"So should I thank you for having so much faith in me?" Rosinante said with a faint smile after hearing Sakazuki's words.
"If you want to thank me, then let me melt you down with magma," Sakazuki said coldly.
As he spoke, an overwhelming force erupted from Sakazuki's fist, and the sheer power pushed Rosinante several steps backward.
"Compared to ten years ago, your strength has weakened a lot. As expected, after lying in bed for ten years, even someone like you would suffer a major decline in physical condition," Sakazuki sneered when he saw Rosinante being forced back.
And in truth, that much was correct.
After lying in bed for ten years, Rosinante's body had indeed weakened significantly.
If not for the fact that he had trained the King's Fist and used it to specially strengthen his body, he might not even have retained Admiral-level strength by now.
But at this moment, the power in Rosinante's hand was not weaker than it had been ten years ago.
In fact, after using sage power, his raw strength now even surpassed what it had been back then.
The reason Sakazuki thought Rosinante had become weaker was simple:
Sakazuki himself had become much stronger.
After all, Sakazuki had already stepped into the realm of a peak Admiral.
In terms of pure physical power, he naturally far surpassed Rosinante as he was now.
"You really are like a raging bull. In these ten years, your brute strength has definitely grown. But battle isn't decided by strength alone. And besides... you seem to have misunderstood something. I was never known for my strength in the first place," Rosinante said calmly.
Rosinante's physical strength was never particularly outstanding.
If it were a pure contest of strength, then among fighters at the same level, he would actually lose to monsters like Jack, who specialized in raw power.
But Rosinante's attacks had never relied on strength alone.
They were built on explosive impact.
And while speaking, Rosinante had already thrown a punch at Sakazuki.
Seeing Rosinante punch, Sakazuki gave a cold smile and threw a punch of his own.
Having just overpowered Rosinante in raw strength, his confidence had soared.
He truly believed that with his current power, he was finally qualified to fight Rosinante head-on.
And Sakazuki did have reason to be confident.
He had already reached the peak of this world, the level of a peak Admiral.
Even Whitebeard, hailed as the strongest man in the world, had not surpassed the realm of a peak Admiral.
So even if his combat power was still slightly below Rosinante's, he was absolutely capable of fighting him.
And besides, the victor of battle was never truly decided until the very end.
Bang!
The two fists collided.
The air itself shattered like glass.
Cracks spread wildly outward, extending from the point of impact, then crawling over Sakazuki's arm... and then across his entire body.
For a moment, it looked as though Sakazuki had been struck into pieces.
Pfft!
A mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips as his body was blasted backward.
Whoosh!
A figure appeared in the path of Sakazuki's flight and caught him.
"Well now... are you alright? The fight's barely started. It'd be troublesome if we lost another Admiral on our side already," the newcomer said lazily.
The force carried on Sakazuki's body shoved the newcomer backward by about a meter before he finally came to a stop.
The one who had caught him was none other than Aokiji, Kuzan.
"Damn you, Rosinante. It's true that your physical strength has weakened, but your actual combat power has increased instead. That Shattering Fist Combo of yours is far stronger than it was ten years ago, not just by a little!" Sakazuki said as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Even though that punch had sent him flying and coughing blood, the terrifying recovery ability of a peak Admiral allowed him to recover most of the damage almost immediately.
"Admirals really are troublesome. Your hides are way too thick," Rosinante said with a smile.
If this had been the ninja world, a punch like that would have heavily wounded even a Kage-level fighter and crippled most of their combat power.
But against Sakazuki?
It was little more than making him cough up some blood.
It hardly affected his ability to keep fighting.
"I'm actually curious," a voice suddenly said.
"You've weakened this much... can you still use your Devil Fruit awakening?"
At that moment, Borsalino suddenly appeared behind Rosinante and kicked toward the back of his head, his leg wrapped in light.
Lightspeed Kick.
That kick was so fast it was almost impossible to comprehend.
There was barely even a sense of time passing before it landed.
Rosinante was instantly blasted away.
Now this was what a true Lightspeed Kick looked like.
It was like an actual beam of light.
"Your Majesty!" Bins shouted, his expression changing in shock.
"Hm? How strange. That felt a little off. It doesn't quite feel like I really hit him... am I imagining things?" Borsalino said, looking puzzled.
Just then, the Rosinante who had been kicked away exploded with a bang and turned into a chunk of wood that fell to the ground.
"What a strange technique. Is this a new ability you developed?" Borsalino asked, turning toward another direction.
"This isn't something I developed. I only learned it from somewhere else. Substitution Jutsu. Ever heard of ninjutsu?" Rosinante said as he stepped out from that direction.
"Ninjutsu? The techniques used by the ninjas of Wano?" Borsalino asked.
"There may be... some differences," Rosinante replied calmly.
"Then let me see just how different it is. Yasakani no Magatama!"
In an instant, countless beams of light shot toward Rosinante.
"That light is a bit too dazzling. It's hurting my eyes."
At that moment, Rosinante clenched his hand, and a purple blade of light appeared in his grasp.
With a single swing of his sword, calm and effortless, the endless barrage of light vanished without a trace.
"Your power is still just as unreasonable as ever," Borsalino said, his face full of helplessness.
"So after your little tests, are you finally ready to gang up on me? Three Marine Admirals... and one Army Admiral?" Rosinante said as he calmly swept his gaze around.
At some point, Akainu, Aokiji, Purple Steed, and Kizaru had already formed a tight encirclement around Rosinante.
And beyond them, Sengoku, Garp, and the others were also watching him like hawks, looking ready to strike at any moment.