Even smarter ones don't need to fight him; they just wait for his time to come, and naturally, he will be defeated.
The gap is still too big. Only when he can handle Garp at 100% of breathing technique without losing ground will he truly have a chance to defeat Garp.
Of course, that was before, not after Sage ate the fruit.
Now...
He's frighteningly strong!
"Grandpa's..."
Luffy remembered the pain of getting hit on the head by his grandpa before, and shouted: "I don't want to be attacked like that again!"
He lifted one hand, putting his thumb near his mouth and blowing air inside, "If Second Gear doesn't work, then..."
At the same time, he jumped up forcefully, soaring into the sky, his arm swelling up in an instant, becoming bigger than the Hot Spring Island itself, the shadow cast by the sun covered half the platform.
"Third Gear! Gigant Pistol!"
The gigantic fist pressed down, the sense of power within it even vibrated the air, and crucially, it's not slow in speed.
Watching the battle, Lucci clenched his fist, his pupils contracted slightly.
It's faster than when he fought him, and it seems more powerful too.
"Quite formidable strength."
Marika slightly opened her eyes, sighing: "To be able to transform into such a large size, and it doesn't look like it's just inflation... is it the nature of the ability?"
"Why is it still feeling so hot even with the shadow covering? It's not refreshing at all."
Renedia stuck out her tongue, beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, she twisted her body uncomfortably, "It's getting hotter..."
On the other side, the Straw Hat Gang watched Sage and Luffy's fight, only feeling the temperature around them rising, making them increasingly hot and restless.
"The tension is making me sweat."
Usopp wiped a handful of sweat from his head, "Are we really just letting them fight? Robin, that's your brother after all."
"Well, he's the Captain after all, and Sage may be my brother but we're partners." Robin said with a smile: "Don't worry, I don't sense any malice."
"Indeed, there's no malicious intent."
Zoro crossed his arms, "It doesn't matter who wins, it's just like training."
At this level, there's no such thing as losing.
Whether it's Luffy or that disaster, they aren't people who lack tact.
"Speaking of which, it really is hot." Zoro glanced at the beads of sweat on his arms, "Usopp, this doesn't seem like a tension from the atmosphere, it's the temperature..."
Sanji used his hand as a fan, waving it around, and said upon hearing that: "It's too hot, like a sauna, is there a volcano underneath?"
"Volcano?" Nami blinked.
Sanji's eyes filled with hearts, "Nami-chan! Rest assured, even if a volcano erupts, it's not as hot as my heart, my heart is a tenfold volcanic eruption!"
"Eruption?"
Nami looked up at the sky, then scanned the ground, squatted down touching the platform ground, the high temperature made her instinctively withdraw her hand, an ominous feeling rose in her heart.
"No way..." she murmured.
...
"Power is good, my normal state doesn't compare to this kind of strength."
Sage looked at the gigantic fist pressed down, nodded, "Giant's Strength? No, it's much stronger than any ordinary giant."
The Third Gear's power, which he heard Lucci mention, has size and strength bigger than any giant, and one blow can destroy half of the Enis Tower. If the Hot Spring Island takes a punch head-on, it's definitely going to be destroyed.
He didn't see giants on Enies Lobby, but those giants definitely don't have such fierce strength sensations.
But then again, if it wasn't strong enough, how could it defeat Lucci and go toe-to-toe with Moriah?
Without Haki, Moriah and Luffy, who was just in the 'touch' stage, are basically non-Haki types, purely relying on ability and Body Techniques to even the score, still showing some level.
"But that's as far as it goes, force isn't everything."
Sage smiled, raising his fist, still not bringing Haki into play.
Great power is nothing, like a normal person's flesh and blood fist, no matter how strong, it can't break iron.
Taking this strike head-on, at most it will be pushed away, and the harm received will be negligible.
Moreover... that's without having moved.
"Sometimes being big doesn't equate to strength, but absolute speed is absolute power."
Sage clenched his fist, knees slightly bent, "Twenty times should be enough."
"Twenty times speed!"
Bang!
A circle of smoke erupted from under his soles, his figure swiftly darted, reaching higher altitudes instantly, arriving beneath that gigantic fist, his extended fist like a needle tip facing a normal fist, fiercely blasted forward.
Boom!!
The explosive sound shockingly burst open, the gigantic and mighty fist at this moment not only failed to press further down but even faintly showed signs of being pushed back.
Luffy clenched his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, clearly exerting continuous force, but the pushing back not only didn't weaken but became increasingly intense.
It lasted for about two seconds, the massive bone balloon fist rapidly shrunk inward, pushed up by a greater force, swiftly thrown into the sky.
As it was thrown out, the fist quickly leaked air and shrunk, Luffy's physique also turned into a tiny childlike state.
"Oh no!" Luffy's limbs flailed in the air, letting out a startled cry.
"It really is bad!"
Sage's voice appeared in front of him, followed by an incoming fist.
In Sage's eyes, his fist started to get covered with a layer of Haki from its original color.