Although Garen was feeling frustrated, he didn't dare let his guard down in the current situation.
He had clearly seen that the mass descending from the warship wasn't smoke—it was a man.
This man's lower body was a jet of constantly spraying smoke, while his upper body was a muscular human torso. In his hands, he held a strange long weapon with horizontal bars on each side.
The smoke continuously shot out behind him, allowing the man to freely fly through the air.
"A body made of smoke... a Logia-type Devil Fruit user?"
Garen immediately thought of a familiar name: White Hunter Smoker! He glanced again at the flag flying on the massive warship—sure enough, it was the Navy's flag.
While Garen was still thinking, Smoker had already charged at him at an astonishing speed.
"Wait!"
Garen shouted instinctively, "I'm not a pirate!"
But Smoker didn't listen at all. He just swung the jitte in his hand and rushed forward.
As a hot-blooded Navy officer with a strong sense of justice, Smoker wouldn't bother listening to a pirate's explanation.
Even if there was some kind of misunderstanding, he'd sort it out after subduing his opponent.
"Damn it!"
Garen grew even more frustrated and could no longer spare a thought for the nearby Buggy the Clown. He steadied himself and focused entirely on Smoker's attack.
Smoker was fast—his charge far outpaced Garen at this stage.
As a Marine Headquarters colonel, a rank packed with prestige, Smoker's strength was far beyond that of a freshly minted level-four rookie like Garen.
That half-man, half-smoke form shot toward him in mid-air, and Smoker's weapon came down with tremendous force.
"Decisive Strike!"
"Courage!"
Since words failed, Garen activated his skills and swung his greatsword to meet the attack.
His sword, glowing with radiant light, clashed with Smoker's unadorned jitte, unleashing a sharp metallic clang.
In this head-on collision, the physically superior Smoker gained the upper hand, forcing Garen to stumble back two steps.
"No silence effect?"
Garen was surprised.
His sword was still glowing from his Decisive Strike, yet the normally intangible Smoker was still using his Devil Fruit ability.
So, it only works when it hits his actual body?
Realizing the flaw in his skill, Garen shifted his focus to Smoker's still-human upper torso.
He bent his knees slightly, gathering strength, then lunged forward with a slash aimed directly at Smoker's body.
Smoker, watching Garen charge at him, gave a dismissive sneer.
Trying to hurt a Logia-type with a physical attack?
His sneer deepened in contempt as he raised his jitte again to strike Garen, making no effort to dodge.
As the two passed each other, Garen's glowing sword reached Smoker's torso first—
But just before impact, Smoker's body turned into a puff of white smoke, and Garen's strike passed through harmlessly.
His normally unmissable attack had completely whiffed.
Thanks to the Logia ability's elemental form, the system registered Smoker as an "unselectable target."
While Garen's strike hit nothing, Smoker seized the opportunity to land a solid blow on Garen's shoulder.
The jitte clanged against Garen's armor, sending up sparks and knocking him back several meters, crashing hard into the deck and leaving a dent.
I can't win this.
Not only was Smoker physically stronger, but he could also ignore most normal attacks.
This was Garen's clear assessment of the situation.
With his current strength, he couldn't face Smoker head-on.
But that was the key—head-on.
Garen's expression turned serious as he quietly activated a newly learned Wukong skill—"Warrior Trickster!"
His body became transparent in an instant, leaving behind a motionless decoy where he had fallen.
While invisible, Garen silently moved to the side and stood quietly.
Meanwhile, Smoker, chasing his momentum, flew over to the fallen "Garen."
"It's over."
Smoker pointed his jitte at the limp decoy on the ground, ready to bring it to the pirate's neck and complete the capture.
Thunk!
Suddenly, a knight of justice raised his shining greatsword—bathed in righteous light—and drove it straight into Smoker's back in a surprise backstab.
Smoker's face twisted in shock as intense pain radiated from the wound, causing his muscular body to temporarily seize up.
Normally, Logia users could completely ignore physical attacks.
But to use close-combat techniques with the jitte, Smoker had intentionally kept his upper body in solid form—giving Garen an actual, targetable weak point.
The strike also disrupted the smoke maintaining his flight.
In an instant, the cloud of smoke reformed into Smoker's full human body, and without his smoke propulsion, he dropped like a stone into the sea.
What's happening to my power?
This feeling was different from the powerless sensation of Sea-Prism Stone—it was like his entire Devil Fruit ability had vanished.
A wave of fear washed over him.
"Time to go down!"
Garen shouted.
Seizing the precious moment, he slashed horizontally again with all his might.
Smoker, to his credit, reacted quickly and raised his jitte to block the blow—but Garen never meant to wound him.
This lifeboat wasn't that big, and their fierce battle had already pushed both men to the edge.
Garen's real aim was to knock the Devil Fruit user into the ocean.
With a mighty swing, Smoker was launched into the air like a cannonball, then came crashing down toward the open sea.
As the water approached, Smoker instinctively tried to elementalize and fly again—but all he managed was a splash.
The silence effect was still active.
Smoker had been turned into a soaking wet mutt.
As a Devil Fruit user, all his power was useless in the sea.
His muscular body might as well have turned to jelly—he couldn't exert any strength at all.
A powerful Marine Headquarters captain—now a helpless weakling flailing in the water after just three rounds.
The battle was over. He had lost.
"Sigh."
Standing on the boat, Garen looked down at the floundering Smoker with indignation.
"I told you—I'm not a pirate!"
"Is it only after a cold swim that you people start listening?"
"You…"
From where he lay limp on the lifeboat, Buggy the Clown had watched the whole brief but intense fight.
He looked at Garen in disbelief.
"You actually defeated a Logia-type Devil Fruit user?!"
With his experience, Buggy immediately recognized the fearsome power of Smoker's ability—nearly invincible in the first half of the Grand Line.
Yet even this terrifying power-user had been humiliated by an unknown bounty hunter?
Buggy was stunned.
"Hmph!"
Garen merely grunted at Buggy's shock.
"A Logia Devil Fruit… nothing special."
He planted his greatsword firmly into the deck and stood proudly.
"Peh!"
Though still weak and exhausted, Buggy couldn't help but mock him.
"Ignorant brat!"
"The Navy's top combat strength—the Admirals—they're all Logia users!"
Garen ignored him, remaining silent as he maintained the air of an aloof master.
"Hahaha…"
Suddenly, hearty laughter rang out behind Garen.
A broad hand landed on his shoulder, firm and steady.
With just that one light touch, Garen was gripped by a terrifying sense of helplessness—like his entire body was no longer his own.
"Young man…"
The voice sounded again beside Garen's ear.
"You sure talk big."