed a Battleship.
The sea surface quickly returned to calm.
After this small interlude, Karin didn't want any further complications. She simply used the wind here to lift the ship and flew towards Mary Geoise.
Considering Naruto's physical condition, she didn't ask him to come out to apply the Ultralight-Weight Rock Technique to the hull.
But perhaps thanks to the break-in period between Momoshiki and Karin, her ability to control strong winds had greatly improved now.
She could even maintain her Awakened state for short periods without overdrawing her life force.
That counted as growth.
…
The Holy Land of the Celestial Dragons, Mary Geoise.
When Naruto's group arrived here for the third time, it no longer looked its usual glorious self.
Extending Observation Haki, the huge city still held some life signatures, but mostly those of Celestial Dragons' lackeys.
They had chosen to abandon their masters during a certain earlier incident, surviving the chaos that ensued.
As for those Celestial Dragons who usually put on airs of superiority, most were now beheaded, their bodies and heads separated.
Some corpses were even smashed into pulp, bearing all kinds of injuries.
Scratches, blunt force trauma, cuts, even bite marks.
It was clear whoever killed them must have hated them deeply.
Seeing this scene, Konohamaru felt his stomach churn.
Karin and Sasuke weren't much affected.
But Naruto's expression showed he had expected this.
"Hmm... It's not beyond my expectations, I suppose."
"Now, Shanks can also be considered the third [Liberator]."