The crew aboard the pirate ship all turned their puzzled gazes to the seemingly innocent Reno.
They could understand the latter part of what he had said, but the part about "throwing stones" left them utterly confused.
The more familiar Rayleigh was the first to react. Looking toward the noise in the sky, he silently speculated with growing unease: Could the commotion up there really be caused by this little guy's "stones"?
Rayleigh's guess left him stunned.
The ruckus above was enormous if it truly was Reno's doing, just how large were these so-called stones?
But they hadn't seen Reno throwing anything, and there weren't any stones to be found out here on the open sea.
Rayleigh couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he tried.
This situation was entirely outside his realm of understanding. If only he knew Fujitora, the Marines admiral famous for summoning meteors, he might have had a eureka moment.
Realizing the futility of overthinking, Rayleigh simply asked aloud,
"Is that huge commotion in the sky caused by your so-called stones?"
Every crew member on the ship perked up their ears, eager to hear Reno's response.
Without a trace of concern, Reno cast them a disdainful glance and continued playing coy.
"You'll see soon enough. For now, just prepare yourselves to meet your maker!"
Earlier, none of them had believed him. Now they wanted answers? No way was Reno about to indulge them. Let them stew in their curiosity and figure it out themselves!
This uncooperative attitude sent waves of frustration through the crew. Never had they felt so vexed.
At that moment, they all shared a common thought: Once this is over, we're giving this brat a good spanking.
"Whoosh… Whoosh…"
The friction sounds from the sky grew louder and louder. Everyone knew the mysterious objects up there were getting closer. All eyes were fixed on the pitch-black clouds above.
Reno, sensing that the meteorites were mere seconds from breaking through the clouds, activated his telekinesis.
His body glowed with an intense green energy that enveloped the entire ship. With a sudden burst, the pirate ship shot into the air at high speed, heading swiftly toward the horizon.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku, future Marines Commander-in-Chief, was as sharp as ever. While everyone else was distracted by the sounds above, his focus remained on Roger's pirate crew.
The moment their ship took flight, he bellowed, "All units, listen up! Roger's pirates are fleeing! Those capable of flying, pursue them now!"
"Boom!"
As Sengoku's words echoed, he vanished from his position, leaving behind a gaping hole in the deck as evidence of his launch.
"You're not getting away this time, Roger!" roared Garp, taking off in pursuit like a bolt of lightning.
Countless Marines personnel followed suit, but only a few top-tier fighters were fast enough to close in on the pirate ship. The rest were quickly left behind.
Rayleigh, seeing that Sengoku and the others were gaining ground, worried they'd be caught soon. He turned to Reno and asked,
"What about those stones you mentioned? Are they ready?"
Rayleigh wanted clarity. If Reno had a solution, great. If not, they'd need to prepare for the worst. But Reno was still being cryptic, refusing to give a straight answer.
Reno, hiding in a corner of the ship to avoid Marines detection, responded with a grin,
"The stones are about to land. Don't worry, Uncle Rayleigh!"
Playing around was one thing, but Reno knew not to push it too far, especially in a life-or-death situation.
"Whoosh… Whoosh…"
Suddenly, the thick black clouds were pierced by three enormous meteorites, each dozens of meters wide and blazing with fire.
The collision left massive holes in the cloud cover, and sunlight streamed down onto the once-darkened sea, casting an eerie glow.
Everyone on the ship gawked in disbelief. Their jaws dropped as if they'd seen a ghost, their minds struggling to process the scene before them.
"Swoosh… Swoosh… Swoosh…"
The three fiery meteorites plummeted toward the Marines fleet at breakneck speed. If no one intervened, the entire fleet would likely be annihilated.
The first to catch up to the pirate ship was Garp, who shouted, "Damn you, Roger! You're not getting away today!"
Though Kizaru's speed outpaced Garp's, he deliberately held back, sticking with the group rather than charging ahead. His half-hearted pursuit was obvious.
Hearing Garp's yell, the crew aboard Roger's ship exchanged knowing glances of pity.
Roger, arms crossed, smirked and called out, "Garp, you might want to turn around. If you don't hurry, all those fine Marines soldiers behind you are done for!"
Startled by Roger's words and the sympathetic gazes from the crew, Garp turned to look behind him.
What he saw made his blood run cold three massive, fiery meteorites were hurtling straight toward the Marines fleet.
"DAMN IT, ROGER! You'd better pray we never meet again, or I'll kill you with my bare hands!"
Garp cursed furiously as he turned and sped back toward the fleet, moving even faster than before.
As he raced against time, Garp shouted,
"Sengoku! Zephyr! Get back to the fleet NOW, or it'll be too late!"
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