Chapter 51: The Onslaught Begins
Speed shook her head in resignation, as if she had expected this outcome all along.
"Stop talking nonsense and stay on the ship if you're scared," Holdem sneered, leaping gracefully from the deck onto the island. "I'll be the one to take Ian's head!"
"Tsk, who's scared? Don't run off without me!" Speed shot back, closely following him and jumping down to the shore.
"Hoo-ha-ha! Boys, follow in Boss Jack's footsteps!" Sheepshead bellowed.
"Lord Sheepshead is right! Let's go to the island and make some noise!" Ginrummy echoed.
Under the reckless, brute-force leadership of Jack the Drought, a full fleet of the Beasts Pirates brazenly invaded the Sabaody Archipelago.
Sabaody Archipelago, Grove 10 – Food Street
Ian, basking in the admiration of the shop owners, had managed to eat for free on most of the street.
"Major General Ian, won't you come to my shop and try something else?"
Ian: "No, no, no, next time for sure."
"Sir Ian, how about a cup of our specialty juice from Shampooland? It's always free for you!"
Ian: "No, no, no, I'm so full I'm bloated. I really can't drink another drop."
"Lord Sea King, we run a twin sister shop! Would you like to come to our place for some takoyaki?"
Ian: "Twins? I've never tried that before... I'll definitely come by tomorrow!"
Walking down the street, Ian was finally experiencing what it meant to have too many kind offers that were hard to refuse. After repeatedly turning down the well-meaning shopkeepers, he was about to continue his patrol with his team when a sudden, inexplicable tightness gripped his heart. It felt like a special sensation striking deep into his core.
"What's going on?" he muttered. "Is this my Observation Haki acting up?"
He held his breath and concentrated, expanding the range of his superhuman hearing. Instantly, the cacophony of sounds from multiple groves around him separated and clarified in his mind. Several groves with single-digit numbers, others in the tens... everything still seemed peaceful, with no strange noises detected.
Was I wrong? Did I just eat too much and get a stomach cramp?
Buru buru! Buru buru!
Just as he was falling into self-doubt, the Den Den Mushi on Nami's belt rang. It wasn't an illusion after all—something was really happening!
"Nami, hurry!" Ian ordered urgently.
Nami didn't dare delay and quickly pressed the speaker button.
"Major General Ian, something terrible has happened!" a panicked voice shouted from the snail. "This is Equipment Street in Grove 46! A mammoth... a giant mammoth has appeared on the street! It's wreaking havoc! It's... it's like one of the Beasts Pirates! It's Jack the Drought!"
Among the giant trees of the Sabaody Archipelago, several Flying Fish shot at high speed toward the scene of the incident. Peacock, holding the communicator on her Flying Fish, took charge as the deputy commander and began issuing orders to the other officers.
"Major General Ian has already rushed ahead alone! When we arrive on the scene, our top priority is ensuring the safety of the civilians in the area! Nami, you are responsible for contacting the Marines in the nearest groves and calling for reinforcements. There aren't enough Marines on site! Skylark, seize the high ground and provide cover for the soldiers evacuating civilians. The enemy is one of the Three Disasters of the Beasts Pirates! We must evacuate at least three entire groves! Colonel T-Bone, your mission is the most difficult. Join me on the front lines as soon as possible to stop the remaining Beast Pirates from causing more destruction!"
Peacock, who was usually the most unserious, had fully adopted the demeanor of a seasoned lieutenant, making arrangements calmly and methodically in the face of the crisis.
One of the Three Disasters of the Beasts Pirates! A top executive under a Yonko!
This was undoubtedly the greatest challenge their newly formed team, established less than a month ago, had ever faced.
Nami: "Understood, Colonel Peacock! I'm calling for reinforcements now!"
Skylark: "Yes, Colonel Peacock! I will provide covering fire immediately upon arrival!"
T-Bone: "Understood, Colonel Peacock. Leave the battle to me."
Once the communication ended, Peacock bit her lip, a deep worry for Ian's safety gnawing at her. A pirate with a bounty of one billion berries, a right-hand man of the Yonko Kaido... this was not an enemy to be taken lightly!
Far ahead of the Flying Fish carrying the other officers...
Shun! Shun! Shun!
Ian pushed his physical abilities to their limit, blurring forward dozens of meters with each movement, not stopping for a second as he raced toward Grove 46. Simultaneously, he kept his superhuman visual and auditory senses expanded to their maximum range for reconnaissance.
One of the Three Disasters of the Beasts Pirates, coming to the Sabaody Archipelago to cause trouble? And making such a blatant, loud entrance? It's obvious they're targeting me.
If this didn't have something to do with Doflamingo, he'd eat every single one of the mangrove trees on Sabaody. He'd been wondering why he hadn't seen any retaliation from the Donquixote Pirates yet, even questioning if his rise had been too intimidating. He'd thought maybe Doflamingo had been warned after the last incident and was lying low.
Turns out, he was just playing a different game—borrowing a knife to kill his enemy!
If Jack won, Ian would be dead, and Doflamingo would be secretly laughing.
If Ian won, his feud with the Beasts Pirates would be set in stone.
No matter the outcome of this assault, Doflamingo stood to benefit.
Despicable Joker.
Grove 46, Equipment Street
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The colossal mammoth form stomped through the center of the street without a care in the world. With every step, its trunk would swing, smashing into the buildings on either side and reducing them to piles of rubble and dust. It was a display of power that truly lived up to the name "Drought."
"Help! Run! I can't run anymore... Don't come over here!"
"Ah! Why would such a monster appear on this island?! Is it a Devil Fruit user?"
"What terrifying destructive power! Don't stop, keep running! Get out of the Marine perimeter!"
The scene was pure chaos. The younger, stronger residents managed to run faster, but the elderly and the children weren't so lucky.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Bullets are useless! Is the mammoth's hide really that tough?!"
"Damn it! There are too many people here; we can't evacuate them all in time!"
"Keep firing! Don't stop! We have to draw its attention and hold out until Major General Ian arrives!"
BOOM!
The mammoth's trunk swept through another building, sending debris flying. The Marines' desperate efforts seemed like mere annoyances to the ancient beast, which continued its path of destruction unimpeded.