"Iron block?"
Kong Tai looked at where his foot met Corvus, a strange glint in his eyes.
As expected of CP0!
To have trained Iron Body to this extent, he wondered what its limits were.
With that thought, he quickly withdrew his foot. Then, his left foot was instantly covered in Armament Haki. He spun around, a full 360 degrees, and with a "bang," struck Corvus in the chest.
*Thump—!*
A larger gust of wind rushed outwards, causing the subordinates behind Kong Tai to involuntarily squint their eyes.
"Still no use?"
"This damn thing..."
Although his hand-to-hand combat skills were not top-tier, he was not someone ordinary people could withstand. Moreover, he had wrapped his attacks in Armament Haki.
Looking down at the surprise in Kong Tai's eyes, Corvus calmly stated, "Your kicks are useless against me! I am a CP0 officer known as the 'Celestial Dragons' strongest shield'!"
As he spoke, he extended his right hand, aiming his index finger at Kong Tai's head.
"Finger Pistol!"
His Iron Body had long since been trained to a point where he could move and execute it.
Therefore, this fellow could use Iron Body in combat without restriction, maximizing his defense.
A red light flashed in Kong Tai's eyes. He leaned his head to the right, easily dodging Corvus's finger. Then, he bent down, drew his sword with his left hand, and gripped the hilt of the Zanpakuto with his right, looking up at Corvus's chest.
If fists and kicks were useless, what about the sword!
"Battōjutsu!"
A flash of steel, angled upwards, rapidly slashed towards Corvus's chest. *Qinshu La.*
Feeling the immense sharpness in front of his chest, Corvus hastily coated his chest with a layer of dark Armament Haki.
*Bang—!*
After a brief stalemate, Corvus was sent flying by the force of Kong Tai's sword.
With a "whoosh," he flew towards the pile of rocks behind the large rocks on the shore.
*Boom—!*
He crashed heavily into the ground.
Kong Tai sheathed his sword, looking at the rock pile from which smoke and dust were rising, a smirk tugging at his lips.
"Show off, you wanted to show off!"
"And Iron Body, why don't you use Armament Haki then!"
"Hahahaha!!"
Kong Tai laughed heartily, pulled down his sake gourd, took a drink, and then turned to look at Merason, "Hey! Old man, I heard you're a veteran Marine from the same era as Garp. How did you end up so miserable! Only a branch base commander near the first island of the Grand Line."
Merason looked at Kong Tai, slowly removed his Marine coat, loosened his tie, and unbuttoned his shirt, revealing his muscular upper body.
The old man was not tall, appearing shorter than Kong Tai, but at this moment, he exuded an aura befitting an ultimate expert.
He raised his hands in front of him, clasped his fingers together, making a cracking sound like popping beans.
"Since you know I'm from the same era as Garp and that I'm stationed on the first island, do you know why?"
"Why?"
Kong Tai's face showed excitement, looking at Merason.
Although the CP0 officer just now was strong, his strength was limited. If Kong Tai had truly wanted to kill him, it would have only taken one sword strike.
But this old man in front of him was different. He felt pressure from him.
"Why!"
Merason placed his hands, now coated in dark Armament Haki, on the ground and pushed off.
With a "whoosh," he instantly appeared before Kong Tai.
"Naturally, it's because my strength is enough!"
With that, he clenched his right fist, pulled it back, and then, like a cannonball fired from a barrel, he slammed it towards Kong Tai.
"So fast!"
Kong Tai looked at Merason, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
This old man's "Soru" was much faster than the CP0 officer's, so fast it was like teleportation.
Looking at the black fist before him and feeling its sharpness, Kong Tai hastily discarded his contempt. He dared not meet the fist with his own, because these old fellows had dedicated their entire lives to their fists and kicks.
Facing Merason's fist, honed for decades, he instantly drew his sword, his blade coated in Armament Haki.
"Battōjutsu!"
*Clang—!*
The two attacks clashed, forming a shockwave of wind that raged outwards. The sand beneath their feet had already sunken.
