"Don't say I didn't warn you…"
Bogard leapt from the Marine ship, landing on Leo's deck in a single smooth motion. His sword slid halfway out of its sheath advancing toward Leo.
Leo's fist hardened, coated in Armament Haki and he drove it forward with full force.
Steel met flesh.
Clang—!
The impact rang out as Bogard was pushed back, his feet skidding across the deck before stopping.
"Oh?" Garp leaned forward slightly, his interest piqued. "You can use Haki…"
No longer underestimating his opponent, Bogard's blade turned black coated in Armament haki and Leo also took serious stance.
"Bring it on."
He stepped in again, his fist reinforced further as he clashed head on with the black blade.
For a moment they held each other at a perfect stalemate.
But soon the armament coating of bogard proved superior and his sword began to press through Leo's flesh.
A deep wound opened only to heal instantly before their eyes, Bogard's eyes narrowed.
"You have a Devil Fruit…"
He drew back and struck again, faster this time but Leo reacted just as quickly, his instincts sharpening as Observation Haki guided his movements.
Instead of meeting the edge, he struck the flat of the blade with the back of his haki coated hand, deflecting it off course. In the same motion, his other palm shot forward aimed at his stomach.
Thud—!
The impact sent Bogard skidding back once more colliding with railing.
Garp's grin widened.
"What an interesting brat… Armament and Observation haki already…" But he stopped mid sentence.
Bogard forced himself upright then suddenly dropped to one knee, his sword plunged into the deck, stopping him from collapsing completely.
A thin stream of blood slipped from his mouth.
"Oh… you might want to treat him immediately," Leo said casually. "That shock I sent through him probably ruptured something important inside."
Leo knew he could dismantle bogard within three seconds but sensing the danger, Bogard had instinctively pulled back, avoiding the full impact and limiting the damage.
The deck fell silent, A veteran like Bogard taken down by a brat in the east blue.
For the first time, the warning from the kid felt like a real threat.
Fweeesh—Thud…!"
Monkey D. Garp leapt down from his ship and landed on Leo's deck with overwhelming force, the wooden planks cracking beneath his feet as the impact spread across the surface, his movement so fast that Leo couldn't even track it before he had already appeared beside Bogard, crouching slightly to check on him.
"Kid… you've got a dangerous power," Garp said, his gaze settling on Leo, not with hostility but with the calm of an elder teaching a reckless youth.
'He's strong… I should've taken that swordsman hostage.'
Feeling the suffocating pressure through his Observation Haki and seeing the shift in Garp's demeanor, Leo quickly began calculating an escape, already understanding that this was not a fight he could win.
"Well… I did warn you," Leo replied, lowering both palms onto the deck as if grounding himself.
"You're right, you did," Garp admitted casually, straightening up as he clenched his fist, his tone light despite the situation. "My mistake… Now go on, show me what else you can do."
Even though he advanced slowly, each step carried an overwhelming presence that made the distance between them feel meaningless.
Reacting instantly, Leo manipulated the deck of the ship, causing the wooden deck to twist and rise as five cannons burst upward from beneath the surface, already loaded and firing black bombs straight toward Garp in rapid succession.
However, before they could even reach him, an invisible force rippled through the air as Garp swung his fist casually, the sheer pressure of the punch deflected four of the bombs away from the ship, where they exploded midair with deafening blasts.
The final bomb reached him and like a wild beast, Garp simply leaned forward and met it with his forehead, allowing the explosion to engulf his body completely before stepping out of the smoke entirely unharmed, letting out a small sneeze as if mildly annoyed.
'Monster…'
In that moment, Leo fully understood the gap between them, especially within the confined limits of the sea and the materials available on the ship, engaging in close combat was nothing short of suicide.
Only one thought remained in his mind.
'Abandon the ship… and run.'
Dooooom...!
At his command, the entire ship disassembled, the structure breaking apart into hundreds of fragments of wood and metal mixed with live bombs, all of it launching toward Garp and the Marine ship behind, completely obscuring his field of vision as Leo vanished within the mess.
"Eh…?"
Caught off guard for a brief moment by the sudden collapse of the ship and the sheer volume of debris flying toward him, Garp grabbed Bogard by the shoulder and swung his fist once more, compressing the air he deflected the majority of the incoming barrage with overwhelming force.
