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*****
Room of Authority, Holy Land
Tsk... Tsk. A sly smirk played on Doflamingo's lips as he leaned back, completely at ease despite the weight of the moment. He delicately placed his teacup on the pristine table before him, his fingers moving with an air of practiced nonchalance.
Draped casually in his signature feathered coat, he lounged like a king upon a throne, one leg lazily crossed over the other, exuding an aura of untouchable arrogance.
The atmosphere in the grand chamber was anything but normal. Tension hung thick in the air, suffocating yet crackling with unspoken threats. Across from him, seated in a semicircle, were the Five Eldersâthe very pillars of the World Government, the unseen architects of global order.
They regarded him with thinly veiled contempt, yet none could deny the weight of his presence. Doflamingo, one of the Emperors of the New World, sat before them not as a supplicant but as an equal, perhaps even a defiant predator in a den of old lions.
Elder Mars, his expression carved from stone, leaned forward ever so slightly, his patience worn razor-thin. His voice, though restrained, carried the sharp edge of fury.
"What you did out there was unsightly," he growled, eyes burning with barely contained rage.
"Do you truly believe yourself untouchable, or have you forgotten where you currently stand, Doflamingo?"
His anger was not baseless. The Celestial Dragon whom Doflamingo had crippled mere hours ago was no ordinary nobleâhe was of the Mars lineage, kin to the Elder himself. A direct insult. A transgression that could not be ignored.
Yet, if the former celestial dragon-turned-pirate felt any concern, he did not show it. Instead, he chuckledâa low, amused sound that only served to further stoke the fire in their gazes. Slowly, he retrieved his teacup and took a measured sip, savoring it as if utterly indifferent to the storm brewing before him.
"He was just a worm," Doflamingo finally said, his voice as smooth as silk yet carrying an undeniable sharpness.
"If anything, you should be thanking me. Had that fool actually succeeded in capturing the Mermaid Queen, then the enmity you've been desperately trying to snuff out for centuries would have been carved in stone."
He set the teacup down once more, his piercing gaze sweeping across the five elders, challenging, mocking. In this room filled with the most powerful men in the world, he remained as he always had beenâlaughing, scheming, and utterly fearless.
Elder Nusjuro leaned back, his aged yet piercing gaze settling on Doflamingo. His voice was smooth, almost dismissive, but the sharp undertone of deflection did not go unnoticed.
"A mere Fishman royal?" he scoffed. "You think we would concern ourselves with such trivial matters? We have hundredsâno, thousandsâof Fishmen folded into slavery as we speak. What's one more? You truly believe that their hostility would be something for us to lose sleep over?"
He spoke with practiced indifference, but Doflamingo was no fool. He could hear itâthat subtle shift, the deliberate attempt to steer the conversation away. The way Nusjuro downplayed the issue only confirmed what he already knew.
Doflamingo chuckled. "Fufufufu⊠Do you take me for a naive fool, Elder? Or are you implying that all your painstaking efforts to establish neutrality with the Fishmen race have been nothing but an elaborate farce?"
His grin widened as he watched their expressions. Others might not know the truth, but he did. His little brother had already told him the real reason the World Government feared the Fishmen race.
No matter how much they tried to cover it up, Poseidon remained a threat they could never afford to ignore.
In a world where the vast majority of its surface was covered in water, the power to control the very seas, to command the Sea Kings themselves⊠now that was a force even the World Government dared not challenge head-on. Of the three Ancient Weapons, Poseidon was undoubtedly the one they feared the most.
Doflamingo leaned forward slightly, his fingers idly tracing the rim of his teacup. His voice, though laced with amusement, carried an undeniable weight.
"Don't insult me by pretending I don't know your schemes." His gaze flickered between the Elders, his presence suffocating in its confidence. "So tell me againâare you really claiming that an all-out enmity with the Fishmen race is something you can afford? Or have you forgotten who stands behind them?"
He let his words settle, savoring the way their expressions subtly shifted.
"Once word spreads to the New Worldâand trust me, it willâdo you think Whitebeard will take kindly to such an act?"
