What was it like experiencing Hakoku point-blank?
As Elbaf's most powerful and wide-ranging combat technique, fewer than ten giants in all of Elbaf could master this devastating skill. The air itself seemed to shudder under the weight of the impending strike.
And Dorry and Brogy were Elbaf's strongest fighters besides Giant King Harald.
Working together, their combined Hakoku rivaled the legendary king's power. The very ground beneath their feet cracked from the pressure of their synchronized stance.
Facing such a technique, normally Kong could dodge. The man's reflexes were legendary among Marines.
How could he dodge now?
With all his attention focused on Silas, he had not even noticed Dorry and Brogy, two giant powerhouses only slightly inferior to him in raw strength. The giants moved with surprising stealth for their massive size, their synchronized breathing barely audible.
"Armament Hardening!"
With no choice left, Kong could only concentrate all his power on defense at this crucial moment. His skin took on a metallic sheen, muscles bulging as he prepared for impact.
This reminded Kong of those Marine officers who particularly liked using Iron Body for defense. Given a choice, who wanted to take hits? But sometimes the battlefield offered no alternatives.
Dorry and Brogy's sword and axe fell like judgment itself.
"Hakoku!!!"
The moment before the weapons struck, Kong felt overwhelming pressure descend, as if a mountain had materialized above him. Every muscle, every cell in his body tensed under this crushing weight. The air grew thick, almost solid.
The moment the sword and axe connected, Kong felt his concentrated Armament Haki nearly scattering like leaves in a hurricane. Having just climbed from underground, Kong was again pressed back into the earth by the sheer wind pressure from Dorry and Brogy's combined strike.
The sound was deafening, a thunderclap that rolled across Sabaody Archipelago.
"Giants!!!"
Kong roared, muscles bulging impossibly larger, veins throbbing on his forehead like rivers of fury. Even facing Giant King Harald, he had never felt such overwhelming pressure.
After all, back then he had not been alone against Harald.
But now he had to face two of the giant race's strongest warriors in perfect synchronization.
Kong felt incredibly frustrated. If not for being knocked down by Silas, how could he possibly take Dorry and Brogy's attack head-on? He was not stupid!
Ortega originally wanted to help his fellow Admiral.
But Silas forced him back with just one slash, leaving a bloody mark across his weathered face. The cut was precise, surgical even.
"Haha, kid, where are you looking?"
Silas moved like teleportation made flesh. His mastery of Shave and Moonwalk had reached such heights that whether on solid ground or thin air, he defied gravity with casual contempt.
Clang!
Armament-hardened fist met Armament-hardened blade, producing metallic collision sounds that rang like church bells. In just an instant, such collisions occurred countless times mid-air, each strike creating sparks that lit up the darkening sky.
"Looks like Kong has to fend for himself."
Ortega grinned around his ever-present toothpick, gathering his ultimate Armament Haki in his weathered hand before releasing it at distance toward Silas.
"Void Strike!"
The moment Ortega's punch began, Silas sensed the deadly threat. His enhanced senses screamed warnings. He shifted slightly, feeling blade-like punch wind graze past his body with the whistle of death.
Silas's shirt tore with a sharp ripping sound, revealing distinct abdominal muscles beneath, with crimson droplets faintly appearing on his skin.
After Ortega's punch wind passed, it struck a distant Yarukiman mangrove. A visible cavity instantly appeared in the giant tree over a hundred meters in diameter, the wood splintering with sharp cracks.
The massive mangrove that had stood on Sabaody Archipelago for countless centuries collapsed with a thunderous roar that shook the entire grove.
"Really dangerous!"
Even Silas had not expected Ortega's attack to be so swift. This punch concentrated almost all power in one point, the complete opposite of area attacks like Hakoku. The precision was terrifying.
This was an assassination technique specifically trained to kill same-sized opponents!
Ortega was equally surprised, his weathered face showing genuine shock.
"He actually dodged!"
Ortega's expression grew slightly grave. He had thrown that punch after predicting all of Silas's possible movements with his advanced Observation Haki.
Yet even so, Silas had still managed to dodge his attack by the narrowest margin.
Seeing this display, Ortega grinned with genuine appreciation.
"Old man, how many seconds into the future can you see?"
"Four seconds."
"Haha, seems you are like me!"
Ortega laughed heartily, the sound echoing across the devastated grove. He had thought his Observation Haki was world-class, never expecting Silas's to rival his own hard-earned abilities.
"Worthy of this era's strongest pirate."
Ortega abandoned his playful attitude, his expression turning deadly serious. The air around him seemed to shimmer with barely contained power.
"Next, I am going all out!"
"Haha, bring it on!"
The stronger Ortega proved, the more excited Silas became. His blood sang with anticipation.
With Kong held down by Dorry and Brogy, this was a battle between just him and Ortega. The world had narrowed to this single confrontation.
If Ortega were too weak, it would not interest him in the slightest!
At this moment, around Silas and Ortega, half of Sabaody Archipelago's Grove 47 had simply vanished. The landscape bore the scars of their titanic clash.
