Aboard the ruined warship, in the face of Captain Yellowspring's tragic demise, the oppressive aura emanating from Vice Admiral Garp was enough to make the surrounding Marines and any ordinary spectator tremble in sheer terror.
Yet Shiraishi and Uchiha Madara appeared entirely unfazed, settling into combat stances that only darkened Garp's expression further.
"You brats... do you really think playing pirate is some kind of child's game?"
Garp's fist whistled through the air, sounding like a sudden burst of rolling thunder over the sea. Coupled with the explosive contraction of his muscular frame, the strike commanded a terrifying, overwhelming pressure.
The air directly ahead of his fist seemed as if it had been struck face-first by a heavy bomb, sending invisible shockwaves rippling outward in endless concentric circles. Under Garp's refined mastery, Armament Haki showcased a profoundly frightening level of lethality.
While multiple tails burning with dark flames erupted from behind Madara to form a continuous offensive stream, Shiraishi donned his silver glove. As a chilling gale dispersed outward, Garp's eyes widened slightly in surprise: "Two Mythical Zoans?"
And two Mythical Zoans that haven't even been documented in the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia?
"Is that the sole capital behind your arrogance?"
Garp couldn't care less about how specialized his opponents' fruit abilities were; against anyone, his response was always the relentless swing of his fists.
Dodging and shifting with explosive agility, he unleashed a barrage of continuous strikes, generating wave after wave of concussive shockwaves like a terrifying humanoid beast.
Shiraishi and Madara positioned themselves at different angles to evade and parry. During this process, Madara seemed to achieve a level of predictive anticipation regarding Garp's next movements.
Observation Haki?
Unexpectedly, Madara had crossed the threshold of unlocking Observation Haki right in the heat of battle.
Within the Sunagakure Pirates, even Ace only possessed Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki; though he possessed a basic understanding of Observation Haki, he had never truly mastered it.
Relying purely on his innate genius and intuitive understanding of Haki, Madara had forcefully learned Observation Haki amidst his clash with Garp.
Observation Haki was, in essence, the power to strongly perceive the presence and intent of others. Once elevated, it allowed the user to read the positions and numbers of enemies beyond their line of sight, as well as predict the opponent's next move.
That Madara could grasp Observation Haki was deeply linked to his mental discipline—it required absolute tranquility to maintain, rendering it unusable if one succumbed to emotional agitation or lost their composure.
Compared to ordinary people, Madara—originating from the Uchiha clan—commanded a level of visual discernment and insight far beyond common imagination. Paired with his naturally calculating temperament, touching the threshold of Observation Haki was a natural progression.
Observation Haki possessed various applications: sensing incoming attacks, predicting an opponent's next move, gauging the strength of living beings, perceiving emotions and intent, and tracking the positions and numbers of objects beyond vision.
These were all foundational traits, with the range and intensity varying from person to person.
Although Madara had only achieved an initial grasp, it immediately raised Garp's evaluation of this pirate crew by an entire tier.
Two Mythical Zoans, and the core members possess such vast potential.
It's a pity they're far too ruthless... What a waste of two prime talents who should have belonged to the Marines!
Meanwhile, lurking in the shadows, Ace had donned a rather suspicious cloak, covering his face to observe the battlefield discreetly.
Compared to the others, he was a traveler from the future timeline of this world. Considering it was inconvenient to reveal his identity, Ace had come up with this makeshift disguise. However, his true objective was a specific warship anchored right beside the battle.
Among the warships deployed by the East Blue Marine branch, there was a clear variance in quality. The vessel before his eyes—aside from Garp's personal flagship—was the fastest and most comprehensively equipped ship on the scene.
That's the target!
A sudden eruption of roaring flames impacted the deck as Ace opted for a direct, forceful hijacking!
Once the Marines were driven off the vessel by Ace, the remaining crew members from their previous pirate ship boarded one by one, swiftly taking control and familiarizing themselves with this brand-new warship.
