Luffy's gaze locked onto the battered, unconscious figure of his father as he was shoved out from the shadows by Queen.
In that instant, everything changed.
The anger, the anxiety, the hesitation, the calculations—every tangled emotion inside him collapsed into something far more primal… far more violent.
A blazing, unrestrained fury.
The fury of blood ties trampled underfoot.The fury of someone precious being humiliated.The kind of fury that no logic, no restraint, could suppress.
There was no roar.
In the next heartbeat—
Luffy vanished.
So fast that only a faint afterimage lingered where he had stood.
His right fist drew back, Armament Haki coating it in deep black, faint streaks of Conqueror's lightning crackling along its surface.
No technique. No name.
Just a punch—
Straight for Gern's face.
Gern had expected it.
He didn't move his feet. Didn't shift his stance.
He simply raised his left hand, fingers spread, palm forward.
Only Conqueror's Haki… can stop Conqueror's Haki.
BOOM!!!
Luffy's full-force punch slammed into Gern's palm with a deafening, bell-like impact!
The shockwave exploded outward, shattering the stone tiles beneath their feet once again!
And yet—
Gern didn't move.
Not even an inch.
His arm barely bent. His palm only sank back a fraction before completely stopping the blow.
Luffy's fist was caught.
Locked in place.
Unable to advance even a single inch further.
Slowly, Luffy raised his eyes.
Gone was the sunlight that usually lived in them.
What remained… was cold.
Pure, biting cold.
He didn't call him "weird old man" this time.
Instead, through clenched teeth—
"Gern…"
The name came out low. Sharp. Ice-cold.
And then—
BOOM!!!!
A vast surge of Conqueror's Haki erupted!
Dark crimson lightning exploded outward, wild and violent, carrying Luffy's unyielding will and the essence of liberation itself.
The pressure warped the air.
The ground trembled.
Loose stones in the courtyard began to rise, quivering under the crushing force.
The crimson storm slammed toward Gern at point-blank range.
Faced with that furious outburst—
The faint amusement on Gern's face finally vanished.
His eyes turned cold.
"…Hmph."
A quiet exhale.
No buildup. No dramatic motion.
He simply lowered his gaze slightly… and looked at Luffy.
Then—
BUZZZZZ——!!!
A far deeper, heavier presence exploded outward.
Dark purple.
Dense. Overwhelming.
A Conqueror's Haki imbued with destruction itself—like a collapsing world given form.
It surged forward like a tidal wave—
And crushed straight into Luffy's crimson will.
CRACKLE—CRACKLE—!!!
The two supreme Haki forces collided at point-blank range!
Crimson and violet lightning tore into each other, shrieking as they clashed!
Black fissures flickered in the very air between them.
But the stalemate lasted—
Less than a second.
Luffy's crimson Haki began to collapse.
Piece by piece.
The dark violet current devoured it like a ravenous serpent, swallowing everything in its path.
Luffy's face paled.
His body swayed slightly.
Shock flashed through his eyes.
His Conqueror's Haki… was being suppressed. Completely.
Gern didn't press further.
He didn't knock Luffy unconscious.
He simply maintained that overwhelming dominance, his cold gaze piercing through the storm of lightning.
"Do you pity them?"
His voice was calm.
Flat.
He didn't wait for an answer.
With his free right hand, he suddenly grabbed the collar of his outer coat—
The one he had casually picked up earlier—
And tore it open.
RIP—!
The fabric split apart.
He pulled it off and tossed it aside.
Revealing his upper body.
And—
His wounds.
A grotesque slash carved across his abdomen—flesh torn, bone nearly visible—the mark of Shanks' Divine Departure. Though no longer bleeding, the injury remained savage and raw, surrounded by deep bruising.
His back was a canvas of damage—massive bruises, countless bloodstreaks—evidence of Dragon's wind-blade assaults and violent impacts.
His arms, shoulders, neck—lined with cuts, tears, and wounds layered upon wounds.
None fatal.
But countless.
Unhealed.
Barely suppressed by sheer physical strength alone.
Silent proof of the brutal, two-against-one battle he had just fought.
"…You…"
Luffy's eyes flickered as he stared at those injuries—
The same origin as the wounds on his father…
And on Shanks.
But somehow… even more savage.
His rage faltered.
Just for a moment.
"Look carefully."
Gern's voice turned sharp.
Each word like a blade.
"When they intercepted me… they didn't hold back."
"Shanks' 'Divine Departure' was meant to cut me in half."
"Dragon's wind blades were aimed at my neck."
"They came at me—"
"To kill."
His gaze swept over the two unconscious figures on the ground.
Then returned to Luffy.
Cold. Mocking.
"And now… they've lost."
"So—"
"They're nothing but dogs."
His left hand tightened.
Then—
He flung Luffy away.
Luffy's body spun through the air, tumbling violently before Jinbe and Sanji leapt up together to catch him, skidding back as they landed.
Gern didn't even look at him.
Instead, he casually flicked his foot—
Hooking Shanks by the collar.
And kicked him away like a ball.
Shanks rolled across the ground before slamming into a stone lantern with a dull crash.
Then—
Gern stepped forward.
Stopping in front of Dragon, who was barely being held upright by Queen near the gate.
Without hesitation, Gern reached out—
And grabbed him by the head.
His fingers sank into Dragon's tangled hair.
Then—
He slammed him sideways into the stone wall.
THUD!
A sickening impact.
Dragon's head struck the rock with a dull crack.
Blood immediately streamed down the wall.
Gern held him there—
Pinned in place with one hand.
His left foot stepped forward—
Resting on Shanks' body.
Then slowly…
He turned his head.
His gaze swept across the courtyard.
At Yamato—frozen.
At the Straw Hats—shocked.
At Queen—trembling.
At King—silent.
And finally—
At Luffy, held up by his crew, teeth clenched in fury.
Gern's lips curved.
Cold. Merciless.
"Take a good look."
"At what they are now…"
He paused.
Then finished—
"They're nothing but—"
"Defeated strays."
...
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