Maude's timely intervention sent a wave of apprehension through the Marines.
"This stage is still too early for you all..."
With his back to Robin, Maude quickly assessed the battlefield.
All around him, the Marines were closing in.
"You really shouldn't have come here, Nico Robin."
Maude could sense the Marines' overwhelming intent to execute her.
Without waiting for Robin's reaction, he acted decisively.
"Shadow Terrain."
The shadow at Maude's feet rapidly morphed into a network of inky-black tendrils, slithering outward in all directions.
The shadowy tendrils spread across the ground, weaving through the Straw Hat Pirates's feet, extending toward the nearest Marines.
"Watch out! It's Maude's shadow ability!!"
"Use Armament Haki to strike the shadows!"
The Marines, well-versed in Maude's powers, didn't panic. Instead, they calmly tracked the movement of the approaching shadows.
Then—
Without warning, the shadows lifted from the ground, morphing mid-air into a barrage of scythes that slashed toward the closest Marines.
"Scythes…!!"
The Marines' eyes narrowed. Due to the shadows' deep hue, they couldn't discern whether the shadow scythes were imbued with Armament Haki.
Playing it safe, every Marine instinctively reinforced their weapons with Haki and braced for impact.
Clang! Clang!
Sparks erupted as steel clashed, the battlefield filled with the ringing of metal upon metal.
The scythes' speed was blinding, nearly impossible to follow with the naked eye.
Yet the Marines managed to parry each strike with precision.
Even so—
They found themselves steadily retreating as they fended off the relentless assault.
And that was exactly what Maude intended.
By distributing his shadow's offensive power, he wasn't aiming to slaughter the elite Marines but rather to push them back.
As the Marines were forced to give ground, the Straw Hat crew finally found a moment to catch their breath.
They exchanged glances, their eyes drawn to Maude, their unexpected savior.
Without him—
Robin would have already met a grim fate.
And the rest of them wouldn't have lasted much longer against the relentless Marine assault.
"Master!!!"
Usopp, overwhelmed with emotion, shouted as he watched Maude turn the tide of battle the moment he arrived.
Without looking back, Maude spoke calmly: "Stick together. If you get separated, no one will be able to save you."
"Got it!"
Usopp barely grasped the full meaning of Maude's words but still nodded frantically in agreement.
Luffy gritted his teeth, staring at Maude.
Despite his usual reckless nature, even he recognized the dire situation and refrained from picking a fight with Maude at this moment.
The weak and helpless Nami instinctively moved closer to Maude.
Chopper fought the urge to take a third Rumble Ball.
If not for Maude's intervention, he would have already swallowed it.
Had he done so, he would have lost control, gone berserk, and, while possibly harming his allies, at least drawn enemy fire due to his monstrous form.
The mere thought of it had already steeled Chopper's resolve for self-sacrifice.
Franky's cola reserves were nearly depleted. His hair drooped, signaling that he was on the verge of exhaustion.
With no way out, their only hope now rested on Maude.
Maude's sudden entry had also drawn the attention of Sabo, Akainu, Aokiji, and others.
Fujitora was locked in battle against Morley and Karasu, two of the Revolutionary Army's commanders.
Despite his high-level Observation Haki, he could only spare a fraction of his attention on Maude's actions.
"Hmm…"
Fujitora murmured to himself before focusing entirely on the two formidable opponents before him.
With Morley and Karasu working together, they could at least exchange blows with Fujitora.
Akainu, meanwhile, was facing Sabo and Marco.
Sabo, the Revolutionary Army's second-in-command, and Marco, the Whitebeard Pirates' former first division commander—
Though they couldn't overpower Akainu, they could at least keep him engaged.
As for Aokiji, his opponent was Ace.
Both were Logia users, their abilities evenly matched, making it impossible to determine a victor in the short term.
All of them—
Strong warriors locked in fierce battles—
Had taken note of Maude's arrival.
For Akainu's side, this was an unwelcome development.
For Sabo's side, it was a relief.
As members of the Revolutionary Army, Sabo and his allies had two priorities: rescuing Ace and ensuring Robin's safety.
Without Maude's timely intervention, if Luffy or Robin had fallen here, Sabo and Ace would have been immediately impacted.
"Thank goodness Maude showed up…"
Sabo silently expressed his gratitude.
He wasn't the type to hold life-saving debts over someone's head, especially since Maude had already repaid any past favors.
Even if Maude had chosen not to help, Sabo would have accepted that outcome.
But Maude had acted anyway.
And for that, Sabo felt deeply fortunate to have met someone like him on his journey through life.
