However, the Shichibukai policy has not yet been officially implemented.
Rather than getting involved in pointless disputes, it would be better to find an island dense with beasts and sparsely populated to focus on polishing and developing the Devil Fruit ability just consumed.
For this, Dar already had a clear destination in mind.
That was Rusukaina Island, located in the Calm Belt and adjacent to the island of women—the very island of trials where, in the future, Pluton Rayleigh would personally guide Luffy in training Haki and martial arts.
This island was occupied year-round by ferocious giant beasts, with inexhaustible food resources, making it perfect for solitary ascetic cultivation and life-or-death tempering, without worrying about outside interference or starvation.
…
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, two years had passed.
In the New World, Black Stone Island.
The entire island was composed of jet-black, hard volcanic rock, barren and rugged.
Looking out, it was filled with dark, strange rocks and cracked earth, a battlefield naturally suited for a fight to the death.
“Bullet, you brat!” A roar that shook the island exploded, causing the very air to tremble.
“Garp!” Another incredibly violent roar followed immediately after.
Two figures, like two meteors, collided in mid-air, and the shockwave from the clash of Haki instantly blew away the surrounding rubble and dust.
The two fighting were none other than Douglas Bullet, known as the “Heir to the Demon,” and the “Iron Fist” Garp, hailed as the Marine hero.
Because Bullet had been rampaging through the New World, destroying islands and slaughtering both pirates and Marines, leaving nothing but barren land in his wake, he had thoroughly enraged Marineford.
The Marine high command immediately decided to launch a Buster Call, the symbol of their highest combat power, against him.
Admiral Sengoku personally oversaw the operation from a distance, while “Iron Fist” Garp led the team, determined to completely capture this rampaging monster.
Two bursts of Conqueror’s Haki clashed and tore at each other in mid-air, the invisible pressure sweeping across the island like a tsunami, causing even the sea surface to cave inward.
Garp frowned and immediately commanded all Marines in a deep voice to retreat to a safe range; he intended to take down this crazy young man with his own hands and did not need anyone to interfere.
Fists whistled, and rubble flew.
Every collision of their fists triggered deafening roars, causing the earth to crack and rocks to shatter.
For a time, they were evenly matched, neither able to gain the upper hand.
“Bone Fist!” Garp’s eyes flashed with intensity.
His fist, wrapped in ink-black Armament Haki and Conqueror’s Haki, was unleashed with maximum force.
Bang—!
With a loud explosion, Bullet was sent flying as if hit by a heavy cannon.
His body flew uncontrollably, crashing hundreds of meters away into the hard black stone ground, creating a bottomless crater amidst the swirling dust.
Taking Garp’s punch head-on, Bullet coughed up blood from his nose and mouth, his bones rattling, yet he still slowly stood up from the crater.
Far from being afraid, he laughed wildly at the sky, his eyes filled with insane fighting spirit.
He would defeat this man before him!
As long as he defeated Garp, it would be equivalent to surpassing, on another level, the Pirate King Roger, whom he had spent his whole life chasing!
“Come on!” Bullet roared, and his figure vanished from where he stood once again.
The speed of the two had reached its limit.
Ordinary Marines couldn’t even catch their afterimages, only seeing air explosions occurring out of thin air.
Only those at the rank of Rear Admiral and above could barely make out the two intersecting black shadows.
The fierce battle lasted from day to night, and from night until dawn.
The entire Black Stone Island was already unrecognizable; mountain peaks were broken, the ground was leveled, and half the island had been beaten into the sea during the endless bombardment, leaving only the broken center of the island struggling to persist.
“Huff, huff, huff…” Separating during a brief standoff, Bullet braced his hands on his knees, panting heavily.
Sweat and blood mixed and dripped down.
His stamina was clearly overdrawn, and his movements had slowed down.
Meanwhile, the 54-year-old Garp was at the absolute peak of his combat power.
His Haki was deep, his experience seasoned, and his physique terrifyingly robust.
His aura remained as steady as a mountain, showing no signs of fatigue.
Garp laughed at the sky, his voice full of vigor: “Bullet, you brat, what’s wrong?
Is that it?
My interest has only just been piqued!”
On a warship in the distance, Sengoku watched the center of the battlefield quietly, his expression composed.
Watching Bullet, who was clearly at a disadvantage but still fighting to the death without retreating, he slowly spoke to the adjutant beside him: “Prepare the Sea Stone handcuffs; this battle is about to end.”
The Marines, completely stunned by the earth-shattering battle before them, finally woke up from their stupor and hurriedly responded: “Yes, yes!
Preparing immediately!”
On the battlefield, the fight was already drawing to a close.
Garp’s eyes narrowed, his Haki surged throughout his body, and his fist was charged to the limit.
“Fist Bone Impact!” A full-force punch struck precisely in Bullet’s abdomen.
Crack—!
Bullet’s pupils shrank sharply.
He was hit like a cannonball, his body instantly arching like a shrimp, and he was blasted away for several thousand meters at a speed the naked eye could not catch.
He crashed hard onto the edge of the remaining island, no longer having the strength to stand up immediately, and even raising his hand became incredibly difficult.
Garp, surrounded by pitch-black Armament Haki, took a step, causing the ground to crack.
His figure shot toward Bullet like an arrow, his fist raised high once again, ready to deliver the final blow to completely subdue this rampaging monster.
Just at this critical moment— above in the sky, the thick clouds exploded!
A figure broke through the clouds, descending like a falling meteor.
He forcibly broke the sound barrier, the air tearing with a shrill whistle, bringing with it rolling thunder and an explosive sound as he rushed straight toward Garp, who was dashing below!
The person who arrived was none other than Dar, who had been cultivating alone on Rusukaina Island for two years.
During these two years, he had tirelessly trained and developed the Explosion-Explosion Fruit, honing his ability to the extreme, but he had fallen into a bottleneck that was difficult to break through; solitary cultivation alone could no longer take him further.
Thus, he followed Luffy’s example and chose to step into the perilous New World, using real life-or-death battles to break his shackles and temper himself.
Just as he entered the New World, the xuanjin ark he was riding detected three terrifyingly massive energy signatures in the vicinity of Black Stone Island, far exceeding the scope of ordinary powerhouses.
Dar immediately rushed over at full speed.
When he saw the two people fighting fiercely on the island, his body trembled uncontrollably, and a monstrous, irrepressible fighting spirit surged from the depths of his soul, instantly sweeping through his entire body.
Those were Bullet and “Iron Fist” Garp!
They were among the very few in this vast sea who stood at the absolute peak of combat power, existences like monsters!
Without the slightest hesitation, Dar activated the Explosion-Explosion Fruit’s ability, using precise and controlled micro-explosions to propel his body, creating continuous thrust.
He turned into a streak of fire, leaped down from the xuanjin ark hidden above the clouds, and with an explosive momentum, pounced straight at the battling Garp!