Garp's punch came in like a falling mountain.
Amon's expression did not change. He did not raise an arm, did not shift into a stance, and did not show any sign of defense at all.
That calmness made Garp's scalp tighten.
What if the item fails?
He had thrown this punch with eighty percent of his strength. If Amon took it head-on, it would not be "injured." It would be "gone."
Regret hit him late. He wanted to pull back, to shave off power, to soften the blow.
Too late.
The fist was already committed.
Then Amon smiled.
Right as Garp's knuckles reached him, Amon pressed Brilliant Moon's active skill.
Boom.
In the instant stasis triggered, Amon's body slipped out of reality.
Garp's fist passed cleanly through where Amon should have been, and the force behind it did not vanish. It roared on, smashing into a small hill near Cocoyasi Village.
...
The hill did not stand a chance.
It detonated into fragments, stone and dust pouring down like a collapsed wall.
That was not the end.
After pulverizing the hill, the shockwave tore onward across the sea. The surface split under the pressure and a towering wave rose, dozens of meters high, rolling out into the distance.
Everyone watching swallowed hard.
This was the strength of a Marine legend.
And then the worry hit.
The dust was thick. The hill had become a cloud. No one could see what happened to Amon.
Nojiko's hand clamped around Belle-mère's. Her fingers trembled as she rose onto her toes, eyes locked on the dust, terrified she would see nothing at all.
Every gaze on the street was pinned to the same spot.
Did he survive that?
A voice cut through the haze.
"Cough, cough. Garp, what's wrong with you? You kicked up half a mountain of dust!"
Amon stumbled out of the cloud, clothes and hair a mess, looking thoroughly annoyed.
Brilliant Moon had made Garp's strike useless against him. The only thing that got him was the aftermath.
Garp exhaled so hard it almost looked like he deflated.
"Kid, you're fine. You almost scared me to death."
Amon was yelling, which meant he had plenty of life in him.
Sengoku had been tense too. He had checked with Observation Haki and sensed Amon was using some method to evade the hit, but seeing him walk out in one piece still steadied his breathing.
His eyes flicked to Brilliant Moon again.
A Jar item that could do that.
Absurd.
Amon brushed at his sleeves and scowled. "Of course I'm fine. I'm just wearing your damn dust."
Garp scratched the back of his head, a sheepish look on his face.
Amon's irritation was real, but so was the quiet shock behind it.
He had misjudged that punch.
He had thought his own physical skill would be enough even without Brilliant Moon. Now he understood. If he had taken it cleanly, he might not have died, but he would have been wrecked.
This world's ceiling was still above him.
That thought sat badly.
He needed to get stronger.
One Garp was already like this. If Garp and Sengoku ever moved together, Amon was not sure he could walk away.
For now, they were grateful. Garp had even promised to step in once if Amon needed it.
But gratitude could change.
Amon did not like leaving his life in anyone else's hands.
He wanted strength that belonged to him.
So the path stayed the same.
Keep selling Jars.
And keep pushing the fusion of his martial arts and swordsmanship.
...
Garp coughed again, still embarrassed. "I didn't think it would end up like that either."
He had used a special way of generating force, something like a refined technique, and it was the first time he had thrown it like this. The power had come out uglier than expected.
Amon waved it off. "Forget it. It's not your fault."
He was the one who told Garp to go all out.
Garp looked at Brilliant Moon again with bright eyes. "So? What do you think of the item now?"
"It's insane," Garp said honestly. "I have never seen something that can dodge like that and ignore damage."
He had thought Amon was done.
Instead, Amon walked out with nothing worse than a ruined hairstyle.
Amon nodded and spoke more seriously.
"Brilliant Moon is strong, but it has a weakness. You can only use it once per day. After you trigger it, don't rely on it again until the next day."
He handed it over to Garp and made sure the warning landed. If Garp treated it like an unlimited shield and got caught afterward, that would be a stupid way to get hurt.
Garp grunted. "I know what I'm doing."
Amon nodded once.
With Garp's strength, there were not many people who could force him to burn this anyway.
He glanced at both of them, then made a shooing motion with his hand.
"Alright. You've got everything from the Jar. You can leave now."
He was still coated in dust. All he wanted now was a bath, sleep, and time to think about the next step.
He had only sold six Jars that counted toward performance.
Four more and he would unlock his own exclusive reward.
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