Leon changed into a spare set of bandages. The wounds on his body, which had nearly healed, had all split open again.
Kraken, his subordinate who had been won over by Leon's strength, also had the wound on his forehead thoughtfully covered with a large bandage.
Kraken grinned, baring a neat row of pearly white teeth.
Then he gently lifted the Dog Head Warship onto his head with his tentacles.
With Kraken leading the way, even the sea monsters drawn by the commotion only lurked in the darkness to watch. None dared to act rashly.
After they passed through a massive trench, the underwater world suddenly grew bright.
Fish-Man Island, enclosed in a huge double-layered bubble, appeared in the distance. Since Leon and the others had a mission to carry out, they didn't stop.
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
Kuzan had somehow made his way to Leon's side. His voice held a hint of wistfulness.
"Yeah, they're all pretty white."
Leon gazed at the mermaids frolicking on Fish-Man Island and nodded in agreement.
"Huh?"
"I mean... the scenery here is beautiful!"
"Right, right."
Kuzan looked at Leon, whose face was practically written all over with indifference.
I'm about to reflect on life and share some profound thoughts, and as a respectable junior, you can't even humor your big brother?
The rest of the journey passed in silence.
The deep-sea monster Kraken cautiously asked Leon if he could take his leave. Once Leon gave him permission, Kraken waved his tentacles excitedly and quickly swam away...
After passing through the underwater tunnel, Leon and his group finally arrived in the second half of the Grand Line, also known as the New World!
The Marines' influence in the New World was extremely weak. They had established only one base beyond the Red Line: Marine G-5.
After rendezvousing with the warships behind them, the Marine fleet set sail for the New World in a grand procession, following the coordinates provided by the World Government and guided by the Magnetic Compass.
After behaving himself for many days, Garp emerged from the cabin with a yawn. The first thing he saw was Leon sitting on the deck in a strange pose.
"Leon, brat, what are you doing?"
Leon kept his eyes closed and replied in a relaxed tone, "I'm meditating."
"Meditating?"
What was that? He'd never heard of it before.
Garp watched Leon's inscrutable expression, utterly baffled...
"Is this your training method?"
"This is called Five Hearts Facing Heaven, you ignorant old man."
"Once I sense the natural energy, I might even unlock Sage Mode..."
"Damn you, Leon!"
Garp didn't understand what Leon meant by Five Hearts Facing Heaven or Sage Mode, but he could clearly sense the contempt Leon felt for him as his teacher.
The result was another large lump on Leon's head, courtesy of Garp's iron fist...
Leon remained calm. He simply took out the little notebook he carried with him and added another mark against Garp.
Having asserted his authority as a teacher, Garp felt refreshed and strode over to where Kuzan was lounging on a deck chair.
"You brat! All you ever do is sleep! Can't you see I'm here?!"
"Huh?"
Kuzan lifted his sleep mask, unsure what had gotten into Garp.
"I discussed it with Sengoku. You and Sakazuki will take the lead in the battle coming up!"
"You don't often get a chance to fight someone this powerful!"
Garp stood with his arms crossed at the bow. Far ahead, an unknown island was just barely visible above the horizon.
Garp turned to look at Leon.
"Leon, this is why I brought you along!"
"When the time comes, keep your eyes wide open and learn what a true powerhouse of the sea is like!"
After speaking, Garp vanished from the bow in a flash, heading to the flagship to meet up with Sengoku.
"Mr. Garp is as cool as ever."
Kuzan stood up and lightly shook out his Coat of Justice.
The usually lazy Kuzan now radiated an astonishing fighting spirit.
"Well, I'll be off, then."
"Stay safe, Leon."
Leon shook his head. So they both looked down on him, huh?
Want me to pull out something big and show you what I can do?
As the Marine fleet drew closer, Leon could finally make out the island ahead in full.
Smoke billowed across the island. Ruins lay everywhere, countless corpses littered the ground, and blood had stained the earth a dark red.
A massively muscled man stood on the island, seemingly awaiting the Marines' arrival.
Garp and Sengoku stood side by side at the bow of the warship, their expressions grave.
Douglas Bullet.
The madman roared at the Marine fleet before him, a force on the scale of a Buster Call!
"Open fire!"
At Sengoku's command, the Marines unleashed their formidable firepower. The barrage of cannonballs nearly covered the entire sky!
"Marines!"
"Are you the ones who defeated Roger?"
"If I defeat you, I'll become even stronger than Roger!!!"
Explosions rang out one after another. The Marines' terrifying firepower blanketed the entire island, and the shock waves even raised a huge swell across the sea!
When the smoke cleared, the island had been reduced to ruins.
Douglas Bullet had withstood the Marines' first assault head-on, thanks to his superhuman physique and mastery of the Three Types of Haki!
The left side of his body had been badly burned in the explosions, but the aura he gave off had only grown more powerful—and more savage!
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