Wood had just finished taking down nearly ten pirates from the Iron Arm Pirate Crew when, as he sheathed his sword, he suddenly felt a sharp alarm in his mind.
Almost immediately, Cook's massive fist came barreling toward him with a fierce whooshing sound.
Unlike before, this time Cook had been lying in wait, watching Wood since the very beginning. So, when Wood began to strike down other pirates, Cook, who had been biding his time, could no longer hold back and launched his attack.
"Boom!"
Faced with this heavy punch, Wood had no way to dodge and had to block it head-on. The crude, varnished wooden scabbard splintered into pieces as it absorbed the full force of Cook's armored strike.
With the advantage of size and strength, Wood, though he managed to block the punch with his scabbard, was still pushed back several meters by the impact.
Feeling his slightly numb arms, Wood couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. His earlier decision to avoid a direct confrontation had been the right one.
The force behind Cook's punch was immense. It had shattered the scabbard made from the sturdy redwood and pushed Wood back several meters. In terms of raw power, Cook was far stronger than him.
This was after Wood had worn Cook down like walking a dog, making him waste a lot of energy. If he had taken that punch from Cook at full strength, not only would the scabbard have shattered, but he might have suffered some internal injuries as well.
Seeing that his full-power strike only managed to push Wood back without causing any real damage, Cook's face twisted with rage.
Even with his limited intellect, Cook realized that Wood's earlier provocations had not just been to protect the other islanders but also to lure him into repeatedly attacking and exhausting his energy.
With the heavy iron gauntlets, every punch Cook threw was powerful, but it also consumed a lot of his stamina.
Now, with most of his energy depleted, the power behind his punches was clearly less than half of what it had been at the start.
Meanwhile, as Wood battled the Iron Arm Pirate Crew on Red Leaf Island, several navy ships, having sailed for days after leaving the Navy Headquarters at Marineford, had just entered the waters near Red Leaf Island.
"Report, Admiral Zephyr, our ships have just passed through the Paracia Sea and are about to enter the waters surrounding Red Leaf Island."
A navy soldier on a large naval vessel, his expression full of respect, reported the situation to a man with a rugged, stern face, exuding a tough, macho aura, and sporting short, purple hair.
"Notify the soldiers on board to stay alert and keep a close watch on the surrounding waters. Although this is just the first half of the Grand Line, we must not let our guard down.
Damn Roger, even in death, he left us in the Navy with a huge mess to clean up. Because of his last words, the number of pirates on the seas has suddenly skyrocketed.
Also, remind the officers on the other ships that they are responsible for the future of our navy. The captains on the flagship should keep a close eye on them."
Hearing these orders from the purple-haired admiral, the navy soldier straightened up, showing utmost respect as he accepted the orders and left.
Before leaving, the young and somewhat inexperienced soldier couldn't resist sneaking another glance at the towering figure of his commanding officer, his face filled with excitement.
It was impossible not to be excited. As a new recruit who had only been in the Navy for a few years, he had long heard of the legendary reputation of the man before him.
This was Black Arm Zephyr, a name known to almost every navy soldier. For many in the Navy, Zephyr was a hero, a man of immense stature.
Vice Admiral Garp was an idol and an object of worship for most navy soldiers, but when it came to contributions to the Navy, it wasn't Garp who had done the most—it was Zephyr.
After all, most of the Navy's top officers today, like Vice Admirals Akainu and Kizaru, had been trained by Admiral Zephyr.
So, why was Zephyr, a navy admiral responsible for training recruits, present in such a remote area? There was a reason.
Because of the words of the Pirate King Gol D. Roger, the seas had now entered the "Great Pirate Era."
With the sudden surge in the number of pirates, the Navy's previous deployment and control over the seas were no longer sufficient.
If the navy didn't step up its efforts, the ever-growing number of pirates would soon overwhelm them.
Thus, Zephyr left Navy Headquarters and sailed across the Grand Line to recruit outstanding new soldiers.
Moreover, the Navy's previous control over the Grand Line was still too weak to handle the sudden increase in pirates.
To deal with the rising number of pirates, the Navy needed not only more personnel but also additional naval bases in various locations.
However, the establishment of new naval bases was no trivial matter. The selection of locations and personnel required someone with considerable experience. It was not a task that could be entrusted to a less experienced officer.
After much deliberation, the Navy's Fleet Admiral Kong entrusted this important task to Admiral Zephyr.
Fleet Admiral Kong's reasoning was sound. Zephyr was already in charge of training new recruits, so who better to oversee the expansion of the navy than him?
Moreover, Zephyr had decades of experience in the Navy, making him the perfect candidate for choosing the locations of new naval bases.
Having trained navy soldiers for many years, with most of the Navy's top officers being his students, Zephyr was also in the best position to recommend officers for these new bases.
For all these reasons, there was no one better suited to the task than Zephyr.
Zephyr hadn't left Navy Headquarters in a long time. Due to his past experiences, he had grown to hate pirates, abandoning his previous no-kill policy.
Though he initially wanted to refuse this mission, Fleet Admiral Kong's reasoning was too convincing, leaving him no choice but to accept.
Before leaving Marineford, his old friend Garp had patted him on the shoulder, encouraging him to relax, saying that this trip could be a good opportunity to unwind and perhaps find a student to mentor.
Recalling Garp's words, Zephyr couldn't help but smile bitterly. Clearly, this journey had not yet yielded the unexpected rewards Garp had suggested.