As the newcomer's voice echoed through the battlefield, the blazing meteor volcanoes raining from the sky began to slow down one by one. The once fiercely burning lava dimmed, and what had moments ago seemed like world-ending destruction now turned into chunks of rock falling gently to the earth.
"It's the Captain!" Raelmann exclaimed with joy.
"Everyone, get out of the way! It's the Captain's ability—he's weakened the power of the volcanic meteors!"
"We're saved! The speed of the meteors has dropped drastically, and the lava's gone out too!"
"I knew it! I knew the Captain wouldn't abandon us!"
"This is the Captain's power? Damn, that's overwhelming!"
"Haha! At this speed, these things can't even touch me!"
Members of the Second Division, who had moments ago been on the brink of despair, now cheered with renewed energy, dodging the weakened meteor volcanoes with excitement as if they'd been granted a second life.
"So he's finally appeared… Rosinante." Sengoku's gaze locked onto the figure stepping out of the swirling black vortex.
It was the first time he had seen Rosinante in person. Though he had long known that the man was incredibly young, seeing him with his own eyes was still jarring. Could it truly be this young man who had turned the entirety of Marine Headquarters upside down?
Sengoku had been vigilant, waiting for Rosinante to reveal himself. With someone like Bins on his side—someone who possessed the terrifying ability to open portals—no one could predict what strategy Rosinante would deploy next. That was precisely why the top brass hadn't all entered the battlefield yet. Partly because these pirates hadn't yet warranted full mobilization… and partly because Rosinante's absence posed a terrifying uncertainty. An unknown enemy lurking in the shadows was far more dangerous than one standing in plain sight.
Judging by the meticulous formations and maneuvers of the Gray Nation, it wasn't hard to imagine that they were laying a trap.
Now, seeing Rosinante walk directly onto the battlefield, Sengoku actually felt a bit of relief… though that relief was tinged with confusion.
Still, now that the enemy was standing in the open, Marine Headquarters didn't fear any opponent.
"So that's Rosinante? He's so young…" muttered several Vice Admirals in disbelief. They'd seen photos of him, sure, but photos were one thing—reality was another.
Vice Admiral Tsuru frowned deeply. Something didn't sit right. What was the true purpose of Rosinante launching this war?
He hadn't shown himself until now, which made her suspect he had something unexpected planned. She had been waiting, analyzing, searching for a pattern, trying to determine his motive. And just when she was expecting some hidden hand to move behind the scenes—he shows up in the open?
From the very beginning, Rosinante had sent his forces to assault the Marines' largest weapons depot, drawing a major portion of their forces away. Then he launched a full-frontal assault on the main gate, forcing the Marines to divert more attention and manpower there. Finally, he ordered his subordinates to attack the remaining arsenals, cutting off ammo supply routes.
At first glance, it was all brilliantly executed—textbook tactics that threw the Marines into a reactive posture.
But considering Bins' portal ability, this whole strategy started to seem… overly complicated.
If Rosinante merely wanted to deny the Marines their ammunition, couldn't he have just sent someone to blow up the arsenals directly? It would've been faster, deadlier, and required far fewer resources.
If they could slip letters undetected into the Marine Fleet Admiral's office, infiltrating a few weapon stores couldn't have been a challenge.
Moreover, with the power to open space-time portals, the Gray Kingdom had dozens of more troublesome strategies they could've used. Assassination, for example. Given time, they could have systematically eliminated every Marine below Admiral level. The way they managed to delay Kuzan was proof of that.
This was the fear that plagued both Sengoku and Tsuru from the beginning.
So then… why, with all these advantages, had the Gray Kingdom chosen a head-on assault?
With Fleet Admiral Kong, Hero Garp, Admiral Sengoku, and the next-generation monsters like Sakazuki and Kuzan standing ready—Marine Headquarters clearly had the firepower to suppress the Gray Kingdom outright.
Tsuru didn't believe that, in just a few short years, Rosinante had built enough strength to take the Navy on in open war. Even if he'd fully claimed Skypiea as his domain, attacking the front lines seemed nothing short of reckless.
She had been waiting, patiently, for Rosinante's "real move." Yet here he was—walking into the battlefield openly. This only deepened her confusion.
"Don't be fooled by his age. That young man is a monster—on par with an Admiral," Sengoku said gravely.
"Rosinante…" Sakazuki turned toward the man who had stepped out of the portal, eyes narrowing with a glint of surprise.
Back during the incident at Ohara, Rosinante had been completely incapable of weakening his Meteor Volcano. But now… he could dull its power effortlessly?
He had grown stronger again.
As the Meteor Volcanoes lost their threat, Rosinante glanced toward Raelmann. Bins must be fully tied up with keeping Kuzan at bay… unable to spare any help here. Seeing the brutal injuries across Raelmann's body, Rosinante's gaze darkened.
Then he turned his eyes toward Sakazuki—grinning. A cold, mocking smirk full of challenge.
Rosinante had always regarded Sakazuki's Meteor Volcano with caution.
It was a terrifying move—an area-wide, high-damage long-range bombardment. One of the few attack types Rosinante had very little effective defense against.
Rosinante's only reliable countermeasure for long-range bombardment was his Silent Demon Eye.
But the truth was, using the Silent Demon Eye against something like Meteor Volcano wasn't very efficient. Not only was the consumption high, the effect was… underwhelming. He could mute the attacks somewhat, but they still retained a lot of their force.
After all, the technique required him to look directly at the attack to suppress it—meaning the effectiveness dropped drastically. The attack still had weight from the magma, the force of its descent from the sky, Sakazuki's own power behind it, and the scorching, explosive nature of the lava itself.
To completely neutralize a single lava fist, Rosinante had to simultaneously silence gravity, impact force, attack energy, and explosive heat.
Taking out one or two? Doable.
Stopping a sky full of them?
Trying to mute the entire storm of meteor fists would simply let Sakazuki drag him out until he collapsed from exhaustion. Logia users had far greater endurance than Paramecia types—Rosinante would lose that war of attrition.
After returning to Skypiea, Rosinante had started developing a new technique.
A move specifically designed to counter these devastating, large-scale ranged attacks...