The fighting raged across the ice in Marineford's harbor. Explosions flashed and roared everywhere, and the pungent smell of sulfur filled the air.
Black smoke billowed alongside drifting embers, blanketing the sky in a haze of gray.
A falcon circled high overhead, with Lina standing on its back as she surveyed the battlefield.
The Navy had deployed a hundred thousand elite troops for this battle, while the New World pirate fleet allied with Whitebeard numbered around fifty thousand.
Even setting aside the top fighters, the Navy held a massive advantage, especially on its home turf.
Yet the battle below was at a stalemate. The Navy's defensive line was even slowly being pushed back.
"Looks like they're trying to lure every pirate into the harbor before closing the net. Greedy bastards."
A cold glint flashed across Lina's glasses. Dozens, even hundreds, of black lines appeared in midair above her.
The next moment, the lines slowly opened one after another, forming vertical rifts in space like eerie eyes.
"Roar!!"
"Hiss!!"
The dark, bottomless openings seemed to connect to a desolate, sinister realm. One monstrous beast after another thrust its claws and fangs through.
"A gift from Golden Lion. Make sure you enjoy it, Sengoku."
Lina swept her hand out with a cold laugh. The beasts instantly broke free and plunged toward the battlefield below!
Their enormous bodies accelerated under gravity, whistling through the air.
Whoosh—!
Whoosh—!
In the harbor, a pirate who had been shot and knocked down struggled to push himself up from the ice.
Suddenly, he caught sight of a mass of shadows hurtling down from the sky. Startled, he shouted to those around him.
"Look! Something's coming down!"
"What is that?!"
"Some Navy trick, right?!"
"Beasts?!"
At his shout, the pirates around him instinctively looked up. The sight of