Pop!
Ace kicked off the tree trunk, using the force to leap out, and within a few bounds, he jumped next to Luffy.
"Ace!" Luffy, who was hiding behind the tree, was overjoyed, "How did you get here!"
"If I told you I felt your SOS signal from here, would you believe it?"
Ace pointed to his heart. Just as he smiled, he noticed in the distance, two figures engaged in a fierce battle within the mountain forest.
"Who is that guy?" Ace was stunned and couldn't help but take a deep breath, "So strong! Able to fight the old man back and forth?"
"Can't you tell? It's Big Brother Shano!"
"Is it him?"
Ace frowned and observed carefully for a moment.
Indeed, he had grown much taller and bulkier, but judging from the profile, it was indeed that guy who once easily beat him down with a few punches and kicks.
"So he's that powerful!"
Gulp! Ace swallowed his saliva. Originally, he felt so embarrassed being knocked out by him last year, and trained hard for a whole year, hoping to regain his face someday.
Now it seems that was the result of the other side holding back a lot, even if Sabo were alive, the ASL brothers together couldn't withstand even a punch from the opponent.
...
Boom!
With a fierce back kick from Shano, Garp's body slammed into the cliff, causing the entire mountain to echo with a dull sound.
"You little monster, you can actually change direction several times in mid-air!"
Garp laughed heartily, shaking off the dust, his rough knuckles crackling, "You've mastered Soru and Moonwalk so skillfully, where exactly did you steal the Rokushiki from?"
"No one taught me! It's all through my own effort and sweat!"
Shano also laughed, this old man was really something, after a brief exchange, he didn't say a word and just limited his power and speed to almost the same level as his own.
This way.
It completely turned into a battle of physique and real combat reaction, as well as a clash of strong muscles.
For half an hour they were evenly matched, each punch hitting its mark, it could be said the fight was thrilling and satisfying.
But it was pitiful for this area of the forest, who knows how many big trees fell down with a rumble, leaving the place in a mess.
"No, no, at this rate, we'd be fighting until dark without a winner." Garp scratched his head, "Raising power wouldn't be fair to you either, so maybe let's do it this way..."
As soon as he finished speaking.
His right fist suddenly turned jet-black as if soaked in ink, as he looked up and bared his teeth at Shano in the trees.
"Kid, watch out!"
Oh crap, you're serious!
Watching Garp's charging figure, Shano's pupils shrank, he suddenly stomped on the ground, the afterimages of Soru seemed to linger in place, while his real body flashed behind Garp.
But he had the intent to seize the initiative, delivering a punch both steady and fierce, aiming for Garp's neck.
However, just as Shano's fist was about to touch the surface of the skin.
The old man seemed to have eyes on his back, grabbing his wrist with a backhand and flipping him over the shoulder, while the ink-like black right fist crashed into Shano's chest!
Boom!
Shano's whole body flew backward in an instant, like a cannonball crashing into the ground, spider-web-like cracks rapidly spread, even reaching Ace and Luffy's feet.
At the center of the crack, dust surged up, lingering for a long time without a single sound.
"Big Brother Shano!"
Luffy was startled by the scene, rushing over to help Shano up, while angrily shouting, "What are you doing old man! How can you hit so hard!"
"Heh..." Garp landed on the ground, ignoring Luffy, but instead fixed his gaze on the center of the dust.
He didn't believe the opponent couldn't withstand this hit.
This kid's power and speed were indeed strong, but up until now, what surprised him the most was the astonishing physical strength and defense.
The bones seemed to be made of iron, many times nearly getting broken from getting hit, he'd shake his arm, and they would quickly return to normal.
And that head, needless to say, was as hard as a steel ball, before using Armament Haki, even punching it would give back a slight pain.
Fourteen years old... only fourteen years old!!!
This kid was just two years older than Ace, yet his strength was more than ten times higher.
Garp now regretted a bit, knowing he shouldn't have spoken so definitively earlier.
It wouldn't have been a big deal to take him away by force and slowly guide him later, letting such a good seed slip away for nothing.
As for Navy Rear Admiral, now it seemed, once grown up, this kid would be qualified to be a Headquarter Vice Admiral!
The dust gradually settled.
Sure enough as expected, Shano just shook his head and stood up as if nothing had happened.
Though the corners of his mouth were bleeding, and his chest slightly caved in, his entire aura remained as ferocious and stable as ever, and the gaze he lifted was still full of fighting spirit.
"That's cheating." Shano grinned, "Using Armament Haki is one thing, but you even used Observation."
He touched his chest, the vigorous Armament Haki that left a lingering presence around his wound, was still perceptible.
Shano closed his eyes to feel it for a moment, then suddenly licked the blood from his mouth greedily.
"Again!"
He fiercely tore off his tattered shirt, his twisted, terrifying muscles glowed darkly under the sunlight, faintly taking on a metallic bronze hue.
"Wow!!!" Luffy and Ace's eyes widened.
