"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!"
With the explosion of the final cannonball, a full thousand rounds had been completely expended, bringing the jaw-dropping Cannonball Duel to an end.
"Puhahaha! Not bad at all!"
Garp laughed, slightly out of breath.
Firing so many cannonballs in succession had left him somewhat exhausted—his aging body simply couldn't match the vigor of his youth.
"This old man is insane!"
Gurd grinned, stretching his arms behind his back. For his current physique, this level of exertion was just a warm-up.
This felt great!
It had been so long since he could fight at full strength!
Gurd leaped into the air, instantly transforming into his Groudon Form. As his feet touched the sea, the ocean began to tremble.
Soon, land erupted from the water!
The battlefield was ready!
Gurd reverted to his human form and stepped onto the battlefield, his entire body erupting with astonishing Haki. A scorching aura enveloped him, distorting the very air around him from the heat.
"Come on, Garp!"
"Puhahaha! You brat!"
Garp leaned forward and shot forward like a bullet!
"BOOM!"
A sonic boom cracked through the air!
The next moment, thunder roared!
Directly above, black-and-red lightning flickered incessantly as Garp appeared at its center, his Haki-clad iron fist trailing a long tail of flames!
Gurd looked up, his pupils contracting.
"Hey, don't start with your ultimate move right off the bat!"
"Puhahaha! Try blocking it!"
Garp laughed as his fist descended!
"Galaxy Impact !!!"
A shockwave capable of leveling an entire town came crashing down from the sky!
Gurd's body sank violently, as if an entire mountain were pressing down on him. Under such terrifying pressure, even moving a finger was nearly impossible!
"BOOM!!!"
The ground caved inward, rocks shattered, and the devastating shockwave spread outward, forcing even the sea to retreat!
From the sky, a massive circular crater could be seen on the ocean's surface. And when the pressure reached its limit—
"BOOM!!!"
An explosion rivaling a nuclear blast engulfed the battlefield!
"Captain Gurd!!!"
His crew screamed in horror.
After enduring such a terrifying attack, it was hard to imagine anyone surviving!
Once the shockwaves settled—
"Puhahaha!!!"
Garp landed, arms crossed!
"Come out, brat!"
"Damn old man, I just took your attack head-on! Give me a second to recover!"
Gurd emerged from the dust, his body covered in wounds. He hadn't activated his transformation—he had withstood it in his human form.
He wanted to feel the pain firsthand!
"Pah!"
Gurd's cheeks bulged as he spat out blood and shattered teeth onto the ground.
His bones had nearly broken.
As expected of the Hero Garp!
"Puhahaha! That punch was for my beloved disciple! Now, the real fight between us begins!"
Garp clenched his fist again, black-and-red lightning crackling around him as he strode toward Gurd.
"Brat Gurd!"
"Old man Garp!"
Gurd showed no intention of retreating, baring his teeth as he charged straight at Garp!
The next instant, both men accelerated simultaneously.
Their iron fists collided at full force!
"CLANG!!!"
Despite being flesh, their fists were as hard as Steel, producing a deafening metallic screech upon impact. The violent shockwave blasted away all the surrounding dust!
"Vice Admiral Garp!"
"Captain Gurd!"
Their subordinates finally caught sight of them again.
"RAAAAAH!!!"
"Oooohhh!!!"
The two roared as they furiously exchanged blows, gradually escalating into a lightning-fast battle of offense and defense, with power and Haki continuously colliding.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Waves of shockwaves erupted across the battlefield!
"I can't see anything!"
"Such an intense fight—there's no way to intervene!"
The subordinates' eyes bulged like copper bells, yet they couldn't make out the figures of the combatants. Only the constantly exploding air revealed the ferocity of the battle.
Every second felt agonizingly long!
Suddenly, both men reappeared!
"Brat!"
Garp's fist sank into Gurd's abdomen, the Haki shockwave instantly piercing through his body. The intense pain forced Gurd to cough up a mouthful of blood.
Agony seared through Gurd's nerves!
"You damn old man!"
Gurd raised both hands high and brought them crashing down onto Garp's head!
