Faced with the roaring stone lions, Garp didn't even shift his stance. He simply took a casual step forward and threw a simple punch directly at the gaping mouth of the closest beast.
"Bang!"
A dull, heart-stopping thud echoed across the plaza.
The stone lion, massive enough to crush a warship, was instantly covered in a web of cracks that started from its head. The fractures spread across its entire body in a split second, and then, with a deafening crash, the entire creature disintegrated. It exploded into a cloud of rubble and dust that was quickly scattered by the powerful wind.
On the other side, Sengoku pushed his hands forward. A golden, circular shockwave shot out from his palms, expanding rapidly as it flew and precisely enveloping the other stone lions. The roaring beasts seemed to crash against an invisible wall, their movements freezing instantly. Then, under the immense, unseen force, they crumbled inch by inch amidst violent tremors.
"Zehahaha! Just what I'd expect from you two!" Shiki laughed instead of growing angry. He shot into the air, his twin swords glowing with a fierce Haki, and charged toward them. "Now this is getting interesting!"
"Lion: Rend Valley!"
His swords moved in a blur, creating an inescapable net of slashes that flew toward both Garp and Sengoku at the same time.
"Don't look down on us, Shiki!"
Garp leaped forward to meet the attack, his fists blackened with an extreme level of Armament Haki. At the same time, Sengoku's body began to swell and shine with a brilliant golden light as he transformed into a giant, golden Buddha.
Boom! Boom! Rumble—!
The three legendary figures clashed in the most primitive and savage battle right in the center of Marineford's main plaza. Each impact of a fist against a blade created an ear-splitting roar. Shockwaves and stray sword slashes spread out in every direction, carving deep, bottomless trenches into the already shattered ground. The surrounding buildings looked as if they had been chewed on by some giant beast, their walls cracking and collapsing one after another.
The other Marine officers were completely unable to join the fight. They could only work desperately to evacuate the surviving soldiers from the area while forming a defensive line to block the destructive aftermath of the battle.
"Is this... the battlefield of legends?" a young Rear Admiral muttered in horror, struggling to stay on his feet against the surging air currents. Just standing at a distance made him feel like his internal organs were trembling.
"All personnel below the rank of Vice Admiral, retreat immediately! This is not a battle you can participate in!" Vice Admiral Tsuru commanded calmly. Her eyes were fixed on the three blurry figures at the center of the storm, her expression grim. The intensity of this fight was beyond anything anyone had imagined.
As they fought, the rain falling from the sky suddenly grew heavier. What started as a drizzle instantly became a torrential downpour. Large raindrops hammered the broken plaza, splashing up murky water that mixed with the blood on the ground. The strong wind whipped the rain into a thick curtain, blurring the outlines of the entire world.
"Zehahaha!" Shiki floated in the downpour, his twin swords spinning so fast they created a shield that kept the rain from touching him. "This is the perfect stage to send off legends like us! Garp, Sengoku, let this storm bring an end to your era!"
Before he even finished speaking, his body spun like a top. Two massive flying slashes, carrying the force of wind and thunder, shot out and swept toward the two men from opposite sides.
The golden Buddha that Sengoku had become was solemn and dignified. Facing the incoming attack, he simply raised one hand.
"Impact Wave!"
A golden halo of energy spread from his palm, shattering one of the slashes in mid-air.
The other slash, however, was met head-on by Garp.
"Fist Bone!"
There were no flashy moves, just a single, straightforward punch covered in pitch-black Haki.
Boom!
The clash between the sword slash and the punch created a massive empty space in the surrounding curtain of rain, and countless raindrops instantly evaporated into a vast cloud of white mist.
"Rumble!"
A pale bolt of lightning tore through the sky, illuminating the three men, making them look like gods or demons. A deafening clap of thunder followed, as if the sky itself was trembling from their battle. The wind howled, the rain poured, and the thunder roared. All of Marineford seemed to have been dragged into a scene from the apocalypse.
However, the truly unsettling thing was the seawater in the harbor. The sea, which had only been disturbed by the shockwaves from the battle, was now churning violently as if stirred by an invisible giant's hand. Waves several meters high rose without warning, crashing against the harbor's breakwater with earth-shaking roars. The warships anchored there swayed wildly like leaves in a storm, their mooring lines groaning as if they might snap at any moment.
"What's going on? The current... it's completely messed up!" a Marine Colonel on watch duty shouted in horror as he looked at the bizarre sea. This was not a natural phenomenon. This sea seemed to have a will of its own, and it was roaring with anger.
While everyone's attention was split between this strange event and the battle in the plaza, a lone Marine soldier in a high lookout tower rubbed his eyes, thinking he had seen something impossible. He raised his binoculars and aimed them at the entrance of the turbulent bay. The lens shook violently in his hands, and the pouring rain blurred his vision.
But he saw it.
On the boiling, pitch-black sea, a figure was slowly walking.
The raging waves beneath his feet miraculously grew calm. With each step he took, the surface of the water would solidify into a firm step, supporting his weight as he moved forward. As soon as his foot lifted, the step would quietly dissolve back into the surging waves. The furious waves around him, powerful enough to capsize a warship, would strangely part as he approached, creating a perfectly still path for him.
He strolled through the gale-force winds, crossed the raging waves, and ignored the roaring thunder, walking step by step toward the fortress that had been plunged into chaos and war.
"Crack!"
Another bolt of lightning tore through the dim sky. The momentary flash of light allowed everyone to see the figure clearly.
He carried a black-and-gold naginata on his back and wore a simple black trench coat. His figure was tall and straight, and his face was without expression. Only his golden eyes, shining brightly under the dark, lightning-streaked sky, held a terrifying intensity.
----------------
You can read advanced chapters here: patreon.com/GregariousLion