"He's directly refusing."
At Marineford, after receiving Garp's message, Sengoku summoned Vice Admiral Tsuru.
When she learned of Garp's message, Vice Admiral Tsuru said it directly.
Let alone whether the Navy currently had a Logia fruit, even if they did, they couldn't hand it over.
Such an item would absolutely be used internally as soon as it was obtained.
"Then forget it. Let's just think about how to explain this to Zephyr."
Sengoku felt a headache coming on and rubbed his temples.
Ever since he became Fleet Admiral, the pressure had been immense.
"That person who appeared with Cyrus."
Seeing Sengoku rubbing his temples, Vice Admiral Tsuru had no intention of letting him off the hook and spoke up again to remind him.
"It's indeed possible that he's the person who fought with Cyrus. Perhaps that meteorite was his doing. He should be a Devil Fruit user. His specific ability is unclear for now, but as for that slash in the desert, Cyrus's strength has grown a lot again. To be able to fight with the current Cyrus and travel with him, this person is very strong."
"Any news of him?" Vice Admiral Tsuru asked.
"No news for now. This person probably hasn't been out at sea before, or rarely takes action," Sengoku shook his head.
"In that case, he's likely a powerful individual who was living in obscurity. We don't know what specifically happened this time."
"Our people are investigating. There should be more news later."
"Alright!" Vice Admiral Tsuru nodded and stood up. "Then what about Zephyr's matter this time?"
"I'll think of something." Sengoku waved his hand.
Vice Admiral Tsuru could see Sengoku's predicament and didn't say any more, turning to leave.
"Nee-san, did that person agree?"
Outside the office, Momousagi saw Vice Admiral Tsuru come out and asked in a low voice.
"No, things are a bit difficult."
Vice Admiral Tsuru didn't want to say more, shaking her head before leaving with Momousagi.
...
Two days later.
After the Log Pose finished recording the magnetic field, its needle pointed in a fixed direction.
Cyrus and the other two didn't linger in Alabasta any longer.
After boarding the ship, it slowly left the port. Cyrus stood at the bow, watching the receding harbor.
When he turned around, he was suddenly taken aback.
"What's wrong?"
Robin noticed the change in Cyrus's expression and asked.
"Why is he here?"
Cyrus waved his hand and said, then turned his head to look in a certain direction out at sea.
At the edge of his vision, a lone, strange little boat was sailing slowly.
On the boat, a man sat with his legs crossed.
Cyrus could feel the gaze of the person on the small boat also looking at him.
"Issho!" Cyrus called out.
"Is it an enemy?"
Issho had also sensed the powerful, sharp aura approaching from a distance.
"No, but I want to have a fight with him." Cyrus shook his head as he spoke, a look of anticipation on his face.
"Who is it?" Robin was very surprised to hear Cyrus say this.
With Cyrus's current strength, there weren't many people who could make him so eager for a fight.
"The World's Greatest Swordsman!"
"Hawkeye?"
As soon as Cyrus said this, both Robin and Issho knew who he was talking about.
The swordsman at the very pinnacle of this sea.
This title was one he had earned by repeatedly challenging and defeating master swordsmen across the seas.
It was a title recognized by many.
Not something born from empty boasts.
"You're not a pure swordsman, are you though?" Robin thought of Cyrus's situation and reminded him in a slightly odd tone.
"But I study the sword too. Now that I've seen him, I'll always regret it if I don't give it a try."
As Cyrus spoke, he stood at the bow with his sword in hand, watching the small boat that was drawing near in the distance.
Hawkeye, on his boat, had also stood up.
Cyrus saw him, and he saw Cyrus.
Gripping the hilt of Yoru with a reverse grip, Hawkeye's eyes locked onto Cyrus at the bow of the distant boat.
His keen sight had already made out Cyrus's appearance on the vessel.
He had thought he was just coming to see the sword scar this time, but unexpectedly, he had run right into the swordsman who had created it.
With the Black Blade Yoru in his hand, Hawkeye's eyes were fixed on Cyrus.
As a master swordsman, it was only natural to greet one another upon meeting.
And the way master swordsmen greeted each other was not something others could necessarily handle.
Swish!
Hawkeye swung Yoru, and a blue slash flew out.
The blue slash cut through the sea's surface, flying toward the distant ship.
Seeing Hawkeye take the initiative, Cyrus drew 'Flame' and likewise raised his hand to slash down.
His slash flew out, also cutting through the sea's surface, and collided with the incoming attack.
A silent impact.
A large, circular hole abruptly appeared where the slashes collided.
The clash of slashes formed a space where their power contested.
"Looks like we can't leave now. You all head back first."
Cyrus said without turning his head, then leaped up.
His figure shot hundreds of meters into the sky before tracing a long arc, falling toward the approaching Hawkeye.
"This..."
Seeing the two of them start fighting without even exchanging a word, Robin was dumbfounded. She turned her head to look at Issho.
"Perhaps this is the greeting between master swordsmen."
Noticing Robin's movement, Issho explained.
However, his own hands were itching.
As a Great Swordsman, although he had already integrated his ability into his swordsmanship and was no longer a pure swordsman, he too wanted to test his skills upon meeting the world's Greatest Swordsman.
But since Cyrus had already made his move, it wasn't his place to interfere.
Reversing the direction of gravity, the ship, which had just left the pier, turned around and headed back.
After a moment of struggle, the force field created by the clashing slashes suddenly erupted.
The overflowing power formed concentric ripples, pushing the seawater into waves.
As more and more power spilled out, the waves grew higher and higher.
Watching the massive waves approaching the shore, Issho raised his hand and gripped the hilt of his sword.
Swish!
He drew his cane sword and a horizontal slash flew out, cutting the sea open near the shore.
The massive waves that came crashing down tumbled into the gash left by the slash.
The people at the Nanohana port were now completely stunned.
What on earth was happening?
...
Watching the figure plummeting toward him from the sky, Hawkeye leaped up, gripping the hilt of Yoru with both hands.
The Black Blade traced a wide arc as he slashed upward.
Clang!
Yoru and Flame collided in mid-air in a brief struggle for dominance.
Cyrus's eyes were fixed on Hawkeye, his gaze falling upon Hawkeye's peculiar eyes.
"Hawkeye!"
The corners of Cyrus's mouth turned up as he shouted, then he suddenly put his full strength into his arms.
Hawkeye, suspended in mid-air, fell back down, his feet landing on the small boat below.
Boom!
The small boat shuddered and sank abruptly.
The seawater around it exploded, and the boat then shattered and disintegrated.
In that single blow, Hawkeye seemed to have suffered a small disadvantage.
But his expression didn't change in the slightest.
Cyrus used the rebound from the clash to flip back, then his lower body turned into flames, allowing him to float in mid-air.
Hawkeye, whose expression hadn't changed even when he was struck down by the slash, now frowned directly upon seeing Cyrus use his ability.
This guy was not a pure swordsman.
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