"Hahahaha... Well, there's no helping it!"
Garp laughed heartily and shouted toward Ace: "No choice then! In that case, Ace, your grandpa will avenge you!"
"Nani?!"
Nami, Bonney, and Deuce all widened their eyes in shock.
Deuce looked dumbfounded: "Is that old man really your grandfather?"
"..."
Ace's face darkened, at a loss for words.
"Hahaha, couldn't keep up the act, huh?"
Caesar released Ace: "Hey, Kuzan, you're the one in charge of this operation, right? Given our relationship—"
"Ah, la la..."
Kuzan hurriedly interrupted Caesar: "I have no connection with a dangerous criminal threatening the sea's order like you. Let's skip the pleasantries!"
"Nani?"
Caesar looked stunned: "But you clearly—"
"Ice Ball!"
Whoosh—
Before Caesar could finish, a blue energy sphere shot toward him at high speed, seemingly aiming to freeze his mouth shut.
Kuma silently removed his glove and swatted the sphere away.
Duang~
The sphere deformed against his Paw Pad before ricocheting toward Garp's battleship, instantly freezing both the vessel and the surrounding hundred meters of ocean solid!
"Uh..."
The group on deck froze momentarily before their faces began twitching uncontrollably.
"You two..."
Momousagi facepalmed in exasperation: "Are you seriously not putting on an act for me?"
"Ah la la, I didn't expect that either."
Kuzan was equally surprised—he never imagined Kuma would deflect his freezing attack right back at them!
You can even deflect this?!
Though he'd prefer to let them go, capturing Nico Robin was the Five Elders' direct order. Letting them escape without resistance would be unacceptable—he had to at least exchange a few moves.
Reluctantly, he launched several Ice Balls, freezing the surrounding waters completely.
"Whoa! Amazing!"
Ace marveled at the spectacle: "Devil Fruit users? Seems way stronger than Luffy's rubber powers!"
"Is now really the time to be impressed?!"
Nami panicked: "If the ship's frozen, we can't escape!"
"Hmm... This is troublesome."
Caesar rubbed his chin thoughtfully: "We're facing two Admiral-level combatants here."
"Two Admirals?"
Nami glanced at Bogard and Momousagi: "One of them is an Admiral?"
"No, I meant Garp."
Caesar shook his head: "That old man refused promotions out of laziness. In terms of strength, even Kuzan was trained by him..."
"Really?"
Nami nodded, seemingly reaching a decision, then cupped her hands to shout across: "Hey! I'm their hostage too!"
As if anticipating disbelief, she pulled Bonney into a tight embrace.
"We're both hostages here! There's even a child! Can't you let us go? Aren't you the Navy's hero?!"
"Oh? The girl from Cocoyasi Village?"
Garp recognized her instantly and grinned: "Sorry, you poor little things! How about you sleep with the fishes instead?!"
"Eh?!"
Nami and Bonney wore expressions of disbelief, as if unable to accept that someone as adorable as them could be treated this way.
"Heartless creature!"
"Violent old man!"
"Yahahaha!"
Garp grinned widely, showing no trace of tension despite the impending battle.
If anything, he was certain that even if their group went all out, they wouldn't be able to take down the opposition.
As for his troublesome grandson, he was probably lured onto the ship by Caesar—no need to even mention Nami's connection to Caesar.
Orders from the Five Elders?
You issue your commands, I'll go easy—everyone minds their own business, no conflict here!
"This won't do."
Momousagi sighed helplessly, drawing Kimpira from her waist and launching forward with a boom using Moon Walk.
Clang—
A dazzling slash shot toward the opposing ship.
Seeing this, Kuma stepped forward and raised his hand, giving a light push.
Pop!
The slash abruptly reversed course, curving back toward the dog-headed prow of Garp's warship.
"Still too impatient, Gion girl."
Garp chuckled, leaping into the air and shattering the slash with a single punch!
"He can even deflect Haki?"
Gion frowned slightly. "Tch, what a pain."
"The real pain hasn't even made a move yet."
Garp bared his teeth in a grin, his gaze shifting to Caesar on the opposite side. "Hey, Caesar brat, it's been a while. How about a little spar with this old man?"
"How about we skip the fight?"
Caesar leaned against the railing. "At your age, shouldn't you be at home babysitting your grandson? Or else you might find your other grandson sneaking off to become a Pirate too!"
"Yahahaha, that mouth of yours is still as punchable as ever!"
With that, the old man whooshed forward, kicking off the air twice with Moon Walk. His right fist darkened, then turned crimson, before glowing with a dangerous surge of energy—his terrifying Haki-clad fist smashing through the air toward Caesar's ship!
