Sphinx Island.
The enormous island's coastal region had now become a fierce battlefield between pirates and Marines. Even the weakest pirates or Marines were as strong as monsters to ordinary people.
A casual punch could shatter rocks; ordinary bullets would only cause bleeding when hitting their bodies. Only large-caliber cannons could pose a threat.
A battle between thirty thousand "monsters."
The result was that the entire port town had been completely reduced to ruins. Every moment, the collision of fists sounded like countless cannonballs exploding simultaneously.
"This is troublesome. Have the Admirals not dealt with White Wolf Silas yet?"
Hornitz looked somewhat agitated. The current situation had become unfavorable for the Marines. With their greatest asset, the Admirals, not on the front lines, these Marines hastily assembled from various Marine branches immediately fell into disadvantage against experienced New World pirates.
Raising his hand to block Rocks's attack, he threw a Haki-covered punch at Rocks, only to have it nimbly dodged.
As the battle progressed, Hornitz keenly noticed that the youth fighting him was improving at an extremely rapid pace.
Initially, he could suppress Rocks using his Observation Haki advantage, but soon Rocks changed his fighting style, switching from all-out attacks to using only seventy percent of his strength.
Rocks had already realized the Marine Vice Admiral before him possessed both Observation and Armament Haki but was clearly more proficient in Observation Haki. His Armament Haki level was about the same as his own.
Excluding the Observation Haki factor, he definitely would not lose to this Marine Vice Admiral in a one-on-one fight.
But on the battlefield, you could not expect enemies to ban their strongest abilities.
So Rocks had to respond in another way.
The power of Observation Haki lay in predicting enemy attack trajectories, thus avoiding attacks for counterstrikes.
But as long as his attack speed was fast enough, or he could react in time when enemies counterattacked and respond accordingly, then no matter how strong the enemy's Observation Haki, it would be useless.
Hornitz's strength, speed, and Armament Haki were all about equal to his. In attack speed, he definitely could not be faster than Hornitz.
Better to reduce his own attack frequency!
As long as he was cautious enough, Hornitz's Observation Haki effectiveness would be weakened, and Hornitz would be dragged into his area of expertise.
This was Silas's lesson on how to handle Observation Haki masters.
Counter all their predictions with absolute stillness.
Be immovable as a mountain, explosive as thunder!
So even though he knew Rocks was inferior to him, facing Rocks's turtle-style tactics, Hornitz had no solutions.
"If it were Peak instead..."
Boom!
Earth-shaking collision sounds rang out nearby as Vice Admiral Peak and Ripley's fists collided, like two heavy bombs crashing together. With their collision point as center, the invisible impact whipped up hurricane-force winds.
"Ahhhhhhh!"
Peak and Ripley, two fighters not skilled in Observation Haki, engaged in pure combat. Fist to flesh, consuming Armament Haki without restraint, giving Hornitz the feeling that taking one punch would kill him outright.
"Huff, huff... Why does a woman like you become a pirate?"
Vice Admiral Peak looked confused.
"With your strength, you could completely join our Marines. Why submit to others?"
Whether Rocks or Ripley, in Peak's view, both were young and hot-blooded, deceived by White Wolf Silas. Young people who had not committed major crimes yet. Both had room for redemption.
There was no reason to follow an aging old pirate who could die at any time.
"Haha, joining your Marines would not be submitting to others? You would still have to follow orders from your Admirals and Fleet Admiral. Better to stay in a pirate crew where you can do whatever you want."
Ripley showed disdain for Peak's words.
"Besides, Silas is not just a good captain and good man. He is also good boyfriend material. Your Marines cannot compare to him at all!"
Though she did not say it aloud, Ripley also had ambitions.
It was just that time was short and her strength insufficient, so Ripley chose to bury her ambitions in her heart.
"What a pity!"
Seeing Ripley's stubbornness, Peak had to abandon persuasion. But he believed this was all just a filter created by old pirates like Silas.
Once Silas lost to the Admirals and this filter was shattered, Ripley would wake up too.
The battle had been going on for several hours now. Many had fallen to the ground, not just pirates, but Marines too.
Wails echoed everywhere.
In such chaotic circumstances, Stussy was forcibly dragged from the clinic by the goat doctor, who said they needed to treat wounded casualties.
Stussy: Old goat, are you conscious?
Never mind that they were just powerless doctors. Even pirates with ten-million bounties risked sudden death on this battlefield.
But if Stussy wanted to continue learning medicine from the goat doctor, she had to follow him on calls. Treating casualties was also a type of house call.
"I said I wanted to join the White Wolf Pirates, but I did not say I wanted to take such huge risks!"
Stussy grumbled internally.
"A woman once told me that patients disappear from her sight for only two reasons: 1. Recovery from illness, 2. Death."
The goat doctor glanced at Stussy, using hemostatic forceps to stop a pirate's bleeding.
"I am a doctor, so I cannot just ignore patients before me!"
"Bandages!"
"Oh."
Her body was honest, but Stussy still did not approve of the goat doctor's approach.
She had learned medicine before to make money.
She was learning medicine now to board Silas's ship, also for money.
What did patients' conditions have to do with her?
"Haha, well said!"
A woman's voice suddenly rang in the ears of the clinic's doctors and nurses.
"Now you qualify as a proper doctor."
Hearing the familiar voice, the goat doctor looked up sharply.
"You are... Kur..."
The goat doctor's words were cut off halfway.
"Look, it is Witch Kureha!"
"The White Wolf Pirates' doctor, with a 60 million bounty!"
"Catch her quickly!"
Hearing the Marines' voices, the light blonde woman wearing sunglasses laughed heartily.
"You boys are really enthusiastic, but I do not have time for you now!"
Kureha casually threw a bunch of pills. When they hit the ground, they immediately released colorful toxic mist, frightening the Marines into retreat.
"This mist is poisonous. Hold your breath!"
"No good, my body will not move."
"I am guguru-guguru-guguru..."
Seeing Marines foaming at the mouth and collapsing, Kureha put her hands on her hips and laughed.
"Did anyone not tell you not to casually touch my 'medicines'? Now quickly take the antidote. Do not actually die!"
Though Kureha had poisoned the Marines, she was also the one giving them antidotes, simultaneously dragging wounded Marines and pirates together.
"What are you standing around for? Help out!"
Hearing Kureha's words, the clinic's doctors and nurses awakened as if from dreams, hurriedly joining Kureha in treatment.
By this point in the battle, neither pirates nor Marines could continue much longer.
The strong were still fighting fiercely.
But average pirates and Marines had long since collapsed or were hiding somewhere licking their wounds.
Everyone realized this battle's outcome was no longer something they could decide.
The real battlefield was elsewhere.
Only five people.
But the intensity even exceeded their combined thirty thousand.
The entire Sphinx had one-third of the island completely shattered.
(TL NOTE: Unfortunately, my LOTR: Playing Minecraft in Middle-earth book was mistakenly flagged as spam on Webnovel and removed. I'll re-upload it under a different title by tomorrow at the latest. Thank you for your patience!)