Standing aboard Vice Admiral Garp's warship, Cudius kept his eyes on the vast expanse of sea in front of them. They had already separated from Admiral Sengoku's fleet. Garp and Cudius were tasked with dealing with Byrnndi World, while the rest of the fleet focused oing the Buster Call to take down Dougs Bullet.

  Acc to Sengoku's strategy, some units had nded on the isnd for bat, while others were positioo stay hidden and provide support. The goal was to drive Byrnndi World onto the isnd and then encircle both him and Dougs Bullet in one decisive strike.

  "It's probably started over there by now?" Cudius asked, a cigar ched between his teeth as he g Garp.

  Garp pulled out a pocket watch from his coat pocket, checked the time, and said, "Yeah, it should have begun by now."

  "What if Byrnndi World hasn't gotten the news?" Cudius suddenly questioned. If World didn't receive word of the atta Dougs Bullet and failed to show up, wouldn't that make their efforts here pointless?

  Garp paused for a moment before shaking his head. "Impossible. Don't fet, this operation involves not just the Marines and your CP-X, but the regur CP ageoo. We've pnted spies on Byrnndi World's ship, so he'll get the news. He'll e."

  Cudius exhaled a plume of smoke, nodding. "Alright, here's hoping the pn goes smoothly."

  Despite Garp's fident assurance, Cudius couldn't ighe fact that they'd been waiting in this sector for nearly two days now, and there was still no sign of Byrnndi World.

  Sipping from his teacup as the sea breeze swept across the deck, Cudius remarked, "Could it be that this pn's gone sideways? If we don't act soon, Dougs Bullet's grave will be dug before World even shows up."

  Garp, who had been starting to look a bit agitated himself, scoffed at Cudius's ent. "The CP agency better not have botched this. We had a solid pn id out, but if this falls apart, just taking down Dougs Bullet isn't going to cut it."

  Up to this point, Dougs Bullet hadn't mao escape, there were enough powerhouses on that isnd to ehat wouldn't happen. The real issue was that Byrnndi World still hadn't appeared, making Cudius feel like they were just waiting around for nothing.

  As Cudius pted this, the wat atop the mast suddenly shouted, "Sighting firmed! The fg of Byrnndi World has appeared!"

  Cudius raised an eyebrow and handed his teacup to a nearby Marine. "Finally, the old bastard shows up. Took him long enough. Is this the day he meets his end?"

  Garp's face lit up with excitement. He tore off the cloak of justice from his bad tossed it to another Marine, flexing his muscur frame as he prepared for battle. "It's been a while since we've had a proper warm-up, huh?" he said, eyes glinting with a petitive spark.

  Cudius chuckled, an evil grin crossing his face. "Take a good look at me, Garp. Do I look like the kind who rushes into a beating?"

  "Anyone who 'won't rush in' shouldn't take reckless risks just to arring match," Garp muttered, rolling his eyes.

  Truth be told, Cudius was in excellent physical dition. He could hold his own in a fight, but with someone like Garp eager to take the brunt of the a, Cudius wasn't about to volunteer as a pung bag. He might be tough, but it still hurt to get hit.

  "I'll support you from the sidelines. Every battle needs a strategist, right?" Cudius said, smirking.

  Garp didn't bother tue, just nodded and said, "Alright. We'll rough him up enough to remind him he's out of his league at sea, but we o block his escape route. Any ideas on how to force him toward the isnd?"

  Cudius grinned, "That's my specialty."

  "Then it's all yours!" Garp said firmly.

  With that, Garp's dog-headed warship surged forward, rag toward Byrnndi World's ship.

  As the ship gained speed, Cudius suddenly thought of something and asked, "Just to firm, the main objective here is to drive Byrnndi World to Cybori Isnd, right?"

  "Exactly, didn't I mention that earlier?" Garp said, giving Cudius a surprised look.

  "Who came up with this pn?" Cudius asked, raising an eyebrow.

  "Of course, I did! Why, got a problem with my brilliant strategy?" Garp shot back, frowning.

  "No, no pints," Cudius said, his expression turning slightly amused. "I just realized that if Byrnndi World is heading to support Dougs Bullet, wouldn't his destination already be Cybori Isnd? Doesn't that mean we don't o do anything to force him there? This chase feels a bit unnecessary."

  Cudius g Garp, w if there was a deeper yer he hadn't sidered. Garp was an experienced Marine, after all.

  But Garp's face flushed slightly, and he scratched the back of his head, realizing the ht. With a sheepish grin, he said, "The sea's uable. You 't rely on perfect ditions. You've got to keep trol of the situation, Cudius. You're still too young. Don't ask too many irrelevant questions, just keep up."

  "Hey, you old dog, you really were bluffing me! You didn't think of that, did you?" Cudius snapped irritably.

  Garp ignored him. They were still a fair distance from Byrnndi World's ship, but Garp bellowed, "Open fire! Let's go!"

  The Marine ons roared to life, sending a barrage of shells flying toward World's ship. The distance was too great for accuracy, but the sheer dispy of firepower was impressive.

  On the opposite side, Byrnndi World's ship returned fire. The two vessels exged volleys as they drew closer.

  Suddenly, one of World's onballs swelled in mid-air, expanding to a huimes its inal size. If that thing hit the warship, it would shatter it in an instant.

  But Garp was ready. With a powerful stomp that cracked the deck, he unched himself toward the massive projectile. "Fist of Destru!" Garp roared, nding a direct pun the giant onball.

  The shell exploded in mid-air, sending shockwaves that tilted the ship and ed the water. Cudius squihrough the smoke, half-w if Garp had survived that impact. Moments ter, Garp emerged unscathed, charging straight toward World's ship.

  As Garp was about to nd, a blur shot out from World's ship to intercept him. It was Byrnndi World himself, and without a word, he aimed a punch directly at Garp's chest.

  "World!" Garp shouted, Armament Haki c his body like armor. He swung his own fist, meeting World's punch head-on.

  Cudius watched the exge with awe. If it had bee Admiral Kong, he might have chosen a more tactical approach, but not Garp. His response was simple: if you hit him, he'd hit back twice as hard, with ation.

  "As expected of the toughest man in the Marines," Cudius muttered, admiring Garp's indomitable spirit.

  ***

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