"However, this power is worth a try." Roy's eyes suddenly began spinning wildly, and a vast energy instantly coalesced around him.
In the next moment, a golden-armored giant abruptly appeared before everyone's eyes—that was Roy's Susanoo, one of the formidable powers he possessed.
"But I prefer to call him the Giant of Light." Roy's voice rang out clearly amidst the thunderous roar.
Now, the towering Giant of Light stood upon the small island, as if even the heavens and the earth trembled beneath its oppressive might.
The sky seemed to tear apart, revealing a brilliant golden radiance.
Roy hovered at the center of the Giant of Light and threw a punch downward, splitting the heavens and cracking the earth, sending the entire island into convulsions.
Garp, however, grew even more excited.
"Galaxy Impact!" With an earth-shattering roar, Garp gathered all his strength and unleashed a punch, the force howling like a cascading galaxy.
This punch was not merely Garp's ultimate expression of power but also his pursuit of it.
Where the force passed, space itself seemed to tear, the air screeched sharply from violent oscillations, and the entire island quaked under the sheer pressure of the blow.
Seeing this, Roy couldn't help but inwardly marvel, "Garp's power is truly formidable."
Even as he launched his attack, he carefully felt the oppressive force of Garp's punch.
The mighty fist of the Giant of Light clashed mid-air with Garp's iron fist, like a falling star colliding with another, two immense powers meeting and crashing together.
In that moment, the sky was torn asunder, and the earth trembled.
"Fantastic! Fantastic!" Garp roared with excitement, his face alight with the wild joy of battle, throwing punch after punch, putting all his strength into each exchange with the Giant of Light.
After several exchanges, Roy couldn't help but feel a trace of surprise.
In this state, Garp had reached the peak of his power, and even the formidable defense and strength of the Giant of Light seemed strained in his presence.
"If I don't use other powers, relying solely on the Giant of Light might not be enough to take down Garp."
Roy was inwardly startled, but fortunately, he possessed more than just the Giant of Light.
A confident smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
His eyes spun wildly, and the power of the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan activated in full.
Within those eyes lay endless mysteries and might.
Garp suddenly felt his body freeze, as if bound by some invisible force.
At that moment, the Giant of Light's enormous fist accelerated instantly under the influence of the Moment of Finality, erupting with devastating force.
"Boom!"
A deafening crash rang out. Garp, relying on his incredibly tough physique, managed to withstand the blow, but his expression grew extremely grave in an instant.
Roy keenly perceived that Garp's stamina had plummeted drastically under that strike, unable to maintain its previous stability.
Finally, under the continuous acceleration of the Moment of Finality, the Giant of Light's massive fists repeatedly crashed down, forcibly overwhelming Garp.
Garp's body traced an arc through the air before crashing heavily to the ground, dust billowing, the entire island trembling at that moment.
The battle concluded with Roy's overwhelming victory.
At that moment, his figure seemed especially towering, as if he held the fate of the seas in his hands.
In the distance, Momonga, Yamakaji, and the others were utterly stunned.
Their eyes held both shock and awe, for in that instant, they witnessed a new dawn quietly rising.
"Vice Admiral Garp has indeed lost," Momonga murmured, his voice tinged with disbelief and profound shock.
"How powerful is Admiral Kizaru?" Yamakaji marveled as well, his eyes shining with boundless reverence and anticipation for Roy.
"A new era is likely approaching."
They discussed among themselves, glimpsing infinite possibilities in the future. The Marines were truly on the verge of rising.
...
Atop Marine Headquarters in Marineford, inside the Fleet Admiral's office, Fleet Admiral Sengoku was engaged in a deep discussion with Akainu.
Their target was clearly the Whitebeard Pirates.
And apparently, the most suitable person for the task was Akainu, with his hardline stance against pirates.
"We must take action; we cannot allow the pirates' arrogance to spread further."
Just as their discussion was heating up, the sound of hurried footsteps interrupted them.
A Marine soldier rushed in, holding an encrypted intelligence report.
Sengoku took the report, quickly skimmed through it, and his expression instantly froze.
"Garp… sparred with Roy, and Garp actually lost?"
Akainu's perpetually calm expression betrayed a hint of surprise upon hearing this.
Garp, hailed as the "Hero of the Marines," had his immense strength long celebrated within the Marines and throughout the pirate world.
Even the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, had never been able to defeat Garp in direct combat.
Now, Garp had lost to Roy?
"Truly incredible," Sengoku murmured, his gaze growing profound as if contemplating deeper implications.
The clash between Garp and Roy was far more than a simple matter of victory or defeat.
Judging from the battle details described in the report, the strength Roy had displayed far exceeded Sengoku's previous estimates of his abilities.
"Roy… his strength may be beyond imagination," Sengoku thought, beginning to reassess the young admiral, realizing his prior judgment might have been too narrow.
Though Roy was young, his rapid growth and immense potential compelled a reevaluation of the Marines' future structure.
Admiral Akainu likewise sank into deep thought.
Roy's rapid growth had indeed exceeded his expectations.
As the youngest admiral in the Marines, Roy had always faced external doubts, with many considering him the weakest of the three admirals.
Yet now, Akainu had to reassess his young colleague's strength.
"It seems we all underestimated him," Akainu's voice rang out.
Although he did not appreciate Garp's character, Akainu had never doubted Garp's strength.
In Akainu's view, even for himself, defeating Garp in a one-on-one direct confrontation would be no easy feat.
This realization made the fact that Roy had defeated Garp both surprising and exhilarating.
A faint, barely perceptible smile appeared on Akainu's face—a smile born of the desire for victory.
To completely expel pirates from the world and achieve his justice and ideals, he had to become Fleet Admiral, stand at the pinnacle of power, and lead the Marines into the future.
And Aokiji, his old rival with opposing ideals, was undoubtedly his greatest competitor on the path to the Fleet Admiral's seat.
Now, it seemed Roy would have to be added to that list.
"That's fine," Akainu mused to himself. "Competition will truly prove that I am the one most suited for the position of Fleet Admiral."
He silently resolved to grow ever stronger, to remain undefeated in the coming competition and secure the Fleet Admiral's seat.
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