Maude quickly assessed Sabo's battlefield before shifting his gaze back to the Marines, whose movements had been momentarily stalled by his shadow scythes.
In terms of numbers, they were at a severe disadvantage.
The immediate priority was to evacuate Robin, Usopp, and the others.
If they didn't, Sabo and Morley would be forced to remain here, unable to disengage.
Splat!
Suddenly, several bursts of blood erupted from different spots on Maude's body.
The Marines had successfully landed Haki-infused strikes on his shadows, indirectly injuring him.
"Maude, you're hurt—"
"Master!"
Nami and Usopp looked at Maude with concern.
"It's nothing."
His expression remained calm.
The moment he expanded his shadows, he had already accepted the risk of injury.
After all, once his shadows spread, it was impossible to coat every inch of them in Armament Haki.
"Bartolomeo, get over here."
Having decided on a plan to get Robin and the others out, Maude placed the critical role in Bartolomeo's hands.
The battered and nearly incapacitated Bartolomeo hesitated for a moment before scrambling over, eager to help.
"Can you create a spherical barrier?"
Time was running out. Maude asked the question swiftly.
"I can, but—"
Bartolomeo instinctively nodded but glanced at his severed finger, about to explain when Maude cut him off.
"As long as you can do it."
Suddenly, Maude crouched down and reached into Bartolomeo's shadow.
In the next instant—
A new finger grew out of Bartolomeo's severed stump as if conjured from thin air.
"Huh?"
Bartolomeo was stunned. Chopper, standing beside him, was equally dumbfounded.
After healing Bartolomeo's injury, Maude narrowed his eyes and quickly retracted his shadow. Then, his shadow morphed into a mass of tendrils, coiling around everyone and pulling them together.
"Listen up. In a moment, I'm going to throw you all toward the Whitebeard Pirates."
"WHAT!?"
The Straw Hats, whether in shock or confusion, reacted in unison.
Maude didn't bother explaining further. Instead, he turned to Bartolomeo.
"The moment I throw you, Bartolomeo, you must immediately create a spherical barrier and enclose everyone inside it."
"I see! As expected of my idol!"
Bartolomeo instantly understood, his eyes gleaming with admiration as he looked at Maude.
Out of the corner of his eye, Maude noticed Garp approaching.
It seemed that because of his decision to aid the Straw Hats, Garp had noticeably slowed his charge.
So, in the end, he's still swayed by personal emotions...
Maude sneered internally but kept his expression composed. Fixing his gaze on Bartolomeo, he asked seriously, "Can you do it?"
"No doubt about it!"
Bartolomeo nodded without hesitation.
"Get ready."
Without wasting another second, Maude manipulated his shadow tendrils, pulling everyone tightly together. Then, like a catapult, he drew the shadow back, preparing to launch them.
The surrounding Marines, seeing this, immediately realized what Maude was about to do.
"Stop him!!"
But before they could act—
Maude hurled Robin and the others into the air with full force.
True to his promise, Bartolomeo didn't let him down. He promptly deployed a spherical barrier, enveloping his companions.
Now, they no longer had to worry about incoming attacks from the Marines.
Moreover, the oxygen inside the barrier was sufficient to sustain them until they landed within Whitebeard's formation.
"Wait… Where's Luffy?"
Nami suddenly noticed that someone was missing from the barrier.
Hearing her, the others quickly realized it too—Luffy wasn't inside.
Confused, they turned their eyes back to where they had just been.
Then—
They saw Luffy still on the battlefield, bound by Maude's shadow tendrils.
In other words, Maude hadn't thrown Luffy along with the others.
"What is Maude trying to do?"
They stared in shock, a sense of déjà vu creeping over them, as if they had witnessed something similar before.
In the middle of the battlefield—
Maude smiled at Luffy.
Luffy, for his part, looked completely bewildered.
However—
He had no intention of leaving.
Unaware of the bigger picture, his only thought was simple—he had to go with Ace and Sabo.
What he didn't realize was that, as the weakest among them, staying here would only act as a shackle, tying Ace and Sabo down.
"Let me go!"
Luffy glared at Maude.
"Alright."
Maude agreed without hesitation—and then flung Luffy straight toward Garp.
He did let Luffy go… but by throwing him.
Luffy, sent flying through the air, was utterly dumbfounded.
"???"
At the same time, Garp—who had been wrestling with his inner turmoil—was completely caught off guard when he saw Luffy hurtling toward him.
Equally dumbfounded—
Were the Straw Hats watching from inside the barrier.
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