Rear Admiral Garp

Rear Admiral Temp's words made Brook furrow his brow. There were even stronger officers coming to reinforce them? Was a Vice Admiral on the way?

"Thanks for telling me the good news. Now I've decided to end this quickly and finish you all off!"

Temp was taken aback by Brook's words. The officers behind him also stared at Brook in confusion. Hadn't Temp meant to intimidate the pirate and make him afraid?

Could Brook have an even more powerful move up his sleeve? The thought made every Marine watch him warily.

Hell Underworld Qi Deterrence

Brook raised the Seven-Star Sword high in his right hand. A terrifying aura of death surged from him, making the Marine soldiers' eyes widen as cold sweat poured down their faces. Their hearts seemed to stop, as if they were watching death descend. They froze in place, trembling, then collapsed helplessly.

"What kind of power is this? It's so chilling, and it makes my heart pound with fear. It doesn't feel like Conqueror's Haki!"

Temp stared at Brook in shock. He had felt Conqueror's Haki from other great pirates, but it was nothing like this feeling of facing death.

As a large number of Marines fell, the cannons on all three warships fell silent at once. Redfield finally got a chance to catch his breath and rest. Silvers had nearly run out of bullets, too.

Fish-Man Tom had also held up a huge spare plank to block many of the cannonballs. Antonio was anxiously waiting in the cabin, while Shakky could use martial arts and had kicked away a few stray cannonballs.

Seeing Temp and a few officers still standing on the warships, Redfield and Shakky followed the trail of ice and splashing water Brook had left behind and leaped aboard.

"Captain, this time we finally get to fight, too!"

Shakky immediately set her sights on Lieutenant Commander Sadu from Asuka Island. He seemed a little weak, so she could make him her opponent.

Redfield drew his Cane Sword and charged at the Navy captain. His swordsmanship came down to one word: speed. His attacks also had tremendous piercing power, forcing the captain to dodge left and right. Several lieutenant commanders nearby hurried over to help.

Even so, Redfield single-handedly kept the officers at bay. They seemed to still be affected by Brook's Death Deterrence and couldn't bring their full strength to bear.

"It seems I can see right through you all. You're all terrified of Captain Brook, aren't you?"

As he spoke, Redfield thrust his Cane Sword through the abdomen of a Navy lieutenant commander and kicked him away. That made it even harder for the other officers surrounding him to fight, and they were thoroughly on the defensive.

At some point, the Memory Seahorse had jumped aboard a warship and begun feeding on the delicious memories of the Marines who had collapsed under the threat. Suddenly, a Marine with a strong will came to and tried to sneak up on it. Fortunately, sniper Silvers was watching from the Yomi and shot the Marine, saving it.

Otherwise, the Memory Seahorse, who was enjoying its meal, would have been wounded by the Marine. That made it more cautious, but it still couldn't resist its greedy instinct to devour memories.

"Ugh!"

After Brook slashed Temp with his sword, he kicked him away. Temp fell to the ground, coughing up blood as his strength ebbed away again.

"Redfield, finish off your opponents quickly. Even stronger Marines may be on their way!"

Brook didn't let up. He beat Temp until the Rear Admiral could no longer fight and lay facedown on the ground.

At Brook's words, Redfield's speed climbed even higher. His swordsmanship was swift and fierce, and he killed the Navy captain with a single strike. Shakky also beat Lieutenant Commander Sadu to the ground, leaving his face swollen and bruised.

"Redfield, look through this Rear Admiral's memories and see if you can find the training methods for the Six Powers and Haki."

Although Temp hadn't awakened Haki, that didn't mean Marine Headquarters had never given him the chance to train. Perhaps he had practiced but simply failed to awaken it.

"Understood, Captain Brook!"

Redfield immediately pressed his hand against Temp's furious face and used his special Observation Haki to peer into Temp's memories, searching for the things the captain had mentioned.

When the Memory Seahorse saw that the battle was over, it realized the powerful officers' memories would be even more delicious. It quickly jumped into the sea, climbed aboard the pirate ship, then nimbly leaped onto the Navy captain and lieutenant commanders to devour their memories. It was utterly satisfied, and its body began to swell and grow.

"Captain Brook, I've found them: the Six Powers, Navy Swordsmanship, and the training methods for awakening Haki... They've got everything you mentioned!"

Redfield excitedly reported his success, pleased to have obtained even more powerful training methods.

"Excellent! Go back to the ship and write down the methods. Now, let's retreat. An even stronger Marine Vice Admiral may be on the way!"

Brook was also pleased with what they had gained. Although his Yomi Body couldn't train in Haki, he could teach it to his crewmates. He could also learn some of the Six Powers himself.

"Got it!"

Shakky quickly searched the warships' offices and storerooms for loot. The Memory Seahorse drooled at the sight of Temp. At last, Brook and Redfield left, and it eagerly went over to devour his memories.

Silvers, Tom, and the others brought the ship alongside the warships and came over to help carry the Marines' supplies and treasure in Beli. After devouring some of Temp's memories, the Memory Seahorse burped contentedly and finally returned to the Yomi.

If its strength had allowed it, the Memory Seahorse would have eaten its fill of every Marine. It even wanted to pack them up and take them along, so it could save them for another meal after digesting the memories in its stomach.

But Brook couldn't take that many Marines with him, so the greedy Memory Seahorse had to give up.

"Captain Brook, there's a call coming in on a Den Den Mushi. It seems to be from another Marine."

Antonio, who was helping move things, noticed that the Den Den Mushi aboard the warship was ringing. He quickly found it.

Brook took the Den Den Mushi Antonio handed him. He considered it for a moment, then answered.

"Hey, Temp! What took you so long to pick up? Have you dealt with the pirates over there? Do you need me to come help? I'm in a hurry to get leave and go home to see my son!"

A rough, impatient voice rang out from the other end of the Den Den Mushi.

"No need for reinforcements. We'll be leaving soon!"

Brook's cold voice came through the Den Den Mushi, and the Marine on the other end fell silent for a moment.

"Who are you? What did you do to Temp?"

The Marine's voice was no longer brusque or impatient. It had turned grave, as if boundless anger and worry lay beneath his calm tone.

"Relax. The Rear Admiral isn't dead yet."

"You'd better make sure Temp is all right. Otherwise, I, Monkey D. Garp, Rear Admiral of Marine Headquarters, will hunt you to the ends of the earth!"

Brook was stunned when he heard that. It was Iron Fist Garp! Garp was already twenty-six this year. From the respect Temp had shown him, Garp had already risen to the rank of a flag officer—a Rear Admiral at Marine Headquarters, no less.

And from the way he'd said he was taking leave to see his son, Monkey D. Dragon was probably around three years old this year. Was he living in Foosha Village in the East Blue, too?

"So it's General Garp. I'm very interested in the D. clan. I'll do this for your sake: the Rear Admiral won't die, and I'll let these three warships go. But in return, I want the Marines to stop hunting us in the Grand Line!"

Brook thought it over. If Garp, that mad dog, started pursuing him, it could be a bit of a problem. So he decided to let Temp go as a favor. He hadn't planned to kill him anyway.

"Isn't it only natural for the Marines to hunt pirates? Besides, I can't interfere with orders from Headquarters. The most I can promise is that I won't personally pursue you!"

Garp said this with some frustration. He wondered if the pirate would be angered by his condition—not pursuing him personally. He was confident in his strength, and by not pursuing them, he was already sparing their lives. But the pirate might not see it that way.

Would the pirate get mad at his refusal and kill Temp and all the Marines aboard the three warships? If so, Garp would feel he had let Temp and the others down.