The waves roared across Wano's inland sea.
"Report! This is Patrol Ship No. 13—enemy forces are ten nautical miles from Onigashima!"
Aboard a Beasts Pirates warship, a lookout with an Artificial Devil Fruit—hawk form—relayed the message to headquarters while passing down orders from Onigashima.
"Open fire!!"
"Don't let them near Onigashima! Stop them at sea!"
Hummm—
With a deep mechanical rumble, a series of breech-loading battleship cannons began to rotate, their long barrels locking onto the approaching fleet.
Watching from above, Roman—who had released a flock of white doves to observe the battlefield—narrowed his eyes.
Despite their brutish, muscle-head reputation, the Beasts Pirates had surprisingly advanced technology!
After all, Queen was a top-tier scientist. If he could play around with viruses and human modifications, then mastering gunpowder and artillery was child's play for him.
And so—BOOM!!
With the deafening roar of a cannon, a high-speed armor-piercing shell—far faster than a regular round—slammed into a Wano transport ship. The explosion tore through the wooden deck, leaving behind a massive, gaping hole.
Most of Wano Country's ships couldn't even fight back—many of them didn't even have old-fashioned muzzle-loading cannons. They were just simple transport ships! Not that it would matter if they had cannons; they wouldn't even be able to touch the enemy's heavily armed warships.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… This level of weaponry is behind by several eras."
On one side, there were warships made of steel, armed with explosive-loaded cannons. On the other, samurai wielding swords and spears on wooden ships… If this were the world from his past life, it would be nothing short of a massacre! Even in this world, where personal strength could surpass the limits of normal humans, most swordsmen who had trained for decades still had no way to counter long-range artillery.
Even swordmasters who could cut down cannonballs were still at a disadvantage against the endurance of modern weaponry. But luckily—
"Want me to step in?"
In a large-scale naval battle like this, it was Nami's time to shine! Against Inazuma storms and raging waves, even the strongest warships and cannons had to bow down. Not to mention, the Straw Hat Crew also had Franky's long-range lasers, Roman and Zoro's flying slashes, and Sanji's aerial assaults.
As the saying goes—if you have technology, we have mastery!
"Leave these small fry to us, commander."
"Straw Hat captain, what do you think?"
"Hehehe, sounds good~~"
The bandaged vice commander of the rebels stepped forward, volunteering himself. At the same time, he waved at Melody, who was discussing "100 ways to cook carrots" with Carrot.
"Melody, Snow Dance, it's our turn."
"Yes!"
The bow-wielding girl and the cold, sharp-eyed woman with dark makeup immediately stepped forward, taking their positions at the bow of the Sunny. Meanwhile, the bandaged vice commander finally activated his Devil Fruit ability.
Swish—
He raised his right hand, and the bandages wrapped around it began to unravel on their own, revealing densely packed… words?
"East wind blows, a thousand trees burst into bloom. Stars fall like rain in the night sky!"
As he chanted, the words lifted off his skin, glowing like strokes of iron and silver. They were genuine, traditional characters. With a simple point of his finger, the phrase—one Roman recognized instantly—floated toward Melody, wrapping around her and surging into her body.
Her aura instantly soared to a whole new level, enough to even make Roman take notice.
A Devil Fruit that enhances others?
Meanwhile, Melody crouched slightly, took a deep breath, and slowly drew her magnificent red bow, aiming toward the Beasts Pirates' warships. Then, with a flick of her fingers—
"Blazing Star Arrow—!"
With a sharp, piercing whistle that echoed across the battlefield, Melody's arrow shot forward, engulfed in roaring flames. As it streaked toward the sky above the Beasts Pirates' fleet, it transformed into a blazing phoenix, turning the entire sky crimson.
Then—
"Fall!"
With a downward sweep of her bow, the fiery sky erupted into a downpour of countless crimson arrows. Though each individual shot was not as strong as the one she had used against Roman before, their sheer volume—
It was a true storm of destruction!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The rain of fire exploded in endless bursts, instantly drowning out every other sound on the battlefield. The intense heat spread outward, painting everything in shades of red.
Within seconds, the Beasts Pirates' warships within a few hundred meters turned into massive, blazing torches.
The burning ships cracked and splintered, glowing red-hot from within as flames burst through their interiors. The sea around them began to boil from the heat, releasing thick clouds of steam.
"Wow, Melody is amazing!"
With a single arrow, a third of the enemy fleet was wiped out in an instant! Over a dozen steel warships had turned into sizzling iron plates, and the Beasts Pirates on board screamed as they scrambled to escape into the sea.
"If she fires a few more of those…"
Sanji silently lit a cigarette. He hadn't expected these 'rebels' to be this strong.
"Phew… Right now, I can only fire three arrows at most."
Melody flexed her fingers, shaking her head regretfully, as if dissatisfied with her own power. The Heart Pirates standing nearby couldn't help but twitch their eyebrows.
Three arrows…?
She could wipe out an entire fleet or destroy a Marine fortress alone, and she still wasn't satisfied!?
"Let me handle the next part."
A woman dressed in flowing white robes—Snow Dance—leaped forward. As she soared through the air, her legs pressed together, and she rapidly transformed—
"A mermaid!?"
The others looked on in shock.
Meanwhile, the bandaged vice commander raised his right hand again. The bandages unraveled further, extending up to his shoulder, while more characters lifted from his skin and drifted toward Snow Dance.
