Buddha Sengoku

This was purely a collision of flesh and blood, a contest of strength against strength.

As their fists collided, the terrifying force that erupted directly shattered the ground, cracking it open layer by layer like a spiderweb.

Then Zephyr was sent flying backward with a muffled grunt.

The sight left Garp and the others stunned. They truly had not expected that, in a contest of physical combat, Zephyr would be blasted away by a single punch. Was the gap in their strength really that enormous?

Aokiji exclaimed in astonishment, "Where did this monster come from? He looks so young, yet he possesses such terrifying strength!"

Though they were only vice admirals at present, their actual strength was no weaker than that of admirals. Naturally, they could tell just how formidable Lu Ge's punch had been.

Zephyr was their teacher. Although he had resigned from his position as admiral, his strength was unquestionably at admiral level. Yet someone at admiral level had been sent flying by a single punch—the gap in strength was painfully obvious.

Kizaru's expression was somewhat grim. "That guy... he didn't even use his full strength against me..."

Having always been exceptional since childhood, he was in an extremely foul mood right now. As he stared at Lu Ge, he dearly wished he could give him a Light-Speed Kick.

Watching Zephyr shoot into the distance, the golden Buddha spread his enormous palm and caught Zephyr in midair.

Zephyr repeatedly clenched and loosened his slightly numb arm, his expression grave. "What terrifying strength. Be careful, this guy isn't simple!"

Sengoku spoke solemnly. "I can see that. His Armament Haki isn't much weaker than yours, and his physical skills must be equally astounding. He's a tough bone to chew."

Hearing this, Kizaru immediately shared the intelligence loudly. "Not only that, this guy is also a Door-Door Fruit user. He has developed the Door-Door Fruit into something as strange as a spatial fruit, making him impossible to guard against. It may have already awakened. And he is the newly crowned World's Strongest Swordsman, Lu Ge!"

"What? It's actually him!" Sengoku's voice rumbled from within his Buddha form, filled with astonishment.

Garp was even more shocked. "Are you sure? His swordsmanship is the best in the world, his Fruit ability is practically awakened, and his physical skills are even stronger than Zephyr's. Where did this monster come from?!"

This time, Sengoku spoke in a low, serious voice. "Hey, Garp, looks like we'll have to get serious this time."

Garp nodded solemnly, but there was regret in his voice. "What a shame. A man like this committed such unforgivable crimes. Otherwise, we could have recruited him into the Marines..."

As he spoke, he shook his head helplessly.

Sengoku's voice boomed, "This man's crimes are heinous. Dead or alive, it makes no difference. Everyone, move!"

Aokiji handed Kizaru over to the arriving medics as bone-chilling cold rose from his body. "Get out of here quickly. Don't go dying on us."

Kizaru's expression was serious, and he no longer forced himself to hold on. "You too! That guy's ability is extremely strange. It's like twisting space, but it must involve invisible doors. It can return a person's movements to their starting point, and it can even send attacks back at the one who used them. So when facing him, don't think about dodging. Your dodge might send you straight in front of him. And don't use long-range attacks either, or you might end up hitting yourself."

Aokiji nodded silently, his heart growing even heavier. That sort of ability sounded like a complete headache! And the opponent was also a master swordsman and physical combat expert.

Just as Kizaru was being taken away, Akainu stepped forward eagerly from the side. "Hmph! I'd like to see exactly what the man capable of injuring Kizaru this badly can do!"

As he spoke, he took the initiative. His right hand turned to magma at a speed visible to the naked eye, causing the temperature to surge sharply. Then he threw a punch. "Meigo!"

His right fist instantly transformed into a torrent of magma and tore through the air toward Lu Ge!

It was so fast that it arrived in the blink of an eye, and its power was extraordinary.

In the anime, Akainu had used this move to pierce straight through Whitebeard's abdomen. Its penetrating force was terrifyingly strong.

Faced with this sudden attack, Lu Ge had actually foreseen it long ago.

Even as that terrifying blow drew near, Lu Ge remained calm and composed. He did not even intend to move.

Then Akainu's terrifying attack suddenly vanished into the space before Lu Ge, only to bizarrely burst out from behind Buddha Sengoku...

Garp seemed to sense something and immediately roared, "Sengoku! Watch out!!"

"!!!"

Sengoku had also sensed the attack coming from behind him at the very first moment. However, in his golden Buddha form, his movements were restricted, leaving him utterly unable to evade. In an instant, he took Akainu's Meigo head-on.

With a booming explosion and Buddha Sengoku's shout, the massive Buddha body instantly lost its balance and crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar. A scorched black patch had already appeared across his back.

Seeing this, Aokiji could not help roaring at Akainu, "Didn't you hear Kizaru's explanation just now?"

"..." Akainu fell silent at once, feeling somewhat awkward. He had only wanted to test it out. Who knew that guy would transfer the attack onto Admiral Sengoku?

"Ugh~ Akainu, you bastard!" The pain in his back put Sengoku in a terrible mood. After a rumbling struggle, he stood up again and glared at Akainu with obvious displeasure. "Stop attacking recklessly, especially with long-range attacks."

"Understood!" Akainu nodded solemnly. Having witnessed Lu Ge's ability to redirect attacks firsthand, he had already devised a strategy to deal with it.

Seeing that Sengoku had taken Akainu's Meigo without suffering any injury, Lu Ge could not help marveling at the golden Buddha's defense.

Although Akainu's current strength was certainly inferior to what it would be during the Summit War, he was at least infinitely close to admiral level. Yet an attack like that had failed to injure Sengoku. His defense truly was astonishing.

Looking at Lu Ge, Sengoku was also full of admiration. "I have to admit, you are the first person in history to develop the Door-Door Fruit to such a degree. But I wonder whether your doors can contain even this old man's giant Buddha hand?"

As he spoke, he raised his enormous Buddha palm, which blotted out the sky, and slammed it down toward Lu Ge!

As he watched that enormous hand descend and cover the heavens, Lu Ge suddenly had a strange feeling. Why the hell does this look a little like the Buddha's Palm?

Then a faint smile appeared on his lips. "Unfortunately for you, I really can open a door this large."

Expanding the door's range would merely consume more stamina. With Lu Ge's current stamina, opening a door large enough to contain the Buddha hand was naturally no problem. It would only consume nearly a third of his stamina, but with his terrifying recovery ability, he was not worried in the slightest. As long as his stamina was not drained completely, there would be no problem. He could recover to normal at an extremely fast rate.