After the Yarukiman mangrove collapsed, its massive root system was also destroyed by Dorry and Brogy's devastating attacks. The very foundation of the island groaned under the assault.
Fortunately, Silas had chosen an uninhabited grove for the battle. Otherwise, just the aftershocks would have killed countless innocent people.
"Gyegyegyegyegye, looks like we finished our opponent first!"
"Gabababababa, though it was a sneak attack!"
"Dealing with villains who invade our country requires no honor!"
"Gabababababa, exactly!"
Having struck Kong head-on with their legendary Hakoku, Dorry and Brogy did not believe anyone could survive their combined ultimate attack. The technique had never failed them before.
Dodging would be one thing, but Kong had taken that hit completely!
"Should we help Silas?"
"Gyegyegyegyegye, this is a one-on-one battle between men!"
Both Dorry and Brogy could see that Silas and Ortega's strength exceeded theirs by more than one level. The speed and power of their exchanges were mesmerizing.
Moreover, the collision between two physical combat experts left them dazzled. The combat was poetry in motion, deadly and beautiful.
Too fast!
Both fighters intentionally controlled the battle within this grove, resulting in nearly half their clashes occurring mid-air. The sky itself became their battlefield.
Though Brogy had suggested helping, both he and Dorry knew clearly they could not interfere in Silas and Ortega's battle without getting in the way!
Sonic booms cracked through the air like thunder.
Armament Haki collisions created violent winds that made surrounding groves feel like they were caught in a Category 15 hurricane, forcing spectators to retreat to more distant locations.
Monsters!
This was everyone's unified thought.
Those who understood the situation recognized this as a battle between a Marine Admiral and the world's strongest pirate, leaving many rookie pirates and Marines absolutely thrilled by the display.
"So strong!"
"Is this the Admirals' true power?"
"Haha, someday I will become this strong too!"
Two young Marines hid in the distance, watching the spectacle unfold. Though they talked boldly about capturing Silas, only upon reaching the battlefield did they realize they were still light-years away from this top-tier combat level.
Even if Silas and Ortega did nothing to them, just the battle aftershocks were unbearable for rookies like them.
But despite seeing what seemed like the gap between mortals and gods, the two Marine recruits were not discouraged by the overwhelming display.
"If only Tsuru were here."
"Who knows where she went? I heard she might have left the Marines."
"Impossible!?"
The scarred Marine recruit and the Afro-haired Marine recruit argued noisily over their missing friend.
"Huh, is that not Tsuru over there?"
"No way?"
"Let us find her quickly! Did she not promise to help us catch the White Wolf Pirates?"
"Wait, it might be a classified Marine mission!"
When the two Marine recruits spotted Tsuru in the distance, she also noticed them with growing alarm.
"Garp? Sengoku?"
Tsuru's expression changed dramatically, sudden panic flooding her features.
"Why are they here?"
Tsuru had not forgotten she was executing a top-secret Marine infiltration mission. Logically, rookies like Garp and Sengoku could not possibly appear on a battlefield meant for capturing the White Wolf Pirates.
But she had forgotten both Garp and Sengoku were rookies Kong was personally training. Kong had not expected them to contribute to capturing Silas, just bringing them along for invaluable combat experience.
He had not expected the three childhood friends to meet here under these circumstances.
Seeing Garp and Sengoku looking like they wanted to approach and potentially blow her cover, Tsuru quickly lowered her head and ran toward the White Wolf Pirates while pretending not to recognize them.
Praying silently, do not come over, do not come over, do not come over!
"What is Tsuru doing? Why pretend not to know us?"
Scarred Marine recruit Garp looked genuinely displeased, his usual straightforward nature showing.
"Must be a classified Marine mission!"
Compared to the hot-blooded young man beside him, Afro-haired Marine recruit Sengoku was much more rationally minded.
"Let us handle our own business first."
"Hmph."
Garp turned away, somewhat annoyed by the brush-off.
"But why have we not seen the mustached Admiral since earlier?"
"Admiral Kong? It has been quite a while."
Thinking about this, Sengoku's expression suddenly changed with realization. "Admiral Kong could not be in serious trouble, could he?"
Kong and Ortega had departed together for this mission.
But now, only Ortega was clearly engaged in combat.
Kong was nowhere to be seen on the active battlefield.
But soon, Sengoku realized he had been worrying unnecessarily.
As a young Admiral-level fighter in his prime, how could Kong be easily defeated by two enemies, however strong?
So what if he took the legendary Hakoku directly to the face?
Even if Giant King Harald himself fought Kong one-on-one, the outcome would be fifty-fifty at best.
Let alone Dorry and Brogy working together.
"Invading your country makes us villains?"
From beneath the grove where land and sea had become indistinguishable, Kong climbed bloodied from the smoking ruins, his expression thunderously grim.
"Then what are you pirates who plunder others' wealth and freedom?"
Kong felt pain radiating from every inch of his body. Even as a physical combat expert trained to withstand punishment, taking Dorry and Brogy's combined attack head-on could not leave him completely unharmed.
