Garp's question left the Marines on the deck looking like they had just swallowed a mouthful of mud. Their faces turned dark as night.
Only heaven knew how exhausted these Marines felt, always following a vice admiral like Garp.
The battle hadn't even properly started, yet they already felt completely worn out.
One Marine officer finally answered, "Vice Admiral Garp, the one who just got kicked... I mean, the one who got sent flying... was your son, Dragon!!"
"Huh?!"
"Nani?!"
Garp's eyes bulged so wide they looked like they were about to pop out of his skull. He shouted in panic, "That was... Dragon?!!"
He quickly turned around and charged through the broken walls, his loud stomping echoing from inside the ship. Moments later, he emerged, carrying the unconscious Dragon with one hand.
Dragon's lips were stained with blood, and a deep red mark was imprinted on the left side of his face. Fortunately, the mark was already beginning to fade. It wouldn't leave a permanent scar most likely because Ares' strength and Haki hadn't reached a level where his attacks could cause permanent damage yet.
Without a second thought, Garp casually tossed Dragon to a nearby Marine and glared furiously at Ares.
"You brat!! What's your name?!!"
"I'm Ares!" Ares answered loudly.
As soon as he spoke, Garp vanished from sight. Ares' eyes widened in shock.
So fast!!!
By the time Ares locked onto him again, Garp was already airborne, right above his head.
"Pirate brat, taste the might of my Iron Fist!!" Garp's booming voice roared like thunder.
His enormous fist had turned pitch black.
Armament Haki hardening!
It was so fast that Ares didn't have time to react. The crushing black fist slammed straight down onto his head.
Duang~~
Ares felt an intense, searing pain explode in his skull. His vision spun wildly. The world flipped upside down.
His balance shattered.
His brain went blank, and the chaotic pain made him lose control of his body, leaving only the dizzying sensation of being hurled through the air.
Cold seawater soon swallowed him whole.
Glug, glug, glug.
Countless air bubbles rose from beneath the surface.
Fragments of distant memories resurfaced from deep within Ares' mind. He saw other children, playgrounds with slides, and all kinds of colorful toys.
There was even something called a "kindergarten."
And an orange bus that sang songs as it came to pick him up.
"Li Yang??!!"
"Kindergarten... Who's Li Yang?!"
"Glug... cough..."
As Ares mumbled this unfamiliar name, seawater rushed into his mouth and choked him back to consciousness.
The throbbing pain in his head made it impossible for him to focus on the memories flooding his mind.
Clenching his jaw, Ares shook his head forcefully and shoved the chaotic images aside, then quickly swam back toward the surface.
On the Navy battleship's deck.
The Marines cheered wildly when they saw Ares sink into the sea after Garp's mighty punch.
"Vice Admiral Garp is unstoppable! He crushed that pirate with a single punch!!"
"Vice Admiral Garp is one of the Navy's greatest powers! There's no way some no-name pirate could ever stand a chance!!"
"That punch was incredible! Vice Admiral Garp's fists are feared across the seas!!"
The once tense and fearful atmosphere suddenly turned into wild celebration.
Meanwhile.
Thanks to the ship's medical team, Dragon slowly regained consciousness. The instant his awareness returned, he felt a burning, stinging pain on the left side of his face and vividly remembered Ares' fiery foot slamming into him.
Dragon's anger exploded.
"Dragon, stay calm! Don't get angry! The mark on your face is flaring up again!" The ship's doctor quickly whispered in his ear.
A mark on his face?
Dragon instantly panicked and touched his left cheek. Sure enough, he could feel a burning, swollen imprint.
His expression darkened instantly.
It was the imprint of a shoe sole!!
The doctor added, "Dragon, you must stay calm and keep your blood flow steady. This mark will take two to three days to fade."
"If you lose your temper in the next couple of days, this mark might never go away."
Terrified, Dragon immediately started breathing deeply, forcing himself to suppress his rage.
The doctor continued, "That pirate took a direct Iron Fist from Vice Admiral Garp to the head. Unless someone saves him, he'll probably end up as fish food."
Hearing this, Dragon felt a bit better and let out a long sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Garp grinned smugly. "Haha... After taking my Iron Fist, that kid should be out cold for at least a few days!"
"Still, I have to admit his head was pretty hard!"
Even if that pirate, Ares, had an unusually tough skull, Garp was sure his punch had knocked him out cold.
He glanced toward the pirate ship where Byrnndi World and Wang Zhi were still locked in battle. His eyes gleamed with excitement.
"That was just a warm-up. Now it's time to stretch my muscles and get serious!"
It was the famous Byrnndi World and the Rocks Pirates cadre that Garp truly cared about.
Garp turned to the Marines on deck and ordered, "Bring the ship clos "
But before he could finish his sentence, his expression twisted dramatically. His eyes bulged in disbelief, his entire face frozen in shock.
"Nani?!!"
"That kid... he's still alive?!!"
Right in front of him, Ares had climbed back onto the deck from the sea as if nothing had happened.
The Marines all turned to stare at Ares, completely dumbfounded.
"He... he's still standing!!" Dragon's face drained of color. The burning pain in his cheek flared up again, and he quickly forced himself to calm down.
The red mark on his face slowly began to fade.
Dragon was shaken to the core. The punch he took was just one of Garp's infamous "Fists of Love." But Ares had taken a full-force Iron Fist from Vice Admiral Garp right to the head!
And yet he was back on his feet, alive and well.
An extraordinary body.
An unbelievably tough life force.
This pirate was definitely not just some random no-name.
As soon as Ares got back on board, his gaze immediately locked onto Garp. That punch had left a deep impression on him.
He had clearly felt the overwhelming strength behind that strike.
Ares' amber-like eyes burned as he stared intently at Garp, his battle spirit blazing like wildfire.
Excitedly, he said, "You must be the strongest one on this ship!!!"
"Come fight me!!"
----------------------------------------------------
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