At the mention of Whitebeard's name, Elder Warcury scoffed, shaking his head as if the thought of the old pirate acting against them was laughable.
Doflamingo caught the gesture instantly, and his smirk deepened. He understood exactly why they thought that way. To the Five Elders, Whitebeard was a man content with his throne, uninterested in shaking the world unless provoked. As long as they didn't actively challenge him, they had nothing to fear from that monster.
But they were wrong.
Doflamingo turned his gaze toward Warcury, his amusement barely concealed behind his signature grin.
"Your thoughts may have held meritâif you were speaking of the old Whitebeard. But I can assure you, the Edward Newgate of today is not the same man you once knew."
His tone was almost mocking, but beneath it lay a chilling certainty. "You underestimate him at your own peril. If you think he would hesitate to tear the Red Line apart to get back at you, then you are gravely mistaken."
He could still remember every detail from the said report, the raw devastation left in the wake of Whitebeard's latest battle. The scars carved into the very seas themselves were proof enough that the Emperor was no longer the passive king they once believed him to be.
His relationship with King Neptune was strongâstrong enough that, if the World Government dared to harm Otohime, he would make them pay in blood.
The room fell into a heavy silence, the weight of his words sinking in.
Elder Nusjuro, ever the perceptive one, narrowed his eyes. "It's unlike you to sing praises of another man, Doflamingo. That isn't your character. So tell me⊠what's your angle?"
They had invited him here, yes, but the fact that he had accepted the summons spoke volumes. For a man like Doflamingo to walk into the heart of the World Government's power, it could only mean one thingâhe was absolutely certain he could walk out.
Doflamingo chuckled, swirling his tea in his cup before taking a slow sip. "I'm merely stating facts," he said smoothly. "You can call it whatever you like, but the man's strength deserves respect. Especially after what happened in the New World recently⊠you can't afford to antagonize him."
His words were casual, but his eyesâthose sharp, calculating eyesâcaught something.
A flicker of uncertainty. A subtle shift in their demeanor.
And in that moment, he knew.
"So they don't know."
They weren't fully aware of what had truly transpired. Doflamingo kept his expression composed, but inwardly, his thoughts raced.
"They have no idea about the exact details of the clash between Whitebeard and Kaido. It seems someone is trying to keep that matter buried⊠Sengoku, perhaps?"
After all, the intelligence his Donquixote Family had gathered painted a very different picture. The battle between Whitebeard and Kaido had been something unseen beforeâa clash so devastating, so cataclysmic, that it had shaken even the hardened veterans of the New World. If that was the power Whitebeard now wielded, then the World Government had every reason to be very concerned.
Doflamingo set his teacup down, his grin widening. "Interesting." This was getting fun.
Doflamingo exhaled lazily, his signature grin never faltering as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. His fingers interlocked, and behind his tinted lenses, his sharp eyes gleamed with amusement.
"Well thenâŠ" he drawled, his voice dripping with mock impatience. "As much as I would love to sit here and reminisce about the good old days, I happen to be a very busy man. So now that I've accepted your invitationânow that I'm physically sitting here in front of youâwhy don't we cut the theatrics?"
His smirk widened as his voice took on a sharper edge.
"Let's drop the petty posturing and get right to the point. Why am I here? And let's not waste each other's time with meaningless drivel."
The air in the room grew heavier. The tension, once simmering beneath the surface, now pulsed like an unspoken threat.
For a while, silence reigned. The other Elders exchanged brief glances, but only one among them finally stirred.
Elder Saturn. The oldest among them, the one who had remained silent, simply watching since the moment Doflamingo had swaggered into the room. Now, with a measured sigh, he finally chose to speak.
"You've come a long way since then..." Saturn's voice was deep, ancient, carrying the weight of centuries of authority. His fingers, aged yet steady, curled around the gnarled staff in his grasp.
"There have been moments when I questioned our decisionâwhy we didn't get rid of you back then, when we had the chance. What was it, really, that held us back?"
