The moment his swordsmanship was maxed out, a wave of profound clarity washed over Rowan's mind. Countless techniques, stances, and the hidden philosophies of the blade echoed through his consciousness. These depths of knowledge were digested and absorbed by Rowan in a fraction of a second.
When he opened his eyes again, a sharp, piercing light flickered within them. Though he couldn't pinpoint every specific physical change, he could clearly feel that his attainment in the way of the sword had reached the absolute peak of perfection.
When his gaze fell upon the unnamed blade again, an irresistible urge to grip it surged within him.
"Haha! Old man, I caught you! Once I take you down, let's see if that brat still acts so cocky!"
While Rowan's attention was fixed on the famous blade, a lean man with dark circles under his eyes broke away from the pirate crowd and ran toward him with a cold sneer.
Damn, that Devil Fruit kid is terrifying. I'm not stupid; I know I'll just get sent flying if I charge him. I can't beat a Devil Fruit user, but surely I can handle a withered old man like you!
Charging forward with long strides, the pirate gave a feral grin and swung his heavy cutlass down toward Rowan without mercy.
"Blade... Come!"
As if he didn't even see the descending steel, Rowan uttered those words as if possessed by some ancient whim.
"Blade come? Damn, you think you're in a martial arts novel?!"
The pirate sneered inwardly. He was already imagining the reward his boss would give him for capturing the old man and forcing the Devil Fruit brat to surrender.
But at that exact heartbeat, the unnamed blade stuck in the sand began to vibrate. Hummm—! A pleasant, melodic ring echoed as the sword leaped from the sand, turned into a streak of light, and flew directly into Rowan's palm.
Then, a boundless, pure, and terrifyingly sharp Sword Intent erupted from within Rowan's body.
The pirate swinging at him was instantly torn into microscopic fragments by the sheer pressure of that intent; not a single hair was left behind. In the next instant, the powerful Sword Intent shot toward the heavens, piercing the very clouds!
Zing—!
The sound of a legendary blade unsheathing rang across the entire ocean!
At that same moment, whether on the beach or on the ships yet to dock, every pirate froze. They stopped whatever they were doing and looked up at the sky. Feeling the majestic Sword Intent washing over them and seeing the firmament practically shredded by the aura, every face was masked in horror.
Rowan himself hadn't realized exactly what kind of level his "Maxed Out" swordsmanship had achieved.
Meanwhile. Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
"Gahahaha! The Old Man is still the Old Man! To think that even at a hundred years old, his blade is still this sharp! From now on, us 'young' seventy and eighty-year-olds won't have any right to use age as an excuse to slack off!"
Inside Sengoku's office, that familiar, boisterous laughter echoed once more.
"I told you, with the Old Man's strength, he's perfectly capable of making it to Headquarters on his own. See? Not only is he fine, but he took down a Fish-man pirate crew and even cleaned up the corruption at two different bases along the way."
Opposite Sengoku, Garp sat on the sofa, munching on rice crackers and laughing heartily.
Looking at the carefree Garp, a frowning Sengoku snapped irritably, "You idiot! Don't just sit there laughing! Do you know what kind of scenes occurred when the Old Man fought Arlong's crew, even if the report is only a few lines long?"
"Even if he won, do you know if he was injured? He's a hundred years old, Garp! No matter how sturdy his bones are, how can he escape the toll of time? If something actually happened to him, could you live with the guilt?!"
As Sengoku roared, the office door was pushed open.
A tall man in a white suit and dark blue shirt walked in, a Marine Justice coat draped over his shoulders and a sleeping mask pushed up onto his forehead. He looked at the fuming Sengoku with a lazy expression.
"Arara... Fleet Admiral Sengoku, is it really necessary to shout that loud? I could hear your roar from the end of the hallway."
"Is there something you need, Aokiji?"
Sengoku shot one last glare at Garp before turning his attention to Kuzan, one of the Navy's "Highest Combat Powers"—Admiral Aokiji.
"Haha, Kuzan-boy is back from the New World!"
Despite being sprayed with Sengoku's spit, Garp's grin never faltered. He gestured for Aokiji to sit and generously offered him the bag of rice crackers.
Aokiji nodded to Garp, popped a cracker into his mouth, and then said, "Fleet Admiral Sengoku, Mr. Garp... do you know who I ran into on my way back?"
"Was it Shanks?" Garp growled. "Tell me, did you give him a good thrashing for me? That brat... seducing my grandson into being a pirate! Unforgivable!"
"Arara, Mr. Garp, please don't throw me into the fire. You know the Red-Haired Pirates' strength; none of those officers are pushovers."
Aokiji stretched lazily. Then he turned to Sengoku, his expression becoming slightly more serious. "On my way back, I saw the Warlord, Jinbe."
"Jinbe? The Captain of the Sun Pirates? What about him? Is he causing trouble?" Sengoku asked, taking a sip of tea.
"Not exactly." Aokiji shook his head. "But here's the thing: when I saw him, he was carrying some pretty serious injuries. And he told me himself... that those wounds were the handiwork of Mr. Rowan."
"The Old Man?!" "Grandpa?!"
Garp and Sengoku shouted in unison. They locked eyes, both seeing the same confusion. In their hearts, Rowan's status was irreplaceable, but they knew his strength—or thought they did. Even in his prime, the Rowan they remembered wouldn't have been a match for the current Jinbe, let alone now at age one hundred.
Their first instinct was that it was impossible.
Wait... no. Sengoku's gaze sharpened. Jinbe was the Captain of the Sun Pirates. Arlong, the pirate the Old Man just took down, was a former member of that same crew. If Jinbe was injured and claimed it was Rowan's doing, there had to be a connection.
"Garp, do you think—"
Sengoku started to speak, but he didn't finish. A look of sudden shock washed over his face.
Garp, now deathly serious, didn't say a word. He threw a punch that shattered the office window and launched himself out using Geppo, leaping toward the very top of the Marineford fortress. Aokiji and Sengoku were right behind him.
Standing at the highest point of the headquarters, the three of them turned their gaze toward the East Blue.
"What incredible Sword Intent..." Garp whispered, his expression grim.
Though the sensation was faint and coming from a vast distance, the sheer quality of that Sword Intent was enough to make even them feel a sense of pressure.
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