"Odin's Wrath!" I roared, swinging Shusui with all my might. A massive pillar of black lightning tore through the sky, charging straight for Garp. Our battle had been raging for hours, and I could tell that Garp was holding back. Despite calling it a genuine challenge, he must have known that I stood no chance against his overwhelming strength. Yet I refused to give up, pushing forward despite the balance shifting with each passing moment.
Garp launched himself into the air using Geppo; his movements were swift and precise. He met my lightning head-on with a powerful strike. "Galaxy Impact!" he bellowed. The entire world seemed to brighten at the clash of our colossal forces. It was like a massive black spear trying to break through an unyielding shield. After more than a dozen seconds of stalemate, the lightning pillar dispersed with a thunderous explosion.
"Sky Slicer!" I shouted, sending a dozen massive flying slashes in rapid succession, each imbued with armament haki. The air buzzed with the intensity of my attacks, the slashes tearing through the atmosphere with blinding speed.
However, Garp, descending from the air, simply smirked. Covering both his fists in pitch-black haki, he rained down a barrage of fists to counter every slash I sent out. "Blitzkrieg!" he cried, his fists moving like a massive gatling gun. Each fist tore through my sword slashes, and the remaining fists rained down around me like meteors.
I used my future sight to avoid the majority of the impacts while slashing at the rest. Suddenly, I felt a threat to my flank and instinctively fired a massive lightning bolt. Garp brute-forced through it, punching me squarely in the chest and sending me flying through the air. I crashed through hundreds of meters of boulders, creating a massive ravine with my impact.
"Ptui!" I spat out the blood that gushed into my mouth. My body was breaking and reconstructing itself at a monstrous rate. If I hadn't tempered my physique to such a degree with lightning, I doubt I would still be standing.
The more I fought Garp, the more I understood Conqueror's Haki entanglement. The more I learned, the closer I came to breaking through that final hurdle in mastering all the basics of Haki. To me, Conqueror's Haki entanglement was just the beginning. What I sought was the kind of strength I had felt in Loguetown when Roger's will made the world itself bend to his whim. That was the strength I needed to challenge Imu, and I still had a long way to go.
"Getting distracted while fighting me, brat?" Garp's voice thundered as he punched me in the face, cracking my jawbone. I reacted fast enough to put Shusui in the path of the punch; otherwise, my jaw would have shattered completely.
"You should give up, little brat! I'm not even using a fifth of my peak power, and I've already crushed your bones three times over. Yet, you still keep coming. Do you think you can beat me just by relentlessly attacking? You haven't even managed to break through my defense and cause any damage. And there's no way in hell that I would let that child be raised as a pirate!" Garp roared, his fist coated with Haki, as he saw me picking myself up again after the last attack.
I steadied myself, and my body was healing rapidly. I was using the electrical signals within my body to speed up the healing in my body, maybe no other logia could have made this possible except for my own. "I won't give up, Garp-san! You would eventually let the kid die for your twisted sense of justice. You would once again become a bystander and watch as Roger's bloodline is erased from this world," I shouted, my resolve unwavering.
I summoned all my strength, channeling my haki and lightning into Shusui. "Death's Sonata!" I swung my blade, a massive wave of lightning and Haki tearing through the air towards Garp.
Garp's eyes gleamed with anger at my words. He met my attack head-on, his fists glowing with Haki. "Meteor Fist!" he roared, his punch colliding with my attack. The resulting explosion lit up the sky, a blinding light followed by a deafening roar.
The ground beneath us shook, the force of our clash sending shockwaves across the island. I could feel my muscles straining, and my body was pushed to its limits. But I couldn't stop. I had to prove myself, not just to Garp but to myself. I needed to breakthrough; I couldn't stagnate here for a long time.
The shockwave sent us both flying, and the ground beneath us was obliterated. I landed hard, more than a hundred meters away, like a ragged doll, my body battered and bruised. Garp was just pushed back a few meters, standing across from me, breathing steadily, and still towering like a colossal mountain.
"You're close, aren't you, kid? I can feel it. I can feel that you are at the threshold. Consider this your final lesson from your mentor!" Garp readied himself. He could sense that I had already understood how Conqueror's Haki entanglement worked.
Without mastering the technique, there was no way I could breach Garp's current defense, a layer of armament haki and Conqueror's haki. Even though my conqueror's haki was overwhelmingly strong, not knowing how to utilize it in my attacks was a massive drawback. But finally, after hours of getting beaten to a pulp, I had reached it.
Black and gold lightning crackled around me as the entire world seemed to freeze. Even Garp paused, his earlier casual demeanor shifting as he unleashed more of his strength. I felt it in my bones, I felt it in my very soul. Now I understood, to an extent, how Garp was countering my future sight.