But precisely because he was a physical combat expert in his absolute prime, even taking the devastating Hakoku directly to the face, his Haki reserves were just somewhat depleted. A few minutes of recovery would restore him to fighting condition.
"Gyegyegyegyegye, survived our attack?"
"Gabababababa, Dorry, did you not use your full strength?"
"Gyegyegyegyegye, clearly you did not use full strength!"
The two Giant Warrior Pirates captains laughed loudly, but their hearts carried genuine concern.
Taking their combined ultimate technique directly and emerging without serious injury, Kong looked disheveled with torn clothing, but his wounds were merely superficial cuts from debris.
Though Hakoku possessed incredible destructive power, against small, agile opponents like Kong, the impact was extremely limited. The technique was designed for massive targets.
"Haha, old man, now it is our counterattack time. You really think those two big guys can beat a Marine Admiral?"
Seeing Kong return to active combat, Ortega laughed heartily with renewed confidence.
"Look at your body. You think you dodged all my attacks? Remember how much blood you have lost? How much more can you afford to lose?"
Silas bore numerous scratches from Ortega's precise attacks. Logically, with his Zoan fruit's enhanced recovery ability, such minor wounds should heal quickly.
But actually, Silas's wounds had been bleeding continuously without stopping.
Initially the blood loss was minimal, but accumulating over time, once enough blood was lost, declining combat ability was just a matter of time.
However, this principle only applied to ordinary fighters.
"Bleeding? You mention it; I barely noticed these minor scratches."
Seeing Ortega's confident expression, Silas smiled with genuine amusement.
"Attaching Haki to my wounds, even affecting my Devil Fruit transformation ability. Doing this is not easy at all."
After their intense fighting paused momentarily, Silas realized small amounts of Ortega's specialized Haki constantly clung to his wound locations like bone-deep poison, embedded there like invisible spikes.
The foreign Haki felt almost alive, actively working against his natural healing!
Dispersing this invasive Haki was not impossible, but during active battle, spending precious energy to cleanse it meant dangerous distraction while fighting a same-level opponent.
In combat between equals, this was undoubtedly potentially fatal.
But Silas was not panicked by this development.
Forget that he now possessed Admiral-level strength to face Ortega without any inherent disadvantage. Even before reaching Admiral level, he had never shown cowardice against Admiral-level opponents.
Moreover, Ortega had overlooked something crucial.
"You only care about my wounds. Why not worry about your own?"
Ortega's devastating wind punch tore skin like invisible blades, but Silas actually wielded real blades. His slashing attacks were not easily dodged techniques either.
Now Ortega noticed his face, initially scratched by Silas's opening attack, was still bleeding steadily.
Though possessing advanced Life Return ability, healing such minor wounds should be instantaneous for physical combat experts of their caliber.
But it proved impossible.
Because just like his attacks leaving persistent Haki on Silas, Silas's attacks had also left clinging Haki on him!
The realization hit him like a physical blow.
Instantly, Ortega's confident expression darkened considerably.
Silas's Observation Haki matched his own hard-earned level.
Even his Armament Haki had reached the same advanced degree.
And Silas possessed one additional devastating ability.
Conqueror's Haki!
Right. Though Ortega had mastered both Armament and Observation Haki, possibly ranking among the Marines' absolute strongest in both disciplines, he completely lacked Conqueror's Haki!
Without Conqueror's meant no Conqueror's coating technique.
With equal Armament and Observation Haki levels, facing Silas meant facing an opponent with a decisive advantage.
Ortega saw a blade light wrapped in crackling Conqueror's Haki instantly magnify before his widening eyes.
Nowhere to dodge, nowhere to hide, nowhere to run.
"Marines' strongest Admiral?"
Slashing Ortega thousands of meters away, smashing the veteran through several massive Yarukiman mangroves, Silas laughed with pure arrogance.
"Nothing special!"
…
Holy Land of Mariejois.
In a plain, austere conference hall, elderly voices spoke with deadly calm.
"He killed a Celestial Dragon!"
"Absolutely unforgivable!"
"The Marines cannot handle him!"
"Useless organization. We must clean up their mess ourselves."
"Send them immediately."
Elsewhere in the sprawling complex of Mariejois, Rona, supposedly diligently executing her guard duties, suddenly sensed several incredibly powerful presences appear and then vanish like ghosts.
Her enhanced senses picked up the subtle disturbances in the air.
"Seems Silas is putting on quite the impressive pressure."
Rona looked at the surrounding World Government member nation kings and nobles, then at the distant group of grotesquely masked Celestial Dragons.
And the chained slaves visible everywhere throughout this so-called Holy Land.
She smiled with cold satisfaction.
"Ella, prepare for action!"
"My dear Rona, will you not reconsider this path?"
"Ella, we are grasshoppers on the same rope now. There is no turning back."
"Sigh, very well then."
On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, a short-haired female Marine sighed with resignation.
"Let us begin this madness."
Her mouth moved in a barely perceptible signal.
Then earth-shaking explosions thundered across the Holy Land of Mariejois, shaking the very foundations of the World Government.