Who could have imagined that on this day, a small recruitment office would gather more than eighty percent of the Marine Headquarters' top combat power?
Leaving aside the students who came purely to cheer for Lloyd, just counting the officers standing around, one could casually toss a brick and easily hit a Navy Colonel or higher.
Even Lloyd himself had not expected things to escalate this far. Inwardly, he remained calm, his thoughts moving in silence.
"I originally planned to take advantage of the chaos to deal with Dragon, but with this many eyes watching, acting freely will be troublesome…"
Despite those thoughts, his outward expression did not change in the slightest. A faint smile lingered on his face as he even raised a hand and casually waved toward Lucia and the others in the crowd.
Aokiji looked at Lloyd with clear admiration and said sincerely,
"Senior Lloyd's popularity is really something. Everyone genuinely likes him."
Aramaki, on the other hand, still held resentment toward the man who had dragged him into this fight in the first place. With the situation already spiraling out of control, backing out was no longer an option.
He narrowed his eyes at Aokiji and said irritably,
"You ignorant country bumpkin. Do you even realize that if Lloyd ever gets angry, none of us will walk away unscathed?"
He had originally wanted to say much more, to hint at Lloyd's true standing and the fear it would inspire if revealed. But midway through the thought, Aramaki abruptly stopped himself, remembering that certain titles absolutely could not be spoken here. The result was a sentence that sounded awkward and incomplete.
Dragon stood a short distance ahead of them. Without turning around, he spoke calmly,
"When the battle starts, stay away from me. I do not want to accidentally injure either of you."
"Huh?"
Aramaki raised an eyebrow. His fists clenched tightly, joints cracking audibly as he replied coldly,
"You really know how to make people uncomfortable."
Aokiji scratched the back of his head helplessly. Before the fight had even begun, the three of them were already on the verge of clashing among themselves.
Fortunately, Zephyr's voice cut through the tension at that exact moment.
"Enough. You may begin. Lloyd, I will say it one more time, hold back."
The instant those words fell, everything changed.
Whoosh.
A violent gust of wind erupted around Dragon. Aokiji and Aramaki, standing closest to him, were caught completely off guard and stumbled several steps back. By the time Aramaki steadied himself and opened his mouth to curse, Dragon had already dissolved into the raging wind, surging straight toward Lloyd.
However, charging directly at Lloyd was the worst possible choice, especially for a Devil Fruit user like Dragon.
Facing the howling storm, Lloyd merely extended one hand. A dark vortex formed quietly in his palm.
"Almighty Pull."
"What?!"
Dragon's shocked voice echoed from within the wind. Threads of green airflow rapidly converged, forcibly pulled together into a humanoid shape. The moment the condensed wind touched Lloyd's palm, it collapsed entirely, revealing Dragon's figure with a look of disbelief frozen on his face.
Lloyd's hand rested firmly on Dragon's shoulder.
"How is this possible?" Dragon exclaimed. "Why can't I use my ability…"
He did not get the chance to finish.
Lloyd's fist drove mercilessly into Dragon's abdomen. A muffled cry escaped Dragon's throat as he spat out a mouthful of blood. Before it could touch the ground, the blood was swallowed by the darkness radiating from Lloyd's body, not a single drop staining him.
In the crowd, Garp's brows knitted together slightly. Meanwhile, the students watching grew even more excited, their cheers rising louder and louder.
That single blow forced Dragon into clarity. He still did not understand why his Devil Fruit powers had failed him, but he knew one thing for certain. If he took a few more hits like that, the battle would be over.
With a sharp inhale, Dragon raised his arm, coating it fully in Armament Haki. His hand twisted into a strange claw-like shape as he lunged forward, roaring,
"Dragon Claw!"
A wave of surprise rippled through the spectators who were unfamiliar with Dragon's background.
Lloyd, however, was completely unsurprised. Dragon was already twenty-four years old, and his father was Garp. If he could not use Armament Haki, that would have been the real shock.
Lloyd released Dragon's shoulder. His body turned indistinct and ethereal in an instant. Dragon's powerful strike passed straight through empty space, and confusion flashed across his face yet again.
Before Dragon could react, Lloyd's leg snapped upward in a clean, ruthless arc. The kick struck Dragon's waist squarely, sending him flying backward like a broken kite. He crashed heavily to the ground between Aokiji and Aramaki.
Aramaki glanced at Dragon's disheveled state and immediately burst out laughing, his voice dripping with mockery.
"So that's why you told us to stay away earlier. You almost got us hit just now. You are really thoughtful."
Dragon struggled to push himself up, but those words made his arm tremble violently. His strength gave out, and he dropped back to the ground with a dull thud.
At last, Aokiji stepped forward, unable to watch any longer. He reached out and helped Dragon to his feet.
Dragon's face was flushed with anger, but he still forced himself to thank Aokiji. No matter how composed he usually was, maintaining a calm expression right now was impossible.
He walked a few steps forward, stopping in front of the other two without turning back.
"It seems I underestimated him. I cannot defeat him alone. We attack together."
Aramaki snorted, his tone indifferent.
"No, you overestimated yourself. And you are still talking about defeating Senior Lloyd? Should I call you brave, or simply foolish?"
Aokiji, ever the mediator, stepped between them slightly.
"Enough. This is a rare opportunity to fight Senior Lloyd. We should go all out. If we perform terribly here, how are we supposed to face him comfortably after entering the academy?"
Aramaki's body stiffened. Those words struck deeper than expected.
Yes, was his original purpose not to get closer to Lloyd?
With that thought, Aramaki's expression finally shifted into seriousness. He patted Aokiji on the shoulder and said solemnly,
"I did not expect something so insightful to come from you. Not bad. I acknowledge you."
Under Aokiji's baffled stare, Aramaki turned and walked toward the opposite side, speaking as he moved,
"You two are Logia users as well, right? Show some proper strength. Do not hold me back later."
The drastic change in his attitude left Dragon momentarily stunned. Still, morale rising among the remaining two was undeniably a good thing.
The three exchanged brief looks, then spread out, forming a triangular formation facing Lloyd.
In the next instant, Dragon, Aokiji, and Aramaki released their powers almost simultaneously.
Violent green hurricanes formed around Dragon, tearing up sand and stone alike.
A vast sheet of solid ice spread outward from beneath Aokiji's feet, the surrounding temperature dropping sharply.
Aramaki's side presented a different sight entirely. Lush green vegetation rapidly emerged from the ground around him, overflowing with vitality.
Three natural phenomena surged toward Lloyd from different directions.
Lloyd watched calmly, interest flickering faintly in his eyes as he murmured,
"This is somewhat interesting."
Boom.
Darkness exploded outward with Lloyd at its center, rolling like a tide. In an instant, the battlefield was divided into four distinct colors, black, green, cyan, and blue.
What everyone noticed, however, was that the black darkness was steadily eroding the other three at a speed visible to the naked eye.
____
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