Conqueror's Haki was more than what I had believed it to be. The more I understood, the more power Garp instinctively released, realizing the fight would no longer be casual where he had been toying with me all this while.
I took a deep breath as calmness returned. The entire world seemed tranquil. My Conqueror's haki started undergoing a rapid transformation. If my earlier Conqueror's Haki was like an unrelenting tide, now it was like the deep ocean—calm yet unfathomable. Even Garp's fighting spirit was riled up as his own conqueror's haki intensified.
As our wills clashed, the entire island seemed to split in two, with massive cracks spreading through it. Chunks of the island collapsed, creating an apocalyptic scene as our wills fought for dominance. The sea roared around us as the entire climate shifted, and massive barriers of tornadoes and thunder pillars surrounded the island, making it completely inaccessible. Even hundreds of miles away, the effects of the clash could be felt; the surrounding seas became a deadly zone that no one could traverse.
I felt a strange connection with Kitetsu, as if the blade was calling me to unleash it one final time. I knew I was going to use Conqueror's Haki infusion for the first time. As I considered switching blades, Shusui in my arms vibrated dangerously, humming in protest.
I couldn't help but laugh at myself for having such thoughts. Do swords have spirits? Well, who knows? In the world of One Piece, anything is possible. If a ship that's loved and cared for could manifest a fairy, maybe swords could too. But perhaps it was just me being paranoid due to the rush of adrenaline pumping through my body as it adapted to the infusion of Conqueror's Haki.
Garp did not move, nor did he attack me, not wanting to disturb me from my semi-trance state. My conqueror's haki grew stronger and stronger, but Garp's own will seemed to grow stronger, matching my own. I was now sure that Garp, at his peak, might have been much stronger than anyone else when it came to Haki, even more than Shanks from the canon. Garp was in a league of his own. When it came to Haki, I doubted even if Whitebeard could match him; maybe only Roger was his true equal.
I closed my eyes, feeling the weight of the moment. The calm before the storm. My breathing steadied, and the entire world seemed to hold its breath. The island, the sea, and the sky were all witnesses to this monumental clash. Black and gold lightning enveloped me, intertwining with Shusui. I opened my eyes, determination burning within them.
"So you want to witness it too?" I whispered as I slowly unsheathed Kitetsu despite knowing that I might lose the blade forever, feeling the power surge through me as I held the two blades. Shusui and Kitetsu glowed with an ethereal light, the blade resonating with my will, like two primordial dragons waking from their slumber. Garp watched, his expression one of anticipation and respect.
"Show me what you've got, Ross!" Garp roared, his own Haki flaring up, the air crackling with intensity.
"Busoshoku Koka!!!"
I launched myself forward, leaving behind a massive crater in its wake as my entire body merged with the infusion of Conqueror's haki. I could feel the raw power flowing through me. The two blades morphed into two colossal dragons, one pitch black and the other golden, tracing the arc my blades made. I swung with all my might, channeling my conqueror's haki into the blades alongside my lightning and armament haki.
"Niten Ichi Ryu: Celestial Severance!" The attack tore through the air, a massive wave of black and gold energy surging towards Garp. The two streaks of energy tore through the island, splitting it completely..
Garp met my attack with a thunderous roar. "Galaxy Annihilation!" His fists glowed with unparalleled power as he punched forward, colliding with my attack.
The resulting explosion was cataclysmic; the entire sky lit up as if it were day. The entire island shattered beneath us, and the island itself seemed to scream under the pressure. The shockwave expanded, sending debris and waves crashing in all directions.
As the two titanic forces clashed, an invisible barrier formed between our attacks, pushing against each other for absolute dominance. Two different worlds collided, creating a spectacle that could only occur when two apex powers met. The very world groaned under the pressure we emitted. The large island we stood on was no longer an island—it had completely been obliterated from existence, leaving only a small chunk of land beneath our feet, held together by the sheer force of our wills.
Garp's "Galaxy Annihilation" met my attack head-on. His fists, glowing with an intense black and red aura, clashed with my dual-wielded blades, Shusui and Kitetsu, infused with the raw power of my Conqueror's haki and lightning. The air between our weapons crackled with energy, an intangible force of will keeping our attacks apart, neither side willing to back down an inch.
The impact was cataclysmic. A blinding light filled the sky, and the ground beneath us splintered and cracked. Shockwaves radiated outwards, tearing apart the remains of the island and sending massive tsunamis crashing into the surrounding seas. The sky itself seemed to split open, lightning and thunder roaring in protest to the clash of wills.
