"What?!! It's the Golden Lion! How did he fly out of Skull Castle, and..."
"No way! Did the Golden Lion get into a fight with Whitebeard?!"
"......"
The noisy discussions all around reached the Golden Lion's ears. Thinking of how that brat Ares had thrown him out into the open hall without regard for the consequences, his expression turned somewhat unnatural. He looked up at Skull Castle and couldn't help cursing, "Bastard!"
"I drank your liquor, and you still threw me out. That damn little..."
Before he could finish, a furious shout like thunder descending from the heavens suddenly rang out.
"I—WANT—TO—DRINK!!!"
The terrifying sound waves made everyone's eardrums buzz. The windowpanes in Skull Castle began cracking nonstop, then exploded with a bang.
The voice shocked countless people. Many of them were left pale by the thunderous roar.
Quite a few hurriedly covered their ears with both hands, their faces filled with unbearable pain.
"Whose voice was that?!!"
"That voice is terrifying!!! It even shattered the glass!!"
"Drink?!! What exactly is going on?!!"
"This is the Rocks Pirates' headquarters. There's no way some pirate would dare cause trouble here, right?!!"
"That voice alone shattered so much glass. What kind of monster is that?!"
"......"
Various confused and frightened voices rose one after another throughout the streets. Nobody knew what had happened.
Only Shiki the Golden Lion knew.
His face changed color, and he muttered in astonishment, "Could it be... that guy got drunk and is throwing a tantrum?!!"
"I have to stop him!"
With a whoosh, he flew rapidly through the air toward the window of his own room.
The next second.
Boom!!!
The entire wall, windows and all, shattered into chunks of rubble. With the wall destroyed, Ares's incomparably robust, muscular body was revealed.
Through his dazed, intoxicated gaze, Ares saw several Golden Lions flying toward him. He immediately shouted at the Golden Lion, "Golden Lion, I want to drink!!!"
The sound that came from his mouth was practically a sonic attack. A violent gale carrying a heavy stench of alcohol instantly engulfed the Golden Lion.
"This guy really is drunk."
Shiki the Golden Lion's mouth twitched. He had only wanted Ares to try drinking and taste liquor.
He hadn't expected the guy to become obsessed with the taste of alcohol—and get drunk on top of it!!!
His face grew irritable. "Captain Rocks is probably going to lecture me this time. I'd better make Ares stop first."
"If he keeps throwing this fit and destroys Skull Castle, things will be even worse."
Shiki the Golden Lion did not draw the long sword at his waist. Instead, using the Float-Float Fruit's ability, he appeared before Ares in a flash.
He raised his arm and clenched his five fingers into a fist.
Clang!
His entire forearm instantly hardened with Armament Haki, turning pitch-black and gleaming.
The Golden Lion grinned. "Kid, didn't you want to know what Armament Haki is?"
"Today, I'll let you properly experience its power!!"
This could be considered teaching by example. He drove his fist toward Ares's head, tearing through the air with a sharp whoosh.
Bang!!!
With a deafening crash, Ares's massive body flew backward at an angle!
As Ares flew away, he smashed through some of the furniture and flooring in the Golden Lion's room. Finally, he crashed into the wall with a boom, collapsing it.
He was buried beneath the rubble.
The Golden Lion slowly exhaled a thick cloud of smoke. With the cigar clenched between his teeth, he grinned broadly and said, "Brat, that's Armament Haki!"
"That punch of mine could even make Kaido bleed!!"
He flew toward Ares, who was buried beneath the ruins.
Suddenly.
There was a bang. Rubble flew everywhere as Ares rose from within it.
"Eh? You actually didn't..." The Golden Lion was slightly surprised.
Still flying forward, he suddenly paled, because Ares's enormous fist was whistling toward his face.
It was a heavy, powerful punch.
Bang!!!
The fist slammed into the Golden Lion's face, instantly distorting his features and sending the cigarette clenched in his mouth flying.
He shot out through the broken wall once again like a cannonball leaving the barrel.
Boom!!!
Back for round two!
He crashed into the street again, with several times the momentum of his previous impact.
The surrounding onlookers were now utterly dumbfounded.
Shiki the Golden Lion, a cadre of the Rocks Pirates, had been hit!!!
Everyone had only one thought: Who was that guy?!!
How could he send even Shiki the Golden Lion, a cadre of the Rocks Pirates, flying twice?
"Bastard!!!!"
The Golden Lion flew out of the crater, his expression turning completely ugly. The force behind Ares's punch was practically Monstrous Strength!
The punch had left his head heavy and numb, and besides...
A huge abscess had risen directly at the corner of his eye, purple-red with traces of blood. It ruined Shiki the Golden Lion's former imposing appearance.
He had even lost his cigar.
He had originally planned to use Armament Haki to teach that brat a lesson, while also venting his anger over the boy drinking his treasured liquor.
In the end, he had been brutally punched instead?!
He had lost all his dignity in public. This would probably spread throughout Hachinosu Island!
The Golden Lion was seething with anger as well. He coldly swept his gaze over the surrounding pedestrians and shouted, "Shut up!!!"
A powerful wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted from his body, sweeping across the entire street like a hurricane.
Many people collapsed to the ground one after another, unconscious.
In an instant.
Everyone on the street fell silent as cicadas in winter!
Not a single person dared to make a sound. Those who remained conscious felt cold all over, cold sweat involuntarily pouring from every part of their bodies.
The Golden Lion's current state was somewhat like a cat with its fur standing on end.
The thick golden hair on his back had become much fluffier than usual.
Suddenly.
Everyone felt the earth darken. They all looked up.
A huge figure had blocked out the sun, and countless people could see only a massive black shadow.
A deafening voice rang out from his mouth: "Damn it!!!"
"How dare you ambush me!!!"
Ares's mind was in complete disarray. The Golden Lion's Armament Haki punch had affected him to a certain extent. Combined with his drunken state and muddled thoughts, his mind had become a complete mess!
He even began wondering whether someone wanted to take his first blood?
Strange.
What was first blood?
The next second, his thoughts switched to something else.
Ares looked crazed and roared furiously:
"Golden-Haired Lion!!"
"Prepare to die!!"
Before you continue