Although Emit was a robot and Marco's system couldn't read the "levels" of non-living things, he still judged that its combat power was at least on the Admiral level.
In the original story, Emit had fought the Gorosei and even shattered the tusks of that wild boar, Warcury. In the end, the Gorosei had taken Emit apart and turned it into scrap metal—but that was only because they'd ganged up on it. In a true one-on-one, it wouldn't have been so easy for even the Gorosei to bring Emit down.
Emit spoke up at once. "Marco, can you help me recharge my energy? I don't have much left, so I can't assist you in combat."
The idea piqued Marco's interest. If he could, he really wanted to kidnap this giant robot for himself. "As for energy," he replied, "there's probably only one person who can help you. But let me deal with Imu first."
While Marco and Emit talked, Imu hadn't been idle. He was using telepathy to contact the Gorosei.
Imu's voice was icy. "Saturn, Nusjuro, Peter—when can you get here?"
Saturn, one of the Gorosei, answered with a hint of apology. "Forgive us, Imu-sama. Because of that Haoshoku earlier, all our transfer anchor points on Egghead have vanished. But please rest assured, we will immediately transfer to the island closest to Egghead and hurry to support you."
A flicker of disappointment and displeasure flashed in Imu's eyes, but his tone remained indifferent. "No need. This island no longer needs to exist."
With that, Imu cut off the telepathic link, completely losing faith in his so-called loyal servants.
As the king of the world, he hadn't expected that, in the end, he would have to take care of everything himself.
Marco shifted his gaze back to Imu. Just as Imu was about to speak, Marco attacked without warning. Imu's expression tightened with annoyance. "How rude. Just like Joy Boy back then."
"Oh?" Marco's curiosity was piqued.
As the clash between Imu and Marco continued, Marco gradually gained the upper hand. The main reason was that the body Imu was currently possessing was too frail to draw out his full power. The longer the battle dragged on, the more injuries Imu accumulated—some from Marco's blows, and some simply because the host body couldn't withstand such high-intensity combat.
Imu's expression stayed calm. He already understood he could no longer defeat Marco, but through this fight, he had roughly gauged his strength. His gaze swept over the Marines in the distance—those insects had fled without his permission, and that fact enraged him.
Mere Marines. They were nothing more than pet dogs raised by the World Government, yet the moment danger came, they abandoned their master and ran. It was intolerable to Imu.
Even so, had the Marines stayed, they wouldn't have been of much use. In truth, running away had been the correct choice.
"Marine, kill Kaido and Big Mom immediately. Since they can't become Mu's war slaves, there's no reason for them to live."
As the king of the world, he completely looked down on these Marines.
It was like a company president issuing orders: they'd speak to a secretary or a general manager, never directly to a random team leader or intern.
But he had no choice right now. Joy Boy's Haoshoku had forcibly blown the Gorosei and the God's Knights back to Mary Geoise. For the moment, the only forces he could move were these Marines.
Fujitora had never met Imu before, yet his observation Haki and sharp hearing were extraordinary. From the Gorosei and the God's Knights, he had already learned the identity of this celestial dragon.
World King Imu.
A being truly standing at the absolute apex of this world.
So when Imu spoke, Fujitora answered with respect. "Understood, Imu-sama…"
Hearing an "ant" like Fujitora speak his name grated on Imu's nerves. He felt insulted, but Marco was in front of him, hurling relentless attacks, and he forced down his displeasure, choosing not to dwell on it.
High in the sky, the warships were fleeing forward, a giant pink dragon in hot pursuit. Hundreds of powerful fighters stood on the dragon's back, bombarding the Marine fleet with long‑range attacks.
Ulti roared furiously, "Zack, speed up! Speed up! Get closer! I'm gonna take them out!"
Zack snapped back, half‑complaining, "Easy for you to say! If I get too close, Fujitora's gravity will just knock me flying again!"
He had already tried to close the distance once. But some kind of gravity barrier seemed to surround the warships. The moment he approached, Fujitora used horizontal gravity to slam him away, leaving the top fighters of the Three Emperors Alliance on his back suffering along with him.
Katakuri said gravely, "Just keep attacking from here. I can feel it—Fujitora's aura has weakened."
Smoothie said anxiously, "But that Imu already ordered Fujitora to kill Mama!"
The moment those words left her mouth, the elites of the Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates all tensed, panic flashing across their faces.
