Naruto Online: Hyuga Branch Family? Let's go all out!

Chapter 323 First Defeat

(I misread the map before and mistook Kogia Island for the Goa Kingdom, so the island adjacent to the Goa Kingdom is not the Oillet Kingdom, but Clover Island. Map attached below.)

On September 6, 1520 (according to the Haiyuan calendar), the battle, initially known as the Bandit Suppression War, then as the Four Songs War, and later as the World Revolution War, officially began.

Steelbone chose to attack from the Goa Kingdom's Ryuji Wharf, as it was a convenient location for ships to enter.

There's another suitable place for ships to enter: the main gate of the Goa Kingdom. However, the ruthless nobles of the Goa Kingdom built a wall over thirty meters high there; only a fool would attack from that side.

The Buster Call fleet, led by five vice admirals, first carried out a carpet bombing of the port of Ryu in the Goa Kingdom. This port, which had been specially built more than ten years ago to receive the Celestial Dragons, was reduced to ruins in just half a day.

The Buster Call, as a means for the World Government to deter the world, has not been used many times since its inception, but each time it has been used, the effect has been extremely astonishing.

Under the Buster Call, no one thought anyone could survive at the port.

So when 400 troop transport ships carrying 2 soldiers began to land, these soldiers were still humming songs, and some were still fooling around.

Then, they were almost entirely wiped out by the revolutionary army that emerged from trenches and air-raid shelters.

The remaining few thousand men watched their teammates fall like wheat, and their morale collapsed. They simply surrendered.

Soldiers these days have no sense of national pride. They only make a few thousand Berries a month, why risk their lives like that!

"What's going on?" Steelbone stood on a warship, looking at the battlefield from afar through binoculars. When he saw the rows of battle lines engulfed in flames, his face was filled with disbelief.

He turned to look at the weasel, who was equally astonished: "Impossible! With the Buster Call in effect, there's no way so many people could still be alive!"

If they could wipe out 20,000 people in one fell swoop, wouldn't the revolutionary army have 30,000 to 40,000 people?

This is the number of people after the Buster Call plowed through the entire area!

So the revolutionary army previously numbered three to four hundred thousand?

Nobody would believe that!

"Could it be that Dragon made the move?" Cyborg asked.

Dorrag can manipulate storms and deflect projectile trajectories.

The weasel nodded: "Very likely!"

"Then it must have been Dragon who made the move!" Cyborg sneered. "You love your soldiers like your own children, huh? I'd like to see how much energy you have left to waste. Men, keep blowing them up!"

"But our soldiers are still up there!" the weasel quickly advised.

"They've already surrendered!" Cyborg said irritably. "Soldiers who surrender will be sent to trial even if rescued; they're no longer on our side!"

The weasel was speechless.

Surrendering on the battlefield is indeed far more serious than fleeing from the battlefield.

"But we've run out of ammunition!" the weasel said.

"Now that you've run out of ammunition, go back!" Cyborg waved his hand. "Leave the rest to us!"

Although Cyborg no longer has the Buster Call, his small and medium-sized warships are not without cannons, so he can still continue to bombard.

However, what he didn't know was that he had cannons, and so did the revolutionary army!

The cannons in the hands of the Revolutionary Army are certainly not the most advanced, but that is compared to the cannons of the Buster Call. They are still capable of matching the range of cannons on ordinary warships!

Moreover, although the revolutionary army has few professional artillerymen, they have the Goddess of Wisdom assisting in firing, so each one is comparable to a god of artillery!

Just as the small and medium-sized naval warships approached, the revolutionary army quietly pulled out cannons that had been hidden deep in the air-raid shelters.

This scene took place entirely under the cover of battlefield smoke, so Cyborg couldn't see anything at all.

Once all the small and medium-sized warships were within the range of the cannons, Dorag gave the order, and all the cannons fired at once!

There weren't actually ten thousand cannons; it was just a metaphor. In reality, the revolutionary army only had about two hundred cannons capable of hitting ships at sea.

But the two hundred-plus cannons somehow managed to create the effect of 2000 cannons!

Simply put, the hit rate is too high!

With the goddess of wisdom correcting the trajectory, the gunners' aim was already accurate. And while the shells were flying in the air, the goddess of wisdom could use the breeze to adjust the trajectory of the shells, making the shells even more precise and the landing position more critical.

For example: ammunition depot!

During the Battle of Jutland, the hit rate of shells from both sides was only 2.17%. The 200 shells that hit the target were equivalent to a thousand cannons firing at the same time.

"Boom!" Steelbone watched helplessly as several warships simultaneously detonated their ammunition magazines and sank into the sea.

