Amidst heartfelt roars, the Dark King was forcibly dragged by Raleigh into the forest far from the battlefield.
Meanwhile, the crowd had nearly caught up to Rouge, with the closest person just two steps away.
His outstretched hand was about to grab the hem of Rouge's clothes.
The raised kitchen knife in his hand swung toward Rouge's back.
Clang!
The hard kitchen knife met an even harder object, the sharp blade shattering into two pieces.
Behind Rouge stood a robust figure.
He wasn't wearing his usual Marine suit and cloak but had changed into casual attire, making many momentarily unable to recognize him, though he looked familiar.
High above on the Ark Maxim, Sakazuki's eyes snapped open.
He hadn't expected Garp to appear here to take the Pirate King's wife away.
A look of fury toward the traitor crossed his face as he suppressed his rage.
"Enel, let's go down. Time to deal with this old fool who bites the hand that feeds him!"
Enel nodded, and the Ark Maxim descended with a roar from the sky.
...
"NO ONE CAN STOP OUR REVENGE!"
For a moment, countless blades, spears, and clubs rained down on Garp, but his body, tempered to perfection, was impervious to ordinary attacks.
While shielding Rouge, he retreated backward.
He couldn't strike the citizens of Darons Kingdom, nor could he abandon Rouge, so he endured the blows in silence.
"Great Eruption!"
A cold, merciless voice from the sky caught Garp's attention.
He looked up to see an enormous magmaball hurtling toward him and Rouge below.
"Be careful."
Garp hurled Rouge away, then flashed forward, his jet-black iron fist clashing against Sakazuki's crimson magma arm.
"Sakazuki, what're you doing?"
Sakazuki flew into a rage upon hearing this. "What do you mean what'm I doing? I'm hunting down the Pirate King's wife! What are YOU doing, Vice Admiral Garp!!!"
Sakazuki's voice carried clearly to the citizens of Darons Kingdom below.
"No wonder he looked familiar—he's that Navy vice admiral."
"They say he's some kind of Navy Hero, but I call that bullshit!"
"What kind of hero helps pirates? If anyone deserves to be called a Navy Hero, it should be Vice Admiral Raleigh!"
The citizens of Darons Kingdom never ceased their pursuit.
Even though Garp had thrown Rouge far away with skillful force, they refused to give up.
Gritting his teeth, Garp said, "Can you do me this favor? She's just a pregnant woman after all."
Sakazuki stared at Garp with disgust.
"Vice Admiral Garp, I never liked your methods, but I used to respect you as the Navy Hero. Do you still deserve that title now? Your favor means nothing to me!"
During this exchange, Garp and Sakazuki had already exchanged several blows.
Boom!
Another physical collision echoed, this time leaving Sakazuki at a slight disadvantage.
He was far from reaching his peak strength, and could only barely hold his own against Garp.
But he wasn't fighting alone.
"Thunderclap!"
A deafening roar accompanied a thunderbolt that descended like divine judgment from the sky, striking Garp squarely.
Garp, who had been trying to return to Rouge's side, felt his entire body go numb.
Seizing the opportunity, Sakazuki closed in again.
Aboard the Ark Maxim, Raleigh had previously discussed the Garp situation with Sakazuki.
If Garp died here, both Raleigh and Sakazuki would incur the wrath of Navy leadership led by Sengoku.
But merely stopping him would give Sengoku no grounds for complaint.
Thus, Sakazuki's mission was to block Garp from saving Rouge.
"Sakazuki, get out of my way!" Garp was furious now, but Sakazuki ignored his threats, acting as if he heard nothing.
Crack!
Their combat caused the air to fracture in large patches, resembling the destructive power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
Both were typical high-attack, high-defense combatants with formidable physiques and Conqueror's Haki, making it impossible to determine a winner quickly.
With Enel providing support from the sky, Garp stood no chance of breaking through Sakazuki's defense.
...
"Rayleigh, so your backup really is Garp!"
Both their Observation Haki had detected the confrontation the moment Garp and Sakazuki clashed.
The Dark King's face turned ashen.
He was trapped by Raleigh, facing mortal danger at every turn, while Garp was blocked by Sakazuki and Enel—unable to rescue Rouge.
The madness in his eyes grew intense.
Suddenly, Raleigh withdrew from the Dark King's vicinity, closing his eyes while standing a hundred meters away.
Though his opponent didn't know what was happening, his twitching right eye and the dense pressure in the air made him realize the upcoming battle would likely be decided in an instant.
All the wind drifting in the air was drawn toward Raleigh's position, surging into his body like mist in waves.
Raleigh's figure appeared before the Dark King, the sonic boom from his high speed just beginning to propagate.
'So fast!'
Only these two words remained in the Dark King's mind as his body instinctively raised his Sword horizontally across his chest.
Swoosh!
A spray of blood shot skyward as a dark shadow flashed past and fell to the ground.
Clang!
The sound of a sword hitting the ground echoed, followed by a thunderous roar.
Having lost his right arm, the Dark King unleashed his Conqueror's Haki with all his might, attempting to force Raleigh back.
However, he had no idea how powerful Raleigh had become.
"You've grown old, so it's time for you to die."
The voice sounded beside the Dark King's ear.
He hurriedly turned his head, only to feel a sharp pain in his side as a blade pierced his chest from behind.
Simultaneously, Raleigh pressed his left hand—charged with a miniature storm—against his opponent's head.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"
Even the battle-hardened Dark King couldn't withstand the excruciating pain!
...
Moments later, Raleigh dragged the mutilated corpse, its head shattered beyond recognition and presented it before Rouge.