"Alex!!"
A loud shout echoed through the raging wind.
Alex's body trembled slightly. The bloody hole in his forehead healed at a visible speed, and a deformed bullet was forced out, clattering onto the deck with a metallic ding.
He reacted instantly, lowering his head and taking cover behind the ship's railing.
"I'm fine!"
Taking a deep breath, Alex shouted back.
Not far away, Saul—hiding near the stern—finally let out a sigh of relief before yelling again,
"Where's Rear Admiral Jerry?!"
"He's dead. Shot through the forehead."
Alex glanced at the superior still standing upright nearby, already devoid of life, and answered in a heavy voice.
The atmosphere across the entire ship changed instantly.
"…Dead?"
Saul froze.
Tension and dread spread through the warship. Even as everyone tried to stay hidden, muffled groans continued to sound.
More comrades were being hit.
Soon, Alex noticed the helmsman had already been shot as well, his body slumped over the wheel, blood dripping steadily.
"The ship… hasn't been moving!"
His heart tightened.
"Saul, cover me! I'll steer the ship!"
A roar suddenly rang out.
Alex looked up to see Simbu leap forward, reaching the helm in an instant. At the same time, Saul charged out like a mountain, standing before him and swinging his massive blade.
Clanging sounds erupted as bullets from unseen directions were deflected by Saul.
The warship shook violently and began turning across the waves.
But the enemy numbers were overwhelming.
Blood burst repeatedly from Saul's body as bullets struck him. He guarded his vital points with both blades, enduring for barely a minute before collapsing heavily onto the deck.
Alex pressed his lips together and suddenly stood up.
What entered his vision made his pupils shrink sharply.
The enormous fleet was already terrifyingly close.
Under lightning flashes and the darkened sky, an utterly despair-inducing scene unfolded—countless pirates laughing madly as they stared coldly at the Marines.
Sky and sea alike were filled with endless skull flags and massive pirate ships.
Only now did Alex truly understand how horrifying the Flying Pirates truly were.
The Golden Lion Shiki defeated in movies felt insignificant compared to the overwhelming reality before him.
"Simbu!"
"I'll take over—you all stay down!!"
Taking a deep breath, Alex roared as he stepped beside him.
Simbu hesitated, glanced at his bleeding abdomen, then nodded with difficulty and moved aside.
In their brief encounter, the number of wounded officers aboard had already become impossible to count. Only a handful remained combat-capable.
"Kill them!"
"Look at them—they're scared! They don't even know where to run anymore!"
"Hahahahaha!"
The pirates' voices carried clearly on the wind.
Alex gritted his teeth, eyes cold as he stared at the overwhelming fleet ahead.
Then he saw him.
A domineering figure stood at the bow of the flagship, arms crossed, looking down upon everything.
Tall. Majestic.
Golden hair hung like a lion's mane nearly to the ground.
He resembled a proud and tyrannical king of beasts.
One of the Three Great Pirates—
Golden Lion Shiki.
Alex spun the helm sharply. The warship lurched violently, cutting through the waves toward the weakest gap in the encirclement.
Within Shiki's ranks, a rifleman wearing a scope stared in astonishment at the figure steering the Marine ship.
"That shot clearly hit him!"
"It did," his companion replied. "That kid's probably a Devil Fruit user."
They had both seen the bullet strike his forehead earlier.
Yet he now stood unharmed.
Clearly, he possessed some strange power.
Aboard the massive flagship overhead:
"They're trying to break through!"
"They're only five hundred meters away now—we can easily capture these little rats!"
"So, Boss Shiki, should we let the boys have some fun?"
The officers laughed as they looked toward their captain.
"Jihahahahaha!"
Golden Lion Shiki laughed loudly.
"Now isn't the time for games!"
"I'm here for Roger!"
He stared across the sea.
"I've chased him through this sea for three days already… and still haven't caught him."
"What a slippery bastard."
His eyes narrowed.
Suddenly, a black dot appeared in the distance.
A sharp-eyed officer immediately shouted excitedly,
"It's the Roger Pirates!"
"We've found them again!"
"They're close—right inside our encirclement!"
The officers erupted with excitement.
"Jihahahahaha!"
"All hands—full pursuit of Roger!"
Shiki roared.
"As for those Marine rats… their fate depends on luck."
He spared the Marine ship a single indifferent glance before ignoring it completely.
The massive Flying Pirate Fleet instantly changed course, rushing toward the newly appeared target.
Watching the enemy's main force withdraw, the surviving Marines exchanged looks of relief.
But soon they noticed another ship caught in the encirclement.
"That flag…?!"
"It's the Roger Pirates!"
"They actually appeared here…"
Hearing the voices around him, Alex looked forward.
The endless pirate fleet now surged toward that distant black dot—just as they themselves had been surrounded moments earlier.
Against the Flying Pirate Fleet, only despair awaited.
Roger…
Where was he?
"Prepare to break through, Alex—we're not safe yet!"
"Those five pirate ships are still chasing us!"
Simbu struggled to stand, pale-faced as he spoke.
Alex nodded.
He had already seen the five pirate ships rapidly closing in behind them.
"Five ships…"
he murmured, eyes sharpening.
"Prepare for battle!"
"Rear Admiral Jerry is dead, but we are all veteran elites—move!"
"Enemy entering cannon range!"
"Load the cannons!"
"Fire!!"
As distance closed, thunderous cannon fire erupted from both sides.
Explosions roared beside them, shells crashing into the sea and sending towering sprays skyward.
But within five seconds, despair returned.
The enemy had more ships—more cannons.
Almost immediately after the exchange began, the warship's stern was struck, flames erupting into the sky.
"Stern hit!"
"Prepare for boarding combat!"
Simbu drew his sword and shouted.
Alex scanned around him.
Officers unsheathed their weapons one after another. Though their faces were grim, their eyes were fearless.
Every one of them was prepared to die.
He pressed his lips together, then suddenly turned and walked toward the burning stern.
Through the blazing flames, he stared at the pursuing pirates.
Savage faces grew closer.
Blades gleamed with reflected firelight.
Beyond them, the Flying Pirate Fleet's main force had already surrounded the distant ship—the Roger Pirates.
Alex exhaled slowly.
Then his eyes snapped open.
Boom!
An overwhelmingly domineering aura exploded outward, spreading forward in a fan-shaped shockwave toward the five pursuing pirate ships.
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