These warships carry not only naval personnel, but also a large number of army personnel!

He used warships as transport ships to transport troops, and now he's using transport ships as warships. If the warship sinks, the army on board will naturally suffer too!

"Damn it!!" Cyborg clenched his fist and smashed the railing in front of him to pieces. "Retreat immediately! Order all warships to retreat!"

But it takes time for a ship to turn around, and this is a sailing warship, so turning around is even more difficult!

In the short time it took to turn around, the revolutionary army's artillery fired three more rounds, sinking another twenty-odd warships.

The main reason is that some ships had tough guys who could cut through cannonballs with knives; otherwise, the battle losses would have been even greater.

After all the warships withdrew out of the cannon's range, Steelbone tallied the battle damage and then almost fainted.

There were only 250 small and medium-sized warships in total, and 39 of them sank in just a short time.

Each small warship had 300 naval personnel and 500 army personnel, while a medium-sized warship had 400 naval personnel and 500 army personnel. The total number of soldiers lost was 3.2!

Adding to the 20,000 soldiers lost during the previous landing, in less than two hours since the start of the battle, the revolutionary army has lost an unknown number of men, while the 15-nation coalition has lost 52,000?

In reality, not all 3.2 soldiers died; at most, only a few thousand were unlucky enough to die. The rest either swam in the sea or lay on wooden planks.

But no ship was willing to go and rescue them; they were afraid of being bombed.

As for these navy personnel swimming over on their own?

Given the stamina of the navy, it's not impossible.

But don't forget, this isn't Earth's ocean; this is the world of One Piece.

Even if there are no sea kings in the East China Sea, there will always be plenty of kings of the near seas.

The blood of marines and landmen is as clear as a lighthouse to these fish, and they have already come here by the scent.

These people are not dead yet, but it's no different from them being dead.

"Let's retreat!" Cyborg sighed and waved his hand.

"They just left like that?" The army staff officer next to him was dumbfounded. So many men and soldiers had been lost, and they just retreated like that?

"What else can we do but retreat?" Cyborg said irritably. "Can we continue the landing? Or can we continue the shelling?"

The staff officer remained silent and could only carry out the orders.

The vibrations from the Den Den Mushi spread among the fleets. Fleets that were not very active in fighting or rescue immediately hoisted their sails and sped forward upon hearing that they were to retreat.

Some of the fastest runners were so fast that they disappeared from sight in the blink of an eye.

The steel-boned ship is an admiral-class warship, not only with ample firepower but also the fastest speed.

However, he did not proceed at full speed, mainly because he was afraid of encountering the Buster Call fleet.

After all, he was promoted from admiral to commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Back then, he was invincible in the navy and was like a god in the hearts of the younger generation of naval officers.

They've suffered a defeat; what if the younger generation of naval personnel saw this?

Cyborg looked back again, then paused, stunned.

He quickly raised the binoculars again to look.

Sure enough, quite a few small boats appeared from Lailong Port.

How many are there?

From his distance, these boats probably looked like tiny leaves, carrying at most 3 to 5 people!

But there are hundreds or even thousands of such ships!

"They're going to slaughter those navy soldiers? But is it really necessary?" Cyborg didn't understand. After all, if they were left alone, those soldiers would either drown, die from exhaustion, or be eaten by the Lord of the Coast.

But he soon realized that his guess was wrong.

These ships weren't there to kill people, they were there to rescue people.

They fished out the navy and army soldiers still adrift at sea one by one and put them on the boat, then rowed back to port.

Once the soldiers reached the shore, they continued their search and rescue operation.

"Saving people? What's the use of that?" Cyborg didn't understand. Did they think these soldiers could be used by them?

There has never been such a precedent in the world, so Cyborg naturally doesn't understand.

He was unaware that there were such things as petition campaigns and public trials in this world, which could quickly turn enemy soldiers into our own.

Moreover, once the enemy's weakling soldiers reach our side, they will become as fierce as war gods.

What? You're saying there are no nobles on board, so there's no way to hold a public trial?!

Are there no nobles or military leaders?

These military leaders routinely beat and verbally abused soldiers, withheld their pay, organized gambling dens to exploit their property, and even sold off supplies from the barracks. Such things were commonplace, and the lower-ranking soldiers had long harbored deep resentment towards them.

These people should be dragged out and put on trial for a whole day without the trial ending.

What Cyborg couldn't understand even more was that with so many small boats rescuing people, where was the Lord of the Coast? Was he just standing by and watching?

I just saw quite a few of them swimming by!

