A Single Punch KOs Garp! Pluton Activated!

The sea shook, and the waves instantly turned into a tsunami, nearly capsizing the warships.

Countless curses rang out from inside the warships. The Marines had been sleeping peacefully, only to be thrown into chaos by the tsunami.

The CP0 agents stared blankly.

This was the kind of phenomenon only caused by a clash between two top-tier Haki users.

"Why did they start fighting?!"

The CP0 agents were horrified and hurriedly picked up a Den Den Mushi to report the situation to the Five Elders.

It was late at night, and the call was not answered until a long while later.

"What is it this time?"

"My lords, fighting has broken out in Wano Country!"

"What?! Didn’t I tell you not to act yet and wait for support from Marine Headquarters?"

"My lords, it wasn’t us. The Red Hair Pirates and those Revolutionary Army people have started fighting!"

"They… how could they?! Hahaha, Shanks actually made such a choice. He truly has the bloodline of the Figarland Family."

Five different laughs sounded from the other end of the line. Clearly, the Five Elders were delighted by the news.

"On enemy territory, the Red Hair Pirates may not be their match. Fortunately, Garp is already nearby, and support from Marine Headquarters will arrive soon. Find a way to delay them first…"

With that, the Five Elders hung up, leaving the CP0 agents holding the receiver in despair.

Delay them?

They’re asking me to risk my life!

The Five Elders would not say certain things outright, but how could CP0 agents, who served as their enforcers, fail to understand?

With a bitter expression, he relayed the Five Elders’ orders to the Marines.

The Marine fleet tasked with assisting CP0 in its surveillance operation was led by a Headquarters Vice Admiral, with two Rear Admirals under his command.

Against any other force, one Vice Admiral and two Rear Admirals would have been a formidable suppressive force.

Unfortunately…

Their enemy was the Revolutionary Army.

"We have no advantage in close combat. Keep our distance and bombard them. Use firepower to suppress the Revolutionary Army on shore!"

At the Vice Admiral’s command, the fleet formed up and slowly approached the coast.

The Revolutionary Army also noticed the disturbance and gathered their forces to prepare a counterattack.

The battle began for no apparent reason. The overwhelming artillery barrage failed to affect the fight between Chu Yang and Shanks.

Shanks even had the leisure to joke, "When did the Marines suddenly get the courage to attack on their own? I thought they would stay there like decorations forever."

Chu Yang grinned. "They probably think we’re fighting among ourselves."

Shanks burst into laughter. "Then they’re in for a rough time."

Even as they chatted and laughed, their Haki clashed fiercely, black lightning erupting from the void.

The Conqueror’s Haki Shanks displayed had already surpassed Kaido’s. His talent in that regard was truly unmatched.

By comparison, Chu Yang was slightly inferior when it came to Conqueror’s Haki alone.

"Your Haki is even stronger than I imagined. I thought my progress over this period would have put a great distance between us."

Though he said that, Shanks was happy. Only if Chu Yang was strong enough could Shanks feel at ease letting him do whatever he wished.

Chu Yang held Fengdu in his hand and casually swung it. The sea split apart in a hundred-meter-wide gash, and a Sea King below was sliced cleanly in two.

Shanks’s expression turned solemn. That strike was already equivalent to one of his full-power attacks.

Drawing his sword Griffin, Shanks’s fighting spirit soared into the heavens. He vaguely sensed that this might be their final battle.

Shanks swung his sword repeatedly, every slash coated in Conqueror’s Haki and carrying astonishing power.

Chu Yang used Flash Step to evade the slashes.

Some of the missed slashes flew toward the mountains, while others cut into the sea.

The mountains were pulverized into dust.

The sea was also torn open by hundred-meter-long fissures, identical to Chu Yang’s previous strike.

Since both sides were taking the fight seriously, even the informed Red Hair Pirates had the illusion that the two were fighting for their lives.

Everyone else was even more alarmed.

Then the Marines suddenly appeared and launched an attack, making suspicion unavoidable.