"Guess we'll talk after we fight!"
"Eek! That's—"
Watching Garp's movements, Nami's eyelids twitched violently.
She remembered all too clearly—Arlong's Fish-men Park had been obliterated by this very move!
Ace, too, stared in shock at the burly figure charging through the air.
This was the first time he'd seen the old man fight so seriously!
The sheer oppressive aura made his hair stand on end, even from this distance!
"Fist Bone—Impact!!"
"Fist Bone—Impact!!"
The black figure suddenly shot higher into the sky, his fist compressing Conqueror's Haki to its limits before unleashing a devastating blow!
Hm?
Copying?
Garp narrowed his eyes, slightly surprised by Caesar's punch. Though not identical, the principle was clearly similar.
BOOM—
Two fists collided mid-air, their overwhelming Haki erupting in a cataclysmic clash!
The terrifying shockwaves compressed the surrounding air to its limits!
Below, the ice shattered into a massive spiderweb crater before exploding entirely, seawater surging inward and erupting into a monstrous wave over ten meters high!
"Ah!"
"Waaah!"
On the deck, Nami and Bonney were instantly knocked flat by the overwhelming force, the two figures tumbling into a tangled heap.
Ace gaped at the two figures clashing in the sky, finally realizing just how terrifying his old man's strength was!
And if Caesar could go toe-to-toe with him at that level, there was no question—his power far surpassed Ace's current abilities. Compared to this, their earlier scuffle had just been Caesar playing around with him!
"Ara ara, that old man is still as reckless as ever."
Kuzan stretched his shoulders. "But since that's the case, I can't keep slacking off. Leaving an old man to fight alone wouldn't be right…"
As he spoke, he casually tossed aside his suit jacket and leaped high into the air.
"Ice Block - Two-Spiked Spear!"
Whoosh—
Two ice spears shot toward Caesar, who was locked in combat with Garp.
Kuma was about to move when a white blur suddenly dashed past him. Noticing the figure, Kuma halted his action.
Boom—
A surge of Conqueror's Haki erupted violently, black and red lightning crackling through the air.
Bare feet stomped heavily on the deck before leaping up, transforming into fluffy white canine paws mid-air.
"Thunderous Roar - Eight Trigrams!"
A pitch-black spiked club swung out, shattering the ice spears into a shower of glittering crystals.
Kuzan's eyes flickered with surprise as he took in the white-haired wolf girl, her body wreathed in freezing Flame Clouds.
The two landed on the frozen sea, their chilling auras spreading simultaneously and encasing the ocean in ice.
Noticing Yamato's ability, Kuzan rubbed his forehead in exasperation. "Ara ara, a Mythical Zoan? And one that overlaps with my powers… What a pain."
Yamato stood boldly opposite Kuzan, pointing her spiked club at him. "Who the hell are you, old man?"
"Old man, huh…"
Kuzan sighed. "I guess I've reached the age where people call me that… I'm Marine Admiral Kuzan, here to arrest you all. Though we've met before—you were building a snowman in the yard at the time."
"Don't remember."
"..."
Kuzan scratched his head. "May I ask your name, miss?"
"I'm Yamato!"
She hoisted her spiked club onto her shoulder. "And I'm Caesar's girlfriend!"
"Girlfriend?"
Recalling Caesar's way with women, Kuzan sighed again. "What an enviable bastard…"
Yamato eyed him suspiciously. "I'm warning you—don't get any ideas about Caesar! He likes women!"
"Hold on, hold on! I wasn't envious of you!"
Kuzan felt another headache coming on, wondering why he always ended up dealing with such eccentric people.
Whoosh—whoosh—
Two more figures landed on the ice—Momousagi and Bogard—charging straight toward the enemy ship.
Suddenly, several Air Cannons shot toward them at blinding speed. Sensing the danger, Momousagi and Bogard scattered, leaving deep paw-shaped craters in the ice where they had stood.
In the next instant, Kuma appeared on the ice as if teleporting, his massive frame blocking their path like a small mountain.
On the ship's railing behind them, Baby 5's right arm transformed into six rotating gun barrels, aimed squarely at the two.
"We won't be handing Robin over to you."
"Tch, what a hassle…"
Garp landed on the ice, grinning as he looked up at Caesar hovering in the sky on black wings.
"He can even fly! That's just unfair!"
"The sea doesn't give you evenly matched opponents, Vice Admiral Garp."
Caesar chuckled. Those were King's words to him once—seemed the guy had a point!
Clang—
A black sword slash flashed before Garp in an instant.
Garp's eyelids twitched as he punched the slash head-on.
