Clang!
Garp's fist, wrapped in pure black Haki, smashed into the slash, sending sparks flying. The purple slash shattered like glass, crumbling into pieces with a crash.
"Ho, not bad!" Garp raised an eyebrow as he examined the faint white mark left on his fist, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
This brat's slash could actually leave a mark on his fist, even with Armament Haki reinforcing it? Sharper than he expected!
"Again!" He shook out his fist, knuckles cracking like firecrackers, his grin widening with excitement. "It's been a while since I've met a youngster who could make me get serious!"
Bahr's eyelid twitched. One hand gripped his longsword tightly, its blade shimmering with a dark purple glow, while the other hand's index finger flicked rapidly, trying to mimic Law's ability to teleport someone right next to him for a surprise attack.
But no matter how hard he strained, Garp remained completely unaffected, standing there as if nothing had happened.
"Damn it! This old bastard's Haki is too strong—I can't move him at all!"
Seeing that the trick wasn't working, Bahr gritted his teeth and instantly teleported right in front of Garp, aiming straight for his throat, his blade infused with Space Power.
"Good move!" Garp's eyes lit up as his fist instantly coated itself in pure black Haki, smashing directly toward the incoming blade.
Boom!
Sword and fist collided, sending a shockwave of sparks exploding outward. The air around them vibrated violently from the impact. Bahr felt an overwhelming force surge through his blade, numbing his entire arm. His grip nearly faltered, the sword nearly knocked out of his hand as the blade was deflected to the side.
"I'm not done yet!"
Bahr clenched his jaw, his figure flickering rapidly around Garp like a phantom. His longsword whistled through the air as he unleashed a flurry of slashes.
Yet Garp stood firm like an iron fortress, his fists blocking and smashing aside every attack. Suddenly, Garp deflected the sword with a punch and seized the opening—Bahr's chest was unguarded. His fist shot straight for Bahr's face.
Bahr's pupils contracted. His fingers flicked instantly, and a transparent barrier whooshed into existence right in front of him.
"Hm?" Garp's fist slammed solidly into the barrier, causing space itself to tremble. His thick brows furrowed slightly. "Interesting!"
The moment the words left his mouth, the muscles in his arm bulged, the Haki around his fist surging violently.
Boom!
The barrier shattered into fragments.
But in that split second, Bahr had already teleported away, retreating dozens of meters to evade the deadly punch.
He wiped imaginary sweat from his forehead, glaring at Garp's battle-hungry gaze as he cursed inwardly. It's just a damn Celestial Dragon—why the hell are you going so hard?!
"Come on, brat. Let's keep going." Garp cracked his knuckles and charged again.
"Space Cage."
Bahr's pupils shrank. With a flick of his finger, a transparent cubic box materialized in an instant, trapping Garp inside.
This was one of his abilities—creating an invisible cube to imprison his enemies.
"Now this is new!" Garp paused, his rough palms pressing against the intangible barrier as if inspecting it curiously.
"Heh." Bahr smirked, tilting his chin up. "Old man, I'm not some pushover."
"Is that so?" Garp suddenly grinned, his fist surging with black Haki. With a resounding "boom," he smashed it against the "cage," causing the cubic structure to tremble violently. The air emitted a glass-like shattering sound as a fine crack seemed to appear.
The second punch sent spiderweb-like fractures spreading from the point of impact.
By the third strike, Garp's Haki erupted explosively around him, and the transparent cage shattered with a loud "bang!"
Garp, now looking as if he'd taken a stimulant, veins bulging on his neck, roared at the top of his lungs, "Again!" Clenching his fist—large as a sand pot—he charged forward.
His momentum was like a small mountain, making the air hum in his wake.
Bahr broke out in a cold sweat, his teeth grinding audibly. With a sudden raise of his hand, he shouted, "Space Devour!"
The space ahead abruptly collapsed, and with a "hum," a pitch-black sphere, a full meter in diameter, materialized out of thin air. Purple arcs of electricity crackled wildly around its edges, devouring even the light wherever they touched.
Garp's eyes sharpened instantly. Instead of dodging, his muscles tensed violently as black Armament Haki surged from his body like a raging tide. With overwhelming force, he drove his fist straight into the devouring sphere.
The collision between the sphere and Garp's fist erupted in a series of "crackling" black lightning bolts, the electric arcs dancing wildly through the air.
Immediately after, the space itself seemed as fragile as glass, fracturing into dense, spiderweb-like fissures with a "crunch," as if it might shatter completely at any moment.
