Within Zephyr's dilating pupils, Carlo's right fist slammed into his chest.
Bang!
Zephyr's sturdy body staggered back several steps from the force of Carlo's punch.
Before he could steady himself, Carlo had already taken a large stride forward and thrown another punch.
"It is upright and unyielding! It is a fist that would rather break than bend!"
"black arm! Meteor Blast!!"
Pitch-black Armament Haki covered Carlo's entire right arm as it blasted forward like a heavy cannon shell.
Zephyr gritted his teeth, forcibly steadied his stance, and fiercely threw the exact same punch.
"black arm! Meteor Blast!"
Boom!
The two fists collided in mid-air.
It was as if even the void itself vibrated from the impact.
The surrounding air escaped and exploded frantically like a riotous ocean current.
The two men's fists were locked in a stalemate for only a single instant.
Zephyr was once again suppressed by Carlo's fist, lifted off the ground, and sent flying backward more than ten meters.
Carlo charged forward with great strides, both arms striking simultaneously as countless fist shadows rained down like a torrential storm.
"It is fearless! It is the fist of courage that dares to strike even when knowing the enemy is invincible!"
"black arm! Smash Barrage!!"
Zephyr's arms shook as his fists moved like wind and rain, meeting the attack with the same technique.
Boom boom boom boom boom!!
In an instant.
Countless fist shadows collided with a thunderous roar in mid-air.
Every strike exploded the atmosphere and tore through the warship's deck beneath their feet.
These were clearly Zephyr's own fist techniques.
Yet, Zephyr was being pushed back step by step in the clash against Carlo.
Watching Zephyr retreat continuously, Carlo exerted power through his feet, pulled back his right arm, and clenched his fist. His muscles coiled like pythons, bursting with boundless force as he threw a punch!
"It is the fist of justice that helps the weak and upholds righteousness!"
"Teacher Zephyr! Watch closely!"
"This punch! It is named—Z!!"
"Z..." Zephyr stared at the punch coming straight at him. In that moment, he actually dazed for a split second, to the point where he even forgot to counter.
The next instant.
Carlo's fist fell.
Zephyr was hit as if by a black meteorite. His chest arched backward, his feet left the ground, and shockwaves erupted from his back as he broke the sound barrier, crashing into the warship's cabin behind him.
Boom!!
Amidst a even more massive explosion, the entire cabin shattered into countless fragments under the impact.
Zephyr's body continued to fly backward, snapping two other masts on the warship and skimming across the sea's surface for over a hundred meters. Finally, amidst the startled cries of the Marines, he crashed with a thunderous boom into another warship following behind.
On the tattered deck, Zephyr's Marine uniform was shredded. In the center of his exposed chest, a large, deeply recessed fist print had appeared!
He gritted his teeth and rolled to his feet, but his tall body swayed. His face turned flushed, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood!
"Cough!"
"Vice... Vice Admiral Zephyr!"
Seeing Zephyr spitting blood, the group of Marines on the warship all cried out in horror. They wanted to come forward in concern, but Zephyr reached out a hand to stop them.
He raised his head and looked forward.
On the warship ahead, which had already been more than half destroyed, a tall, demon-god-like figure stepped over the debris on the ground, walking over step by step.
"Teacher Zephyr, your current feeble fists cannot protect these fragile people."
Carlo's low voice drowned out the intense sounds of shelling around them, echoing across the warship.
Before Zephyr could speak.
The group of Marines surrounding him all flew into a rage and began to shout rebukes.
"Shut up! Vice Admiral Zephyr is one of the strongest Marines, the strongest Vice Admiral who is as famous as Vice Admiral Garp!"
"That's right! He is a powerful Marine who has already been nominated for Admiral! Sorus Karlo! You Marine traitor, you have no right to insult Vice Admiral Zephyr like that!"
Carlo remained indifferent to the rebukes of these Marine officers.
He simply stared straight at Zephyr, preparing to take to the air and pursue him again.
Just then, a blood-stained figure shakily stood up from the wreckage of the shattered cabin behind him, gripping a short blade and aiming it at Carlo's back.
"Sorus Karlo! Take back those words!"
Carlo stopped his pursuit, raised an eyebrow, and turned his head slightly to look.
Zephyr's adjutant, Colonel Jesman, was currently clutching his broken long blade and glaring at him, speaking each word with emphasis.
"Oh? And if I don't?" Carlo said indifferently.
Colonel Jesman gnashed his teeth, a tragic and fierce aura emanating from him. Though his steps were stumbling, he still roared and swung the short blade in his hand, slashing directly at Carlo!
"Then you can go to hell! I will never... allow! You to insult... Vice Admiral Zephyr!!"
"He is the person I, Jesman, respect most in this life!!"
"Jesman!! Don't!" Zephyr shouted urgently from the warship behind.
At the same time, he used Moonwalk to rush toward them at high speed.
On the shattered warship, the blood-stained long blade in Jesman's hand slashed down with a desperate momentum.
Carlo stood perfectly still, allowing the blade to strike his chest.
Clang.
The broken blade flew out of his hand.
Jesman's wrists suffered a massive shock. Because he had used too much force, his wrist bones even dislocated and fractured.
Yet, on Carlo's scar-covered chest, not a single mark appeared.
He hadn't even used Armament Haki.
Jesman was completely stunned.
"If anger were useful, there would have been no pirates in this world long ago."
An unshakeable large hand seized Jesman by the neck and lifted him off the deck.
"And of course, there would be no World Government or Marine either."
Carlo turned his head and looked at the rushing Zephyr, his mouth splitting into a mocking grin.
"Because the anger in the hearts of those civilians is enough to boil the rivers and seas and destroy the world."
His arm rose, and the fingers clutching Jesman's neck slowly tightened.
"Carlo! Stop!!"
Zephyr, rushing over with Moonwalk, screamed hoarsely.
Crack!
Under Zephyr's disbelieving gaze, Carlo's right hand suddenly tightened, snapping Colonel Jesman's neck in one go!
Looking at Jesman's head slumping down, yet still possessing a gaze full of lingering attachment as it looked toward him, Zephyr's mind went blank.
"No!!!"
A sorrowful roar erupted from his mouth.
With a bang, Colonel Jesman's corpse was tossed aside by Carlo, crashing into the nearby sea and kicking up a large splash of water.
Zephyr's outstretched hand grabbed only air, yet he continued to reach out in vain.
His entire body froze like a statue, his mind a total blank.
After a long, long time, he finally raised his head blankly to look at the Carlo before him, who was both familiar and utterly strange. His eyes, though still relatively young, had long been weathered by life and death, and they gradually became stained with a layer of blood.
"Carlo!!!!"
A sorrowful roar like that of a lone wolf came from Zephyr's mouth.
The next instant, a tragic and fierce aura erupted from his body as he suddenly threw a furious punch at Carlo.
As the punch was thrown, Haki as black as ink exploded on his fist, pushing away the air in front of him and almost turning the surrounding hundred meters into a vacuum!
Facing Zephyr's wrathful strike, Carlo met it with a wild laugh, throwing a punch as brilliant golden lightning bloomed upon it.
"Teacher Zephyr! Your Non-killing Justice is already outdated! Today, this sea is running wild! Only killing can create a peaceful world!"
"Hahahaha, Kahahahaha!"
"Are you angry? Do you hate me? Then try to kill me!"