The Battle Ends

"Rayleigh, go help the others. Leave Garp to me," Roger said to Rayleigh after fighting for some time.

"Alright, Captain."

Roger was the slow-starter type. Even in battle, his strength gradually increased as time passed.

But Garp was different. He was the type who could erupt at any time, going all out from the very beginning. Other than Whitebeard, ordinary people really couldn't withstand him.

After leaving this battlefield, Rayleigh quickly headed to the others. Since the battle was taking place on their ship, the longer it dragged on, the greater the damage to the ship would be.

Meanwhile, Shirakawa and Shanks looked at their handiwork and smiled in satisfaction.

Buggy had lost consciousness after being beaten unconscious by Shanks and Shirakawa.

"Shanks, are we really okay doing this?" The two hid Buggy somewhere extremely secluded and sealed his mouth with tape.

"Of course it's fine. I've done this several times already."

Shanks said it carelessly, with a hint of pride in his voice.

Is that really something to be proud of? Shirakawa muttered inwardly.

Speaking of which, Buggy really was a little pitiful. Back when there had only been Shanks, he hadn't been able to handle him. Now that there was another one, he stood even less of a chance.

And Shirakawa looked completely harmless. Who would have thought that his heart was just as black as Shanks's?

Although the Roger Pirates and the Navy fleet led by Garp were old acquaintances, they still struck when it was time to strike, never showing mercy.

"I didn't expect there to be a kid and a weakling on this ship."

The moment the two stepped out, they heard a voice.

The kid was obviously Shanks, which meant the remaining weakling could only be Shirakawa.

"Weakling? Are you talking about me?" Shirakawa was a little angry. If someone had said that two months ago, he would have accepted it, but not now.

Even if he wasn't the tail of a phoenix now, he definitely wasn't the head of a chicken anymore.

"That's right, I'm talking about you. You look like you could be blown over by the wind. I really don't know how you got into Roger's pirate crew."

"How did I get in? Let me tell you, I got in with my own strength."

Shirakawa rushed toward the Marine, picking up speed as he went, then threw a punch.

"Weakling, you really are weak. Your attack path is far too obvious."

The Marine chuckled and raised his sword to slash at Shirakawa's hand. But the result left him staring in shock.

When the blade struck Shirakawa's fist, there was no bloody scene like the Marine had imagined. Instead, the sword in his hand snapped in two, and half the blade flew away.

"How is that possible? Haki? No, it's not Tekkai either. Could it be some kind of Devil Fruit?"

But Shirakawa gave the Marine no time to think. He drove a fist straight into the man's head, deforming his face and sending several teeth flying from his mouth. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

"Wow, Shirakawa, can you use Haki now? You're not even afraid of swords!"

Shanks had truly been worried for Shirakawa just now. But seeing Shirakawa shatter the blade had shocked him.

"No. This should be one of my abilities too."

"Whoa, just what Devil Fruit did you eat? Your ability is incredible."

"Hehe, I don't know either."

Against people far weaker than Shirakawa, they couldn't even break through his body. He had figured that out over the past month by testing it on Buggy.

Because now, even if Shirakawa didn't activate his defensive ability, Buggy could no longer do anything to him.

However, this only worked against people much weaker than him. Against opponents around his own level, Shirakawa's body could still be easily damaged.

As for that Marine, although he looked tall and brawny, one look was enough to tell he was all show. He was probably one of the weaker Marines, or else he wouldn't have avoided the battlefield and sneaked over here.

The two headed toward the battlefield again and found that the battle had already reached its fiercest point. The Navy's disadvantage had become obvious. If the fighting continued, their defeat would be inevitable.

Especially with Garp absent.

Garp had already been led by Roger to an island some distance away. Only that way could the Roger Pirates ensure their safe departure.

Once the Marines without Garp retreated on their own, Roger would immediately find a way to shake off Garp and return.

"Vice Admiral Tsuru, we should retreat."

At that moment, a sword-wielding Rear Admiral retreated to Vice Admiral Tsuru's side. Together, they blocked one of Bullet's attacks before he spoke.

"Mm."

Tsuru could no longer sense Garp's presence with her Observation Haki. Roger had clearly lured him far away.

"Order the Marines to retreat."

"Yes, Vice Admiral."

"All Marines, return to the warships!" The Vice Admiral took several more steps back and gave the order to the Marines.

Hearing the command, all the Marines perked up and began withdrawing in an orderly manner.

Not long after Shirakawa and Shanks arrived at the battlefield, they took out several Marines and heard the order for the Navy to retreat.

"Are your fights with the Marines always this short?"

Seeing the Marines retreat, and the pirates showing no intention of pursuing them, Shirakawa turned to Shanks and asked.

"It's only like this when it's a fleet led by Garp. If it were another Marine fleet, the fight might last longer. And if we were fighting someone like Whitebeard, we'd probably have to keep at it for days and nights."

"Oh, I see."

With the Roger Pirates' current strength, they could have easily kept all those Marines without Garp from escaping, but there was no need—and they did not dare to.

If those men had been trapped, Garp would probably have completely lost his temper. Then they would be facing the relentless pursuit of a rabid dog.

However, as the Marines departed, Shirakawa saw something that surprised him.

Several pirates and Marines were actually waving goodbye to each other reluctantly, saying things like they would meet again next time.

"This scene is surprisingly harmonious." Shirakawa's mouth twitched as he spoke helplessly.

"Haha, you'll get used to it once you see it enough."

Meanwhile, Roger and Garp had already been fighting on a deserted island for nearly half a day.

"By now, those Marines should have all withdrawn." Roger sent Garp flying with a heavy blow, then quickly retreated himself.

"Roger, are you running away?" Seeing Roger's retreating figure, Garp roared with his eyes wide open.

"That's right, Garp. I'm running. I hope you stop chasing me. I really don't want to see you again."

"That won't do, Roger. The next time we meet, I'll personally send you to Impel Down."

"Haha, if you can do it, then go ahead and try."

Roger was slightly faster than Garp, which was why he had always managed to escape safely.

"Then I'll try."

After shouting that, Garp sat down. If Roger was determined to run, he truly could not catch up. He was merely sitting there now, waiting for his subordinates to find him.

Because his Vivre Card was with Tsuru.