Little did he know that the king of the near seas had already been frightened away by the goddess of wisdom.

The methods are also very simple: electric shock, ultrasound, or visual field shielding can all be used.

In celestial phenomena, thunder refers to sound.

With a heart full of doubts, Steelbone slowly returned to the Clover Island naval base.

After confirming with the port soldiers that the Buster Call fleet had left, he breathed a sigh of relief and then began to convene a meeting with his staff.

The meeting was definitely not about shifting blame; he's not that kind of person. Instead, it was about studying what happened in this battle and how it ended up like this.

Soon, Steelbone summarized several reasons.

First: They didn't expect the Revolutionary Army to have the means to resist the Buster Call. They didn't know that there was still resistance in the bombed areas, so they sent troops to land, resulting in the loss of 2 soldiers.

Second: Unexpectedly, the revolutionary army had cannons, and they were able to fire so accurately and from such a distance. Blindly sending warships carrying army soldiers to act as gunboats for bombardment resulted in the loss of another 3 men.

Third: The Buster Call side has run out of ammunition!

If the Buster Call warships still had ammunition, the Revolutionary Army's artillery wouldn't dare to retaliate, because the Buster Call warships' cannons had a long range and could easily destroy the Revolutionary Army's cannons.

Because he trusted the Buster Call too much, he used up all his ammunition in one go. When the Revolutionary Army returned fire, Cyborg was helpless and had no way to stop them.

These three reasons, when summarized, actually boil down to one reason.

Insufficient intelligence; inadequate understanding of the revolutionary army!

"I will contact the World Government and request intelligence support from the CP department!" Cyborg's face was grim. Although the battle had turned out this way because of insufficient intelligence, ultimately, the problem lay with him.

He had been so successful in the past that he no longer regarded the revolutionary soldiers as human beings.

Moreover, the revolutionary army of the past was indeed not very good, whether in terms of grand strategy or small tactics.

He just didn't expect that the Revolutionary Army would suddenly evolve!

But it's not a big problem. Even if I lose 5 people, I still have 45. The advantage is still in my hands!

"Report!" A communications soldier rushed in: "Commander of the garrison in Loguetown, Navy Captain Smoker and his troops have arrived!"

"Huh?" Cyborg was taken aback, his face immediately darkening. "What's going on with Smoker? Why did they only arrive after the battle was over?"

"Commander Smoker said they encountered a foggy day, and the fleet wandered in the fog for half a day!" the communications officer said.

Steel Bones slammed its heavy hammer against the table.

It's autumn now, and there's nothing that can be done about the fog; he can't blame Smoker for that.

Moreover, Loguetown is the base furthest from the battlefield, so the distance is understandable.

Cyborg was also somewhat relieved that Smoker hadn't joined the battle, otherwise he probably would have sent him to bomb the Revolutionary Army's positions.

Wouldn't that mean they also couldn't escape the revolutionary army's artillery fire?

"Let him in to participate in the meeting!" Cyborg said.

A moment later, Smoker, with sharp eyes, steady steps, and a muscular physique, walked in.

"Sit down, huh?" Cyborg glanced at Smoker casually, then noticed something was off: "Your aura?"

"Reporting to Marshal, I have successfully awakened Armament Haki and Observation Haki, and my strength has greatly improved!" Smoker said neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Good, good, good!" Steelbone nodded in satisfaction. "I remember you're only 30 years old this year. To have achieved so much is quite remarkable. With your contributions in this battle, it's only natural that you'd be promoted to Major General or Lieutenant General upon your return!"

"Thank you for your guidance, Marshal!" Smoker quickly saluted.

Steelbone nodded in satisfaction.

Before coming to the East China Sea, he specifically asked the navy for relevant information about the area.

The information states that Smoker is disrespectful to his superiors and unruly.

How come I didn't notice?

This kid is actually pretty good!

Seeing such outstanding juniors has even improved my mood, which was initially bad after the defeat.

"Although the attack this morning didn't go too well!" Despite the defeat, in Steelbone's words, it was just "not very successful".

"But we didn't come away empty-handed!"

"The revolutionary army has deployed a large number of soldiers for defense at Lailong Port, and they also have cannons with a range exceeding that of the guns of small and medium-sized warships!"

"I will contact the World Government for intelligence support, and at the same time investigate the source of the Revolutionary Army's cannons!" Cyborg then looked at the 15 colonels of the Navy.

Don't ask why there are only 15 colonels out of 20 branches; five of them just died.

Among these 15 colonels was one with shifty eyes, none other than Captain Rat of the 16th Naval Division.

