The clouds of war gathered over the New World. Fleets of pirate ships sailed the seas, heading for Marine bases.
The spies of both the Marines and the pirates moved quickly, tracking the deployment of forces on both sides. They paid special attention to the movements of the overlord-class pirate crews. It was already known that the Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates were on the move, heading for two of the largest Marine bases in the New World.
The other major pirate crews in the New World were moving even faster, already engaged in fierce battles with several Marine bases. The smaller crews took the opportunity to attack islands under Marine control.
Proming Island, New World, the base of the G-17 Marine branch. Proming was a medium-to-large island and a major Marine base, one of the central pillars supporting the Marines' territory in the New World.
Because of its extreme importance, its defenses were formidable. The one stationed on Proming Island was none other than the former Admiral, "Black Arm" Zephyr.
In the waters in front of Proming Island were three smaller islands, each with a Marine garrison. These three islands served as outposts to monitor enemy movements and protect the main base.
This great war was of immense importance, and most of the Marines' elite forces had been dispatched. Even the outpost islands were guarded by officers of general rank. The very first outpost island was commanded by a Marine Vice Admiral.
At the outpost's port, rows of temporary tents had been set up. To be ready for battle at a moment's notice, the Marines were living in tents near the port.
Inside one of the tents, five general-ranked officers were gathered around a table. On the table was a sea chart of the waters around Proming Island. The five of them were studying the chart, trying to determine the pirates' routes.
One of them wore a helmet engraved with a two-headed dragon pattern. He had long hair, a fierce expression, and a sharp glint that would occasionally flash in his eyes. This man was the Vice Admiral in command of the outpost island, Onigumo. He was a rising star among the Vice Admirals at Marine Headquarters, a master swordsman, and a powerful hand-to-hand combatant, currently making a name for himself among the new generation of Marine leaders.
Just then, the Den Den Mushi on the table suddenly rang. Onigumo frowned and immediately answered. An anxious voice came from the other end.
"Vice Admiral, we've spotted enemy movement! Ten pirate ships are heading for the outpost island!"
"Ten ships?" Onigumo's expression turned grim. The other four were also startled, their faces darkening.
"Which pirate crews are they?" Onigumo asked in a low voice.
"A total of three crews: the Golden Tiger Pirates, the Red-Eye Pirates, and the Oudu Pirates."
The faces of Onigumo and the others grew even more serious.
"Golden Tiger and Red-Eye are both veteran crews. Their captains are from the same era as Whitebeard, extremely experienced in both naval and land battles. The Oudu Pirates are a new-generation major crew, and their combat strength is even greater. For these three crews to come together, they must be aiming for Proming Island," Onigumo mused.
"This won't be easy," another Commodore said gravely. "The captains of these three crews are all major pirates with bounties around 400 million. It looks like they've brought their full strength. And they're probably just the vanguard. Other major crews will surely follow. Given Proming Island's importance, an overlord-class crew is bound to join the fight." The others looked alarmed at his words.
"Isn't that what we already expected? Otherwise, Admiral Zephyr wouldn't be personally stationed on Proming Island," Onigumo said with a sharp tone. A strong killing intent flashed in his eyes as he gave a stern order. "Since these criminals have dared to come looking for trouble, we will take them all down. Report this to Admiral Zephyr immediately. Also, order the Marines on all three outpost islands to board their ships and set sail. We will intercept these three pirate crews at sea and eliminate as many of them as possible. Even if we can't wipe them out, we must hold them until Admiral Zephyr arrives."
"Understood!" The four officers immediately straightened up, saluted, and then rushed out to command the battle.
Urgent alarms blared. The Marines at the outpost port assembled quickly, boarding their warships with astonishing speed.
Three warships swiftly left the port. At the same time, two warships set sail from each of the other two outpost islands. A total of seven warships quickly assembled, forming a line to intercept the three pirate crews.
On the largest warship in the center, the Vice Admiral's flagship, Onigumo stood at the bow, his hands clasped behind his back. He stared out at the endless sea, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes from time to time. He was an ambitious rising star in the Marines, always looking to advance. This unprecedented war was the perfect opportunity to earn merits. He was also a hawk, with a deep-seated hatred for pirates. This war was the chance for a long-awaited slaughter. That was why he had immediately ordered the forces from all three outposts to set sail; his intention was to devour the three approaching pirate crews.
Both the Marines and the pirates were sailing at full speed, and after half an hour, they could see each other's fleets.
The ten pirate ships were divided into three groups. The Golden Tiger Pirates were the strongest, with four ships, while the other two crews each had three.
On the flagship of the Golden Tiger Pirates, the Golden Tiger, a tall, strong old man with a full head of golden hair stood straight at the bow, looking like a fierce tiger himself. He was the captain of the Golden Tiger Pirates, "Golden Tiger" Raikoshin. He was already sixty years old, but he was still as sharp as ever, having led his crew to establish a firm foothold in the New World.
He raised a pair of binoculars and looked at the seven warships appearing on the horizon, a playful smile on his lips. He picked up two Den Den Mushi and laughed. "Our opponents have appeared. Judging by the fleet's flag, it's led by a Vice Admiral. If I'm not mistaken, it must be the forces from the outpost islands."
On the flagship of the Red-Eye Pirates, Captain Squafo sat in a chair on the deck, his three-meter-long legs crossed. Though old, his demeanor was refined. He wore sunglasses and a gentleman's suit, leisurely sipping red wine. Hearing the voice from the Den Den Mushi, he chuckled softly. "A Vice Admiral. We can handle that."
Just then, a rough voice came through the Den Den Mushi. "Then let's start the fight! Sink these seven warships first, and we'll talk later. Men, bring out the heavy cannons!" It was the voice of the Oudu Pirates' captain, "Raging Bull" Fossum.
"Then let's fight," Squafo said, a savage grin spreading across his face, instantly shattering his elegant image. "As long as Zephyr doesn't show up, we should be able to sink these warships."
The cannons on all ten pirate ships were rolled out, and crates of cannonballs were brought on deck. Multi-barrel rocket launchers appeared on the ships, along with crates of long, conical rockets.
These were all products of Bege's armament factories. Due to their superior performance and powerful destructive capabilities, the rocket launchers were extremely popular among pirates and sold like hotcakes. Most medium-sized and larger pirate crews in the New World were equipped with them. If one looked closely, some of the weapons in the hands of the pirates on the ten ships were also from Bege's factories.
Of course, the reason these rocket launchers and other munitions sold so well was largely thanks to Doflamingo's distribution channels.