Swoosh— BOOM—!!!
A massive dark shadow plummeted from the sky at terminal velocity. Friction with the atmosphere generated a piercing, sky-rending shriek just before the figure slammed violently into the harbor square.
An earth-shattering detonation erupted. The apocalyptic force of the impact made the earth heave and buckle as the cobblestone ground instantly shattered and caved in. A crater measuring dozens of meters in diameter was gouged into the square, sending thick, web-like fissures spidering out across the landscape.
Simultaneously, a violent shockwave blasted outward. It kicked up a dense, soaring curtain of dust that formed a massive, brown wall of debris, sweeping ruthlessly in every direction.
Rumble... Rumble...
Buildings within the harbor began to collapse one after another as the massive fissures ripped beneath their foundations. Within seconds, the devastation spanned over a hundred meters, leaving the entirety of the harbor square unrecognizable and scarred with deep chasms.
"Sensei—!!!"
Feeling the gale-force shockwave tearing past them, Ain and Binz looked up at Big Mom hovering in the sky, crying out in absolute horror.
Even Sensei, who had nearly recovered to his absolute peak condition, couldn't hold his ground against a Yonko?
Amid the billowing columns of dust rising toward the heavens, Zéphyr slowly stood up from the center of the massive crater, grimacing as he rubbed his aching joints. "What incredible power! And here I thought that bloated, pampered body of hers had rusted away over the years!"
"Ain! Binz! Leave Big Mom to me! Go organize the defense and do everything you can to delay the Germa 66 fleet from making landfall!" Zéphyr bellowed his orders through the dust cloud.
Time was their most precious resource. Only by keeping Big Mom occupied and preventing the Germa Kingdom's fleet from anchoring could they avoid being completely overwhelmed by the main force of the Big Mom Pirates.
After all, the forces currently stationed at Unzan Port represented only a fraction of the Chris Pirates' overall military strength. Diego Backan's Fourth Division, Zéphyr's "Z" Division, and the hundred thousand royal troops, even when supplemented by the dozen or so subordinate pirate crews, were simply no match for the true elite core of a Yonko's crew.
The gap in high-end combat power was simply too vast.
The hundred thousand royal troops might have seemed imposing in number, but in a battle of this caliber, they were nothing more than cannon fodder meant to thin out the Homies. Without Big Mom even needing to lift a finger, Charlotte Katakuri's Conqueror's Haki alone could effortlessly incapacitate all hundred thousand of them in an instant.
Hearing their mentor's command, Ain and Binz exchanged a heavy look, nodded firmly, and turned on their heels to rally the soldiers of the "Z" Division across the harbor.
"Old man Zéphyr... I've heard rumors that you managed to regain your former strength, but it looks like those reports were greatly exaggerated, ma-ma-ma-ma!"
Perched atop the storm cloud Zeus, Charlotte Linlin glared down at Zéphyr with a savage, twisted grin. She plunged her hand directly into the blazing core of the sun Prometheus, drawing out a swirling mass of scorching, high-temperature flames before violently snapping her arm down.
"Just sit still and let me butcher you! Heavenly Fire!!!"
The blazing torrents coalesced into several massive fireballs, each measuring five meters in diameter. Radiating a suffocating, blistering heat that illuminated half the night sky, they rained down upon the harbor square like a barrage of meteors.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The massive fireballs detonated upon impact, transforming the harbor square into a roaring sea of flames within a few breaths, casting a brilliant, hellish glow over the entire port.
"Life Return!!!"
Sensing the searing heat of the surrounding inferno, Zéphyr bellowed. His musculature suddenly expanded as he drew a massive breath into his lungs, then exhaled with explosive force.
WHOOSH—!
A tremendous gale erupted from his maw. The sheer volume of the forced air current generated a localized hurricane that swept across the entire plaza, instantly extinguishing the vast majority of the raging sea of flames.
Swoosh—BOOM!!!
Suddenly, a titanic silhouette dropped directly out of the sky, crashing heavily into the square. The raw weight and force of her landing caused the ground to violently convulse, unleashing a whistling shockwave that sent jagged fragments of stone flying outward like shrapnel.
"What—?!"
Zéphyr's eyes widened in surprise. Looking through the dust, he saw that the towering figure who had just dropped down was none other than Big Mom herself.
