Just as Jon Lyons began controlling the plants and preparing to attack, he noticed that most of the plants had already been destroyed. Only a few remained intact. While he could manipulate plants, he couldn't revive dead ones.
Perhaps his abilities had not reached that level yet, but for now, it was certain that he couldn't bring the dead back to life.
With most of the plants gone, the threat was greatly diminished. However, Jon didn't give up and continued controlling the remaining plants. The plants on the pirate ship suddenly extended countless vines, whipping toward the pirates aboard.
"Acting up again?"
As soon as Jon's plants began attacking, they were noticed by Rayleigh. With a few swift slashes of his sword, he severed the incoming vines. Then, with several more strikes, he cut down the remaining plants at their roots.
Jon Lyons, standing on the warship, looked visibly upset. Was it because the opponent was too strong, or because he was too weak? He hadn't even properly started attacking, and all his plants were destroyed. Were all members of the Roger Pirates monsters?
"That man… is he Rayleigh?"
At this close distance and using his Observation Haki, Jon could clearly see the man attacking the plants. Wearing glasses and wielding a sword, he fit the description of "Dark King" Rayleigh perfectly.
Akainu launched another volley of magma fists at the pirate ship. However, as the future admiral, he was still far from reaching his peak. His attacks barely inconvenienced the Roger Pirates.
"The gap is too great," Jon thought with a sigh. It wasn't that they were too weak—it was that the Roger Pirates were too strong.
Even though the Roger Pirates weren't yet at their peak, they were already the top pirate crew of the New World. Besides Roger, who was stronger than a Navy admiral, there was Rayleigh, a deputy captain on par with an admiral, and Scopper Gaban, who was nearly as strong.
Such a lineup was far beyond anything Jon and his crew could handle. The fact that they had managed to escape this far was already a stroke of luck. They were simply not qualified to participate in battles of this level.
Meanwhile, Garp was still exchanging attacks with the Roger Pirates. Though his soldiers weren't as elite as Roger's crew, they had the advantage in numbers and Garp leading the charge. The two sides were locked in a fierce battle. Meanwhile, Jon's group had been forgotten.
The chase continued for about half an hour before Roger shouted, "Garp, we'll fight again in the New World. I'm done playing with you for today."
With that, the Roger Pirates' Oro Jackson turned and sailed off in another direction.
"Roger! If you're so bold, don't run!"
Garp yelled loudly but didn't give chase. He knew that even if they caught up, it would be nearly impossible to capture Roger unless they sent a fleet of a dozen warships to blockade him.
"Garp is still the same. If it were anyone else, they might have stayed on our tail," Rayleigh remarked with a smile as he watched Garp's lack of pursuit.
Roger laughed. "We've fought him so many times that we know each other too well. That guy isn't like ordinary Navy officers. If I weren't a pirate and he weren't in the Navy, we might have been great friends. But this dynamic—part foe, part friend—isn't so bad either."
Rayleigh replied, "Garp's sudden appearance must not have been to chase us but rather to escort that other warship."
Roger nodded. "That must be it. That warship must be carrying the Navy's next generation of talent. They're not ordinary recruits; they must be geniuses highly valued by Navy headquarters. Otherwise, Garp wouldn't have been sent to protect them."
"One of them wields magma-based powers, and they seem quite capable. Another has extraordinary Observation Haki. And there's one who can control plants from hundreds of meters away. It looks like this generation of Navy officers is full of talent."
Roger and Rayleigh didn't realize that the one with Observation Haki and the one controlling plants were the same person. They thought they were two different individuals.
"When we finish what we need to do, we'll head back to the New World. I hear Shiki has been stirring up trouble lately—we should join the fun."
Since the fall of the Rocks Pirates, the New World had become increasingly chaotic. Many pirates who had splintered off from the Rocks crew were vying for territory. Over the years, Shiki had built the largest empire among them.
Back when Roger and Garp had teamed up to defeat Rocks, they had also encountered Shiki, Whitebeard, and others. Roger didn't share Shiki's ambition, but if given the opportunity, he wouldn't mind causing some chaos himself.
Garp used Moonwalk to jump onto Jon's warship, scanning the crew before asking Brueck, "Any casualties?"
Brueck replied, "None."
"That's good."
Garp breathed a sigh of relief. Even if there had been casualties, he wouldn't have faced significant consequences. However, he would have blamed himself for his carelessness. Thankfully, there were no losses this time.
Now in a better mood, Garp laughed heartily. "Jon, Akainu, you two were lucky this time. You're fortunate it was the Roger Pirates you encountered. If it had been another major pirate crew, you might not have been so lucky."
As Garp laughed, Jon couldn't help but recall their previous encounter—this old rascal, the master of skipping out on bills.
"This close call was a good experience for you," Garp said, coughing lightly as if he'd noticed Jon's expression. He then put on a serious face and began lecturing.
"The Roger Pirates are one of the greatest threats in the New World. You've seen their strength. Let me tell you this—if they'd wanted to kill you, you'd all be dead already. They didn't even use a fraction of their power. Now you understand the gap between yourselves and the big leagues?"
The crew remained silent, including Jon and Akainu. Jon knew Garp wasn't exaggerating.
Even without Roger, Rayleigh alone could have annihilated them. A few hundred meters might seem like a safe distance for most, but if the Roger Pirates had truly intended to kill, they could have reached the warship in no time and wiped them out.
Seeing their silence, Garp scratched his head, unsure of what to say next. Fighting pirates was no problem for him, but educating recruits was not his strong suit.
"Well, since you're all fine, you can decide whether to return to Navy headquarters or continue your journey until the end of your trial period. I'll follow behind, but don't expect me to help unless it's a life-or-death situation like before."
After issuing this warning, Garp left the warship.
Once Garp was gone, Brueck spoke up. "You heard Vice Admiral Garp. What do you want to do next? The decision is yours."
After their recent ordeal, the crew's feelings were mixed. With only a few days left in the trial period, they weren't sure if they wanted to continue.
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