Lightning Armor

At the center of the training ground.

"Boom!!!"

Rock took the initiative, leaning forward as he violently drew back his right arm.

"Lightning Spear!"

"Crackle—!!!"

Lightning instantly gathered in his hand into a long spear, which he hurled forward with a piercing shriek through the air!

The spear tore through the air like a meteor forged from thunder, stabbing straight toward Zephyr's chest!

Zephyr's gaze sharpened, and his muscles tensed in an instant.

—Armament Haki: Hardening!

"Hah!!!"

His iron fist surged forward, meeting the Lightning Spear head-on!

"Boom—!!!"

Zephyr shattered the Thunder Spear with a single punch, scattering it into countless arcs of electricity that burst through the air.

With almost no pause, Zephyr dug his toes fiercely into the ground.

"Soru!"

His figure became a black shadow, closing in on Rock with astonishing explosive speed!

A judgment flashed through Zephyr's mind: A Logia's weakness was the moment they were forced into close-quarters combat!

Just as he entered within ten meters—

"Thunderclap: Wild Dance—!!!"

Rock spread his fingers, firing more than a dozen bolts of lightning!

The flashes danced like frenzied thunder snakes, instantly weaving into a dense web of lightning and fire!

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang—!!!"

Zephyr crossed his arms, choosing to endure the bombardment with nothing but his immensely tough Armament Haki! With every lightning bolt that struck, sparks and electric arcs scattered everywhere!!!

The Marines around the training ground all raised their arms to shield themselves. "Tch, that power...!"

Smoke and dust billowed up. Just as everyone thought Zephyr had been forced back—

"Bang!!!"

The smoke was torn apart from within!!

Zephyr burst out like an erupting volcano, his iron fist wrapped in blazing Armament Haki as it drove straight at Rock's face!

"Logia users all turn elemental in an instant—"

"So..."

His five fingers abruptly shifted, his fist changing into a claw!

"Horizontal grab!!"

If Rock chose to turn elemental, Zephyr would lock onto the direction of the lightning's flow;

If Rock chose to fight head-on, he could directly crush his opponent's defenses!

This was Zephyr's years of experience fighting Logia users!

—Perfect judgment! Perfect timing!

Yet, just before the iron fist was about to land, the corners of Rock's mouth slowly curled up.

Into a wild, wicked arc devoid of any fear.

"You think I'm still—"

"An ordinary Logia user?"

"Boom—!!!"

Lightning burst from Rock's body like a tsunami in an instant!

Thunder surged wildly along his skin, muscles, and bones, winding tightly around them!

"Thunder Armor—!!!"

Zephyr's pupils contracted sharply as he clenched his fist once more. "Th-this is lightning coating his body?!"

The next instant, two fists collided head-on—

One was an iron fist covered in Armament Haki.

The other was a Thunder Martial Fist wrapped in thunder!

"Boom—!!!"

The shockwave from their fists erupted into a storm! Fierce winds swept through the entire training ground, and the ground instantly cracked into countless fissures!

Countless soldiers staggered back, raising their arms before their faces!

"Vice Admiral Zephyr... was forced back half a step?!!"

"That kid's a Logia user, right?! Why can he trade punches with Vice Admiral Zephyr?!!"

Yet the most shocked person was Zephyr himself.

A rare look of astonishment appeared on his face as he muttered an incredulous assessment. "Your physical strength... isn't weak at all?!"

Rock abruptly pressed forward, lightning swallowing half the sky.

"Boom—!!!" His right fist shot out like thunder piercing the sun!

"Keep going, Zephyr!!!"

His fist wind carried electric currents, roaring like an enraged beast and warping the air.

Zephyr let out a low roar. The black Armament Haki on both his arms erupted at once, like an iron mountain overturning. "Hah!!!"

"Bang!!!"

Their fists collided again, directly blasting a huge crater into the ground and sending shattered rocks flying in every direction from the shockwave!

Lightning flowed across Rock's body, his Lightning Armor clinging tightly to his muscles. Every breath came with faint bursts of electricity.

Muscles bulged all over Zephyr's body, Armament Haki spreading from his arms across his shoulders and back like a solid battle armor forged from steel.

The sound of the wind was completely drowned out by thunder and exploding fists, while the collisions between the two rang out continuously like war horns!

The force unleashed by their consecutive clashes forced even the elite soldiers outside the field to retreat half a step!

Rock's lightning fist slammed into Zephyr's chest—

"Bang!!!"

A massive burst of lightning exploded, blindingly bright. Zephyr's chest muscles twitched for an instant, yet his feet did not yield even half an inch.

Zephyr spun and counterattacked, his fist carrying a heavy current of air as it crashed down onto Rock's shoulder like an iron pillar.

"Bang!!!"

The blow jolted Rock's shoulder and forced him to one knee, but the next second, he rose with a roar, lightning igniting around his fist once more!

"Boom—!!!"

They threw punches simultaneously. Fist met fist, detonating a massive ring-shaped shockwave that shook the surrounding air white!

Fist against fist! Foot against foot! Elbow against elbow! Knee against knee!

There were no fancy moves.

No keeping distance with their abilities.

No customary "elemental escape" of Logia users.

They were like two savage beasts on an ancient battlefield, using only the most primitive and brutal methods to beat each other down!

Body versus body!

Lightning Armor versus Black Arm!

Strength versus strength!

Zephyr roared, "Brat!! Fighting like this is just asking for death!!!"

Rock's face was filled with excitement, madness blazing in his eyes. "Now this is what you call a fight!!! Hahahaha!!!"

His fists carried explosive lightning, each strike whipping up sparks.

Zephyr's iron fists met them head-on. Lightning and Armament Haki tore at each other across their knuckles, and the exploding blue-white sparks lit up half the training ground in an instant!

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang—!!!"

Every strike boomed like massive cannons, making the soldiers' hearts tremble!

Outside the field, the watching soldiers stared wide-eyed as if witnessing a myth come back to life.

"A Logia user... is actually not dodging Armament Haki punches?!"

"That's Vice Admiral Zephyr!! One of the Navy's greatest physical combat monsters!!!"

"How the hell did that kid train?!!"

Some could not help clutching their companions' shoulders as they trembled. "I feel like my whole worldview... has shattered."

Sengoku's temple veins throbbed wildly. "Why isn't he keeping his distance? Why isn't he turning elemental? Is he insane?!"

"He's wasting the advantage of his Devil Fruit!!!"

Then he abruptly turned and grabbed Garp's shoulders, shaking him. "You knew about this all along?!"

Garp folded his arms and laughed proudly. "Of course I did—!!"

"That kid's a genius! He actually came up with a method like using thunder to temper his body!"

"His physical strength—"

Garp gave a thumbs-up and flashed his trademark grin. "It's not weaker than my 'Iron Fist' at all!!!"

Sengoku and Tsuru: "...???"

Using lightning to forge his body?!!

Physical strength on the same level as Iron Fist Garp?!!

And he was a freaking Logia thunder user?!!

As soon as Garp finished speaking, the crowd outside erupted again. "Th-this is a monster among monsters!!!"

Everyone instantly plunged into a complete, shattered collapse of understanding.

At the center of the training ground, thunder and Black Arm were still clashing violently!

Every strike seemed ready to smash open the ground, and every collision made the training ground tremble.

Sparks flew everywhere, lightning blazed, and black Armament Haki rolled like an iron tide.

The ground had long since cracked into ravines like a spiderweb.

And between the two powerhouses...

They still had not gotten serious!!!