"A... another ship has appeared at sea!"
At that moment, countless people noticed a massive ship slowly approaching through the waves.
"Who is that?!"
"What kind of symbol is that?"
"It looks familiar."
"Yeah, I swear I've seen it before."
"That's the NEO Navy's symbol! The NEO Navy has arrived!"
Some confused Marines immediately asked:
"NEO Navy? Is that another Marine branch?"
However, the answers they received instantly shattered that assumption.
"What branch? They're Marine traitors!"
"Nani?!"
The younger Marines stared in disbelief.
Very few organizations in the world dared to use the Navy's name while openly opposing the World Government.
Kuzan narrowed his eyes as he looked toward the approaching ship.
He never expected the NEO Navy to appear in Crusimia.
In his understanding, the NEO Navy remained an independent force that stood apart from both the Marines and the Ion Pirates.
He knew exactly why Zephyr had abandoned the Marines years ago.
Because of that, Kuzan found it difficult to believe Zephyr would come here to help the Marines.
Which meant there was only one thing left to question.
Why was the NEO Navy here?
Kuzan looked toward the ship and spoke across the battlefield.
"Teacher Zephyr, are you planning to involve yourself in this war too?"
Tap.
Tap.
Heavy footsteps echoed across the deck.
Soon, an elderly man with short purple hair walked onto the bow of the warship.
Former Admiral Zephyr.
Founder and commander of the NEO Navy.
The man who had once trained countless Marine elites.
Zephyr glanced over the battlefield packed with Marines and Cipher Pol agents before looking toward Kuzan in the distance.
Then he laughed.
"Hahaha! Kuzan, I never thought the naive brat from back then would become Fleet Admiral."
As he spoke, memories flashed through his mind.
Back then, Kuzan had been full of ambition.
He believed in justice.
He cared about his soldiers.
Compared to Sakazuki's ruthless methods and Borsalino's lazy attitude, Kuzan had always been the most balanced among the Admirals.
Garp liked him.
Sengoku trusted him.
Even Zephyr himself had once believed Kuzan would become the future of the Marines.
And now he had.
But things were different now.
Zephyr was no longer a Marine.
Kuzan sighed softly.
"So, Teacher Zephyr, are you an enemy or a friend?"
Zephyr smirked and casually tapped the detonator attached to his mechanical arm.
"What do you think?"
Kuzan's expression grew heavier.
"It seems you've already made your decision."
"Hahaha!"
Zephyr burst into laughter before his face suddenly darkened.
"Kuzan, the Marines don't have the right to say that to me."
"If not for the Marines, I wouldn't have ended up like this."
Kuzan fell silent.
He understood Zephyr's hatred.
But even now, he still found it hard to believe the former Admiral would cooperate with pirates.
"To be honest, Teacher Zephyr, we really didn't want to become enemies with you."
At that moment, another voice sounded from behind Zephyr.
"Hahaha! Zephyr, your reputation inside the Marines is still as terrifying as ever."
Everyone immediately looked toward the source of the voice.
An old man with white hair slowly walked forward while holding a wine jug.
The moment people recognized him, the entire battlefield exploded into chaos.
"T-That's...!"
"Dark King Rayleigh?!"
"How is Dark King Rayleigh on the NEO Navy's ship?!"
"Isn't he the Pirate King's First Mate?!"
"That legendary pirate?!"
Even Kuzan's pupils shrank slightly.
Rayleigh and Zephyr standing on the same ship was something nobody could have imagined.
One had once been a Marine Admiral.
The other was the right-hand man of the Pirate King.
Completely opposite sides of the world.
Yet now they stood together.
Kuzan finally understood something.
The Ion Pirates' influence had already spread far beyond what the world imagined.
Buggy nearly split apart from fear after seeing Rayleigh.
"R-Rayleigh-san?!"
Rayleigh turned toward him before laughing.
"Oh? Buggy."
"What are you doing here?"
Buggy hurriedly reassembled himself.
"I... I came to take Rolan's head!"
Rayleigh froze for a second before laughing loudly.
"Hahaha! Is that so? Then do your best."
The Buggy Pirates instantly exploded with excitement.
"Amazing! Captain Buggy knows Dark King Rayleigh personally!"
"As expected of Captain Buggy!"
"We'll follow Captain Buggy forever!"
Rayleigh glanced at Buggy's crew before his eyes landed on two figures sitting casually nearby.
His expression changed slightly.
"Bullet..."
"I didn't expect you to join Buggy."
Douglas Bullet slowly opened his eyes.
"Oh? Former First Mate."
"You know how I am."
"I only care about challenging the strongest. Whether it's Buggy or anyone else doesn't matter."
Rayleigh believed him.
Bullet had always been obsessed with strength.
Then Rayleigh looked toward the other figure.
Dracule Mihawk sat quietly with Yoru resting beside him.
Seeing both Mihawk and Bullet within Buggy's forces made Rayleigh finally understand something.
Even without Buggy, this group possessed strength worthy of an Emperor crew.
Rayleigh shook his head before stepping forward beside Zephyr.
Looking at the massive battlefield below, he grinned.
"So many enemies. Scary."
Zephyr snorted.
"Hah, I never thought the famous Dark King would start acting like an old man."
Rayleigh spread his hands helplessly.
"I am old."
Then he slowly drew the saber at his waist.
"What are we waiting for?"
"Let's fight."
The next second, Rayleigh leaped directly from the ship.
BOOM!
The moment he landed, the ground shattered violently.
Cracks spread across the battlefield like a spider web.
The surrounding Marines and Cipher Pol agents looked horrified.
"Attack!"
"Kill him!"
Dozens of Marines charged forward fearlessly.
Rayleigh laughed loudly.
"Hahaha! It's been a while since I fought properly."
"Let me see how much weaker I've gotten."
He casually swung his sword forward.
A massive blue slash erupted instantly.
The compressed sword energy tore through the battlefield like a crescent moon.
BOOM!
"AAAHHH!"
"ARGH!"
Blood sprayed everywhere.
The Marines and agents standing in front of him were instantly blown away like trash.
In a single strike, Rayleigh cleared a massive area across the battlefield.
Rayleigh glanced at the destruction and lightly touched his blade.
"Looks like I really have gotten weaker."
At that moment, a voice suddenly sounded nearby.
"So you're Dark King Rayleigh?"