The samurai, who did not know much about the Red Hair Pirates, were the first to step forward and loudly question them with hostility.

"What is wrong with your captain? Why did he start a war so casually?"

"You despicable bastards! I knew it! You brought the Marines here too, didn’t you?"

"You pirates are actually cooperating with the Marines? What exactly are you planning for Wano Country?!"

Faced with the agitated samurai, Beckman felt something was wrong. He had originally come to watch the show, only to become part of it himself.

"You idiots, Yang was originally one of our crew! When he was on the ship, he fought the captain every day. What’s so strange about that?"

Yasopp could not hold back and stepped forward to argue with the samurai.

"That’s right! If we really wanted to attack you, would we need to contact the Marines? Don’t underestimate the Red Hair Pirates!"

Lucky Roux’s gaze and tone were extremely disdainful. The moment he spoke, it was like pouring oil on a fire.

The samurai became even more agitated!

After being enslaved by Kaido, they had never had a good impression of pirates. Because of Chu Yang, they had kept their hostility toward the Red Hair Pirates suppressed, but now it erupted all at once.

As tempers flared, the two sides immediately showed signs of coming to blows.

Tiger hurriedly led his crew between the two groups, explaining things to the samurai while soothing the Red Hair Pirates.

Dragon was leading the Revolutionary Army against the Marines and had no time to deal with this side.

A massive melee erupted, with everyone fighting their own battle.

Chu Yang and Shanks focused their minds on their duel. Minor details could not affect them.

The two had already entered the stage of close-quarters combat.

Other than Haki and swordsmanship, Chu Yang did not use any other abilities. Even so, he held an absolute advantage.

After being tempered in the martial arts world and the Wind and Cloud world, Chu Yang’s swordsmanship had reached another dimension of power, one Shanks could not comprehend.

He did not deliberately use Tai Chi Sword or the Nine Swords of Dugu. He simply swung his sword freely.

Simplicity and directness were the defining traits of swordsmanship in the One Piece world. What Chu Yang needed to do was simplify it even further.

Every move seemed born of nature itself, carrying traces of the Dao that could not be described with words.

Shanks was stunned by that strange sensation. Under Chu Yang’s sword, the world before his eyes seemed to have taken on a completely different form.

From Shanks’s perspective, Chu Yang was casting magic with a sword.

It was difficult enough to understand such swordsmanship, let alone break it. As the battle neared its end, Shanks’s face was mostly filled with confusion.

The duel gradually turned into a unique swordsmanship lesson.

"Your swordsmanship has been strange from the very beginning, and now I understand it less and less. In swordsmanship alone, even Hawkeye would not be your match."

Shanks sheathed Griffin and looked at Chu Yang with a complicated expression. Before the fight began, he had never imagined he would "lose" the duel this way.

"Whether it’s swordsmanship or Haki, surpassing yourself is more important than surpassing others."

Chu Yang smiled.

Shanks fell silent for a moment, then forced out a smile. "Are you leaving the ship?"

Chu Yang took a deep breath, nodded, and smiled. "Captain, my journey has come to an end. Saying goodbye here is the best way."

Shanks relaxed and let out a long breath. "Journeys always come to an end. It’s just that after all these years, I still haven’t gotten used to it."

Chu Yang looked at Shanks and said sincerely, "Even after I leave the ship, I’ll always be a member of the Red Hair Pirates."

Shanks nodded as if it were only natural. "Of course. Beckman even said he wanted to give you the first mate position!"

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

The next second.

An enormous iron ball flew over their heads and smashed an ancient building to pieces.

A hearty laugh rang out.

"Red-Hair brat, I’m here to catch you again! You run even slower than that Roger brat!"

"Once I catch you, I’ll make you pay for what you did to Luffy!"

"That little bastard keeps yelling every day that he wants to become a pirate!"

"It’s driving me mad!"

A warship was pulling up to shore, and a towering, imposing figure stood on its deck.

