If we only counted the number of ships on the scene, the Marine side might even be inferior to the 'Pirate Alliance'.
But compared to the wildly varied pirate ships, the Marine warships here were all uniform large warships. Their actual combat power combined might even be higher.
-Of course, all that became a joke after the sea surface froze.
Now, both the Marines and pirates had to abandon naval warfare and opt for close combat.
However, no one would blame Aokiji for freezing the sea.
After all, everyone saw Whitebeard's abilities. Just two swings of his fist were enough to create tsunamis. If he went all out without considering consequences, Marineford would definitely be the first to be submerged.
"Charge! Take them down!"
"Everyone! Follow me!"
"Maintain formation! Fire!"
"Draw swords! Engage the enemy!"
It must be said, as professionally trained forces, compared to the chaotic, headlong rush of the Pirate Alliance, the Marine response was very methodical.
Coordinated volleys from formed ranks indeed took down many pirates.
You couldn't expect every pirate to use Haki to withstand cannon fire or bullets, nor did every pirate have a Devil Fruit that made them immune to projectiles like Luffy.
"Dammit… can't break through!"
A pirate captain shouted angrily. Over half his crew had fallen to the Marine volleys.
Even if they broke through the firepower net, the Marines still had many Giant Marine soldiers guarding.
Ordinary pirates often struggled against real giants.
"Let me!"
At that moment, a solid voice rang out. Then, everyone felt as if something flashed before their eyes, the gust of wind hitting them a moment later.
"That's..."
"Brilliant Punk!"
With a roar, a large pirate transformed half his body into reflective diamond, then charged toward the Marine positions with lightning speed.
The Giant Marines tried to block, but whether weapons or fists and kicks, they couldn't penetrate that charge.
"It's the Whitebeard Pirates' Third Division Commander! Diamond Jozu!!"
"Evade immediately!"
Some reacting Marine officers immediately gave orders, but others' reactions were clearly no match for Jozu's full-speed charge. Soon, their formation was scattered.
"Great! Nice work, Jozu!"
A pirate captain cheered loudly, then prepared to lead his pirates in a counterattack.
However, while the pirates had experts breaking through, so did the Marines.
Before other Vice Admirals could arrive, Ishho, hidden in the crowd nearby, quickly stepped forward.
"Gravity Blade: Fierce Tiger!"
His sword, Yakuza Kasen, sliced through the air. Then, almost all charging pirates uncontrollably slammed toward the ground.
"Ugh... so heavy!"
"Can't move!"
Even a commander-level expert like Jozu found his movements severely hampered by this suddenly appearing gravity.
He didn't dare underestimate this blind man in purple ronin attire. Running through Marine officer data in his mind, he still couldn't find information on an expert like Ishho.
"I haven't heard of the Marines having such a tough character."
Jozu gritted his teeth. Heavyweights like him were actually at a disadvantage under gravity suppression. Once speed couldn't accumulate, his attacks became very sluggish.
Hearing this, Ishho helplessly scratched his head.
"I am Ishho. I joined the Marines not long ago, currently serving as a Marine Headquarters Commodore."
After introducing himself, Ishho again held his sword before him, his expression gradually turning serious.
"I've seen your desire to save your comrade. But I apologize, as a Marine, I cannot let you pass here."
His tone was very polite, but his meaning was resolute.
Faced with such an expert appearing out of nowhere, Jozu's face showed intense fighting spirit.
"Commodore? The Marines really don't know how to use people!"
Saying this, he slammed his fists into the ground.
Through force control, a massive ice block the size of a small mountain was separated from the sea surface.
"Haa!"
Jozu exerted force, and the mountain-like ice block was lifted and hurled toward the Marine side.
"Try blocking this if you can!"
Seeing the ice block that almost blocked all vision, many Marines' hearts sank… some with weaker mental fortitude directly fainted.
"This is truly... an exaggerated display of strength."
While expressing surprise, Ishho simply sheathed his sword, then performed a quick horizontal draw-slash.
"Gravity Blade: Fierce Tiger!"
Hum-
Everyone saw countless purple rings rapidly extending toward the iceberg.
The terrifying iceberg slowed drastically after being penetrated by the rings, eventually stopping completely before everyone, then losing all momentum and falling back to the ground.
The Zushi Zushi no Mi was a superior Paramecia-type Devil Fruit to fruits like the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi and Ton Ton no Mi, its effects even comparable to a certain sky pirate's Fuwa Fuwa no Mi. (T/N: Press-Press Fruit, Float-Float Fruit, and Ton-Ton Fruit.)
Possessing this fruit, Ishho could casually alter gravity in an area, even pulling down a meteor from space using gravity.
Apart from needing some waiting time, this was almost like Madara's [Tengai Shinsei] and his consumption for this move was even smaller.
Clang!
The iceberg was suddenly broken through from within. Jozu, having gathered momentum, charged toward Ishho's position.
However, he didn't expect that besides his cheat-like Devil Fruit ability, Ishho himself was also a highly skilled Great Swordsman.
Now, that seemingly ordinary-looking sword, actually one of the [Twelve Supreme Grade Swords], Yakuza Kasen, was steadily blocking Jozu.
The next moment, gravity intensified again.
Battles like this were almost everywhere on this battlefield.
Seeing Ishho act, Aramaki also grew tired of hiding.
So this guy directly activated his Devil Fruit Ability.
"What a grand battlefield. You pirates, all become my military achievements! Forest Emergence!"
The next moment, Aramaki rapidly expanded, transforming into a colossal giant tree-man.
Just the upper half 'growing' from the ground already surpassed the Giant Vice Admirals.
His arms turned into countless roots, burrowing into hard rock and ice layers, then suddenly bursting out, catching the pirates in the rear off guard.
Even if cut, those trunks and vines would quickly regrow.
And pirates entangled by them rapidly turned into withered husks, powerless and hanging limp.
The Mori Mori no Mi, a true 'Logia'-type fruit allowing the user to transform into a forest. (T/N: Forest-Forest Fruit.) (T/N2: Logia means nature.)
Aramaki could freely control plant growth and absorb others' nutrients and moisture through vines to supply himself.
It could be said his ability was perfectly suited for such large-scale battles.
Of course, such unrestrained attacks also attracted the attention of the three Emperors.
"An eyesore. King, burn him."
Kaido smashed an ice bird attacking him, using Haki to dispel the cold while squinting his eyes. Looking at Aramaki, who had harvested hundreds of pirates with one move, his killing intent was palpable.
Beside him, the true peak combatant of the Beast Pirates besides Kaido promptly acknowledged.
"Yes, Kaido-sama."
As the strongest of the Three Disasters, [King the Conflagration], tightly wrapped in leather, quickly transformed into a pterosaur shape, flying toward Aramaki.
"Karyudon!"
Flames ignited behind King's head, quickly enveloping his sword. As he slashed through the air, they turned into blazing fire dragons, charging toward the green figure below.
"Oh? Coming right at me!"
Naturally sensing King's approach, Aramaki set aside the insignificant small fry, instead manipulating roots into spiral drills, attacking the fire dragons above.
'Fire indeed countered wood, but that depended on what kind of wood!'
A cruel smile flashed on Aramaki's face as nutrients rapidly flowed toward his hands.
Admiral Candidate vs Emperor's Right Hand!