Please Sign for Your "Tailed Beast Bomb"

Though the Marines had only one vice admiral and one admiral leading them, this combination was far more threatening than the usual pairing of two admirals.

Among the enemy forces, the only one they truly needed to guard against was Whitebeard. The rest did not yet pose any worthwhile threat in Garp and Sengoku's eyes.

A figure landed at the forefront of the World Government warship's bow with a swish.

Garp's gaze pierced through the layers of waves and locked onto the approaching black dot.

As the distance closed, a grin slowly spread across Garp's face—the thrill of a hunter who had finally waited for his prey.

"They're here."

The distance between both sides steadily shrank, while the sea breeze carried a salty, fishy scent straight at them.

Whitebeard stared at the two figures on the opposing ship's bow and could not help frowning. "I knew it... the information from those Kuja Pirates might not have been reliable."

"Newgate, complaining won't help now." Stussy swept a cold glance across the other side, her tone clearly agitated. "What matters most is how we can retreat safely."

"Retreat?" Whitebeard gave her a heavy look, then glanced down at the deck of the speedboat beneath his feet. "Look at our 'equipment,' then think about how naive that idea is."

That was true.

Their vessel was called a "speedboat," and its only advantage was its speed.

Other than that, it had no defensive capabilities, no cannons, and no sail-adjustment mechanisms.

And the World Government warship?

It was a military warship—fast, capable in battle, sturdy in defense. Its performance surpassed the speedboat by who knew how much.

Not to mention the even deadlier problem: the effect seawater had on Devil Fruit users.

On this battlefield surrounded by ocean on all sides, Whitebeard's abilities were restricted. It was simply making a bad situation worse.

"Damn it!" Stussy finally lost her temper. "Wasn't our route supposed to be the one with the weakest fighting force? Why are Garp and Sengoku here?! The Kuja Pirates' intelligence was ridiculously far off!"

No one answered her.

Because Garp on the other side had already spoken.

"Hey... Newgate." The sea wind blew head-on, making the cape behind Garp emblazoned with the word "Justice" snap loudly. He knocked his fists together with a dull impact, an excited grin impossible to hide on his face. "Ready to receive my fists?"

"Bastard, aren't you getting smug a little too early?" Whitebeard snapped back irritably, then instructed Ron and the others, "Stussy, take control of the speedboat. We'll fight while withdrawing. Kaido, Ron, Ochoku, you three will support me."

Ron and Kaido nodded at the same time.

Ochoku, however, snorted with some displeasure. "What's this, Newgate? Are you treating me like one of your subordinates?"

"Hmph, idiot." Whitebeard replied coldly. "If you don't want to get caught, then keep quiet."

Ochoku opened his mouth, but ultimately did not argue back. His expression was simply rather unpleasant.

Then, Whitebeard placed Murakumogiri onto the deck, thrust both hands into the air, and grabbed fiercely. As his fingers dug into the air, it was as if he had seized something tangible, and then he yanked hard.

Crack!

A sharp shattering sound exploded beside everyone's ears.

In an instant, the air barrier resembled shattered glass. Centered on Whitebeard's hands, countless visible cracks spread in every direction.

Immediately afterward, the sea began churning violently. Massive waves surged up from beneath the ship, as though the entire ocean were trembling.

The World Government warship began rocking fiercely from side to side, and the Marine soldiers on deck staggered as they grabbed the railings.

"Damn it." Sengoku's eyes darkened. "The Tremor-Tremor Fruit's power is still too troublesome. Even at sea, where we hold every advantage... with this move alone, he has the momentum to turn the tide."

"Hahahaha!" Garp laughed loudly. "It is indeed a little troublesome for us. But we're on the sea now—this is a double-edged sword!"

As he spoke, Garp suddenly raised an arm and swung it forward. "Charge! Catch up to them, and the threat will be gone!"

Sengoku agreed. Once they closed in, Whitebeard would not dare use power of that level again. Otherwise, their own boat would be the one capsizing.

"Follow my command!!" Sengoku ordered. "Fire all cannons! Raise our speed to the maximum and catch them!"

At the same time, the World Government warship was pushed high by the wave. Its bow lifted, exposing its wet hull beneath the waterline.

Boom—

Accompanied by a deafening blast, the warship dove down from the crest of the wave.

Bang! Bang! Bang!!!

Bang! Bang! Bang!!!

Pitch-black cannonballs shot from the barrels, trailing flames as they streaked through the sky.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!!

The cannonballs traced arc after arc as they descended toward the speedboat.

Whether they hit was secondary. Sengoku's true intention was to use the shockwaves and splashes from the explosions to disrupt the speedboat's course, forcing it to slow down or even change direction.

"Ron, Kaido, Ochoku." Whitebeard reminded them in a deep voice. "Handle it as you see fit."

Cannonballs of this level were entirely within the ability of the three of them to deal with.

Whitebeard himself, meanwhile, needed to conserve his strength for whatever crisis might come next.

"Leave it to me!"

As Kaido answered, Armament Haki had already wrapped around the spiked club in his hand. He then swung it fiercely.

Whoosh.

A shockwave burst from the tip of the club and soared into the sky.

Boom!!!!

A batch of incoming cannonballs was swept by the shockwave in midair and exploded instantly.

Clusters of black smoke blossomed in the sky, leaving ugly blotches against the blue heavens.

Ochoku did not slack off either. He launched attacks and struck the cannonballs Kaido had missed.

"Hey, Ron, what are you doing?" Kaido was startled. When he came to his senses, he saw Ron jump straight into the sea. For a Devil Fruit user, how the hell was that any different from seeking death?

The instant Ron left the speedboat—no, the instant he leaped—his body began changing violently.

Dark-red chakra poured from his body like flames, wrapping around him. Four dark-red tails unfolded behind him, carving four arcs through the air.

In the blink of an eye, a massive dark-red monster with four tails crashed down onto the sea's surface.

"He didn't sink?" Kaido's eyes widened round. His mouth opened and closed, yet he could not squeeze out a word for a long time. A Devil Fruit user was standing directly atop the sea, treating seawater like solid ground... was that reasonable?

"What are you doing, Ron?" Stussy was stunned as well.

"Don't worry about me." Ron's voice emerged from beneath that ferocious Tailed Beast Cloak. "Keep moving forward. I won't hold you back."

As soon as he finished speaking, he opened his mouth.

A dark-red sphere of energy rapidly condensed and expanded within it.

His accuracy against aerial targets was much higher than against targets on the sea.

"Not good."

Sengoku's pupils abruptly contracted. He had no time to be surprised by what that thing was that had suddenly transformed from a human into a monster.

"Garp, with me!"

"Got it!"