The Straw Hats were stunned.
Who could've guessed that those three utterly unreliable-looking Marines were actually Admirals?!
Usopp, who had just been full of bravado, was now trembling behind Zoro, using him as a human shield.
"Wait! I think I heard them say Vice Admiral Garp! Could it be that Marine Hero?" Nami muttered, her expression turning serious.
Boom!
Her words hit like thunder crashing down in everyone's ears.
The Marine Hero, Iron Fist Garp!
A name known to all. A legend.
Thirty-eight years ago, alone at God Valley, he stopped the unstoppable Rocks Pirates, clashing with Gol D. Roger to wipe them out completely. The man who cornered the Pirate King multiple times!
Who hadn't heard of him?
The moment Nami said it, jaws dropped and nearly hit the floor.
Even Luffy began sweating profusely, blurting out, "We're done for! It's Grandpa! We need to run, now!"
"Y-yeah! Let's get outta here!" Usopp shouted, immediately agreeing.
…Huh?
Something about that felt… off.
The others around them also furrowed their brows, sensing something strange in that statement, but not quite putting their finger on it.
"Luffy, say what you just said again," Sanji asked, puffing out a cloud of smoke.
"I said my grandpa is here! Run or it'll be too late!"
...
Silence fell over the group.
Then,
"GRANDPA?!!!"
Luffy blinked innocently. "Uh… yeah. Garp's my grandpa. What about it?"
WHACK!
Usopp smacked him on the back of the head. "You're a pirate, and your grandpa's the Marine Hero! You seriously don't think that's weird?!"
"This isn't the time to talk about that!" Sanji roared. "We need a plan to escape!"
Everyone finally snapped back to reality and began glancing around, desperately calculating escape routes.
Pop!
The bubble from Garp's nose burst just as his battleship neared. Startled, he jolted awake.
"Oops! I dozed off without meaning to…" He hurried to the bow and glanced down at the bridge, only to see Shiranami Hakusei standing there, arms folded, gazing up at him calmly.
Garp let out a long sigh of relief. "Phew… good, he hasn't run."
But then, in a casual scan of the area, his eyes locked on Luffy and the Straw Hats standing not far off. His face instantly darkened.
With a thunderous roar, he bellowed, "LUFFY, YOU BRAT! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"
"Crap! He saw me! Run!!" Luffy yelped, bolting for the tunnel without hesitation.
His crewmates hesitated for two seconds, then turned and sprinted after him.
As they fled, Robin glanced back over her shoulder with a soft smile. Her eyes lingered on Hakusei, filled with complex emotion, as if trying to etch his image deeply into her memory.
And so, the Straw Hat crew's cameo appearance at Enies Lobby… ended in a beautiful farce.
"Bastard! You're running away without even saying hi to your grandpa?" Garp shouted, glaring after Luffy. Then he turned to the others and snapped at the two Admirals beside him.
"You guys handle these four! I'll go after that brat and his crew!"
With that, he leapt from the ship and took off after the fleeing Straw Hats. As he passed Hakusei, he shot him a vicious glare but didn't stop.
Hakusei simply shrugged. He didn't try to stop Garp, letting the Straw Hats leave helped lighten his own burden. At least someone was taking the troublesome Garp off his hands.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
From Enies Lobby's direction, a storm of cannonfire erupted.
The Buster Call had begun.
The island was engulfed in flames. Smoke billowed into the sky, buildings crumbled one after another, the entire landscape turning into a battlefield scorched by fire and fury.
The thunder of cannons roused the two sleeping Admirals.
Aokiji peeled off his sleep mask, yawned, and stood. He stretched lazily, then jumped off the ship and strolled forward with his hands in his pockets, facing off against Hakusei.
Kizaru put away his weird black Den Den Mushi, and in a flash of golden light, appeared beside Aokiji.
Gone was the air of laziness or indifference. Now the two Admirals stood tall, exuding a powerful, crushing aura.
Even Crocodile and Waldo began to sweat slightly. Despite their strength, they could feel the suffocating pressure.
Only Hakusei and Redfield remained calm.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Several more figures suddenly arrived behind the two Admirals.
A quick glance confirmed it, five Vice Admirals.
It was Momonga, Strawberry, Doberman, Dalmatian, and Bastille!
These five were part of the Buster Call operation. Originally, Burning Mountain and Onigumo were also assigned, but they'd been severely injured by Hakusei during the Impel Down raid, so Dalmatian and Bastille had taken their place.
Buster Call didn't require Vice Admirals to fight on land, it was usually just naval bombardment. But in this case, all five were staying behind to engage Hakusei's group. The shelling would be handled by the subordinate officers.
Now it was a 4-on-7 showdown.
This was the most dangerous situation Hakusei had faced since his rise, though, to be fair, he'd only debuted four days ago.
Still, every opponent he'd faced so far had been a major figure.
Now, facing a lineup like this, the blood in his veins boiled. His eyes sparkled with excitement, a thrill of anticipation running through him.
Aokiji narrowed his eyes, studying Hakusei's composed demeanor.
This young man… just who was he?
Even when surrounded by two Admirals and five Vice Admirals, he showed no fear.
Was it arrogance? Or real strength?
To be honest, Aokiji had originally dismissed Magellan's report, assuming the Warden was just exaggerating to cover for his own failure. Claiming some young upstart was that strong seemed absurd.
But seeing Hakusei in person now… he began to doubt his own assumptions.
Perhaps Magellan had been telling the truth.
Aokiji's expression grew serious. He issued his commands.
"Bastille, Dalmatian, and Momonga, deal with Crocodile and Waldo. Kizaru, you take on Redfield. I'll handle this kid. Strawberry and Doberman, support as needed."
Kizaru and the others nodded.
Meanwhile, Hakusei was making his own assignments.
"Redfield, let's each take one Admiral. Crocodile, Waldo, you two hold off the five Vice Admirals."
"Boss! This is Marine territory," Waldo protested. "If we drag this out, reinforcements will come fast. If we go all-in here, we're gonna be in deep trouble."
Redfield and Crocodile didn't speak, but they clearly agreed. Both turned toward Hakusei.
"Relax. No need to go all-out," Hakusei said calmly. "Our ride is almost here. You just need to hold them off."
He grinned.
"Besides… I've been itching to see what an Admiral's made of."
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