Wearing a dog-head hat, Garp stared at Shanks so fiercely that his eyes seemed ready to spit fire!

Shanks’s expression stiffened. He had already shaken off the old man before coming here, yet Garp had relentlessly chased after him again.

"Marine hero Garp. Fighting him would make a perfect farewell ceremony."

Chu Yang laughed and stepped forward. His figure flashed, and he instantly appeared on the warship a thousand meters away.

Garp’s vision blurred, and an unfamiliar young man suddenly appeared before him.

"Brat, who are you?"

"You look a little familiar…"

Garp narrowed his eyes, his fists larger than sandbags swinging back and forth in front of Chu Yang.

A soldier hurried over to Garp’s side and whispered a few words.

Garp’s face showed sudden realization.

"You’re the one who beat Borsalino up?! You’re also the one who stopped the Marines’ repeated attempts to encircle the Revolutionary Army?!"

"Kaido, Charlotte Linlin… those people all fell at your hands too?"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Should I say I’m getting old, or that young people these days are just too incredible?"

Garp seemed to think of something amusing and clutched his stomach as he laughed heartily. "Setting bounties on Celestial Dragons was a good move, at least. I hadn’t seen those people make such miserable faces in a long time. It made me happy for ages."

"Even thinking about it now… Hahahaha!!!"

Chu Yang watched him with interest.

Even though they stood on opposing sides, he could not bring himself to dislike Garp.

Seeing Garp continue laughing without restraint, the Marine soldiers beside him had no choice but to remind him, "Mr. Garp, this isn’t the time to laugh. He’s an extremely dangerous man!"

Garp stopped laughing, scratched his head awkwardly, then coughed a few times with a serious expression.

"Although the things you’ve done are interesting, the result is that pirates have become more and more rampant, harming many innocent civilians. No matter what, this farce needs to end." Garp clenched his fists and spoke solemnly.

Chu Yang nodded. "You’re right. It really is time for it to end."

Garp froze. He had merely said it casually, yet the pirate before him actually agreed with him.

"You’re quite sensible. If you surrender now, I’ll go easy on you."

"That’s one thing I can’t agree to."

A fist coated in Conqueror’s Haki slammed viciously into Garp’s face. Garp flew from the bow to the stern, snapping the mast in between.

"Your fist’s pretty hard, huh?"

Garp rose from a pile of wreckage and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

"Not bad. Just a little harder than yours."

When fighting Garp, Chu Yang had no reason to care about fair play. After sending him flying, he continuously stacked buffs onto himself.

The dazzling special effects left even battle-hardened Garp staring in bewilderment.

After decades of weathering countless storms, it was his first time encountering an opponent like this.

"What Devil Fruit ability is that?"

Garp envied it from the bottom of his heart. Compared to the plain simplicity of a pair of iron fists, he preferred this kind of intimidating display.

"Stacked Armor Style. Ever heard of it?"

Chu Yang chuckled and charged forward with his fist raised. Fighting a close-combat type like Garp was his favorite.

Simple and direct—both sides just smashed their fists against each other.

What he hated most were enemies like Jujutsu Sorcerers and Shinigami, who could wield rule-based powers. They were troublesome to kill and might even break through his defenses.

How could the armor he had painstakingly stacked be as fragile as a thin membrane?

As someone at the pinnacle of Haki, Garp clearly did not take Chu Yang’s Conqueror’s Haki Coating seriously. Seeing Chu Yang rush at him with his fist raised, he actually chose to meet it with Armament Haki.

He could underestimate Chu Yang’s Haki, but he should not have underestimated the mountain of buffs on Chu Yang’s body.

Conqueror’s Haki Coating versus Armament Haki Coating.

The result was that the careless Garp was sent flying by Chu Yang’s punch for the second time. He tore straight through the warship and plunged into the sea.

This time, not only did the Marine soldiers aboard the Dog-Head Battleship fall silent, but even the Marine fleet exchanging fire with the Revolutionary Army nearby stopped shooting.

