Bang!
On the castle ruins, Sage punched Whitebeard, who was activating his ability, the coiling Haki blocking the vibrations coming towards this side.
Rumble!
But it was only from Sage's side; the ground and air in other directions were still vibrating violently.
The power of will can be used to indirectly block an ability's attack through an offensive manner, and it's the same for vibrations; only this side can be preserved.
In comparison...
"Oh! This power is really exaggerated, the prime Whitebeard..."
Sage grinned, veins bulging on his arm, pushing forcefully against the immense vibrations forward.
Boom!
The fist radiating the power of vibration was pushed forward by Sage, punching through the representation of vibration's white light, striking violently on young Whitebeard's arm, immediately blasting a cloud of blood mist from his arm.
Young Whitebeard's arm hung powerless, as Sage approached and punched it smoothly against Whitebeard's head, shattering half of Whitebeard's face under the dual impact of Secret Hole and Haki.
Bang bang bang!
Subsequently, the strange force traveling straight to the body through the attack caused Whitebeard's whole body to explode, splattering blood before retreating into the mist.
"Not bad."
Sage laughed, "Apart from the Haki being weak, everything else is quite decent. Is there more? Bring out a bit more."
It's not really suitable to use them as a target, since their Haki isn't strong enough; it's better to fight Poneglyphs instead.
But being able to see the young Garp and Whitebeard, Sage at least had some comparison.
Not sure if it's perfect, but Sage felt that this youthful form, with the strength of Garp and Whitebeard, had a much higher aura than what he saw of one on the verge of death and the other who had long since died.
But overall...
"Not exactly my target to surpass, currently, only Kaido can be considered."
Sage looked into the mist, "Have you seen the young Kaido? Summon him for a look, I also want to know whether he is at his peak now or was at his peak back then."
The mist swirled for a while before a hoarse voice sounded from within.
"Never seen him..."
The mist contracted, revealing Maroni's figure; his current state was not great, kneeling halfway, clutching his chest, which had a large patch of blood, while blood seeped from the corner of his mouth as he gasped heavily.
"Oh? It must have consumed a lot of stamina, it seems simulating Garp and Whitebeard requires a hefty price."
Sage chuckled, "Or did you just take a hit from me, and now you can't endure it anymore?"
Maroni pressed his lips, not answering.
It's both.
He is just a Paramecia-Type, although he can merge into mist, the mist is also his body, he wouldn't have been so foolish if it weren't to use this memory technique.
Be it the stamina spent using the ability or the injury received from the blow earlier, they both exist.
No way around it, the opponent's intimidating presence was too formidable.
From the moment he descended, Maroni knew this person was not to be messed with.
Maroni was no newcomer; more than twenty years ago, he had his territory in the New World, right here!
After being defeated by Whitebeard and captured by Garp, thrown into Impel Down, he completely disappeared from the sea, and his ambition gradually withered during the twenty-plus years in Impel Down.
But by sheer coincidence, Sage escaped!
Right in front of his eyes!
That day, he watched as the young white-haired man swaggered out of the sixth floor, then the sound of vibrations rang out above, and then they knew someone had escaped.
Compared to the new generation, Maroni knew more; more than twenty years ago, someone else escaped too, the Golden Lion, he saw that too.
But the Golden Lion's escape relied on severing his own legs, relying on his flying ability to escape, and the director at that time wasn't as strong as Magellan.
The Golden Lion's escape, he didn't take it to heart, because it could not be replicated.
But more than twenty years later, Sage's escape gave him a strong spiritual shock.
A pirate who had never entered the New World, perhaps famous in Paradise but definitely not enough to be looked at, brazenly escaped from Impel Down with solid body techniques and even injured Magellan!
Has the times changed?
Or has he really aged?
At that time, a sense of crisis emerged once more.
If he doesn't do something, he might really age.
And then Teach came to raid the prison.
In that turmoil, he also escaped, and shortly after heard the news of Whitebeard's death, which was precisely the thing that made Maroni decide to return to this place.
This place...
"Mist Shaping!"
Maroni seemed to have firmed up his resolve, his body exploding with mist once again, but instead of forming into anyone, the mist became a series of fists, just like...
"As boring as Smoker!"
Bam!
Sage punched out, the impact of his Externalized Haki blowing the mist away entirely, then his figure flashed, appearing right in front of Maroni.
"No more? If that's the case..."
Maroni's vision blurred, not having time to see what it was, a sharp pain radiated from his chest.
"Then I won't spare you."
The fist embedded in his chest, the powerful Haki of Internal Destruction first demolished his chest cavity, the special force permeated his internal organs, and his body, which hadn't had time to get up, collapsed downward as both knees hit the ground.