Even though Kizaru's strength was greater, Sengoku could still console himself with the excuse that his own decline was due to the burden of work during his years as Fleet Admiral, leaving him little time to train.
But no matter how he tried to comfort himself, Sengoku knew very well that he had already reached his limits.
Whether it was his body, his Devil Fruit, or the mastery of Haki, he had touched the ceiling long ago. That was why Sengoku had been mentally prepared to be surpassed.
Yet in his imagination, that "surpassing" was no more than Kizaru becoming stronger than Garp—changing their drawn-out battles that once lasted for days into fights where Kizaru could defeat him in mere hours.
Now, however, it seemed he had still underestimated Kizaru.
If even Boros—who could suppress two Yonko at once—was considered no threat in Kizaru's eyes…
Then how long could Sengoku himself possibly last against him?
"Why do you want to know that? Hmm… if we take Vice Admiral Garp as the measure, maybe seven or eight Garps working together could…"
Kizaru tried to sense Sengoku's thoughts. Unfortunately, Sengoku bore almost no malice toward him at the moment. The faintest trace that did exist wasn't even stronger than the envy or frustration friends sometimes feel toward one another.
And Sengoku's own mastery of Observation Haki was excellent. Without the amplification of detecting malice, Kizaru found it difficult to read his thoughts clearly.
"Seven or eight, huh…"
When Sengoku heard Kizaru's answer, his heart skipped a beat.
It was irritating enough that Kizaru used that old mad dog Garp as a measuring stick—but if it truly required seven or eight Garps together to bring him down, then perhaps overthrowing the World Government was no longer mere fantasy!
At least from what Sengoku knew, the God's Knights and the Army of God—the twin sword and shield of the Gorōsei—were not undefeatable.
"…That would be about enough to make me feel a little threatened."
Kizaru added the second half of the statement with his usual lazy grin. Honestly, even he wasn't entirely sure how strong he had become.
The only thing he could say with certainty was this: it would probably take the combined might of all Marine Headquarters' top brass just to put a little pressure on him.
Back then, Esdeath had managed to hold a three-to-seven fight against a "holding back" Kizaru. But now—even if he pulled his punches—her chances of victory would be less than five percent.
And that was only if Esdeath had already mastered all three forms of Haki. Without that, her chances wouldn't even reach a fraction of one percent.
"…This isn't the time for jokes! Are you seriously claiming you can handle seven or eight opponents on Garp's level at once?"
Sengoku growled irritably under his breath. Kizaru was telling the truth, but the truth sounded so exaggerated that Sengoku found it almost impossible to believe.
Still, even that outrageous example planted a daring idea in his mind.
"Do you want me to prove it?"
Kizaru lounged casually on the oversized desk, lazily raising one hand. Brilliant golden light flickered at his fingertips.
At the same time, he relaxed the Observation Haki he had been using to mask his presence, allowing Sengoku's own Haki to directly touch his aura.
One second, Sengoku hadn't even realized anything was happening. The next, he was struck with a suffocating, deathly premonition.
With his top-tier Observation Haki, Sengoku could practically see himself being killed on the spot. Instinctively, he tried to transform into his giant golden Buddha form—
But just as he moved, that world-shattering sense of doom vanished without a trace.
"!"
The sudden release of pressure sent Sengoku stumbling where he stood.
Though he still carried the reputation of a top-tier fighter, the truth was that he hadn't fought seriously in over a decade—his prime strength was long gone.
Had it been Garp or Sakazuki in his place, they wouldn't have lost their composure like this, even under Kizaru's crushing aura.
Of course, that was assuming they were facing an opponent of equal or greater power. Otherwise, Sengoku's golden Buddha form was still a terrifying force in its own right.
"Bastard! How the hell did you do that?!"
After being caught off guard by Kizaru's sudden attack, Sengoku couldn't help but curse out loud. Yet after the outburst, he didn't even have time to be shocked by the strength Kizaru had displayed—instead, his curiosity shifted toward how Kizaru had managed to train himself to such a level.
Even among top-tier powerhouses, there were always distinctions of strength. Otherwise, Whitebeard wouldn't have still earned the title of "Strongest Man in the World" even after Roger became Pirate King.
Even when Whitebeard had grown old and was targeted for eradication by the Marines, Sengoku had taken him with the utmost seriousness in preparing for the Paramount War.
He had even drawn up multiple contingency plans that required all three Admirals fighting together if necessary. But who could have expected that back then, Kizaru would prove strong enough to single-handedly defeat two Yonko in succession?
