Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
"Fleet Admiral Kong! Urgent report!"
"In the New World's Edd War, the Roger Pirates have been surrounded by the Golden Lion Pirates! Both sides are in a standoff and could engage in battle at any moment!"
The latest news came from the intelligence division.
Fleet Admiral's office.
"Hahaha! The opportunity has come!"
Garp grinned widely, abruptly stood up, and turned to rush out.
"Stop, Garp!" Kong shouted. "I haven't finished speaking!"
Without looking back, Garp pushed the door open:
"Fleet Admiral, you may not have finished speaking, but I've heard enough!"
The door slammed shut with a bang.
Kong stared at the still-vibrating door, veins bulging on his forehead.
"That bastard..."
...
In the corridors of Marine Headquarters, Garp strode purposefully, his Justice Coat fluttering behind him.
Hurried footsteps echoed from behind.
"Mr. Garp! Wait for me!"
A tall young man caught up—the young Aokiji, Kuzan.
His face still carried a touch of youthful innocence, and his eyes were full of admiration as he looked at Garp.
"Mr. Garp, you turned down the promotion to admiral again, didn't you?"
Without turning around, Garp grinned:
"If you want to be free, you don't need such a high position."
"That's so cool!" Aokiji's eyes sparkled.
The two walked out of the building one after another and ran into Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Garp immediately put on a cheerful expression:
"Tsuru! When you set sail, can you give me a ride?"
Vice Admiral Tsuru looked at him expressionlessly:
"The request for this operation hasn't been approved yet. And..."
She paused, her tone tinged with disdain:
"You'll destroy the ship. I don't want you on my vessel."
Garp scratched his head and chuckled:
"If that's the case, then Roger is definitely mine to deal with!"
...
At the port of Marine Headquarters.
Twenty warships were ready, their Seagull Flags fluttering in the sea breeze.
On the decks, Marine soldiers stood in formation, their expressions solemn.
On the deck of a massive flagship, Sengoku was reviewing the battle plan.
He looked up and saw Garp striding onto his Dog-Head Warship, unable to hold back:
"Garp! Leave Roger and Golden Lion to us! Go back!"
Standing at the bow, Garp waved at Sengoku:
"Don't worry about it! You can have all the credit!"
Sengoku held his head, looking exasperated:
"That's not what I meant..."
A sly voice chimed in from the side:
"Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp both deploying? How terrifying~"
Kizaru—Borsalino—leaned against the railing, wearing his signature sly grin.
A nearby vice admiral explained:
"After all, Roger is involved. There's no way Mr. Garp would stay out of it."
Sengoku sighed and said no more.
The twenty warships slowly departed from the port, cutting through the waves toward the New World.
...
Meanwhile, in the New World, Edd War.
The sky was overcast, and the sea wind howled.
The Oro Jackson sat alone on the sea, like a lamb surrounded by a pack of wolves.
Surrounding them were dozens upon dozens of pirate ships.
Witnessing this scene, Buggy's legs went weak.
He clung to the ship's railing, tears and snot streaming down his face:
"Captain Roger! Our lives are what matter most! Let's just surrender to Golden Lion for now! There's no shame in yielding!"
Beside him, Shanks looked puzzled:
"Buggy, haven't you already become unkillable no matter how many times you're cut? What's the problem?"
Buggy, furious and flustered, jumped up and yelled:
"You idiot! There are still plenty of weaknesses! What if we're thrown into the sea?! What if we're captured and locked up?!"
Shanks scratched his head, completely ignoring his words.
On the largest pirate ship opposite them, Golden Lion Shiki stood at the bow, his golden mane whipping wildly in the wind.
A cigar dangled from his lips, smoke curling and scattering in the breeze.
"Roger—"
His voice boomed like thunder across the sea.
"How many times have I said this? Though we've had our share of grudges in our youth, let's forget them all."
He spread his arms wide as if embracing the entire world:
"With your knowledge of the Ancient Weapon capable of destroying the world, combined with my forces and the plans I've spent years devising, we can undoubtedly rule this world!"
He pointed at Roger:
"Become my right-hand man, Roger."
Roger stood at the bow of the Oro Jackson, his expression stern.
"Shiki, I have no interest in ruling the world."
"What's the point of being a pirate if you don't do what you want?"
"No matter how much temptation or pressure you throw at me—"
He spoke each word deliberately:
"I will always refuse."
Golden Lion's eyes narrowed.
He slowly exhaled a ring of smoke:
"So, your answer is to make me kill you here?"
Roger laughed heartily. "Don't flatter yourself."
He drew Ace from his waist, the blade pointing straight at Golden Lion:
"I mean—I'll defeat every last one of you!"
As soon as the words left his mouth—
Boom!
A cannon shot roared from the bow of the Oro Jackson!
A cannonball screamed through the air, striking the nearest pirate ship with precision.
Boom!
The ship was instantly blasted open, flames roaring skyward!
"Gyahahahaha!!!"
Golden Lion threw his head back and laughed. "What more can I say?!"
He drew his twin swords—Withered Tree and Cherry Ten.
The moment the blades left their sheaths, a golden radiance surged upward.
Black-and-red Haki lightning erupted wildly from the swords, crackling and flashing in all directions!
"Thousand Slash Valley—!!!"
Golden Lion leaped into the air, soaring skyward!
His twin blades swung at blinding speed.
One second—ten slashes? A hundred? A thousand?
No one could follow the movements.
All anyone saw were hundreds, thousands of golden slashes pouring down from the sky like a torrential storm.
Each slash was powerful enough to cleave a battleship or slice through a small mountain.
And now, there were thousands of them!
But just as these golden slashes reached the midpoint of their trajectory—
A sudden change occurred!
Under the control of Golden Lion's Float-Float Fruit ability, some of the slashes continued on their original path, aimed directly at the Oro Jackson.
But the majority of the slashes abruptly altered their course.
They spread out in all directions like a peacock's fan, then—
From every direction—above, below, left, right—they converged simultaneously, hurtling toward the Oro Jackson from all sides!
This is a true all-directional, no-blind-spot attack!
"Rayleigh! Gaban!"
Roger roared, gripping Ace tightly.
Conqueror's Haki madly condensed on the saber's blade!
Black-red arcs of electricity crackled in the air, tearing and distorting the surrounding atmosphere.
"Divine Departure—!"
With a single swing of the blade!
All the golden slashes shooting from the front were shattered and destroyed by this one strike!
At the same moment, on the right side.
Rayleigh drew his saber, its blade tracing a silver arc through the air.
"Sword Storm."
A single swing.
A silver blade light howled forth, suddenly beginning to split mid-air—
One into two, two into four, four into eight, eight into sixteen…
In an instant, hundreds of silver blade lights filled the sky on the right side!
The silver blade lights collided with the golden slashes, canceling and annihilating each other!
On the left side.
Gaban raised his twin axes, swinging them at high speed!
Eighty strikes per second!
Eighty Haki-infused slashes roared out like a storm, crashing head-on with the golden slashes assaulting from the left!
Boom boom boom boom boom—!!!
Explosions echoed without end!
The sea surface was blasted with countless massive craters, the seawater churning as if boiling!
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