While Allen and Zephyr engaged in a fierce battle, on the commercial street at the edge of the town...
"Hurry! Don't let them escape!"
"Surround them from the right!"
"Don't let a single pirate on this island get away!"
A large number of Marine soldiers flooded into the streets.
Gin led the group, running through the labyrinth of alleys, fleeing the pursuit while continuously heading toward the coast where they had agreed to meet Sanji.
Just before they could run out of the town's intersection, they were intercepted.
A young woman suddenly appeared at the intersection. She had long, wavy sea-blue hair and held a pistol in each hand, aiming at them, with dozens of soldiers following behind her.
"Crap, turn back!" Nami shouted, hastily turning around to run into the adjacent alley.
As soon as they turned, they saw Marine soldiers swarming into the alley. The man leading them wore a pink bandana and was dressed like a ninja.
Turning around again, they saw another alley blocked by a burly Longarm Tribe man carrying a sheep-shaped cannon.
Ain, Binz, and Shuzo each led soldiers to block all three exits.
Robin's expression turned solemn. She stood back-to-back with Nami and the others, watching the enemies vigilantly.
"There are enemies on all sides. It looks like a fight is unavoidable."
"In that case, pick your opponents. I'll take that big Longarm guy," Gin said, drawing his dual tonfas from his waist and charging toward Shuzo.
"Then I'll take this ninja," Killer said playfully. He also leaned forward and dashed out, the scythes on the backs of his hands spinning at high speed with a piercing whistle as he glared coldly at Binz.
"I'll deal with the pursuers behind us first. I'll leave that female Marine to you, Robin."
"Understood."
Nami and Robin exchanged a glance, nodded, and then quickly separated.
Nami drew her Clima-Tact and headed toward the large group of pursuing Marines behind them, while Robin faced Ain, who was blocking the front.
*Bang! Bang!*
Ain pulled the triggers to strike first, firing two lead bullets from her pre-aimed muzzles.
Robin quickly jumped back to dodge the bullets. At the same time, she crossed her arms in front of her chest and shouted to activate her Flower-Flower Fruit ability!
"[Sixteen Fleur]!"
Accompanied by fluttering petals, sixteen arms sprouted out of thin air on Ain's body, quickly grabbing her joints.
"This is...!!"
Seeing these arms, Ain's expression first showed shock, but by the time she reacted to Robin's ability, her body was already tightly immobilized!
"[Hang]!!"
At Robin's shout, those sixteen arms suddenly exerted force, bending Ain's body and forcing her into a backward backbend!
However, the expected scene did not occur.
"[Paper Art]!"
Ain's body became extremely soft, as if her bones had been extracted. Even though Robin bent her entire torso in half, she suffered no damage.
"Devil Child Nico Robin, a Flower-Flower Fruit user. You can manipulate your body to bloom anywhere like a flower."
Under Robin's shocked gaze, Ain stated her ability, then dropped her pistols and used her whip-like soft arms to slip out of the joint lock's confinement.
"If I remember correctly, any damage taken by these arms will be transferred to your main body, right?"
Ain's eyes turned cold as she quickly drew two short swords from her thighs.
Seeing her action, Robin decisively deactivated her ability and released the other woman's body.
Freed from the restraint, Ain immediately did a backward handspring, landing on the eaves of a nearby house.
"We have already mastered all the intelligence on you. Your joint locks are useless against me, and the weakness of the Flower-Flower Fruit has been seen through..."
Ain's eyes revealed a cold indifference as she said, "You have no chance of winning, Nico Robin. Just give up resisting."
"Allowing ourselves to be slaughtered isn't our pirate crew's style. I must decline."
Robin smiled faintly, showing no intention of retreating even in the face of such a situation.
Since the Flower-Flower Fruit's ability had been seen through, she simply wouldn't use it.
Robin's eyes darkened. With a thought, her smooth black hair quickly turned white, her skin gradually revealed a dark brown hue, and a pair of pitch-black wings spread from her back.
