Naturally, Jack wasn't about to reveal the truth. Regardless, he had been looking for an opportunity to test his new sage mode—specifically, whether it could mimic conqueror's Haki. And who better to experiment on than Garp?
First and foremost, there was no real risk involved. Even though Jack's strength had grown considerably, he wasn't arrogant enough to believe he could defeat Garp, let alone injure him.
The second concern was secrecy. It wasn't that Jack was ashamed of his abilities, but the rapid pace of his growth needed to remain hidden. If word got out, it could raise too many suspicions.
Before long, Sengoku—who had returned to the Holy Land of Mary Geoise for official duties—received an urgent report.
"Fleet Admiral! Vice Admiral Garp and Rear Admiral Jack engaged in a sparring match that resulted in the destruction of three training grounds and extensive damage to Navy Headquarters. In the end, Jack was defeated and is now unconscious. Vice Admiral Garp has also sustained injuries."
Sengoku's eyes widened in disbelief. "What? Did you just say Garp was injured?"
The messenger hesitated briefly before nodding. "Yes, sir. He's currently receiving treatment from the medical corps, and Rear Admiral Jack has yet to regain consciousness."
Sengoku shot up from his seat, his expression darkening with frustration. "Those two idiots… are they trying to bring down all of Marineford?!"
Without another word, he stormed out, determined to see the situation for himself—and to demand an explanation from Garp.
When Sengoku arrived at the Navy's hospital, he found that Chief of Staff Tsuru, Admiral Aokiji, and Vice Admirals Gion and Tokikake were already there.
Before he could step inside, he heard Garp's booming laughter echoing through the hall.
"Garp, are you really injured?"
"Hahahaha! I only meant to teach that brat a lesson, but I got carried away, and, well… here we are!"
Hearing that familiar, carefree tone, Sengoku felt a wave of relief. Garp wasn't just his longtime comrade—he was one of the Navy's pillars. Losing him was not an option.
Stepping inside, Sengoku gave him a sharp look. "Did you hold back? Or has that kid actually improved? Because I can't imagine you being injured otherwise."
Garp grinned and nodded. "Yeah, he's definitely progressed. Looks like he finally figured out how to deal with that chakra issue he was struggling with. He's developed a new way of increasing his power using that chakra of his—one strike after another, freely. I planned to gauge its true power, but before I knew it, I had to go all out… and, well, I accidentally knocked the kid out."
Aokiji, who had been listening quietly, finally spoke up, skepticism in his tone. "Vice Admiral Garp, are you saying Jack's progress is that fast?"
To him, Garp was an idol—though he hadn't officially trained under him, he knew better than most just how strong the legendary Marine was.
Nearby, Gion and Tokikake exchanged glances, similarly doubtful. They had both fought Jack before, and while he had won, there was still a gap in skill.
And now they were supposed to believe that he had grown powerful enough to push Garp to his limits? It was hard to accept.
Although none of them had witnessed Garp in his prime, they all understood—at least to some extent—why he was revered as a hero of the Navy. It wasn't simply because he had once nearly killed the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
"That's right," Garp continued after some thought. "And maybe it's just my imagination, but when I fought him, I felt like all his skills had increased, his observation Haki had progressed very far, and his raw strength had also increased to a terrifying level, and him combining it with emission was not so simple to counter."
Unlike most fighters who relied on a specific pattern of fighting, Garp—much like Luffy—fought on raw instinct, like a battle-hardened beast.
Sengoku, however, wasn't interested in discussing Jack's abilities at the moment. His primary concern was Garp's condition.
"What about your injuries? Are you really okay?" Sengoku asked, his tone laced with concern.
Garp shook his head dismissively. "It's nothing—just a minor issue. I wanted to test the true power of that brat's strength at full power, so I took a hit head-on. I didn't expect it to be strong enough to break through my Armament Haki… so I ended up with a little injury."
"So, did he really master emission on the first try?" Tsuru asked, a little taken aback with the information.
"Not the first try exactly… I had vaguely given him the idea of how it worked. He had already been working on it for the past few months. When he saw me using it a few times in the spar, he immediately understood what was missing and succeeded in using it."
