Grandfather and Grandson!!!

"Although it's unclear how much longer it'll take..."

Imu took out ten doses of the fierce drug from her robe and muttered to herself, "At this point, I can't let you destroy everything. If it weren't for the restrictions, I wouldn't touch such a low-class thing like this."

Just one dose of the fierce drug could make an ordinary person instantly unleash power equivalent to what others might gain after years of hard training.

The cost was burning one's own life, but for those in desperate need of strength, that price was hardly a concern.

After all, in this vast sea where power is everything, human lives are the least valuable.

Fierce drugs were undoubtedly strategic weapons; if sold, countless forces would fight to get them.

Yet to Imu, these so-called strategic weapons were nothing but cheap substances.

"Before I seize the 'authority of the world'..."

Imu tossed all ten doses into her mouth, swallowing them without chewing.

The fierce drugs slid down her esophagus, dissolved instantly in her stomach, and transformed into a powerful surge of energy that flooded her entire body.

"I'll finish you off!"

With eyes as sharp as blades, Imu looked at the two figures in the sky.

She kicked off the ground.

Bang!

The ground beneath her feet suddenly caved in on a large scale, seemingly from the overwhelming power within her that he couldn't fully control for a moment.

Imu's figure disappeared from the ruins of Pangea Castle in an instant.

The violent movement from Imu's side naturally caught the attention of 'Luffy' and Nicholas, who were locked in battle.

As they fought, both of them spared some attention to glance at Imu, who was rapidly approaching from below.

As Imu closed in, a vast and oppressive aura enveloped them from below, taking the shape of a ferocious dragon behind her, roaring and charging toward the two.

Then—

A deafening explosion suddenly rang out from above the Red Line.

Countless black and red lightning bolts struck down from the sky, tearing the earth apart.

From a distance, the battlefield where the three were fighting seemed like the end of the world, with space itself cracking under their collisions, creating black and red web-like fissures.

The earth-shattering scene drew countless eyes once again.

Nearby, Garp and Sengoku sensed danger.

"Hmm?!"

In the blink of an eye, they made the quick decision to stop and retreat to a safer distance.

Just as they moved—

A massive lightning blade, thousands of meters long, slashed down from the sky.

At the edge of the blade was Luffy, whose body was temporarily taken over by 'Nika.'

Everything in the path of the lightning blade—

Buildings, walls, soil—

Was reduced to nothingness.

Yet, despite the force of the strike, 'Luffy' remained unharmed, though his usual lively laughter had quieted down.

Sengoku took in the scene, astonished, and turned to Garp.

As the two narrowly escaped the range of the blade's impact, Sengoku couldn't hold back anymore.

"Garp, is that really your grandson?!"

Sengoku's question was justified, considering how absurd Luffy's current display was. According to Sengoku's intelligence, Luffy had struggled to even deal with pirates during the Windmill Village massacre, not long ago.

Yet now, here he was, fighting Nicholas and Imu in a deadlock.

Though Luffy was being suppressed, the fact that he could even participate in a battle of this level spoke volumes.

"How would I know? Once this war is over, I'm definitely going to give Shanks a good beating! Sengoku, you handle things here. I'm going to save my useless grandson."

Garp clenched his fists and gritted his teeth as he watched the distant lightning blade.

Sengoku didn't say much in response. With wisdom comparable to a Buddha, he too had noticed that as time passed, Luffy's will was slowly fading. If they didn't act soon, Luffy's consciousness might be completely taken over by the entity now inside his body.

"Go, I'll take care of things here. Who knew, in the end, we'd have to go all out."

Sengoku said casually, popping two small pills into his mouth.

Boom, boom!

As the pills went down, Sengoku's muscles swelled as if inflated, and his aura surged dramatically.

"Sengoku, you—"

Seeing this, Garp's face filled with guilt.

He knew all too well what Sengoku had just taken. Normally, with the two of them working together, there would be no need for this.

But now, because of him, Sengoku was forced to burn his own life force, leaving Garp conflicted.

On one side was his comrade of decades, on the other, his only grandson.

As Garp hesitated, a large hand clapped down on his shoulder.

"Go on. I've already taken the fierce drug, and even if you don't go now, my burning life force won't stop. Don't worry, I'm not going to die that easily. At least, not until I drag this old body far enough to see what Nicholas and Dragon's 'future' is all about."

Without further delay, Garp dashed toward Luffy, while Sengoku charged at their enemy.

At that moment, the Red Line where 'Luffy' stood was undergoing massive changes.

The walls, buildings, streets, and even the Red Line itself were turning into rubber.

The giant lightning blade had finally stopped on the rubber ground, leaving only a long, charred scar stretching hundreds of miles.

From a bird's-eye view of the Red Line, it was clear that Mariejois had completely turned into rubber.

In the center of this rubber ground, 'Luffy' was bouncing up and down, using the elasticity as if playing on a trampoline.

"Luffy, have you had enough of this?!"

A loud shout rang out, causing 'Luffy's' body to freeze. Then, the Luffy who had been fighting Nicholas and Imu was suddenly punched on the head, bouncing back up and down on the rubber ground.

When he managed to steady himself and saw Garp's furious face, 'Luffy's' eyes widened.

"Hahhahaha..."

"Come back, Luffy!"

Garp threw another punch, but this time 'Luffy' stretched his legs tens of meters to dodge it, pulling at his eyelids and making a face at Garp.

Seeing Luffy act this way only made Garp more anxious.

Although he preferred to solve problems with his fists, he was also aware of the secrets of the sea.

He knew that Zoan-type Devil Fruits had their own wills. The jailer beasts in Impel Down were products of failed awakenings.

Judging by how Luffy was acting now, it was clear the fruit had taken over his body.

Garp couldn't imagine the possibility that Luffy's consciousness would vanish entirely, leaving some unknown entity in control of his grandson's body.

"You bastard! Get out of Luffy's body!"

Roaring, Garp charged at 'Luffy' again.

Though 'Luffy' instinctively prepared to counterpunch, deep in his consciousness, a will stopped him from doing so.

"Nika Nika—"