Raging—!
The fiery field that covered the entire battlefield began to shrink rapidly.
It twisted inward, condensing into a massive storm of fire that spun with terrifying speed.
Then, in an instant, it burst outward—exploding into a shockwave of searing light and heat.
From within the collapsing vortex of flame, a charred figure was hurled high into the air before crashing heavily into the central square.
It was none other than the Hero of the Marines—Vice Admiral Garp!
At that moment, Garp's appearance was utterly wretched.
The white Marine coat on his upper body had been completely reduced to ash.
Only fragments of his trousers remained intact—
the parts protected by his reinforced Haki, preserving at least his dignity.
His once-white hair had turned pitch black, scorched by Yuuto's flames.
And not just his hair—his entire body had been burned to a crisp, reeking of charred flesh.
His robust physique had withered from the extreme dehydration, his frame shriveled and dry—
he looked more like a standing mummy than a man.
"Ahhh—!"
"Vice Admiral Garp!"
"Mr. Garp!"
The horrified marines who witnessed his condition screamed out in panic and disbelief.
"Garp, are you all right?!"
From the execution platform, Marshal Sengoku's face was pale with dread.
"I'm… fine."
Garp's voice trembled as he spoke.
A puff of black smoke escaped his mouth with each word.
Fine?
No one could possibly call that fine.
As everyone gazed into the massive crater—hundreds of meters wide—
the Marine elites felt their hearts seize with fear.
Each one of them swallowed hard, their throats dry.
"Vice Admiral Garp!"
Two figures—Kebi and Belumebō—rushed forward, carrying buckets of water.
They stumbled into the pit, shoving the buckets toward him.
Garp gritted his teeth, grasped one bucket, and punctured it with his fingers.
Water gushed out and splashed across his body.
Sizzle!
The moment it touched him, the water boiled and vanished into steam.
Even water at room temperature couldn't survive his body's heat.
The sight made every witness shudder—if he hadn't been coated in Haki,
Garp's flesh would have been cooked through long ago.
Only the strength of his will and his Armament Haki allowed him to withstand the inferno still raging inside him.
Gulp, gulp, gulp—!
He grabbed the second bucket and drank greedily.
Each swallow replenished the moisture in his body, and his skin began to fill out once more.
Slowly, the shriveled flesh regained its firmness, and the color returned to his face.
Before long, Garp's form had restored itself to its usual, towering state.
"Uwaaaa!"
All around the square, the marines exhaled in relief.
Then, as one, they erupted into cheers, voices echoing across the battlefield.
But atop the execution platform, Sengoku, Vice Admiral Tsuru, and the other high-ranking officers did not cheer.
Their faces remained grave.
The ordinary sailors might not have understood what they had just witnessed—
but they did.
They knew that Garp—the Marine's strongest hero—had been completely overpowered.
Even now, despite rehydrating and regaining his shape,
Sengoku could see clearly that his old friend had suffered severe internal injuries.
Ever since Garp had mastered the Unrivaled Fist Bones technique and reached the pinnacle of the world's martial might,
no one—not even the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger—had ever managed to break through his defense.
Until now.
Sugisawa Yuuto's flames had done what no one else could.
They had scorched through even Garp's iron body, ravaging him inside and out.
If Garp were anyone else, he'd have died a hundred times over from those burns.
But he was still standing—
still breathing—
still radiating a fighting spirit fierce enough to shake the heavens.
That was why he was the strongest hero of the Marines.
"Garp…"
On the execution platform, Sengoku gritted his teeth, throwing off his Justice cloak.
He could no longer sit idly by.
He knew now—Garp couldn't defeat Yuuto alone.
If he kept fighting, he might very well die.
Though the two had often bickered and fought,
their bond was that of true brothers—
forged through countless battles, forged through blood.
They would gladly die for one another.
"Don't come here, Sengoku!" Garp's voice thundered.
"My fight's not over yet! Not even close!"
A feral grin split his scorched face.
Despite the burns, despite the pain, the light in his eyes only grew brighter.
His spirit blazed even fiercer than Yuuto's flames.
"As expected of the Marine Hero."
Sugisawa Yuuto couldn't help but smile in admiration.
"Hah! Sugisawa Yuuto—your flames alone aren't enough to beat me! Where's your lightning? I've been waiting for it!" Garp roared.
"Oh?" Yuuto's brows rose slightly, a spark flashing in his eyes.
He understood what Garp meant.
If that was what the old man wanted—then so be it.
The searing flames that had scorched the heavens and earth suddenly dimmed.
In their place, arcs of black and crimson lightning began to crackle through the air.
The Thunder Dragon King Mode—activated.
"Let's begin."
Yuuto's voice was calm, yet filled with a deadly thrill.
He raised one hand, and the lightning condensed into a massive weapon—
a halberd nearly a hundred meters long, black as night and pulsing with demonic thunder.
The Thunder Dragon King's Fangtian Halberd!
Yuuto swung it lightly through the air.
Space itself cracked open as the weapon tore forward—
a black flash of destruction that descended toward Garp like a god's judgment.
The strike was faster than sight, faster than thought.
For all its massive form, lightning was still lightning—
the fastest element in existence.
Even Garp could not dodge.
He didn't even try.
Instead, he met it head-on—
his fists rising like iron meteors.
When halberd met fist,
the air split apart with a violent boom.
Crimson and black lightning erupted in waves,
the clash between Conqueror's Haki and divine thunder shaking the world itself.
But the power of this blow was not just in its force—
it was in its sheer destruction.
Bolts of pitch-black lightning speared through the air,
each one strong enough to vaporize a Vice Admiral on contact.
Yet—
Instead of fear, Garp's eyes lit up with exhilaration.
Dark energy began to flow across his body,
coating him from head to toe.
His Armament Haki had reached a level so dense, it was nearly tangible.
Under his control, that Haki transformed into armor,
absorbing Yuuto's thunder head-on—
then feeding off of it.
Boom!
Rumble!
The first clash ended, only for the next to begin in the same heartbeat.
Sparks of black lightning danced across Garp's body.
But this wasn't Conqueror's Haki—it was real lightning.
The Thunder of Sugisawa Yuuto, now coursing through him.
In that instant, the old hero had done the impossible—
he had turned Yuuto's own lightning against him, using it to fuel his body.
He was now channeling thunder into his very cells,
stimulating them to unleash even greater power.
It was as if he had entered a Lightning-Style Chakra Mode—
the One Piece world's version of a shinobi's thunder armor!