As soon as he finished speaking, Xia Chen used Geppo to soar into the sky.
He raised the staff high, coating it in Armament Haki while pouring all his strength into it.
"Meteor!"
As the word left his mouth, Xia Chen hurtled toward Hawk-Eyes.
He kept using Geppo to accelerate through the air, and by the time he approached Hawk-Eyes, his speed had reached an unimaginable level.
Uncle Kizaru had once said that speed was weight!
The moment he reached Hawk-Eyes, he brought the staff smashing down on him.
Boom!
A shock wave several times stronger than before spread outward once again. Even the people several kilometers away could clearly feel it.
As expected, another wave swept toward them. This one was hundreds of meters tall.
Luffy, Don Krieg, and the others who were fighting all stared with their eyes bulging out.
Then they instantly stopped fighting and ran for the Baratie for dear life.
Out on the sea, this ship was the only thing that could give them any sense of safety now.
As the noise gradually subsided, the battle between Xia Chen and Hawk-Eyes had also been decided.
Xia Chen sat slumped on a floating plank, sweat dripping steadily from his forehead.
Looking at Hawk-Eyes opposite him, who was still only slightly out of breath, he said,
"I lost!"
In truth, Xia Chen had known he would lose before the battle even began.
He might have been strong, but there was no way he could defeat a man on Hawk-Eyes's level.
So he felt no disappointment over it, and he could also tell that Hawk-Eyes had been holding back.
Otherwise, the world's greatest swordsman would have far more strength than this!
Through this battle, he had also gained a rough understanding of his current level.
He was roughly as strong as Luffy would be two years later when using Gear Fourth: Boundman.
He was already very satisfied with that result. After all, how long had it been since he arrived in the world of the Pirate King?
He had already reached heights most people could never attain in their entire lives. Being dissatisfied with that would have been a little greedy.
Besides, his strength would not stay at this level for long. Once he checked in at a few more islands, then...
Hehehe!
The saying that a man could change so much in three days that you had to see him in a new light truly described him perfectly.
Hawk-Eyes slowly sheathed his blade and stood there, looking at the slumped Xia Chen without a ripple in his eyes, though his thoughts were anything but calm.
This young man... he's quite strong!
That final blow had even made him feel threatened, forcing him to use the vast majority of his strength to block it.
He had originally thought this fight with Xia Chen would be nothing more than the boring business of giving a child a few pointers.
He had not expected it to give him a little of the excitement he had not felt in so long.
Young people these days really were getting more formidable one after another!
"Boy, what is your dream?" Hawk-Eyes suddenly asked Xia Chen.
"My dream?" Xia Chen hesitated for a moment, then smiled and said,
"I want to live freely on this free sea, doing whatever I want according to my own wishes, without any restraints!"
"I see. That is no simple matter," Hawk-Eyes said calmly.
Even with his current strength, he still faced certain restrictions, such as... the World Government!
Yet what he saw in Xia Chen's eyes was a free will that would accept no restraints whatsoever.
And that inevitably meant coming into conflict with the World Government. In that case, he...
Suddenly, Hawk-Eyes caught himself, and a faint smile touched his lips.
Why am I worrying about so much? Let the young man follow his own wishes!
Perhaps Xia Chen can accomplish what I cannot.
Hawk-Eyes slowly turned and stepped onto a plank, then turned back one last time to look at Xia Chen.
"Young man, do not give up on your dream. Keep going!"
"I will!"
Xia Chen spoke with a broad, white-toothed grin.
After receiving his answer, Hawk-Eyes drew his Black Blade again and slashed fiercely ahead.
Then the plank beneath his feet began speeding toward his little boat, which had been swept an unknown distance away.
Watching the black speck gradually disappear into the distance, Xia Chen smiled too.
That really was a satisfying fight!
A dozen or so minutes later, Xia Chen, having recovered his stamina, slowly stood up and looked around.
When he spotted the Baratie in the distance, already almost reduced to a tiny black speck, he suddenly slapped his forehead and quickly flew into the sky.
He hurried toward it, using Geppo over and over.
Damn it, I forgot all about that while fighting.
Good thing I can still make out the ship, or I'd be done for if I couldn't find it.
I don't know how to navigate!
Some time later, when Xia Chen arrived at the Baratie, he discovered that it had also suffered some damage.
The two raised fish-fin planks were now smashed beyond recognition.
Then he looked at Luffy, who was fast asleep on the floor, and Don Krieg, who lay collapsed over there.
Xia Chen immediately understood what had happened here. At the same time, his Observation Haki told him that everyone else from Luffy's ship was already gone.
He understood. It seemed Nami had still made the same decision!
All she had to do was tell us and have us go back with her.
Couldn't someone like Arlong be crushed with a casual flick?
She just has to shoulder everything alone. What an idiot!
But things had already come to this, so there was no point dwelling on it.
Let's deal with what's in front of us first!
Xia Chen slowly landed, and everyone around him, pirates and otherwise, immediately backed several steps away.
This left him speechless. Did he look that frightening?
But the people around him did not see it that way. With their limited experience, suddenly witnessing such a powerful battle...
Had shattered their entire worldview.
In their eyes, Xia Chen was now one of the World's Strongest, someone with the power to destroy the world. Of course they were afraid!
With that being the case, what followed became much simpler.
Under Xia Chen's overwhelming presence, the pirates fled remarkably fast, grabbing whatever planks were nearby and drifting off into the distance.
Still, they had some conscience and did not forget Don Krieg. They dragged him along with them as they left.
And with that, this battle came to a close.
Xia Chen turned toward the cooks and asked, "Are you still open? I'm a little hungry!"
"Yes!!!"
Half a day later~
"..."
"So, I think Big Sis Nami's destination is Arlong Park!" Yosaku said with certainty.
"All right, since we know where Nami is headed, let's go get him back!" Luffy shouted from the side.
"Then... there's no time to lose. Let's leave right away!" Xia Chen also said calmly from beside him.
"Who knows what might happen if we get there too late!"
"All right, let's go!"
As soon as Xia Chen and the others stepped out of the cabin, they saw Sanji already waiting outside. With a cigarette between his lips, he put on airs and said,
"Let me... join you on this adventure!"