Boom! Boom! Boom!
Fierce cannon fire thundered around the square, dazzling bursts of flame lighting up beside the combatants constantly.
"Crush them all and storm into the bay!"
The Whitebeard Pirates' ships that had not yet entered the bay turned their cannons as the fourteen division commanders inside the bay began fighting, unleashing a storm of fire toward the naval warships frozen on the ice.
Countless black cannonballs burst from the muzzles, streaking rapidly across the ice toward the immobilized Marine vessels.
Bang! Boom!
Several white figures leapt into action the moment the cannonballs were fired, intercepting every last one before they could reach the warships.
"All the Marine Vice Admirals have appeared!"
As the bombardment failed, the members of the Whitebeard Pirates rose to their feet, peering over the railings below. Upon seeing the Vice Admirals lined up in unison, they sneered mockingly:
"Never seen so many Vice Admirals gathered together. Anyone else would be scared pale at this sight… but since their opponents are Pops and us, it's another story entirely."
The combined presence of the Vice Admirals was no less imposing than that of Whitebeard's fourteen division commanders. Yet even these veterans, in the face of Whitebeard's crew, all bore solemn expressions.
"Bring the ships onto the ice! Cut them down! Target the bay—advance!"
Squard shouted from the railing to his men.
"So long as it's for Pops, I'll give my life without hesitation! Marines—Vice Admirals—you've come at just the right time! Charge, Squard Pirates!"
As his crew leapt from the ship one after another, rushing toward the bay, Squard shouted with his mouth wide open, loudly declaring his "loyalty" toward the figure in the distance.
"So it's finally begun."
From the execution platform, Sengoku watched the chaos below, his expression heavy.
Beside him, Ace knelt on the ground. Watching the ceaseless bombardment below, his face gradually grew tense with emotion.
Within the area ravaged by cannon fire, among the ranks of the Shichibukai, a man bearing a massive black blade stepped forward slowly as the battle commenced.
"This really is a rare sight."
From the high platform, Kizaru murmured as he saw Dracule Mihawk make his entrance.
"That self-willed Hawk Eyes, actually showing up to fight here. Truly unexpected."
Beside him, Akainu, his eyes hidden beneath the brim of his cap, spoke coldly.
"What's this? You really planning to fight?"
Doflamingo asked curiously from Mihawk's side.
"I only want to test it… to see how vast the gap is between myself and that man."
Mihawk's eyes burned with a fierce fighting spirit. From the moment he appeared, his gaze had been fixed forward—locked on the Yonko who stood unmoving amid a hundred thousand Marines: Whitebeard.
"Even the strongest warriors quake before those eyes, unable to move a muscle… Truly worthy of the title 'Hawk Eyes.'"
Boa Hancock's eyes flickered with deep apprehension. Though she and Mihawk stood on the same side, her heart was clearly not at ease.
"For any swordsman, it's natural to want to cross blades with the man hailed as the strongest. It's simply the instinct of a swordsman."
Vista, commander of the 5th division of the Whitebeard Pirates, stared into Mihawk's eyes, his own filled with pure fighting spirit. It had nothing to do with sides—only the innate drive between kindred swordsmen.
"One of the Twelve Supreme Grade Blades—the Black Blade, Yoru!"
Mihawk drew the great sword from his back and swung it toward the ice before him.
A devastating wave of sword aura, unstoppable in its might, split the ice as it tore forward—straight at the man standing atop it all.
Whitebeard did not move an inch. Even as the slash roared toward him, his face remained calm, his smile unchanged.
His composed demeanor was as if the colossal slash before him—towering like a mountain, unfathomable like the sea—did not exist.
"Pops!"
Though Whitebeard remained still, his 3rd division commander, Diamond Jozu, could not stand by and watch. With a shout, he leapt to the front of the ship, placing himself between Whitebeard and the oncoming slash.
"Urgh—haah!"
With a roar, Jozu caught Mihawk's strike head-on, hurling it into the sky with sheer brute strength.
Boom!
A deafening blast resounded, shaking the entire plaza and stunning all who watched.
"He stopped the slash of the world's greatest swordsman!"
Marines gazed upward, aghast. When the dust settled, they saw Jozu standing beneath the impact site, their shock just as great as when Mihawk had first unleashed the strike.
Jozu's body glittered brilliantly, covered entirely in diamonds, transforming him into a living fortress of unbreakable crystal.
After the brief clash, the Whitebeard Pirates started jumping off their ships and rushing across the ice toward the plaza.
On the plaza, the coastal batteries turned on Sengoku's orders, their muzzles locking onto the pirates. Instantly, the air was replenished with the thunder of relentless artillery.
Shrouded in the storm of cannon fire, Marines and pirates clashed directly, the battle finally descending into close combat.
Honestly now… as expected from Whitebeard's commanders, each one is as monstrous as the next. If we want to reduce casualties, we'll just have to strike the head.
Kizaru cocked his head with languid ease before rising from his seat, his body dissolving into golden radiance as he shot into the sky above the battlefield.
Blinding radiance burst overhead, forcing both sides to pause mid-fight, shielding their eyes from the brilliance.
"Yasakani no Magatama!"
From the air, Kizaru's form reappeared, his arms crossed before his chest as he unleashed a storm of dazzling light bullets straight at Whitebeard standing at the prow.
"Ma ma… good thing I made it in time!"
At that instant, a figure streaked down from the icy wall at the side, sliding swiftly along an ice path, interposing himself in front of Whitebeard.
"Yasakani no Magatama!"
Radiant light flared from Jiang Lin's hands, firing upward to meet Kizaru's attack. Countless bullets of light collided, detonating in a violent cascade of explosions.
"That's… the pirate 'D'—only shown himself twice, yet already drawing the full attention of Marine Headquarters. After his rampage at Impel Down, his bounty was raised to 800 million belli, a newly risen great pirate!"
Outside Marineford, reporters in the Sabaody Archipelago, watching the live broadcast, furiously scribbled notes, recording Jiang Lin's sudden appearance and clash with Kizaru.
News of Jiang Lin's presence at Marineford and his battle against a Marine Admiral spread rapidly worldwide.
"D!"
"D?"
"D…"
As the news circulated, powers across the New World turned their attention, if only briefly, toward Jiang Lin.