The Tyger Claws army of 800 included people from all four high-ranking leaders.
Among them, Jotaro's forces were the most numerous. As the person most invested in this war, he had staked most of his assets.
Out of the 800 people, 400 were his men.
Jotaro's men were organized into two teams of 200: the First Team and the Second Team.
Adding over a hundred miscellaneous troops, 500 people formed the vanguard for this battle.
The remainder of the coalition forces included 150 men from Bukit, 60 Yojimbo from Yoshiteru, and 30 men from the Gourmet.
These second-echelon troops remained behind the bridge, waiting to enter after the vanguard opened the battlefield, or perhaps they wouldn't enter at all, as Jotaro had no intention of letting them participate.
The credit for this battle should belong solely to him.
Soon, the 200 men of Jotaro's First Reserve Team charged across the bridge with ferocious momentum, crashing head-on into the Hive's First Column, led by Jackie Welles, which was deployed within the complex urban area of Kabuki.
Sandbags and spiked concrete barriers were piled up on the old streets, forming a makeshift trench.
Nearby streets were similarly piled with simple defensive structures. Groups of ten or so men guarded each street. The complex urban environment offered excellent defensive conditions for the Hive soldiers, allowing a small number of them to hold back the Tyger Claws' attack in the segmented street battles.
The sound of dense footsteps from the end of the street grew clearer. A large, dense patch of heat signatures appeared blood-red in the helmet's thermal detection mode, rapidly approaching their position.
Behind the trench, Jackie raised his hand, quietly listening as the footsteps drew nearer.
The Hive Gunmen around him were already crouched behind the trench, weapons loaded, safeties off, just waiting for the Tyger Claws to walk into the trap.
"Fire!"
The moment the first figure appeared around the street corner, Jackie decisively swung his hand down.
"Bang!"
The first shot of the war finally rang out.
Following that was a deafening burst of dense gunfire, filling the air with the stinging smell of gunpowder and the scorched plasma odor of tech weapons.
The battle immediately entered a fierce stage.
"We found the Hive people! Attack! Attack!"
The Tyger Claws vanguard was caught off guard by the sudden gunfire, but they quickly launched an angry counterattack.
The opposing gunfire immediately erupted like lit firecrackers. Relying on their superior numbers, the Tyger Claws often pitted dozens of men against a dozen Hive personnel in each street. As soon as they counterattacked, the Tyger Claws' firepower overwhelmed the Hive.
It was 11:00 PM in West Five Zone time.
The fighting was intense.
The dense muzzle flashes in the streets, like fireworks, illuminated the night. Bullets traversing the battlefield were like invisible poison wasps, striking the ground, walls, and streetlights and chipping off fragments. The whistling sound of them cutting through the air was like the wailing of deadly spirits; a single misstep meant instant death.
The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder from the fighting. This place, at this moment, was a battlefield... "Come on, you Tyger Claws runts, eat your grandpa's bullets!"
Jackie stepped onto the sandbags, roaring as he opened fire.
The heavy machine gun in his hands spat flames, the barrel glowing red, and orange-yellow casings piled up like rain at his feet.
This monstrous firepower suppressed the Tyger Claws opposite them, making them afraid to show their heads.
Even stray bullets that hit Jackie were deflected by his shimmering blue arc shield.
Jackie stood there alone, like a mountain, preventing the Tyger Claws from advancing an inch.
This was the might of the Most Affectionate Man in Heywood Street.
The ammunition belt was rapidly devoured by the gun mechanism until the machine gun finally clicked, having reached the end.
A canteen of water was poured onto the nearly melting barrel, instantly raising a puff of white smoke.
"You all continue to hold the line, I'm going to support elsewhere."
Seeing the enemy here suppressed, Jackie grabbed his machine gun and took a few men, leaving through a nearby alley to reach the opposite battle zone.
For nearly an hour of fighting, he had been moving between several streets, acting as a rapid response team.
Wherever the line was about to break, he went there.
By acting as a firefighter, he held back the Tyger Claws, who initially outnumbered the Hive, preventing the streets from being breached.
But even so, the situation was growing increasingly unfavorable.
After all, the Tyger Claws' reinforcements were endless, wave after wave, and his subordinates were starting to take casualties.
Continuing the fight here would likely be disastrous.
Jackie glanced at the time displayed on his visor feed, estimating that the time was right.
They had intercepted the Tyger Claws here for nearly an hour, severely blunting the vanguard's momentum.
The delaying effect of the first defense line was sufficient. They had successfully drawn the Tyger Claws' ire, ensuring the gang would pursue them.
"Everyone listen up! First Squad and Second Squad begin retreat. Third Squad, follow me to delay the pursuit. Everyone, retreat to the second line of defense."
The Honeycomb Mercenaries who heard the order on the public channel couldn't help but sigh in relief.
"Retreat! Retreat! Move back!"
Receiving the order, the Honeycomb Mercenaries stopped fighting, shouldered their weapons, and retreated. This momentarily stunned the Tyger Claws opposite them, who couldn't determine if it was a feigned retreat to lure them deeper.
It wasn't until the backs of the Honeycomb Mercenaries were out of sight that the Tyger Claws front-line commander angrily slapped his head.
"Chase them! What are you waiting for!"
The Tyger Claws were furious. They had expected to sweep away the Hive's defenses easily, but instead, the enemy had suppressed them so thoroughly they couldn't lift their heads.
Although casualties were minimal, it was certainly frustrating.
Seeing the Hive retreat, they charged through the streets, roaring, crossing the makeshift trenches, and pushing deep into the district.
There, the second line of defense awaited them... "Are you ready?"
"Ready!"
"Don't spare the bullets in a moment! Bullets are expensive, but your life is more precious. The moment the Tyger Claws show their heads, hit them hard!"
The second line of defense was commanded by Jumping Shot James of the Crusader squad.
He was currently carrying a flamethrower with two fuel tanks mounted at the end, shaped overall like a Dick, and was loudly boosting the morale of the soldiers in the trench.
Jackie's First Column quickly retreated and successfully linked up with the Second Column.
"Captain, resupply your ammunition first! The Second Column is ready!"
Jackie, who was now scrambling into the trench carrying two wounded soldiers, was slightly out of breath. He didn't have time to speak, only nodding.
Soon, the Tyger Claws followed the retreating troops' tracks to the second line of defense. Like two sovereigns meeting, the moment they saw each other's faces, they pulled their triggers.
Quickly, bullets flew everywhere, and the second battle began.
If you looked down upon the Kabuki area, you would notice that the Tyger Claws vanguard was gradually penetrating the urban area, encountering Hive strongholds in the streets. These strongholds linked up to form a thin but resilient defense line, like a thin-skinned dumpling, wrapping around the hundreds of Tyger Claws.
This was a rally race fueled by lives; it all came down to who could last until the end.
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