Dressrosa.
BOOM!
With an ear-splitting thunderclap, blue lightning descended violently from the heavens.
Within the dazzling electrical light, Enel appeared, carrying his ring of several drums on his back.
Baby 5 immediately went on high alert, her left hand transforming into a sharp longsword while her right hand became a massive hand cannon, both aimed defensively at Enel.
"An enemy?" she asked, pointing the weapons formed from her hands at him.
Enel glanced at the hostile woman before turning his full attention to Cyrus.
Seeing the cracked, depressed stone at Cyrus's feet and around him, Enel's body subconsciously twitched with vivid phantom pain.
"President!" Enel immediately stood at attention, calling out obediently.
Issho canceled the intense gravity pressure he had been exerting on Cyrus.
"You're pretty fast. Have you been to Punk Hazard?" Cyrus waved his hand, signaling Baby 5 to retract her abilities before asking.
"Yes, I had that Caesar escort the items back first. But President, why did you call me here this time?" Enel was quite curious.
This was their first meeting since witnessing Cyrus slice cleanly through the Red Line, and after this meeting, his deep awe of Cyrus had grown even greater.
"We're establishing a guild branch here and need someone strong to hold the fort. You'll be stationed here for the next several months to half a year," Cyrus explained.
"Ah?" Enel's eyes widened dramatically at these words.
"But I still need to handle the exam matters on Sky Island!" he immediately protested.
"You? Handling exam matters?" Cyrus didn't believe a single word of what Enel said.
He glanced at the Logia user before waving to the others, then beckoned for Enel to follow him.
"This person..."
Seeing Cyrus's relaxed actions, Baby 5 retracted her transformed hands, clearly puzzled by the dynamic.
"A Logia-type user." Violet's voice clearly carried pure shock.
Logia-type users were extremely, extremely rare. Obviously, only a few people possessed this level of power.
Among them were the three Marine Admirals, and the other was even someone more stronger than them—Cyrus right before her.
All four of them were undisputed top-tier powerhouses on the seas.
Violet hadn't expected that Cyrus would have a Logia-type ability user by his side, and from the looks of the grand entrance, it seemed to be the legendary Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
Just how much more was Cyrus hiding?
Thinking of this, Violet glanced at Issho.
Although the newspapers had previously reported that Issho might have fought Cyrus, it hadn't been confirmed.
If it were true, then Issho's strength was exceptionally formidable as well.
Not only was Cyrus himself incredibly strong, but the people around him were also remarkably powerful.
The more she learned about the Hunter Guild, the more astonished she became.
"Cyrus has matters to discuss, but we can't let our guard down," Robin spoke to Issho after watching Cyrus and Enel walk away.
"I also need to grow stronger quickly."
"And me!" Baby 5 immediately chimed in.
Issho naturally didn't refuse to train them, as this had been agreed upon earlier.
However, in his view, Robin's progress had already been quite rapid, at least in terms of her Devil Fruit ability usage and physical conditioning.
Not everyone could compare to Cyrus.
To be so powerful and still improve so quickly—and considering Cyrus's youth, he was far from reaching his actual peak.
As Issho activated his abilities, his thoughts drifted back to Cyrus.
Even in his imagination, he couldn't fathom what it would be like when Cyrus truly entered his prime.
...
"The Hunter Guild here is very important, second only to the headquarters at the Sabaody Archipelago." As Cyrus and Enel, who was a step behind, made their way back to the city of Dressrosa, Cyrus explained the significance of this place to the skypiean.
In simple terms, Cyrus was actively manipulating Enel.
This guy wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, and to motivate him properly, he needed to show sufficient importance and feed his ego.
"It's that important?" Young Enel immediately widened his eyes, clearly intrigued.
"You should already know that only strong pirates can enter the New World," Cyrus glanced sideways at Enel, who was visibly getting excited.
"Right, right, Crocodile told me a lot about it," Enel nodded rapidly like a chick pecking at rice.
"As the first stop on the route into the New World—though it's just one of several paths—it's the most famous and attracts a lot of attention."
"I get it, there's going to be a lot of fighting from now on, right?" Enel asked, waving the golden staff in his hand eagerly.
"Pretty much. Before Doflamingo, this was a World Government affiliate nation. After Doflamingo took over, his status as a Warlord provided some deterrence, but the situation here has completely changed now. I want the Hunter Guild here to truly make a name for itself. After some thought, I realized that aside from myself, you're the only one who can pull this off."
Cyrus wore an expression of great trust.
Enel looked excited upon hearing this but then grew somewhat puzzled.
'Wait, that doesn't seem right. Although I'm strong, aside from Cyrus, even Issho could beat me, and Crocodile isn't weak either.'
Noticing Enel's confused expression, Cyrus raised his hand and stroked his chin.
"I need the Hunter Guild to have another globally influential figurehead. Issho's Devil Fruit ability will help me enhance my strength continuously, and your ability happens to achieve exactly what we need here."
Cyrus halted his steps, and Enel immediately stopped as well.
Cyrus turned around and raised his hand to pat young Enel firmly on the shoulder.
"That's right. Even in the Blue Sea, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit holds immense renown, hailed as the most powerful offensive Devil Fruit on the seas. With such an ability, you are destined to become one of the absolute top-tier powerhouses on these vast oceans. And you'll gain tremendous fame across the globe. But you were previously on Sky Island, so you have no reputation at all in the Blue Sea, Enel."
"You're right. I possess such formidable power, yet I have no reputation to speak of," Enel nodded with a grave expression, clearly in strong agreement with Cyrus's logic.
"So, stationed here at the Hunter Guild, for every pirate who comes here, you can consult Crocodile's bounties. As long as they're viable targets, take them all down."
"No problem, leave it to me."
Enel immediately thumped his chest, assuring his boss that he could handle it.
"Good, I have high hopes for you. Don't let me down! Look, I didn't have much fame before either, but after attacking Mary Geoise, titles like Flame Demon and Sun God have spread across the seas. Perhaps you'll earn the title of Thunder God in the future." Cyrus said with a smile, continuing to motivate Enel.
"That's true. I control the lightning of the world—I should be the Thunder God! Rest assured, I will definitely accomplish all this. Not a single pirate who comes here will get past me!" Enel made this promise with a completely serious expression.
"Excellent, you're full of spirit! I have high hopes for you!" Cyrus said with a pleased expression, patting Enel on the shoulder again.
"Come, I'll take you to meet the King of Dressrosa. After that, you can coordinate matters here with him."
Enel followed upon hearing this, his eyes now filled with blazing determination.
'Thunder God? I will definitely become this Thunder God. Even if the Sun God himself comes, he won't stop me—I, Enel, declare this.'