Faced with the deadly attacks of the three Nature-type Admirals, Ozz didn't instantly teleport away. He wanted to test his limits.
"Divine Evasion!!!"
As Ozz's ruthless shout echoed, the three charging opponents each felt an overwhelming chill surge through them.
That black-and-red blade, infused with tangible Conqueror's Haki, combined with the godlike strength of the demonic figure wielding it, sliced forward at a speed nearly invisible to the naked eye, straight toward the trio.
Black-red lightning crackled, tearing apart elemental forces, its dazzling light illuminating Ozz's excited face.
The sheer power, combined with his familiarity with this kind of strength, made Sengoku and the others glance again with newfound respect.
"That's… Roger's Divine Evasion!?"
"Looks just like it, though not quite as overwhelming!"
"Ha ha ha ha! What a promising brat! Is this the best the new Navy has to offer?"
Shiki sneered mercilessly.
Although he and Roger's crew were not exactly enemies, compared to the Navy, Shiki preferred to see them humiliated.
These weaklings? How could they ever capture Roger?
"You three future Admirals of the Navy—I admit you're worthy opponents,"
Ozz slashed through the three devastating elemental attacks with a single Divine Evasion strike, his eyes gleaming with thrill as he pointed his blade at them.
"Come on, try and kill me!!!"
Ozz's contemptuous attitude clearly enraged the three. Their bodies began to radiate exaggerated natural power, altering the surrounding environment itself.
At full strength, these were forces capable of permanently reshaping an island's terrain and climate!
When both sides unleashed their full power, Ozz had to admit—this was putting pressure on him.
One opponent he could confidently suppress, two he handled with ease—
But three? That barely kept him from losing.
And this was while wielding two invincible abilities.
No wonder Oda-sensei once said no one in the world could defeat two Admirals alone.
With the combined brute force, Haki mastery, and cataclysmic destructive power, only overwhelming one-on-one dominance from a young age or a unique Devil Fruit sneak attack could make that possible.
Looking at the wounds covering his body, Ozz roughly understood this was his current limit.
But even so, he still wanted to push his boundaries—this might be the key to leveling up his Conqueror's Haki.
That was the fundamental reason he chose to fight this battle.
He wasn't buying it that with his spirit already swollen enough to take on three Admirals solo, he couldn't grow strong enough to claim the throne of the ultimate Conqueror's Haki.
He'd already imagined it:
If one day he and Shanks appeared together at some grand scene, both unleashing Conqueror's Haki on arrival—
No one would be scared.
Only embarrassed.
He refused to lose the spotlight on this flashy, prestige-bearing ability to Shanks.
Shanks?
Just a pesky little brother!
The fierce battle raged on.
In duels between masters, time was always measured in days.
After five days and five nights, even a monster like Ozz was starting to show signs of wear.
His battered body bore fresh and old wounds alike; some earlier injuries had thick scabs now.
The three future Admirals weren't faring well either.
Their wounds rivaled Ozz's, nearly covering their bodies.
If not for their elemental transformations occasionally mitigating some damage, they'd be worse off.
Kizaru's glasses were shattered; the ever-casual, sly old monkey had lost several teeth, his body marked by footprints and blade cuts.
Beside him, Sakazuki was no better off.
After taking a direct hit from Ozz early on, his reflexes clearly slowed.
If not for the molten magma constantly coating his body, his bruised face would look pitiful indeed.
And the most seriously battered was Ozz's favorite sparring partner and sometimes rival, Admiral Aokiji.
His face and body were scarred and bloodied; his left leg twisted in an unnatural shape, as if destined for a fatal blow.
Thankfully it wasn't broken.
Wrapped in a heavy bandage, it would probably heal in ten days or two weeks.
No one could blame them.
They weren't weak.
Ozz was just a freak.
Besides slight lack of battle experience, he had almost no weaknesses.
His martial arts, swordsmanship, and mastery of Haki all outclassed theirs.
Couple that with his ghostlike teleportation fruit ability—hardly anyone could land a solid hit.
Add in his crazily escalating Conqueror's Haki—wrapped around his blade, he threw Divine Evasions that hurt more every time.
Fortunately, no battle lasts forever.
Eventually, the fight drew to a close.
At the other end of the chaotic battlefield, three old-generation warriors had already decided the outcome of their duel.
"Shiki, Roger's death marks the dawn of a peaceful era. The Navy will never allow anyone to destroy that!"
"Garp!!!"
After the final blow—the Fist Bone's Galaxy Impact—landed,
The proud, unyielding Golden Lion finally fell.
Perhaps the ship's helm on his head affected his strength, or maybe his reckless spirit doomed him to be overwhelmed—
But Shiki was defeated.
He was shackled with Seastone cuffs.
No strength left to resist.
Almost the moment Shiki the Golden Lion fell, Ozz's scalp tingled, every hair stood on end.
His Observation Haki warned him of imminent danger.
Whoosh—
The Ozz who had been battling the three Admirals vanished instantly with a long-range teleport.
Boom—
At his former spot, a fist glowing fiercely with red light slammed down, cracking the earth for a thousand meters.
Even the heavily injured Admirals were forced to stagger back under its aftershock.
The attacker?
None other than the man who had several times pushed Ozz's captain to the brink—
Navy hero, Monkey D. Garp!
Staring at Garp's fist that shattered kilometers of earth, Ozz couldn't help but sweat cold drops on his forehead.
"Captain Roger isn't here, so you're picking on me—the intern of Roger's ship?"
"Mr. Garp, that hardly seems like the behavior of a righteous Navy man."
"I told you a long time ago, Ozz!"
Still in his giant Buddha form, Sengoku stepped into the battlefield, shouting sternly at Ozz.
"The Navy doesn't owe you any mercy, you villain!!!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Well… as a pirate, when faced with an unbeatable Navy, running away is only natural, isn't it?"
Ozz smiled nonchalantly at Sengoku's roar, then looked to the others.
He'd already realized when the Golden Lion fell, it was time to escape.
The fight was exhilarating.
The spotlight was on him.
But if he stayed any longer, he'd be thrown in the same cell as Captain Roger.
"Nani!?!" Sengoku immediately flushed red with anger.
His outrage wasn't just rage—he knew that with Ozz's nearly invincible ability, if he wanted to flee, no one could stop him.
But if that happened—
What about the Navy HQ, Marineford?
What about the entire Navy's face?!
To pour fuel on the fire, seagulls with cameras and bags circled above, snapping pictures nonstop.
Ozz smiled at the cameras, waved to the angry Marines,
Then—
Amid their explosive attacks and rising dust—
The Black Gun, Ozz,
Disappeared.
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The next storm's already brewing—P@treon's where it hits first.!
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