"This is...!"
Looking at the transformed Robin, Ain was shocked and couldn't help but frown in confusion, unable to resist asking, "What's going on? The Flower-Flower Fruit shouldn't have this kind of ability."
"Mm-hmm, didn't you master all our intelligence? Maybe you can take a guess."
Robin smiled faintly and once again crossed her arms in front of her chest.
As the Flower-Flower Fruit ability activated, dozens, even hundreds of arms sprouted from Ain and the soldiers behind her!
"This move again. I told you, your ability is completely useless against me!"
Seeing those arms, Ain's face darkened. She gripped her daggers and stabbed viciously at them!
However.
*Clink!*
The sharp daggers struck the arms with a crisp sound, as if stabbing into tough metal, failing to penetrate even a fraction of an inch!
"How can this be...!!"
Ain's pupils instantly dilated in shock.
And in that very moment.
"[Purgatory Fleur: Demon Clutch]!!"
*Whoosh!*
Following Robin's cold shout, two clusters of flames ignited on her arms!
The dozens and hundreds of arms opposite her followed suit. Clusters of flames ignited out of thin air from their palms, wrapping around the arms and rapidly grabbing the bodies of Ain and those soldiers!
*Sizzle! Sizzle!*
"Waaah!"
"It's so hot! I'm going to die, I'm going to die!"
"Aaaargh!"
In an instant, wails echoed throughout the entire alley.
Those arms were like the claws of demons from purgatory, grabbing the throats and limb joints of the Marine soldiers, the flames burning mercilessly!
"Damn it! What kind of ability is this!"
Only Ain alone activated [Iron Body] at the critical moment, gritting her teeth to endure it. Cold sweat seeped from her forehead, and her face was heavy with pain.
Unfortunately, [Iron Body] only defended against pure physical attacks like punches, palms, swords, or spears. Against the burning of flames, its effect was minimal.
"Ah!!!"
A few seconds later, Ain let out a sharp, agonizing wail toward the sky. Then, her eyes rolled back, and her severely burned body, emitting white smoke, slowly collapsed backward.
Seeing all the Marines blocking the way fall, Robin finally deactivated her ability. The arms turned into burning petals and scattered in the wind until they vanished into the sky.
The Lunarian Tribe possessed the ability to arbitrarily create and manipulate flames on the surface of their bodies, while the Flower-Flower Fruit allowed any part of the body to bloom like a flower.
The arms she grew using her ability could all be considered her own hands, which was why damage to the arms would transfer to her main body.
Therefore, all the arms grown through the Flower-Flower Fruit also inherited the Lunarian Tribe's constitution, able to freely create and manipulate flames.
At the same time, the flames burning fiercely between the wings on Robin's back enhanced her body's defensive capabilities to the point of invulnerability.
Aside from laser beams or attacks infused with powerful Haki, ordinary attacks simply couldn't harm her body in its strongest defensive state.
Robin retracted the wings on her back, her skin and white hair gradually returning to normal, and looked back behind her.
*Rumble!!*
Numerous bolts of lightning struck down densely from the sky. Amidst the blinding flashes of lightning, swaths of Marine soldiers on the street were electrocuted into unconsciousness, falling before they could even let out a wail.
Nami, holding her Clima-Tact, stood alone intercepting the street, looking heroic and valiant.
Meanwhile, in the clothing district not far away.
Gin and Shuzo were engaged in a fierce melee. Their figures flickered continuously, and the sound of metal clashing erupted constantly in the street.
Shuzo utilized the Six Powers and both types of Haki with ease, but even so, he was still madly suppressed by Gin, who possessed the More-More Fruit ability.
Especially after Gin activated the Buccaneer Tribe lineage factor, gaining formidable strength and constitution, he beat Shuzo to the point where the latter could barely parry.
"[Demon Tonfa: Tenfold Strike]!!"
Gin crossed his dual tonfas at his sides and swung them forward fiercely. The pitch-black iron tonfas howled through the wind, suddenly expanding to ten times their size in mid-air!
