Noticing that more than ten Pacifistas had fallen, sentomaro quickly realized it was impossible to stop the retreating pirates with the Pacifistas' forces alone. He immediately led the remaining ones in a retreat to avoid complete annihilation. After all, each Pacifista cost 200 million beris—an amount comparable to the price of a large battleship.
"Long... Long..."
After the pirates' retreat, the fleet reclaimed several intact coastal cannons, and the 800-millimeter guns unleashed their accumulated fury.
Sal turned and looked distantly at Sengoku and his fleet. The battle was over, and Whitebeard was no more. It was time for him to leave Marineford. If he didn't go, he, "Pirate King Roger," would be the fleet's next target.
A crack, a hundred meters wide, spanned the entire battlefield, and stones at the edges occasionally crumbled. Despite the danger, the fleet began preparing to cross through the narrow passage.
Other ships of the fleet hurried to a distant secondary port. Due to Whitebeard's clever tactic of splitting the sea surface, ships in outer waters suffered huge losses, forcing the fleet to mobilize reserve ships stationed on the other side of the island.
Once the ships were ready, the fleet would be able to pursue the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates and stop other fugitives, led by none other than Admiral Aokiji.
Garp unexpectedly stood up and watched the departing Sal. Naturally, this hero of the fleet would not remain indifferent.
However, this time Sengoku did not join the pursuit. Garp and Kizaru were enough. He was an admiral, and his duty, as long as necessary, was to lead this military machine—the fleet.
No one hindered them, and many Marines of the fleet quickly rushed in pursuit. Leading the way was Garp, while high in the sky shone the bright figure of Kizaru.
Seeing that many pirate ships from Whitebeard's crew had yet to leave the harbor, Sal turned to Marco:
"Marco, you go first and prepare to set sail as quickly as possible. I can't stay long."
"Sorry for the trouble, Ro... Roger."
Roger isn't afraid of danger. Even in the worst-case scenario, if he's surrounded by enemies, he can use his "Meatball Fruit" — an absolute guarantee of safety.
Roger drew his sword and pointed it at Garp, who was far away. There were no longer any "friendly forces" that could impede him. The pinnacle of his Haki burst forth with full power, sweeping around like a hurricane, clearing everything in its path.
Sailors on the battlefield were instantly enveloped by Haki. The remnants of the fleet were undoubtedly the elite of the elite, but in the face of Roger's terrifying Haki, everyone felt as though breathing became difficult. Many Marines with ranks below that of a general fell one after another. Even some generals, having reached the limits of their capabilities, fainted.
Roger's overwhelming Haki plunged the battlefield into silence. But then, a beam of light shot out from the fleet's ranks. It was Kizaru.
"Roger, I won't let you escape so easily."
Sal was prepared for this. Ace, ready for battle, swung his sword, aiming at the opponent's head. Before Kizaru could attack, he was knocked back to the rear of the fleet by a dark red strike, inadvertently hitting several unlucky sailors.
Kizaru, having now turned into his elemental form, was slightly bewildered. Sengoku, who was overseeing everything, continued issuing orders and organizing aid for the severely wounded sailors. The bloody reports from the battlefield made Sengoku's face extremely grim, and he cursed involuntarily:
"Damn it, Roger, what was he thinking coming here?"
Sengoku, known as a wise general, rarely let emotions influence his decisions during critical moments. This situation was one of the few exceptions. Had Roger not appeared so suddenly, the fleet would not have suffered such severe losses.
Currently, two Admirals in the remaining fleet ranks were injured to varying degrees. Initially, 11 vice admirals from Headquarters participated in the battle, and now only 7 remained fighting, all of whom sustained injuries. A third of the vice admirals were killed or wounded, and the fate of the ordinary sailors of lower ranks was even more dire—more than a third perished or were injured.
Whitebeard's counterattack, carried out just before his death, inflicted enormous losses on the fleet. After all, Whitebeard, disregarding everything, could sink a ship with his terrifying power. During every activation of his "vibration fruit" on the island, numerous people died.
At this point, even though Whitebeard's pirates suffered more losses than the fleet, the fleet's losses from this battle unquestionably reached a catastrophic level.
The only ones who did not incur significant losses were the external allies, the "Seven Warlords of the Sea," who fought independently. Of the five Warlords, only Gecko Moria lost combat capability, and "The Tyrant Kuma" could not be controlled due to malfunctions in his mechanisms.
The remaining three Warlords: Hawkeye, Doflamingo, and the "Empress" did not sustain any apparent injuries. In the end, these powerful "Great Sea Lords" faced no threat as long as they did not engage strong opponents on the level of Admirals or the Four Emperors.
Sengoku, coming to his senses, shouted to Garp:
"Garp, don't let Roger get away. As long as you hold him, this war will be a victory for the fleet."
The reminder from his friend led Garp into deep thought. Freed from family ties, he understood all too well that the appearance of the "Pirate King" could once again destabilize the situation that the fleet had painstakingly established over more than ten years.
"Roger, don't leave."
Sal completely ignored Garp pursuing him. He was very close to the retreating pirate ship.
At this time, many parts of the island collapsed, and seawater quickly flooded the low-lying areas. It was a very suitable environment for escape.
While they chased each other, several fleet sailors, in a high state of battle readiness from a distance, suddenly pointed to the partially destroyed headquarters building and shouted:
"What is that monster?"
Many turned their gaze toward the object. They saw that the sunlight was blocked by a huge black shadow. A thick giant, several times taller than little Oz, was hiding behind the building and watching them with great interest. He did not realize that the building was utterly incapable of concealing his massive body.
Sengoku's pupils slightly narrowed, and he quietly said:
"Report where this giant came from."
"The huge warship 'Sanjuan Wolf,' imprisoned on the sixth level of Impel Down, has arrived…"
"Ha-ha-ha, Fleet admiral Sengoku, it's been a long time since we last met. Thank you for helping me deal with Whitebeard."
As soon as the familiar voice was heard, a group of people appeared near Whitebeard's body. In addition to the original three members of Blackbeard's pirate crew, there were three escaped prisoners in prison uniforms and one man in Impel Down's black military uniform.
"The Evil King" Alvaro Pizarro, "Mysterious Hunter" Catarina Devon, "Drunkard" Vasco Shot, "Colossal Warship" Sanjuan Wolf, "Rain" Shiryu, and finally, Marshall D. Teach.
The unexpected appearance of Blackbeard and his crew once again disrupted Sengoku's plans. Several of these very dangerous prisoners were as powerful as the Seven Warlords of the Sea. And not to mention "Rain" Shiryu, a former jailer considered a counterpart to Magellan.
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