Chapter 1004: The Arrival of the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet

Chapter 1004: Chapter 1004: The Arrival of the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet

"Does that even matter?"

Daren’s expression remained perfectly placid. He spared a fleeting, indifferent glance at Catarina Devon, his voice flat as he murmured, "I am merely a wanderer who lost his homeland."

Despite his calm demeanor, a trace of unmistakable bitterness bled into his tone.

"Murunfufufu~ Well, what a surprise!"

Catarina Devon narrowed her eyes thoughtfully at Daren, letting out a sharp, grating chuckle.

Ignoring her amusement, Daren stared intently at the soaring silhouette of the Central Tower. "Rest assured, that man has made countless enemies. Just wait patiently for a few days, and someone will come to reinforce us."

"That would be for the best. With just the two of us, I have absolutely no desire to go head-to-head with a monster like Gorbo," Catarina Devon replied, nodding in agreement. She paused, a sly glint flashing across her face. "Let me check in with Admiral Teach. Perhaps he’ll find himself interested in this as well."

...

A few days later, within the territorial waters of the Brady Island region...

One after another, massive vessels flying the flag of the Big Mom Pirates materialized on the horizon of the Clifford Kingdom. Command ships, tarte ships, and the pirate vessels of subordinate crews... ships of all shapes and sizes coalesced into a staggering armada of over a hundred vessels.

This titanic grand fleet, which had mobilized nearly every single ship from across the domains of Totto Land, sailed majestically across the open ocean. It was a breathtaking spectacle of a hundred racing ships, their countless sails blotting out the sky like a gathering storm. Any passing vessels immediately fled in sheer terror at the mere sight of them.

In the distant waters, several black wolf-headed vanguard warships sat anchored on the rolling waves. The flag of the Chris Pirates, a skull crossed by a sword and a saber with two golden rings, fluttered defiantly against the wind.

"T-The Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet!!!"

"Why?! How could so many warships suddenly appear out of nowhere?!"

"Is this... is this the true might of a Yonko?!"

"Y-You’ve got to be kidding me... Even the Whitebeard Pirates’ Grand Fleet back then didn’t have half this many ships!"

"..."

The crew members stationed aboard the vanguard warships stared in absolute horror at the gargantuan armada looming in the distance. Pure, unadulterated shock was written across every face. The more faint-hearted among them felt their knees buckle, nearly collapsing onto the deck in despair.

Up until now, the Chris Pirates had deployed scouts far and wide for the sole purpose of locating the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet, yet they had consistently failed to find even a trace of them.

Yet now, the Big Mom Pirates had suddenly manifested right on their doorstep with an armada exceeding a hundred vessels. It was a terrifying display of military might. If that fleet were to open fire on Unzan Port, it would take only a few coordinated salvos to completely erase the entire harbor from the face of the earth.

Beyond the territorial waters of the Clifford Kingdom, numerous surveillance ships belonging to various factions lay concealed in the distance. They kept a watchful eye on every single movement of the sudden Big Mom armada, rapidly transmitting reports of its trajectory back to their respective bosses.

An armada spanning over a hundred ships sent shockwaves through the world, striking terror into the hearts of countless onlookers. Even the World Government and the Marines were thoroughly shaken by the development.

As the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet breached the territorial waters of the Clifford Kingdom, everyone closely monitoring this clash of titans understood one thing: the countdown to the final showdown had officially begun.

"Don’t lose your heads! More than half of those are just small tarte ships, they’re nothing but trash that will sink with a single cannon strike!"

"Damn it! How on earth did they manage to bypass our perimeter?"

"Send a message to Unzan Port immediately! Tell the defense garrisons to prepare for an all-out assault!"

"..."

Fortunately, the captains and first mates of the vanguard ships quickly barked out orders to suppress the panic, doing their best to stabilize the crew’s rapidly deteriorating morale.

At the Frontlines of Unzan Port, the Chris Pirates’ Main Camp.

