"Did you get everything?" A woman in a Marine uniform, glasses perched on her nose, asked from within an office at Marine Headquarters.
Eight figures, seemingly Marines, stood gathered around her. It was Vice and the others. Their uniforms, faces, and body types were all meticulously crafted to mimic captured Marines from the battleship. Thanks to Eigg's almost transformative makeup skills, they were practically indistinguishable from the real thing.
How did they manage to get here? They had been among the Marines that had detached from the giant swamp arm that the Vice Admiral had sliced off.
Yes, some of the real Marines had been swallowed by the swamp at that moment, not actually held within the hand. Otherwise, the extra bodies would have raised suspicion.
Wilder had dared to do this precisely because the Marines' attention and focus were consumed by the battle, leaving them no spare mental energy to scrutinize such details. This allowed Claire and the others to successfully infiltrate the Marines, bide their time, and slip away into the office areas.
"Don't worry, Miss Claire," Vice said, thumping his chest. "This is about our future at sea. We wouldn't be careless."
"Guns, ammunition, artillery, money… it's all here. We also have maps, information on Marine base locations, and other data. The only thing we couldn't get was the information Boss mentioned about Vegapunk."
"Mm." Claire nodded. She knew about Wilder's request for information on Vegapunk. He had only mentioned it in passing, not holding out much hope.
"Then let's proceed according to plan," Claire said, her voice crisp and efficient. "Yves, Vice, Bica, Franpetar – the four of you are responsible for preparing our escape. You must ensure everyone can retreat safely. Boss's requirement is to secure a ship."
"Understood."
"Bacon, Sherilmo, you two work together. You're in charge of drawing fire and covering Boss's boarding of the ship."
"Fine," Bacon replied listlessly. As for Sherilmo, his face was terrifyingly dark, his eyes periodically flicking towards Bacon with unconcealed murderous intent.
"Ashin, how's your burst propulsion device coming?" Claire asked, turning to Ashin, who was fiddling with something on the floor nearby.
"Ready to assemble at any time," a raspy voice answered from beneath the mask. Ashin's eyes never left his work.
"Yves will need to assist," Ashin continued after a pause. "I've observed your film. It has remarkable tensile strength. You'll need to install the propulsion device on the ship and secure it with the film."
Yves gave him a cold look, then nodded, saying nothing.
"Then let's split up and get to work."
…
"Purupurupuru… Purupurupuru…"
Click!
"Is everything taken care of, Claire?" Wilder asked, a smile on his face as he picked up the Den Den Mushi.
"Boss, everything is arranged. However, we weren't able to obtain any information on Vegapunk," Claire's sweet, gentle voice came from the other end.
"Nyehehehe… It's fine. This is more than enough."
Wilder put down the Den Den Mushi, lowering his head. His eyes were filled with an excited gleam.
Finally… it was time to seek his own "freedom"!
"Then, before we leave, let's have one more battle! And… let my body… experience the benefits of combat." As he spoke, a swampy fissure opened on his body, and Wilder donned a leather mask. He put on a Marine uniform, turned, and walked into the battlefield, now a raging inferno of cannon fire.
Marineford's plaza was a scene of intense conflict. Luffy, the Straw Hat, was steadily advancing towards the execution platform, aided by his allies.
Crocodile, for reasons unknown, had chosen to help the very man who had sent him to Impel Down.
Sand swirled, and dozens of Marines were sliced by sand blades, their blood spraying as they fell.
Crocodile continued his advance. Suddenly, his body stiffened. He couldn't move.
"Fuffuffu…" Doflamingo's sinister laughter came from behind. Crocodile's face remained expressionless, his eyes shifting slightly.
Slice! An invisible cutting line flashed, and Crocodile's head flew high, scattering sand.
"Shashasha…"
The sand swirled, and tendrils of it flew to Crocodile's neck, gradually coalescing into the shape of a head. Crocodile was completely unharmed, restored.
A Marine Captain watched this scene from a distance, his eyes flickering.
"Crocodile is no simple man… For someone like that… Nyehehehe, I can only say that Straw Hat's luck and aura are too strong."
Bang! As he spoke, Wilder raised his gun and pulled the trigger at a pirate. Blood splattered, and the pirate fell.
Wilder wasn't afraid of being recognized by Kizaru or the others. He trusted Eigg's flawless makeup. While there was a possibility of being identified by someone's Observation Haki sensing his true aura, that was a concern before he had mastered Life Return.
Now, Wilder could use Life Return to mask his original aura. In short, he could slightly alter some of his body's functions – blood flow, fat distribution, sweat glands, and so on. Therefore… even if someone remembered his original aura, Wilder could change it at any time using Life Return, making discovery virtually impossible. Moreover, even without Life Return, not everyone would deliberately try to remember a person's aura, and even if they did, their memory might be inaccurate.
It's like tasting a dish – you think you've memorized the flavor, but when you try to recall it, you can't quite pinpoint what it was.
After taking down three pirates in a row, Wilder put away his pistol, drew the long sword at his waist, and faced a pirate.
The opponent was wielding a huge spiked club. Five or six terrifying scars marked his face, giving him a ferocious appearance. Seeing Wilder draw his sword, the scarred pirate let out a bloodthirsty sneer.
"Let Captain Pebble finish you off, Marine!" the scarred pirate roared, a sinister growl. He swung the spiked club, generating a considerable gust of wind!
Clang! Sparks flew. Wilder shifted his body slightly, adopting a charging stance. His long sword collided fiercely with the spiked club.
After a brief stalemate, both men jumped back, creating distance between them.
"Ha! You've got some strength, Marine!" The scarred pirate exclaimed, feeling the force transmitted to his hand. A flicker of surprise crossed his face, quickly replaced by a mocking grin.
He swung the spiked club with force, smashing it down again!
"This won't do…" Wilder swung his long sword, unleashing a faint blade beam that deflected the spiked club, causing it to crash into the ground. His calm voice emerged from his lips.
"What?"
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