On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Fleet Admiral Sengoku fell into a prolonged, heavy silence. The face of the snail, which mimicked his own, had long lost its anger and impatience. All that remained was a stoic countenance, belying the monstrous waves of shock that were churning within him.
After a long while, Sengoku's voice, suppressing an extreme level of disbelief, slowly came through. "I understand. This matter is of the highest possible level. I will dispatch the appropriate personnel to handle it." His tone became incredibly serious, carrying the full weight and resolve of the Fleet Admiral of the Marines. "And you, you scoundrel! If you dare to once again…"
*Click!*
Garp cleanly hung up the call.
At Marineford, in the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku held the receiver, listening to the monotonous busy signal. The veins on his forehead popped out one by one, pulsing with rage.
In the next second, a furious roar echoed through the headquarters. "Garp—! You incorrigible, insolent bastard—!" The Fleet Admiral's shout was so powerful it almost lifted the roof clean off of Marineford.
…
On the warship's deck, Garp casually tossed the Den Den Mushi back to Bogard, a triumphant, mischievous grin plastered across his face. "BWAHAHAHA! That old fool, still so easy to get a rise out of!"
He completely ignored the awestruck yet strange gazes of the surrounding Marine soldiers, and he paid no mind to the still-bleeding wounds that covered his body. He walked to the center of the deck and sat down cross-legged. Closing his eyes, that massive torrent of new information once again emerged with perfect clarity in his mind.
The Chakra Refining Technique. It was a brand-new system of power, completely and fundamentally different from Haki. It involved extracting energy from one's physical body and spiritual essence, gathering it in a central point called the dantian, and then circulating it through a network of pathways called meridians.
For Garp, a man who had already honed his physique and Haki to the absolute peak of the world, understanding this new theory was incredibly simple. He began to follow the method described in the torrent of information, calming his mind and reaching inward to sense the energies within his body.
Soon, alongside the familiar, river-like surge of his Haki, a faint, new energy, like a gentle mountain stream, was precisely captured by his senses.
"Oh?" Garp's grin widened even further. He had found it. He began to carefully control this new energy, guiding it to flow slowly along a specific trajectory within his body. The entire process was so novel, so exhilarating, that it sent a thrill of excitement through him.
After a while, Garp suddenly opened his eyes, and a sharp, brilliant glint burst forth from them. He stood up, walked to the ship's rail, and looked down at the boundless blue sea below, a wild, childlike smile of pure anticipation spreading across his face.
"All of you," he declared, his voice booming across the deck, "watch me carefully!"
Under the bewildered and uncertain gazes of all the Marine soldiers, Garp directly stepped one foot over the ship's rail.
"Mr. Garp!" Bogard's heart skipped a beat, lunging forward.
However, the expected loud splash of a body hitting the water never came. Garp's foot was planted firmly on the surface of the sea. He was just… standing there. Centered on the sole of his shoe, perfect circles of fine ripples slowly spread out across the water.
The entire deck instantly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone's eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets, their mouths hanging wide enough to fit a fist. What were they seeing? The Marine Hero, Monkey D. Garp… was standing on the surface of the ocean.
How was this possible? He wasn't a Devil Fruit user!
Under the petrified gazes of his entire crew, Garp took another step. One step. Two steps. He walked leisurely on the surface of the sea as if strolling through a park, his posture even more relaxed and carefree than if he were walking on solid ground.
"BWAHAHAHA!" Garp turned around, looking at his subordinates on the deck who were completely dumbfounded, and let out a deafening roar of laughter that echoed across the entire sea. "Did you see that?!" he bellowed, pointing at his feet and then at himself, his face a mask of pure smugness and wild abandon. "This thing! It's really damn useful!"
Garp's wild laughter gradually subsided. He stood on the sea's surface, feeling the gentle touch of the waves lapping against the soles of his shoes. This feeling… it was so novel. He looked down at his own reflection in the water, then lifted his foot and gently tapped the surface, sending out another series of perfect ripples.
Bogard stood by the ship's rail, pushing up his sunglasses. Beneath the dark lenses, his eyes revealed an unconcealable storm of shock. "Mr. Garp… what exactly is this…?"
Garp didn't turn back, just grinned. "BWAHAHAHA! This is my new toy!" he declared casually, though his mind was racing. He closed his eyes, carefully replaying the information that had materialized in his mind. Every single detail of the method called the Chakra Refining Technique was crystal clear. But when he tried to organize it into steps that could be taught to others, he found it impossible to even begin.
This knowledge wasn't something he had learned. It had been forced into him, an unreasonable, direct imprint of information, like a sacred initiation ritual. It had bypassed all the normal processes of learning and understanding, directly becoming an instinct of his body, as natural as eating, drinking, or throwing a punch. There was no way to teach it.
"Tsk." Garp clicked his tongue unhappily, a deep sense of regret flashing in his eyes as he opened them. What a pity. What a damn shame. If this technique could be promoted throughout the Marines, how much would the survival rate of those young recruits increase when they carried out missions at sea? This was far more practical than any of the Six Powers.
But the thought was only fleeting. If he couldn't teach it, then so be it. It was enough that he could use it himself.
His thoughts drifted back to the completely destroyed canyon and the dark-skinned warrior cloaked in blue electrical arcs. More details of the combat surfaced in Garp's mind. His opponent's body, sheathed in lightning, was called the "Lightning Release Armor." There was that ridiculously fast movement speed. And those three fingers that could pierce through anything, even drawing blood from his own Haki-infused fists. Those flashy, yet terrifyingly powerful moves… Garp remembered that the cold, mechanical voice had called those techniques "Ninjutsu."
"Ninjutsu…" Garp muttered the word softly. He spread his palm, and a faint, almost invisible energy gathered there. This was Chakra. The Chakra Refining Technique had granted him this energy, but how was he to use it? How could he turn it into a Lightning Release Armor? How could he forge it into an indestructible spear? All he could do for now was attach it to the soles of his feet, allowing him to walk on water. This was just a beginner's gift package, wasn't it? The way that warrior, the Third Raikage, had used it—that was the true form of this power.
A stronger, more intense surge of excitement and longing rushed up from the depths of Garp's heart. The feeling was a hundred times more potent than just learning to walk on water. So… that so-called "dungeon" was far more than just a satisfying battle. It was an entire, unheard-of, brand-new system of power.
Garp suddenly turned around, his gaze burning as he looked back in the direction of the now-distant Foosha Village. His eyes were no longer merely playful and curious. They now held the look of a starving wolf that had just stumbled upon a grand, endless feast.
If clearing one dungeon could yield the most basic Chakra Refining Technique, did that mean… if he fought better, got a higher evaluation, or… tackled more difficult dungeons, he could acquire the other techniques used by that dark-skinned warrior?
He suddenly remembered the colorful "time fragments" he had seen before entering the dungeon. A blonde youth gathering a blue energy ball… a black-armored man wielding a red lightsaber… a green giant destroying a city… and a white-haired figure with dog ears holding a giant demonic blade… Were those all other dungeons? Did each fragment represent a completely different world? A completely different, brand-new system of power?