Hina reported the rat incident, but the rat's backing was indeed strong, and with the server activated, the Navy couldn't replace him at this time.

"You continue to blockade the airspace, ensuring that not a single gun, bullet, or cannon enters the Kingdom of Goa!"

"When will we launch our second attack?" the army staff officer next to him asked.

"Wait for the Navy's Buster Call fleet to resupply with ammunition!!" Cyborg said calmly.

A amphibious landing operation would result in huge casualties, and he had witnessed firsthand how those 20,000 soldiers died.

Ahead lay a dense barrage of bullets, behind them stretched the boundless sea, and beneath their feet lay a muddy beach. They couldn't even move quickly; they were sitting ducks.

Although the Buster Call fleet cannot eliminate the defenders on land, it can suppress them and prevent them from showing themselves.

So Cyborg's strategy was simple: have the Buster Call fleet fire artillery to suppress the enemy, while the ground forces took advantage of the situation to land.

If the revolutionary army loses its terrain advantage, won't it be forced to confront the army head-on?

Even if the revolutionary army has a strong fighting spirit, our army has the advantage of numbers. Moreover, even if these 40 are wiped out, we can still replenish them continuously. We can wear down the revolutionary army!

"Starting a revolution on a deserted island was the worst decision you ever made!"

All in all, the advantage is with me!

Steelbone slammed his hand on the table, as if he could already see the moment of victory.

Until another communications soldier quietly walked in.

"What is it?" Cyborg asked.

"That!" The communications officer handed over a Den Den Mushi (snail phone): "It's a call from the Fleet Admiral of the Navy Headquarters!!"

"Huh?" Steel Bone's face darkened. "I've only lost 39 warships and 5 branch colonels, and you, Sengoku, are already coming to interrogate me?"

He took the Den Den Mushi and said irritably, "Sengoku, do you know what I'm doing? I'm wiping out the Revolutionary Army! In a war like this, even I could perish, let alone five colonels!"

"What? Five colonels?" Sengoku asked, puzzled.

"You're not here to hold the five colonels accountable?" Cyborg frowned. "Then what about the 39 warships? Those are all small to medium-sized warships, not worth much each. I'll report this to the World Government and have them replace them, okay?"

"Five colonels, 39 warships?" Sengoku finally understood what Steelbone was talking about, and then gasped, "What happened? The war just started, why are the losses so great?"

"The Revolutionary Army's firepower is a bit too strong. I suspect they've received support from some force!" Cyborg said with a dark expression.

Sengoku was taken aback and immediately thought of Doflamingo.

If you're talking about strength, then it's probably because the Revolutionary Army recruited some powerful figures.

But if we're talking about firepower, then they must have bought a lot of weapons.

Donquixote Doflamingo, isn't he just an arms dealer?

but!

"I'm not calling you to talk about these things!" Sengoku said.

"Oh? What's that about?" Steelbone asked.

"Ace has been captured!"

"Who?"

"Whitebeard Pirates, Second Division Commander Ace!"

Steelbone's expression immediately turned serious.

He had also served as a naval admiral and had fought with Whitebeard, so he knew what kind of temper that man had.

He truly treated the pirates under his command like sons, especially the squad leaders, whom he considered his own sons.

Now that one of his sons has been arrested, you can imagine how Whitebeard reacts.

"What are you planning to do?" Cyborg asked. "Hold the information back? Or go to war with Whitebeard?"

"Listen to me!" Sengoku said, "Our investigation has revealed that Ace is not just the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division; he's also the son of the Pirate King, Roger!"

"What?" Cyborg was taken aback, then immediately thought of something.

Roger's sword was none other than Ace's!

Moreover, if we consider age, Ace seems to fit the bill!

"Don't even mention that he's just Whitebeard's adopted son; even if he were Whitebeard's biological son, we can't let him go, let alone that he's the son of the Pirate King Roger!" Sengoku said in a deep voice, "After discussion, our Marine Headquarters has decided to publicly execute Ace!"

"But!" Cyborg frowned. "Normally you can execute people however you want, but I'm currently suppressing the Revolutionary Army, and I need the Navy's help!"

"Of course our navy will help!" Sengoku said. "A public execution isn't the right time. We need to deploy elite troops to Marine Headquarters. There will be a gap of more than two months during this period. You can use the Buster Call fleet during these two months, but they must return to their posts after two months!"

"Two months is more than enough!" Cyborg nodded confidently. Although I had just suffered a defeat, it was due to insufficient intelligence.

Now that I know you can defend against the Buster Call and you have cannons, I won't give you another chance to sneak up on me.

(End of this chapter)