Luffy's sudden appearance was completely unexpected.
Kong's expression turned solemn.
According to his plan, he intended to eliminate Dressrosa and Doflamingo as quickly as possible before Straw Hat had time to interfere.
This operation needed to be carried out swiftly. After all, the Straw Hat flag was flying over that island.
But he had never expected that, shortly after the other party reached Laugh Tale, someone who should have been deep within the New World would suddenly appear there.
That was irrational!
Could he move instantaneously?
"How the hell did you get here?!"
Kong took a deep breath and thought to himself:
'During the Marineford War, the Red Hair Pirates did the same thing! They suddenly appeared on the battlefield… what kind of special method do these pirates possess?'
The day before the Marineford War began, the Navy had also received intelligence regarding the clash between the Red Hair Pirates and the Beasts Pirates.
As a result, on the day the war started, at noon, the Red Hair Pirates appeared directly at Marineford!
No one had any idea how that absurd mobility was possible.
The current situation was exactly the same as back then.
Plans could never keep up with change.
On the deck, a Rear Admiral asked in a frightened voice:
"W-What should we do, Commander Kong?"
"He's alone! Fire! Use that weapon!"
Kong gave the order coldly.
The instructions were immediately transmitted to every warship through the Den Den Mushi.
In the next instant, the main cannons of the ten warships raised their barrels and, with deafening roars, fired some kind of special projectile toward Luffy in the sky.
The main cannons of the warships were incredibly powerful. Each battery contained three cannons, and a single volley launched thirty projectiles!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A barrage of artillery shells exploded through the heavens.
"Hm?"
Luffy let out a faint sigh.
With his future-seeing Observation Haki, he clearly saw the scene of the explosion beforehand.
Those were not the ordinary iron cannonballs used by the Marines. These projectiles utilized explosive energy to achieve absurd destructive power.
The ammunition fired at that moment consisted of oval stones soaked in a red liquid. As soon as they were launched, the transparent outer layer shattered, and the moment the contents came into contact with oxygen, they produced an explosion powerful enough to destroy an entire city.
Thirty of those bombs fired simultaneously could erase even a country from the map!
Explosive Stones!
Luffy recognized the weapon instantly.
BOOM!
As he thought that, the Explosive Stones detonated all at once.
A gigantic sphere of fire appeared in the sky. Its diameter expanded instantly for thousands of meters, and the temperature at its center was high enough to melt steel in an instant.
Even the shockwaves alone were enough to kill several nearby Sea Kings.
The impact created an enormous tsunami that surged violently toward the warships.
"Did we get him…?"
The Marines stared nervously toward the center of the thick smoke.
After the tsunami struck the fleet, all ten warships suffered varying degrees of damage.
Kong's gaze was filled with suspicion, yet he could no longer sense Luffy's presence.
Did he die instantly?
"Keep reloading!" he shouted.
The sailors immediately obeyed, loading new Explosive Stones into the main cannons and preparing for another volley.
At that moment, smoke and dust rose into the sky, forming something resembling a mushroom cloud.
Suddenly, a figure slowly emerged from the smoke.
Luffy stepped through the air and walked out from the center of the explosion.
He waved his hand in front of his face, dispersing the suffocating smell of smoke.
"Impossible…! He didn't suffer any damage at all?!"
Kong's eyes widened as he muttered in disbelief.
Luffy had walked out from the center of the explosion without even a visible scratch.
The power of that blast was enough to injure even an Admiral at close range!
Luffy chuckled softly and said:
"The explosion is really powerful. It feels like a small nuclear bomb. If there were three hundred of them, maybe you could actually hurt me."
Facing Kong's furious expression, Luffy snapped his fingers.
"Flying Shigan!"
Compressed air bullets shot from his fingertips at terrifying speed like invisible projectiles.
At the same time, he applied the hundredfold acceleration of the Momo Fruit.
In an instant, the main cannons of all ten warships were pierced simultaneously.
BOOM!
The artillery fortresses exploded one after another.
Moreover, the air bullets did not lose momentum after piercing through the cannons. They continued forward, penetrating the entire warships themselves.
From a diagonal angle descending from the sky, they tore through the decks and continued all the way down into the sea below.
BOOM!
One of the Vice Admirals was utterly shocked.
"It's Rokushiki!?"
How could a Flying Shigan be this powerful?
Flying Shigan was not a rare technique.
It was merely a derived Rokushiki ability — an extension of Shigan. Normally, its power was only enough to injure an enemy's body.
But piercing steel, tearing through entire warships, and continuing onward… that required absurd mastery!
Luffy then calmly looked toward Kong and said:
"Kong, Commander-in-Chief of the World Government's armed forces… I wish to trade your life for the families of those Marines who participated in the previous war. Would your superiors accept that deal?"
As he spoke, Luffy extended his right palm forward and spread his fingers.
His five fingers transformed into green vines, which shot toward the fleet from his fingertips.
Accelerated by the Momo Fruit, this type of attack reached speeds measured in Mach!