*Bang!!*
The heavy, powerful blow smashed into Shuzo's chest, caving it in with the cracking sound of breaking ribs.
"Blergh!"
Shuzo's face twisted in agony, unable to hold back a mouthful of blood. His body flew backward at extreme speed like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into a clothing store with a loud boom.
"You call yourselves Marines, but your style is more like disciplined bandits, indiscriminately slaughtering pirates. Even Marines wouldn't do such a thing."
Gin spun the iron tonfas in his hands and spoke coldly, stepping forward one pace at a time.
From inside the clothing store, where dust billowed at the entrance, came Shuzo's coughing and low voice.
"Cough, cough! Don't compare us to those guys. Our NEO Marines were born with the goal of eliminating all pirates in the world."
"Only by doing this can we truly bring permanent peace. Mere pirates like you will never understand our justice and greatness."
Shuzo's tone carried disdain and anger. He propped one hand against the wall and struggled to stand up from the ground, his eyes fixed on the approaching Gin.
"You're right, I'm just a pirate. We've never cared for things like justice, unlike you, who have to use empty excuses to hypnotize yourselves."
Gin smiled coldly. "Peace? Justice? Heh, utterly ridiculous."
"You're just another type of thief standing on the opposite side of pirates. Extreme ideologies will sooner or later bring destruction."
"In my eyes, you're not even as good as those idiotic Marines."
Having said that, Gin's eyes darkened. He bent his knees slightly into a crouch, then pushed off the ground with his toes and dashed forward!
Shuzo gritted his teeth, enduring the sharp pain in his chest to stand up, and raised his thick, long arms above his head.
Using [Iron Body] combined with Armament Haki hardening, Shuzo utilized the three elbow joints of the Longarm Tribe to angrily whip his arms out!
"[Iron Body: Three-Section Lasso]!!"
"[Tenfold Acceleration: Godspeed Shave]!!"
Gin shouted loudly, activating his ability. A strange glow emanated from his body, and his figure instantly vanished from the spot!
*Boom!!!*
Shuzo's arms smashed heavily onto the ground, shattering the floorboards and sending countless pieces of rubble flying.
However, Gin's speed was so fast that the naked eye could no longer track it. He easily dodged the attack, appearing behind Shuzo before the latter's Observation Haki could even react.
"[More-More: Tenfold Strike]!!"
Gin's eyes revealed a fierce glint. He held his dual tonfas horizontally on either side behind Shuzo and slammed them together toward the center!
*Bang!!*
Two solid iron balls, now the size of wine vats, violently clamped down on Shuzo's head from the left and right, instantly flattening his skull as blood spurted from his facial orifices.
Shuzo's eyes rolled back, his pupils bloodshot, as he slowly fell to his knees and collapsed forward.
Gin didn't even bother to spare him a glance. He retracted his dual tonfas and strode out the door.
Arriving at the intersection where they had separated earlier, Nami and Robin had already cleared out the Marines attacking from the front and back. Killer and the Nyaban Brothers had also just finished off the ninja and returned.
"You're back just in time, Gin. Let's get out of here."
Seeing everyone gathered, Nami immediately took action, and the group continued running toward the coast.
Cigar Island didn't just have one town. The Marines' operation this time attacked several other towns simultaneously, launching indiscriminate attacks on pirates and pirate ships.
As one of the territories flying the Big Mom Pirates' flag, and simultaneously a lawless land where fish and dragons mixed, this was the first time in decades that Cigar Island had encountered a Marine landing.
At this moment, the entire island was filled with artillery fire and had long since descended into chaos. The pirates were either fighting back or fleeing.
They also had no idea how Sanji, who had separated from them since morning, was doing.
Soon, Nami and the others arrived at the coast. Looking out over the sea, they were greeted by the sight of countless sailing ships desperately trying to sail away.
Pirate flags, merchant guild flags, and some civilian ships without flags were all mixed together. Clearly, the large-scale battle on the island had affected far more than just pirates.
