A cold gleam flashed, and a powerful shockwave spread outward from the center of the two men.
The many pirates watching hurriedly ducked behind cover. The ground instantly cracked, spiderweb-like fissures spreading in every direction. Sword energy turned into fierce gales that burst outward, causing several nearby Wooden Huts to collapse.
The pirates wore horrified expressions and retreated even farther.
"Ha, your strength has improved quite a bit. That one had some power behind it," Shanks said with a smile as the metallic hue of Armament Haki rapidly spread over his longsword.
Compared to the Supreme Grade Blade in Mihawk's hand, Shanks's sword was vastly inferior. Though it was far superior to the weapons carried by most pirates, directly contending with one of the twelve remaining Supreme Grade Blades in the world was still far too much for it.
During that brief clash, cracks had already appeared in Shanks's sword. That was precisely why he had hurriedly reinforced it with Armament Haki.
Seeing this, Mihawk raised an eyebrow. When ordinary people trained Armament Haki, even vice admirals of Marine Headquarters rarely managed to reinforce their weapons with it. This meant Shanks's mastery of Armament Haki might be greater than Mihawk had imagined.
"Hmph. You'll pay for what you did last time. I won't let you escape!" Mihawk said coldly, continuously increasing the force in his hand.
Shanks's expression remained unchanged, and the smile on his face did not fade in the slightest. Benn Beckman had already received his order and headed for the shore, so Shanks no longer had any concerns.
Ever since the Roger Pirates had disbanded, he had not encountered an opponent worthy of a true battle in a long time. Mihawk had been fairly strong back in Loguetown, but for Shanks, that fight had been far from