At the port of Sakhalin Island, the surrounding pirates and bounty hunters watched in stunned silence. The smell of blood still lingered thick in the air, and they silently thanked their own greed hadn't driven them to act. Otherwise, they too would have been part of the mountain of corpses now rotting on the battlefield.
The allied pirate forces that had joined hands against the Nightfall Pirates were completely annihilated. Thousands of bodies lay strewn across the port, and at the center of it all sat the captain of the Nightfall Pirates, Marshall D. Teach, perched atop a pile of corpses, his thick fingers interlocked across his chest.
Around him stood his officers, encircling him like loyal sentinels. Beyond them were the rest of the crew, grinning, panting, their bodies bloodied but unbowed.
Hidden reporters frantically documented the aftermath, their cameras clicking like gunfire as they recorded the birth of a new legend. Every gaze, pirate, hunter, and civilian alike, was drawn to Teach.
A hundred men had crushed an alliance of over three thousand. The Nightfall Pirates had proved themselves the absolute overlords of East Blue. Though many bore wounds, not a single one of them had died.
And the most terrifying part, Teach himself hadn't even lifted a finger.
Excitement rippled through the crowd. They were witnessing history, the rise of a true monster among pirates.
"What a waste," Wallace muttered, spitting to the side, his upper body drenched in blood. "All those numbers and they couldn't even make me break a sweat."
The others laughed lightly, but their eyes instinctively turned toward Teach. Their captain rose slowly, standing atop the corpses as if upon a throne of ruin. The sea breeze caught his black coat as he spread his arms wide and smiled.
"Comrades," he said, his deep voice carrying over the silent port, "let's go claim our spoils of war!"
"Ohhh!"
The deck erupted into wild cheers.
Pirates lived for plunder and as the victors, every piece of treasure, every weapon, every ship from their fallen enemies was theirs for the taking. Even the nearby pirate vessels, once filled with gold, rum, and dreams, now belonged to the Nightfall Pirates.
The onlookers could only watch in envy and fear. No one dared to approach, much less steal from them. After witnessing that massacre, even the most reckless scavenger wouldn't take the risk.
This battle would forever mark the day the Nightfall Pirates truly made their name. Before, their victories had all been at sea, sinking Marine ships and rival crews.
But now, on land and in front of countless witnesses, they had proven themselves beyond rumor.
The footage taken by the reporters, both photos and video, would spread like wildfire across the East Blue. Every pirate, every Marine branch, every bounty hunter would soon know the truth: the Nightfall Pirates were invincible.
The pirates and bounty hunters who had fallen weren't weaklings either. Many were captains with bounties over ten million, some reaching thirty million. The bounty hunters had captured men with double-digit bounties before. Yet every last one had been wiped out.
The stronger ones had been taken down personally by Teach's officers, Gar, Pito, Wallace, Baccarat, and the others, each of them among the top fighters in East Blue.
Just as everyone thought the carnage had ended, the sea itself began to stir.
Far on the horizon, three Marine warships were cutting through the waves side by side, their white sails emblazoned with the symbol of Justice. Their destination... Sakhalin Island.
The Marines had long been tracking the Nightfall Pirates' route. Once they confirmed Teach's crew would stop at Sakhalin, they mobilized immediately. Commander Spank of Branch 18 and Commander Hien of Branch 20 had joined forces with Colonel Robert of Branch 22, forming a combined force of nearly two thousand Marines.
They had left only skeleton crews to guard their own bases. The rest had set out with a single goal, annihilation.
The East Blue was now watching Sakhalin Island. It had become the eye of the storm.
The sight of so many Marine ships departing from their branches didn't go unnoticed. The whole sea buzzed with speculation. The aftermath of the Battle of Sakhalin wasn't over... it was just beginning.
Would the Nightfall Pirates survive another clash, this time against the full might of the Marines?
Those with sharp eyes recalled the bitter truth; each of the three Marine branches involved had already lost at least one warship, and one Lieutenant to Teach's crew. Now their superior officers were coming to personally avenge them.
Many sneered at the Nightfall Pirates' arrogance. They had become too notorious, too visible. The Marines would crush them this time for sure, or so they believed.
After all, since the dawn of the Great Pirate Era, countless crews had risen and fallen. Many powerful pirates had ended up in chains within Impel Down. The Marines had always restored order in the end.
"This Nightfall crew is truly formidable," Commander Hien murmured, listening to the latest report through his Transponder Snail. "They actually wiped out an army of pirates and bounty hunters."
"So what?" Spank snapped beside him, his voice dripping with disdain. "They're still nothing before Justice. Under our command, their fate is sealed."
