"Yamato, is it? Are you sure you're okay with this? You've jumped into a battle that really has nothing to do with you," Marco remarked, standing on the deck of the Moby Dick beside Whitebeard.
"Then just consider me here to join the fun. Let's get one thing straight, though: I'm not going to charge into the front lines and lead the vanguard for you," Yamato said lazily, her massive dragon form hovering steadily.
Marco nodded understandingly. "That's enough for us. Just by standing there, you're a massive deterrent to the Marines. That alone is a huge help."
"Speaking of which, kid, is that white fire on your body?" Whitebeard glanced over, his curiosity piqued. He remembered that when Kaido transformed into a dragon, only his arms were typically wrapped in flames. Yamato, however, not only had flames on her limbs but a distinct ring of white fire circling her entire torso.
"It's not wrong to call it fire, but describing it as a flame cloud would be more accurate," Yamato responded, keeping her explanation brief.
A look of contemplation flashed in Whitebeard's eyes as he studied the unique transformation.
"It looks pretty cool," Marco added. As a fellow Mythical Zoan user, he couldn't help but compare their forms. He felt that Yamato, despite being an artificial Devil Fruit user, looked remarkably majestic.
"Your ability isn't bad either; those blue flames are quite beautiful," Yamato offered politely.
Marco smiled. "Is 'beautiful' all they are?" As he spoke, he noticed a smaller figure perched on the dragon's back. "Is that your companion?"
"That's right. She's my personal guard, Haruko. Don't go getting any ideas about her," Yamato teased.
Marco almost stumbled over his own feet. "Don't worry, I wouldn't dare."
"Young Master, if you keep making fun of me, I'm going to get angry," Haruko muttered, staring at Yamato with a playful hint of killing intent.
"Sorry, sorry! I'll be careful next time," Yamato replied with a sheepish grin. Whitebeard and Marco found the interaction between the two quite amusing, a brief moment of levity amidst the brewing chaos.
Shuu!
Suddenly, a sharp and massive shockwave of energy surged from across the harbor. The green slash tore through the ice, heading straight for Whitebeard with lethal intent. Hawkeye Mihawk, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, had finally made his move.
Whitebeard remained unmoved. He didn't need to act because one of his sons was already in position. The Third Division Commander, "Diamond" Jozu, intercepted the attack. As a Paramecia-type Twinkle-Twinkle Fruit user, Jozu turned his body into solid diamond. With a deafening clang, the massive slash was blocked and deflected harmlessly into the sky.
"Hawkeye... the man recognized as the world's strongest Great Swordsman. He wields the Supreme Grade Sword, Yoru, and it's a true Black Blade," Haruko said slowly. No swordsman was unaware of his name; he was the pinnacle of their craft.
"Haruko, you need to become a Great Swordsman too. Otherwise, how will you protect me?" Yamato chuckled.
Haruko rolled her eyes. Did her "Young Master" even need protection? Still, Yamato wasn't entirely wrong. As a personal guard, being a powerful fighter wasn't enough; she had to strive for the top. "I understand," Haruko said, her eyes sharpening with resolve.
On the other side, Hawkeye saw his strike blocked and did not follow up. He had seen what he needed to see.
"Get out of the way, Marines! Take this!" Jozu roared. He thrust his hands into the frozen sea, ripped out a massive iceberg, and hurled it toward the execution platform.
"Oh my, how scary. The commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates are all monsters," Admiral Kizaru drawled. He leaped into the air, crossing his arms. "Yasakani no Magatama!"
Countless golden orbs of light rained down, shattering the iceberg into harmless shards of ice. After his counter, Kizaru sat back down to guard the platform alongside Akainu. Meanwhile, Aokiji remained on the ice, observing the shifting tides of the battle.
"What a flashy ability. As expected of the Logia-type Glint-Glint Fruit. It looks even cooler than mine," Yamato muttered.
"How is that possible? Young Master, you are a Mythical Zoan—a dragon. You control fire, lightning, and storms. You're already more versatile than a Logia," Haruko argued.
"She's right," Marco agreed. "We're Mythical Zoans, even rarer than Logia types. Why envy them? Besides, we can fly."
"Wulalalala! What a kid," Whitebeard laughed.
"All units, aim your cannons at the Moby Dick! Sink it and take down Whitebeard!" a Marine officer shouted from the shoreline.
The soldiers nearby quickly pivoted their heavy artillery, aiming directly at the pirate flagship and firing a continuous barrage.
"You grunts shouldn't get ahead of yourselves. Trying to take down the general right at the start is just absurd," Yamato said. She lowered her head and blew a sharp breath forward. Every cannonball exploded prematurely in mid-air, filling the sky with black smoke.
"How reliable," Marco remarked, surprised that Yamato had stepped in to defend their ship.
"This is the pirates' base of operations. I can't let the enemy touch it so easily," Yamato smiled.