The storm swept across the beach, causing the sand to tremble and fly with the wind. This made everyone, whether Kong Tai's group, the Marines, or the CP agents, involuntarily move towards the shore.
"Old man, you're quite skilled for your age!"
Kong Tai stared at the pressure on the old man's fist, veins bulging on his arms and forehead.
This old man was the third strong opponent he had encountered.
The first two, the first was Shiki, who was dead.
The second was a Marine Admiral, the yellow-skinned monkey. As he didn't want to fight him, he only tested him and ended it quickly.
The third was the old man before him.
As expected of an old Vice Admiral of the Marines, with this strength, as long as he wished, no pirate could pass him.
No wonder the Route Number Five had so few Supernovas and powerful pirate crews sailing to the Sabaody Archipelago.
This information, he had heard from Hinatori.
He had initially thought it might be luck, or perhaps the countries on this route were too powerful, like Baster Kingdom's Hachida.
Now he knew. It was this old fellow.
As long as this guy guarded the entrance, let alone Supernovas, any pirate crew with even a little fame and strength would have been sent to the undersea prison, "Impel Down," by Merason!
Feeling the Armament Haki on his Zanpakuto showing signs of breaking, Kong Tai subtly and swiftly sheathed his sword. He then quickly replenished his Armament Haki and again slashed towards Merason's fist.
*Clang—!*
"Peak application of Armament Haki!"
Kong Tai looked at Merason, excitement flashing in his eyes.
Merason looked at Kong Tai, his other fist rapidly smashing towards Kong Tai's head.
"Kid, since you've met me, your luck is bad. Just go to Impel Down obediently!"
"That remains to be seen!"
Kong Tai looked at Merason, the corners of his mouth upturned, red light flashing in his eyes. He twisted his toes on the ground, his ear grazing Merason's left fist, and retreated to the right.
"Can you escape?"
Merason watched Kong Tai, his left fist pausing in mid-air. Then, he twisted his body, rapidly changing direction, and smashed towards Kong Tai's face.
"The old man is really ruthless!"
"You can bear to be so harsh to my handsome face."
Feeling the unavoidable fist before him, a trace of helplessness flashed in Kong Tai's eyes. He instantly vanished from his spot.
"Hm!"
Merason's fist passed through where Kong Tai's head had been and stopped in the air.
In the stillness and movement, he displayed unparalleled control over his strength and his own body.
"An afterimage?"
Merason stood in place, red light flashing in his eyes, the Armament Haki on his hand gradually receding.
He shouted outwards, "Kid, you only know how to run?"
"I'm not running, I just have something to take care of."
Kong Tai's figure appeared beside Kuina on the shore, looking at Merason on the beach, and chuckled softly.
"No hurry, I'll fight you to your heart's content later!"
Saying that, he turned to look at Hachida.
"Hachida, let's part ways here. All the experts on this island are here. What you need to do is rescue your people."
"Kong Tai..."
"That's enough."
Kong Tai interrupted him, "We'll talk about your gratitude when we get back. Now is not the time to relax! You need to hurry. The World Government and the Marines' experts might send reinforcements at any moment."
"If that happens, and I can't fight them all with both fists, it won't be good!"
"Understood."
Hachida looked at Kong Tai, determination in his eyes. He then quickly turned and rushed into the pile of rocks on the shore with his subordinates.
He had been to this island more than once in the past few years and already knew where the island's inhabitants were imprisoned.
"Hey! Wait, wait."
Hinatori watched Hachida and quickly rushed over, stopping them. He pulled a camera Den Den Mushi out of his backpack and handed it to Hachida.
"Hachida, take this recording Den Den Mushi and document the situation on the island. That way, we can release the news!"
He intended to record Kong Tai's battle prowess here and wouldn't go with Hachida to witness the human tragedies on the island.
If it weren't for the fact that their newspaper had dealings with Kong Tai, he wouldn't have given the camera Den Den Mushi to Hachida.
Because he had no interest in what was happening on this island.
He was only interested in Kong Tai now.
...