Chapter 177: The Limit of Strength
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The thunderous explosions continued without pause, accompanied by brilliant arcs of silver lightning and towering columns of seawater erupting into the sky.
Rhodes maintained his relentless high-intensity assault, continuously unleashing silver flying slashes while simultaneously manipulating his lightning power to form gleaming spears that shot toward his opponent.
Garp, standing effortlessly in the air, met each attack with precise punches, obliterating everything that came his way.
In this head-on confrontation, Rhodes truly experienced the terrifying might of the naval hero firsthand.
Garp's attacks were incredibly consistent, with almost no variation in power. Every movement radiated overwhelming force, yet executed with machine-like precision.
Through his Observation Haki, Rhodes perceived something extraordinary—Garp's Armament Haki no longer simply coated his body like armor. Instead, it seemed to permeate every fiber of his being, flowing through muscle and bone alike. This dramatically enhanced his defense while making his entire body a unified, flawless weapon.
Garp's Observation Haki was equally masterful, operating at near-peak levels. No matter how Rhodes enhanced his speed with lightning, Garp reacted effortlessly, repelling each strike with a single well-placed punch.
"Not bad, very good!"
Garp swung his fists, shattering incoming sword energy with booming laughter. "Any more tricks up your sleeve?"
It seemed he hadn't exercised like this in ages. The fight had warmed him up nicely, leaving both mind and body refreshed.
"Hai... one more."
Feeling his stamina rapidly depleting, Rhodes took a deep breath and slowly tightened his grip on the cursed blade's hilt. Wisps of silver lightning crackled and danced along Spectre's edge, imbuing the supremely sharp weapon with even greater cutting power.
Bzzzzt!
Simultaneously, lightning energy permeated his entire body, generating a subtle yet immense driving force within his muscles.
Rhodes's eyes gleamed. Compared to previous attempts, the propulsive force generated this time was clearly stronger—his control had improved.
He stomped down lightly.
"BOOM!"
It was as if heaven and earth split apart.
The entire sea surface was instantly crushed by invisible force, creating a massive crater over ten meters deep. A torrential spray of water erupted, crashing violently against the distant shore.
Rhodes, meanwhile, was launched forward like a human cannonball.
CRACK!
The very air was pierced in that instant. A white vapor cone spread outward in all directions as the sound barrier shattered. Before the thunderclap could even register, Rhodes had vanished from his starting position.
This was the ultimate technique of the Dragon Slayer Swordsman.
A single strike that broke the sound barrier!
To date, two pirates had already fallen to this blade—Don Chinjao and Corazon's brother.
Watching this display, even Garp's expression grew serious, his eyes focusing intently.
WHOOSH!
In less than a heartbeat, Rhodes—trailing a white shockwave—crossed hundreds of meters, rushed to Garp's position, and swung his blade upward in a devastating arc.
This strike represented the culmination of everything he'd learned—his swordsmanship, speed, Armament Haki, and lightning power pushed to their absolute limits.
And facing this ultimate blow...
Garp delivered another punch—but this one was different. He'd charged it, gathering power for a full second before release, making it even more devastating than his standard full-strength strikes.
HMMMM!
When fist met blade, the air itself seemed to freeze for an instant—then suddenly exploded outward in a catastrophic shockwave that rippled across hundreds of meters.
The clash between the two warriors was like colliding meteorites, earth-shaking and echoing for miles around.
The sound was so massive it transcended normal hearing.
Lightning arcs blazed across the sky in chaotic patterns.
Beneath Rhodes and Garp, a chasm tens of meters deep suddenly ripped through the ocean, spreading outward in both directions like a massive wound carved into the sea itself.
Amid raging winds and towering waves, the terrifying shockwave reached even Scrap Island, sending debris flying and forcing spectators to retreat in terror, shielding their faces from the blast.
After what felt like an eternity, the commotion finally subsided.
The vast scrap yard looked as if it had been baptized by Aqua Laguna all over again—a scene of utter chaos with cracks everywhere, leaving everyone stunned speechless.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield...
The surging waves hadn't yet settled. Rhodes, sword still in hand, barely maintained his Geppo, hovering unsteadily. His body bore no visible injuries, but exhaustion was written across every feature.
