Sakazuki, the user of the Logia Lava-Lava Fruit ability.
Borsalino, the user of the Logia Flash Fruit ability.
Monkey D. Dragon, whose fruit ability is unknown, but there are rumors that he may be the user of the Logia Wind Fruit ability or the Paramecia Storm Fruit ability.
Among the three, Dragon has been with the Marine for the longest time and is the son of Garp, making his strength naturally the strongest among them.
At the very least, he possesses the strength of a veteran Vice Admiral.
Sakazuki and Borsalino joined the Marine relatively late, and they have not had the Devil Fruit for long.
They also lack a father with Admiral-level combat power like Garp, who has trained them since childhood, resulting in their relatively inferior strength.
They can barely be considered quasi-Vice Admiral-level combatants.
Combined with the special abilities of their Logia Devil Fruits, they can fight against a Vice Admiral without losing their advantage.
As for Dragon, he likely won't be able to defeat him.
Ron was not very familiar with Porsalino and wanted to punch him just for having that smug face.
The only one who could help him was Sakazuki.
"Haki for you?"
In another courtyard, Sakazuki, bare-chested and adorned with Sakura flower tattoos, was drinking tea while admiring the Sakura blossoms in the courtyard.
When he saw Ron unexpectedly visit, a hint of interest appeared in his eyes.
However, after a moment's thought, he shook his head and declined.
"The destructive power of the Lava-Lava Fruit is too strong. In a life-and-death fight, it would be difficult for me to control it."
He admired Ron very much and held a good impression of a Marine who shared his philosophy.
He wouldn't mind helping Ron if he could.
But, as he said, the lethality of the Lava-Lava Fruit is too great, and if they truly fought, he couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't accidentally kill Ron.
It wouldn't be wise to use him as a sparring partner.
Ron didn't see it that way.
He needed enough pressure to awaken Haki, and it would actually be beneficial if Sakazuki couldn't control his power.
If he held back, it would serve no purpose.
"Okay!"
Seeing Ron's serious attitude, Sakazuki reluctantly agreed.
"Marineford isn't suitable for fighting. There's a small island nearby. You can go there."
Sakazuki suggested.
When their strength reaches such a level, the aftermath of their battle can cause significant destruction.
It might result in the Naval Headquarters being dismantled again, which would be hard to explain to Marshal Kong.
Ron had no objections.
The two took a battleship to an isolated island.
After landing, Ron slowly drew the Crimson Cry at his waist.
With his current strength, his chances of winning against Sakazuki were less than 10%.
Only with the help of Crimson Cry strength could he barely contend.
After all, his opponent possessed Logia Devil Fruit powers.
"Dark Hound!"
When the battle commenced, Sakazuki's aura suddenly became blazing.
The temperature of the entire island seemed to rise in an instant.
Sakazuki, with his arms flowing like magma, shot out a stream of magma from his palm, attacking Ron.
"Blood Cut!"
Ron's eyes narrowed, and he swung his knife to strike.
The bloody slash collided with the scorching magma fire waves, and sparks flew everywhere, igniting a prairie fire.
Fighting against a Logia Devil Fruit user means the opponent can make countless mistakes, and a single hit can directly injure you and render you combat ineffective.
That is the horror of Logia Devil Fruit powers.
Thus, he had to work hard and focus on achieving Ultimate.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Slashes collided with magma!
As the battle intensified, the magma on Sakazuki's body grew hotter, and the flowing hot magma almost consumed his entire body.
On the small island, magma flowed everywhere, leaving fewer places to pass or settle.
Ron could only use Moonwalk, relying on his agility to engage with Sakazuki.
He had long forgotten what it meant to learn from one another and compete.
At this moment, his only thought was to defeat him!
Only by defeating this guy could he survive.
"Breaking the Military!"
Ron pinpointed an opening and slashed forward fiercely with a restrained knife.
This strike seemed unremarkable, as if it were just a casual slash, and even Sakazuki didn't take it seriously.
But as the knife fell and approached, the terrifying power contained within it erupted completely.
The pervasive sharpness seemed capable of cutting through space itself.
The power of a single strike reached skyward, slicing the clouds above in two.
Caught off guard, Sakazuki's Lava-Lava Fruit erupted as he attempted to block the blow.
His body was cut through by the knife, along with the magma.
In the next second, the flowing magma converged, reassembling the body.
Since Ron hadn't mastered Armament Haki, the bizarre bloody slash, while powerful, couldn't kill Sakazuki.
Had that knife been wrapped in Haki, he would probably be dead by now.
As the battle escalated, neither side could hold back.
Sakazuki's offense grew increasingly violent.
It wasn't that he didn't want to restrain himself, but Ron's strength truly exceeded his expectations.
If he didn't fight with all his strength, he wouldn't be able to counter Ron's stronger slashes.
This guy's strength was already infinitely close to the Vice Admiral level.
"the Red dog!"
Sakazuki roared, his right hand transforming into magma, condensing into a huge dog's head that lunged toward Ron's chest.
The power of this punch surpassed his peak attack.
An instinctive, furious blow had just been unleashed.
Sakazuki's heart sank.
This punch was so powerful that even if Ron could block it, he would be seriously injured.
"Is this the power of a Logia user?"
Facing this overwhelming strike, Ron felt slightly suffocated.
The sense of crisis that accompanied the struggle for life made every cell in his body tremble.
In this desperate situation, a power hidden deep within him, which had never before been discovered, suddenly erupted.
It felt as if a closed door had been quietly breached.
Hum!
A pitch-black light swept across the entire blade.
The blood-red blade turned a deep black.
Ron swung his sword upward, deflecting Sakazuki's attack.
"Is this the power of Armament Haki?"
Gazing at his wrists and arms wrapped in black Armament Haki, Ron's face was filled with surprise.
He hadn't expected to awaken Armament Haki so quickly.
Even more astonishing was the fact that the Armament Haki he had just awakened could be entangled.
Harden, Entangle, Release, Destroy Inside!
These are the four levels of Armament Haki.
The armed color is hardened, allowing Haki to be attached to the surface of the body to enhance one's own attack and defense.
When the amount of Haki accumulates to a certain level, it can be released and wrapped around the body and weapons.
As for Armament Haki's external release and internal destruction, only top Haki powerhouses can achieve that.
Such individuals are rare, with only one in a million.
Even at Naval Headquarters, despite the abundance of strength, the number of people who can cultivate Haki to this level will not exceed the number of hands on one's body.
The vast majority of those who have awakened Armament Haki will remain at the Harden level for the rest of their lives.
He hadn't expected that he had just awakened Armament Haki and could already wrap it around his weapon.
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