Tsuru remained motionless throughout, fearing El might misinterpret any action as a trick and attack them.
El examined the Op-Op Fruit in his hand, then looked at the four Marines.
Sengoku and Tsuru were drenched in cold sweat. This feeling of awaiting judgment was truly awful!
"Deal. You may leave."
El looked down at the four, then turned away.
Sengoku, Zephyr, and Tsuru felt as if they had been granted a reprieve from death itself. They immediately carried Garp and left the island at top speed!
El gazed at the Op-Op Fruit in his hand.
The Devil Fruit was remarkably beautiful, heart-shaped and red, much like a human heart.
He commented softly, "A wise man knows when to yield… Sengoku and the others aren't as stubborn as I thought."
He had originally intended to kill all four of them, which would have been no trouble for him.
But since Sengoku and his companions were sensible enough to offer him the Op-Op Fruit directly, there was no need for him to annihilate them.
He put away the Op-Op Fruit.
Suddenly, he looked up toward a distant direction, a flash of lightning seeming to pass through his eyes!
El was looking directly toward Doflamingo's temporary hiding spot!
Doflamingo suddenly felt a shiver run down his spine, like a beast sensing immense danger, an instinctual warning from his body.
"Quickly! We need to leave here now!"
Doflamingo said in a panic.
Doflamingo couldn't comprehend how El had discovered them, especially from such a distance and without them making a sound.
But in this critical moment of life and death, there was no time to ponder such things.
He feared that if he was even a moment too slow, El would kill him outright.
For El, such a thing would be utterly meaningless!
After running a considerable distance, Doflamingo and his subordinates finally stopped.
"Huff… huff… huff…"
Diamante breathed heavily and said to Doflamingo, "Boss, we weren't mistaken, were we?"
"Four of the top Marine experts… actually surrendered to El!"
As he spoke, the others also expressed their disbelief.
Those were four of the most powerful Marine officers: three Admirals and one Vice Admiral! And Vice Admiral Garp was even stronger than most Admirals.
Such a luxurious lineup would be more than enough to take down a Yonko.
Yet, they had surrendered to El alone, and even handed over the incredibly precious Op-Op Fruit!
They all felt their worldview had been severely shattered.
Doflamingo said, "For their comrades, they had no choice…"
"I imagine if they had a choice, they would have preferred to die there!"
…
On the warship, Sengoku and the other three were in a very sorry state.
They sat together in silence, the atmosphere around them heavy.
The Marine soldiers dared only to watch from a distance, not daring to approach.
After a while, the severely wounded Garp slowly regained consciousness.
He opened his eyes, seeing the blue sky and smelling the salty sea air.
Garp immediately felt something was wrong and sat up abruptly.
He looked at his three teammates, all of whom had grim expressions.
Garp had a terrible premonition.
"Where is El? Where is the Op-Op Fruit?"
Garp ignored his injuries and grabbed Sengoku's shoulder, demanding answers.
Sengoku remained silent, his head bowed.
Garp's heart sank to rock bottom.
"We… failed, didn't we?"
He said heavily.
"It's all my fault. If I hadn't passed out…"
He blamed himself.
Sengoku stopped him. "Garp, it's not your fault."
"It's all my fault! I was the one who decided to surrender to El."
When Garp heard they had surrendered, a surge of anger quickly rose within him, and he clenched his fists.
But then, he immediately relaxed his grip.
He knew that Sengoku and the others had done so to save all their lives, including his own. He had no right to criticize them.
"…I understand." Garp sighed deeply and sat down. "So… El is going to become immortal."
"With his power, perhaps the Marines will never have another chance."
This was their shared consensus. They had already considered this possibility even before fighting El.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have been so determined to stop him, even at the cost of their lives.
"Not necessarily!"
At this moment, Zephyr, who had been sitting silently, spoke to the others.
"The new generation of young people… they might have a chance!"
He looked at his severed arm.
"After we return, I will resign from my Admiral position and focus on being a Marine instructor."
"ZEPHYR!"
The other three cried out in shock.
Given Zephyr's strength, even with a severed arm, he would still be a top-tier powerhouse once he adapted. Giving up now seemed like an immense waste!
"Zephyr, don't be disheartened…" Tsuru couldn't help but try to persuade him.
"Tsuru, I am not disheartened."
Zephyr said firmly, "To defeat El, it's impossible for our generation."
"While Kizaru and Akainu are excellent, their upper limits are already set; they won't be able to defeat El."
"Our hope lies with the younger generation."
"I am simply placing my hope in the future!"
Seeing Zephyr's determined expression, the other three remained silent.
This was their friend's decision, and they could only support it.
…
Having obtained the Op-Op Fruit, El immediately set off, returning to his territory.
Naguri was already waiting there for El.
"Lord El!"
He looked respectfully at El.
But what surprised him most was the red fruit in El's hand.
The Op-Op Fruit!
The moment Naguri saw the fruit, he knew it was a done deal.
With the Op-Op Fruit, El, now immortal, was destined to become the King of the World!
El looked at Naguri and smiled.
"Alright, bring me the chosen candidates."
__________________
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