In truth, Garp had already identified Ivan and the others long before their warship came close.
With his Observation Haki, which could easily cover an entire island, detecting the navy personnel on those ships was no challenge at all.
However, when Garp noticed Ivan approaching using Moon Walk, he pretended not to notice, intending to test the rumored White Dove's capabilities.
This kid was only eighteen, yet he had already defeated pirates of Arlong's caliber. With proper training, he could become a vice admiral, a pillar of the new generation of the navy.
That's why Garp casually threw an ordinary punch—he was afraid a serious blow might kill Ivan outright.
But who could have guessed?
Garp's eyes lit up as he watched the Sky-Suspended Cascade descending from above, covered with the Flying Slash unique to a Swordsman Master and a peculiar Distortion Field. He couldn't help but put a little more strength into his fist.
This kid was even more impressive than he'd imagined—perhaps he truly had the potential to become an admiral!
In that moment, the Black-Red Haki on Garp's fist began to flow, even emitting a scorching red glow!
The two moved with incredible speed. In the next instant, the Iron Fist collided with the Sky-Suspended Cascade!
Boom!
A deafening roar erupted across the sea as two terrifying forces clashed, grinding and compressing against each other.
A vast expanse of the ocean's surface was pressed down by the immense power, forming a massive semicircle.
For a moment, faint Black-Red Lightning crackled in the air, almost tangible.
On one side, the massive amount of seawater contained within the Sky-Suspended Cascade was violently shattered by the overwhelming force. Countless droplets scattered like arrows, piercing through the bellies of unlucky fish below and killing them instantly.
After a brief stalemate, the Iron Fist ultimately gained the upper hand. By the time the last drop of seawater from the Sky-Suspended Cascade vanished, the force behind Garp's punch had also been completely exhausted.
Garp stood on Moon Walk amidst the downpour of seawater, laughing heartily. "Hahaha, interesting kid! You've got what it takes to become an admiral!"
But as his laughter faded, there was no response. Just as he wondered why, his Observation Haki suddenly detected a figure in a floral shirt falling along with the seawater.
Garp was shocked. "You little brat, how did you pass out?"
…
When Ivan opened his eyes again, he found himself lying in the medical ward of the Roguetown branch.
Sitting up, he felt sore all over—a side effect of overexerting himself with his ultimate sword technique.
In that instant, he had combined all his abilities, draining his stamina completely. The strain was immense, and even with Ivan's current physical condition, he could barely handle it.
However, the strong in the world of pirates were naturally resilient, and Ivan was no exception.
As he began to move and stretch, he immediately felt the soreness throughout his body fading rapidly.
However, the price of the soreness disappearing was that his stomach churned, emitting a loud rumble, and he felt an unprecedented hunger.
This made him ignore the nurses' attempts to stop him, quickly rush out, and head to the dining hall, where he voraciously ate large amounts of fish and meat for half an hour. Only then did the hunger vanish, and his stamina reached its peak.
Ivan touched his swollen belly, which looked as if he were eight months pregnant, and sighed helplessly. "It seems I must continue practicing the Six Styles. If I can master Life Return, I'll be able to digest the food in my stomach immediately."
Although Ivan hadn't mastered Life Return, given his current physical condition, it didn't take long for his swollen belly to return to normal. He then strode toward Smoker's office.
If nothing unexpected happened, Vice Admiral Garp would be waiting for him there.
...
Knocking on the door, he pushed it open.
Sure enough, Smoker was sitting on a stool below, while Vice Admiral Garp had his feet propped up on the desk, lounging lazily in his chair and picking his nose.
Seeing Ivan arrive, Garp's eyes lit up. He immediately stood up, walked over to Ivan, and looked him over. "Good lad! With this strength, this explosive power, and this recovery ability, your future is limitless!"
Smoker stared in astonishment at the enthusiastic Garp. In the few days he'd spent with Garp, the vice admiral had never shown him a friendly face.
What had Ivan done to make Vice Admiral Garp like him so much?
And what did Garp's words mean? Could it be... he believed Ivan would at least become a vice admiral in the future?
Perhaps only that would be considered a "limitless future" in Vice Admiral Garp's mind!
Seeing Garp's enthusiasm, Ivan, for some reason, sensed a hint of guilt beneath the seemingly insincere warmth.
Ivan stared intently at Garp, his tone tinged with resentment.
"Vice Admiral Garp, I don't know about the future, but I do know that yesterday, I was almost killed by your punch."
"Hahaha, a misunderstanding, purely a misunderstanding!" Garp chuckled dryly, his thick-skinned nature fully on display as he tried to brush it off. "I thought you were that Krieg fellow, and you weren't wearing a Navy uniform—all dressed up in flashy clothes. How could I recognize you at a glance?"
"Heh." Ivan curled his lips, his eyes filled with disbelief, his tone icy. "Vice Admiral Garp, there's no need to pretend. I do know about Haki, after all. With your top-tier Observation Haki, how could you not have seen through my identity in advance?"
At this, even Garp felt somewhat embarrassed.
Truth be told, he really had only himself to blame.
Initially, he hadn't intended to get serious at all. He just wanted to casually test the kid's strength, using very little force, purely to give Ivan some pointers.
But after witnessing Ivan's Sky-Suspended Cascade, he unconsciously added a bit more strength, instinctively using Flow Sakura and even incorporating a trace of Conqueror's Haki Infusion.
A punch like that was still too heavy for Ivan, a captain.
However, Garp was also surprised by Ivan's strength.
Especially Ivan's explosive power—it was astonishingly strong.
After all, most of the powerful figures on the seas had vitality far exceeding their offensive power. That was why those monsters could fight each other for three days straight and still maintain considerable combat strength.
Yet Ivan was able to exhaust all his stamina in an instant—truly a remarkable talent!
If Ivan possessed his current level of stamina and could still drain it all in an instant, Garp believed that single strike would absolutely overwhelm an admiral!
At this thought, Garp's gaze toward Ivan grew even more fervent.
A promising seedling, truly a promising seedling!
Seeing that Ivan showed no respect for his elders and seemed intent on dwelling on the previous matter, Garp quickly changed the subject:
"Let's go, young Ivan. We'll set off immediately. After I make a trip back to my hometown, you'll be coming with me to headquarters to take up your post."
Garp's hometown?
Windmill Village!
Ivan felt that he would likely meet Luffy on Windmill Island. To be honest, since arriving in this world, Ivan hadn't yet seen Luffy, the main character.
Meeting him this time would fulfill a wish of sorts.
He nodded. "Yes, Vice Admiral Garp!"
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