An overwhelming pressure descended upon the entire plaza like Mount Tai crashing from the heavens.
Everyone caught within it felt as though they were suffocating.
It was as if countless invisible hands had wrapped around their throats, squeezing tighter and tighter.
Looking across the plaza, not only the ordinary Marines but even officers like Gion found themselves unable to move a single muscle.
Was this... the fury of a salaryman forced into overtime?
At a moment like this, the only thing anyone could do was shift their eyes toward Chaton, who had transformed into his giant ape form.
Everyone understood one thing.
Only if someone moved first could this suffocating deadlock be broken.
Feeling everyone’s eyes on him, Chaton found the absurd thought in his heart growing stronger and stronger.
If he had a choice...
He desperately wished someone would step in and stop him.
Even a token gesture would do.
As long as someone gave him an excuse, he’d immediately back down.
Unfortunately...
The terrifying pressure crashing down on him was simply too overwhelming.
Even he didn’t dare move recklessly.
If even he couldn’t...
How could anyone else?
"Hahaha! Chaton!"
A hearty laugh suddenly echoed across the plaza.
"I knew you weren’t happy about this brat becoming an Admiral."
"But I never imagined you’d force him to work overtime on his day off."
"When I made him work overtime before..."
"I paid a heavy price for it!"
Garp’s booming voice rang out as he leaped down from atop the Gates of Justice.
He landed steadily several hundred meters away.
As he sensed the overwhelming killing intent blanketing the battlefield—and the countless hidden attacks lurking within the void—
A trace of astonishment flashed through his eyes.
Back when Lucas had been aboard his ship, they’d sparred countless times.
No one understood Lucas’s skill in hand-to-hand combat better than Garp.
Yet during this recent period...
Lucas had continued unveiling one astonishing ability after another.
His growth had become so absurdly rapid that even Garp could no longer see through him.
His instincts told him that given enough time...
The once-fragile young man standing before him would become monstrously powerful.
Rather than feeling threatened by that realization...
Garp found himself feeling fortunate.
Fortunate that he’d insisted on bringing Lucas aboard his ship and personally escorting him to Marine Headquarters.
Fortunate that he’d stood his ground alongside Sengoku during the incident involving the Celestial Dragons.
Otherwise...
Facing someone who progressed at such an inhuman rate...
Even Garp couldn’t help but feel a faint sense of unease.
"Vice Admiral Garp!"
Hina hurriedly called out.
"You’re here! Please stop Vice Admiral Chaton! Don’t let him attack!"
Everyone’s tense nerves loosened slightly.
The suffocating atmosphere across the plaza eased just a little.
Chaton, who remained locked under Lucas’s aura, looked at Garp hopefully.
At this moment...
He desperately wanted Garp to step in.
Even a symbolic tug on his sleeve would be enough.
His instincts screamed that the murderous aura radiating from Lucas made him seem far more like a ferocious beast than Chaton himself.
"Hahaha!"
"Hina, what are you talking about?"
Garp stuffed another rice cracker into his mouth and spoke while chewing.
"Chaton’s the one forcing Lucas to work overtime."
"Why would I stop him?"
"But don’t worry."
"As long as I’m here..."
"Nothing serious will happen."
Then he turned toward Chaton.
"Well?"
"What are you waiting for?"
"Aren’t you going to attack?"
Garp’s intention was simple.
Although Lucas’s Wrathful Vajra had exceeded his expectations...
He also wanted to use Chaton to gauge just how powerful Lucas had truly become.
Chaton was dumbfounded.
This outcome had never been part of his plan.
He only wanted someone to pull him back and give him a graceful way to retreat.
Instead...
Garp wasn’t stopping the fight at all.
He was fanning the flames.
What kind of script is this?!
This isn’t how it’s supposed to go!
Feeling the atmosphere shift around him...
And seeing everyone relax because Garp had guaranteed their safety...
Chaton suddenly found himself with no way out.
Retreat?
Impossible.
The only thing left was to grit his teeth and attack.
At the very least...
He had to break this suffocating pressure.
Maybe someone will stop me afterward...
Countless thoughts flashed through his mind.
Then—
He suddenly raised his head.
His gigantic ape form let out an earth-shaking roar.
ROAR!!
The thunderous bellow shattered the oppressive silence blanketing the battlefield.
Everyone tensed again.
Muscles swelling, Chaton prepared to launch his attack.
At that exact moment—
Lucas opened his eyes.
His pupils had turned blood-red.
Cold.
Emotionless.
The towering Wrathful Vajra behind him stirred.
The countless iron fists hidden within the void manifested all at once.
An endless sea of crimson fists covered the sky.
They descended upon Chaton like a blood-red ocean crashing down from heaven.
The sheer scale of the attack resembled rolling thunder and roaring tidal waves.
The entire fortress trembled.
Looking at the countless fists rapidly filling his vision...
Only one thought remained in Chaton’s mind.
...Shit.
If he’d known things would escalate to this extent...
He would’ve backed down even if no one had stopped him.
Garp’s pupils contracted violently.
He had already sensed the hidden killing intent surrounding the battlefield.
But he had never imagined...
That Lucas’s attack would be this earth-shattering.
Facing the countless fists raining from the sky, Garp roared at the top of his lungs.
"Chaton!"
"When you forced him to work overtime..."
"Did you at least submit the paperwork?!"
"You’re gambling with your life!"
Then he shouted toward Lucas.
"Lucas!"
"Show mercy!"
"I’ll file the application afterward!"
His desperate roar echoed throughout the plaza.
Unfortunately...
It was already too late.
Jet-black Armament Haki instantly coated Chaton’s entire body.
The next instant—
The endless barrage of fists crashed down upon him.
BOOM!!
A thousand punches shattered the ruined plaza.
Ten thousand punches blasted Chaton away like a cannonball.
The shockwave swept across the battlefield with the force of a Category 5 hurricane.
His enormous body tore a massive trench through the ground as he hurtled backward at incredible speed.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!!
Chaton’s gigantic ape form slammed into the colossal Gates of Justice, which stood over a hundred meters tall.
The tremendous impact rippled through the massive structure.
The thick gates cracked apart—
Then exploded open.
The violent shockwave rolled across the sea like a hurricane, driving up towering waves that crashed beyond the gates like a tsunami.
Everyone barely managed to keep their footing amid the raging winds.
When they looked back at the scene before them...
Their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
Working overtime...
Was nothing new to Marines.
But seeing someone almost beaten to death...
Because they forced another person to work overtime...
That was a first.
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