"Damn it. At this rate, we will never make it back to Whole Cake Island in time."
Cracker slammed his fist angrily against the ship's railing.
Charlotte Linlin had already moved far away when the meteor fell.
Even if she appeared now, she would not be able to save them, because the Marines were stronger.
"Katakuri, take them back first."
"I will stay behind and stop the Marines from continuing their attack."
Cracker's face was filled with determination.
He was not doing this for Charlotte Linlin, but for the younger brothers and sisters on this ship who had grown up alongside him.
Katakuri's expression trembled, but he immediately refused.
"No."
"You take them back. I will stop the Marines."
Cracker shouted in frustration, "Katakuri, what time do you think this is? Why are you still arguing with me over something useless?"
"They need you more!"
Just as Katakuri and Cracker were arguing, the Den Den Mushi on Katakuri's body rang.
Blu blu… blu blu…
"It is Mama's call."
Katakuri took out the Den Den Mushi, glanced at it, and said, "Mama, this is Katakuri."
On the other end, Charlotte Linlin sounded somewhat displeased.
"Katakuri, can you escape the Marines' pursuit?"
Katakuri frowned.
"Mama, with the current situation, it will be very difficult for us to escape the Marines' pursuit."
"Please allow me to stay behind alone and stop the attacking Marines so I can buy time for my younger brothers and sisters to withdraw."
Cracker immediately spoke from the side.
"Mama, let Katakuri return. Let me stay behind and fight the Marines."
"Katakuri still has more important responsibilities for the Charlotte Family."
Charlotte Linlin fell into a rare moment of silence.
Then she said, "Cracker, you are Mama's good child. If not for those damned Marines, Mama would never leave you behind."
"Try your best to buy time for Katakuri. I will return to save you."
With that, Charlotte Linlin ended the call.
Katakuri's expression became extremely ugly.
He did not believe Charlotte Linlin's final words at all, because he understood her too well. In her eyes, the death of one or two children was nothing more than that.
The person she loved most would always be herself.
The reason there had been regret in her tone was only because Cracker's strength ranked among the top five of all her children.
And Katakuri's strength was even higher than Cracker's.
In a situation where whoever stayed behind would almost certainly die, Charlotte Linlin had undoubtedly chosen to let Katakuri survive.
"Mama made the wrong choice."
Katakuri suddenly said that without context.
Cracker patted Katakuri on the shoulder.
"We have always known what Mama's personality is like. But the fact that we are her children is something we cannot change."
"Besides, staying behind to fight the Marines does not necessarily mean I will die. Maybe I will make it safely back to Whole Cake Island."
After saying that, Cracker's body was once again covered in biscuit armor and Armament Haki.
Then he stepped through the air with Geppo and flew toward the Marine warships in the sky.
Katakuri watched Cracker fly away, then turned back and said viciously, "Full speed ahead. Don't waste the chance Cracker is buying for us."
"Brother Cracker…"
Many of the Charlotte Family's children aboard the ship shed tears, but they had no other choice.
In order not to betray Cracker's goodwill, they could only advance at full speed.
On the Marine warship in the sky, Issho's expression was somewhat moved.
His Observation Haki had already sensed Cracker's aura.
"One man coming to stop us?"
"What admirable courage and responsibility."
Issho could not help feeling a trace of respect for this pirate who had come alone.
Zephyr sat on the deck, recovering from the injuries he had suffered while fighting Charlotte Linlin.
In that brief exchange just now, although Charlotte Linlin had not caused him severe damage, those Homies of hers had also been extremely troublesome.
At this moment, Zephyr's body was covered in wounds left by lightning and flames.
Fortunately, those injuries remained on the surface rather than reaching deeper.
"Among pirates, there are also people who will make sacrifices for their so-called companions and family. Such people are rare among low-level pirates, but among legendary pirate crews, there are indeed many like them."
Zephyr spoke calmly.
He had fought pirates for far too long and understood their structure and character very well.
It had to be said that among low-level pirates, betrayal and backstabbing were everywhere.
There were even those who would stab each other in the back for wealth.
Pirates who sacrificed themselves for their companions did exist, but they were far too rare.
When facing Marine pursuit or pirate hunts, people like that were always the first to die.
That was why egoists were the ones who survived among low-level pirates.
Legendary pirate crews, on the other hand, generally had no pirates who dared to provoke them on their own.
Even pirate crews of the same level could almost never cause large-scale casualties among them.
As for the Marines, when it came to legendary pirate crews, they mostly carried out surveillance and restrictions, preventing them from leaving the New World and entering the Grand Line.
Back then, the Roger Pirates and the Whitebeard Pirates had fought many times, yet neither side suffered losses among their main combatants.
Later, the Roger Pirates clashed repeatedly with the Golden Lion Pirates as well, and still there were no major casualties among the core members.
That was why legendary pirate crews had more people willing to sacrifice themselves for their companions.
"However, one person is still too few. I wonder how long he can stop us."
Zephyr shook his head and no longer paid attention to Cracker.
Issho's brows furrowed slightly. In his heart, he had developed some goodwill toward Cracker, who was actively charging forward to die.
He did not want to directly kill him.
At this moment, Cracker, who was rapidly approaching the Marine warship, naturally did not know what the two Admiral-level fighters thought of him.
Braving the Marines' artillery fire, he was already very close to one of the Marine warships.
"Riflemen, prepare! Three-round volley!"
"Everyone else, prepare for battle. Prevent the enemy from landing on the deck!"
A Marine Vice Admiral roared.
They had also seen Cracker charging toward them, but they were fearless.
Bang, bang, bang!
The moment Cracker approached the warship, the riflemen on the deck swiftly opened fire.
The rifles in their hands were far more advanced than the firearms commonly seen on the sea, whether in range or accuracy.
Black bullets struck Cracker's body with repeated cracks.
"Hard Biscuit!"
Cracker had originally thought that the biscuit armor on his body would be enough to block the rifle fire, but he had underestimated the Marines' firepower.
Under such intense attacks, the armor on his body continuously shed fragments.
With no other choice, he created a shield to resist the bullets.
Fortunately, he was already extremely close to the warship.