The Allied Forces Assemble · The Final Line of Defense
At the Calm Belt, the sea was as calm as a mirror.
Even the slightest sea breeze vanished, and the sails of all the giant ships hung limply. The six large ships floated silently on the sea, like six ancient Sea Kings that had been dormant for a long time, each guarding a section of the sea, waiting for the powerful figures from all walks of life to gather.
The first to arrive at the rendezvous point were none other than the Whitebeard Pirates!
The Moby Dick broke through the hazy sea fog and slowly appeared. Two deep cracks were visible on the sturdy hull, revealing the wooden frame, and the sails were charred and torn by the flames, clearly indicating that it had just gone through a fierce battle.
The Whitebeard stood at the Murakumogiri, his tall figure as steady as a mountain.
Behind them, Marco and Jozu were covered in grime.
Marco the Phoenix had a large gash burned through the sleeve of his coat, and the wounds from the clash of powers remained beneath his skin; Diamond Jozu's fists were wrapped in blood-soaked bandages.
"Gurara! This must be it. These World Government lackeys certainly know how to pick a place to ambush you halfway!" Whitebeard laughed loudly, causing ripples to spread across the surrounding seawater.
Marco's expression was grave as he quickly recounted the fierce battle. "Pops, there were three black warships blocking our way, led by a golden-masked knight and two silver-masked CP0 agents. The leader possessed the Barrier-Barrier Fruit, allowing him to stack three layers of defensive barriers at once! I unleashed my Phoenix budge, and the recoil almost crippled my ankle!"
Jozu clenched his fist, his tone tinged with anger. "There was also a guy who was proficient in advanced Ryuo. His Armament Haki pierced right through my diamond shell, cracking half of my defense! I threw a punch in anger, but that guy was too fast, and I only broke two ribs. These guys are all quite strong."
Whitebeard glanced coldly at the distant sea. "It was just a probe. With this few men, they can't stop us at all."
Just then, waves surged on the eastern sea, and Roger's Oro Jackson came rushing over at full speed.
The sails were covered with scorch marks, and the deck had several new cracks, but the speed did not decrease in the slightest, and the hull remained as stable as a rock.
Dark King Rayleigh stood behind Roger, gripping the hilt of his sword tightly, his knuckles white, clearly still recovering from the fierce battle.
"Captain, those two black ships were really troublesome," Rayleigh recounted in a deep voice. "The two Silver-Masked Knights leading them were incredibly resourceful. One had mastered the Ryuo technique to its peak; his sword speed was so fast that even Observation Haki could barely catch afterimages. I was forced to change my predicted direction twice just to barely parry. The other wielded the Immobility Fruit; I was caught off guard, my body stiffened for a moment, and his fatal slash was only half an inch away from piercing my ribs!"
Roger sheathed his Famous Sword, Ace, his eyes burning with fighting spirit. "They retreated too early, much earlier than we anticipated. This is enough to show that the Holy Knights have laid a trap, with four fleets intercepting them simultaneously, and manpower deployed on every route. They clearly know our rendezvous time and our sailing route!"
The northern sea area was quickly filled with a dark, dense fleet of ships; Charlotte Linlin's Totto Land Fleet arrived on time.
Thick wooden planks were temporarily nailed to the damaged area at the stern to repair it, and a scorch mark remained at the waterline, enough to prove how dangerous the battle had just taken place.
Katakuri, half his face buried under his scarf, continued to activate his Observation Haki, Future Sight: "The ones intercepting me are three black ships, still the same configuration of one gold and two silver. That gold-masked knight specializes in high-speed attacks, constantly circling around to my side using his Teleportation Fruit, striking seven times in just ten seconds, and even predicting my dodging routes three times!"
"I seized the opportunity to retaliate fiercely, landing both punches squarely. One punch broke his ribs, and the other shattered his shoulder armor. But this man didn't linger; he simply blew up his stern to create chaos, using the thick smoke to quickly lead his team to retreat, his advance and retreat swift and decisive."
Not long after, the Hachinosu fleet also arrived at the battlefield.
Kaido stood firmly at the bow of the ship, gripping his Iron Club tightly with both hands. Dragon scales were faintly visible beneath his skin, and his half-beast form was ready to be activated at any moment.
"We've had the most exciting fight along the way, with a full five black ships blocking our way!" Kaido roared. "A golden-masked knight commanded the Flagship, while four silver-masked experts held off the enemy. King led the charge, his raging flames crashing against the defensive barrier, only vaporizing the first layer; he couldn't break through!"
