"Straw Hat…"
"Did not make a move!!!"
When this voice echoed in the conference room where Sengoku and the Gorosei were, the entire room instantly fell into extreme silence.
Time seemed to stop at that moment, with no movement to be felt.
After a moment of silence, an extremely agitated and furious roar suddenly erupted in the room.
"Are you kidding me?!"
"The three of you Admirals, plus 10 Pacifista, and thousands of Marineford elites."
"This level of power can easily crush any superpower and any pirate crew below the Four Emperors."
"Even when facing a Four Emperors' pirate crew, if they only deployed their cadres and elites, it shouldn't result in zero casualties for the opponent within this timeframe, right?!"
"With your power, it should have been an absolute overwhelming victory."
"How could it be the situation you are reporting now?!"
Sengoku's voice was extremely agitated and angry.
By the end, his body was even trembling slightly with excitement.
It wasn't that he was dissatisfied with the performance of the Three Admirals.
It was simply that this news was truly too unacceptable.
Although the Straw Hat was a very powerful hidden danger in their eyes, they were certainly not strong to such an exaggerated extent.
In fact, everyone in their hearts believed that the Straw Hat was inferior to any of the Four Emperors' pirate crews.
Such power, even when facing a Four Emperors' pirate crew, should not have led to such an unacceptable outcome for them.
And yet, the truth was precisely this unbelievable.
Not only Sengoku, but the Gorosei were also deeply shocked by this news at this moment.
They had always attached great importance to the Straw Hat.
They had even dispatched what they believed to be forces capable of absolutely overwhelming the Straw Hat to eliminate them on multiple occasions.
But each time, the results were unbelievable, exceeding their expectations again and again.
And what they found most unacceptable, no matter what, was the result of this time.
With Straw Hat not making a move, the Straw Hat resisted the super-powered forces led by the Three Admirals, inflicting heavy casualties on them, and even injuring Admiral Akainu!
Anyone who spoke of this would be telling a huge joke, and no one would believe it.
But now, the one telling this "joke" was Admiral Aokiji, one of the parties involved!
Aokiji seemed to have anticipated Sengoku's furious roar.
He showed no fluctuation because of it, maintaining his usual solemnity and seriousness, and reported to Sengoku with extreme earnestness.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"
"All this time, we have misjudged the Straw Hat."
"We always believed that among their crew, only Straw Hat was the most threatening existence."
"Of course, that view is not wrong!"
"Straw Hat indeed deserves our special attention."
"But precisely because we gave too much importance to Straw Hat…"
"It led us to overlook the others!"
"This operation…"
"With Straw Hat not making a move…"
"We were all stopped by the members of the Straw Hat."
"The combat power each of them displayed was enough to pose a threat to us Admirals."
"Among them, the Red Hair Songstress of the Straw Hat, who injured Akainu, displayed extremely powerful combat strength."
"Preliminary estimates suggest she has at least the strength to fight an Admiral!"
"The combat abilities displayed by the others also reached or even exceeded the strength of other Emperor crews' cadres."
Upon hearing this, Sengoku and the Gorosei were already too shocked to speak.
Aokiji then took a breath and said with extreme solemnity, "The Straw Hat is not the number one pirate crew below the Four Emperors!"
"They are an elite crew of…"
"A true Emperor's Crew!!!"
When Aokiji said those last few words, Sengoku and the Gorosei's pupils all trembled.
Any crew deemed an Emperor's Crew had to have fought for many years on the high seas, emerging as super strong from countless pirate crews.
Yet now, Aokiji had evaluated a pirate crew composed entirely of rookies as a true Emperor's Crew.
This made Sengoku and the Gorosei deeply shocked by the Straw Hat at this moment.
At the same time, they couldn't help but become even more worried.
How much of a threat would such a group of people pose to them in the future?
They no longer dared to think about it.
After a moment of silence, Sengoku forcibly suppressed the shock in his heart and said to Aokiji.
"Alright!"
"We'll talk about the Straw Hat later!"
"Now, you all immediately return to Marineford."
"I just received a report that Whitebeard has very likely started to move!"
Upon hearing Sengoku's words, the Three Admirals instantly became serious.
No matter how astonishing the Straw Hat were to them, Whitebeard was the enemy they needed to prioritize most right now.
"Yes!"
After responding, Aokiji hung up the phone and, along with the others, rushed to Marineford at top speed.
As for Sengoku, after finishing his call with Aokiji, he immediately excused himself to the Gorosei, planning to return to Marineford.
After Sengoku left, the Gorosei's room quickly became extremely quiet.