The sudden revelation of power he had hidden for so many years shocked the entire world. Even Whitebeard's long-held title as the strongest eventually shifted to Kizaru.
But now it seemed that even then, Kizaru had still been holding back. If what he was showing now was truly his full strength, Sengoku had no doubt that even Red-Haired Shanks would not have had the chance to leave Marineford alive!
"This, of course," Kizaru declared with full confidence, "is all thanks to decades of tireless training, day after day, without rest!"
If only his eyes hadn't subconsciously drifted upward while he said it, perhaps it might have sounded more convincing.
"…"
Hearing such motivational words coming from Kizaru's mouth only made Sengoku want to retort.
Day after day, for decades?
Thinking back on Kizaru's behavior over the years, Sengoku had no choice but to admit—it was true. Decades of slacking off day after day!
"Tireless training"?
Those words, when applied to Kizaru, somehow felt like the most irritating joke possible.
"Forget it. Just repeat your plan to me again, and I'll help you see if there are any flaws…" Sengoku rubbed his forehead. He suddenly realized that Kizaru being this strong wasn't necessarily a good thing. It meant even if he wanted to beat him up, that option was long gone.
Still, this wasn't the time to dwell on such frustrations. Since Kizaru had already shown him the possibility of overthrowing the World Government, Sengoku's role was now to maximize that possibility.
Between the Marines and the World Government, Sengoku chose the Marines without much hesitation.
After all, even if the Marines turned against the Government now, the Gorosei would later find an excuse—likely Kizaru himself—to strike against them anyway.
From Sengoku's understanding of the Five Elders, such a result was practically inevitable.
To the Gorosei and the World Government, the Marines being too powerful was itself an unforgivable sin.
While Kizaru was laying his cards on the table with Sengoku and successfully drawing him in as an ally, unprecedented arguments were breaking out among the Gorosei at Marineford.
The sudden arrival of the Dark Matter Pirates felt to them like waking up from sleep only to find a thief holding a knife at their bedside.
What made it worse was that their own "guards" not only failed to block the intruder, but even seemed suspiciously close to colluding with him.
In such circumstances, the Elder most closely tied to the Marines—and the first to receive the intelligence—Saint Vochuli, naturally became the target of the other four's anger and frustration.
"Enough! Those lowly pirates are practically at the gates of Mariejois, and you still want to waste time bickering here?!"
Warcury let out an angry growl. At first, he felt a little guilty, but the endless accusations from the other four Elders made the usually domineering Saint Warcury unable to bear it any longer.
Although the Gorosei technically held equal positions, their influence still varied depending on the domains and responsibilities they oversaw.
Normally, Warcury was one of the stronger voices among them, ranking only below Mars Saint, who had the closest ties with the Celestial Dragons.
Seeing Warcury finally lose his temper, and with Mars Saint remaining silent, the other three Elders had no choice but to drop their line of questioning.
"Can the navy make it in time? Isn't that guy Kizaru in Marineford? If we order him to take all the marines and set sail immediately, they should still be able to intercept those pirates at sea, right?!"
Saturn Saint forced down his anger and spoke. In the 800 years since the founding of the World Government, aside from the audacious Fisher Tiger, Mary Geoise had never once suffered an outside attack.
Even now, with the promise of immortality in hand, Saturn Saint still dreaded being remembered as the most incompetent Elder in history.
If those pirates truly set foot on Mary Geoise, the prestige of the World Government might well collapse entirely!
"Judging by the distance between Marineford and the Holy Land, as long as Mary Geoise can hold out for one or two days, the navy should be able to arrive…"
Nusjufo Saint said in a deep voice. Unlike his companions, who struggled to suppress their fury, the relatively aggressive Nusjuro could remain calm in moments of crisis.
Bickering and blaming each other was useless now—only by mobilizing their forces as quickly as possible to repel or even destroy the enemy could they prevent a worse disaster.
"The real problem is… it seems our Fleet Admiral Kizaru has started entertaining thoughts he should not have?"
Ju Peter Saint's expression darkened as he looked toward Warcury. To satisfy the endless greed of that shameless bastard Kizaru, even the mighty Gorosei had been forced to lower themselves, wrangling with allied kings just to scrape together enough funds.
And after finally pulling together the enormous military budget the navy demanded, it hadn't been long before the navy became even less obedient than before.
To Peter Saint, this was entirely the fault of Warcury Saint, who had always been closest to the navy and had failed to keep them in line!
°°°
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