The violent explosion raised an incomparably huge mushroom cloud, overturning everything around it.
Even Sengoku, Garp, and the others were blown away.
As for Sakazuki and the rest, they had no idea where they had been blasted off to.
"What was that?" Borsalino said, retreating as a beam of light the instant the explosion erupted.
"What... is this?" Redfield said, his face full of utter shock.
Just what kind of thing was that?
It was far too terrifying.
It was fortunate this was the Red Line.
If that had happened on a small island, that island probably would have ceased to exist.
"Your Majesty!" Bins cried out, panic on his face.
That explosion had been too horrifying.
Even though Bins knew how overwhelmingly powerful Rosinante was, he still couldn't help but worry.
"This... could it be? The Five Elders actually activated that national treasure? Has it really come to this?" Sengoku said in shock.
In Sengoku's memory, only that one sacred treasure of the World Government possessed such horrifying power.
At that moment, five old men slowly began walking toward the battlefield.
Their steps looked slow...
yet they were incredibly fast.
They had seemed far away just a moment ago, but in the blink of an eye, they were already standing before everyone.
"Could these be... the highest rulers of the World Government, the Five Elders?" Redfield said in astonishment as he looked at the five men.
The pressure coming from those five was immense.
Even Redfield felt tremendous pressure from them.
To have five such monsters appear at once made even him sigh at the sheer depth of the World Government's and the Celestial Dragons' foundation.
After appearing, the Five Elders stood in place and stared at the violent explosion.
Their expressions were calm.
They said nothing.
They paid no attention to anyone else present.
Because of their appearance, the battle between Redfield and Sengoku, and the battle between Bins and CP0, both came to a halt.
Everyone now watched the raging explosion with tense expressions.
Only after quite some time did the blast finally begin to settle.
And when the explosion gradually faded, a deep, enormous crater was revealed.
Standing at the center of that crater...
was a single man.
His clothes had been completely torn apart, but there was not a single visible wound on his body.
That man was Rosinante.
Crimson steam still rose from his body.
Though compared to before, the amount had clearly diminished quite a bit.
"He's... completely unharmed?!" Purple Steed said in disbelief, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.
At this moment, Sengoku's face was extremely serious.
The others, too, all stared at Rosinante in the center of the crater with shock written all over their faces.
When the Five Elders saw that Rosinante was entirely uninjured, their expressions changed as well.
But then, they quickly returned to calm.
"Rosinante, have you made enough of a scene yet?" the blond-haired Five Elder finally spoke.
"Oh? Long time no see, the five of you. Don't be so tense. You even brought that thing out. If something happened that you weren't prepared for, what then? You know that thing isn't something you can just casually use. Activating it this time must've cost you quite a lot, right?" Rosinante said.
"And who do you think all of this was for?!" the round-headed, white-bearded Five Elder glared at Rosinante and shouted.
"Rosinante, enough. If this matter alarms that person, then you know very well what the consequences will be. Tell us what you want. Even if you want control of the World Government... even if you want to become one of the Five Elders, we can agree to it. After all, you also carry the blood of the Celestial Dragons. And with strength like yours, you're fully qualified to become one of us," said the curly-haired Elder wearing the flat cap.
The moment those words were spoken, everyone present was stunned speechless.
Had things really escalated to this point?
The Five Elders were actually willing to make such an enormous concession?
Sengoku and Sengoku both darkened, thinking the same thing.
"One of the Five Elders? I can't be bothered with something that troublesome. I only came to the Red Line today for one thing: Nightless City. Back then, in Nightless City, I made three great promises. Now those promises have been shattered by those bastards. And because of my promises, those fish-men and special races have been persecuted. This matter began because of me, so I can't ignore it. Today, you must give me a resolution," Rosinante said.
"Just for that?" the sword-bearing Five Elder said in disbelief, veins bulging on his forehead.
"What else did you think it was for? To destroy the World Government? Or overthrow it and build a new nation? Overthrowing the World Government would be easy. But building a new country and governing the world afterward would be too troublesome. I've already lost interest in that kind of hassle," Rosinante said calmly.
When they heard Rosinante say that toppling the World Government would be easy, Sengoku and the others were furious.
But none of them could say a word.
Because Rosinante had the right to say it.
If the Five Elders hadn't activated that secret treasure to block him just now, then perhaps the Navy would already have suffered catastrophic losses.
And if Rosinante did that a few more times...
the Navy's top combat forces might all have been buried here today.
...