The Marines didn't give up. "Continue the bombardment! Don't stop!"
"Hey, show us some respect, will you? We've barely been at this for half an hour," Yamato sighed, genuinely baffled by their persistence. "Fine. I'll just destroy the cannons so they can't hit us anymore."
She opened her mouth and exhaled a heavy gust. A silent, invisible gale swept across the battlefield, systematically crushing every cannon battery on the shore.
"Oh no! The batteries are gone!" the artillery crews cried out, staring at their mangled equipment. The thunder of cannon fire in the harbor died down significantly.
"The Navy's cannons are useless! Charge!" the Whitebeard Pirates shouted, seizing the opening to push forward.
"Ara ara... they destroyed the cannons without hurting a single person," Aokiji noted, looking surprised. Yamato had carefully targeted the machinery and avoided the soldiers, technically staying within her own "neutral" boundaries.
"That cunning brat!" Sengoku's expression soured. Since she hadn't directly attacked the soldiers, he couldn't officially label her intervention as a direct assault on the Marines.
"That was a big help," Marco laughed.
"It's nothing. I just didn't want to be constantly harassed," Yamato waved her hand. She summoned a series of pink flame clouds and lay down on them comfortably, watching the war unfold like a spectator.
Marco's eye twitched. "How leisurely."
The Marines were fuming; they felt completely looked down upon. "How dare she! For the sake of Justice, we must show them the might of the Navy!" the officers shouted, trying to boost morale.
"Fuffuffuffu! The small fry are so ignorant. That's a monster on the level of the Four Emperors. Only an Admiral is qualified to face her," Doflamingo laughed from the sidelines. The Warlords were mostly slacking off, having been forced into the conflict.
"Damn Kaido's daughter. If I could turn her into a zombie, the look on Kaido's face would be priceless," Gekko Moriah boasted. He still carried the scars of his defeat by Kaido in Wano years ago.
"You sure talk big, Moriah," Doflamingo sneered. "A loser who hid in the Florian Triangle wanting to take on the 'Onihime'? It's a pipe dream."
"That extraordinary Haki... even I find it a bit frightening," Empress Boa Hancock murmured, watching the dragon.
"Inheriting the bloodline of the world's strongest creature... interesting," Hawkeye said, gripping the hilt of Yoru once more.
Shuu!
Before anyone could react, Hawkeye swung. This time, the slash was aimed directly at Yamato. The massive green energy burst forth, surging into the air.
"Hawkeye made a move! The target is... Onihime!" the Marines gasped.
"Watch out, it's coming for you," Marco warned.
Yamato raised an eyelid. "Haruko, what do you think?"
"No problem. I can block it," Haruko replied. She drew the two Kodachi at her waist, coated them in black Armament Haki, and leaped into the air.
Clang!
The slash collided with her blades, stalling in mid-air.
"That's... one of Yamato's crew! A bounty of
186,000,000
!" a Marine shouted.
Crack!
The slash shattered into fragments, and Haruko was pushed back, landing firmly on Yamato's back. Her hands trembled slightly. She knew that was just a testing blow, but Hawkeye's "casual" was still incredibly powerful.
"Blocked by a subordinate?" Hawkeye noted. He didn't continue. He had tested the waters twice; another move would be redundant.
"This won't do. You can't be so relaxed in front of us. That's my job," Admiral Kizaru said, his body turning into light as he appeared in mid-air. "Yasakani no Magatama!"
Golden sparks rained down on Yamato.
"Hey, Kizaru, you old geezer! Why are you targeting me?" Yamato snapped. She opened her mouth, and golden lightning burst forth, intercepting the light orbs in a series of violent explosions. "You want to go right now?"
Kizaru shrugged as he landed. "You just looked a bit too comfortable. It was annoying."
"You're just jealous. Anyway... where did Akainu go? He's not off doing something underhanded, is he?" Yamato asked, her eyes narrowing.
"He just went to the bathroom; he'll be right back," Kizaru lied smoothly, though he was surprised she had noticed.
"Oh, a bathroom break in the middle of a war? You're a terrible liar. Akainu is definitely sneaking off to cause trouble," Yamato teased.
Sengoku frowned. He hadn't expected the girl to be so observant.
"Everyone, take note! Akainu is missing from his post! He might be flanking you. Be careful!" Whitebeard shouted into a Transponder Snail, alerting his fleet.
"Kizaru, tell me what he's up to. Is he preparing a sneak attack?" Yamato pressed.
"I told you, the bathroom," Kizaru insisted, keeping his thick-skinned composure.
"Hey, all Marines, listen up!" Yamato suddenly shouted at the top of her lungs, her voice echoing through the harbor. "Your Admiral Akainu is gone! They say he's in the bathroom, but do you believe that? He's clearly deserted! Quick, someone find him and prove me wrong!"
Every Marine in Marineford froze, looking toward the empty seat where the Admiral should have been.
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