Not long after, the Marine fleet finally arrived — late as always.
When they learned that two of the Five Elders had already reached Impel Down, both Iron Fist Garp and Black Arm Zephyr found convenient excuses to stay aboard their warships. Neither had any interest in facing those arrogant tyrants of the world government.
Garp had seen firsthand the filth and cruelty behind the so-called "Native Purge Competitions." Zephyr, for his part, despised the entire Shichibukai system, and hated even more that the higher-ups were considering recruiting the very criminal who had murdered his students as one of those government-sanctioned pirates.
Seeing the disgust written across the faces of their two veteran heroes, Sakazuki (Akainu) and Tensei Kuroma, the head of the Marine Criminal Investigation Bureau, could only grit their teeth and lead a detachment of Marine officers into Impel Down — straight into the storm.
The sight that greeted them was catastrophic. The once-impenetrable prison was in ruins. And when they saw the dark, cold expressions of the two Elders — Saint Marcus Mars and Saint Peter — they immediately understood the gravity of the situation.
"Execute every communications officer responsible for monitoring Impel Down," said Saint Mars, his voice colder than steel.
That single sentence sealed the fate of an entire unit of Marine signal operators.
"Yes, sir!" Kuroma bowed his head instantly, his forehead slick with cold sweat. He didn't dare meet the Elder's eyes.
"If we had discovered Impel Down's condition the moment contact was lost," Saint Peter added, his tone dripping with murderous intent, "the Kiryuu Pirates could never have escaped — let alone taken so many prisoners with them."
According to the reports, after contact with Impel Down was lost, the Marine liaison officers had spent hours trying to re-establish communication. Only when that failed did they finally alert Akainu and Kuroma. And even then, Akainu had insisted on sending a scout team to confirm the situation before acting.
By the time they discovered the massive Thunder Cage and realized that Souta Kiryuu's crew had invaded, half a day had already been wasted.
Even Saint Mars, who flew at blinding speed, had arrived nearly an hour too late.
"This was our negligence," Akainu said stiffly, accepting the fault without a flicker of emotion.
He knew it was true. If he had personally led his forces to Impel Down from the start instead of waiting for confirmation, he might have blocked Kiryuu's escape. With his Magma Fruit powers, he could have sealed every exit in the sixth level of the prison, holding them there until the Five Elders arrived.
But now, those words meant nothing.
The Kiryuu Pirates had taken Impel Down's most dangerous prisoners — and would only grow stronger from here.
"Hmph. You Marines have disappointed me deeply," Saint Mars spat. "When Sengoku returns, the three of you — you, Aokiji, and Kizaru — will go to Mariejois and offer your apologies in person."
Without another word, a glowing magic circle appeared beneath his feet, and he vanished. Saint Peter gave a cold snort and followed him into the light.
When they were gone, Kuroma's back was drenched in sweat.
"Begin tallying the casualties and escaped prisoners," he ordered weakly, exhaling a shaky breath.
Akainu said nothing. Streams of magma dripped from his clenched fists, hissing as they struck the floor. His expression was icy, but fury boiled beneath the surface. Without a word, he turned and walked away. He would personally carry out the execution of the communications unit — fulfilling the Elders' bloody command.
Back in Mariejois, the two Elders wasted no time. Armed with surveillance snails and broadcast footage from Divine-Demon Island, they convened an emergency council with the other members of the Five Elders.
The projected images showed the Kiryuu Pirates — and more importantly, several warriors with dark skin, white hair, and black wings.
"Lunarian lineage… could that be part of Vegapunk's Seraphim Project?" one Elder muttered.
"Souta Kiryuu must have used his own genetic factor," another said grimly.
As they studied the images, their anger deepened. They recognized the Lunarian traits immediately — and they saw Kiryuu's face reflected in those creations.
"On Divine-Demon Island, that Seraphim firing those massive energy blasts — it's clearly a Devil Fruit user," growled one of them. "That bastard Vegapunk must have given him more trouble than we thought."
"And those humanoid weapons that look exactly like Bartholomew Kuma," another added. "The laser cannons they fired… even a Marine Vice Admiral wouldn't survive that."
"If Vegapunk hadn't been abducted by Souta Kiryuu, all of these artificial soldiers would have been ours," an Elder hissed, slamming his fist into the table.
The more they analyzed the footage, the grimmer their faces became.
"That one… the Seraphim with gravity abilities," one Elder noted sharply. "When Marco the Phoenix ambushed their airship, he was suddenly crushed out of the sky. That meteor that shattered the barrier — it must have been summoned by him."
Their expressions turned frigid. The Lunarian physiology combined with top-tier Devil Fruit abilities… such beings were living weapons — and now they were in Souta Kiryuu's hands.
"We must locate Kiryuu's crew immediately," said Saturn, his tone like ice.
A chilling thought spread among them: if the Kiryuu Pirates managed to mass-produce these Seraphim, the World Government could face its first true crisis in eight hundred years.
"It's been too long with no trace of them," Saturn continued. "Could it be that they've acquired the Gravity Fruit and Float-Float Fruit — like Golden Lion Shiki — and are hiding in the sky?"
The others exchanged uneasy looks.
"If that's true… then they might be concealed on one of the undiscovered sky islands."
"When Kiryuu kidnapped Vegapunk, airships began appearing not long after. It's entirely possible."
"Then our focus must shift," another Elder said. "Start sweeping the skies. Search every sky island and isolated landmass — no matter how remote."
Under immense pressure from Lord Im and the Celestial Dragon families, the Five Elders quickly drafted a new directive. The entire intelligence network of the World Government would now prioritize hunting down Souta Kiryuu.
If the Kiryuu Pirates continued unchecked — if they mastered mass production of the Seraphim and integrated the Impel Down prisoners — they could become something beyond even imagination.
The next day, far above the clouds, the Ark Testament and four accompanying warships safely returned to the Sky Island base.
The moment they arrived, Souta Kiryuu delivered the vials of rare blood samples they'd collected to Vegapunk, instructing him to accelerate the synthesis of Paramecia-type Green Blood — the replication source for the powers of the Quake-Quake Fruit, Soul-Soul Fruit, and Clone-Clone Fruit.
With these, they could activate the remaining three Seraphim — completing the Kiryuu Six Paths, the destructive mirror of Kiryuu himself.
Each would wield the terrifying might of a top-tier Paramecia ability — enough to shake the world.
When united under Kiryuu's command, their combined strength could even rival the legendary Whitebeard, Edward Newgate. Even Kaido of the Beasts would be hard-pressed to endure their assault.
Kiryuu also planned to assign the Seraphim Kuma as their logistical support — responsible for absorbing damage and relocating allies during combat.
And despite his auxiliary role, that Seraphim was still a force to be feared. Anyone who underestimated him would pay dearly.
"Ehehehahaha! Patience… stay patient," Kiryuu laughed darkly, restraining the surge of pride rising in his chest. "The Kiryuu Pirates still aren't ready to challenge the Five Elders head-on."
He exhaled slowly, calming himself. This was not yet the time for the final war. They still had to grow.
Kaido and Dragon might be his temporary "allies," but in truth, they could never be trusted completely. Only when his own power and army reached their absolute peak would he be truly invincible.
While the World Government and the Marines scrambled in chaos, Souta Kiryuu made his next move — taking the Seraphim of Heaven's Path and Human Path, and setting out alongside the Pirate Empress to return to Amazon Lily, preparing to relocate the entire island of women to safety.
The storm was only beginning.
...
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