With three Colonels leading in person, confidence filled the air. Victory felt inevitable.
"I'll send that bastard Teach to Impel Down myself," Spank growled, clenching his fist. "Let him rot there for life."
He had been close friends with the fallen Lieutenant Crane, one of those killed by the Nightfall Pirates, and his anger burned deep.
Colonel Robert gave a low chuckle. "We should thank them, really. They've cleaned up a lot of pirates for us. Impel Down's nearly full, after all."
Still, there was fury behind his calm tone. Every Marine despised this so-called Great Pirate Era that Gol D. Roger had unleashed. The world was overflowing with pirates, murderers, looters, dreamers, all emboldened by Roger's final words. Even the Marines' once-absolute authority was being mocked.
And among these new pirates, the Nightfall Pirates were the boldest of all, destroying three warships, killing three Lieutenants, and mocking the symbol of Justice itself.
This operation wasn't merely revenge, it was a message. The Marines would reclaim their pride through blood.
But whether things would go as they planned… was another matter entirely.
Back on Sakhalin Island, the Nightfall Pirates had already received word that the Marines were closing in.
The crew had finished collecting their spoils. Mountains of gold and treasure were loaded aboard the Goddess of Fortune. Among the loot, they even found a Devil Fruit aboard one of the fallen pirate ships, an unexpected surprise.
"Captain, the Marines are approaching," Wallace said casually. "Should we set sail first?"
Teach smiled, brushing the blood from his hands. "Then let's go. After such a fine victory, it's time for a banquet."
"Where at, Captain?" a crewmember asked, eyes lighting up immediately at the word banquet.
Teach's grin widened. "Where's the nearest Marine branch?"
"Branch 22," Nelson answered without hesitation, then froze, eyes widening. "Wait... Captain, you don't mean…?"
"Zehahaha! That's right," Teach laughed thunderously. "We'll have a banquet at the Marine branch itself!"
The crew exploded into cheers. A banquet… at a Marine base? Only Teach would think of such a thing.
"What a brilliant idea!" Wallace barked, slapping his thigh, his grin splitting wide. "We'll be drinking rum on their graves!"
"The Marine warships are heading straight for us. They left from Branch 22, so we'll cross paths soon," Baccarat noted coolly, wiping blood from her hands.
"No," Pito said quietly, her catlike ears twitching. "They're already here."
Everyone turned toward the sea. Far on the horizon, three black dots grew larger with each passing second.
"Then we'll bury them at sea," Wallace declared, cracking his knuckles. "We've never lost a naval battle."
"Today is a bad day for the Marines," Baccarat said softly, smiling as she holstered her pistol.
"This is fate," Van Augur murmured, spinning his gun.
"I didn't expect the prey to deliver themselves," Gar said, a feral gleam in his single eye.
"How boring," Pito muttered, pouting slightly.
"Zehahaha! Then let's go!" Teach roared, his laughter echoing across the sea. "Let's deal with the Marines and then have our grand banquet!"
Following their captain, the crew boarded the Goddess of Fortune, leaving behind the stunned spectators at the port.
"Hey! Did you hear that?" a pirate stammered, shaking his friend's shoulder. "He said they're having a banquet at a Marine branch!"
"That's three Marine branches combined! They're insane!"
"Or fearless," another muttered. "Let's see if they can really do it. If they defeat those three warships, they'll rule the East Blue completely."
"I'm… kinda thinking of joining them," one pirate whispered.
"Don't say it.. but same here," another replied, grinning nervously.
Out on the open sea, the Goddess of Fortune turned and sailed directly toward the oncoming Marine fleet.
"They're actually charging at us?" Spank laughed, disbelief mixing with scorn. "Those fools just fought a massive battle. Instead of fleeing, they're coming straight for us?"
"They must know they can't escape," one Marine said grimly. "They're desperate."
"Good," Spank sneered. "Then we'll end this here. All hands, ready for battle!"
The three Marine warships spread out, their massive main cannons pivoting to aim at the oncoming pirate ship. Each warship boasted a primary cannon and two secondary batteries, nine heavy guns in total, all locked onto the Goddess of Fortune.
But the Nightfall Pirates didn't retreat. Instead, they turned their ship sharply, revealing the broadside.
From the gunports, rows of cannon barrels extended, sleek, black, and deadly.
"They're actually going to duel our firepower?" Spank roared with laughter. "Idiots!"
"Don't underestimate them," Hien warned, eyes narrowing. "The wreckage of our previous ships shows heavy bombardment damage. Their cannons aren't ordinary."
He turned toward his crew. "All Marines to battle stations!"