Taking advantage of the time Shiraishi and Madara bought while stalling his grandfather, Ace determined to secure a Marine warship to serve as the crew's new vessel.
However, the ordinary pirates who had originally been forcefully recruited by Madara were currently staring at the two figures holding off Garp with expressions that looked as if they had seen a ghost.
Good lord... that's the Marine Hero, Garp...
Though fighting two-on-one, the pair had not fallen into a disadvantage, which was more than enough to prove their formidable strength and potential.
Shiraishi currently appeared roughly the same age as Madara in physical appearance—a direct result of the three specialized hormones elevating his physical functions to his absolute peak state at eighteen years old.
Shiraishi had refrained from going all-out. Seeing that Ace had completed the objective, he fired a sudden blast of Ice Beam from his palm.
Garp drove his iron fist forward, forcefully shattering the freezing ray head-on. Facing the neutralization of his Ice Beam, Shiraishi felt no surprise whatsoever.
Since these were mutated applications of localized Devil Fruit capabilities, it was hardly surprising that Haki proved effective against them—it shared the exact same fundamental principle as the skill systems of the Naruto world.
Although the physical parameters of the two had achieved a breakthrough, they had only just begun their journey in this world, making it entirely unnecessary to fight Garp to the death. The preceding sequence of clashes had been executed solely to buy Ace time to commandeer the new vessel.
Seeing Ace signal his success, Shiraishi and Madara exchanged a swift glance. A combined eruption of frost and spectral ghost-fires formed a massive surge of energy that blasted directly toward the Marines behind Garp.
Garp knew full well what his opponents were trying to pull, but he couldn't simply stand by and watch his subordinates get caught in the blast. Turning back to intercept the joint attack, he found that both Madara and Shiraishi had already executed a full retreat.
During their departure, Shiraishi activated two foundational abilities inherent to Articuno: Tailwind and Powder Snow!
Tailwind drastically accelerated the sailing speed of their newly acquired warship, while Powder Snow flash-froze the surface of the sea, thoroughly disrupting the pursuit of Garp's fleet.
It was clear that Shiraishi, wielding the Articuno Fruit, posed a major headache for the Marines when it came to escape and disruption tactics.
Gazing at Captain Yellowspring's tragic remains and the heavy casualties among his men, Garp's expression turned exceptionally grim. Aside from the fallen, there were numerous severely wounded Marines who required his immediate command to organize medical care.
After settling these urgent matters, a weary Garp prepared to contact Marine Headquarters.
Standing by as Shiraishi and his crew successfully made their escape, Garp covered his face. Though deeply unwilling, he knew better than to act on impulse now—ordinary Marines were simply no match for those brats.
A formidable new rookie pirate crew had undeniably emerged in the East Blue!
Marineford...
Inside the Fleet Admiral's office at Marine Headquarters, an exceptionally powerful old man with a broad chest and bronze skin held a Den Den Mushi. His hair and beard were completely white, styled into a distinct "mountain" shape.
He was the supreme Commander-in-Chief of Marine Headquarters—Kong!
"What? Two rookies managed to escape from your hands... and their abilities are Mythical Zoans...?"
As Garp's description continued, Kong's expression grew increasingly dark.
It wasn't just the Marines; within the underground world of the East Blue, numerous figures had taken notice of this incident, including several prominent local pirate factions.
"Heh, quite a remarkable crew of rookies has surfaced in the East Blue this time."
Aboard a merchant vessel drifting across a certain sector of the East Blue, blood and corpses littered the deck. A silver-haired man wearing a ring set with a specialized gem listened to the news, his mind actively weighing the possibilities.
If he could recruit these two rookies or form an alliance with them, his crew would possess more than enough strength to march directly into the Grand Line.
At this thought, the silver-haired pirate let out a faint smile: "Set sail then. I'm quite eager to meet these two exceptional rookies as soon as possible."
Are you interested in seeing how Shiraishi handles the encounter with this silver-haired pirate and recovers the second gem?
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