To be honest, the slash that Wood had just unleashed was nearly on par in power with the one Golden Lion Shiki had used on the day of his prison break.
Yet, despite the immense power of the slash, Garp had easily crushed it with his bare hands!
This was the strength of the Marine hero, Monkey D. Garp. At this point in time, Garp had not yet grown old, and his power hadn't declined.
Neither Wood nor Tsuru knew how much strength Garp had actually used, but it was clear he wasn't going all out.
"With my current strength, I can only make the real powerhouses of this world take me somewhat seriously?
What if I add the power of the 'Heart of God'? How far can I push Garp then?"
The "Heart of God" was a life-draining technique, and unless the situation was dire, Wood preferred not to use it.
However, facing Garp, who seemed so relaxed, Wood felt a surge of battle lust. He wanted to see how far he could go if he risked everything and fought with all his might.
The rune on his chest that represented the "Heart of God" began to emit a faint silver glow. Just as Wood was about to tap into that power to test his limits, Tsuru, who had been watching the fight, suddenly intervened.
"Wood, Vice Admiral Garp, I just received a communication from Fleet Admiral Sengoku. The chief officer of Enies Lobby, Spandam, has just requested reinforcements from the World Government.
The reason is that they've discovered Fisher Tiger, the one responsible for the Holy Land Mariejois incident, but Enies Lobby's forces aren't strong enough to capture him.
The World Government has already accepted Spandam's request, and in a few minutes, reinforcements will arrive through the Gate of Justice."
Upon hearing this, Wood remained calm, as if he had expected this outcome when he had first sought the help of the Sun Pirates.
But so what? The strongest forces of Enies Lobby, Garp and Tsuru, were both here with him, putting on a show. The remaining defenders at Enies Lobby were no match for Tiger and Jinbe.
This wasn't ten years from now—CP9's Lucci and Kalifa were still young and weren't even present at Enies Lobby. The island barely had any capable fighters left.
Even if the World Government's reinforcements could reach them quickly through the Gate of Justice, by the time they arrived, they would already be long gone.
Let's not forget, the Sun Pirates are all Fish-Men. They don't even need a ship to leave Enies Lobby.
With a hundred or so Fish-Men and a dozen ordinary humans, escaping from Enies Lobby before the reinforcements arrived would be a breeze.
As Wood explained their detailed plans to Tsuru, asking her to cooperate in their staged pursuit later, a Den Den Mushi in his pocket suddenly rang.
This Den Den Mushi had been given to Wood by Tiger during their earlier split-up, to make communication easier.
Hearing it ring, Wood assumed it was Tiger reporting the success of their mission and informing him that it was time to retreat.
However, when Wood answered, he saw Tiger's expression on the Den Den Mushi, looking rather guilty.
"Brother Wood, I'm really sorry. Our rescue mission failed, and the members of your crew have been captured alive by the enemy…"
Hearing Tiger's remorseful tone, Wood was first struck with disbelief, followed by shock and surprise.
Could it be that Enies Lobby, even without Lucci and the others, had other hidden powerhouses on the island?
Of course! Tsuru and Garp were external forces, but Enies Lobby was still one of the three main government agencies. It made no sense for there to be no other strong fighters. He had been too careless!
"No, this is my fault," Tiger quickly corrected. "The defensive strength on the island isn't much different from what you said, but I misjudged the strength of Sister Ruth and the others."
Tiger then explained the situation they had encountered, leaving Wood speechless.
What was this, a Saint Seiya mission to save Athena? With the team Tiger had, they should have been able to push through, even if it took a bit longer.
But instead, they had decided to follow the typical hot-blooded anime trope of one person staying behind to hold off the enemy so that the others could escape.
Tiger was a master of Fish-Man Karate, and his natural advantages as a Fish-Man meant he was far stronger, more durable, and had better recovery abilities than any human.
But Fish-Men also had a major weakness—Tiger and Jinbe, being large, powerful Fish-Men, had significant strength, but their speed on land was severely lacking.
In water, this wouldn't have been a problem, but on land, saving people or capturing Spandam right under the noses of two CP9 agents who had mastered the "Soru" technique was incredibly difficult.
"I'm coming over right now. Stall Spandam and his men until I get there. If they manage to pass through the Gate of Justice, rescuing them will be a near-impossible mission, and we'd have to storm Mariejois itself!" Wood replied.
Hearing that Wood was planning to come over, Tiger was visibly taken aback. He hadn't expected that not only had Wood managed to hold off two top-tier fighters on his own, but he also had the energy to come back and help.
Tiger had contacted Wood with the intention of taking a risky gamble by opening the Gate of Justice at Enies Lobby and heading directly to intercept the World Government's reinforcement fleet. He planned to launch an ambush from the sea.
This plan was extremely dangerous, as the World Government's intelligence division was not an easy opponent to take down.
But Tiger had no other choice. Abandoning Ruth, Tom, and the others and escaping with the Sun Pirates might be a practical decision, but it would be heartless, and it wasn't something Fisher Tiger could ever do.
Ruth and Tom's crew were both their friends and fellow Fish-Men.
Moreover, as the one who had made the decision for this operation, Tiger couldn't allow Ruth and the others to be taken by Spandam's men.
However, if they kept dragging things out, and the World Government's intelligence division arrived, the Fish-Men brothers of the Sun Pirates would undoubtedly suffer.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Tiger could only think of one solution: to destroy the incoming reinforcement fleet on his own. That would turn the tide of the situation.
Even if the World Government's agents could use the "Geppo" technique, there was no way they could cross the sea without ships.
And in the water, the Fish-Men had an absolute advantage. Destroying the ships while the enemy was unprepared wasn't an impossible task.
But once he made his move, Tiger knew he wouldn't be able to escape the ensuing encirclement.
Yet Tiger didn't mind this. If sacrificing himself could change the current dire situation, it was a price he was more than willing to pay.
*******
P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 300+ at pat_reon.com/Betek.