"Marine hero Garp was actually sent flying by two punches?" The Marines and even CP0 were left dumbfounded.

Dragon watched helplessly as his own father got pummeled, and the person doing the pummeling was his own ally. His expression was utterly spectacular.

"He actually held back when he fought me?!"

The gap was too great for Shanks to accept. He kept telling himself that he was dreaming.

"Those two punches crushed the Marines’ morale. While we have the chance, let’s bring out Pluton and break through their defensive formation."

Tiger immediately led the Sun Pirates away from the shore.

Chu Yang jumped down from the warship and walked across the sea as if on level ground. He came to the spot where Garp had fallen into the water and waited quietly.

The sea suddenly began to shake. Rings of ripples became huge waves that crashed against the reefs along the shore.

Garp shot out of the sea, and the massive impact made the surface explode.

"I really am getting old. I misjudged you again and again. Young man, my next attack will be a little heavy."

Garp’s entire body was coated in Conqueror’s Haki as he plummeted from the sky like a meteor, smashing straight toward Chu Yang.

"That’s fine, old man. I don’t hit lightly either."

Chu Yang stomped on the sea and shot into the sky, his right fist coated in Conqueror’s Haki as he punched toward Garp.

The two collided.

In an instant, heaven and earth changed color.

The black night shone as brightly as day!

The impact of Conqueror’s Haki pierced the heavens, illuminating the entire sea.

When the light faded—

Only Chu Yang remained standing in the sky.

Black lightning coiled around his entire body.

Like a meteor, Garp fell from the sky and crashed viciously into the sea. He was covered in blood, with only a faint shred of consciousness remaining.

"How could there be someone this strong…"

Garp’s mind was hazy as he looked up at Chu Yang above the heavens, as though gazing upon a god.

Chu Yang had stacked every buff and struck with all his strength. The fact that Garp had not been killed by a single punch was enough to make his toughness unrivaled throughout the One Piece world.

That punch had left no part of Garp intact, inside or out. He was practically like shattered porcelain. Even with Garp’s inhuman physique, he would not be able to get out of bed for at least ten days to half a month.

If he had not gone hard, who knew how long Garp would have dragged things out with Chu Yang through sheer willpower.

Garp, having fallen into the sea, floated silently on the surface like an actual corpse. Chu Yang fished him out and tossed him straight back onto the Dog-Head Battleship.

The Marines present looked ashen. The faith they had held for so many years had collapsed before their eyes. The despair was unimaginable.

The Marine fleet fighting the Revolutionary Army also ceased fire and completely gave up resisting.

Large numbers of warships had become burning heaps of scrap metal, lying gloriously upon the sea as they slowly sank.

During that time, Dragon killed the CP0 member responsible for surveillance.

"It’s time to go," Dragon said to Ivankov.

"You’re not going to take a look at your father?" Ivankov teased.

Dragon paused, then turned to look toward Garp. After a moment of silence, he actually had the ship move closer.

At that moment, the Marines aboard the Dog-Head Battleship were in a state of panic. Even Garp’s adjutant, Bogart, found it difficult to calm them.

As soon as Dragon’s ship approached, the Marine soldiers immediately became jumpy at every little movement.

"Help me up."

Garp’s voice lacked its usual vigor, and Bogart nearly failed to hear him.

Garp could no longer stand. He could only lean against a broken mast and sit there, watching Dragon approach.

"I used a little too much force."

Chu Yang felt somewhat embarrassed. Beating a man’s father into this state right in front of his son was rather hard to justify.

"I understand."

Dragon gave a slight nod. He understood Chu Yang’s predicament. In truth, if possible, he had not wanted to meet his father this soon either.

The moment Dragon stepped onto the warship’s deck, everyone on the other side tensed to the extreme.

He slowly walked over to Garp.

Father and son looked at each other.

Yet neither of them was the first to say anything.

The warship was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. Only the crackling of burning flames reached everyone’s ears.

After roughly ten seconds, Dragon turned and left.

