While the battlefield was still digesting the appearance of the Happō Navy—
a jagged bolt of lightning suddenly tore through the sky.
Its thunder echoed so sharply that countless people instinctively looked up.
And there, at the northern side of Crescent Bay—
sat a man atop the lightning itself.
He wore a white headscarf wrapped around his head, with a large knot under it.
His earlobes were long and hung with earrings.
His upper body was bare, revealing the drums mounted behind his back, golden rings on his fingers, and the golden staff in his hand.
He wore loose trousers below and stood barefoot upon the lightning.
When he noticed the countless eyes on him, the man laughed loudly and leapt down from the bolt.
He landed lightly atop an empty stretch of ground.
"It's Enel! The ruler of Skypiea—Enel!"
"What is he doing here?!"
"I thought both sides had already gathered all their forces!"
"This is insane! Why are all these monsters joining in?!"
Among the viewers watching the broadcast, some recognized him instantly.
Enel, the so-called god of the sky islands, rarely appeared even within the White Sea, much less descended to the Blue Sea.
The fact that he had appeared at Marineford at all—
was enough to stun everyone.
And the same was true of the people actually present on the battlefield.
On Whitebeard's side, Marco frowned.
"How did he end up here?"
Jozu looked toward Whitebeard and asked tentatively,
"Old man… did you invite him too?"
Whitebeard only smiled.
He gave no answer.
But his expression said enough.
Marco and Jozu both understood immediately.
On the other side, Shiki burst into laughter.
"Jihahahaha! Interesting! Very interesting!"
The cigar between his teeth danced wildly as he laughed.
Like Whitebeard, the instant he saw the Happō Navy and Enel appear, he had already guessed the truth.
These people…
were part of Rōmu's camp.
The lower-ranked pirates, however, were utterly confused.
Before coming here, they had never been told that so many outside forces would join the war.
And Enel's arrival only made things even harder to understand.
Unlike the Happō Navy, he wasn't even a pirate.
He was a ruler.
A king of the sky islands.
And yet—
he had come.
But this still was not the end.
Just as Enel prepared to greet his leader—
a giant vine extended from the far-left side of the immense wall like a massive green python crawling through the air.
Then it stopped not far from Rōmu.
And atop that vine—
crimson roses began to fall from the sky, scattering around a tall, elegant figure.
He wore a cowboy hat decorated with white feathers, and his long blond curls spilled over his shoulders.
His face was handsome and refined.
He wore a white shirt, dark blue cropped trousers, and brown leather boots, with a white cape draped behind him.
Every inch of him radiated arrogant nobility.
Beside him stood another man—
with a green rooster-comb hairstyle, dark markings beneath one eye, a nose ring, and a vicious face like that of a demon.
"Cavendish! And Bartolomeo!"
"Two Supernovas!"
"That giant vine must be Rōmu's doing too!"
"Those two are famous pirates with bounties over a hundred million!"
"Don't tell me they're also Rōmu's men?!"
The crowd erupted once again.
Marine soldiers staring at the newcomers felt their faces growing more and more pale.
First the Happō Navy.
Then Enel.
Now Bartolomeo and Cavendish.
Every single one of them was an unknown variable that Marine intelligence had failed to account for.
That alone was enough to be terrifying.
The betrayal of the Seven Warlords had already tilted the war in the pirates' favor.
Now things were only growing worse.
At this point, many of the rank-and-file Marines could barely keep their weapons steady.
Their uniforms were soaked with sweat.
The confidence they had once possessed—
had almost completely vanished.
And sure enough—
their fears proved correct.
Not long after arriving, Bartolomeo and Cavendish vanished from the vine.
In the next instant, they appeared behind Rōmu.
"Leader!"
Both immediately dropped their usual absurd attitudes and bowed their heads respectfully.
Rōmu answered with a calm hum, still not even turning around.
His gaze remained fixed on the Marines below.
Before the war had properly begun, while the pirate forces were still more than ten kilometers away, Rōmu had already grown impatient.
So he had used his abilities to step into Crescent Bay alone ahead of everyone else.
The others had only just caught up.
At this moment, standing behind Rōmu atop the giant wall, there were now eight people.
And every single one of them was a powerhouse capable of ruling a sea in their own right.
But even that was not all.
Because shortly afterward—
two more figures moved.
The first was Enel, standing in the open field below.
The second was Chinjao, leader of the Happō Navy.
Both vanished at the same time.
Their figures tore through the air like twin streaks of lightning.
Then, in the very next instant—
they appeared behind Rōmu as well.
And when the world saw that—
everyone finally understood.
This war had only just begun.
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