He paused, his staff tapping softly against the marble floor, the sound eerily hollow in the silence. His gaze, dark and unreadable, bore into Doflamingo's own.
"But then I realized⊠no matter what bitterness or enmity we may have had, or still haveâŠ" Saturn's lips curled into something that was neither a smile nor a frown. "The blood of the Celestial Dragons flows through your veins. Neither you nor I can deny that truth."
His words hung in the air like an undeniable decree.
"Yes⊠we underestimated you. We underestimated your brother." His grip on his staff tightened slightly. "And we underestimated you so badly that now, here you standânot just as a force in the New World, but as a looming threat to the very structure of our power."
The other Elders remained silent, letting Saturn's words carry their full weight.
And then, with a measured exhale, he asked the question that cut through the air like a blade.
"Is this truly what you want, Doflamingo? To be our enemy?"
For the first time, there was no mockery, no dismissive arrogance in his toneâonly the cold, calculated acknowledgment of a man who no longer saw Doflamingo as a mere nuisance but as something far greater.
A real threat.
And that, Doflamingo knew, was very interesting.
His grin widened, but behind those glasses, his eyes glowed with something far more dangerous than amusement.
This conversation was finally getting fun.
Elder Saturn leaned forward slightly, his burnt visage illuminated by the dim, ominous glow of the room. His next words, spoken with absolute certainty, shattered the lingering tension like a hammer striking glass.
"I will cut to the chase, Doflamingo... We want you to join usânot as one of those sniveling worms you so despise. NoâŠ" His voice was deliberate, unwavering. "We want you to join us as one of the Elders."
The room fell into a stunned silence. Even the other Elders, men who had stood unshaken for centuries, turned their heads toward Saturn in surprise. None of them had expected this.
The last time Doflamingo had been offered something, it had been the mere prospect of grooming him for an Elder positionâsomething distant, something conditional. But this⊠this was different. Saturn was offering the seat outright, as if it were nothing more than a vacant position in a common tavern.
"Saint SaturnâŠ" Elder Ju Peter finally broke the silence, his tone carrying the weight of unspoken concern. But when his gaze met Saturn's, the unspoken message in the old man's scorched face silenced him. This was not a mere suggestionâthis was an order from above. There was no room for questioning it.
Saturn's grip on his staff tightened slightly as he continued. "We know you are already aware of most of the World Government's secrets. Even the existence of Imu-sama themselves."
His voice grew colder.
"Tell me, Doflamingo⊠do you know how many still walk this world possessing that knowledge and yet do not serve us?" He let the question hang in the air, then answered it himself. "None. Not a single one. Except for you⊠and your brother."
His expression darkened. "You should already know how fortunate you have been. Anyone else who had even glimpsed the shadow of Imu-sama would have been erased from existence, their very name wiped from history."
And yet, Doflamingo was still here.
The truth was simpleâthey could not afford to move against him. Not yet. There had been an unspoken understanding, a delicate balance maintained between both parties, and they knew full well that Doflamingo was not someone who could be so easily disposed of. Not unless they had both him and Rosinante in their grasp.
Doflamingo remained silent for a moment, before finally chuckling, his signature "Fufufufu..." echoing through the chamber like a devil's laughter.
"You must be truly desperate, Saturn." His grin widened into something far more menacing.
"But tell meâŠ" He leaned back in his chair, arms lazily stretching out as if completely unbothered by the magnitude of the offer. "What makes you think I'd ever willingly become someone's slave?"
His words were laced with venom, and the mocking taunt behind them was as clear as day.
The insult landed hard. Elder Warcury, who had been barely holding his temper in check, finally snapped.
"Youâ!" The old warrior slammed his hands on the table as he shot to his feet, fury radiating from him.
But Doflamingo merely flicked his wrist in a dismissive wave, as if Warcury's anger was nothing more than an annoying insect buzzing in his ear. The blatant disregard only infuriated the Elder further.
Before Warcury could act, howeverâ
"Warcury."
