Chapter 75: Battle with Garp
Windmill Village Docks.
Everyone gazed from afar at the apocalyptic scene unfolding in the direction of Gorp Mountain.
Continuous loud bangs, smoke and dust soaring to the sky, and even the ground beneath their feet faintly trembled!
"Oh no, our wooden house!"
Dadan's face turned ashen as she looked towards the mountain where her bandit hideout was located; it wasn't far from the storm's epicenter, and in fact, getting closer.
She had to prepare for bankruptcy.
"How's the battle going?"
The few people who remained on the Raikougo couldn't be present at the battlefield, so they could only turn their questioning gaze towards Violet, the only one with long-distance viewing ability.
She, however, frowned slightly.
"I can't see clearly. Both of them are too fast, and the smoke and dust are too thick."
"Wait, the sky, it's splitting apart!" Sanji shouted, pointing at the sky.
Ace and Luffy subconsciously looked up, instantly stunned by the sight before their eyes!
Centered on the Gorp Mountain battlefield, the clouds in the sky seemed to be violently torn apart by an invisible giant hand, forcibly punching out a massive hole.
Not only that, at the edges of the hole, the clouds were continuously dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Deep within Gorp Mountain.
The battle had reached a fever pitch.
"Fist Bone Draco Meteor!"
"Continuous Dragon Claw!"
Garp's fists transformed into countless streaks of dark afterimages.
Kaine's Dragon Claws ripped through the air, incredibly sharp.
Fists and claws clashed.
The already overburdened ground beneath their feet, under these terrifying impacts, finally completely collapsed, sinking down a large section.
Bang! Bang!
Fists and Dragon Claws landed on each other's bodies.
Garp and Kaine simultaneously flew back over a hundred meters, crashing into a patch of trees.
"Cough, cough!"
Kaine pushed away the broken wood pressing on him and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
This Garp fellow was truly still robust in his old age.
Despite his age, he maintained such good condition.
However, youth was the greatest asset.
"Dragon Pulse!"
A dazzling shockwave, with lightning speed, blasted towards the direction Garp had been sent flying.
Boom!
A huge explosion sounded in the distance.
Blinding light instantly engulfed that area, and a massive mushroom cloud soared into the sky.
The attack was effective.
However, Kaine showed no signs of happiness on his face.
His Observation Haki had not detected Garp's presence in the explosion!
He's above!
Kaine abruptly looked up.
A burly figure had already leapt high above his head.
Garp's Marine uniform was already tattered from the fierce battle, but his smile grew even more excited.
"Kid, take this move from me!"
Garp raised his dark right fist high, his right arm muscles bulging, completely tearing his remaining sleeve.
"Fist Bone Tackle!"
Before the fist had fully descended, the terrifyingly extreme wind pressure had already pressed Kaine down, making him unable to stand up.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Within a radius of tens of meters, whether it was giant trees or rocks, everything instantly shattered and vanished into the air.
At this moment, time seemed to freeze.
The dark iron fist continuously grew larger in Kaine's pupils.
Boom—!!!
As if a real meteorite had struck the earth, a giant impact crater, over a hundred meters in diameter and tens of meters deep, instantly formed at the point of impact.
This scene, witnessed by those at the Windmill Village Docks in the distance, was a "The mountain was flattened!" Dadan stared blankly.
The fate of the Bandit's Home?
That no longer mattered.
Now, she had to consider, with no mountain left, could she still be a bandit?
Gorp Mountain.
Garp landed lightly on the edge of the giant pit, his expression solemn.
There was no sign of life at the center of the crater.
He certainly didn't believe Kaine had died just like that.
"Phew~ you really scared me."
Kaine's lighthearted voice sounded behind him: "I almost thought I was going to die."
Garp turned around; Kaine was standing there perfectly fine.
Although his appearance was utterly disheveled, he was indeed still alive and well.
In that case, continue!
Garp, without any hesitation, swung his fist at Kaine.
But this time, Kaine no longer chose to exchange blows.
After the previous battle, he understood that close combat with Garp, who had been immersed in martial arts his entire life, was something he, in his current state, simply couldn't win.
It was time to use his flashy abilities.
Kaine pushed off with his right leg and leapt into the air. At the same time, he opened his mouth, and violent energy surged from within him, gathering in his mouth.
"Swift!"
A large barrage of star-shaped energy projectiles rained down on Garp, the dense bullet hell sealing off his escape route.
Garp frowned, crossing his arms above his head, and his entire body was instantly covered in dark Armament Haki.
Boom, boom, boom...
Continuous violent explosions erupted fiercely on Garp's body.
His arms, chest, legs—every inch struck by the light projectiles burst with dazzling light!
The smoke and dust rising around him instantly engulfed him.
Kaine's attack showed no signs of stopping.
"Fire Blast!"
A giant, cross-shaped high-temperature flame spewed from his mouth.
A towering pillar of fire immediately erupted at Garp's location.
"Next."
"Air Blade!"
Kaine continuously swung his Dragon Claws, and countless blades of condensed air blasted towards Garp.
"Are you done yet?!"
Garp's roar echoed from within the smoke and dust.
Immediately after, a dark figure suddenly burst out of the smoke and dust.
Hmm?
Not good!
Kaine's Observation Haki was constantly warning him, but his body was already too late to react.
The next instant, a dark right hand suddenly grabbed Kaine's forehead, and black-red Haki lightning erupted from Garp's arm.
Kaine gripped Garp's right hand and exerted force, trying to break free.
But it was too late.
Since that was the case, then it would be an exchange of injuries!
Kaine's eyes narrowed, and he once again gathered immense energy in his mouth, unleashing it fiercely.
"Hyper Beam!"
"Ocean Floor Drop!"
Two destructive attacks erupted simultaneously at the extreme close range where their bodies were almost touching.
Garp was violently struck in the chest by the destructive beam, and he flew backward like a kite with a broken string.
Kaine, on the other hand, felt as if his head had been directly hit by a high-speed train; an unparalleled impact, without any reservation, poured into his body through Garp's palm.
Bang!
The solid ground offered no resistance, shattering with a roar.
Kaine was slammed into the ground without any obstruction.
A massive shockwave exploded with a roar.
The air current swept across the entire Gorp Mountain Range, rushing towards Windmill Village without stopping.
"Ugh, what strong wind!"
Sanji and Zoro, being weaker, even struggled to stand steady, only able to hold tightly onto the ship's railing to maintain their balance.
Gorp Mountain.
After a long while, the smoke and dust at the center of the battlefield finally dispersed.
A Dragon Claw extended from the edge of the pit, gripping the ground fiercely.
The next second, a tall Dragon Man leapt up, landing heavily on the ground.
"Meow..."
Kaine panted continuously, his body terribly battered and covered in blood.
He truly hadn't expected Garp to still be able to unleash such terrifying power.
As expected, one shouldn't underestimate the strong individuals of the older generation.
Kaine stood up with difficulty, his gaze falling on Garp nearby.
Garp, covered in injuries, lay face up on the shattered ground, his chest charred black.
Hearing the movement, he suddenly opened his eyes and stood up with difficulty.
At this moment, his condition was slightly better than Kaine's, but only marginally so.
Garp knew that from their recent exchange, he could temporarily suppress Kaine, but in a battle of attrition, he was definitely no match for Kaine.
He was, after all, old.
Time was the strongest poison.
Even ten years ago, no, five years ago, he would have been confident in defeating Kaine.
Kaine slowly walked towards Garp, completely disregarding their current identities, and sat down beside him.
"Old man, how about we chat?"
Garp's eyelids were half-raised, and he said nothing.