Even if they escaped the port, those pirate ships couldn't be considered safe.
There were still a dozen or so warships on the sea firing their cannons, and on the shore, there were also over a dozen Pacifistas continuously firing lasers at the fleeing pirate ships.
A massive amount of cannonballs and lasers flew through the sky, with explosions and thick smoke everywhere.
"I found our ship!"
"Look over there! It's Bro Sanji!"
Buchi and Sham suddenly shouted excitedly, pointing toward a giant red ship on the sea.
"Let's go! We'll move the ship to a safe place first before going to back up Allen!"
Nami said quickly. Pitch-black wings spread from her back, and she grabbed the Nyaban Brothers by their collars, flying into the sky like an eagle catching chicks.
Robin also spread her wings and flew into the sky, bringing Gin and Perona along.
Killer transformed into a Prehistoric Devil Flower Mantis, spread the membranous wings on his back, and flew out.
"Sanji!"
Soon, the group broke through the Marine blockade and arrived above the Freewill, where Nami called out loudly.
Buchi and Sham were mercilessly tossed onto the deck, falling flat on their faces, while the others landed smoothly.
"Nami-san! And Robin-chan and Perona-chan!"
Seeing them return, Sanji immediately ran forward with eager eyes. "That's great! I knew you guys would be fine."
Looking around and not seeing Allen, Sanji asked in confusion, "Huh? Where is that guy?"
"He's still fighting on the island. What's the situation now, and also..."
Nami replied, while simultaneously looking suspiciously at a corner of the deck.
Over a dozen pirates were tied up and sitting cross-legged on the ground. Next to them was a portable inflatable pool filled with water. A female mermaid was leaning against the edge of the pool, looking at them timidly and fearfully.
"Why is there a mermaid on the ship? Wait, and who are they?"
"Ah, it's a long story. They're the Flying Blade Pirates who kidnapped the mermaid earlier."
Sanji took the cigarette from his mouth with two fingers, looked back at the group of pirates, and explained, "I recognized them fleeing on my way back to the Freewill and beat them up. I also asked where they were selling Millie, which wasn't far from the port, so I made a quick trip."
"By the way, let me introduce everyone. Millie is this mermaid lady's name. Millie, these are my crewmates. Don't be afraid, no one will hurt you."
Sanji introduced Millie with a light chuckle.
Hearing her savior say this, Millie's fear dissipated slightly, and she nodded at Nami and the others.
"H-Hello."
"Hello. Don't worry, Millie, we'll send you home very soon."
Nami smiled faintly, stepped forward, and patted Millie's wavy blue hair. She then turned back to Buchi and said, "Buchi, contact Fish-Man Island first and tell Neptune we found the kidnapped Millie."
"I got it, Big Sis Nami."
Buchi grinned and ran excitedly up to the ship's superstructure.
On the other side, Robin looked back at the sea near the island, her tone carrying a bit of worry as she said, "Allen and many crew members who didn't have time to evacuate are still on the island. The whole island is surrounded by Marines now; it'll be hard to break through."
Gin nodded in agreement. "That's right, especially with so many Pacifistas on the shore. Those guys are hard to..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Gin suddenly stopped, as if he had seen something unbelievable, his pupils shrinking in shock.
"What's wrong, Gin?"
Seeing his reaction, Robin and the others frowned slightly and turned to follow his gaze.
This sight instantly left them frozen in shock.
They saw a wave of freezing air howl across the sea like a giant wave, completely freezing the water along the entire coast!
The freezing air swept across the sea at an incredible speed, and wherever it passed, the surface of the sea instantly turned to ice!
"That's... ice...?!"
"Could it be...!"
"Yeah, the only person in the world who can do this to such an extent is probably him."
Sanji's voice was grave. He slowly exhaled a cloud of smoke, his gaze fixed on a tall man with fluffy long hair slowly walking onto the shore.
"The man hailed as the highest military force, Marine Headquarters Admiral, Aokiji!"