"Gurararara!!!"
Whitebeard was the first to break the silence, bursting into loud laughter.
He planted his Cloud Cutter on the deck, spreading his hands wide:
"Since Raiver personally asked, I, Whitebeard, will of course give him this face! Alright, this battle ends now!"
In truth, he never wanted to fight this battle in the first place; it was that crazy woman Linlin who forced him into it.
Now that a way out was offered, it would be foolish not to take it.
"Mamamama!"
Linlin also sheathed her Emperor Sword. The Napoleon Hat transformed from the blade back into a hat, landing firmly on her head.
Thundercloud Zeus and Sun Prometheus also quieted down, floating silently on either side of her shoulders.
"Of course I'll give Raiver face!" Linlin said brashly:
"Besides, with these Marine flies suddenly buzzing in to cause trouble, continuing this fight would be pointless!"
Everyone's gaze finally fell upon the Marine side.
Sengoku had already taken out his Den Den Mushi.
"Fleet Admiral," he lowered his voice, "Raiver has intervened in this battle.
Both Whitebeard and Big Mom have agreed to cease fighting. What should our next move be?"
There was silence on the other end of the Den Den Mushi for a few seconds.
Kong's voice came through: "Withdraw."
After a pause, he added:
"The Five Elders have already issued a clear directive—absolutely do not engage in conflict with Raiver. Do you understand? Absolutely do not."
"Understood."
Sengoku hung up the call and took a deep breath.
He turned around, preparing to give the order—
"What a joke!"
A voice like thunder exploded.
Garp.
He stood on the shattered deck of a Marine warship, his Justice Coat flapping fiercely in the sea breeze.
His gaze was locked onto the black figure hovering in mid-air, his eyes burning with intense fighting spirit.
"The Marines... how can we be scared off by a single pirate?!"
Sengoku's expression changed: "Garp! This is the Fleet Admiral's order!"
"What about the Fleet Admiral's order?!" Garp roared:
"I am a Marine! Standing before me is a pirate!
When a pirate stands in our way, the Marines just slink away—what kind of bullshit reasoning is that?!"
He violently stomped on the deck.
Boom—!!!
The deck shattered!
Garp shot into the air like a cannonball!
His trajectory tore through the air, creating sonic booms, the atmosphere burning in his wake!
His right fist was raised high, dark red Conqueror's Haki and pitch-black Advanced Armament Haki coiled around it layer by layer, compressing and condensing in circles!
The space in front of his fist began to distort and crack!
"Pirate Raiver—!!!"
He roared, his fist blasting forward!
"Today—I will capture you!!!"
"Fist Bone: Galaxy Impact—!!"
The moment his fist shot forward, immense energy transformed into a dark red beam over ten meters in diameter.
Like an inverted galaxy, like falling stars!
Raiver's expression remained unchanged as he slowly spoke: "Garp, allow me to show you what reasoning truly is."
After saying this, he raised his right hand, fingers slightly spread, palm facing forward.
"Super Divine Push."
As his words fell.
There was no deafening roar, no explosion.
Just a barrier.
A translucent spherical barrier expanded outward from Raiver's palm at an incredible speed.
When Garp's Iron Fist struck the barrier, there was no sound of impact.
Only a low reverberation echoed, like the tolling of a great bell.
The barrier dented inward by half a meter, rippling like water struck by a massive rock.
But it didn't break.
"Haaa—!!!"
Garp gritted his teeth, veins bulging.
He poured all his strength, all his Haki, into this single punch!
He wanted to shatter this barrier, he wanted to capture that man, he wanted to prove—
The Marines would never bow to pirates!
The barrier trembled.
The ripples grew denser, more frantic.
But still—it didn't break.
Raiver looked calmly at the distorted face on the other side of the barrier, his gaze remaining serene.
He gently clenched his right hand.
"Burst."
With that single word, the barrier's surface suddenly erupted with blinding black-red light!
It was Conqueror's Haki compressed to its limit, like a volcano erupting after accumulating power for millennia!
The Haki shockwave swallowed Garp.
The materialized impact of Conqueror's Haki, combined with the repulsive force of the barrier, struck Garp squarely in the chest!
"Pfft—!"
Garp spat out a mouthful of blood!
His eyes widened, the Haki around his fist instantly dispersing.
His entire body was sent flying backward faster than he had arrived, as if struck head-on by a battering ram!
Boom—!!!
He crashed onto the deck of a marine warship.
The steel deck shattered behind him—first layer, second layer, third layer.
Garp's body sank downward, piercing through four consecutive decks before finally slamming heavily against the ship's keel at the very bottom!
The keel snapped.
The warship tilted.
Garp lay in the wreckage, eyes closed, blood still continuously bubbling from his mouth.
"Garp—!"
"Garp!!!"
Sengoku and Zephyr cried out in unison, sprinting toward the sinking warship.
Raiver withdrew his right hand, letting it fall to his side.
He didn't look in Garp's direction, his gaze still calm, as if he had merely flicked away a flying insect.
The sea breeze swept past, lifting the hem of his imperial robe.
The battlefield fell as silent as a grave.
Linlin swallowed hard.
Whitebeard silently watched the tilting warship, neither laughing nor speaking.
Zephyr knelt beside Garp, trembling as he checked his breathing—still there, but faint.
Sengoku clenched his fists, looking up at the man in the air. His lips trembled several times, but in the end, no words came out.
...
On the broad deck of the Moby Dick.
Two large barrels of alcohol stood at the center of the deck.
Whitebeard sat cross-legged, holding a massive bowl of liquor.
Raiver sat opposite him, holding an entire barrel of alcohol, occasionally tilting his head back to take a swig.
"Gurararara—"
"Hahaha—"
The two laughed together, clinking bowl against barrel, splashing liquor everywhere.
"Cheers!"
Whitebeard threw his head back, emptying the huge bowl in an instant.
He set the bowl down, wiped the alcohol from his beard, and let out a long, satisfied sigh.
"Gurararara... Raiver, kid, it's been too long since we drank like this."
Raiver took another swig and nodded slightly.
"Six years. The last time we drank together was still with the Rocks Pirates."
"Six years..." Whitebeard shook his head wistfully:
"Time flies. Back then, you were still a rookie, charging into battle alongside the captain."
"Now you're already an Emperor of the Sea."
Raiver didn't respond.
He raised his hand, and space fluctuations rippled in his palm as two barrels of rare wine appeared.
"Try this." Raiver tossed one of the barrels to Whitebeard. "Your wine isn't all that great."
Whitebeard caught the barrel, pulled out the stopper, and a rich, mellow aroma of wine immediately filled the air.
His eyes lit up, and he took a huge gulp.
"Gulp—Ha!!!"
Whitebeard's eyes widened.
"This wine!"
He took another swig, this time drinking more slowly, savoring the taste carefully.