After this suffocating silence lasted for a while, Pitte Saint suddenly blurted out a sentence that made everyone in the room gasp.
"That fruit isn't going to awaken, is it?!"
As soon as these words were uttered, everyone's pupils constricted, and chills ran down their spines.
Although Pitte Saint didn't explain, they all instantly understood what he meant.
Saint Warcury immediately (ceeb) spoke up to deny it.
"No! That's impossible!"
"That fruit has become a legend to us!"
"In the past few hundred years, it has never awakened!"
However, no sooner had he finished speaking than Pitte Saint retorted.
"But leading a group of rookies to such a level in a short period is also an inexplicable miracle, isn't it?"
"Moreover, he now has at least Admiral-level strength, so it's not entirely impossible for him to achieve fruit awakening, is it?!"
"Even if it's that..."
"The fruit with the name of a 'God'!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Saint Warcury gritted his teeth, his expression grave, unable to refute.
Saint Nasujuro suddenly gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice.
"The World Government has tried to retrieve the rubber fruit in every era."
"But in these 800 years, it has never fallen into our hands."
"The closest we came to getting it was when Red Hair intercepted it while it was still being transported back!"
Saint Mars continued.
"For whatever reason, it's as if that fruit is avoiding us, always unable to fall into our hands."
"But that's not unfounded, right?!"
"Even Zoan fruits house a will, let alone this 'God' fruit!"
"This fruit with the name of a 'God', the other name for the rubber fruit is..."
"Zoan type, Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Nika Form!"
Upon hearing this name, a hint of worry and fear flashed in everyone's eyes.
Satan Saint frowned and said in a deep voice.
"All along, we have wanted to eliminate the user of this fruit."
"But the power that kid has shown is truly astonishing!"
"Perhaps this time..."
"We really have to prepare for the worst!"
As soon as these words were uttered, the Gorosei collectively fell silent, each secretly pondering how to face the future that worried them.
...
Two days later!
Calm Belt, Nine Snake Island!
A coastal sea area near Nine Snake Island.
Above the sea, a Marine ship and a pirate ship pulled by two giant sea snakes were anchored.
On the Marine ship, Momonga frowned, looking at the many pirates on the opposite pirate ship, and said to them.
"Nine Snake Pirates, you're finally back!"
"I've been waiting for you!"
His gaze swept across the deck, and finding no sign of the Empress, Momonga immediately shouted loudly at the pirate ship.
"Boa Hancock, the Pirate Empress of the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"Come out quickly!"
"I'm here to pick you up!"
Hearing Momonga's loud shouts, a chorus of voices immediately rose from the deck.
"Sorry! Snake Princess won't come out!"
"She's answered you several times, hasn't she?"
"It's a man! What a tasteless creature!"
Listening to these voices that clearly didn't take him seriously, Momonga wasn't angered by it.
Instead, he threw a newspaper onto their ship.
Then he spoke in an extremely stern and resolute tone.
"She clearly agreed to accept the summons immediately."
"But she still hasn't come to us!"
"This is today's newspaper."
"Fire Fist Ace's execution location and time have been confirmed; she can no longer go back on her word!"
"This mandatory Shichibukai summons is a strict order from the World Government!"
"If she refuses the summons, the agreement will be considered broken, and she will be stripped of her Shichibukai title!"
After saying this, Momonga roared again at the pirate ship opposite.
"Boa Hancock! Do you hear me?!"
No sooner had his voice fallen than a series of footsteps suddenly sounded.
Soon, everyone saw three women emerge from the cabin of the Nine Snake Pirate ship.
Seeing the one leading them, Momonga immediately said in a deep voice.
"You finally came out, Boa Hancock!"
The Empress, with her two sisters, boarded one of the sea snakes at the bow of the ship, then came to the Marine ship.
Standing atop the sea snake's head, she looked down at the Marines below.
Upon seeing the Empress appear, the eyes of the Marines below went wide.
"So...so beautiful!"
"Is that the Pirate Empress, known as the 'World's Most Beautiful Woman'?"
"She's truly a peerless beauty!"
Hearing these voices, Momonga immediately turned around and angrily cursed at the back.
"You fools, snap out of it!"
This roar immediately startled everyone.
They dared not utter another word.
And Momonga, at this moment, turned back to the Empress and said very seriously.
"There are only 5 days left until the execution!"
"Within these 5 days! Whitebeard and his crew will definitely make a move."
"Our Marineford has made up its mind!"
"We will meet them with all our fighting strength, led by the Three Admirals!"
