After a brief moment of thought, Tsuru finally spoke.
"Sengoku, you take the three Admirals and engage them head-on. I'll handle command. Garp will guard the execution platform."
Sengoku's eyes flickered as he immediately understood Tsuru's intent.
Since there was no guarantee whether Garp would hold back or not, it was safer to assign him as the final line of defense.
At the very least, the old man wouldn't go so far as to directly free Ace.
"Garp… you won't have a problem with that, right?" Sengoku asked coldly, though it was more of a reminder than a question.
Garp's face was dark as he gave a slight nod.
"No problem."
"Then… let the battle begin!"
Sengoku's Buddha form expanded once more, his body swelling dozens of meters in an instant.
"Buddha Shockwave!"
The attack shot straight toward Whitebeard.
At this point, tactics no longer mattered.
Whichever side's top-tier fighters were left standing at the end would be the ultimate victor.
"Gurararara! Finally can't hold back anymore, Sengoku?!"
Whitebeard didn't hesitate in the slightest. His right fist glowed with a pale white light as he swung it through the air.
Crack… crack…
The air shattered, spiderwebbing outward toward Sengoku.
Boom!
The two attacks collided, triggering a massive explosion that shook all of Marineford.
Sengoku took a huge step forward, entering the bay.
He had to keep Whitebeard off Marineford's land.
The island's defenses wouldn't survive him tearing it apart at close range.
On the other side, the three Admirals intercepted the three members of the Roger Pirates.
Kizaru opened with a wide-area light barrage.
The result was obvious.
Bullet swatted the light aside with a casual motion, while Rayleigh and Gaban deflected the rest with their weapons.
"Relics of a bygone era should rot away in Impel Down!"
Akainu stepped forward, a massive magma fist blasting straight toward Bullet's head.
"Hellhound!"
Bullet sneered in disdain.
"Heh. A boring move."
He threw out his right fist to meet Akainu's attack head-on.
Dense Armament Haki instantly coated his arm, turning it a dark violet-black.
Boom!
The magma fist shattered on impact.
Akainu's expression changed sharply.
If he hadn't sensed the danger at the last moment and dispersed his body with elementalization, that blow alone would've severely injured his arm.
"Too slow!"
Bullet vanished in a blur, moving at a speed not inferior to Soru.
His fist slammed straight into Akainu's abdomen.
"Damn—!"
Akainu hastily crossed his arms, Armament Haki surging to block the blow.
Bang!
His body was blasted backward, smashing deep into the wall behind him.
"Hahaha!" Bullet laughed mercilessly.
"The Marines really are getting weaker with age! A new Admiral is this pathetic?"
"Listen well, kid. Having a good Devil Fruit doesn't mean you can rule the seas. This ocean isn't that simple!"
At the same time, Kizaru and Aokiji were locked down by Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban.
"Sacred Yata Mirror!"
Kizaru tried to create distance and fight with hit-and-run tactics, but the moment he turned into light, Rayleigh slashed him cleanly, forcing him back into solid form.
Aokiji unleashed Ice Age, attempting to freeze Gaban in place.
Gaban swung his axes wildly, Armament Haki bursting outward as he chopped the encroaching ice to pieces.
The freezing wave couldn't even cross the one-meter mark in front of him.
Neither Admiral was at a disadvantage, but victory was equally out of reach.
Against opponents with such refined Armament Haki, their Devil Fruit abilities struggled to deal meaningful damage.
On the other hand, a single clean hit from their enemies could mean severe injury.
Hearing Bullet's words, something stirred in both Aokiji and Kizaru.
They'd heard similar words before.
From the former Marine Admiral…
The Navy's chief instructor…
Zephyr.
Back when they trained in the elite Marine program, Zephyr had repeatedly warned them—
Physical combat was the foundation of true strength.
Relying too heavily on Devil Fruits would only take you so far.
But as top-tier Logia users who rose to Admiral through overwhelming Devil Fruit power, none of them truly took that lesson to heart.
Especially after ascending to Admiral and crushing the seas with ease, their training in Haki and physical combat had steadily declined.
Now… the boomerang of history had finally come flying back.
Facing the Roger Pirates—monsters who had refined Haki and combat to their absolute limits—
The Admirals suddenly realized something terrifying.
Once their Devil Fruits lost their overwhelming edge…
They had no reliable way to suppress their opponents.
"Tch… he really is troublesome. The Devil's Descendant…"
Aokiji and Kizaru both looked grim.
Due to his age alone, Bullet was already slightly stronger than Rayleigh and Gaban.
And he hadn't even used his Devil Fruit yet.
"Hellhound!"
A massive magma hound burst out from the rubble as Akainu roared in fury, lunging toward Bullet.
"Tsk." Bullet tilted his head, unimpressed.
"Still not learning, huh? Fine. Then I won't hold back either."
In the next instant, terrifying Armament Haki enveloped Bullet's entire body.
A violet glow surged across his form.
Demon Form.
His speed and strength skyrocketed, like a demon crawling straight out of hell.
"Demon King Punch!"
Bullet laughed wildly as dozens of afterimages of his fists erupted forward.
The dense Armament Haki fused into a roaring tide, smashing into the magma hound.
Boom—!
The magma hound was battered as if struck by a torrential storm, its form twisting violently before exploding apart midair.
"Damn it!"
Akainu roared, raising both hands as magma surged wildly.
"Die!"
He thrust his palms forward, unleashing a mountain-like mass of molten lava toward Bullet, smoke billowing behind it.
"Tch. Hopeless."
Bullet crossed his arms arrogantly.
"If you're so proud of your Devil Fruit, then let me show you… how a Devil Fruit is really supposed to be used."
The moment his words fell—
The ground began to writhe violently.
Soil, stone, debris… even metal plates ripped from the defensive walls were pulled toward Bullet.
Clank-Clank Fruit · Medium Bullet Form!
In the original timeline, this move fused with his pirate ship, the Catapult.
But without it here, Bullet simply improvised with whatever materials were available.
Scraps and wreckage flowed together like a torrent, layering and shaping themselves around his body.
In moments, a colossal armored giant stood before everyone.
"Playing with big balls, huh? I'll help you out!"
Bullet roared with laughter as Armament Haki coated the giant's right arm, turning it pitch-black with killing intent.
The massive fist slammed straight into the magma attack.
The entire battlefield was stunned.
Covering a structure that large with Armament Haki…
Just how deep did Bullet's Haki reserves go?!
***
Read 20 Chapters early on P-atreon.com/Redestro666