Amid the blazing flames, a battered figure knelt on one knee atop the shattered remains of a Marine battleship, his body drenched in blood, his expression weak and dazed.
The other vice admirals saw this and their faces grew even darker.
If they'd had any intention left of challenging Whiteflame head-on, that intent was shrinking rapidly.
In a single blow, he had reduced a vice admiral to this state…
No wonder the World Government had slapped a 1.568 billion Berries bounty on his head even without a proper direct clash.
With strength like this—how were they supposed to fight back?
"Well then, since we've started… we might as well keep going."
"It's about time I presented the Navy with a proper gift."
As Whiteflame spoke, he snapped his fingers.
In an instant, thirty-nine towering bandaged monsters burst out from around him, turning into streaks of black as they hurled themselves toward the remaining Marine battleships.
"Damn it! What are those bandaged things?!"
"You've gotta be kidding me—those claws can slice right through the ship's steel plating!!"
"Open fire! Shoot them! Kill those monsters!!"
With the IBM unleashed, nine of the Marine warships were thrown into total chaos.
The Buster Call had mobilized nearly ten thousand elite Marines, ten rear admirals, and several commodores…
But in front of the thirty-nine terrifying IBMs, this so-called "Buster Call" looked like nothing more than a children's game.
Now, each IBM possessed power that surpassed even a Marine admiral.
They couldn't use Haki, nor did they have any Devil Fruit abilities—
But they could use basic combat techniques. And those basic moves, combined with their overwhelming strength, meant that a single swipe of their claws could tear a battleship clean in half.
"We've got no choice… we have to kill him!"
The vice admirals' faces went pale at the scene, but they didn't lose their composure. Instead, they converged together, turning their killing intent on Whiteflame.
If they could take him down, the bandaged monsters would disappear.
"Move!"
Five vice admirals attacked at once.
If it had been any other pirate, they'd be drenched in cold sweat.
But in Whiteflame's eyes, the combined assault of five vice admirals wasn't even as threatening as when he first faced Jack the Drought.
The first to charge in was Vice Admiral Doberman.
He already had a history with Whiteflame—back on the Gran Tesoro, he'd tried to threaten Whiteflame in order to protect a Celestial Dragon. It hadn't ended well for him; he'd still failed to stop the Celestial Dragon from being killed.
"You're first."
Whiteflame became a streak of light, flashing forward right in front of Doberman. He lifted his leg, light erupting around it.
BANG!
In the next instant, Doberman's face twisted grotesquely from the impact of Whiteflame's kick. He spat a mouthful of blood—and shattered teeth—before his body shot away like a cannonball, carving a straight line through the air and crashing into the sea.
Underwater, his head lolled to the side. He lost consciousness on the spot.
"Second."
Not giving them a chance to react, lightning flared in Whiteflame's palm.
Bzzzzzt—
Thunder danced along his hand as he slammed his palm onto Onigumo's body.
Already heavily wounded, Onigumo was completely overwhelmed, his body pierced through by the lightning. Smoke rose off him as he fell lifelessly from the sky.
"Now!"
Whiteflame had taken down two vice admirals in the blink of an eye. The remaining three were shocked—but their training kicked in. Seizing the opening after his attack, they pressed in, their blades wrapped in Armament Haki as they swung in from three directions.
[Armament Haki: Hardening]
A jet-black, steel-like sheen spread across Whiteflame's skin wherever their weapons struck.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
As expected, none of their blades could even scratch him. One sword even snapped on impact.
"What kind of defense is this?!"
The three vice admirals immediately retreated, using Geppo to move through the air as they regrouped, trading glances—they all saw the same shock reflected in each other's eyes.
Armament Haki was a must for any non–Devil Fruit powerhouse. Technique and skill were important—but Haki was what truly defined a top-tier fighter's strength.
Fleet Admiral Kong.
Hero of the Marines, Garp.
Both were men who'd stood at the top of the world with nothing but their fists.
"His Haki… it's on par with Vice Admiral Garp's, at the very least!"
"Not just Garp… he might even be able to trade blows with Fleet Admiral Kong himself…"
From Whiteflame, they felt a level of Armament Haki they had only ever sensed from monsters like Garp and Kong.
