North Blue — Lvneel Kingdom
The air changed the moment Vice Admiral Garp raised his fists.
Tenjin felt it instantly.
His lungs tightened.
His instincts screamed.
"Well then," Garp said cheerfully, cracking his knuckles. "Come at me."
Tenjin didn't hesitate.
The moment Garp finished speaking, Tenjin moved.
Roots erupted from the cracked stone beneath his feet, launching him forward like a living catapult. His sword flashed from its sheath.
The ground shattered behind him as Tenjin closed the distance in an instant, sword sweeping upward in a clean, precise arc aimed at Garp's torso.
Garp tilted his head.
The blade passed where his chest had been.
"HAHAHA! Too slow!"
Before Tenjin could even register it, a massive fist slammed into his ribs.
BOOM!
Tenjin's body folded around the punch as he was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing through a collapsed wall and skidding across the ground in a cloud of dust and debris.
He coughed, blood spraying from his mouth as he twisted mid-slide, stabbing his sword into the ground to halt himself.
So fast…
Garp didn't even chase him.
He simply walked him down.
"C'mon, kid," Garp called out. "That was your opening move? You'll die real quick like that!"
Tenjin wiped blood from his lip and stood.
His eyes were sharp now.
Focused.
No panic.
No hesitation.
I can't match him physically.
So I won't even try.
Tenjin slammed his foot down.
"Raging Forest!"
The ground beneath Garp erupted violently massive roots bursting upward from every angle, twisting and snapping like serpents as they tried to bind his limbs and crush his body.
For a split second
They wrapped around him.
Koby gasped. "It—It worked?!"
Garp blinked.
Then flexed.
The roots exploded apart like brittle twigs.
"HAHAHAHA!" Garp laughed loudly. "You think plants can hold me down?!"
He vanished.
Tenjin's eyes widened.
Behind—!
Garp's fist crashed into Tenjin's back before he could fully turn.
CRACK!
Tenjin was driven face-first into the ground, the stone beneath him spiderwebbing outward from the impact.
Garp grabbed Tenjin by the back of the head and dragged his face across the ground, carving a long trench through stone and metal before hurling him skyward.
Tenjin flipped midair, coughing violently, roots bursting from his shoulders to stabilize himself.
Roots shot upward, latching onto the remains of a tower and yanking Tenjin out of freefall. He twisted, sword flashing as he launched downward.
"Slicing Tree!"
A compressed arc of green energy tore through the air, sharp and refined, aimed directly at Garp's neck.
Garp raised a single arm.
The blade hit.
Sparks exploded.
Garp's eyes widened just a fraction.
"Oho?"
He grinned.
"That one had some bite!"
He backhanded the slash away, the shockwave alone blasting Tenjin backward midair. Garp leapt casually meeting Tenjin in the sky and punching him square in the stomach.
Tenjin's vision went white.
He felt himself fold.
Then
A second punch.
A third.
Each hit landed like a mountain falling on his body.
Garp laughed the entire time.
"HAHAHAHA! You're sturdy, I'll give you that!"
Tenjin gritted his teeth, forcing his arms to move despite the pain.
Roots burst from his back, wrapping around Garp's arm mid-swing.
The vines constricted violently, spikes digging in as Tenjin twisted and stabbed upward.
The sword pierced Garp's shoulder.
The battlefield went silent.
Koby's eyes widened.
Helmeppo's jaw dropped.
Blood trickled down Garp's arm.
Then
Garp laughed even harder.
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
He grabbed the blade with his bare hand and yanked Tenjin closer, headbutting him so hard the air detonated.
BOOM!
Tenjin was sent crashing back to the ground like a meteor.
He bounced once.
Twice.
Then lay still.
Smoke drifted upward.
Garp landed nearby, hands on his hips, peering down.
"Damn," Garp said. "You actually stabbed me. That made my day."
Tenjin twitched.
