The chaotic, noisy battlefield fell silent for a brief instant.
In the distance, Newgate's naginata, Murakumogiri, was already locked against Roger's Ace. Yet neither of them pressed forward at that moment, both staring in surprise at the submarine that had surfaced.
Up in the sky, Shiki held his twin swords, clearly about to unleash a slash—but now he too paused, confusion written across his face.
However, this sudden silence lasted only a fleeting moment.
The first to break it was the frozen World. He shattered the ice binding him and was just about to say something when the hatch atop the submarine burst open. Two figures shot out at incredible speed.
One of them expanded rapidly midair, radiating dazzling golden light. In an instant, he transformed into a gigantic Buddha and descended from the sky.
The other, his arms coated in black Armament Haki, used Soru repeatedly, darting at high speed straight into the ruins of Linderland Island.
At the same time, everyone present recognized them.
The golden Buddha in the sky was Marine Headquarters Admiral Sengoku.
And the imposing figure below, brimming with Haki, was another Admiral—Zephyr!
"Haaah!!!" Sengoku didn't bother with greetings. As he descended, he struck out with a palm.
From his palm, a condensed sphere of pure impact force rapidly formed, turning into a shockwave that directly engulfed both World and Valthior, who stood not far from him.
Seeing the shockwave about to crash down, Valthior immediately stopped trying to press World further. What kind of palm strike is this, falling from the sky!?
There was no time to dodge—the attack's range was too wide.
In an instant, Armament Haki surged across Valthior's body, coating him completely. As his entire body hardened, icy-blue frost erupted from beneath his feet, climbing rapidly upward. In the blink of an eye, it encased him entirely, forming a solid sphere of ice.
At the same time, World also coated his entire body in Haki and roared, "Marines!!!"
In the next moment, the shockwave engulfed both of them.
With a thunderous boom, Linderland Island shook like an earthquake. The overwhelming shockwave ravaged everything within its range. World's figure was the first to be blasted away, sent flying backward, his Haki destabilized.
Valthior's ice sphere shattered continuously, exploding into clouds of frost.
Yet somehow… inside the ice, Valthior didn't feel overwhelming pressure. It was as if Sengoku had held back against him?
Most of the force had been directed at World instead?
"Right… damn it, would the Marines really dare hit me? Even with orders from above, they wouldn't go all out like this, would they? Aren't they afraid I'll go back to Mary Geoise and make their lives hell?" Valthior instantly grasped the key point.
Sengoku was pulling his punches. Definitely!
And in truth, that was exactly the case—the one being truly targeted was World.
Sengoku's shockwave came fast and ended just as quickly. It blasted World away, leaving his Haki in disarray.
The Marines had always excelled at coordination. Zephyr, who had joined the Marines alongside Sengoku and fought beside him for years, becoming an Admiral at the same time, naturally had perfect synergy with him.
Before World could even hit the ground, Zephyr had already charged through the remnants of the shockwave and arrived right in front of him.
His fist was visibly pitch-black, gleaming as though polished with oil.
World knew full well how terrifying Zephyr was. Without wasting time on words, he forcibly gathered his disrupted Haki, preparing to block.
But he couldn't withstand it!
The moment World crossed his arms to guard, Zephyr's heavy punch slammed into them. In that instant, the clash of Haki between the two produced black lightning and rippling shockwaves.
But the struggle lasted less than a heartbeat—World's Haki collapsed.
With overwhelming force, Zephyr's punch drove through World's guard and smashed into his chest.
World's face twisted in agony, his mouth forced open as he spat out a mouthful of blood. His body was sent flying over a dozen meters before crashing violently into the ground. The force carried him further, rolling repeatedly and kicking up clouds of dust, only coming to a stop after over a hundred meters.
All of this—from Sengoku seizing control of the battlefield to Zephyr blasting World away—happened in the blink of an eye.
Inside his shattered ice sphere, Valthior watched Sengoku and Zephyr focus on World, becoming even more certain—Sengoku's earlier attack had merely enveloped him, not truly targeted him.
But just as he was about to fully settle into the thought of "The Marines wouldn't dare hit me", a sudden sense of danger surged in his heart.
The next second—
An overwhelming burst of Conqueror's Haki swept across the battlefield!
"Garp!!!" Roger, who had been clashing with Newgate, immediately spotted the figure bursting out of the sea, trailing waves behind him.
By habit, whenever Garp appeared, his first target was always Roger. So the moment Roger saw him, his instincts kicked in—he was ready to abandon Newgate and greet his "good buddy."
But then he realized something was off.
Garp wasn't even looking at him!?
He didn't spare him a single glance!?
No—this Conqueror's Haki was aimed at Valthior!?
Elsewhere, Rayleigh, who was working with Gaban to hold off Shiki, frowned and was about to turn back to support Valthior.
But before he could act, Gaban said, "Leave him. It's time Valthior experienced the cruelty of the New World."
Rayleigh immediately understood.
Though Garp's attack was wrapped in Conqueror's Haki, as if he intended to crush Valthior outright, considering his Marine status, there was no way he'd actually kill him.
From that perspective, wasn't this the perfect "New World trial" for Valthior?
Rather than stopping Garp, it was better to keep an eye on the other pirate heavyweights—after all, they were the ones who might truly kill Valthior.
Letting Garp properly "train" Valthior here might actually be a good thing.
These thoughts flashed through the minds of the top fighters in an instant, while Garp had already charged straight toward Valthior.
"Hahaha! Kid, weren't you pretty arrogant back in Alabasta!?" Garp laughed loudly midair.
Then his expression turned serious as he shouted:
"Galaxy Impact!!!"
A surging wave of Conqueror's Haki instantly enveloped Valthior. The following impact force crushed through his ice defenses as if they didn't exist, overwhelming him and slamming him violently into the ground of Linderland Island.
After a brief pause, the earth could no longer withstand the force—it collapsed violently. A massive, cracked fist-shaped imprint spanning hundreds of meters spread across the land, with a deep crater at its center.
Valthior lay at the bottom of that crater.
Deep within, he was sprawled out in a starfish position, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Every inch of his body screamed in pain—it felt like he'd just been run over by a truck used as a speed bump.
"…Bastard…" Valthior cursed through gritted teeth.
Dammit, I forgot the Marines still have this dog Garp!
He really is a specialized anti-Celestial Dragon weapon, isn't he!?
Then, his body began to expand. Silver-white fur, radiating frost, gradually spread across him.
..
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