Even Kong's Observation Haki could not keep up with that velocity.
But no matter how fast an attack was, Kong knew every strike still required a preparatory movement before being launched.
It was like Kizaru's attacks. Although they moved at the speed of light, the initial motion could still be perceived.
Or like a supersonic bullet: the projectile itself was too fast, but the act of pulling the trigger could still be predicted.
"Ryokugyu's power!"
Kong's face darkened as he prepared to counterattack.
However… he simply could not react.
He could not even see properly.
SCHLIK!
The tips of four vines instantly pierced through his limbs.
Both arms and both legs were impaled simultaneously.
The impact lifted Kong's body off the ground, and just as he was about to be flung backward, the fifth vine wrapped around his neck like a chain and tightened violently.
"Commander Kong!"
The Rear Admiral beside him felt his pupils shrink sharply.
The instant he shifted his gaze from Luffy to Kong, the commander had already been dragged into the sky by the vines.
The Marines turned pale with shock as they raised their heads to witness the scene.
A single movement.
Just one strike!!
At that moment, Kong hung suspended before Luffy, restrained by the vines.
"You've grown too old to react to this?"
Luffy smiled brightly.
Kong was suspended in the air in a crucified posture, vines piercing through his limbs while another tightened around his neck. His aged face had already turned red from lack of oxygen.
"Straw Hat…!"
He spoke through clenched teeth.
Ignoring the man's powerless fury, Luffy calmly looked toward the warships below.
"Inform your superiors and prepare the ransom. What I want isn't money… but the families of the Navy soldiers who participated in the previous war!"
As he spoke, he clapped his free hand.
In an instant, gigantic vegetation rapidly sprouted from his palm, covering the sky and blotting out the sun.
Within seconds, the entire Buster Call fleet was imprisoned in the sea.
---xXx---
Holy Land Mariejois.
The Elders stood before a woman.
She possessed a voluptuous figure, adorable features, hair styled into two large wavy locks, and wore protective goggles.
She was a clone created by Vegapunk representing "Desire": York.
"Then why not kill the main body? This world only needs one Vegapunk! Don't you already control Egghead now?"
She spoke.
Saint Saturn answered expressionlessly:
"We still have no guarantee that you alone can maintain the 'research and development factory' necessary to supply that weapon."
"I can! Understand? We satellites are identical to the main body! We possess the exact same level of scientific intelligence!"
York replied hurriedly.
"Besides, the energy source you want… the Mother Flame has practically been completed for a long time already. Only the final stage remains. The main body suspected your intentions, which is why he never revealed anything."
"What!? Why didn't you say that earlier?!"
The four Elders were shocked.
"You people only keep talking about my conditions! I want to become a Celestial Dragon! Empty promises aren't enough — I need to see sincerity!"
The Elders exchanged glances.
The request to turn York into a Celestial Dragon had already been approved by Imu personally. Naturally, they had no intention of going back on it.
Suddenly, a black butterfly floated through the hall.
York immediately became frightened.
The shadows on the floor rapidly spread outward until they took the shape of a person.
"Y-you are…?"
York took two steps back.
Imu silently stared at the woman before speaking:
"I already promised you this… satellite of Vegapunk."
"You're Imu…!"
York's eyes widened.
She immediately remembered what she had seen in the newspapers.
"I am York! Not some mere clone!"
Upon seeing Imu appear personally, the Elders immediately stood up.
Saint Saturn's expression darkened as he rebuked her:
"Why have you not knelt before Lord Imu yet?!"
As he said that, the Elders themselves knelt first.
Now that Imu's existence had already been partially exposed to the world through the newspapers, there was no longer any reason to hide it from York.
Swallowing nervously, York quickly knelt as well.
Imu spoke calmly:
"You have done well. Are you now capable of operating the Mother Flame?"
"Y-yes…"
"Where are the clones?"
"The first prototype has been completed. The experiment succeeded, and the ability was copied. But the other Shichibukai clones still need more time to mature."
York answered honestly.
Under those red eyes, she felt suffocating pressure.
This was the king of the Celestial Dragons…
An immortal who had lived for at least eight hundred years!
At that moment, even York felt an intense desire.
She, too, wanted to live forever.
Imu slowly turned around.
"Follow me. I will take you to the place where the weapon is stored."
A short while later.
York followed Imu out of Mariejois and toward the Florian Triangle.
Within the thick fog, a gigantic prism-shaped weapon emitted a deafening roar as it floated through the sky.
The sound of its movement made the very air tremble.
Standing atop Uranus beneath the shadow of sunlight, the silhouettes of Imu and York stretched across the floor like enormous distorted monsters.
"How long until charging is complete?"
"The factory is still in its final stage! Give me a month… n-no, half a month!"
York answered quickly while staring at the Ancient Weapon beneath her with shining eyes.
That was the supreme crystallization of the Ancient Kingdom's technology.
Imu nodded expressionlessly.
"When charging is complete… you will become a Celestial Dragon."
(End of Chapter)