Across from him, Garp remained completely unscathed.
However, the way Garp looked at Rhodes had changed—his expression filled with genuine surprise and shock.
He'd sensed the gravity of that final blow, which was why he'd charged his punch, gathering power for an unprecedented moment before unleashing it.
Yet in the end, Rhodes had blocked it, only being pushed back half a step!
In other words—
Rhodes's ultimate strike was only marginally weaker than Garp's charged punch!
While it might seem somewhat one-sided—Rhodes's strongest attack merely matching Garp's power—the significance couldn't be understated.
Who was Garp, after all?
The naval hero. Iron Fist Garp. One of the absolute strongest beings in the world!
His charged punch would knock back even Admirals like Aokiji or Akainu several steps, sometimes even sending them flying through the air.
Yet this young man, Rhodes, had only suffered a minor displacement from a direct collision!
How could this not shock the naval legend?
"It seems Sengoku and I seriously underestimated this Dragon Slayer..."
The thought flashed through Garp's mind. He and Sengoku had initially considered using this newly appointed Warlord to improve the Shichibukai system's reputation and effectiveness. They'd never imagined the true magnitude of this young man's potential—at best, they'd figured he'd eventually reach Admiral level.
But after experiencing Rhodes's strength personally, Garp realized this young man's future potential far exceeded that of a typical Marine Admiral.
"With such extraordinary talent and strength, plus such a respectful and disciplined personality... If Sengoku saw this firsthand, he'd probably do anything to recruit him into the Marines."
"Even I'm a bit tempted to take him as a student."
Garp's eyes flickered as he thought of his old comrade-in-arms. The few disciples he himself had trained over the years had either become pirates or joined the Revolutionary Army—a source of considerable frustration for the old man. Seeing Rhodes, a young warrior with the right temperament, inevitably sparked some interest.
Meanwhile, Rhodes had already used Geppo to make his way back to Scrap Island.
"I blocked it!"
Landing on solid ground, he finally allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief, muttering with barely contained excitement.
That final collision had been peak performance—so explosive and rapid that even his muscles were strained to varying degrees, protesting the abuse.
In the end, regarding pure attack power, he and Garp had been roughly evenly matched. He'd only lost by a narrow margin.
This clash gave Rhodes a clearer understanding of his current strength level.
A full-power attack—employing all his abilities, disregarding potential injuries and exhaustion, achieving supersonic speed—was undoubtedly comparable to a Marine Admiral in terms of offensive power. It might even surpass the average Admiral.
His speed was also impressive. Perhaps not quite matching that monster Garp, but certainly not inferior to an Admiral's combat speed—possibly exceeding it in short bursts.
As for defense... that was merely average. Or rather, abysmal. If Garp landed a clean hit on him, he'd likely be crushed with a single punch.
Even though he could block Garp's punch with a full-strength sword strike, the next instant would bring a kick that would send him flying, followed by a relentless barrage of punches.
There was no telling how many full-power strikes Garp could throw consecutively, but Rhodes was certain the old man could overwhelm him through sheer endurance and technique.
Garp's taijutsu and Armament Haki were both mastered to the highest conceivable levels—truly terrifying.
There was simply no debate. At close range, fighting Garp meant getting hammered relentlessly.
Garp possessed a perfect balance of offense and defense, with virtually no exploitable weaknesses.
Whitebeard, the World's Strongest Man, likely surpassed Garp in raw offensive power, but his defense was undoubtedly inferior—age and injuries had taken their toll.
Kaido, the King of Beasts, boasted near-immortality, likely excelling in recovery and defense, but his offensive power couldn't quite match Garp's refined mastery.
While Rhodes couldn't currently match these absolute monsters at the peak of the world's power, he should be able to hold his own against the current three Admirals—Aokiji, Kizaru, and Akainu—who all relied heavily on their Logia Devil Fruit abilities.
"If I can improve my Armament Haki and physical conditioning a bit more, I should have a real chance of winning..."
Rhodes's eyes gleamed with determination. This was his first time battling a peak-level warrior, and the experience he'd gathered was invaluable.
He could feel the path forward becoming clearer.
(End of Chapter)
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