Roger also keenly noticed this, but now that he was half a beat too slow, he had no intention of defending.
Instead, he swung Ace with all his might, slashing toward Garp's chest.
At that moment!
Roger's Ace was ultimately a fraction longer than Garp's iron fist, managing to carve a wound on Garp's chest first.
However, due to the protection of Armament Haki, it didn't cut very deep.
"Roger, your sword is as weak as a woman's! Gahahahaha!"
Garp's iron fist tore through the air like a meteor, sparks flying from the friction against his knuckles, landing a ferocious punch squarely on Roger's chest.
The distinct cracking sound from Roger's chest proved the terrifying destructive power of Garp's punch—even Roger had broken several ribs.
His entire figure was sent flying backward like a cannonball, leaving a trail of scattered bloodstains along the path.
After crashing through the deck and several cabins, he finally came to a stop deep within the warship.
Bang!
Several sharp slashes shot out from inside the cabin, slicing the overhead deck into pieces.
Roger, gripping Ace with one hand, leaped up from the cabin.
Amid the flying wood splinters, Roger turned his head and spotted the dumbfounded Raleigh and Kuzan.
"Oh? So it's you two brats."
Roger also stared blankly at the petrified Raleigh and Kuzan.
"Kids, the timing isn't right today. Next time we meet, we'll have a proper fight. For now, I'll leave you a little gift."
Seeing the mischievous grin on Roger's face, Raleigh's internal alarm bells rang incessantly.
Given Roger's personality, he was definitely up to no good. Besides, what kind of gift could a pirate who'd just been sent flying possibly have?
Sure enough, when Raleigh saw Roger raising his sword, his pupils dilated abruptly.
With lightning speed, he instantly transformed into his elemental form and fled the deck, not forgetting to warn Kuzan.
"Run, Kuzan! This guy's playing dirty!"
Kuzan also had a keen sense of danger and immediately transformed into his elemental form to escape, simultaneously creating a thick layer of ice for defense.
"Hahahahaha, remember! The man who struck you today is Gol D. Roger!"
"Divine Departure!"
Roger's long blade once again became enveloped in blackish-red Conqueror's Haki as he swiftly slashed in two directions before running headlong toward his ship, the Oro Jackson, without looking back.
From the moment Roger crashed into the warship to his escape after slashing Raleigh and Kuzan, the entire sequence took barely over ten seconds.
Garp simply couldn't react in time—his speed had never been particularly remarkable, and against Roger, he seemed even slower by a beat.
The moment Roger fled the warship, Garp's furious figure materialized where Roger had just stood.
"Kuzan! Raleigh!"
Garp felt a pang of self-reproach; it was the first time he'd seen Roger act in such an unheroic manner.
The thick layer of ice was cleanly sliced through—even elemental intangibility couldn't evade the attack.
A terrifying slash wound now marked Kuzan's body, his Marine uniform soaked crimson with blood.
Fortunately, the strike hadn't damaged his internal organs.
With such superficial wounds, given Kuzan's monstrous physique, he'd recover quickly once the bleeding was stopped and the wound disinfected.
Raleigh's condition was considerably milder than Kuzan's.
He had sensed something off about Roger before the attack and managed to evade its range just in time.
Coupled with Raleigh being slightly stronger than Kuzan, Roger's slash only left a moderately deep scar on Raleigh's chest.
Unlike Kuzan, Raleigh at least retained freedom of movement.
"That guy has no honor—attacking without warning like that."
A flicker of coldness passed through Raleigh's eyes.
Indeed, one shouldn't hold fixed perceptions about characters from the original story.
Sometimes, when perspectives differ, all previous understandings become invalid.
What Roger had done left even Garp red-faced, too embarrassed to offer Raleigh any explanation.
"Raleigh, you and Kuzan should get your wounds treated first."
"Since Roger chose to break the rules by attacking you two, I'll go teach him some manners on your behalf."
Garp was seething with rage.
An unwritten rule on the seas dictated that top-tier fighters confront other top-tier fighters, while the younger generation deals with their peers.
If everyone attacked indiscriminately, no one below the top tier would survive.
Garp could withstand Roger's assaults and eliminate super rookies like Douglas Bullet from Roger's crew, but attacking the young Marines was crossing a line.
"Meteor Fist Barrage!"
BOOM!
While Raleigh summoned medics to treat himself and Kuzan, Garp had already set off with his warship in pursuit of Roger.
Hearing the continuous explosions, Raleigh recognized that Garp was truly unleashing his wrath this time.
Roger would likely lose more than just a layer of skin over this.
In the infirmary, Raleigh sat shirtless as a young nurse applied medicine and wrapped bandages around his torso.
His injuries weren't severe—just requiring basic treatment.
But Kuzan's condition was worse; Raleigh watched as medics sutured Kuzan's wound.
Beads of cold sweat formed at Kuzan's temples.
He disliked losing control over his body, so he refused anesthesia, though he used his Devil Fruit power to freeze the wound area, reducing pain perception.
"So Kuzan, how did it feel taking that slash?" Raleigh teased while watching Kuzan endure the pain.
"Hmph... For a moment there, I thought I was going to die from that strike."
Kuzan raised an eyebrow slightly and quickly replied before the pain set in. "He truly lives up to being one of the world's top-tier powerhouses. Even after experiencing countless dangerous situations, he can still easily defeat us."
"That slash of his... I don't think he intended to kill us, but the sheer force behind it genuinely made me believe I would die."
After hearing Kuzan's description, Raleigh also nodded.
Roger had no intention of killing Raleigh and Kuzan, just as he had said—perhaps it was merely a test.
However, the consequences were that Raleigh sustained minor injuries while Kuzan was severely wounded.
Although the slash did not have a significant impact on Raleigh, during the attack, he truly felt the overwhelming force emanating from Roger's blade.
"Alright, get some rest. We'll wait for Vice Admiral Garp to return."