Deep in the sea, within the body of the lantern fish—in the first stomach sac.
"Asa! Come back to Impel Down and repent!!" Garp shouted, flanking Asa with Akainu as they closed in from two sides.
Vice Admiral Tsuru remained within the encirclement, wary of Asa's astonishing speed and potential sneak attacks.
But this time, she was overthinking it. As Asa continued to grow stronger, his interest in weaker opponents diminished. Though Tsuru wasn't weak by any means, she still fell slightly short compared to Garp and Akainu.
The last sneak attack had been a desperate gamble—a burial attempt. This time, Asa had no interest in Tsuru and didn't even bother lifting a hand. His focus had remained singular from the beginning.
Noticing the distraction, Mischia Olga wasted no time. She leapt behind some rubble and fled on the back of the green lizard-dragon, Elizabeth, at top speed.
...
"Repent? You talk too much nonsense, old man Garp!" Asa retorted, his gaze blazing. Blue electricity danced across the black-and-white stripes of his prison uniform. His jet-black hair shimmered under the glow of lightning.
Zzzzzssssss!!
The crackling of thunder grew louder. In the blink of an eye, Asa vanished—reappearing before Garp the next second.
A thunder-charged fist, glowing like a descending meteor, crashed down with immense force.
Though his overall strength hadn't increased significantly, Asa's defensive ability had reached a new height. He no longer feared direct confrontation.
The electrically amplified punch hit with the speed of a falling star.
Garp reacted instantly. His muscular arm rose on reflex, his sleeves bursting as his biceps flexed and hardened with Armament Haki.
BANG!!!
The collision echoed like a cannon blast. Asa's punch slammed into Garp's arm—like striking reinforced steel. Without the isolation field to cushion it, the impact sent pain shooting up Asa's fist.
Still, the sheer force sent Garp flying dozens of meters into the rubble.
He climbed out moments later, dusting himself off, and grinned.
"Boy Asa… you're becoming more and more of a thorn in the Navy's side!"
"Hahahahaha!" Asa twisted his wrist, laughing wildly. "Thanks to you, I've been able to push my Thunder Fruit to greater heights!"
The two locked eyes. An invisible ripple of pressure spread between them, and the air grew icy with killing intent.
Knowing Garp wasn't holding back, Vice Admiral Tsuru took a cautious step back. She'd only seen Garp like this once before—when chasing the Pirate King, Roger.
Akainu, his body smoldering with restrained fury, could do nothing for now. He could only glare, his anger visible in the smoke trailing from his form.
Suddenly, Asa surged forward again—his entire body engulfed in lightning. He entered his strongest form—"Raijin", the God of Thunder.
He stomped the ground with a lightning-forged foot—
BOOM!!
CRACK!!
The rocky terrain shattered beneath him, splitting into spiderweb cracks as his five-to-six-meter tall thunder form blasted toward Garp.
Zzzzt!!
His glowing palm clenched into a fist and rocketed toward Garp's face.
But Garp only grinned, more excited than even Asa. Without moving his feet, he raised his own blackened iron fist to meet the strike.
BANG!!
This time, it was Garp who felt the sting. His iron-clad fist met a wall of compressed lightning. The pain surged through his bones.
Between their fists, a shockwave burst forth, sending gusts of air in every direction—neither gaining the upper hand.
"Vice Admiral Garp... your strength is something else!" Asa stood still, grinning. But a closer look revealed beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
While the isolation field made him nearly invulnerable, it came at a steep cost—rapid stamina drain. And Garp's raw power only accelerated that exhaustion.
A drawn-out fight meant only one thing: capture.
Garp's battle instincts and decades of experience told him as much. He abandoned brute force and switched tactics, turning his fists into claws—reaching to grab Asa's elemental form and force him out of it.
"Hahahaha!" Asa's thunder-snake hair crackled. He instantly understood Garp's intent—but didn't dodge.
WHAM!
Garp grabbed Asa's thunder-arm, but his expression shifted. He hadn't expected a second barrier within. Even with all his strength, he couldn't pierce through it.
"Hahahaha! Vice Admiral Garp... Satisfied yet?" Asa laughed proudly.
"One hundred million volts—Mass Discharge!!"
Zzzzzzzsssssss!!
A massive current surged through Asa's arm into Garp's body.
"Hardening!!" Garp growled, reinforcing his body with even more Armament Haki to endure the lightning. At the same time, he extended his other hand—grabbing Asa's other arm.
"Heave!!"
With a roar, Garp used monstrous brute force and yanked Asa off the ground.
"RAAGH!!"
Caught off guard, Asa was hoisted into the air—then slammed straight into the ground like a thunderbolt hammer.
BOOOOM!!!
The entire gravel island quaked, splitting apart from the impact.
"You damn old man...!"
Asa, though slammed hard, was unharmed thanks to his isolation field. But when it came to raw strength, he was still no match for Garp.
"Hahahaha! Asa! How many more of those slams can you take?!" Garp laughed, raising him again.
BOOM!!
More dust. More rubble. The battlefield crumbled under the weight of their clash.
Sensing that things were spiraling, Vice Admiral Tsuru had already left to chase Olga. Akainu, his face ashen, observed from a nearby island, his expression grim.
"You old bastard—know when to stop already!!" Asa roared, unleashing his Conqueror's Haki in full force.
Garp felt it—Asa's strength rising.
"RAAGH!!"
Both roared as their battle reached a fever pitch. Asa quickly exited his Thunder God form to conserve stamina and began grappling Garp hand-to-hand.
Their muscles swelled. Their aura clashed.
The ground shook as the two titans wrestled—neither willing to yield.
(End Of Chapter)
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