"Do you want to be stripped of your Shichibukai title, or accept the summons?"
"Make your decision quickly!"
"There's no more time!"
When Momonga finished speaking, the Empress slowly and calmly said.
"I like the Shichibukai status, so I don't want to be stripped of the title."
"But I also hate the World Government, and I don't want to obey your orders!"
Hearing the Empress's reply, Momonga immediately frowned in exasperation.
"Stop being so willful!"
"You must make a choice!"
The Empress thought for a moment, then suddenly seemed to remember something and said.
"How about this!"
"The Marine unit that came to pick me up..."
"Due to an incredible accident at sea, everyone turned to stone and the entire force was wiped out!"
Upon hearing this, Momonga's frown deepened even further.
He said in an extremely low voice.
"I already told you! Stop being so willful!"
The Empress, however, showed no intention of changing her mind and said indifferently.
"No matter what I do..."
"Pull off your ears, kill people, or turn all of you into stone!"
"The whole world will still forgive me!"
"Do you know why?"
"That's right!"
"It's because..."
"I'm too beautiful!"
When the Empress finished speaking, the eyes of all the Marines and Nine Snake Pirates turned into heart shapes, completely insane.
"Wah ah! Lady Snake Princess!"
"Kyaaaah…"
Just as these people were going mad, the Empress suddenly formed her hands into a heart shape, aiming at Mole and the Marine troops.
"Mero Mero Mellow!"
Immediately, pink hearts were released from her hands, passing through everyone opposite her.
In an instant, all the Marines, maintaining their crazed, infatuated expressions, turned into stone.
Only Mole, at the moment the Empress activated her ability, stabbed his palm with a dagger, using the pain to evade the attack.
Seeing this, the Empress said coldly.
"Using pain to dispel evil thoughts?!"
"This must be the difference in experience!"
"But all your soldiers have turned to stone; only you are left."
Mole looked back at the Marines behind him, all turned to stone, and cursed in a low voice.
"A bunch of idiots!"
However, at this moment, the Empress no longer paid attention to Mole, turning instead to return to her pirate ship.
"Let's return to Amazon Lily!"
"Yes! Lady Snake Princess!"
Watching the Nine Snake Pirates' ship gradually depart, Mole suddenly stood up and shouted.
"Boa Hancock!"
"Tomorrow is the final deadline!"
"I will wait until then."
"If you don't appear by that time…"
"Consider the agreement broken!"
Facing the final reminder, the Empress merely scoffed, saying indifferently.
"Suit yourself!"
...
When the Nine Snake Pirates returned to their country, all the citizens had come out to greet them, and the scene was extremely grand.
"Welcome back!"
"Welcome back, Nine Snake Pirates!"
"Wah ah ah… Lady Snake Princess!"
"She's truly too beautiful!"
Amidst the infatuated cheers, the Empress remained aloof, directly entering a sedan chair prepared in advance and heading to the palace.
Just then, a small old woman suddenly walked to the pirate ship, approaching one of the cadres who had returned with the Empress and was directing the unloading.
"Ran, do you have any books or newspapers?"
Seeing the newcomer, Ran first greeted her politely.
"Niu Popo!"
Suddenly remembering the newspaper Mole had just given her, she took it out and handed it to Niu Popo.
"There's a newspaper that the Marineford people just gave us!"
Niu Popo took the newspaper, then bid farewell and left.
As she walked, she opened the newspaper and began to read.
The first content she saw immediately made her stop in her tracks, her eyes revealing endless shock.
"A Celestial Dragon was actually killed in public?!"
"Who on earth could do such a shocking thing?"
As Niu Popo's mind reeled, she immediately looked down, searching for the person reported to have done this.
When she reached a certain point, her gaze suddenly sharpened, falling upon that name.
"Straw Hat Monkey D. Luffy!"
...
Not long after the Empress returned to the palace, loud bells suddenly rang throughout the island.
Dong!
Dong!
Dong!
Hearing these bells, everyone on the island immediately stopped what they were doing and walked towards outside the city.
"Lady Snake Princess is taking a bath; go outside the city immediately!"
"I… I just started eating!"
"No, hurry up! Go outside quickly!"
"For the next two hours, no one is allowed to enter the city!"
Amidst the discussions and shouts, everyone in the city quickly arrived outside.
The Nine Snake Pirates' warriors also set up a defensive line to prevent anyone from entering the city.
About half an hour later, just as these people were all waiting boredly, a gasp suddenly arose from the crowd.
"Look at the sky, something is flying!"