Thud... Thud... Thud...
Charlotte Linlin advanced with a cold, murderous glint in her eyes, each heavy stride pulverizing the cobblestones beneath her feet. A terrifying, oppressive pressure erupted from her form, a physical manifestation of weight so immense that the ground beneath her split into hairline fractures just to endure her presence.
"What an impressive set of lungs! Let's see if you can still puff out your chest after I snap every bone in your body!"
"Elbaf's Spear: Ikoku!!!"
The moment the words left her mouth, Linlin's gaze turned lethal. Gripping the giant broadsword Napoleon with both hands, she swung the blade forward in a massive, sweeping arc.
Rumble... Rumble...
In an instant, it felt as though the entire world was dyed in a blinding, radiant pink. A colossal wave of pink sword energy erupted, resembling a piercing rainbow striking through the sun as it tore forward at a frightening velocity. The ground was cleanly cleaved apart as the shockwave ripped through the harbor square and plowed directly into the urban districts.
It tore through an untold number of buildings and residential blocks, obliterating everything in its path before finally dissipating far outside the city limits, leaving behind a massive, deep canyon that stretched on for kilometers.
This single strike had completely punctured a straight line through the entirety of Unzan Port. The casualties among the people and structures caught in its trajectory were catastrophic; an entire thousand-man battalion of the royal garrison stationed in the district was completely erased from existence, leaving not even bones behind.
"Ugh... ah..."
"Wh-What the hell was that?"
"Are you kidding me? Is that a natural disaster?!"
Countless eyes stared blankly at the path where the massive pink shockwave had vanished, their gazes transfixed on the kilometers-long trench that now scarred the earth. They could scarcely believe that an attack of such apocalyptic proportions had been unleashed by a human being.
"You absolute monster—!!!"
Zéphyr's eyes threatened to split from rage as he stared at the massive canyon cleaving through Unzan Port, pure fury instantly flooding his mind.
Unzan Port wasn't just a military base for the Chris Pirates and the royal garrison, it was a bustling hub home to hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians.
An attack of that scale tore right through the residential zone. The sheer number of civilian casualties left in its wake was bound to be horrifying!
BOOM—!
"I'm going to tear you apart!!!"
The next instant, Zéphyr roared with a mind consumed by wrath. He slammed his foot down with enough force to make the earth shudder, using the explosive recoil to propel himself like a missile straight toward Big Mom.
"Arrogant old fool!"
Charlotte Linlin sneered disdainfully, casually swinging the massive broadsword Napoleon to meet his charge.
"If you think you have what it takes, then come and try, 'Black Arm' Zéphyr!!!"
Simultaneously, up in the royal capital of Nakor, Aeridar and the others received the urgent dispatch from Unzan Port.
Big Mom is launching a sudden raid on Unzan Port!
The shocking intelligence caused cold sweat to break out across the brows of everyone within the Chris Pirates' high command.
Throughout their strategic planning, the Chris Pirates had operated under the assumption that the Big Mom Pirates would launch a standard, frontal naval assault to draw their primary attention. They anticipated that the Germa Kingdom would either turn coat at a critical juncture of the battle, or utilize Brulee's Mirro-World capabilities to deploy troops directly inside the Clifford Kingdom to deliver a crushing blow.
After all, when a Yonko's grand fleet mobilized, it typically consisted of over a hundred vessels, a massive armada that was virtually impossible to conceal. Even if they attempted to replicate the Whitebeard Pirates' infiltration of Marineford by coating their ships and traveling underwater, they wouldn't have been able to bypass the extensive submarine surveillance network maintained by the Chris Pirates.
Consequently, the Chris Pirates had distributed their forces across multiple defensive strongholds. This layout was designed to utilize the travel-time differential to gather their scattered forces and form a unified front once the enemy's grand fleet was spotted on the horizon.
At Micity Port, Angus Abel's Sixth Division stood ready alongside a dozen subordinate pirate crews and another hundred thousand royal troops.
Meanwhile, Oliver, Bright Ward, Crocodile, and the others were still stationed over at the Fernal Archipelago!
No one could have ever anticipated that Big Mom would completely bypass the seas, using the Germa Kingdom's mirrors to stage an immediate, direct assault on their territory.
It was a strategic maneuver that caught the Chris Pirates completely, utterly blindsided.