The following day.
Countless soldiers gathered in the training grounds.
Sengoku and Garp personally attended the event.
Everyone waited excitedly for the duel to begin.
But as time passed, Roya's figure never appeared.
Sengoku glanced at his watch.
Only five minutes remained before the official start time.
If Roya didn't show up, it would be considered an automatic forfeit.
Akainu stood in the training field, arms crossed, exuding arrogance.
The surrounding soldiers were uncertain about the situation.
"Could it be that Roya got scared and didn't dare to come?"
"No way, Roya is strong. He should be able to hold his own against Akainu!"
"At first glance, he does seem strong, but no matter how you look at it, Roya's Devil Fruit is more of a support-type. It doesn't boost his combat power much!"
"So you're saying Roya really chickened out?"
...
The soldiers whispered among themselves.
Hearing these words, Akainu grew even more disdainful of Roya: Just a clown who joined midway, yet dares to covet the Admiral's position. Utterly ridiculous!
At that moment, murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"Look! Look! Roya's here!"
"Roya actually came!"
"Roya's a real man!"
...
Roya and Kalifa made their way through the crowd and stepped into the training field.
Instead of looking at Akainu, Roya first turned his gaze to Sengoku.
This was their first meeting.
Roya smiled and nodded at Sengoku.
Sengoku couldn't help but feel that Roya's ability to influence emotions was truly remarkable.
Akainu frowned and turned to Sengoku, saying, "Fleet Admiral, can the duel begin now?"
The more fame Roya gained, the more displeased Akainu became.
To Akainu, it felt like the Navy's justice was being tarnished.
How could the Navy allow someone like Roya to casually join such a grand event?
This was something Akainu could never comprehend.
Though Akainu was deeply dissatisfied with Sengoku's decision, due to the chain of command, he couldn't voice his objections.
He could only direct his fury toward Roya.
Akainu's gaze at Roya was as cold as if he were looking at a dead man.
Faced with Akainu's overwhelming hostility, a flicker of displeasure flashed in Sengoku's eyes—though it vanished so quickly that only Roya noticed.
Sengoku looked at Roya and asked, "Roya, are you ready?"
"Mm~ Ready."
Roya's lips curled into a smirk, his eyes narrowing slightly as sunlight bathed his face.
The sight made Kalifa's heart flutter.
"In that case, let the duel begin!"As Sengoku's voice faded, the entire training ground erupted in shouts.
At the same time, Akainu took a step forward, his right arm surging with magma. "Hell Hound!"
Akainu's arm shot toward Roya with incredible speed and extraordinary power!
Seeing this, Roya coated his arm with Armament Haki and threw a punch in return.
"Boom!" A deafening collision.
In the eyes of the onlookers, Roya's arm was completely devoured by Akainu's Hell Hound.
The attack then slammed heavily into his chest.
"Boom~"
The Phantom dissipated.
Kalifa, witnessing this scene, let out a sigh of relief.
Akainu's expression remained unchanged as he coldly remarked, "You're too weak. The same old tricks over and over—how utterly uninspired!"
With that, Akainu suddenly turned, his magma-covered fist smashing toward his rear.
"Boom!"
Another Phantom shattered!
Akainu grinned. "Three Phantoms left, right?"
Sure enough, as soon as he spoke, three Phantoms materialized before him, launching an assault!
"Great Eruption!"
Facing the three Phantoms, Akainu first transformed his arm into a massive molten fist, then mimicked the explosive force of a volcanic eruption to propel it forward. The sheer power was enough to instantly vaporize a gigantic iceberg dozens of times larger than a giant.
With this single strike, Roya's Phantoms were effortlessly obliterated.
All five Phantoms had been completely dispersed.
Roya's true form was now exposed.
The spectators around them were utterly stunned.
Everything had happened too quickly.
So fast that they barely had time to react before it was nearly over.
"Akainu... Akainu is just too strong!"
"As expected of one of the Navy's three monsters. Only Garp, Sengoku, and the other two Admirals could match this level of power!"
"Roya just doesn't have what it takes to be an Admiral, after all."
"No wonder Akainu looks down on Roya—his strength really doesn't measure up!"
...
Hearing the murmurs around him, Akainu cast a disdainful glance at Roya. "The weak have no place on the seas, nor the right to uphold justice! You're too weak!"
"Oh? Is that really what you think?"
Roya remained unfazed. Even after Akainu had shattered all five Phantoms, Roya showed no sign of tension.
A thick smile still hung on his face.
Seeing Roya's expression, Akainu's fury flared instantly.
"All bark and no bite! Die—Great Eruption: Crimson Hound!!!"
Akainu threw a punch, his magma-coated arm morphing into the shape of a dog's head, scorching the surrounding air.
The atmosphere grew unbearably hot, as if all moisture had been vaporized by his fist.
With unstoppable momentum, the attack hurtled toward Roya!
The nearby soldiers instinctively backed away, afraid of being caught in the crossfire.
"Has Roya frozen in fear?"
"Why isn't he moving?"
"He must be terrified!"
"If that hits, he'll either be severely injured or..."
"Or outright killed!"
...
Even Sengoku and Garp, standing at a distance, sensed something amiss.Garp chimed in from the side, "Sengoku, why don't I step in and stop this match? After all, I've taken quite a liking to this kid Roya. With proper training, given his talent, he could definitely reach admiral-level strength someday! It'd be a shame if he died now!"
"Roya isn't seriously injured, nor has he surrendered. We just need to keep watching!"
Unbeknownst to anyone, cold sweat had begun forming on Sengoku's forehead.
Clearly, even Sengoku was feeling tense for Roya.
The molten lava-formed dog head kept enlarging in Roya's vision.
At the critical moment, Roya suddenly smiled, and then...