Fair enough, that was about as direct as it got.
By now, Amon had more or less figured out Garp's temperament. This guy always preferred the most straightforward way of doing things, which really was quite similar to Luffy. Or rather, it was more accurate to say that Luffy had inherited that style from Garp.
Beside them, both Tashigi and Smoker grew curious as well when they heard Garp speak. They wanted to know what sort of gift Amon had prepared for him, to the point that Garp could not even wait and asked for it as soon as he arrived.
"Let's talk about that Amplifier first."
The special gift was Koby, but Amon had no intention of pushing him out right away. So, he decided to first show Garp the upgraded version of that Momentum Amplifier Koby had opened before.
Only if Garp saw the wonder of this item for himself would he be willing to go along with Amon's arrangement. By then, if Amon told him to take Koby in, he likely would not refuse.
"Hahaha, that works. I'm also very curious to see just how much stronger it's become."
"Heh. First, activate the Pedro BGM. Once the music starts, release Momentum Amplifier in front of it. That will make Pedro BGM grow even more intense and turn completely cursed. "
Amon grinned and explained it.
Garp activated the bgm. After that, he immediately covered his ears and shut his eyes.
He had no desire to make a fool of himself in front of his subordinates, so he followed the method Amon had described before, closing both his eyes and ears.
With his willpower, he felt he should be able to resist the soul-level assault of that BGM.
Smoker and the others, however, had no idea how powerful the item really was. Seeing Garp suddenly close his eyes and block his ears, they were left completely baffled.
Just as they were wondering what was going on, the tune began to play.
Then, a gigantic projection of Pedro appeared before everyone.
"What the hell is this?!"
They were still in shock when the BGM fully kicked in.
Then, with stunned expressions, they watched their own bodies begin to dance at the sound of the tune, moving in sync with the huge projection in front of them.
It was indescribably humiliating.
Because Garp had prepared in advance, he was not caught immediately. Even so, his expression looked extremely strained.
If Garp's soul had not truly been strong enough, he might already have started dancing right there along with everyone else.
"Heh, time to strengthen it."
As Amon spoke, he pulled out Koby's Momentum Amplifier and cast it directly.
The moment the Amplifier was activated, the projected figure instantly turned cursed. Its movements sped up wildly and became absurdly distorted.
Looking at that warped, cursed projection, even Amon nearly failed to hold back and join in the dance.
After being boosted by the Amplifier, even Garp, who had still managed to hold on until now, gradually started to look spiritually assimilated.
Then his hands, which had been firmly covering his ears, slowly dropped on their own.
And in the next moment, he began dancing along with the cursed projection.
Using his Observation Haki, Amon swept his senses outward and discovered that the entirety of Loguetown had already fallen under the curse.
Every single person was dancing at the sound of the bgm, following Pedro's cursed rhythm. The scene was utterly surreal.
Only after the song finally ended did everyone stop moving.
Garp's face now held both excitement and lingering fear.
The excitement came from the fact that his item had grown even stronger.
The fear came from the realization that even he, after preparing his defenses, still could not withstand the enhanced spiritual assault.
This kind of weapon that harmed the enemy and yourself alike really was something that should not be used too often.
That helpless feeling of one's body no longer being under one's control was deeply unsettling.
Still, as a tactical tool, it was undeniably excellent.
Especially as a trap.
Just imagining it was enough. If he had possessed an item like this back when fighting the Rocks Pirates, he would not have had to work nearly so hard.
Overall, if used properly, the tactical effect of this thing would be explosive. Besides, he did not even need to be the one to activate it personally. He could simply trigger it and then escape at top speed the instant it began.
The reason he had stayed here just now was because he wanted to test the ultimate power for himself.
And the results proved it clearly. Even with eyes shut and ears blocked, the cursed version of this bgm was still impossible to resist.
"Well, Garp, how is it? The power's decent enough, right? Satisfied?"
"Hahaha, it's incredible. I'm very satisfied!"
Even after taking precautions, Garp himself had not been able to resist it. That convinced him that, aside from a monster like Amon, there was probably no one else in this world who could stand against it.
"But compared to that, I'm even more curious about this special gift you prepared for me. Don't tell me you're just planning to let me open another Jar for free, hahaha!"
Garp looked at the Jar in Amon's hand and burst into laughter.
"Get lost. Keep dreaming."
Amon rolled his eyes at him.
This guy was really shameless. Whenever he saw a chance, he was already thinking about freeloading a Jar.
"The truth is, I'm giving you a direct disciple. I think you'll like him. Koby, get out here and greet Vice Admiral Garp."
Amon pulled Koby forward, then he briefly introduced Koby's strength, along with the identity of the owner of the Amplifier.
"As long as you're willing to take him in, this Amplifier is yours."
Amon had asked Koby about it beforehand, and Koby had agreed.
The item was useless in Koby's hands anyway, so he might as well give it to Garp.
"A direct disciple for me? His aptitude is indeed not bad. At such a young age, he already knows Observation Haki and the Six Powers."
"Hahaha, fine then. I'll give you this much face and take him under my command."
Garp grabbed the Momentum Amplifier in one swift motion, then spoke in an almost performative manner.
Koby's talent did look quite good. In fact, Garp already had a rough guess that Koby was probably one of the reasons Amon had been willing to let him open a Jar before.
On top of that, Amon clearly had a favorable view of Koby, so Garp was more than happy to use him as a bridge to strengthen ties with Amon.
That way, perhaps in the future, he could come back here and open a few more Jars for fun.
Koby had no idea what Garp was really thinking. All he knew was that Garp had agreed to accept him, and the shock and joy nearly overwhelmed him on the spot. He immediately dropped to his knees and bowed over and over to Amon in gratitude.
He could tell perfectly well that Garp had only agreed because of Amon's influence.
Off to the side, Smoker looked at Amon with renewed surprise.
He had not expected Amon's relationship with Garp to be this close.
And judging from Garp's attitude, he seemed to care deeply about those Jars Amon possessed. Could it be that Amon had not been lying earlier when he said the Jars were full of treasures?
As that thought formed in his mind, Smoker suddenly found himself wanting to open a Jar as well.