Saturn's voice echoed, low and authoritative, freezing the enraged Elder in place. A long silence followed before Warcury clenched his jaw and reluctantly sat back down, though his glare remained locked on Doflamingo.
Saturn turned back to Doflamingo, his grip on his staff tightening ever so slightly. His face betrayed no emotion, but there was something deeper lurking behind his eyesâa rare glimpse of patience being tested.
"Don't be so hasty to reject us before you hear the full extent of what we are offering, Donquixote." His voice was steady, his words deliberate.
"Tell me, do you truly believe that with just you and your brotherâtalented as he may beâyou can bring down an empire that has stood unshaken for over a thousand years?"
Doflamingo chuckled again, crossing his legs as if this entire discussion amused him beyond measure.
"We'll never know unless we try, will we, Elder Saturn?"
A subtle shift flickered across Saturn's eyes.
"Perhaps." He exhaled slowly. "But let's entertain a thought for a momentâlet's pretend that one day, you manage to attain the strength to challenge us. Tell me, how long would that take? A decade? A century?" He leaned in slightly, his presence becoming far more oppressive. "Do you truly think time is on your side?"
The air in the room grew colder.
"By then, you will be nothing but a forgotten relic of history, your name erased like all those before you. While weâŠ" Saturn's burnt lips curled into something unreadable. "We will still be here."
He tapped his staff against the floor once more, the hollow sound reverberating through the chamber.
"You are not the first to challenge the World Government in our millennia-long reign, Donquixote. And let me tell you a factâevery single one of them, no matter how powerful, vanished from both memory and history itself." His voice was deeper now, carrying a weight that only one who had buried countless generations could possess.
"Is that truly how you want your story to end?"
The way Saturn spokeâit was no longer as a man who simply maintained order. No, this was the voice of a being who had buried empires, shattered entire bloodlines, and wiped civilizations from existence in the name of absolute authority.
Doflamingo remained silent for a moment, his smirk unwavering. But there was no denying the weight behind Saturn's words.
And then, the Elder made his final move.
"ButâŠ" Saturn's voice softened, just slightly, his words now carrying a different kind of temptation. "You have a chance. A chance to be something greater than all those who came before you."
His eyes gleamed. "A chance to live eternally in this worldânot as a mere survivor, not as a mere pirateâbut as a king."
Saturn's voice lowered to a near whisper, but it struck like a thunderclap.
"You dream of power, don't you? Of control? You want to reign over this world like the king you envision yourself to be⊠And we can offer you that."
The room fell silent once more.
Doflamingo, still grinning, reached for his teacup, lifting it to his lips. He took a slow sip, savoring the moment. And then, he chuckled. Oh, this was getting interesting.
Doflamingo's grin widened as he leaned back in his chair, twirling the delicate teacup between his fingers. His piercing gaze swept across the Elders, amusement dancing in his eyes like a predator toying with its prey.
"Fufufufu⊠and tell me, Elderâwhat exactly do I give in return for this so-called blessing of immortality?" His voice was laced with mockery. "Surely, a gift of such magnitude does not come without its strings attachedâŠ"
Of course, he already knew the answer. He had known the moment Saturn had spoken of an offer. The World Government never gave without taking.
Elder Saturn's burnt face remained impassive as he tapped his staff lightly against the floor. "All you have to doâŠ" he began, voice deceptively soft, "is bend your knee and swear allegiance to Imu-sama."
His next words echoed through the dimly lit chamber like an unholy scripture.
"After all, even as the King of this world, you would still have to answer to a God."
A hushed silence followed, the weight of those words pressing down on the room like an iron hand. The implication was clearâpower beyond imagination, but at the cost of absolute servitude.
Before Doflamingo could respond, another voice cut through the air.
"And in additionâŠ" Elder Nusjuro spoke, his tone casual yet deliberate. "We want you to convince your brother as well."
Doflamingo's smirk didn't waver, but a glint of cold amusement flickered in his eyes.
"After all," Nusjuro continued, "we wouldn't be having half as much trouble if we were only dealing with you, isn't that right, Doflamingo?"
