"Gum-Gum Jet Pistol!!!"
The black rubber fist flew toward Rob Lucci . Back in Water 7, Luffy had relied on this very move to heavily injure him.
However, the current Rob Lucci was no longer that "strongest CP9 in eight hundred years" who couldn't use Armament Haki due to an "outdated version." Having caught up with the version, he likewise swung out a black fist, colliding fiercely with Luffy.
"Iron Body: Smash!"
"Damn it! Don't stand in my way of saving Grandpa! You damn pigeon guy!"
After just a few simple exchanges, Luffy understood that this enemy, whom he hadn't spent much effort to defeat back then, was now completely different from the past. If it were any other time, he would be interested in having a proper showdown with the opponent to determine the winner.
But right now, they needed to rescue Garp before the execution time arrived, so he naturally didn't have that much time to waste.
Thus, Luffy decisively put his thumb into his mouth, activating Gear Third, which he had only recently developed...
"Gum-Gum Elephant Gun!"
"Six Powers Ultimate Technique: Maximum Ring: Six King Pistol!"
Sensing the terror of Luffy strike, Lucci did not choose to dodge, but instead continued to choose to clash head-on with the opponent.
However, although he had also mastered Armament Haki, the time he had mastered it was, after all, still short. Furthermore, the Leopard-Leopard Fruit that originally belonged to him had already turned into an elemental beast, and because he and Kalifa failed the mission in Water 7, they did not receive other Devil Fruits as rewards...
Therefore, Lucci end was just like in the original manga he was sent flying by Luffy using Gear Third.
And Luffy, who had only recently developed Gear Third, had not overcome the weakness of this move just because he learned Armament Haki ahead of time. So after this punch, his body also shrunk into a laughable two-head-tall figure.
Moreover, the clothes on his body also very unscientifically shrunk along with him.
The shrunken Luffy did not delay much, taking strides with his short legs as he continued to rush toward the execution platform. Furthermore, because of his shrunken size, it instead caused quite a few Marines to fail to react for a moment, allowing him to slip past right beside them.
By the time Luffy rushed near the execution platform, his body also just happened to return to its original state.
"Luffy! You're here!"
Ace and Sabo, who were teaming up against Zephyr, felt their morale surge, and for a moment, they actually managed to suppress Zephyr.
Of course, this was also because Zephyr was not using his full strength.
Otherwise, given his current state—which was younger than in the movie version, and with the sequelae of using the Battle Smasher not yet appearing—forget about Ace and Sabo suppressing him, just holding on without being defeated would have been quite a difficult task.
As for Dragon and Sengoku side, the two of them seemed more like they were playing a turn-based game. Sengoku would fire a shockwave first, which Dragon would block before returning a wind blade, and then it would be Sengoku turn to defend, followed by adding a punch in his Golden Buddha form...
It was one thing for Sengoku to be fighting absentmindedly, but Dragon also didn't seem to be in a hurry to save his own old man.
To be precise, after discovering that the Marines had no heart for fighting and that his old man was actually in no life-threatening danger, he immediately chose to hand over the heavy burden of the rescue to Sabo and Ace. He wanted these two juniors, who were deeply connected to him, to use this execution-ground rescue operation to temper themselves further.
Of course, the intrusion of Luffy and his companions was not within Dragon expectations, but this did not affect his plan. In fact, because of the matters regarding the Nika Fruit that Sherwin had informed him about, Dragon was all the more pleased to see Luffy get involved.
Sengoku, who held the reputation of the Resourceful General, could not possibly fail to notice Dragon little scheme. At first, he was actually very dissatisfied...
We have all collectively gone easy on you, yet you kid are still not satisfied, pushing your luck by using the two of us old men from your father generation to serve as whetstones for your grandchildren generation.
If those brats were Marines, it would be fine, but they are either pirates or Revolutionary Army members. Letting Dragon have his way, wouldn't that be aiding the enemy?!
However, when he thought about the World Government attitude toward the Marines recently, their merciless decision to judge Garp deliberately harshly, and then thought about the Celestial Dragon various inhumane actions over all these years, as well as the Five Elder abnormal behavior of avoiding talking about "Imu"...
Most importantly, Sengoku realized that the conflict between the World Government and the Revolutionary Army had not plunged the world into a more chaotic situation as he had feared. Instead, it showed a vibrant state where all things were competing and thriving.
Therefore, although Sengoku still maintained his loyalty to the Marines, a sliver of a thought deep in his heart uncontrollably sprouted: "It might actually be quite good to let the Revolutionary Army overthrow the World Government."
Under the influence of this thought, even though he saw through Dragon intention to train his troops, Sengoku did not step in to interfere, continuing to engage in a turn-based battle with Dragon, trading hits one by one.
As for Zephyr, he didn't think as much as Sengoku. He only knew that among the three kids in front of him, one was the biological grandson of his good friend Garp, and the other two were also Garp adoptive grandsons. Rounding it up, that meant they were Zephyr grandsons too!
Zephyr, who was naturally fond of being a teacher, subconsciously started playing a guidance match. In the process of the fight, he would call out pointers and instructions from time to time.
"Cough, cough! Zephyr! Pay attention!"
Sengoku saw that Zephyr was getting more and more "excessive" and hastily called out to remind him.
During this period, the World Government had already found the Navy highly disagreeable. If they caught wind of any leverage, it was quite possible that right after Garp was rescued, Zephyr would follow closely behind and kneel on the execution platform.
"Hmph, the execution time is almost here, and our playing ends now... Watch out, brats, this old man is going to get serious!"
Having been reminded, Zephyr finally noticed that his actions just now were a bit out of line. Not wanting to follow in Garp footsteps, he made a couple of excuses, and his movements immediately became fierce.
Once Zephyr got serious, the three of them—Luffy and the others—couldn't quite hold their ground.
Although Luffy and Ace had mastered Armament Haki ahead of time because of Sherwin, they were still a year or two younger than in the original story. Ace was even missing the powerful Logia ability of the Flame-Flame Fruit, making it a bit forced for them to deal with an Admiral-level enemy.
However, right at this moment...
"Three Sword Style: Oni Giri!"
"Diable Jambe: Premier Hachis!"
"Strong Right!"
"Heavy Point: Kokutei Roseo!"
"Special Attack: Firebird Star!"
"Monster Hunter Style: Diving Thrust!"
The members of the Straw Hat Pirates defeated their respective opponents and, under the cover of the Felynes and others, rushed to Luffy side.
"Leave this place to us! Luffy! Go save your grandfather!"
"Everyone!"
Luffy called out, deeply moved, and then without a moment of hesitation, chose to believe in his comrades. Turning around, he and Ace together charged toward Garp on the execution platform.
Sengoku, Zephyr, and the nearby Marines did make a show of trying to stop them, but they were all intercepted by their respective opponents, and so they simply went with the flow and chose to give up.
Thus, with everyone working together and the enemies slacking off, Luffy and Ace reached Garp side smoothly.
As for the two executioners standing behind Garp, before Luffy and Ace fists could even land on them, they hit the ground in advance and "passed out."
"Huh?"
Luffy, feeling as though he hadn't actually hit anyone, looked at the executioners lying on the ground, then looked at his own fists, completely bewildered.