Heavy breaths rang out one after another across the warship.

Garp suddenly smiled in relief. "Brat, you wanted to say that you were the one in the right, didn’t you…"

"As a complete and utter loser, I can’t refute him either. This time, I can only count it as his win."

"Hahahaha!"

Shanks wore a complicated expression. Garp and Dragon reminded him of the late Captain Roger—the man who had raised him, someone who had felt more like a father than a captain.

"I’m leaving."

Chu Yang spoke softly.

"You really should. With Garp here, Marine reinforcements will probably arrive soon." Shanks nodded and smiled. "You don’t need to worry about Wano Country. I’ll remain here for a while."

"Also, take Mr. Tom with you. His greatest dream in life has been to see Pluton with his own eyes."

At the same time—

Tiger was leading the Fish-Men in assembling rails that stretched from Wano Country’s former site all the way to the sea.

Long ago, Chu Yang had had Queen, Judge, and the others build an enormous crane.

Now, once the rails were finished, Tiger could lift Pluton onto them and send it all the way to the coast.

This had been the plan from the beginning, but the arrival of the Red Hair Pirates had disrupted and delayed it.

As time slowly passed—

The Fish-Men sweated profusely as they assembled the rails. Some tossed their tools aside and shouted that they could not keep going.

Assembling the rails should have taken an entire day, but now the Fish-Men had to finish them in a short time.

Tiger looked at his companions, deeply worried.

The Revolutionary Army was growing stronger, and Chu Yang was also becoming stronger, defeating many formidable enemies.

Only he and the Sun Pirates remained the same. At this rate, they might become the ones dragging the team down.

They were clearly advancing toward the same goal, yet they had suddenly fallen behind. That feeling was not pleasant.

As allies and companions, they needed to be able to rely on and help one another, rather than merely taking without giving.

If they could not even contribute now, what about later?

When the time came to storm the Holy Land, was he supposed to lead the Fish-Men in waving flags from the sidelines as cheerleaders?

To Tiger, that was practically an interrogation of his soul and conscience!

"Get up, all of you! If you can’t even handle something like this, then get the hell out of the Sun Pirates!"

"If any of you are willing to let your family and friends remain slaves, then get the hell out! Don’t waste time here!"

Jinbe raised a section of rail and roared furiously, "From the first day I set foot here, I was prepared to die! As long as we can overthrow the Celestial Dragons’ rule and make slavery cease to exist, I can die right now!"

Jinbe’s furious roar was deafening, plunging every Fish-Man into silence and shame.

Wano Country’s natural defenses, along with Chu Yang’s strength, had given them a sense of safety beneath his protection.

Over time, the resolve in their hearts had nearly been worn away.

People who had grown accustomed to peaceful days found it difficult to turn back and face blades and fire.

"Mr. Tiger, we’re here to help!"

"How could you possibly finish so much work on your own?"

"Let us do it. We were used to this kind of work during the years Kaido was still around."

At some point, Wano Country’s civilians had appeared in the town. They voluntarily picked up tools and helped the Fish-Men assemble the rails.

Every face was filled with smiles, as if they were happy simply to be of help.

Once upon a time, these civilians had been deeply wary of the Fish-Men. Both sides had been at each other’s throats and disliked one another.

Now, they had become friends and companions.

"These people destroyed the natural defenses with their own hands and exposed themselves to the Celestial Dragons just so Pluton could emerge smoothly. If we stop now, can we face them?"

Tiger questioned his companions with reddened eyes.

Perhaps out of shame, or perhaps because they now had more people to protect, the Fish-Men’s fighting spirit was reignited!

The rails began to come together at a drastically faster pace.

Not long after, Chu Yang arrived with Tom, Queen, and the others. Queen and Judge stayed behind to help assemble the rails, while Chu Yang took Tom to the engine room.

Tom touched the heart-shaped power source as if he had found a priceless treasure.

After a long while, he said solemnly, "We need sunlight!"

Time passed second by second.