"It was my turn to strike. Three consecutive heavy blows shattered the first layer of protection. Before I could launch a second attack, the enemy immediately erected a new barrier. These knights coordinated extremely well; one defended while the others immediately launched flanking attacks. As soon as a gap was opened, someone would quickly fill the gap, and the formation never completely collapsed. Before the fighting had even lasted a short while, they received orders and turned to retreat in unison."
The four fleets met up one after another, and after exchanging information about the battle, the sea fell into a brief silence.
Lin Yuan stood at the bow of the Pluton warship, his brows furrowed tightly.
After hearing everyone's experiences, he instantly grasped the enemy's overall strategy. "A simultaneous ambush from four directions, with at least two to three warships allocated to each direction. Before we could even rendezvous, we were forced into four wars of attrition against the Holy Knights and the main force of CP0."
Just then, the Den Den Mushi "Bruburu" rang, and Ginny's calm voice came through. "Intelligence confirmed. The Holy Knights have deployed a total of nine warships, divided into four groups to intercept us at each level. Although they couldn't delay the allied forces' convergence, this round of probing has allowed them to ascertain the combat strength limits, elite personnel configurations, and attack rhythm of each of our fleets. The subsequent interceptions will only become more and more dangerous."
A chill ran down everyone's spine.
The World Government had no intention of stopping everyone in the first wave. Instead, it planned to use ambushes to find out their hand before setting up the next line of defense!
Just as everyone was organizing the fleet, a small, dark dot appeared on the distant horizon.
The tiny dot rapidly enlarged, eventually transforming into a lone ship without any flags flying.
At the bow of the black ship, a tall figure stood against the wind, his long black overcoat billowing in the gale, his messy long hair flying everywhere—it was Rocks D. Xebec.
His ship had a stable draft and maintained a constant speed, indicating that he had been following far behind the convoy from the very beginning of the voyage, observing the entire ambush from the sidelines.
Immediately afterwards, another golden light pierced the surface of the sea.
Golden Lion Shiki's Golden Warship slowly approached from the other side, always maintaining a safe distance of three kilometers from the allied forces. The bow of the ship was steadily facing the fleet, neither moving closer nor turning away, simply observing the situation from the outside.
Whitebeard gazed at Rocks' lone ship and slowly said, "He's been following us ever since we set sail from Pirate Island, delaying his appearance. It turns out he was waiting to see this interception battle and assess the overall situation before showing himself."
Rocks' black ships never entered the Allied formation, remaining only one kilometer ahead of the main fleet.
He remained silent, neither offering to join nor displaying hostility. Yet, the position he occupied perfectly filled the defensive gap at the very front of the entire fleet.
Even without being incorporated into the main force, the mere fact that this ship was anchored here made it the Strategic Pivot at the forefront of the entire coalition.
Upon seeing this, the Golden Lion immediately adjusted its course, stopping the Golden Warship half a kilometer behind and to the side of Rocks, firmly guarding its flank.
With two legendary pirates blocking the way from the left and right, the allied fleet suddenly had two more formidable barriers.
"Hahaha, now that we've successfully assembled, let's take a break, and then!"
Lin Yuan's voice echoed across the entire sea, "The entire fleet, form battle formation and advance at full speed towards the Holy Land Mary Geoise!"
At the command, the giant ships roared in unison.
The Ancient Weapon Pluton, over 300 meters long, was stationed in the central command, becoming the core force of the entire fleet.
The right flank was guarded by Whitebeard's Moby Dick, while the left flank was handed over to Roger's Oro Jackson. Big Mom's Totto Land Fleet was deployed at the rear to guard against pursuers from behind.
Ahead, Rocks's lone ship led the way, its course straight and locked onto the Red Line.
Beneath the sea surface, enormous, dark shadows, obscuring the sky, moved in unison.
Giant Sea Kings lurk in the deep sea, keeping pace with the fleet at the same speed, neither surfacing to reveal themselves nor deviating from the escort route, thus forming an impregnable underwater defense line.
Caesar shouted his report from the ship's control room, "The Power Furnace are running at full capacity, all gun positions are loaded, the hull structure is intact, and we are ready to repel the next blockade!"
Jin spread his fiery wings and flew onto the mast, his Observation Haki covering the path ahead as he kept a close eye on the black ship silhouette that might appear on the horizon at any moment.
An expedition aimed directly at the center of world power has officially entered its final sprint.
Having ascertained the Allied Forces' trump card, the Holy Knights will surely gather all their strength to lay down the final line of defense.
The next naval battle is destined to be a bloody one!