He let the words linger, as if enjoying their weight before delivering the final blow. "But I must say⊠your brother is far more talented than you."
The provocation was subtle, calculated. A whisper of poison meant to fester in Doflamingo's mind, to plant a seed of doubtâa division between two brothers.
It was a masterstroke of manipulation.
But they had gravely underestimated Doflamingo's true nature.
The world knew him as a monster draped in silk, a tyrant clothed in opulence. A man who ruled with cruelty, crushed the weak without hesitation, and sought power with an insatiable hunger.
To the world, Donquixote Doflamingo was a devil incarnateâa pirate who bathed in blood, a king who thrived in chaos.
But for his brotherâŠ
For RosinanteâŠ
He would give up everything without a second thought.
The Elders did not know the depth of the bond between them, the unbreakable chain forged in the fires of suffering and loss.
Had Rosinante, at this very moment, asked Doflamingo to abandon all his ambitions, to cast aside his empire, his power, his very identityâhe would do it. Without hesitation. Without asking why.
And that was the one truth the Elders had failed to account for.
Doflamingo's grin widened, but it was no longer one of amusementâit was something darker, something unreadable. He chuckled, the sound slow and deep.
"Fufufufu⊠You think you can turn me against my own brother with such pitiful tactics?"
His thoughts dripped with mockery, but beneath the surface lurked something far more menacingâa beast coiled in restraint, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
With deliberate ease, Doflamingo lifted his teacup once more, taking a slow, measured sip. He set it down with a quiet clink against the saucer, a deceptively simple sound that reverberated through the silent chamber like a gunshot.
Then, with an eerie calmness, he met their gazes.
"So, you want to sow discord between me and my brother?" His smirk widened, amusement flickering in his sharp eyes. "I wonder⊠how would you handle something similar?"
His gaze shifted to Nusjuro, lingering just long enough to make the elder shift slightly in his seat.
"Tell me⊠have any of you ever wondered how I've learned so much about your little secrets?" His voice was laced with quiet amusement, but there was an unmistakable undercurrent of danger. "For all your supposed omnipotence, for all your secrecy⊠how is it that Iâan outsiderâam privy to matters discussed only within these very walls?"
A sneer curled at his lips as he tilted his head. "Did none of you ever stop to question that?"
A flicker of tension crackled in the air.
Saturn's eyes narrowed. He could see where Doflamingo was trying to lead them, and he couldn't allow it.
"Just because you've stumbled upon a few sensitive matters, Doflamingo, does not mean you can make us doubt ourselves." His voice was steady, but there was a subtle sharpness to it. "We are here to discuss youâ"
"Pacifista."
The word rang through the room like a death knell even before Saturn could finish his words.
For the first time, the atmosphere shifted.
The Elders stiffened, their eyes widening almost imperceptiblyâbut Doflamingo saw it. He saw everything.
He chuckled darkly.
"Ah⊠I see that struck a nerve." He leaned forward slightly, placing his elbows on the table, fingers interlocked as if reveling in their unease. "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but only the five of you should know about the Pacifista project, yes? Even Vegapunk is still in the dark about its true purposeâŠ"
His smirk deepened, his voice turning almost playful. "Waitâhave I used the right name? Pacifista⊠Yes, I suppose that is the term you settled on. A rather ironic name, don't you think?"
Saturn's grip on his staff tightened, his eyes burning with cold fury.
The other Elders, however, were no longer focused on Doflamingo. Their gazes flickeredâjust for a fraction of a secondâtoward each other.
It was subtle, but to someone like Doflamingo, it was as clear as day.
"Want to make me doubt my brother?" he thought, amusement bubbling within him. "Let's see how you handle turning on yourselves."
He could already see the gears turning in their minds. The doubt. The unease. The realization that if he knew this, then somewhere, somehow, there was a leak.
A smirk played on his lips as he twisted the knife deeper.
"You're looking for the perfect test subject, aren't you?" His voice was a whisper of silk and venom. "A prototype for mass production⊠but you'll need at least a decade to make it functional."
