A three-day and three-night battle,
The Golden Lion's long hair was matted together with blood, and his body bore no fewer than a hundred wounds, large and small.
The most serious injury was the penetrating wound in his chest.
That was left by Garp late the next night.
But he was still smiling.
"Hahaha... Three days and three nights... I alone... held off the entire Marine Headquarters..."
His voice was hoarse, like a broken bellows, yet it was still full of pride.
Below, Sengoku and Garp are also covered in injuries, but their condition is much better than Golden Lion's.
The two stood on either side of the Golden Lion, opposite it.
" Shiki, that's enough."
The Sengoku said in a deep voice,
"You have proven your strength; now surrender."
"Surrender?"
The Golden Lion sneered.
"These two words don't exist in my life!"
"I... am... Shiki the Golden Lion!!"
He wanted to unleash his power again, but his body had reached its limit.
The power of the Float-Float Fruit requires continuous stamina expenditure, and after three days and three nights of fierce fighting,
His physical strength was already exhausted.
"Now!" Garp's eyes narrowed, and his figure vanished instantly.
The next instant, he appeared in front of the Golden Lion, his fist, covered in Conqueror's Haki Coating, aimed straight at his face!
The Golden Lion tried to block, but his arm was too heavy to lift.
Bang--!!!
A solid punch landed squarely on his cheek.
The Golden Lion was sent flying backward, leaving a trail of blood in the air.
Seizing the opportunity, Sengoku attacked from the side and struck the Golden Lion on the back with a palm strike.
" The Buddha Shockwave!"
The golden shockwave invaded the Golden Lion's body, forcibly suppressing the Golden Lion's last bit of power.
"Ugh--!"
The Golden Lion roared in resentment, but its body was no longer under its control.
He fell like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground.
The waiting Marine Vice Admiral swarmed forward, binding his hands and feet with Seastone shackles.
A specially formulated anesthetic was injected into the body.
Golden Lion Shiki, admiral of the Flying Pirates, a great pirate on par with Roger and Whitebeard.
He was arrested during this battle.
High above the Ark Maxim, Roy slowly exhaled.
"Let's go, the battle is over."
Tesoro started the engine, and the ship silently changed direction, heading towards the open sea.
The atmosphere on the deck was somewhat heavy.
Although the Golden Lion was an enemy and a competitor, the end of such a legend is still a cause for lament.
"Three days and three nights..."
Kyros murmured,
"To fight against the entire Marine Headquarters single-handedly for three days and three nights... Is this the strength of a great pirate?"
"To be precise, it's the strength of a top-tier pirate from the old era."
Roy corrected him.
" Golden Lion, Roger, Whitebeard, Sengoku, Garp —these people represent the pinnacle of the previous era."
Roy looked at his companions:
"And now, times are changing."
The old king will pass away, and a new king shall rise.
What we need to do is seize our place in this era of transition.
The Ark Maxim accelerated, quickly leaving the devastated Marineford behind.
Next destination – Loguetown.
Roger's public execution will take place there.
The journey to Loguetown takes several days.
The atmosphere on the ship has been noticeably different these past few days.
I witnessed firsthand that earth-shattering battle at Marine Headquarters.
Everyone has a clearer understanding of "top-tier combat power".
In the training room, Crocodile was sweating profusely.
His sand blades traced sharp trajectories in the air, each strike striving for perfection.
But as he practiced, he suddenly stopped and looked at his hands.
"Not enough... not nearly enough..."
He recalled the overwhelming power of Golden Lion's countless slashes, and Garp's fists that could shatter mountains.
It reminds me of the earth-shaking impact of the Sengoku.
Compared to those people, my current strength is practically child's play.
"What's wrong? Did you get a blow?"
Roy's voice came from the doorway.
Crocodile turned his head and saw Roy leaning against the door frame, holding a cup of hot tea in his hand.
"... a little."
Crocodile frankly said,
"I knew there was a gap between me and the top experts, but I didn't expect the gap to be this big."
"That's normal."
Roy walked into the training room.
" Golden Lion, Garp, Sengoku, these people have roamed the seas for decades."
They have experienced countless life-or-death battles, and the combat experience and strength they have accumulated cannot be caught up with overnight.
Roy paused, then continued:
"But you have to understand, they weren't born this strong."
Garp rose through the ranks from a common naval soldier; Sengoku also suffered defeats in his youth.
Even the Golden Lion has had its share of desperate escapes.
"The important thing is that you now have the opportunity to catch up with them."
Roy put down his teacup and extended his right hand:
"Come on, let me see how much you've improved these past few days."
Crocodile's eyes narrowed, and he showed no politeness.
He vanished instantly, reappearing to Roy's left, his sand blade, imbued with Armament Haki, slashing towards Roy's neck.
This strike was extremely fast and had a tricky angle; it was the result of his arduous training in gravity.
But Roy merely turned slightly to the side, the sand blade grazing past his collar.
"Too slow."
Roy commented,
" His Observation Haki was not good enough for prediction, his Haki flow was sluggish, and his power exertion was not complete."
As he spoke, he had already slapped Crocodile in the chest with his backhand.
Bang!
Crocodile was sent flying backward and crashed into the wall.
But he immediately sprang up and pressed his hands to the ground:
" Sables ·Revised!"
This time, the Tatsumaki no longer attacked indiscriminately, but instead locked onto Roy, coiling around him like a venomous snake.
At the same time, Crocodile himself charged in from the side, thrusting a Shigan covered in Armament Haki straight at Roy's ribs.
"Oh? That's interesting." Roy's eyes flashed with approval.
Roy remained still, only raising his left hand.
An invisible psychic field unfolded, freezing both Tatsumaki and Crocodile in mid-air.
"Good tactics. First, use a wide-area attack to attract attention, then use a high-speed surprise attack to deliver the fatal blow."
Roy commented,
"But the problem is that there is a significant time difference between your two attacks."
This time difference is negligible for ordinary people, but for those skilled in Observation Haki...
That's enough to make ten responses.
Roy released his control, Crocodile landed back on the ground.
"However, you've improved a lot since you first boarded the ship."
Roy walked up to him and patted him on the shoulder.
"Keep up the good work. At this rate, you'll be qualified to challenge a Vice Admiral- level expert in a year."
" Vice Admiral..." Crocodile murmured.
In the past, he would have thought that Vice Admiral was nothing special— Logia ability users were practically invincible in Paradise.
But after witnessing the strength of those Vice Admiral at Marine Headquarters, he understood...
No one who can become Marine Vice Admiral is an ordinary person.
"What, do you think the Vice Admiral isn't strong enough?" Roy saw through his thoughts.
"No... it's just..." Crocodile hesitated, unable to finish his sentence.
"I see."
Roy nodded.
"You want to challenge Admiral, a Four Emperors, or the Pirate King."
But this takes time, requires experience, and, most importantly, proper guidance.