Hawk-Eye's Slash

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Cannon fire thundered around the Square. Brilliant bursts of flame flared beside the combatants.

"Crush them all! Break into the Bay!"

As the Whitebeard Pirates' fourteen division commanders began fighting inside the Bay, the pirate ships still outside swung their cannons around and unleashed a barrage toward it.

Countless black cannonballs shot from the barrels toward the Marine warships frozen into the Ice Sheet inside the Bay.

"Smack! Boom!"

Several figures in white moved at once, intercepting every cannonball before it could reach the warships.

"The Marine Headquarters Vice Admirals are all here!"

When the bombardment failed, members of the Whitebeard Pirates rose and peered over the rails. Seeing the Marine officers standing in a neat row below, they laughed mockingly. "Never seen so many Vice Admirals together. Most people would turn pale at the sight, but against Pops and us, it's a different story."

The assembled Marine Vice Admirals were no less imposing than the Whitebeard Pirates' fourteen commanders. Even so, warriors of their caliber looked grim as they faced the Whitebeard Pirates.

"Bring the ship alongside the ice and wipe them out! Into the Bay—forward!"

Squard stood on the rail and shouted to his Crewmates.

"I'd die ten thousand times for Pops! Marine Headquarters Vice Admirals, you've come at just the right time! Let's go, Squard Pirates!"

As his Crewmates leaped off the ship one after another and headed into the Bay, Squard opened his mouth wide and kept proclaiming his "loyalty" toward the distant figure.

"It's finally begun!"

Sengoku stood atop the Execution Platform, watching the chaos below with a grave expression.

Beside him, Ace knelt on the ground. As he watched the cannon fire rage below, excitement gradually spread across his face.

Within range of the bombardment, a man with a long sword on his back slowly appeared among the Shichibukai as the battle began.

"Well, that's a rare sight!"

On the raised platform, Kizaru looked at the newly arrived Dracule Mihawk and spoke with surprise.

"That lone wolf Hawk-Eye actually came to fight. What a surprise!"

Beside Kizaru, Akainu spoke coldly, his eyes hidden in the shadow of his cap's brim.

"What's this? Are you really going to fight?"

Doflamingo asked Hawk-Eye curiously from beside him.

"I just want to see how wide the gap is between us and that man."

Fierce fighting spirit burned in Hawk-Eye's eyes. Since arriving, he had kept his gaze fixed ahead, on the one man who stood unmoved within the encirclement of a hundred thousand Marines: Whitebeard, one of the Four Emperors.

"Even the strongest warriors tremble when they meet his eyes, too terrified to move. No wonder they call him Hawk-Eye!"

Wariness flickered deep in the Empress's eyes. She and Hawk-Eye were on the same side, so she should have had no reason to fear him. Yet her reaction made it clear that her feelings were not so simple.

"Every swordsman wants to cross blades with the man called the strongest. That's a swordsman's instinct."

Vista, commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' fourth division, gazed at Hawk-Eye with fierce fighting spirit. It had nothing to do with which side they were on. It was simply the instinctive urge of one swordsman to challenge another.

"Yoru, the Black Blade—one of the twelve Supreme Grade Blades!"

Hawk-Eye drew the long sword from his back and slashed at the Ice Sheet before him.

A mighty slash tore through the Ice Sheet under the astonished eyes of the crowd, hurtling toward the man who stood at the pinnacle.

Whitebeard did not move a muscle as the slash raced toward him. The smile on his face did not change.

He stood so calmly that the towering, overwhelming slash might as well not have existed.

"Pops!"

Whitebeard did not move, but Diamond Jozu, commander of his third division, could not stand by and watch him be struck. With a shout, he leaped in front of the ship, putting his own body between Whitebeard and the slash.

"Ngh... Aah!"

With a mighty roar, Jozu used sheer strength to hurl Hawk-Eye's slash into the sky.

"Boom!"

A thunderous blast and a violent shock wave swept across the Square, stunning everyone.

"He blocked the World's Greatest Swordsman's slash!"

The Marine soldiers stared at the sky, their faces grim. When the smoke cleared and they saw Jozu beneath the path of the slash, they were every bit as shocked as they had been when he blocked it.

Gleaming diamonds covered Jozu from head to toe, turning him into a hard-as-diamond man.

After that brief clash, the Whitebeard Pirates' Crewmates began jumping from their ships and charging across the Ice Sheet toward the Square.

Ahead of them, every Coastal Defense Cannon in the Square turned toward the pirates below on Sengoku's orders. Dense cannon fire once again engulfed the Square.

Under cover of the bombardment, Marine Soldiers and pirates finally met in close combat.

"Honestly, those Whitebeard Pirates commanders really are monsters. If we want to keep our losses down, I suppose we'll have to take out their leader first!"

Kizaru tilted his head and rose from his seat. In an instant, he became streaks of yellow light and shot into the sky nearby.

The yellow light suddenly blazed above the battlefield. Its glare forced both sides to stop fighting and shield their eyes.

"Yasakani Sacred Jewel!"

As the light faded high above, Kizaru appeared where it had shone. Crossing his arms before his chest, he launched a "ferocious" attack at Whitebeard, who stood at the ship's bow.

"Well, well! Good thing I made it in time!"

As the yellow light blazed, a striking figure slid down an Ice Path from a nearby Ice Wall and swept in front of Whitebeard.

"Yasakani Sacred Jewel!"

Dazzling yellow light burst from Jiang Lin's hands and shot skyward. His dense barrage met Kizaru's light projectiles, and explosions rippled through the air.

"That's... Pirate D! A rising great pirate who drew Marine Headquarters' attention after just two appearances. After he caused havoc in Impel Down, they raised his bounty to eight hundred million Beli!"

Far from the blazing lights of Marineford, reporters watching the live broadcast in the Sabaody Archipelago excitedly seized their pens and paper, recording Jiang Lin's actions as soon as he appeared.

Through the reporters' written accounts, news of Jiang Lin's arrival at Marineford and his clash with Kizaru soon spread across the world.

"D!"

"D?"

"D..."

As the news spread, the factions of the New World all turned a little of their attention toward Jiang Lin.