The tension in the room became suffocating.
Doflamingo's grin widened as he leaned back, savoring the chaos unfolding before him.
"You truly chose a remarkable fruit to replicate, didn't you?" He mused, letting his words sink in. "Who would have thought that the Glint-Glint Fruit could be the perfect foundation for such a project?"
There it wasâthat flicker of genuine alarm in their expressions.
They had severely underestimated him.
And now, they were paying the price.
Doflamingo took another leisurely sip of his tea, as if he hadn't just thrown the highest powers of the world into turmoil.
"Fufufufu⊠oh, this is getting fun."
Doflamingo's smirk widened, his sharp eyes gleaming with wicked amusement. He leaned forward, elbows resting on the grand table, fingers lazily intertwined as he let his words drip like venom into their ears.
"Say, for instance⊠if I had a way to break you free from your servitudeâ" He paused, letting the implication settle. "Do you think one among you might be willing to betray your so-called god⊠just to taste true freedom again?"
The chamber fell into a heavy silence.
A flicker of unease passed through the room, subtle but undeniable. The Elders, for all their power and wisdom, were not immune to doubt.
Doflamingo chuckled darkly, his voice laced with mockery. "Because no matter what titles you dress yourselves in, no matter the fear you command, in the endâ" his gaze flickered to Saturn's grotesque burn scars "âall of you are nothing but mere puppets, dancing at the whim of a shadow. Your lives and deaths are dictated by a single thought."
His words were knives, sharpened to cut deep. And judging by the way Saturn's jaw clenched, they did exactly that.
"Isn't that right, Saturn?"
Doflamingo could feel the weight of his statement press down on them. These men, the supposed architects of the world, the unshakable pillars of powerâyet they bowed their heads, kneeled in servitude, lived and died by the will of a single unseen ruler.
What a joke.
He let out a small, amused hum before continuing, his voice softer but no less dangerous. "This empire⊠it wasn't built by a single ruler, was it? No, it was the joint effort of twenty kingdoms. Not even your god can deny that."
His eyes gleamed with mischief as he tilted his head.
"So tell me⊠do you think, perhaps, one among youâmaybe moreâhas begun to wonder why only the Nerona family sits upon the Empty Throne? Why, after all these centuries, only one bloodline claims absolute dominion while the rest of you remain servantsâimmortal, perhaps, but never free?"
His grin turned razor-sharp.
"And if, in that same moment, I were to offer a way to shatter those shackles⊠while allowing you to keep your immortalityâŠ" He leaned back, spreading his arms slightly, as if presenting them with a grand, forbidden temptation. "Tell me, Elder Saturnâwould you be tempted?"
The words hung in the air like a poised dagger, its edge gleaming under the weight of silence.
Thenâ
"ENOUGH, DONQUIXOTE!"
Saturn's voice roared through the chamber, his patience finally shattering.
His staff slammed against the floor, the impact rippling through the room. His fury was palpable, his composure slipping, because Doflamingo was speaking of things that not even they dared whisper aloud.
Instigating doubt. Planting poison. Suggesting treason against Imu-sama themselves.
It was blasphemy.
It was dangerous.
Saturn rose, his presence dark and foreboding, ready to put an end to this treacherous farce.
But thenâ
The air in the chamber shifted.
A wave of crushing, overwhelming Haki exploded through the room, so potent and suffocating that even the Eldersâthose who had stood at the pinnacle of power for centuriesâpaled.
The walls of the chamber trembled. The very air felt heavier.
A presence had descended upon them.
The only one who seemed unfazed was Doflamingo.
In fact, his lips curled into a grin. His eyes gleamed, not with fear, but with intrigue.
Slowly, he rose from his seat.
Defiant. Unbowed. Unshaken.
Even under the weight of the divine presence that had now acknowledged him.
He chuckled softly, his voice barely above a whisper, yet cutting through the suffocating air like a blade.
"It seemsâŠ" He rolled his shoulders, adjusting his coat as if preparing for an audience with destiny itself. "I have finally been summoned by your god."