Hand-to-hand combat wasn’t Kaido’s specialty. Compared to fighting barehanded, he could only unleash his powerful strength when wielding a weapon. Just moments ago, he didn’t use any weapon, not even dodging, and instead took Garp’s punch directly with his face as he simply wanted to experience firsthand the so-called Iron Fist.
Hero Garp, Garp the Fist, earned this title entirely through his fists and Haki. The last time he crossed paths with Garp was almost back during the Rocks era.
At that time, Roger wasn’t yet the biggest trouble on the seas. Rocks’ strength and madness practically affected the entire sea. Rocks was defeated thanks to Garp and Roger joining forces. Back then, Kaido wasn’t even qualified to take part in that battle.
Moreover, by that point, the Rocks Pirates had long begun to fall apart, a crew forcibly united under Rocks’ personal strength with no intention of fighting as one. Kaido also fled God Valley along with Charlotte Linlin.
At that time, he didn’t yet have the ambition to challenge the whole world. But now, everything is different.
“Thunder Bagua!”
The deafening roar of thunder filled the air, and the power of lightning crackled around Hassaikai. If a kanabo could be ranked among the Famous Swords, the current Hassaikai II and Takeru VII would surely be at the top of the list.
“Mountain Shattering…..Fist!”
No matter what type of attack the enemy uses, Garp’s approach remains unchanged. His fists were imbued with unshakable conviction. This had been his fighting style ever since the day he became a Marine soldier, a style he’d carried on to this day.
His hands could even substitute for heavy artillery, launching cannonballs barehanded.
To Garp, “Shattering Mountains” wasn’t an exaggeration—it was a real training method. Whenever he faced a powerful opponent, Garp would sharpen his fists by training against mountains.
Back when he fought Chinjao’s drill-like head, Garp punched through several mountains in succession.
In his Beast-Form, Kaido’s size was almost three times that of Garp. Typically, a smaller opponent would take advantage of their agility against a much larger enemy, but in this case, it didn’t make any difference.
Whether it was Garp or Kaido, both had chosen the most direct form of combat: head-on fight.
Fists clashed against the kanabo, producing an even more intense shockwave than before. The aftermath of their battle had a considerable impact on the soldiers within the base, but there was nothing Garp could do about it.
He could limit Kaido’s movements to some extent, but he couldn’t control the aftermath. To be precise, he could only protect a portion of the area. He may be the Marine Hero, but he hasn’t broken through the limits of humanity.
Facing Kaido, who could fly freely, it was impossible for Garp to fully stop him.
“Worororo, now this is more like it! This is the true meaning of battle!”
Kaido’s face once again broke into a grin as he gripped his kanabo with both hands. Seeing his smile, Garp’s expression darkened further.
When Kaido swung his kanabo again, Garp changed his strategy. Instead of clashing his fists against it, he used Haki to form an armor around his body. Then, he grabbed onto Kaido’s kanabo.
Using the force of Kaido’s swing, Garp flew into the air. He then kicked off several times using Geppo, shooting toward Kaido like an arrow.
“Meteor Fist!”
“Blast Breath!”
Kaido was a Zoan-type, but more than that, he was a Mythical Zoan. Besides the physique of a Zoan-type, he could also wield powerful elemental forces. Gathering scorching energy in his mouth, he unleashed it toward the incoming Garp.
He had never said he wouldn’t use such methods during the fight.
As the flames surged toward him, Garp didn’t change course, instead he charged directly at the Blast Breath. He crossed his arms and waved them, forcibly splitting Kaido’s Blast Breath in two.
Garp’s fists shattered Kaido’s Blast Breath. Emerging from the flames, Garp looked like a demon from the depths of hell. His fists were covered in Haki, the flames of Kaido’s Blast Breath still lingering on them.
Boom!
That punch landed squarely on Kaido’s face, sending his massive body crashing to the ground once more.
“Vice Admiral Garp won! He knocked Kaido down!!”
The soldiers watching from a distance erupted in cheers. It was a battle far beyond their level, and they could only rely on what their eyes told them to judge the outcome.
But in the next moment, instead of pressing his advantage, Garp quickly retreated. Kaido’s kanabo smashed into the ground just inches from Garp’s feet.
The ground cracked open from the impact, and the nearby seawater surged into the huge crack. Just like that, the G-1 Base had gained a new moat.
“Pah! I really got careless. You old b*stard, your strength doesn’t seem to have changed much.”
Kaido spat to the side and stood up again. The damage to the ground was far greater than anything Kaido himself had suffered.
“Don’t be ridiculous! You say I wasn’t serious, but weren’t you the same? Those two punches shouldn’t have even hit you.”
“Oh? Looks like your intelligence agency has gathered quite a bit of information.”
“Don’t underestimate the Marines, pirate…”
Though Garp’s punch had landed on Kaido, he didn’t show any excitement. Marines’ intelligence had been quite clear: Kaido, or rather, the Beasts Pirates, has some sort of special shield technique. Kaido and many of his officers could use it.
Although the strength of the shield varies depending on the user’s strength, it was definitely a troublesome ability, seemingly akin to the Barrier-Barrier Fruit. Yet, throughout the entire fight, Kaido hadn’t used Protect’s barrier.
He would rather take Garp’s punch head-on with his face than use that special barrier.
This left Garp utterly confused about what was going on in this lunatic Kaido’s mind.
“Worororo, don’t think too hard about it. I just don’t feel like using it.”
The first time was to test Garp’s fists, and the second time was simply Kaido’s personal choice.
“It would be too boring. There’s limited time today, and it’s impossible to determine a winner between us.”
Even with a main character’s plot armor, it would take half a day to finish a fight with Kaido. In just a few short hours, neither Kaido nor Garp could determine a clear winner.
“If I kept using that all the time, it wouldn’t be fun. There are a lot of things I need to try out. Rain!”
Kaido suddenly shouted “Rain!” toward the sky, and Hydrachton in the distance seemed to understand. It turned around and rushed into the clouds.
Kaido and Garp’s battle had long since scattered the clouds above, but now, the clear sky was once again covered in dark clouds. Lightning flashed continuously within them, and in an instant, torrential rain began to pour down.
“I’ve been wanting to try this move for a long time. That old hag Linlin used it plenty back in the day.”
Once again, lightning wrapped around the end of Hassaikai. This time, Kaido didn’t approach Garp but instead swung his kanabo toward the sky.
“God of Lightning Tenjin!”
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