Chapter 806 - 805: The First Wave of Attacks

By the time the fleet of five warships led by Borsalino, Momonga, and Ryokugyu arrived at the base of Zou, the visual was staggering.

Borsalino raised a flat palm to his brow, peering upward as he let out a drawn-out exclamation. "Ohhh~~ This really is quite something. What an incredibly massive fellow..."

"Admiral Borsalino, please take this seriously." A crisp female voice called out from the bow of an adjacent warship.

Borsalino tilted his gaze slightly, a lazy smirk pulling at his lips. "My, aren’t you strict~ The newly reinstated Marine Vice Admiral, Shirokitsune, Vice Admiral Alessia."

The speaker was indeed Shirokitsune, Alessia.

The very first order of business Kuzan had attended to upon assuming the mantle of Fleet Admiral was to recall her, Issho, Momousagi, Momonga, and several others who had previously departed from the Marines, reinstating them to their former positions within the hierarchy.

Excluding the three active Admirals, the commanders steering the remaining two warships were Shirokitsune and Momousagi.

Consequently, while only three held the official title of Admiral on paper, the vanguard effectively boasted four Admiral-caliber powerhouses alongside an Admiral candidate. A deployment of this sheer caliber was so absurdly luxurious that it defied imagination for a single operation.

"So then," Momonga spoke up, his tone clipped. "What exactly is the strategy here?"

Borsalino took a casual step forward. "When hunting a pack, you always strike the alpha first. Straw Hat Luffy is the core of the Straw Hat Alliance. We take him down, and the rest crumbles."

"Hold on. The Minks living up there are entirely innocent," Momousagi countered, her brow furrowing. "Are we truly prepared to drag them into this collateral damage?"

"That depends entirely on how the situation unfolds. Surely you have no desire to face Alucard’s displeasure, do you?"

Borsalino’s dry retort left Momousagi completely speechless.

"Very well, men. Prepare the scaling ladders. We’ll handle the rest once we’ve breached the summit," Borsalino commanded, waving a hand forward.

"Understood, sir!"

Following Borsalino’s directive, the warships maneuvered close to the colossal elephant’s legs. The Marines lined up along the decks, aiming bazookas toward the clouds, though the projectiles they fired weren’t explosive shells, but specialized tactical scaling ropes and ladders.

An offensive of this scale naturally did not escape the notice of the Straw Hat Alliance watching from above. Marco, utilizing his aerial dominance, was the first to act. Transforming his arms into wings of vibrant blue flames, he plummeted straight down through the cloud cover.

"I can’t just stand by and let you guys have your way, yoi...!"

With a sweeping kick, Marco severed the anchoring chains of one of the main scaling ladders. Dozens of Marines mid-ascent were caught completely off guard; losing their footing, they screamed as they plunged into the swirling sea below.

"Next one!!"

Just as Marco locked his sights onto the adjacent cluster of ladders, a sudden burst of blinding golden light erupted right before his eyes. Borsalino’s deeply lined, familiar face materialized out of the glare. "My~~ If it isn’t Marco. It’s been quite a while, hasn’t it? Ever since Whitebeard kicked the bucket, you lot have truly degraded into absolute garbage."

The words had barely left his mouth when Borsalino delivered a light-speed kick aimed squarely at Marco’s midsection. Marco frantically swept a flaming wing across his torso to block, but the sheer velocity caught him a fraction of a second late. The concussive force sent him hurtling backward, crashing violently against the elephant’s massive leg.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Simultaneously, a succession of crisp gunshots rang out from above. Several bullets struck the support hooks of the scaling ladders with pinpoint accuracy, causing another wave of boarding Marines to lose their grip and plunge toward the ocean.

"Did you honestly think Marco was up here alone? Don’t go forgetting about me, Yasopp the Great Sniper!"

Another figure emerged near the precipice, Yasopp, the sniper of the Red Hair Pirates, renowned for his flawless precision.