"You still have time to chat?"
SWISH!
Whiteflame vanished from in front of them.
A heartbeat later, all three vice admirals were sent flying in different directions, each one crashing into a separate battleship with such force that the hulls nearly split apart.
"Kh… cough, cough, cough…"
Vice Admiral Momonga dropped to one knee, coughing up blood with each breath, his face deathly pale.
He felt like his internal organs had been shaken loose by that kick. His strength wouldn't come when he called for it.
"He's too strong…"
Staring up at Whiteflame's figure in the sky, Momonga's face twisted.
"His speed, his strength, his mastery of Armament Haki… we don't match him in any aspect. The fact that Admiral Kizaru died at his hands… doesn't seem surprising at all anymore."
Kizaru—famous for his ability to dodge and retreat—had been the first admiral to fall. Many in the Navy had found that hard to accept.
Momonga had been one of those people.
But now, after experiencing Whiteflame's power himself, he finally understood.
Kizaru hadn't died unjustly.
"AAAHHH—!!"
Suddenly, a scream tore through the air.
They turned to look—Vice Admiral Strawberry was kneeling on the deck of a warship, his chest pierced clean through by a spear of lightning, his heart obliterated.
"Strawberry!"
Vice Admirals Yamakaji and Momonga roared in rage, raising their blades and charging at Whiteflame again.
But before they could reach him, several long, razor-sharp claws sliced through the air toward them.
SWISH SWISH SWISH—
Ten IBMs surged in from all directions, surrounding Yamakaji and Momonga.
"The Buster Call's ten top-class battleships—I'll leave you one."
"Of the ten rear admirals… I'll leave three."
"And of the five vice admirals—you two are the lucky survivors."
"As for everyone else… consider them my gift to Sengoku and the World Government, for trying to use me in their little global charade."
Whiteflame walked through the air, descending slightly as he looked down on Yamakaji and Momonga with a cold gaze.
Hearing this, the two vice admirals went completely pale.
The so-called Buster Call, meant to exterminate "demons," had ended up becoming a one-sided massacre—with them as the prey.
And no matter how they struggled, they couldn't see even a sliver of hope of defeating Whiteflame.
It was suffocating.
"Get lost."
With a wave of his hand, the IBMs retreated, returning to Whiteflame's side and vanishing without a trace.
Then, Whiteflame turned and left.
Watching his figure recede into the distance, then looking back at the nine destroyed battleships and the three remaining rear admirals, Momonga and Yamakaji exchanged glances.
All they saw in each other's eyes was bitter despair.
Despite the anger and humiliation boiling in their chests, they had no other choice.
They gathered the remnants of their forces, boarded the single intact battleship, and quickly withdrew from the waters around Enies Lobby, setting course for Marineford.
"Losing this many vice admirals and rear admirals in one go…"
"When the war at Marineford breaks out, Sengoku is going to be in deep trouble," Whiteflame thought as he watched the last battleship fade into the horizon.
Originally, he'd planned to wipe out every last ship in the Buster Call—rear admirals, vice admirals, everyone.
But then he remembered the upcoming Paramount War.
If he killed them all now, the Navy might already be half-defeated the moment Whitebeard showed up.
And a one-sided war like that… wouldn't be any fun to watch.
"You're a demon."
Kalifa had witnessed the entire "reverse massacre" with her own eyes.
She now had a far clearer understanding of Whiteflame's true power. Her voice trembled as she bit out the words.
Kalifa had thought that once the Navy's Buster Call fleet arrived, it would at least put some pressure on Whiteflame—maybe even force him to retreat.
But she had never imagined the fleet would be crushed so thoroughly.
In front of Whiteflame, the Buster Call hadn't been a deterrent at all.
It had been nothing but a slaughterhouse.
"A demon, huh?"
"Then I'll show you… what a real demon looks like."
Whiteflame reached out, grabbed Kalifa, and pinned her to the ground.
The two of them were suddenly pressed close together, bodies in full contact—Kalifa's ample chest flattening firmly against Whiteflame.
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