"Damn... that guy destroyed too much of the island clouds..."
On the giants' escape ship, Hajrudin led his crew in frantically pulling the oars.
But it was clearly futile. The 'island clouds' used for buoyancy beneath the hull had been torn away by more than half during the pursuit. Now, their desperate rowing only served to get the ship as far as possible before it crashed.
"Captain... I can't hold on much longer..."
Navigator Road said weakly.
The bandage on his arm was soaked through with blood again, droplets sliding down his arm onto the oar, then flung away with each stroke.
During their escape from Elbaf, even with 'Ya-san' covering their retreat, some giants transformed into demon forms had still caught up.
Those creatures possessed immense strength, and the New Giant Warrior Pirates had almost been overwhelmed.
In fact, it wasn't just Road. Shipwright Stansen, Chef Goldberg, and Ship's Doctor Gerd were all injured to varying degrees.
As captain, Hajrudin was the most severely wounded. The bones in one of his arms had been shattered in a clash with a demon giant. Even though Gerd had treated him promptly, such an injury wasn't something they could easily heal while on the run.
They couldn't even treat it properly… they had run out of painkillers.
Gerd had only brought so much, and this small boat wasn't their main vessel… there were hardly any medical supplies stored on it.
It could be said that for the latter half of the voyage, almost everyone in the New Giant Warrior Pirates was holding on through sheer willpower.
Of course, the results of their perseverance were commendable.
Behind them, most of the rescued giant children were unharmed. Only Colon, Ya-san's son, had been slightly injured while saving others.
But one had to admit, this half-giant, half-human pink-haired kid had indeed inherited Ya-san's superb combat skills.
Even though he was less than twenty years old, still a kindergartener by giant standards, he had managed to stay calm under pressure and injure a demon giant that boarded the ship.
"Hold on a little longer! Don't stop!"
Hajrudin, one arm immobilized with bandages and splints, used his other arm to pull the oar with all his might, loudly encouraging his comrades.
Those demon giants were not only intelligent but could also pilot airships, or simply use the bat-like wings they had grown to pursue in flight.
Thus, they had barely any rest throughout the journey.
To make matters worse, the Eternal Pose pointing to Amazon Lily that Ya-san had given them was lost during one of the attacks, leaving them to navigate by instinct as best they could, trying to recreate the correct direction.
It had to be said, these giants were incredibly fortunate.
Despite having no navigational aid, they had managed to reach Amazon Lily's airspace by sheer intuition.
"Captain! There's an island below. Should we make an emergency stop?"
Goldberg, straining at his oar, glanced down and spotted Amazon Lily. He immediately reported eagerly.
But Hajrudin, after only a moment's hesitation, shook his head.
"No, we can't go down."
"The remaining island clouds aren't enough for us to take off again."
"If we go back to sailing on the sea now, the demon giants will catch up quickly. Stansen!"
Hajrudin shouted the shipwright's name.
"How long has it been since their last attack?"
"About thirty hours."
The bearded shipwright answered loudly.
"That's about right. That's longer than the longest interval. If they haven't given up, they'll likely attack again soon—"
Whoooom—
Hajrudin's words were cut off. The small boat they were on suddenly came to an abrupt halt in mid-air, the inertia throwing everyone off balance.
"Did we hit a reef?"
Navigator Road was clearly still dazed from pain, asking without even opening his eyes.
"Idiot! We're still in the air!"
Gerd smacked him on the head, snapping him awake, while simultaneously drawing her weapon.
It wasn't just her. The other members of the New Giant Warrior Pirates dropped their oars and readied their weapons.
"Enemy attack!"
With a roar, the group immediately went into battle mode.
Even the giant children drew their wooden hammers, wooden swords, or 'small' daggers, ready to fight at any moment.
But instead of the expected demon giants, what appeared before them was a human... floating in the air?
Seeing the cause of their ship's sudden halt, the already terrified giant warriors almost immediately raised their weapons.
"Stop! Not an enemy!"
Fortunately, Captain Hajrudin was more experienced. He recognized the newcomer instantly.
—It was the powerful figure Ya-san had told them to seek, the [Great Hero], Uzumaki Naruto.
In fact, Naruto's face had become widely known, at least within certain circles, since the Marineford War.
In earlier years, only true powerhouses had known of Naruto, while rookie pirates, ignorant of his strength, were more fearless.
The giants were more shocked than surprised to see Naruto. Naruto, on the other hand, was equally astonished to see such a large ship full of giants... and so many children.
And considering their battered state and the damage to their vessel, it wasn't hard to guess what they had been through.
"You guys..."
Naruto was about to ask something when the attack that Hajrudin and his crew had predicted arrived.
Mm... not flying up from below like Naruto, but diving down from high above.
"Roooar!!"
A dozen black giants with bat wings and curved horns burst through the clouds, diving straight towards them.
"Above!"
Hajrudin shouted, hurling a battle axe at a demon giant.
But with his dominant hand injured, the throw lacked both power and accuracy.
The axe, aimed at the head, veered towards the shoulder and was easily knocked aside by the giant's pitch-black trident.
Seeing this, Hajrudin frowned, preparing to force his injured arm to wield a weapon with both hands.
But someone was faster.
"Looks like there are quite a few guests wanting to attend my wedding today after all."
Naruto instantly appeared, hovering between the escape ship and the demon giants. Ignoring the loud warnings and stares from the giants below, he raised his palm skyward.
"But unfortunately, I don't welcome uninvited guests who show up without an invitation."
In the next moment, a true Shinra Tensei was activated.
A repulsive force, countless times stronger than even a full-power Nagato's, erupted instantly, like an invisible wall surging upwards with overwhelming force.
Those demon-winged giants were like tiny insects hit by a truck. They couldn't even resist as the terrifying force propelled them straight into the sky, out of sight.
Whether they retained any signs of life during this process was uncertain.
Slowly lowering his hand, Naruto turned to the now-stunned New Giant Warrior Pirates and spoke with a smile.
"So, have you come with an invitation?"