With Rocks's domineering declaration, even though Newgate had anticipated it, hearing the result still left a very bad taste in his mouth.
Vaghar, bruised and battered from the fall, buried his face in the dirt and played dead, like the landlord encountering the Axe Gang.
He even scooped some dirt with his hands to pile on either side of his face.
He had no face left to look Newgate in the eye.
"Although Captain Vaghar has already lost me, I still want to have a match with you as a combatant of the White Whale Pirates!"
"If I win, I'll win myself back. If I lose, I'll willingly become your crewmate from then on."
"Will you accept this game?!"
Newgate was unwilling to have his future controlled like this. He looked coldly at Rocks.
He would fight against fate with his own fists.
"Vohahaha! Bold! Worthy of being the destined top executive of the Rocks Pirates!"
"I accept!"
"You can still decide the competition event and rules. I want you to lose without a doubt!"
Rocks grinned widely. He could already sense the astonishing resolve emanating from Newgate.
'This guy had the qualities of a king!'
'Maybe this 18-year-old young giant, Edward Newgate, would awaken Conqueror's Haki even faster than Ignis.'
'That guy Ignis had too many complicated thoughts.'
'He was also too focused on Devil Fruits.'
'That wasn't good for awakening the three types of Haki.'
'It seemed I needed to push Ignis harder.'
'Daily beatings for Ignis, to squeeze out his potential.'
Rocks couldn't imagine just how far Ignis, with nine Devil Fruit abilities and all three Haki types in the future, would grow.
'But of course, with that many abilities, plus having to take into account all three Haki types, could that kid Ignis really train them all up?'
After all, a person's energy was limited. It was hard to master everything.
Knowing a bit of everything might mean being mediocre at everything.
Every ability would be half-baked.
"Let's fight! Let me see how strong the world's worst pirate is!"
Edward Newgate activated his Tremor-Tremor Fruit ability, and a transparent, glowing orb appeared around his fist.
At this point, Newgate hadn't yet obtained the Supreme Grade Blade, Murakumogiri.
His fists and the Tremor-Tremor Fruit ability were his strongest means of attack.
"Vohahaha! It really is the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, hailed as the Paramecia with the strongest destructive power!"
"Let's see how much of that power you can unleash!"
Rocks laughed heartily. As a descendant of the Davy Clan, just like the future Blackbeard Teach, he had memorized the Devil Fruit encyclopedia inside and out.
He knew a great deal about most Devil Fruit abilities.
This Edward Newgate, just as Ignis had predicted, truly possessed this powerful Tremor-Tremor Fruit ability.
Rocks just couldn't understand why Ignis didn't covet this Tremor-Tremor ability, but instead wanted the Magnet-Magnet Fruit.
Was it really just because that Captain John guy would betray the Rocks Pirates in the future, so Ignis had his eye on the Magnet-Magnet ability?
It seemed Ignis, that guy, still had some principles and loyalty. He hadn't completely treated Rocks as just a hired muscle.
At least he was thinking about the growth of the Rocks Pirates.
...
"Tremoring Sky!!"
"Hell Cannonade!"
Newgate launched the first attack, punching with a tremor-powered fist. Rocks, swinging his Western sword with one hand, unleashed a terrifying shockwave with his cannonade sword technique.
Boom!!!
The tremor wave and the shockwave slash collided violently.
Instantly, the earth cracked, the sea surface churned, and shockwaves rippled outwards in rings at tremendous speed...
The terrifying, destructive power made Barbel and Sunbell's eyes widen.
"This destructive power is unbelievable."
Vaghar had thought Newgate had surpassed him, but he never imagined Newgate had become this strong.
'So Newgate had been hiding most of his combat strength!'
He suddenly felt a twinge of envy and jealousy towards the Devil Fruit Newgate had by chance eaten.
In just a few years, he had completely surpassed him and become countless times stronger.
"Ugh..."
But the current Edward Newgate was still too young. He was no match for Rocks.
After just one or two seconds of struggle, Newgate was blasted away by Rocks's cannonade sword technique, spitting out a large mouthful of blood.
His young giant body flew hundreds of meters, carving a deep trench into the ground.
This scene was even more exaggerated than when Roger one-shot Kozuki Oden with Divine Departure.
"This guy Rocks! He always hits so hard!"
Ignis complained. He had been beaten badly by Rocks these past few days and could attest to that.
This brute Rocks would even hit hard against little kids like Loki, even cruelly stabbing several long swords into him without a shred of pity.
Newgate's eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.
Rocks's strength was far beyond his imagination!
"Vohahaha! Not bad, not bad. Being able to take one blow from me makes you much stronger than this brat Ignis!"
Rocks was very satisfied with Newgate's immense strength and ability, immediately acknowledging this new member.
"Heh, why drag me into it? I wonder who, upon meeting Imu, only managed to utter some harsh words before fleeing in panic."
Ignis was a bit displeased with Rocks calling him out, so he muttered back.
"Kid, you want another taste of my supreme elbow strike?!"
Rocks glared fiercely at Ignis.
'Why bring that up!'
"..."
Facing the threat of Rocks's elbow strike, Ignis wisely shut up. After all, that 'supreme elbow strike' really hurt!
It was probably dozens of times stronger than Garp's Fist of Love.
Not only was it infused with Armament Haki, but he even used Conqueror's coating.
This brute always hit that hard, with no sense of proportion!
Ignis chose to ignore Rocks's teasing gaze and flew over to Newgate, using his Gravity ability to make the injured Newgate float.
"Hey, you okay? This captain always hits that hard. After all, he's the one who killed a Marine Admiral. This is just his normal move."
"We're partners now!"
"If you're willing to call me Brother Ignis, we'll be family from now on!"
Ignis flew over, speaking leisurely, actively trying to boost his favorability with Newgate.
Without choosing to kill Newgate and take his Tremor-Tremor Fruit, becoming good friends and good partners with the loyal Newgate seemed like a good choice.
After all, Newgate valued loyalty and relationships.
"A little guy like you wants to be my big brother? No way!"
Newgate coughed up some blood, speaking a bit exasperatedly.
But his attitude towards Ignis had indeed become much friendlier.
Partners, family, these were exactly the things he had always been seeking!
"Here's some medical ointment from Fish-Man Island."
Ignis handed some medicine to Newgate. Perhaps due to Newgate's enormous size, calling Ignis 'bro' would indeed feel a bit awkward for him.
"Thanks."
Newgate didn't refuse Ignis's kindness. He felt that this little guy, who seemed able to 'command' Rocks was very peculiar and sparked his curiosity.
"Is this your ability?"
Newgate felt as if he were floating weightlessly in the air. It was quite comfortable.
"Paramecia-type Gravity ability. A pretty good Paramecia!"
Ignis smiled faintly. The Gravity ability he was developing was more refined than Fujitora Issho's, with many practical, everyday moves.