His fingers clawed weakly at the ground.
Move.
Move—!
He forced himself onto one knee, blood dripping from his chin, body screaming in protest.
Roots trembled around him, struggling to answer his call.
Garp watched, amused.
"You still want to go," Garp said. "Most people would've stayed down by now."
Tenjin lifted his sword with shaking hands.
"…I'm a Marine," he rasped. "I won't stay down."
Garp stared at him.
Then smiled, genuinely.
The next instant, Garp appeared in front of him.
Tenjin didn't even see the punch.
CRASH.
Everything went dark.
---
Tenjin came to lying on his back, staring at the sky.
He couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe properly.
Every bone in his body felt shattered.
So this is it…
Footsteps approached.
A shadow fell over him.
Garp looked down, arms crossed, expression satisfied.
"HAHAHAHA," Garp laughed. "You didn't disappoint me, kid."
Tenjin forced his eyes to focus.
"…So… this is where I die…?"
Garp shook his head.
"Die? don't be stupid."
He turned away and waved a hand.
"Let's go. To Marineford."
Tenjin's eyes widened faintly.
Garp glanced back over his shoulder.
"You're not strong enough yet," he said. "But you've got a future."
A grin spread across his face.
"And the future of the Marines? It's gonna need monsters like you."
---
The red-hulled Kuja ship floated like a predator on the North Blue waters. The twin serpentine beasts coiled along the deck, their eyes glinting, scales reflecting the sun. Every Pirate aboard moved like a well-oiled machine, hands gripping weapons and ropes, tension in the air thicker than fog.
Boa Hancock stood at the prow, her long hair streaming in the wind. She didn't need to glance back at her sisters. Sandersonia and Marigold were close behind, both tense and alert.
Marigold finally spoke, voice tinged with frustration.
"Sister… I still don't get it. What's going on? Why all this… fuss?"
Sandersonia added, "Yes sister, at least explain. You've been acting strange ever since that newspaper arrived."
Hancock's gaze didn't waver from the horizon. Her voice was calm, almost too calm.
"That's not true," she said, her tone carrying a weight that made the sisters instinctively quiet. "I'm still my normal self."
Sandersonia and Marigold exchanged puzzled glances. Something about their sister was different, and not a good kind.
Suddenly, Hancock's eyes narrowed, her lips parting slightly. As she saw a ship in the far distance approaching.
"They are here."
Sandersonia's brow furrowed.
"They… who?"
Hancock turned slowly, hands on her hips. Her voice rang out across the deck, commanding and precise:
"Everyone, prepare for combat. Our opponent is an Admiral."
Shock rippled through the crew.
"Wait, sister!" Marigold exclaimed. "What are you saying? Why would the Navy send an Admiral after us? Aren't you a Warlord?"
Hancock's cheeks tinted pink, a rare blush, but her eyes burned with determination.
"They are not coming after me," she said softly, almost a whisper. Then, straightening her posture, her voice became steel. "They are coming after Tenjin. And I won't let them reach him."
---
Far off, the Marine warship loomed. Its massive iron hull tore through the waves, the water churning beneath it like a storm in miniature.
At the bow, a young officer held binoculars, face pale and hands trembling.
"Admiral Kizaru!" he shouted, voice cracking. "It's… it's the Kuja Pirates!"
Kizaru's body seemed almost to sag lazily as he scratched his chin. His voice, casual and slow, cut through the officer's panic.
"~The Kuja Pirates? That's… the crew of Warlord Boa Hancock. How unusual…~"
The officer squinted through the lenses again. "Sir! They're aiming cannons directly at us!"
Kizaru tilted his head and scratched his chin lazily, the sun glinting off his glasses, giving him a look of detached amusement.
"~This is… strange. They're not attacking randomly, they're precise. Is this… rebellion? Or perhaps something personal? Is this her way of leaving the Warlord System.~" He then continued, "~I don't understand any of this~"