The force of our clash was so immense that it altered the very climate; even the very fabric of space seemed to morph. Massive tornadoes and thunderstorms formed around the island with renewed vigor, adding to the already chaotic sea and making it completely inaccessible. Even in the deepest part of the sea, the effects could be felt, with the surrounding seas becoming an absolute dead zone. Even the seakings hurried away from the area, fearing that they would be caught in the aftershock.
As the dust settled after a few minutes, Garp stood tall amidst the destruction, but his eyes were set on mine. I was panting heavily, trying to gasp for more air. I was barely able to keep my consciousness as my body wanted to shut itself down to preserve what was left of me, but I refused to yield and brought myself to sit on my knees. My left arm completely shattered; it lay limply to my side.
If not for my logia abilities, I might have lost the arm entirely. Kitetsu was in pieces, barely held together by my Haki infusion. I sheathed the blade instinctively using my other hand while plunging Shusui to the ground, knowing it couldn't withstand another clash. With just my will pushing through, I faced Garp once more.
The island lay in ruins, but the clash of our conqueror's haki was still going on despite my being on the brink. My haki never faltered, a testament to my unyielding will. I looked at Garp; respect and pride were evident in his eyes. He examined his fist, noticing a bone-deep gash on his knuckles. He smirked, recognizing that I had finally managed to break through his defense and land a scar.
"You've done well, Ross. It seems like I have nothing more to teach you; I don't think there is anyone on this wide sea who could reach your level at such a young age; you truly were my greatest protege," Garp said, his voice carrying both pride and acknowledgment.
"But remember, little brat, don't let pride get to your head just because you have grown a bit stronger, and at the rate at which you are growing, you might still need more than a decade or two to catch up to me. Who knows? Maybe I will be an old, broken man by then. Maybe you will never get to beat me in my prime. " He taunted, his fist coated with Haki again.
"And if this is all you've got, forget about ever raising Roger's kid. I will raise him to become the greatest Marine the world has ever seen. I created a monster like you, so it's only right that I create someone to bring you down in the future. What do you think?" He chuckled, knowing I was on my last leg. Fighting Garp at full intensity for hours was something no one could handle unless they were on his level.
"How naive of you, Garp-san! So what if you raise him to be a Marine? Tell me, what happens when the World Government finds out that he is Roger's son? Do you think they will let him walk just because he is a Marine? What will you do then?" I roared, standing up despite every bone in my body being shattered. Even the rapid healing from my physique seemed insufficient, but I gritted through the pain, using Shusui as a crutch.
Garp froze, thinking earnestly about my question. Then, with a deep sigh, he readied himself to end the battle, not wanting to answer. I didn't know how things would go in this world, but I was sure that the Garp in front of me was different from the one in Canon.
Many things that might have happened in the past might not come to pass in this world. With my intervention, even Rouge was alive. I very much wanted to take Ace under my care and raise him, knowing he had monstrous talent like Luffy. But I realized Garp was dead set on taking Ace and Rouge away, and the current me could do nothing to stop that.
"Five years! Five years, Garp-san! I will reach your stage in five years, so I hope you don't slacken and get stronger. And don't you go ahead and tell me then that you have grown weak because you've gotten old when I beat you," I declared, infusing Shusui with Haki and merging it with my conqueror's Haki. Although my body was on the brink of collapse, I needed to burn this feeling into my very soul. There was no better time than now to practice my new technique of Conqueror's Haki infusion.
I roared and charged, my entire form morphing into lightning as Shusui hummed with brilliance. I infused more of my haki into the blade. Garp covered himself with his own haki, creating an almost impenetrable barrier.
Our final clash was imminent. I swung Shusui with all my might, channeling every ounce of my conqueror's haki into the blade. The air crackled with energy, and the atmosphere around us was charged with our wills. Garp's fists met my blade once more, the collision creating a shockwave that seemed to split the heavens itself.
The island's remnants were obliterated, and the sea around us churned into a frenzy. The sky turned black as night, illuminated only by the lightning and energy of our clash. It was a battle that should have been remembered for ages, but unfortunately there was no one to witness such an epic—it was the day when another legend was born when the clash of two wills shook the world itself.
As the dust settled once more, Garp stood as the final winner, with his student laying in tatters within the massive crater on the only remaining piece of land as the island sank, but he knew that despite losing, my spirit remained unbroken. Garp, with a newfound respect in his eyes, nodded.
"You've grown, Ross. But remember, this is just the beginning. The real battle lies ahead in the world. Never lose that resolve, I will wait for you to see the day when you will finally catch up to me." Garp said, his voice carrying a mix of pride and challenge.
*****
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Currently updated until Chapter 225.
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