The fierce battle in the skies continued, with each collision between Roy and Saint Saturn creating a shockwave.
It shattered the surrounding clouds.
But on the ground, the situation is quietly changing.
After the Five Elders held Roy back, the Marine Headquarters command system finally got a chance to catch its breath.
The Vice Admiral, who had been decimated by Roy, began to reorganize their formation.
Some units that were on the verge of collapse stabilized under the leadership of their junior officers.
A Rear Admiral wiped the blood from his face and roared at the top of his lungs.
"Don't panic! Everyone, don't panic! Line up again!"
His voice sounded particularly hoarse amidst the gunfire, but the soldiers, who had been running around like headless flies, finally found their leader.
They began to regroup according to his orders.
A dozen or so naval Commodore gathered from various directions, all of them bearing wounds.
Some had bandages wrapped around their arms, and some still had blood streaming down their faces, but their eyes were filled with renewed fighting spirit.
"First formation, hold the left flank!"
"Second squadron, block the port direction!"
"The gun emplacement has been recalibrated; lock onto the officers on Hachinosu!"
Orders were relayed through the naval formation, and the troops that had been fighting independently began to reform their defensive lines.
Even the soldiers who were knocked unconscious by gravity and Conqueror's Haki were dragged to the rear and given emergency treatment by medics.
Sengoku, seeing this from afar, breathed a slight sigh of relief.
As long as they can maintain their position, the navy still has the strength to fight, thanks to its numerical advantage.
But just then, a hoarse voice came from the edge of the battlefield.
"Hehehe--I've only been gone a short while, and your navy is already strutting around again?"
Moria.
He returned from the direction of the port.
Luffy and Ace have been safely delivered to the Whitebeard Pirates ' ship; his mission is complete.
He stood at the edge of the battlefield, his shadow churning beneath his feet like a living thing, a strange smile spreading across his lips.
" Shadow Horn Spear!"
Dozens of shadowy spears rose from the ice, piercing through the naval front-line soldiers who had just formed their formation.
The shadow spear, having pierced through the human body, continued its momentum, spreading backward and tearing a large hole in the entire defensive line.
" Moria!"
A Marine Vice Admiral roared as he charged forward, his long sword covered in Armament Haki, and slashed at Moria.
The shadow beneath Moria's feet rose automatically, forming a black shield that caught the blow firmly.
Then the shadow shield suddenly transformed into a giant fist, smashing into the Vice Admiral's chest and sending him flying.
"Hehehe--Is that all you've got?"
Moria's laughter echoed across the battlefield, and his shadow bats once again swarmed out, crashing into the dense ranks of the navy.
The soldiers who were touched by the shadow bats had their shadows forcibly taken away and collapsed unconscious in the sunlight.
At the same time, another figure cut into the battlefield from another direction of the port.
Hancock's cloak fluttered in the sea breeze, and her long legs made a series of crisp sounds as she stepped on the ice.
A trace of blood clung to the corner of her mouth—she had been grazed on the shoulder by Kizaru's laser while covering Luffy's retreat. But this injury was nothing to her.
" The Slave Arrow!"
Dozens of pink arrows shot from her fingertips, accurately striking a group of naval soldiers who were besieging Crocodile.
Those people instantly turned into stone statues, frozen in place in their charging, sword-wielding pose.
Crocodile emerged from the yellow sand, a cigar dangling from his lips, and glanced at Hancock with a hint of mockery in his voice:
"Hmph, Snake Princess, I thought you'd run away."
"Stop talking nonsense."
Hancock didn't even glance at him, and with another Perfume Femur, she sent three marines flying.
"I'm just going to see the Straw Hat Boy off."
Jinbe was the last to return to the battlefield.
He strode in from the direction of the port, each step he took creating a crack in the ice.
"I'm back."
Jinbe's voice wasn't loud, but Crocodile and Moria both heard it.
"You've come back just in time."
Crocodile exhaled a smoke ring, his right hand transforming into a sand blade, which he Commodore suck the two charging Marine commodores dry.
"The navy has too many people, and they're worried about not having enough manpower."
With Shichibukai with close ties to Hachinosu returning to the battlefield, the Navy's defenses, which had just stabilized, are once again on the verge of collapse.
Moria's shadow ravaged the left flank, Hancock's petrifying arrows swept across the right flank, and Jinbe's Fish-Man Karate crushed everything in its path.
The three men were like three sharp knives, simultaneously cutting into the navy's formation from three directions, scattering the newly assembled force once again.
The hard-won defensive lines were once again on the verge of collapse under the onslaught of the three.
But that's not the worst of it.
On the other side of the battlefield, a figure was rampaging wildly.
The Kuma didn't speak, nor did it show any expression; it simply moved forward in silence.
With each slap of his bear paw, he compressed a semi-transparent energy blast, which floated out lightly and then exploded into a small mushroom cloud in the crowd.
The surrounding air was frantically drawn into his palm, compressed into a bear paw-shaped energy blast no bigger than a fist.
With a casual wave of his hand, the energy blast flew towards a naval formation that was gathering.
"Get out of the way!"
A Commodore roared, his eyes wide, but it was too late.
The energy blast exploded in the crowd, and the terrifying shockwave sent all the naval soldiers within hundreds of meters flying.
Those who were close were instantly vaporized, while those who were far away were also shaken so badly that they bled from all seven orifices and lay motionless on the ground.
Kuma didn't stop and continued advancing. His goal was clear—to support Roy.
Kyros was also making progress at the same time.
His greatsword moved with ease among the Giant Vice Admiral, and with each swing, a giant fell to the ground.
He had lost count of how many giants he had slain; the blood on his sword had formed a thick scab.
" Kyros! Forget about those giants, go support the boss!"
Bar's voice came from afar.
This Hachinosu "barrier," transformed into a rock giant, is currently using its rocky arms, larger than warships, to slap rows of naval soldiers away.
The Island-Island Fruit is practically cheat code-level on such a large-scale battlefield; every wave of the hand can clear out a huge area.
Kyros raised his head, glanced in the distance at the direction where Roy and Saint Saturn, and nodded.
He leaped out of the giants with a light tap of his foot and rushed toward Roy at incredible speed.
But he hadn't run far when a Marine Vice Admiral blocked his way.
Don't even think about going there!
The Vice Admiral gripped the sword with both hands, the blades wreathed in thick Armament Haki.
Kyros didn't waste any words, and slashed horizontally with his greatsword.
The moment the blades clashed, the Vice Admiral's hand was shattered, and his longsword flew out of his grasp. Kyros followed up with a vertical slash, sending the man flying dozens of meters away.
"Don't try to stop me."
Kyros's voice was as cold as ice, and without pausing for a moment, he continued charging toward Roy.