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Chapter 31: Garp's New Toy! The Rushing Thunder!
On the boundless, azure sea.
A pirate ship, flying a Jolly Roger, was frantically cutting through the waves at a speed that nearly tore the hull apart!
"Faster! Faster!"
On the deck, a one-eyed captain was roaring, the fear on his face twisting his ferocious scar.
"That monster! That monster is catching up!"
"Are you kidding me! How can he run on the sea faster than a ship!"
"That guy isn't human!"
The pirates shrieked in panic, despair written on every face. They kept looking back at the sea behind them, their eyes filled with the instinctive terror of facing a predator.
On that stormy sea.
A tall figure was racing across the water's surface, defying all common sense!
With every step, a circle of white spray exploded under his feet. His entire body was wrapped in visible, crackling blue arcs of electricity!
That wasn't a speed a human should have!
It was a rushing bolt of lightning!
"He's... He's catching up!" a pirate in the crow's nest shrieked, his voice trembling violently.
The terrifying, lightning-fast figure was rapidly closing the distance with the pirate ship!
The man was Garp!
His expression was normal. He even took a moment to pick his nose, pouting as he looked at the fleeing ship.
"Honestly, a bunch of small fries, making me run for so long."
As his voice fell, his steps suddenly paused, and he stood steadily on the churning surface of the sea.
His hands, however, began to move in front of his chest at a dazzling speed, forming hand seals!
It was a strange, mysterious, and rhythmic movement the pirates had never seen before!
"What's he doing?!" The pirates on the ship were all stunned.
The next second.
Garp completed the final hand seal. He opened his mouth, his voice as deep as thunder.
"Lightning Release!"
A furious surge of Chakra churned within him!
"False Darkness!"
Boom!
A spear of black lightning shot from his mouth. It condensed into a beam, tore through the air with unstoppable momentum, and struck the hull of the pirate ship with perfect accuracy!
There was no huge explosion.
Only a sickening, tearing sound!
The spear of black lightning, with overwhelming force, pierced directly through the entire pirate ship!
The pirates on board didn't even have time to scream before they all lost consciousness under the wild Ninjutsu. The ship's hull was torn to pieces by the terrifying energy, sinking into the sea as countless fragments.
On the sea, Garp slowly dispersed the lightning around him. He looked at the result of his work and nodded in satisfaction.
These past few days, he had been visiting Blake whenever he had time, clearing that "Strongest Spear" dungeon several more times.
The results were remarkable.
He was now proficient in several Lightning Release Ninjutsu. Using them against these small-time pirates, whose bounties didn't even exceed ten million Beri, was a complete dimensional takedown.
He had originally wanted to try what Blake called the "Intermediate Dungeon," to see what new wonders were inside.
But.
When he proposed the idea, the way that brat Blake had looked at him made his hair stand on end.
Something was wrong. Very wrong!
Garp still clearly remembered Blake's face.
It was a bizarre expression, mixing surprise, encouragement, and... schadenfreude!
His grin had nearly split his face, all but saying "Go on, go on, it's full of good stuff, go in so I can watch the show!"
Who was Garp?
A battle-hardened Marine Hero! His combat intuition was sharpened to the extreme!
That kid was definitely up to no good!
Garp shivered and decisively abandoned the idea.
Forget it, forget it. Better to play it safe for now.
That "Intermediate Dungeon" definitely had a huge pit waiting for him!
Still, this so-called Ninjutsu was really useful!
Garp looked down at his hands, evaluating it.
Although its overall explosive power and destructive force weren't as direct or tyrannical as his own hard-won Armament Haki, its versatility was incredible!
Long-range attacks, area-of-effect strikes, elemental advantages. It was flashy, but its effectiveness was exceptional!
Most importantly, there was the Lightning Chakra Mode!
Crackle!
With a thought, wild blue arcs of electricity once again burst from his body, like countless tiny thunder snakes, coiling around his burly, bronze-colored body!
His muscles pulsed under the stimulation of the lightning, every inch filled with explosive power!
Garp felt the surging power within him, his eyes shining with excitement.
He looked at the lightning surrounding him. His physique had been enhanced by at least 30 percent!
Thirty percent!
This was an unbelievable improvement!
One had to know, at his current level, standing at the pinnacle of the world, even the smallest step forward was incredibly difficult.
It was the kind of tiny improvement that could only be gained through a life-and-death battle with an opponent of the same caliber!
But now, a single dungeon had caused his raw power to surge by 30 percent!
This 30 percent was enough to open an insurmountable gap between him and other top-tiers like Sengoku and Roger!
"Bwahahaha!"
Thinking of this, Garp could no longer hold it in. His signature, hearty laughter echoed across the sea, startling countless seagulls.
"If that old bastard Sengoku saw me now, his jaw would drop!"
He slammed his fist shut, the air in his grip exploding with a dull pop!
This feeling of having power completely under his control... it was just too good!
So good!
Garp laughed, his voice shaking the surface of the sea.
He looked down, checking the direction of his dog-headed warship.
The next second.
He grinned, showing his white teeth.
"Time to go back!"
Crackle!
Blinding blue arcs of electricity exploded from his body again, enveloping him!
Swoosh!
Garp's figure vanished, transforming into a bolt of rushing thunder, speeding toward his warship!
He was too fast!
So fast that he plowed a long, white wake in the blue sea, a wake that took a long, long time to settle.
The entire ocean had become his playground for his new toy!