One Piece: Silent-Silent Fruit

"No matter how grand your words sound, you're still just a bunch of cowards clinging to life. Today, I'll put that so-called 'Wound Silence' to the test. Let's see if you can still heal when I cut you into dust," Dalmatian sneered.

"Try it, if you think you're capable," Jack replied coldly.

As he spoke, he drew his twin, oddly-shaped scythe-blades.

"Shave!" Dalmatian vanished with a burst of speed, reappearing with his long blade flashing toward Jack.

Clang!

The vice admiral's sword collided with Jack's scythe, and the resounding impact thundered through the air.

"What monstrous brute strength!" Dalmatian staggered a step back as an overwhelming force surged up his arm. Before he could recover, Jack's second blade was already swinging at him.

He swiftly used Shave again, dodging aside and repositioning to launch another flurry of strikes.

The two clashed fiercely, neither gaining the upper hand. Dalmatian was a top-tier swordsman, his swordplay honed to the level of a grandmaster. Coupled with his mastery of Rokushiki, his movements were blindingly fast. He weaved circles around Jack, slashing relentlessly from all directions.

But Jack was no weakling either.

Their battle quickly fell into a deadlock. It became clear to Dalmatian that this wouldn't be a quick fight.

This surprised him.

Originally, he'd assumed that even if Jack possessed the Wound Silence ability, a Vice Admiral of his caliber should still be able to subdue him. After all, strength wasn't always about killing. Dalmatian's goal was to capture Jack, not destroy him.

That's why Admiral Sengoku had specifically authorized him to carry a pair of prototype Sea Prism Stone handcuffs developed by Marine R&D.

But after only a short exchange, Dalmatian realized—Jack's power far exceeded the intelligence gathered by the Marines.

According to their data, Jack's strength placed him on par with a branch-level Vice Admiral. His defenses and raw power made him a brute, but not someone a true Marine Headquarters officer should struggle with.

And yet now, here he was, evenly matched with Dalmatian—a top-tier Vice Admiral.

There was a massive difference between an average Vice Admiral and a top-tier one. Normally, the latter could dispatch the former with ease.

Jack had always been a capable fighter, but over the past years, he'd been forged in fire—relentless wars, savage conquest, and especially that earth-shaking battle with Kaido. All of it had pushed his strength to new heights. He now stood shoulder to shoulder with the elite.

Once upon a time, Dalmatian could've beaten Jack. Now… they were equals.

"Looks like you're not all that after all," Jack grunted, growing bored with trading blows. He dropped his guard completely and lunged with reckless abandon.

Dalmatian was forced to backpedal as Jack launched a flurry of mad, suicidal attacks.

"Your operation's exposed. This is Marine Headquarters. Even if you had ten lives, you wouldn't escape this place," Dalmatian shouted, refusing to break away as he kept Jack occupied.

"Then come take my life if you can!" Jack bellowed, his assault growing even wilder.

From the moment the First Division had begun its attack, the marines guarding the armory had immediately issued a distress call.

"What?! The A1 Armory is under attack? And the hidden units we stationed there… all lost contact? What about Dalmatian? Wasn't he stationed there too?" Sengoku snapped, his face dark with fury.

"The enemy commander is the pirate Jack the Mammoth. Vice Admiral Dalmatian is already engaged with him, but it seems the opponent is extremely powerful. Vice Admiral Dalmatian hasn't been able to bring him down. They're still in heavy combat," reported the aide grimly.

The armory's emergency call wouldn't have come directly to Sengoku's desk under normal circumstances, but upon learning of the incident, his aide had immediately checked the statuses of nearby officers.

To his horror, all the covert security officers around the armory had gone silent. That was when he realized the situation was critical—and rushed to report it.

"So it's begun… Deploy reinforcements to the A1 Armory—now! That facility must not fall into enemy hands! Also, notify Kuzan. Tell him to move immediately. I want Marineford on full combat alert—Level One War Readiness!" Sengoku commanded.

"Yes, sir!" the aide saluted and dashed off to carry out the orders.

The A1 Armory was the largest weapons depot in Marineford. If it fell, the Marines would be at a severe disadvantage.

Kuzan—Aokiji—was the best man for the job. His ice abilities gave him a unique edge. If the worst happened and the enemy tried to blow the armory up, Kuzan could freeze the entire complex to prevent catastrophic losses.

Sengoku had already begun preparing for the worst.

He knew the Grey Kingdom wasn't here just for one armory. Their ambitions ran far deeper.

Marineford had many critical points: the Fleet Admiral's office, the Marine Treasury, the Archives, the warship docks, the engine room powering the Gate of Justice…

None of those places could be allowed to fall.

And this wasn't even the only armory on base. Each of these facilities required protection. If the Grey Kingdom struck them all simultaneously, the Marines would suffer irreparable damage.

Just covering these locations would demand a massive redistribution of Marine forces.

That was the terrifying part about Bins's spatial abilities. He could deploy troops anywhere, instantly, making it impossible to predict where the next attack might come. One slip-up—and the enemy could punch a hole straight through the heart of Marineford.

Sengoku dispatched Kuzan with one goal: end the battle at the A1 Armory quickly, and prepare for whatever nightmare came next.

...

While Sengoku moved his pieces, far away, a shimmering portal opened aboard the Second Division's warship.

"Ha! Looks like Bins's here. Time for us to get moving," said the division captain, Raelmann, flashing a confident grin.

Aboard the Second Division's ship, the soldiers stood in formation, fully armed and ready for battle.

Even though Bins had already seen their numbers on paper, the reality left him stunned.

Over 13,000 soldiers.

Nearly double the size of most other divisions.

And shockingly, a large portion of them were Shandian warriors.

"No wonder His Majesty put the main offensive in your hands. I didn't realize your division had grown this much. The numbers were just digits on a report, but seeing it in person—it's downright terrifying," Bins said, visibly shaken.

"Heh, that's right. Of all the divisions, we've got the most manpower now. Giving us the main assault was the right call," Raelmann laughed.

The Shandians were all natural-born warriors. Angel Island, which they had taken as their base, was one of the largest floating islands in the sky, with a population several times greater than Skypiea's Birka.

When the Second Division first conquered Angel Island, recruitment was slow. Most of the locals were hesitant to join a pirate army.

But things changed fast.

Every time a division conquered a new Sky Island, they gained a massive share of the war spoils. After the capture of Angel Island, just the gold from Shandora alone was enough to make the Second Division rich beyond imagination—even after sending a huge portion as tribute.

That gold, worthless as dirt on Sky Island, could be traded in the Blue Sea for unimaginable wealth.

Every time the division set out for battle, a portion of the loot went to the soldiers. The braver the fighter, the greater the reward.

When people saw the troops returning from the Second Division's campaigns—richer than they could've become in a lifetime—it sparked a wave.

More and more recruits poured in.

They didn't care about glory. They wanted what every pirate wanted: riches, power, and a place in the new world the Grey Kingdom was building.