"Damn it! Nearly 140 ships... where exactly did that old hag dig up an armada of that scale?"

"Oliver’s fleet just arrived at Micity Port yesterday for maintenance and resupply, and today the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet shows up out of thin air. Where the hell did these ships come from?"

"We must intercept this grand fleet at all costs! We cannot allow Unzan Port to fall within the firing range of their naval artillery!"

"..."

Inside the massive command tent, a crowd of assembled cadres was locked in a chaotic, heated debate over the sudden appearance of the massive Big Mom armada.

There was no denying that an armada of nearly 140 ships imposed an immense, suffocating pressure on everyone present.

During the Big Mom Pirates’ previous ambush on Unzan Port, over twenty sailing warships and a dozen ships belonging to their subordinate crews had been sunk right at the docks.

Currently assembled on their side, aside from Tesoro’s titanic Gran Tesoro, were the thirty sailing warships commanded by Abel at Micity Port, roughly a dozen subordinate pirate ships, and the Fernal Archipelago fleet of twenty warships that had just arrived yesterday. Additionally, there were over twenty pirate ships of varying sizes provided by the pirate dispatch organization, ’Buggy’s Delivery.’

In total, the forces directly under the Chris Pirates’ banner amounted to just over ninety ships.

Initially, everyone believed that the Big Mom Pirates had lost dozens of ships during the battle for the archipelago, which meant their numbers would certainly fall short of their own.

Yet now, a staggering fleet of nearly 140 ships had suddenly materialized. If one factored in the 27 remaining high-tech vessels of Germa 66, the enemy’s total numbers would easily breach the 160-ship mark.

With such a severe disparity in numbers, this war was going to be an uphill battle.

"They definitely took a page out of the Whitebeard Pirates’ playbook from the Battle of Marineford. They coated all their ships and traveled entirely underwater. That is the only logical explanation for how such a massive fleet bypassed our radar entirely!" Arlan stated with absolute certainty.

Dimitri stroked his chin, offering a grim deduction. "The crew numbers aboard the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet are likely minimal, just barely enough to operate the vessels, and they aren’t accompanied by any major cadres. That’s exactly why they chose to coat their hulls and travel via the ocean floor."

Maneuvering an armada of nearly 140 ships required a massive amount of manpower. However, since the primary forces of the Big Mom Pirates were currently deadlocked with the main strength of the Chris Pirates right here, the grand fleet itself couldn’t possibly be heavily manned. Otherwise, with an armada of that scale, there would have been no need to covertly hide their movements.

The upper echelons of the Big Mom Pirates knew very well that if the true state of their grand fleet were exposed, the Chris Pirates would immediately deploy powerful cadres and a fully-manned fleet to launch a devastating preemptive strike, which would have crippled the armada before it could even arrive.

But now, the core forces of both sides were at a standstill at Unzan Port. Even if the Chris Pirates’ fleet attempted an interception now, the Germa 66 fleet would be able to buy them ample time. Annihilating nearly thirty large, high-tech warships was no simple task.

And that delay would grant the Big Mom Pirates more than enough time to utilize the Mirror World, rapidly reinforcing the grand fleet with heavy combat personnel.

Arriving at the exact same conclusion, Aeridar felt a surge of irritation wash over him. The sheer depth of the Big Mom Pirates’ resources had thoroughly exceeded his expectations.

Yet, he had to begrudgingly admit that with a fully established nation of 36 islands serving as her logistical backbone, coupled with decades of accumulated wealth and influence, a Yonko like Big Mom truly possessed the capability to amass an armada of this scale.

As for himself, relying solely on a single Brady Island and half of the Fernal Archipelago, he had already managed to build a fleet of dozens of powerful sailing warships.

Bang!

A look of sheer ferocity crossed Aeridar’s face as he slammed a heavy fist onto the table before him.

"Prepare for battle. We must not allow a single cannonball from the Big Mom Pirates’ Grand Fleet to touch this soil!"