Having just clashed with Shiki for an entire week, Charlotte Linlin was the first to respond to his fury.
Boom~
A massive pirate ship descended from the sky, landing swiftly on the sea's surface.
Standing on the deck while devouring a cake, Charlotte Linlin roared with laughter.
Her words dripped with contempt for Shiki's pitiful state.
"Mamamama, Shiki, you're truly useless, getting tricked by the Navy like this."
"I must have misjudged you—you're really worthless."
Charlotte Linlin: You impotent fool, such a waste of my time.
Tch, what a pathetic loser.
Boom~
Right after Charlotte Linlin, another enormous pirate ship crashed onto the sea.
"Gurararara, Shiki, you look utterly miserable."
"But these Navy folks are indeed treacherous, deploying such a terrifying weapon."
"There's never been any intel about the Navy hiding this kind of armament—they've kept it well concealed."
Whitebeard's towering figure stood at the ship's prow, gazing at the wreckage ahead with a sigh.
Even for a powerhouse like him, the laser weapons the Navy had just revealed were deeply shocking.
This capability, beyond conventional imagination, genuinely threatened his safety.
Fortunately, it seemed the laser weapon could only be used once.
"Damn pirates, as expected, completely without honor."
"Four high-ranking officers showing up at once—how despicable."
On the Navy's side, Sengoku's expression darkened aboard the warship as Whitebeard and Charlotte Linlin made their appearances.
What should have been a certain victory had suddenly turned uncertain, even slightly disadvantageous.
The two Admirals behind him failed to provide adequate reassurance in that moment.
All four opponents were top-tier "monsters."
Just as the Navy had prepared in advance to annihilate Brian and Shiki in these waters, the Rocks Pirates clearly had their own designs on the Navy forces here for the exchange.
This was a true battle of devious minds—whoever lost would be the fool.
Sengoku scanned the five pirate ships opposite and made a decision.
Grabbing his Den Den Mushi, he bellowed.
"Fire, all batteries open fire!"
"Yes, sir!"
At the command, ten Navy warships unleashed their cannons simultaneously, countless shells blanketing the sky.
A massive cannonball tsunami formed, bombarding the sea where Brian and the other three were located.
Witnessing this, the four high-ranking officers showed no change in expression.
They calmly observed, leaving room for a performance.
"Pathetic tricks."
Whitebeard chuckled lightly.
"Air Quake!"
Raising his right hand, he struck the space before him.
Crack~~
The space around Whitebeard instantly shattered.
The resulting shockwave surged omnidirectionally, meeting the onslaught of countless shells head-on.
Boom~
Boom~
Boom~
Wherever the earthquake wave passed, every shell detonated mid-air.
It only brought a gust of wind carrying the smell of gunpowder below, without causing any substantial damage.
"Gurararara~"
Whitebeard stood at the bow of the ship, laughing heartily as he looked with satisfaction at the effect of his move.
His laughter was filled with contempt for the Navy.
"Hahahaha, Sengoku, in this situation you're still counting on these useless cannonballs."
"Your methods are already outdated."
Seeing Whitebeard effortlessly handle the massive volley of cannonballs, Sengoku's expression turned extremely grim.
Nearby, Garp, who witnessed everything, ignored Sengoku's expression and instead burst into loud laughter.
The Navy's combat style habitually followed a crushing approach, remaining largely unchanged even decades later.
With equipment that surpassed most enemies, the Navy indeed had no need to resort to fists from the start.
Before every major battle, the first tactic employed was always carpet bombing with cannonballs.
After several overwhelming volleys, if not easily ending the battle, they could at least inflict significant casualties on the enemy.
Then, by pressing the advantage, victory would inevitably belong to the Navy.
This strategy was particularly effective in naval warfare.
Out on the open sea with nowhere to hide, enemies could only face the countless cannonballs head-on.
Navy officers couldn't imagine any reason for failure.
In the most famous war in the original story, the Navy executed this combat theory to its extreme.
Before Marineford, countless cannonballs blotted out the sky.
This indeed caused massive damage to the attacking Whitebeard Pirates.
Unfortunately, while this tactic worked against enemies incapable of area-of-effect damage,
when facing the four senior executives of the Rocks Pirates - these outrageous madmen -
one could only say Sengoku was undoubtedly showing embroidery to the blind, completely useless.
No wonder Garp despised his rigid thinking.
According to the current young Garp's mindset, why bother with all these unnecessary complications?
A real man should confront directly, true strength lies in head-on clashes.
Besides, even if using cannonballs, they shouldn't use these insignificant ones.
In the original story decades later, Garp would frequently bring out his Italian cannon - cannonballs comparable to warships in size.
Those were the kind of cannonballs that would leave you either dead or crippled if they hit.
"Bastard Garp, if you're so capable, you try."
"Hmph, fine, I'll do it. Watch closely, you fool."
Whoosh~
As Garp spoke, his eyes narrowed, and a red light flashed.
A mysterious massive storm erupted with Garp at its center, followed by an overwhelmingly domineering aura sweeping across the entire sea.
The sky instantly darkened, covered by ominous clouds, while waves surged violently.
Thud~
Thud~
In an instant, across the five remaining pirate ships on the enemy side,
nearly half the pirates succumbed to the Conqueror's Haki impact, their eyes rolling back as they collapsed unconscious.
"Hahahaha, see that, Sengoku? This is what a real man looks like."
Seeing his Conqueror's Haki take effect with excellent results, Garp shouted excitedly.
As one of only two men in the Navy of his generation possessing Conqueror's Haki,
Garp's showboating proved highly effective.
"So amazing, Garp~"
Tsuru's gaze toward him instantly became dreamy - this was the man she admired.
Even Zephyr's eyes held an indescribable emotion as he looked at Garp.
The effects of Conqueror's Haki were truly domineering.
When used before thousands of troops, it could etch the user's magnificent presence into the hearts of numerous allies and even enemies.
Seeing Tsuru react like this, Sengoku gritted his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.
The Navy had always suffered from a severe imbalance—far more wolves than meat.
Taking their generation of the Navy as an example, Tsuru was the only one with both exceptional strength and outstanding looks.
Tsuru had fought alongside the three of them through countless life-and-death situations, and their bond ran deep.
Sengoku had always held strong feelings for Tsuru and had even privately confessed his affection.
Unfortunately, while the man was willing, the woman was not—Tsuru didn't like Sengoku; she liked Garp.
To make matters worse, Garp, that blockheaded straight man, didn't like Tsuru and only saw her as a comrade.
In the original story, Garp never ended up with Tsuru. Instead, he found someone else and fathered Dragon.
Tsuru, too, eventually built her own family and even had a granddaughter.
In the end, it was Sengoku who truly ended up alone and lonely.
His only adopted son had died young, too.
This absurd and complicated relationship was now playing out among the Navy's newest generation of hopefuls.
Anyone unaware might think the three of them were starring in a Navy version of "Burning Winter."
Well, no—it was even more intense than Burning Winter, given their outstanding abilities.
And at least it wasn't as nauseating as Burning Winter—they didn't have to share a bowl of ice together.
Eww~
In the end, the clown turned out to be none other than Sengoku himself.
Sengoku, what a pitiful man.
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