Meanwhile, Jack lay unconscious in the ward next to Garp's. Unlike before, this time his coma wasn't an act—he had genuinely been knocked out by Garp's punch.
By the time Jack regained consciousness, night had already fallen.
"Sir, you're awake!" Lena exclaimed in surprise, seated beside his bed.
Jack groaned, his body aching all over. "Lena? Ugh… My head feels like it's splitting open. That old geezer really didn't hold back!" It was only now that he realized just how battered he felt, as if every bone in his body had been shattered.
Lena, however, looked at him with admiration. "My lord, you took a full-force attack from Vice Admiral Garp and survived. That's incredible!"
Jack's eyes widened in disbelief. "What?! That old man told me he was just going to put on a show for Sengoku, but he went all out instead? Wait… how do you even know it was his full strength?" he asked, clearly annoyed.
Lena then recounted what Garp had said earlier in the day. The entire Navy was now buzzing with the news—word had spread like wildfire that Jack's strength was on par with the three admirals.
Jack let out a long breath, exhaling slowly. Then, as if suddenly aware of something more urgent, he rubbed his stomach. "Lena, is there anything to eat? I'm starving!"
Lena smiled. "Of course, sir! The food is already prepared. I'll have someone bring it right away." She stood up and left the room.
At their level of strength, food was the best way to replenish energy with the use of Life Return, and Lena had anticipated this. She had already arranged for an ample supply.
As Jack focused inward and tried absorbing some sage mode chakra to fasten his healing process, he could feel his sage chakra surging through his body. "It seems my chakra has become even stronger," he mused. This was the first time he had lost a fight without completely exhausting his chakra—a realization that both surprised and excited him.
In the past, Garp would only resort to using pure strength against Jack once he had completely drained his chakra.
But this time was different. Even though Jack still had chakra left, he had been knocked unconscious—a fact he found hard to accept.
Yet, despite the outcome, Jack couldn't help but feel exhilarated. "Fighting like this… without worrying about running out of chakra—it feels incredible!" He grinned to himself, recalling the battle. For the first time, he had experienced what it was like to fight without constantly calculating his energy reserves, and the freedom was simply exhilarating.
However, this wasn't his greatest breakthrough. The real turning point came when he unlocked Conqueror's Haki— because he had naturally awakened it during his battle with Garp, his system suddenly notified him that he had acquired it.
Now, an icon for Conqueror's Haki had appeared in his skill tree. Unfortunately, it couldn't be upgraded—at least, not yet. Perhaps doing more battles would allow him to strengthen it. But whether it could be enhanced or not didn't matter to Jack. After all, he had managed just fine without Conqueror's Haki before, hadn't he?
The next day, Jack was able to get out of bed. However, he had learned his lesson and refrained from showing off. Instead, he chose to train quietly at home. To outsiders, it appeared that his injuries had yet to fully heal, which kept most people from disturbing him. Aside from a few close officers who stopped by to check on him, Jack enjoyed a rare period of peace.
But his brief respite didn't last long. The atmosphere in Marineford grew tense overnight. The reason was clear—Ace's execution was set for tomorrow.
With the impending battle looming, Marineford had begun large-scale evacuations. While the island usually served as the navy's headquarters, it was also home to the families of many marines. Now that it was about to become a battlefield, those civilians had to be relocated immediately. Ordinary navy soldiers would also withdraw with them, as this confrontation was bound to be anything but ordinary. Only the strongest would remain.
"Hah…" Jack exhaled as he finished his training, casting a glance at his status panel. Then, without hesitation, he stood up and walked out of his villa.
The air was thick with tension, the unmistakable scent of war hanging over the city. Something big was about to happen.
With that thought, Jack made his way toward Garp's office.
"Sensei." He greeted him casually before settling into a chair.
"You're here," Garp responded, his usual boisterous energy absent. He looked weary—older, somehow.
For a moment, Jack hesitated. Even though he already knew how events would unfold, he couldn't stop himself from asking.
"Sensei… Is there truly no way to change what's coming?"
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