Bahr's face paled. Desperately, he manipulated the sphere into a frenzied spin, trying to crush Garp's fist.
Garp grinned, flashing a row of white teeth. The ground beneath him caved in with a "boom" from the sheer force, sending rubble flying like rain. His feet, anchored like iron, dug deep into the earth, leaving a crater as he steadied himself, poised for the next move.
Then, an ear-splitting "bang" exploded, so piercing it made eardrums ache. The devouring sphere could no longer withstand the pressure and burst apart into a shower of purple particles, scattering like a dream.
"Not bad at all!" Garp glanced down at his slightly smoking fist, the skin scraped raw—the only proof left of their fierce clash.
Bahr stood dumbfounded. Resisting Space Devour with pure physical strength—was this guy even human?
But before he could recover from his shock, Garp's fist was already hurtling toward his face. At the last possible moment, Bahr flickered away, leaving only an afterimage as Garp's punch tore through empty air, rippling the atmosphere.
The sheer force of the missed strike gouged a massive crater into the ground, a testament to its terrifying power.
"Hiding in space now?" Garp rubbed his chin, scanning the surroundings. He recalled the kid's earlier use of Spatial ability and quickly pieced together the bizarre disappearance.
Inside the "Dimensional Space," Bahr panted heavily, sweat beading on his forehead.
This was another facet of his ability—retreating into an independent spatial layer. Unlike the space he usually used to store objects, this "Dimensional Space" formed a spherical zone with a 100-meter radius centered on his entry point.
The longer he stayed inside, the more his stamina drained exponentially.
In addition, entering space consumes a tremendous amount of stamina. After each use, a certain cooldown period is required before it can be used again. The exact "cooldown time" depends on how much stamina Bahr has left, but the minimum is two hours.
"That old man is practically inhuman!" Bahr glared at Garp, who was right in front of him yet separated by spatial distance, his wariness turning into a muttered curse.
Garp's Haki was overwhelmingly powerful. Bahr's usually unstoppable cutting ability only left faint white marks on the man. Attempting to teleport Garp proved futile—he didn't budge an inch. Even the spatial barrier Bahr erected was shattered with a single punch.
"Space Cage"—forget trapping Garp, he had hoped it would at least buy him enough time to escape. Instead, it only lasted for three punches.
The most absurd part was "Space Devour," his ultimate technique. By triggering a "Positive and Negative Space Particle Collision," he created spatial collapse, forming a "Space Black Hole" capable of devouring all matter—effectively erasing that portion of space. Yet, Garp had withstood it with sheer physical resilience.
Truly, "Haki reigns supreme above all else." All those flashy techniques meant nothing in the face of Garp's iron fists—simple, unadorned, yet deadlier than any extravagant move.
"Maybe I should ambush him with my blade?" Bahr tightened his grip on his longsword, but the thought lasted only a second before he abandoned it, decisively turning to flee. "Time to scram!"
Against someone with Haki of that caliber, a sneak attack would be predicted in advance—useless and only exposing himself. Fighting this old monster to the death? Only a fool would do that!
Thankfully, he hadn't strayed too far from the town, still within his spatial range, allowing him to use it for cover. If this had happened on open plains, escape would've been impossible.
As for Shalria... just a toy. No loss if she was abandoned.
.....
"Vice Admiral Garp, where did Bahr go?" A CP0 agent approached, his expression unreadable behind the glare of his sunglasses.
"Ran off!" Garp waved a hand dismissively, his face breaking into a carefree grin—a stark contrast to his earlier ferocity.
"What?!" The agent's voice rose sharply, his face darkening as he glared at Garp through clenched teeth. "That's a high-priority criminal wanted by the World Government! How could you just—"
"Hmm?" Garp suddenly turned, his thick brows lifting as his eyes gleamed with amusement. His rough hand clapped onto the agent's shoulder. "You lecturing me, boy?"
Before the agent could react, an immense force bore down on his shoulder, nearly buckling his knees. The words of protest died in his throat.
Garp clasped his hands behind his head, humming a tune as he strolled away, muttering, "Got the hostage back. That should shut Sengoku up."
The CP0 agent watched Garp's retreating figure, fists trembling in fury. He yanked his tie loose and snatched out his Den Den Mushi, growling into it, "Report to HQ—Shalria has been rescued, but the fugitive Bahr escaped."
"And also..." He stared in the direction Garp had vanished, his voice a venomous hiss. "Mark Vice Admiral Garp for 'negligence of duty.' The Five Elders must personally address this!"