On the warships, shaken awake by the massive impact of the ongoing battle, Kaido and Big Mom had both regained consciousness. Sea Stone chains bound their bodies, and with their earlier injuries piled on, neither of them could break free.
Kaido watched as Fujitora stepped up in front of him and let out a low laugh. "Worororo… Fujitora, you here to kill me? I heard what that World King Imu said just now."
Fujitora's face was like stone. As a Marine, he preferred to take pirates alive—but under these circumstances, he had no other choice.
Being hounded nonstop by the Three Emperors Alliance, he could no longer hold them back. The only reason they hadn't already been wiped out was because he'd lifted the warships into the sky, forcing the battle into the air. If they'd been fighting on the ground, with such a difference in numbers, the Marines would've been crushed in an instant.
Even so, the officers of the Three Emperors Alliance were hardly easy opponents, even in midair. If this dragged on, his stamina would give out first. When that happened, not only would he die, but the thousands of Marines clinging to life aboard the warships would die with him—and Kaido and Big Mom would eventually be rescued.
Right now, the only path to survival was to kill Kaido and Big Mom outright. As long as those two died, the Three Emperors Alliance would have no reason to keep chasing them.
To think that they, dignified Marines—and he, an Admiral standing for justice—were being chased and driven into such a pitiful retreat by pirates… it was nothing short of absurd.
Within Fujitora's Observation Haki, he could feel both Kaido and Big Mom had regained consciousness, though Big Mom's injuries were clearly more severe.
Slowly, Fujitora drew his cane-sword and said coldly, "Although I do not wish to take your lives, if I do not abandon you two here, it will be very difficult for us to retreat. Therefore, I must ask you both to die."
In a fury, Kaido yanked at the Sea Stone chains around him, the iron clanging wildly as he roared, "If you want to kill me, then come and try!"
"Your strength is indeed formidable. In a direct battle, I might not be your match," Fujitora replied evenly, "but now you are bound by Sea Stone chains. Killing a powerless man is still within my capabilities."
The corners of his mouth lifted into a sly smile. "However, I love gambling more than anything in this life. So today, I'll place a bet—and the stakes will be your lives."
The moment his words fell, Fujitora's cane-sword flashed downward. In an instant, blood sprayed from the throats of Kaido and Big Mom.
On Zack's back, Katakuri's pupils shrank sharply. He roared, "Bastard! Fujitora, what do you think you're doing to Mama…!"
"Lord Kaido…!" "Mama…!" The Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates behind them bellowed in rage at the sight, but there was still a gap between the two sides. No matter how furious they were, they couldn't close the distance.
"Damn it…" King shot straight toward Fujitora.
But just as he drew near, a meteorite in the sky seemed to lock onto him and came crashing down.
King instantly drew his blade and cleaved the massive meteorite clean in half.
Kaido and Big Mom lay on the warship decks, hacking and sputtering as fresh blood burst from their necks in wild, pulsing jets.
"Hohoho... what terrifying power. Rest assured, they're not dead yet," Fujitora said calmly. "But if you keep chasing us, they might just lose their lives."
As he spoke, Fujitora drew his cane-sword and, with a subtle motion, used his gravity to wrench the sections of deck beneath Kaido and Big Mom free from the warship. The chunks of wood groaned and slowly rose into the air with the two Yonko still on top of them.
"Ba–bastard! Fujitora, what are you trying to do to Lord Kaido and Big Mom!?" Ulti screamed, her voice cracking with fury.
Blood streamed endlessly from the two emperors' necks. Even for monsters like them, the neck was still a critical point. A wound like that should have been fatal.
"Cough... cough... damn it..." Kaido rasped, hacking violently as his gaze locked onto Fujitora. Even as the so‑called strongest creature, he could feel blood flooding his lungs, every breath turning into a struggle.
Fujitora's slash had been almost surgically precise. He had stopped just short of cutting off their heads, instead neatly severing both their carotid arteries and tracheas.
With their carotids cut, blood to the brain would be choked off, leading to oxygen deprivation and eventual coma. At the same time, with their tracheas sliced open, blood would pour into their airways and lungs, drowning them from the inside and causing death by suffocation and blood loss.
However, these two were monsters of the Four Emperors. Even with their carotid arteries and tracheas severed, even with injuries that would kill anyone else in moments, they would not die so easily.
Fujitora understood this perfectly. He also knew that if he executed Kaido and Big Mom outright in front of the Beasts Pirates and Big Mom Pirates, both crews would go berserk. They would hunt the Marines to the ends of the sea for revenge, turning any retreat into a nightmare.