Garp's head jerked downward, his torso bending, but he immediately twisted his body upward, delivering an uppercut straight to Gurd's chin!
"Crack!"
His jawbone fractured, his brain rattled!
Gurd staggered back several steps before forcibly steadying himself. His upper body, steaming with heat, leaned forward, his eyes glowing red like a beast's.
"Kehahaha!"
He couldn't win!
Whether it was Haki or technique.
Garp surpassed him in both!
Every punch was unbearable!
Even transforming couldn't change the situation—it would only make him more durable, but that was meaningless to him.
What he craved was this very pain!
Haki was his greatest weakness, and the old man before him was a pure master of Haki. There was no better teacher than him!
This was the trial he had longed for!
"Oooohhh!!!"
Gurd roared at the sky and charged at Garp like a madman.
Come on, beat him to a pulp!
He would be reborn through this suffering!
"Puhahaha!"
Garp laughed heartily again, meeting Gurd head-on.
Gurd's identical fighting style exhilarated him—fist against fist was the romance of men!
"Million Ton Punch!"
"Fist Bone Meteor!"
Their fists collided once more!
"Gush!"
Blood sprayed from Gurd's entire arm. Every muscle beneath his skin, every cell, burned with exertion.
"Ora ora ora!!!"
"Puhahaha!!!"
They roared as they swung, countless fist shadows clashing before them. Blood splattered the ground, yet neither took a single step back!
"Boom!"
When their strength was finally spent, their fists pressed against each other, both panting heavily.
Garp steadied his breathing.
"Puhahaha, you damn brat! You actually blocked my punches—not bad at all!"
"Old man, you're past your prime. Your fists don't even have any power left. Retire already—the future belongs to the young!"
Gurd also gasped for air, preparing for the next round of assault. As soon as he caught his breath, he didn't hesitate to tilt his head back.
Garp mirrored his movement.
"Crash!!!"
Their foreheads collided, blood streaming down both their faces!
"Puhahaha, let me teach you a lesson!"
Garp's body suddenly crackled with Haki lightning, the ground beneath him fracturing layer by layer as an overwhelming surge of Conqueror's Haki erupted.
"What?!"
Gurd couldn't dodge. The impact sent him flying, and as soon as he steadied himself, Garp was already in front of him, fist hovering before his face.
It didn't land!
Yet Gurd felt a force stronger than anything before. As the Haki exploded, his entire face caved inward!
Conqueror's Haki Infusion!
"Fly away!!!"
Garp closed the distance, his fist wreathed in Conqueror's Haki, sending shockwaves rippling through the air as an unstoppable, terrifying force erupted!
"Boom!"
The air exploded with pressure!
Gurd's body was sent flying like a meteor, tumbling and bouncing across the ground, smashing through countless rocks—nearly hurled out of the battlefield!
"Cliff Sword!"
A massive stone pillar erupted from the earth!
"BOOM!!!"
Gurd's back slammed into the Cliff Sword, amplifying the impact, rupturing his organs.
But to stop himself, he had no choice. If he were flung out of the battlefield, the fight would be his loss!
"Damn it… Even at his age, he still has this much power?!"
Sliding down the stone pillar, Gurd dropped to his knees, limbs trembling, his body riddled with injuries.
But he couldn't fall yet!
Gurd touched his cheek, recalling the Haki flow from that punch—a sensation he'd felt multiple times in this battle.
And before this, when he fought Red Hair!
Not to mention when Kaido had taught him, using Thunder Bagua—that tearing force piercing through his body!
Every blow he'd endured now surged through his soul, sharpening his will to unprecedented clarity.
"Crackle—"
Red lightning flickered around him.
"Gehahaha!"
Slowly rising to his feet, Gurd lifted his head, locking eyes with Garp. Fists clenched, he resumed his battle stance.
"Come on, old man!"
"Yo
u brat just won't stay down!"
Garp grinned, raising his fists in the same stance!
Without hesitation, the two roared and charged at each other once more!
Full-power punches!
"CLANG!!!"
Their pitch-black Haki collided midair, fists never meeting—as if an invisible barrier stood between them.
Winds howled, waves surged!
The sky... split apart!
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