As the debris began to settle and fall into the sea, his eyes caught a glimpse of movement through the fading chaos.
In the distance, Leo had already escaped, boarding a small shark-like vessel loaded with treasure and black bags, he turned back briefly and raised his hand showing him a middle finger.
The glass sealed shut and the very next second, the vessel shot deep into the sea like an actual shark.
Garp's attention shifted abruptly as his Observation Haki picked up something else, a spiked bomb, no larger than a human head, descending toward his ship from an unexpected angle, clearly launched by Leo earlier while his focus had been elsewhere.
The bomb struck the sails.
Boom—!
The explosion tore through them, shredding the canvas as flames and smoke spread outward across the mast.
Still holding Bogard firmly by the shoulder, Garp used moonwalk, one of the six powers and returned to the deck in an instant, landing safely his laughter echoed across the deck.
"Whahahaha…!" he laughed more amused than angered.
"He can manipulate both living and non-living things, heal himself and maybe others too, on top of already using Armament and Observation Haki…" Garp muttered, piecing it together as his eyes scanned the horizon where Leo had vanished.
His grin widened.
"Don't think you can escape that easily, brat."
"You lot treat his injuries."
Garp handed Bogard over to the nearby Marines for treatment before turning his gaze toward the calm sea ahead, where Leo had already vanished.
"Vice Admiral Garp, our sails are destroyed, I don't think we can pursue him like this," one of the officers reported, still staring in the direction where the strange shark-like vessel had disappeared.
"You guys stay here and repair the ship," he said casually.
"I'll catch that kid myself."
Before anyone could stop him, he tossed aside his Marine coat and shirt and leapt straight into the sea.
"Vice Admiral—?!"
***
"Good thing I upgraded my Shark Sub-Ski yesterday… but I didn't think I'd have to abandon everything so suddenly," Leo muttered, steering his Shark Sub-Ski into the direction of Loguetown.
"Damn you old man, i had to abandon half my treasure because of you, I will—Khrggg…" His words cut off.
"…What the hell?" Leo turned back to see the cause of disturbance and at first sight his blood ran cold.
Far behind him, cutting through the water at terrifying speed, was Garp—swimming?
Each kick of his legs sent massive waves crashing outward as he moved faster than Leo's boat, which was already pushing close to thirty miles per hour.
"Boom—!"
A shockwave created by his punch rippled through the water, striking the boat and shaking its entire structure.
"What the hell…? Isn't he afraid of the Sea Kings down here?!"
Gritting his teeth, Leo pushed his Devil Fruit ability to its limits and forced the vessel deeper, hoping the pressure and darkness would shake him off but Garp followed relentlessly.
Their disturbance quickly drew the attention of many sea kings.
From the depths below, three massive Sea Kings began to rise, drawn toward the chaos.
Adjusting the fins, Leo sharply redirected the vessel, slipping past them just as they surged upward, their group consisting of shark, cow and bull.
"Heh… serve you right, old man," Leo muttered, a hint of relief slipping into his voice.
The glass above him trembled, while the limited oxygen supply made prolonged submersion impossible, with no other choice, Leo pushed his ability to extreme and the vessel surged upward.
Breaking through the surface, it launched briefly into the air before crashing back down and accelerating across the sea, putting as much distance as possible between himself and the old monster.
Far in the distance, the Marine ship struggled to follow, crippled by the loss of its sails and unable to match his speed against the currents.
"I'll return this humiliation tenfold, Old man... Whatever your name is, you better remember me!"
Leo opened the glass above his small ship to refill some fresh air while shouting on top of his lungs looking back but running forward at full speed.
Then behind him three massive pillar of water erupted into the sky before settling back into the sea.
Moments later, the bodies of three Sea Kings surfaced, lifeless with no sign of Garp.
"What did you just say, you little brat?!" A presence appeared behind Leo without him even knowing it.
"Eh…?!"
Leo heard a voice behind him, and as he turned toward it, his eyes widened in shock, the words he had been about to say dying in his throat.
Before him stood Garp, a wide grin stretched across his face as if he had been enjoying the chase all along.
His fist coated in overwhelming Armament Haki while streaks of red lightning crackled around it, radiating a crushing pressure that forced instinctive fear and submission deep into Leo's bones.
For a brief moment, time seemed to slow between them, then the fist struck him and the world went dark.