Suddenly, dense banks of white clouds began surging across the ocean surface, coalescing into thick, buoyant cushions that safely caught the falling Marines just before they hit the freezing water.

Yasopp’s eyes widened in surprise. Peering down, he spotted Shirokitsune standing at the bow of one of the warships. Her hands had completely dissolved into churning white mist as she continuously channeled energy into the sea, expanding the massive cloud platforms by the second.

"All personnel, use the clouds! I will ferry you directly to the summit of Zou!" Shirokitsune commanded.

"Yes, ma’am!"

"As expected of Vice Admiral Shirokitsune!"

"Let’s wipe these pirates out in one clean sweep!"

The Marines erupted into cheers, scrambling onto this literal "cloud elevator" as it began to ascend at a blistering pace, rapidly closing the distance to the island’s summit.

"Dammit, this complicates things," Yasopp muttered, gritting his teeth.

"Fire Fist!!!"

This time, the counterattack came from Ace!

Nearly three years had passed since Whitebeard’s tragic death during the Paramount War, and Ace had undeniably grown into a far more devastating force. As his signature torrent of flames erupted downward, it appeared to the ascending Marines below as though a miniature sun were falling from the heavens.

"How incredibly dramatic... Whitebeard’s proxy captain, Fire Fist Ace!"

"He’s on an entirely different level compared to Marineford."

At that moment, a towering man standing at the absolute vanguard, donning an Admiral’s marine coat with distinctly green-trimmed cuffs, lazily cracked his eyes open. Keeping his back turned to the crowd, he muttered, "We have a heavy workload ahead of us. Where do you find the time to feel intimidated?"

With a sudden leap, the man propelled himself directly into the path of the descending firestorm. Coating both of his arms entirely in black Armament Haki, he drove his clasped fists forward in a massive double punch.

BOOM!!!

The pillars of fire comprising the Fire Fist were violently shattered by the sheer force of the physical impact, scattering into countless fading embers. As the smoke cleared, Ace’s silhouette emerged from the residual flames, his brow furrowed in a deep scowl. "The new Marine Admiral... Ryokugyu?"

"Fire Fist Ace, you’ve certainly grown stronger," Ryokugyu remarked, his eyes half-lidded as though he had just woken up. "I recall hearing that before your battle with the Black Thorn Pirates, First Son of the Sea Jinbe of the Sun Pirates explicitly warned you to stay out of this conflict between the Immortals and the Straw Hats. Why didn’t you listen? A rare opportunity to keep your life... what an absolute waste."

"If staying alive means abandoning my two brothers, then I, Fire Fist Ace, am not that pathetic," Ace bared his teeth, his eyes wide with a manic intensity.

"Is that so? Then I apologize, but I’ll have to take your head right here," Ryokugyu replied, his expression instantly turning stone-cold.

"We’ve breached the perimeter!"

Following a Marine’s triumphant shout, thousands of soldiers successfully set foot onto the soil of Zou, courtesy of Shirokitsune’s Cloud-Cloud Fruit. They immediately formed a battle line directly opposing the Straw Hat Alliance.

"No choice then. Let’s begin," Momonga muttered, cracking his knuckles. His gaze locked instantly onto the boy wearing the straw hat standing at the absolute center of the enemy formation. Recalling Borsalino’s earlier words, he murmured to himself, "Strike the alpha first, right?"

"Have the Marines truly degenerated into Alucard’s personal lapdogs? Where is your sense of justice?!" Sabo demanded, facing Momousagi directly.

Momousagi’s eyebrows arched sharply. She brushed a strand of hair from her forehead, letting out a soft, mocking chuckle. "Hahaha... Revolutionary Army Chief of Staff Sabo, we Marines didn’t climb up here to have a philosophical debate with you. Move out!"

Realizing diplomacy was entirely off the table, Sabo wasted no more words. He hooked his fingers into a rigid, claw-like grip. "Dragon’s Claw!"

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