Right now, their warships floated only because of his gravity. If those ships were destroyed, every Marine aboard would be doomed. Even if Fujitora himself escaped, there would be no way to justify that outcome to Marine Headquarters.
"From here on, whether you two live or die depends on your own fortune..." Fujitora murmured. With a slight tilt of his head, he shifted the gravity. The two floating chunks of deck holding Kaido and Big Mom suddenly dropped, plummeting toward the ocean below.
"Kaido—!"
"Mama—!"
King and Katakuri lunged at once, ready to dive after them.
But Fujitora moved first.
Two massive meteorites, dragged from the heavens and accelerated by his gravity, roared down from the sky. In the blink of an eye they slammed into Kaido and Big Mom, pinning their bodies under crushing force and driving them straight into the sea.
Two earth‑shattering booms exploded across the battlefield. The Yonko vanished beneath the waves, and dark clouds of blood quickly spread through the churning seawater.
Seeing this, the Big Mom Pirates and Beasts Pirates abandoned their chase of Fujitora. Instead, they broke off at once and threw themselves into rescuing Kaido and Big Mom.
One after another, the non–Devil Fruit users dove into the sea to drag Kaido and Big Mom back up, while Fujitora seized the opening to lead the Marines in a full retreat.
For Kaido and Big Mom, it was a despair unlike anything they had ever felt. Sea Stone chains bound their bodies, fresh wounds gaped at their necks, and a massive meteorite pinned them down, forcing them deeper and deeper into the dark seawater.
Big Mom's head grew hazier with every second. Blood loss, grievous injuries, lack of air, and the freezing sea steadily drained the warmth from her enormous body.
"…This feeling again…" Big Mom's thoughts slipped toward despair. The last time she'd felt something like this was when Akainu's fist had punched straight through her body. But back then, she'd been on her own territory. She had immediately devoured her Homies and recovered.
This time was different. First, Saint Nusjuro had gravely wounded and captured her. Then Fujitora had slit her throat. Now she'd been hurled into the ocean. It felt like every drop of blood was leaking out of her; her mind was going blank.
"Is this… the feeling of death?" As her consciousness unraveled, the faces of her cherished children surfaced in her mind. Maybe joining forces with Kaido and Marco, forming that alliance of three Emperors, had been a mistake. Even as a Yonko, she realized now that her strength lagged far behind theirs.
After she died, her children would probably just be used up—treated as disposable pawns by Kaido and Marco.
She didn't know how much time had passed when the crushing suffocation finally eased. Fishman Namur, along with several other Fishmen, hauled Kaido and Big Mom up from the depths. Perospero, the eldest son of the Charlotte Family, immediately extended his tongue and used his Devil Fruit, spreading a huge layer of syrup over the sea. It quickly hardened, forming a temporary sugar continent.
"Cough… cough, cough…" Kaido snapped back to awareness the moment he was dragged onto the syrup surface, hacking up seawater. But from the sheer volume of blood he'd lost, his face was ashen and his eyes dull. Even a Zoan user couldn't shrug off damage like this.
"Kaido-san…!" King's voice trembled with urgency as he brought his longsword down in a sharp arc, slicing through the Sea Stone chains binding Kaido.
"Stinky old man…" Yamato stared at the hideous gash across Kaido's neck, blood still pouring out, and a strange, uncomfortable tightness filled her chest. She hated him—but seeing him reduced to this left her deeply unsettled.
The moment the Sea Stone fell away, Kaido instinctively clutched at his throat, pressing his massive hand over the wound to slow the bleeding.
"Quick! Perform surgery on Kaido-san immediately!" King shouted, his order ringing across the syrup-coated sea.
For an ordinary injury, Kaido's monstrous physique would've shrugged it off even without treatment. But this gash was at his neck—a vital spot for any living being. Even for Kaido, the so‑called strongest creature on land, sea, and air, a wound like this could be fatal without immediate surgery.
"Mama…" Katakuri turned to Big Mom. Her condition was far worse than Kaido's. She was already in shock from massive blood loss.
"Katakuri, we have to operate on Mama as soon as possible!" Garett shouted.
Katakuri's face was grim. He raised his voice, giving the order, "Return to Egghead Island immediately!"
Only by getting back to Egghead Island, with its cutting‑edge technology, did they have any hope of saving Mama's life.
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