"Golden carriages fill the fragrant streets, Phoenix flutes play as the moonlight dances, in this fleeting night—"
As the words wrapped around Snow Dance, fine white scales spread upward from her tail, forming a sleek, shimmering armor over her body. Two antlers grew from her forehead, giving her an even more noble and majestic appearance.
"Dragonfish Dance!"
Boom—!
As the mermaid-like Snow Dance plunged into the sea, a massive water column erupted, surging toward the sky like a rising dragon.
Within the swirling water, her elegant figure wove and twisted, sending waves surging forward. In an instant, the water transformed into a writhing dragon, filled with countless fish, shrimp, and shells, roaring toward the remaining Beasts Pirates' warships.
"Amazing… 'Dragonfish Dance' indeed."
Roman had to admit—he had underestimated these rebels.
They had managed to hold out against the Beasts Pirates for 20 years. Of course, they had their own trump cards.
And now, those trump cards were finally revealing themselves.
"I am a poet who ate the 'Text Fruit.'"
Since he had already been exposed, the bandaged deputy commander openly explained his Devil Fruit ability.
"I can enhance a person's combat power using specific words. The more words I use, the stronger the effect! But, of course, it also consumes more energy. That's why I usually store words on my skin and keep them in place with bandages, only releasing them all at once in battle."
I see. It's similar to how I store energy with 'Blood Parchment' to activate my pages.
Even a regular officer like Melody could unleash attacks on par with a top-ranking commander under his enhancement. So what if he enhanced himself? After all, Roman could tell that this deputy commander was on the same level as the Calamities and the Three Sweet Commanders.
Interesting.
"Luffy, I'll go help too."
Hearing Jinbe's request, Luffy grinned.
"Sure."
*SPLASH!*
As Jinbe dove into the sea and disappeared beneath the waves, a battleship near 'Snowdance,' who was controlling a massive water dragon to ravage the battlefield, adjusted its cannons to target the twisting dragon.
But before they could fire, a powerful jet of high-pressure water suddenly burst from the ocean, drilling through everything in its path!
In an instant, the battleship was pierced like a fragile biscuit, leaving a massive hole in its hull. Seawater rushed in through the breach, flooding the ship. As it began to sink, the planned bombardment was completely abandoned.
!
"The commander said… you're the strongest Fish-Man in the world?"
Inside the dragon formed from ocean currents, an elegant, pale-skinned mermaid gazed at Jinbe, who had just surfaced.
"It's just a title. I don't care about that."
"But I do!"
The mermaid called 'Snowdance' looked at Jinbe seriously.
"Normally, I wouldn't be able to beat you. But right now—let's see who the real ruler of the sea is!"
"…"
Jinbe wisely kept his mouth shut. Arguing about this would be pointless. If he won, it would just seem like he was bullying a 'young girl.' If he lost, he wouldn't care, but it wouldn't look good for the Straw Hat Crew.
"Amazing."
Watching the enormous water dragon tear through the ocean like a real sea serpent, crushing Beasts Pirates' warships with its fangs and claws, Nami's eyes gleamed with admiration.
Part of it was envy over the ability to control water.
But another part was—
"It's so beautiful…"
"That really is an impressive attack. Most fighters would lose before the battle even begins."
?
"Roman, I'm pretty sure we're not talking about the same thing… never mind."
Nami rubbed her forehead.
As Jinbe and Snowdance continued to tear through the Beasts Pirates' fleet, the Straw Hat Grand Fleet finally caught sight of Onigashima in the distance.
The real battle was just ahead.
But—
"Oh, right."
A thought suddenly crossed Nami's mind.
"That 'Snowdance' was walking on two legs before she transformed into a mermaid, right? Then why didn't Camie just grow legs back in Sabaody?"
Hearing her question, Roman chuckled.
"This is why I keep telling you to read more. You only focus on navigation books. Mermaids develop the ability to 'split their tails' after turning 30. Before that, they can only move using their tails. After 30, they can freely switch between tails and legs."
Killing intent!
A wave of cold hostility surged from the battlefield ahead!
The 'water dragon' wreaking havoc on the Beasts Pirates suddenly ramped up its destruction, tearing through enemies like a wild beast on a rampage. Even Jinbe, peeking out from the water, reflexively wiped his face.
Roman… still has no sense of how to talk to women.
"We've reached Onigashima!"
As the Straw Hat Grand Fleet advanced, Onigashima grew larger in their sights.
They could now make out the towering main gate's signboard—and the massive cannon turret beneath it.
"Charge!"
"For the Kozuki Clan!"
"The time for revenge has come!!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
One by one, samurai leaped off the ship, running across the water as if stepping on lily pads, dashing straight toward Onigashima. Partly because they were eager to finally see land, and partly to clear out the cannons on the shore to make way for the ships behind them.
"Alright, let's—"
"Wait, Luffy."
Roman stopped Luffy, who was about to jump into action. Seeing Luffy's annoyed expression, he pointed toward the buildings on Onigashima.
"Kaido is your opponent. Leave the small fry to the samurai."
Soldiers fight soldiers, generals fight generals, and kings fight kings! That was the tradition of this world. If both leaders just focused on killing each other's underlings, they'd soon end up as commanders of no one.
"Fine, but that one's mine!"
After swinging his arms around a few times, Luffy threw a punch! His arm stretched out at high speed, aiming straight at—
Boom!
With one blow, he shattered the huge sign above the main gate that read "King of Beasts." His voice echoed across Onigashima.
"Kaido!!!"
"I'm here to punch you into the sky!!"
——————
(End of Chapter)
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