In the awe-struck gaze of the two kids, Shano suddenly stomped the ground and used Moonwalk to charge into the air above the forest, delivering a fierce punch towards Garp's head.
The force of the punch tore through the air, and Garp's dog-headed hat brim flapped wildly, yet wrinkles of excitement appeared on his old face.
"Good timing!"
He abruptly stepped back half a step, swinging his pitch-black right fist upward in a sweeping motion, like wielding a heavy hammer, crashing down.
In Shano's pupils, reflected the ink-black fist, and he neither dodged nor avoided, stubbornly meeting it with his own fist!
Crack!
Compared to the previous balance, Garp's fist covered with Armament Haki instantly increased in strength, Shano could even hear his own bones groan under the overwhelming burden.
Yet the tingling sensation from his finger bones grew increasingly hot, as if countless ants were gnawing deep into the bone marrow, both painful and mesmerizing.
"Huff, huff..."
He panted heavily, unwilling to give up, instead like someone insatiable, he fiercely increased his strength, baring his teeth at Garp with a grin reaching his ears.
"Bring out your left fist too, old man!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth, his empty left fist already unhesitatingly shot towards Garp's shoulder, and Garp laughed heartily, countering with his left fist.
"Feeling greedy? Let me satisfy you!"
Boom!!!
At the moment the two fists collided, a blast wave exploded, sweeping towards all directions!
"Oh no, we're too close!"
Ace immediately hugged the tree trunk tightly, barely avoiding being blown away.
Meanwhile, Luffy hurriedly wound his arms into a spiral, hanging onto Ace's leg just like that, but his straw hat flew high, spinning onto the treetop, revealing his eyes widened into saucers underneath.
"My hat..."
Thud! Shano happened to be pushed back, landing on the tree branch, glancing at the straw hat nearby, he picked it up with the intent to throw it to Luffy, but as soon as the hat left his hand, it vanished without a trace.
"Search my bag!"
He laughed heartily, charging at Garp once more.
Eh?
Luffy was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized, heading directly towards the backpack Shano had tossed next to a giant rock in the distance, opening it to find the familiar straw hat indeed lying inside.
"Wow, the magic evolved! Even more amazing!!!"
...
Listening to the astonished voices beneath his feet, Shano smirked slightly, but didn't let his movements falter, clashing with Garp again.
The two exchanged blows rapidly, like a storm never ceasing, exchanging hundreds of rounds in an instant.
At this point, when Shano punched again, Garp could vaguely sense a familiar dominant aura between the force of the punch.
"Remarkable insight."
Garp firmly grasped Shano's fist, preventing him from advancing, narrowing his eyes, "Unexpected that in such a short time, you could clearly sense the existence of Haki and start attempting to integrate with it, the next step is to start trying to entwine it!"
"—Entwine it around your body, even your weapon! Being able to make it visibly clear like smoke, each punch or kick's destructive power can be enhanced, considered an entrée level!"
"But reaching this step requires some adaptation practice, I'm tight on time, can't watch you slowly grasp it, I'll jump to the next phase right away, listen well!"
"The second step! Is to make the originally smoke-like Armament Haki, condense and adhere like glue, greatly enhancing a particular body part at will!"
His arms suddenly turned pitch black, "Just like this!"
Boom!
His immensely hard elbow suddenly struck upward, hitting Shano's face, Shano's both fists resisting Garp's double fists momentarily couldn't escape, could only watch helplessly as the elbow strike came in.
He screamed wretchedly, flying out, crashing directly into the rock layer below the cliff.
He coughed violently for quite a while, spit out a mouthful of blood, caught his breath, realized it felt wrong, reached in with his fingers, instantly pulled out two teeth.
"I've passed the time for losing teeth! How will these grow out!"
Shano stepped out of the pit in fury, "Old man, can you aim properly, aim at the wisdom teeth!"
"No common sense, where does a fourteen-year-old kid have wisdom teeth!"
Garp sneered disdainfully, "You see, being able to harden body parts at will like me, counts as completing the second step, and what I can teach you, ends here!"
"As for going further..."
He landed with a thud from mid-air to the ground, "Master the second step first, after that, the path forward is for you to explore and pursue on your own, according to personal needs or talent limits, heading in different directions."
"For example."
Garp suddenly glanced at Luffy, "Some focus on enhancing the cohesion effect of Armament Haki, eager to condense all controllable Armament Haki in a small area, like on a bullet head, to unleash terrifying destructive power."
Why look at me? Luffy felt completely bewildered.
Shano immediately realized, Garp was referring to Red Hair's Deputy Captain Ben Beckman, when that gun barrel lifts, even the second uncle had to give face.
"While others."
Garp glared at Luffy fiercely, withdrew his gaze, continued, "pursue the utmost of full-body defense, fear any weakness, spreading Armament Haki across the entire body, making the enemy unable to penetrate."
This time the old man didn't give an example.
Shano bowed his head, pondering carefully.
The first to come to mind was Doflamingo's trusted Vergo, sent on a deep undercover mission for three years plus three years, ultimately mixed into the top of a branch.