The rails were finally completed, and Queen hoisted Pluton onto the track.

Dawn was beginning to break.

Sunlight shone upon Pluton’s hull.

The terrifying ancient weapon began to tremble. Sounds came from the engine room, like an ancient beast roaring.

"It’s solar-powered?"

Chu Yang stared at the power source in surprise. He had imagined many possibilities, but he had never expected Pluton’s power to be so environmentally friendly.

"More accurately, the sun provides an energy spark that ignites this device. The device itself can generate nearly limitless energy," Tom explained from the side.

"That sounds a lot like an upgraded version of controlled nuclear fusion…"

Chu Yang smacked his lips, suddenly feeling parched. If he could figure out the principles behind Pluton’s power source, his tech tree would take off on the spot.

Once that was brought back to the Marvel Universe, not only could Iron Man’s armor evolve through several generations, but he could also obtain an endless mechanical army.

With power, Pluton was like a magical beast awakening from slumber, its interior slowly beginning to operate.

"You can go to the control room now and pilot Pluton directly out of here."

Tom reminded Chu Yang, "Pluton isn’t easy to control. It needs a highly capable helmsman."

Of course the helmsman had to be Jinbe!

Looking at it this way, the Fish-Men had plenty of talent—shipbuilders, navigators, everything they could need.

Chu Yang first took Tom to the control room, then brought Jinbe aboard to steer the ship.

The Revolutionary Army, the Sun Pirates, and Queen’s group also boarded one after another.

Kozuki Hiyori did not board, but the samurai did. Chu Yang tried to persuade them to return, but they said this was their only chance to repay his kindness.

Besides, the Red Hair Pirates were guarding Wano Country.

Although the samurai did not trust pirates, they were willing to trust Chu Yang.

Chu Yang could not persuade these stubborn people otherwise, so he could only take them along. When it came to attacking the Holy Land, the samurai would also be an asset.

Once everyone had boarded, Jinbe activated the Pluton warship at Chu Yang’s signal.

Immense power pushed Pluton along the rails, turning it into a land-bound vessel as it accelerated faster and faster.

"With a few modifications, maybe it could become a land-sea-air Helicarrier."

Chu Yang marveled at Pluton’s powerful engine, and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s flying carrier from the Marvel Universe immediately flashed through his mind.

He thought it had a lot of potential.

When the time came, they could launch a direct aerial assault on the Holy Land. Those Celestial Dragons would probably piss themselves at the sight.

Chu Yang went to the control room and found Tom to explain his idea. Tom was stunned for a long while before finally nodding. "Theoretically, it’s feasible."

"I just examined Pluton’s systems. It does have short-term flight capability."

"Calling it flight may not be entirely accurate. It should be more like generating powerful propulsion in an instant and launching Pluton toward its target."

Chu Yang thought it over. Wasn’t that the Thousand Sunny’s Coup de Vent?

So that was where Franky got the idea…

As they spoke, Pluton drew closer and closer to the coast. Shanks had already seen this legendary behemoth with his own eyes.

"So this is the ancient weapon Pluton… Can it rival the power of gods?"

Shanks muttered to himself.

The Red Hair Pirates’ crew and the Marines aboard the Dog-Head Battleship stared wide-eyed as Pluton charged off the land and plunged headfirst into the sea.

The waves immediately swallowed the beach along the coast.

Pluton sailed slowly past the Dog-Head Battleship. Its massive hull blocked the sunlight, plunging the warship’s deck into darkness.

As if a monster had swallowed the sun.

The Marines stood in the darkness, looking up in terror at the legendary ancient weapon.

"Compared to Pluton, our warship is like a toy."

It was as though all spirit had been drained from Bogart. He stared blankly up at Pluton, unable to imagine how the Marines could possibly deal with this colossal thing before them.

Its vicious cannons, each the size of an ordinary ship, could wipe out an entire Marine fleet with a single shot.

Even after Pluton had left, the Marines remained where they stood, staring numbly into the distance.