"Give me the launcher." Little Oars Jr. snatched the cannon barrel from the giant's hands and shouldered it. The other giant quickly handed him a massive rocket, which Oars Jr. casually slammed into the barrel. He aimed at the warship and fired. The powerful recoil forced even him to take a step back, a small red patch appearing on his shoulder.
He casually tossed the launcher back to the giant behind him.
"Stop that rocket! Don't let it hit the ship!" The Vice Admirals on the warship paled. They leaped into the air, but one tall, graceful figure was faster than all of them. She instantly shot past the others, her sword flashing in a swift, powerful slash that tore through the air and detonated the rocket.
The explosion was far enough away this time that the shockwave had little effect on the warship.
The figure landed back on the swaying deck, her footing as steady as a mountain, completely unfazed.
She was a tall woman of exceptional beauty, with the mature air of an older sister. She wore a peach-colored blouse and hot pants that revealed long, fair legs, one of which bore a black spider tattoo.
In her hand, she held a long, glittering blade: the Meito, Konpira.
She was one of the Marine's most famous female officers, "Momousagi" Gion, who was as close as a sister to Vice Admiral Tsuru. Despite her beauty, her strength was immense. She was the first female Great Swordsman on the seas. Currently holding the rank of Vice Admiral, her combat power was just a hair below that of an Admiral.
She had once been an Admiral candidate alongside Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru. If not for the overwhelming power of their Logia-type Devil Fruits, she might very well have become the first female Admiral in Marine history.
"As expected of Momousagi," on a nearby warship, a Vice Admiral with an average face but a lecherous expression watched her with shining eyes.
"Vice Admiral Chaton, Vice Admiral Puming has given the order. We are to begin the melee," a Rear Admiral at his side reported gravely.
The lecherous look in the man's eyes vanished, replaced by a sharp glare. He stood up straight, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, and his entire demeanor changed, radiating a powerful aura. He was like a different person from the leering man seconds before.
This was "Chaton," a pillar of strength within the Marines. His power was extremely high, and like Momousagi, he had also been a candidate for the rank of Admiral.
"I can't wait to cut down this trash." A Vice Admiral with a scarred face and a handlebar mustache stroked the blade of his longsword, his eyes cold. This was Doberman, nicknamed "Fighting Dog," one of the newer, rising Vice Admirals. He was a hardliner hawk, and his strength ranked in the upper echelon of the Vice Admirals.
"Even if I die, I'll take a few of them with me." A bearded Vice Admiral, still managing a smile and chomping on a cigar at a time like this, calmly watched the pirates charge across the ice. This was Yamakaji, another of the rising Vice Admirals, a powerful Marine who held fast to the principles of justice.
On the other warships, Vice Admirals like Onigumo, Momonga, and Bastille were all poised to strike, every one of them radiating a fierce will to fight.
"Is it finally time for close combat?" On a medium-sized warship, a young Marine stood behind a Rear Admiral. He had three cigars clamped in his mouth and held a special Jutte. White smoke billowed from his body.
He was a recent graduate of the Marine Academy and one of Zephyr's students: the user of the Logia-type Smoke-Smoke Fruit, Smoker.
On another ship, a tall, sexy woman with pink hair had a cigarette dangling from her lips, her expression unreadable. "I'm going to capture every last one of these pirates and throw them in Impel Down."
This was Hina, user of the Bind-Bind Fruit. She had trained alongside Smoker under Zephyr.
...
All of them—from the Admiral candidates and the rising Vice Admirals down to the fresh-faced rookies from the Academy—were Marines of incredible strength or immense potential.
They were known as the "Golden Generation" of the Marines, the pillars who would uphold justice and police the seas for the next ten or twenty years.
The warships pulled up to the edge of the ice. From top to bottom, every Marine wore a solemn expression.
"Disembark! Engage the enemy!" The white-haired Vice Admiral on the central warship held a Den Den Mushi, his expression grim, as he suddenly roared the order to attack.
Momousagi and Chaton led the way. All the flag officers leaped from the ships, landing on the frozen battlefield.
The commissioned officers led their men off the boats, quickly falling into formation on the ice. Thousands of Marines formed into columns. At the front of the lines, the justice coats of the flag officers billowed in the wind, a dazzling sight.
"FOR JUSTICE! CHARGE!" the white-haired Vice Admiral roared. All the Marines echoed his cry: "FOR JUSTICE!" Their morale instantly surged to its peak.
The flag officers charged first, with the rest of the Marines following close behind.
"KILL THEM ALL!" Jack the Drought raised his scythes, bellowing at the sky. The pirates, their faces twisted in savage grins, charged the Marine line.
The two armies collided. Naturally, the first to clash were the strongest fighters on each side.
"Flower Sword" Vista shot out from the pirate ranks, appearing directly in front of Momousagi.
"Momousagi, we meet again. How about a friendly spar to test our swordsmanship?" Vista chuckled, slashing with both swords. A storm of red rose petals flew toward her.
Momousagi swung her blade, scattering the petals and sending a powerful slash of her own back at him.
Vista's expression changed. He crossed his swords in front of him to block. The force of the slash knocked him backward.
"My apologies, but I don't have time to spar with you," Momousagi's beautiful eyes flashed with a dangerous light, her words carrying an unquestionable dominance. "If you stand in my way, I will kill you."
She charged, her blade already moving in a deadly killing strike.
"It won't be that easy to kill me." Vista's expression turned serious. He swung his twin blades, blocking her rapid-fire slashes. He knew exactly how strong Momousagi was. Though they were both Great Swordsmen, her power was greater than his. If they truly fought to the death, she could definitely kill him. But his only goal was to tie up one of the Marines' top fighters.
Jack the Drought, radiating a ferocious aura, clashed with the white-haired Vice Admiral. Jack knew this man was the Marines' field commander below the Admirals, so he had targeted him directly, hoping to make a name for himself by taking him down.
But the white-haired Vice Admiral's strength was shocking. He actually suppressed Jack, forcing him into his Human-Beast form.
Katakuri and Chaton faced off, the two of them immediately locked in a dead-even battle.
Modi, Weevil, and the others also engaged the Vice Admirals. These officers were far from weak; no one could reach the rank of Vice Admiral without serious hard-won strength.
Little Oars Jr. and the other giants, due to their immense size, naturally clashed with the Marines' Giant Vice Admirals. The battle between giants was on another scale, and they instantly cleared a massive area for themselves. Little Oars Jr. took on two of the Marine giants at once, and was actually managing to overwhelm them.
Brogy, in his Human-Beast form, slammed a Marine giant onto the ice and roared in his face, "You are a giant! And you sell your strength to the Marines! You bring shame to the warriors of Elbaf!"
"And you're any different, taking orders from the 'Demon Dragon'?" the giant Vice Admiral beneath him roared back defiantly, struggling. He grabbed Brogy's clothes, heaved, and threw him off, before trying to pounce.
Brogy kicked him over, strode forward, grabbed his head, and smashed it back into the ice, shattering the ground and pinning him in the crater.
"We fight for the honor of Elbaf!" Brogy roared. "With the help of Captain Bege and Captain Oars, we have rebuilt the Giant Warrior Pirates! The name of the Elbaf giants will once again thunder across the seas!"
"Bullshit!" the Marine giant spat, his face full of hatred. "Your 'honor' is built on the corpses of countless innocent people! That kind of blood-soaked honor is an insult to Elbaf!"
"Hah! And you think the Marines are righteous?" Brogy sneered. "The evil they commit under the banner of justice, the filthy things they do in the shadows... they're worse than any pirate!"