"Woooo!!!"
That scene instantly sent the pirates into a frenzy.
"What world's greatest swordsman?"
"In front of Captain Jozu, it doesn't matter at all!"
While the pirates were celebrating, the Marines felt as if they had swallowed something disgusting.
First an Admiral had been blasted away with a single punch.
Then Dracule Mihawk attacked, yet even that failed to force Edward Newgate to personally move.
These consecutive setbacks caused Marine morale to drop once again.
Compared to the chaotic emotions among the ordinary soldiers on both sides, Jozu himself frowned slightly.
Of course he would have preferred Mihawk's slash to be completely ineffective.
But that simply was not realistic.
Fortunately, there had only been one slash.
His Armament Haki surged as he forced his strength to increase.
"Hah!"
With a shout, Jozu twisted his body and redirected Mihawk's attack.
The massive slash was deflected and shot straight into the sky.
That was his solution.
"My slash still isn't enough to force you to move?"
Mihawk looked toward Whitebeard.
He slowly lowered Yoru.
The outcome did not bother him.
As a swordsman, his only path was to grow stronger and stronger.
"Gurararara!"
Whitebeard laughed loudly, clearly pleased with Jozu's performance.
Holding his bisento, he jumped down from the deck of the Moby Dick.
"If that youngster Kuzan has kindly paved the road for us across the sea and warmly welcomed us into Marineford, how could we refuse the invitation?"
"Charge into Marineford!"
Marco raised his fist immediately.
With Marco leading the way, the pirates of the Whitebeard crew erupted with excitement.
"Charge into Marineford!"
"Charge into Marineford!"
Hearing the wild battle cries behind him, Whitebeard smiled faintly.
Then he moved.
His steps were swift.
Leading from the front, he charged straight toward Marineford.
"Attack!"
"Kill!"
A thunderous roar erupted across the battlefield.
Even while facing one hundred fifty thousand Marine elites, the pirates charged forward without hesitation.
"Stop them!"
Under the leadership of Edward Newgate, the pirates had completely gone mad.
The war had officially begun.
More than a dozen Giant Vice Admirals stepped forward together.
Like moving mountains, they charged directly toward Whitebeard.
In this world, many races existed.
But only two were known as truly unstoppable.
One was the Fish-Men beneath the sea.
The other was the Giants.
Their enormous bodies granted them strength that ordinary humans could never imagine.
Clang!
The sound of metal colliding echoed loudly.
Whitebeard's bisento slammed against the massive blade of a Giant Vice Admiral.
Sparks flew.
Despite his old age, Whitebeard matched the giant in raw strength.
"What?!"
"Someone can actually match the strength of a Giant?"
In the distance, the journalists watching the battle were stunned.
But another voice quickly corrected them.
"No."
"It's not just matching their strength. Whitebeard's strength is actually greater."
Everyone immediately turned their attention back to the battlefield.
At that moment, Whitebeard's bisento cut straight through the Giant Vice Admiral's blade.
With a single sweeping strike, he brought down the giant.
Crack. Crack!
Shhk! Shhk!
Camera shutters clicked wildly.
Pens scratched furiously across paper.
Every journalist present had gone completely insane.
No one wanted to miss a single moment of this historic battle.
"Gurararara!"
While the reporters scrambled to record everything, Whitebeard calmly rolled his neck and stretched his body.
Crack. Crack.
A series of sharp sounds echoed from his joints.
Looking at the dozen Giant Vice Admirals standing before him, Whitebeard spoke again.
"Well then…"
"I'm properly warmed up now."
"Warmed up?"
The Giant Vice Admirals glanced at each other in disbelief.
None of them understood what Whitebeard meant.
But they did not need to.
Because his next actions would explain everything.
"Die!"
Whitebeard roared as he raised his bisento and brought it down toward a Giant Vice Admiral's head.
The giant facing him still had not understood what was happening.
He thought his fallen comrade had died only because his weapon had been inferior.
Foolishly, he swung his own massive blade again, trying to block Whitebeard's advance.
Crack!
Whitebeard continued forward.
Behind him, only the corpse of the Giant Vice Admiral remained.
"How is this possible?!"
The remaining Giant Vice Admirals' pupils shrank.
The Giants were a race that lived for battle.
Every Giant treated combat as a lifelong belief.
They would never retreat simply because a fight was difficult.
But that only applied when victory was still possible.
Right now, facing Whitebeard, they felt nothing but despair.
Even these Giant Vice Admirals were afraid.
"Don't be afraid!"
At that moment, one of them stepped forward.
"We are Marines. We stand for justice."
"No matter how strong Whitebeard is, he's still a pirate. He represents evil."
"How can justice retreat in front of evil?"
"And even if we forget that we're Marines…"
"We're still Giants."
"Are you willing to bring shame upon the Giant race?"
"How will we face our people back in Elbaf if we run?"
The words came at exactly the right moment.
The confusion and fear in the Giants' eyes slowly disappeared.
Their fighting spirit returned.
"That's more like it."
Seeing their renewed resolve, Whitebeard nodded in satisfaction.
"Only like this can you live up to the name of the Giant race."
As he spoke, Whitebeard moved again.
The bisento in his hand swept forward at a speed invisible to the naked eye.
Just one swing.
Three Giant Vice Admirals were cut down instantly.
"And besides…"
Whitebeard paused.
The gentleness in his eyes disappeared, replaced by brutality and killing intent.
"Killing people with no fighting spirit isn't very interesting."
"Don't be afraid! Attack together!"
The remaining Giants charged forward in desperation.
At this point, only nine Giant Vice Admirals were left.
They attacked from different directions, surrounding Whitebeard from all sides.
"Trying to encircle me?"
Whitebeard glanced around at them.
"Don't you think that's a little foolish?"
----------
Advance 30 Chapters: patreon .com/StrawFic