"Oh? An outstanding enforcer who even intrigues Garling? That really is good news."
Warcury's face brightened, too. Even if the Navy's 'rebellion' hadn't yet toppled the World Government, losing the Navy's military backing inevitably shook the government's rule.
No matter how strong the Gorōsei were, they couldn't personally hunt down every pirate or eliminate each disobedient non-member state.
So rebuilding the Navy quickly had become urgent. In that situation, an outstanding enforcer who caught the interest of the God Knights' supreme commander Grengosse would speed up the World Government's reconstruction of naval forces considerably.
If Kong returned as Fleet Admiral, then with Sakazuki and that excellent enforcer serving as Admirals, the framework for a new Navy would essentially be in place.
If they could persuade Shanks to return to Mary Geoise with Garling's mediation, that would provide another immediate Admiral candidate.
With the Red-Haired Pirates' base plus the World Government's backing, the newborn Navy's strength could directly challenge the traitors at Marineford!
"We still have to screen for exceptional members among the Celestial Dragons themselves. Ordinary humans are ultimately unreliable. Even if we intervene personally, it's better than depending on those ants…"
Saturn shook his head disdainfully. In his view, the current mess was caused by relying too much on those ants.
They'd refrained from extreme measures earlier to avoid disturbing Im-sama, and perhaps that was excusable. But now that Im-sama had allowed them to use the Mother Flame, they should have eradicated every resister with overwhelming force.
Only such decisive action would deter the scheming opportunists — not hemming and hawing. They'd already seen Kizaru's despicable misuse of the Navy to foment rebellion, yet they still insisted on rebuilding a new Navy.
"We're not on stage yet. If Saturn is dissatisfied, perhaps you should first let those lowly pirates see what you can do."
Nasujuro Saint spoke with clear dissatisfaction. They were the Five Elders—second only to the supreme Imu, the five most exalted individuals in the world.
If they were to personally intervene every time trouble appeared, just as Saturn Saint suggested, then what difference would there be between the Five Elders and the God's Knights?
Peters Saint and Warcury Saint nodded in agreement. Even Nasujuro Saint, who leaned toward brute-force solutions, preferred using violence as a command—not personally displaying his own strength.
Only Mars Saint remained silent. He did not support Saturn Saint's proposal either, but if Saturn himself wished to take the field, Mars Saint was happy to allow it.
"Hmph. If it becomes necessary, of course this old man will act…"
Saturn Saint sneered disdainfully. He did not believe any pirate could survive the annihilation of Mother Flame or break through the God's Knights' defenses to stand before him.
If such a thing truly happened, Saturn Saint would gladly appear and show those insects what true despair meant.
But he never imagined that while he was preparing to teach the "Cosmic Dark Matter Pirates" and the "traitors" of the Marines despair…
Kizaru—who had already returned to Marineford—was also considering how best to make the Five Elders taste despair.
"Will it be in time? Mary Geoise is about to erupt into battle. Isn't it a bit too late to be modifying the machine army now?"
Kizaru scratched his head as he spoke to Vegapunk.
Back when he conquered Skypiea, Kizaru took a detour to the moon and activated the underground lunar city, establishing his own secret base there.
After meeting Vegapunk, and using his technology, he created a massive mechanical army within the lunar base.
If he hadn't later joined the dimensional chat group and met Boros, the one attacking Mary Geoise right now wouldn't be the Cosmic Dark Matter Pirates—it would have been the Ancient Lunar Automaton Army.
The problem, however, was that the ancient lunar robots were too weak. Even after years of accumulating a large force, they still weren't enough to threaten the World Government.
But now Vegapunk claimed he could upgrade them—drastically improving their combat power. That left Kizaru somewhat conflicted.
"It's enough time. I got inspiration from those scraps of machinery you brought me earlier. We don't need to directly modify the robots themselves—we can produce compatible components to enhance their combat capabilities. Even the components can be assembled from existing spare parts. Three days is all we need!"
Vegapunk said seriously.
Although the World Government had forced him to invent countless weapons, what Vegapunk truly wanted was to use his inventions to bring happiness to more people.
Thus, on the matter of overthrowing the World Government, Vegapunk had always stood firmly on Kizaru's side.
"Understood. I'll leave the lunar base to you—I'll have someone send you to the moon as soon as possible."
Kizaru agreed on the spot. Even though he was confident he could kill the Five Elders, one could never have too many trump cards.
Besides, he had filled several boxes of little notebooks with his "grudges" against the Five Elders—of course he intended to make those five old monsters experience true despair.
"Leave it to me! This time, we really can topple the World Government!"
Vegapunk took a deep breath. The last time he had felt this energized was when he was researching a geothermal heating system.
Unfortunately, he lacked the funds and resources back then, and couldn't save his homeland.
But this time, he silently swore he would give it everything he had.
As long as the World Government fell, he would no longer be forced to create killing machines. He could finally devote himself fully to inventions that saved people—bringing happiness to humanity.
"This is the first time I've seen Vegapunk this excited…"
Watching Vegapunk scribbling rapidly on his blueprints—coming up with new ideas and overturning old designs—Sengoku the Inspector-General couldn't help but sigh.
"Aren't you excited? The moment we completely overthrow the World Government… the moment we crush those Celestial Dragons…"
Kizaru glanced at Sengoku with a half-smile.
After all, once Sengoku learned Kizaru's true intentions, he barely hesitated before choosing to betray the World Government.
Though officially he claimed he did it "for the sake of the Marines," the sense of relief emanating from him was obvious to anyone who wasn't blind.
"Knowing too much tends to make you annoying. Anyway, it's about time. When are you planning to recall Garp and the others?"
Sengoku turned away with irritation, refusing to give Kizaru the chance to tease him further.
°°°
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