He admitted Garp was powerful.
But in previous battles, he had always treated them as spars. Although the intensity was high, it was just that.
If it were a fight to the death, he would not defend, nor would he refrain from using teleportation.
Since the old man wanted to see him fight at full strength, he would grant his wish.
*Bang—!*
His right foot pushed off behind him, and the ground instantly collapsed. Kong Tai's body, using this reaction force, shot towards Garp like a bullet fired from a chamber.
"One Sword Style, Flash!"
Kong Tai's charging body instantly disappeared, reappearing behind Garp.
He lowered his head, his azure pupils swirling with nebulae, staring intently at the back of Garp's neck. With a *shing*, he drew his sword and slashed down.
*Clang—!*
As if foreseeing the future, Garp's eyes glowed red. The moment Kong Tai disappeared, he turned and struck behind him, perfectly meeting Kong Tai's descending blade.
Kong Tai had already anticipated such a situation.
Don't be fooled by the old man's age. His physical reaction speed, and the combat muscle memory honed by countless battles, made him the strongest close-combat fighter in this world. kAnshu伍.ξà
*Whoosh!*
Kong Tai's figure disappeared again, appearing to Garp's right, and he swung his sword down once more.
*Clang—!*
The same fist blocked the blade of Kong Tai's sword.
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!*
Circling Garp, Kong Tai flickered continuously, swinging his sword, but each time he swung, a fist covered in pitch-black Haki met the blade.
Clearly, the old man's Observation Haki had reached the point of predicting the future.
This allowed him to know the origin of Kong Tai's every teleportation and the target of every sword swing.
"Hahaha!!" Amidst the sword light, Garp's fists danced like afterimages, parrying all the sword strikes. He laughed heartily, "Brat, in close combat, even if you can teleport, you can't do anything to me."
"Oh... is that so?"
*Clang—!*
In another clash, Kong Tai used the force from the old man's fist to leap backward, hovering in the air. He looked down at Garp, a triumphant smile spreading across his lips.
"No hurry, you'll soon know why I've never feared retaliation from the World Government."
"Oh! Then be quick."
The old man retracted his fist, grabbed his left shoulder with his right hand, and tore downwards. *Riiip*, revealing a robust, explosive upper body.
Honestly, he hadn't had such a exhilarating fight in a long time.
The pirates of today held no interest for him. He couldn't even remember the last time he had gone all out.
Going back, it must have been when he captured Shiki.
Yes! Thinking about it now, it was quite nostalgic.
So, upon learning that Kong Tai intended to fight with his full power, he gradually became excited.
In their previous exchanges, he could sense the brat holding back, using him as a whetstone.
*Voom, voom, voom~*
At this moment, Garp suddenly felt the surrounding space begin to fluctuate violently.
Then, a spatial pressure descended upon his body. Though strong, it was still within his tolerance and had no effect.
"If you want to witness my true strength, then I shall oblige."
He opened his spatial domain. Within Kong Tai's eyes, the nebulae spun rapidly. He released his right hand from the Zankon.
The Zankon quietly hovered to his right.
Then, Kong Tai drew a black sword from his pocket with his left hand. It was identical to the Zankon, but entirely black.
After drawing Shusui, he also released it, letting it float to his left.
Next, he clasped his fists to his chest, his right hand loosely clenched, and slowly drew a pitch-black longsword from his left hand. It looked like a black hole, with the surrounding space twisting frantically.
After drawing the longsword, Kong Tai simply made a gentle wave with his right hand to the right.
The space the blade cut through actually split open, forming a black fissure.
Looking up, the surrounding light was distorted by the space. They were now within a spatial domain with a diameter of 40 meters. Garp felt a terrifying pressure emanating from all directions, giving him the illusion of being at the bottom of the sea. If not for his sufficiently robust physique, he would have been suppressed by this pressure long ago.
However, although it was still within his tolerance, it undeniably affected his abilities.
After all, fighting with ease was different from fighting with a mountain on one's back.
But with just this pressure, defeating him would be a pipe dream.
His combat style was primarily close-quarters. Even if the pressure affected his speed, it wouldn't impact his close-combat fighting prowess.
However, when he looked down at the pitch-black longsword twisting space in Kong Tai's right hand, and at the black fissure left by the blade cutting through space, he felt like a startled cat. His pupils constricted sharply, and an unprecedentedly grave expression appeared on his face.
In his perception, the sword in Kong Tai's hand emitted no power, nor any aura. If not for seeing it with his eyes, there would be nothing there.
But the soul-piercing coldness, and the constant stinging sensation throughout his body, told him that what Kong Tai held was incredibly dangerous, more dangerous than anything he had ever seen.
And the fissure left by the blade cutting through space – he could sense it was a true spatial rift.
This was just a gentle swing. If he were to fight seriously...
"Brat, is this your true power?"
Garp stared intensely into Kong Tai's azure eyes, his voice grave, "I must admit, it is terrifying."
He knew from Aokiji that Kong Tai had used a black energy he couldn't understand at all to instantly kill Cartais. If he wasn't mistaken, it was the energy he was now holding.
"Hehehe!!" Kong Tai's lips curled upwards in an evil grin, "Didn't you want to witness all my power?"
With that, his laughter subsided, his brow furrowed slightly, and for the first time, a killing intent appeared in his gaze towards Garp. "Old man, take this. If you can't handle it, you might really die!"
As soon as the words fell, the Zankon and Shusui *hummed* and floated up.
Without Kong Tai's body to control them, within this spatial domain, the two indestructible swords surpassed the speed of sound, piercing the air with unparalleled power, shooting directly towards Garp.
Garp's eyes glowed red as he quickly crossed his arms in front of him.
*Clang—!*
His body lurched downwards. The immense force transmitted from the blades caused the ground beneath Garp to instantly collapse.
The impact surged downwards, causing waves to ripple from the ground and spread outwards. But as the waves reached the edge of the spatial dome, they were blocked by an indestructible wall, unable to advance further.
They could only continuously crash against the spatial wall, venting the remaining fury within their bodies.
"More powerful than when I hold the sword myself," Garp looked up, gazing at the Shusui and Zankon before him, wrapped in blackness and radiating a pinkish glow. He felt the pressure emanating from the swords, as if the entire space were pressing down on him, a sharp glint appearing in his eyes.
"Is it this peculiar space?"
*Bang—!*
He exerted force with his arms, instantly repelling the Zankon and Shusui. But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, the two flying swords instantly changed direction and shot towards him again, one from the left and one from the right.
Under Kong Tai's control, Shusui and Zankon were now true flying swords.
*Bang, bang, bang!!*
Garp's figure flickered continuously, clashing with the two swords. But no matter where he dodged, the two swords, like persistent flies, relentlessly pursued him.
And the sharpness of the blades, though not as keen as when Kong Tai wielded them himself, was faster and more powerful in both force and speed.
Most importantly, there were now two of them. Within this spatial domain, Garp also had to contend with the infinite pressure of the space, which, for a moment, put Garp at a disadvantage, unable to escape the pursuit of the two swords.
"Vice Admiral Garp."
Outside the spatial domain, where Kizaru and Kuina were locked in combat, Kizaru, who had been somewhat relaxed, suddenly became serious as if sensing Garp was in danger.
But he couldn't go to his aid. Kuina before him was not to be trifled with. They had been fighting for over a day and a night. Even though he could sense her fatigue, she wasn't at the point of complete incapacitation.
Therefore, he couldn't disengage.
"I hope nothing happens!"
He withdrew his gaze, raised the Ama no Murakumo he held, and blocked Kuina's next downward strike. Yellow golden light and azure lightning continued their fierce battle.