Ortolan: Am I supposed to jump straight into the peak tournament the moment I step out?

Garp was a bit puzzled at first, but the New World was chaotic, so he wasn't particularly surprised. Instead, he ordered the Marine beside him, "Check the island's other exits and hidden harbors. See if the Oro Jackson is there!"

Generally speaking, no island had just one harbor. Some islands even built hidden ports specifically for shady business, catering to the underworld and all kinds of scoundrels. Pirates, for instance, loved docking their ships there.

After saying that, Garp's ship lowered its gangplank. He strode down from the warship casually, planning to head into the town and check out the commotion. As a righteous Marine, if the island was being stirred up by pirates, he'd have to step in.

And with Garp's iconic dog-headed warship parked there, Jabba, who was buying booze on the harbor's trade street, spotted him right away.

"That bastard's nose is still as sharp as ever..." Jabba muttered, then quickly slipped away to notify his crewmates. They'd need to evacuate the island.

As for Zunesha, it looked like they'd miss their chance to see it this time.

Over the years, the Roger Pirates and Garp had tangled countless times, but every single encounter ended with the Roger Pirates fleeing.

It wasn't that Garp could single-handedly crush the entire Roger Pirates. The main reason was that the Roger Pirates simply didn't want to get bogged down with a persistent pest like Garp. As pirates, running into Marines meant running away—wasn't that normal?

If they got stuck fighting Garp somewhere, more Marines would swarm in like sharks drawn to blood from all directions. Once trapped in that situation, escaping would be a real pain!

Meanwhile, Ortolan and Mihawk were launching a fierce assault on Rayleigh together. But both were still greenhorns. Their potential was immense, but their actual strength couldn't match Rayleigh's. Even working as a duo, Rayleigh had them on the defensive, and it was clear he was holding back, not even going all-out.

On the rooftop of a tall building nearby, the Roger Pirates sat along the eaves. Roger himself held a bottle of booze, took a couple of swigs, and laughed heartily. "Who would've thought? We'd run into a legendary Goro Goro no Mi user here!"

"Is this the hot-tempered brat you mentioned from Cake Island? He wasn't a Devil Fruit user last time, was he?" Crocus asked, watching the fierce battle unfolding in the street below with interest.

"Yeah, he wasn't a user back then. But he wasn't like this either. At the time, he seemed out of control. If I remember right, that was the Sulong form. That kid's probably a half-breed of the Tanned Tribe!" Roger nodded.

After another swig, he mused, "I didn't fight him much, but he broke Shanks' arm in one hit back then. Rayleigh got careless and got sent flying by his hammer too. Later, Rayleigh said the kid's strength was absurd. And from the feel of the cut he landed on him, his physique is freakishly tough. Now that he's eaten the Goro Goro no Mi, if he grows up without dying young, give him a few years, and there'll be another powerhouse on these seas!"

His regret was that he probably wouldn't live to see it.

Crocus shot Roger a glance and said, "If you know your time's short, you should drink less."

"Wrong!" Roger laughed boldly. "Precisely because I know my time's short, I should drink more! Otherwise, I'll definitely regret it later. Hahahahaha!"

Brubrubrubru... Brubrubru.

Just as the Roger Pirates were enjoying the show, the Den Den Mushi on Roger rang. He pulled it out, glanced at it, and frowned. "That Jabba guy, did he get lost buying booze?"

"Out of all of us, you're the worst with directions!" Crocus jabbed.

Roger ignored him and picked up. "Jabba?"

"Forget about watching Zunesha. I spotted Garp's warship at the harbor. No doubt about it—he's here!" Jabba said straight into the Den Den Mushi.

"Garp? You sure?" Roger asked, stunned.

"Idiot, how many times have we crossed paths with him? Who'd mistake that dog-headed ship of his!?" Jabba shot back.

"What a buzzkill..." Roger sighed, then said, "Meet at the ship, then. You go ahead and weigh anchor. If we leave first, that warship of Garp's can't catch our Oro Jackson!"

"Got it. Don't let him pin you down." Jabba warned, then hung up.

The Den Den Mushi was on speaker, so Roger didn't need to repeat anything. The rest of the Roger Pirates had already stood up the moment Jabba spoke.

"You all go ahead. I'll call Rayleigh!" Roger waved them off, and without letting anyone argue, he leaped from the rooftop toward the street below.

Crocus and the others, long used to this, waved a hand and quickly retreated across the rooftops, heading for the hidden harbor on the other side of the island.

Down in the street, Ortolan's heavy hammer slammed into the wall of a building, smashing the solid stone structure to rubble.

As the blow missed, electricity flickered in Ortolan's eyes, and two laser beams shot from his gaze toward Rayleigh.

Rayleigh held his sword in one hand, the other coated in Armament Haki. He met Ortolan's lasers head-on, slapping them aside with his palm. The surging lightning did nothing against his formidable Haki and was scattered instantly.

At the same time, Mihawk swung his blade down, only for Rayleigh to block it with his own sword.

"Not bad, you two. Give it a few more years, and this old man might not be able to keep up," Rayleigh said with an easy grin, teasing them.

Mihawk's hawk-like eyes gleamed with excitement. "I thought this island would be a waste of time, but crossing blades with the legendary Dark King makes it all worthwhile!"

Ortolan planted his warhammer on the ground, rolling his shoulders. His bulging muscles rippled like waves.

Then he fixed his gaze on Rayleigh. "Don't get too cocky. The warm-up's over. This is just the beginning!"

As he spoke, dense lightning energy seeped from within his skin, coating his surface. Unlike his earlier wild and reckless discharge, this energy was calmer, more controlled.

It clung to his body without bursting outward.

Under the lightning's influence, Ortolan's aura steadily rose. His arms were quickly covered in Armament Haki, and faint lightning patterns began to appear at the corners of his eyes.

The Tanned Tribe had a unique talent: by rubbing their fur, they generated massive static electricity, using it to enhance their attacks.

Ortolan, as a half-breed, lacked the thick fur of his kin, so he couldn't produce static electricity through friction. That talent was essentially wasted on him.

But now, with the power of the Goro Goro no Mi, things were different. This was lightning—far more powerful than mere static electricity.

Drawing on his instinctive talent, he found it surprisingly easy to develop control over this lightning. It came naturally, as if he just willed it, and it happened.

Massive amounts of lightning gathered on his body's surface, stimulating his cells and boosting his strength, speed, and reflexes significantly.

His eyes locked onto Rayleigh. Two seconds later, he lunged—not using his Devil Fruit to teleport, but charging like a tiger descending a mountain, straight at Rayleigh!

His hands formed claws, electricity swirling around them. Armament Haki combined with the dense lightning power made it feel like his fingertips could tear through space itself!

Just as Rayleigh prepared to counter what Ortolan called the "real start," a sudden slash came flying in from the side!

It was Roger!

"Kamunmiti!!!" Roger barked.

The target was naturally Ortolan, and Ortolan instinctively sensed that threat. He immediately changed his offensive stance, crossing his arms in front of his side with Haki and lightning.

The next second, the slash called Kamunmiti slammed directly into Ortolan's arms. The sheer force of the cut ripped Ortolan's feet from the ground, pressed his blocking arms against his chest, and sent him flying.

"Damn, no honor, sneaking up on me!" Ortolan only had time to curse before he was blasted away.

Stepping out into a top-tier match, as one of the few supreme experts on the seas, Roger struck Ortolan by surprise, and Ortolan had no way to dodge it.