"Damn it..."

  "What kind of monster is this?"

  "We 't harm her at all!"

  "Where's the reinfort from Marine Headquarters?"

  "This is hopeless; we 't fight these guys!"

  "Everyone, hold on! We ot let these criminals escape!"

  'Bang... Bang...'

  'Crack... Crack...'

  'Sizzle... Boom...'

  'Screams...'

  Amid the smoke and chaos on Isnd 1, the sounds of gunfire and screams echoed tinuously. The Marines, fag Linlin, Roef, and the others wreaking havoc, were horrified. Even more terrifying was the devilish thundercloud striking down their rades, causing Marine persoo fall one by one. Nearly half their forces had been wiped out in the blink of an eye.

  The remaining Marines, filled with fear, instinctively begareating.

  “Haha, there are some strong presences approag,” Linlin grinned as she looked toward the forest. “Finally, some oppos with a bit of strength are ing.”

  Her mastery of Observation Haki, honed under El's releraining, allowed her to easily sehe approag figures. Three signifit auras were moving rapidly toward them, twer thahird, which was still more powerful than Rear Admiral Mace.

  "Let’s clear the field first," Linlin s the terrified areating Marines.

  'Fp, fp...' In an instant, Linlin's body exploded into thousands of bats, shooting toward the Marines like a storm.

  "Bats?"

  "What kind of ability is this?"

  "Never mind, just shoot them! Kill them!"

  'Bang... Bang...'

  'Swoosh... g...'

  The Marines fired their guns and swung their swords at the bats. But to their shock, bullets pressed and bounced off the bats' tough skin, and swords shattered upon impact, uo cut through.

  "What?!"

  "Damn it, these things..."

  "They're invincible?!"

  "These monsters are tougher than steel, just like that woman!"

  "Run for your lives!"

  Panic surged through the Marines. Watg the bats with their razor-sharp fangs approag, they shuddered and turo flee.

  'Fp, fp...'

  'Ssh... Bang...'

  'Screams...'

  The bats shot through the Marines like bck lightning. Some were disemboweled by the sharp wings, while others were sent flying, heads bleeding. Several Marines were pounced on, their blood drained by the ravenous creatures.

  In mere moments, the battlefield was filled with screams as the bats sucked the blood from the Marines, draining them until their muscur bodies shriveled into pale, unscious shells.

  “Ma-ma-ma-ma~! Now it’s your turn!” Linlin reappeared, her tall figure brandishing her rge sword, Napoleon, aured toward Hera, the thundercloud.

  The bats hadn’t pletely draihe Marines’ blood, leaving them barely alive so Gerd's soul fragment could extract their souls.

  'Sizzle...'

  Hera, resembling a devil, grinned evilly as she rushed toward the fallen Marines. “Alright, then! I won’t hold back!”

  With a crag sound, rge spectral hands emerged from the thundercloud, passing through the Marines' bodies and pulling out their souls.

  The sight was horrifying.

  “Wow... That’s such a terrifying ability!” Roef, and the Fish-men Jien all ented, visibly uled by the se.

  Little Oars, sitting atop Jien’s head in his miniaturized form, watched in awe.

  “The twhtest stars of the new geion of the Marines, huh?” Linlin muttered, rubbing her as she stared toward the forest, her battle spirit rising. She lifted Napoleon and grinned wickedly. “Let’s see if they’re really as good as their reputations cim!”

  “Elbaf Spear—!”

  Her entire demeanor shifted from pyful to deadly serious as she activated her queror’s Haki, log onto the approag figures.

  “What the...?”

  Marine Rear Admiral Sengoku, who had been rushing toward the se alongside Tsuru and a relut Garp, froze when he saw the age—the bodies of fallen Marines and the t figure of Linlin staring at him, her sword raised.

  Sensing the immi danger, Sengoku immediately activated his Devil Fruit ability without hesitation.

  'Humm...'

  Golden light illumihe battlefield, and a massive golden Buddha appeared.

  “Ma-ma-ma-ma~! A Buddha? So you're a Devil Fruit user, huh?” Linlin’s eyes lit up with excitement. With a ferocious grin, she sshed down with Napoleon. “Mighty Nation!”

  'Crack!'

  The atmosphere cracked and tore apart as an enormous n of sword energy surged toward Sengoku’s giant Buddha form.

  “Buddha Impact Wave!!!”

  In an instant, Sengoku’s golden Buddha stood tall, raising a massive hand surrounded by radiant light. He released a powerful shockwave to meet Linlin’s devastating attack head-on.

  'Boom!!!’