With a deafening boom, Garp staggered back a few steps, his gaze locking onto the sword in Caesar's hand.
"Damn fast slash! What a sneaky blade! Is that a Supreme Grade Sword?"
"Undoubtedly a Supreme Grade Sword, though unfortunately it remains unranked to this day."
Caesar flicked the blade with a flourish. "To be honest, I'd love nothing more than a good fight with you. But my crew's rookies aren't quite up to par yet. Would Vice Admiral Garp be willing to make an exception?"
"Yahahaha! Of course not!"
Garp roared with laughter. "This old man came specifically to gauge your strength! If we retreat now, there won't be another chance! Without direct orders, even I can't just pick fights with an Emperor's crew!"
"You flatter me..."
Caesar caught Garp's implication—this Navy assault was merely a probe. Retrieving Robin would be ideal, but even if they failed, they needed to assess Caesar's capabilities for future countermeasures.
"I'm no pirate, you know."
"True. You're a hundred times more dangerous than any pirate..."
As Garp spoke, he crouched low, ice cracking beneath his feet before he rocketed toward Caesar again.
Yet Caesar flashed forward simultaneously to meet him.
"Fist Bone...Impact!"
"One-Sword Style...Meteor Fall!"
Whoosh—
The blade split the air, trailing searing flames as Caesar descended like a shooting star in a straight-line charge.
BOOM!
A terrifying shockwave erupted as steel met fist midair. Tremors ran up the sword from the colossal impact, making the blade quiver.
"Not bad, kid..."
Garp grinned fiercely, his right fist trembling slightly.
Caesar smirked. "You're the impressive one—maintaining this strength at your age? Scary~"
CRACK!
The air shattered as both combatants recoiled.
Garp halted his momentum with Moon Walk, then drew both fists to his sides, baring his teeth at Caesar.
"Fist Bone Storm!"
BOOMBOOMBOOM!
A barrage of sonic booms erupted as countless fist-shaped shockwaves rained down like a tempest.
Caesar's sword became a blur, matching each punch with a slash of equal force without yielding ground.
Suddenly, he leveled his blade horizontally before unleashing a single slash—a black arc hundreds of meters long that seemingly bisected the world, reaching Garp in an instant.
CLANG!
Garp crossed his forearms, Haki turning them obsidian-black as he skidded backward a hundred meters, carving deep trenches into the ice.
"ORA!"
With a mighty heave, Garp deflected the slash skyward.
The monstrous attack split the clouds, leaving onlookers speechless.
"Hmph. That was one sharp slash..."
Garp chuckled nervously. Had that connected cleanly, he'd have been incapacitated instantly.
"He's already reached this level?"
Kuzan's jaw slackened. He'd suspected Caesar's Emperor-tier status might be exaggerated given his youth.
But now it was clear—the man stood at least on equal footing with him.
As Garp's protégé, Kuzan knew exactly when the old man held back. Though devoid of killing intent, Garp was fighting at 60-70% capacity.
Yet Caesar appeared equally unstrained—not even using his Devil Fruit ability beyond flight.
WHOOSH!
A pitch-black Spiked Club swept toward Kuzan, forcing his retreat.
Yamato frowned unhappily, hefting her Spiked Club. "You're actually distracted while fighting me? Don't look down on me, you bastard!"
"No, I take you very seriously."
Kuzan wore a helpless expression. His ice had no effect on this girl—it could only be used for physical attacks.
Yet her martial arts were absurdly strong, allowing her to fight him to a standstill!
Going toe-to-toe with a Marine Admiral in pure physical combat?
He suddenly recalled something a certain colleague had once said.
"Kids these days... every one of them is monstrously strong..."
"Of course!"
Yamato grinned, her smile brimming with energy. "I haven't gone hungry for a whole year now! I'm twice as strong as I was this time last year!"
"Gone hungry?"
Kuzan's eyelid twitched. "You're Kaidou's daughter, aren't you? You used to not have enough to eat?"
"Ah, that bastard Pops never gave me proper meals."
Just mentioning it made Yamato's face twist with indignation. "Luckily, I met Caesar!"
"Truly... unbelievable!"
Kuzan stared at the girl before him in astonishment. If she'd been properly fed since childhood, he couldn't even imagine what level of strength she'd possess now!
As he pondered this, a thunderous boom rang out.
Conqueror's Haki Infusion wrapped around the Spiked Club as Yamato's figure charged at him again.
His Observation Haki sensed the danger of this strike, and Kuzan's eyes sharpened.
There was still some gap, but one thing had become clear...
This newly formed crew could already be considered a force with two Emperor-level combatants!