Many Hunters were beginning to experience doubts and frustration.
For most of them, risking injury or death to save complete strangers was still a difficult idea to accept.
Some had become tired of the fighting and no longer wanted to continue.
Others lived for battle and welcomed the chaos.
Whatever kind of person they were, everyone was beginning to find their own place within the crisis.
"You two stay behind the others."
Just before entering battle, Sabo looked seriously at Ace and Luffy.
When the three reunited, Sabo's missing memories had rapidly returned.
They had all been overjoyed.
Although Sabo was not much older than the other two, his experiences had made him considerably more mature.
"Don't worry. I'm really strong now."
Ace and Luffy had joined the Revolutionary Army's operation together.
Dragon had not kept his son safely in the rear, though he naturally arranged extra protection and allowed the three sworn brothers to remain together.
"You're really letting them fight?"
Belo Betty watched the three boys prepare themselves, worry flashing through her eyes.
"These monsters are extremely dangerous. If either of them gets injured…"
"They need to grow up eventually."
Dragon looked toward them.
"They'll grow faster in a battle like this."
Betty could not argue with that.
Her ability worked well in battles between people, but it was poorly suited to fighting these creatures.
Encouraging soldiers into a state of fearless excitement could make them disregard their own safety to defeat an enemy.
Against these monsters, even a single wound could lead to infection and transformation.
That was what made them so troublesome.
"Our current objective is to eliminate every monster within the territories allied with the Revolutionary Army."
Dragon looked toward Betty.
"We don't yet have enough strength to protect more distant regions."
"Cooperate with any Hunters you encounter. If you face an opponent you can't handle, don't force the fight. Retreat and report it immediately."
"Understood."
Betty nodded.
Since she was not entering battle herself, she would serve as a messenger and coordinator.
"Keep in contact with me."
Wind gathered around Dragon, and his body dissolved into a violent gale.
The large ship beneath everyone's feet accelerated sharply as the wind filled its sails.
Before it even reached the shore, several people had already leapt from the vessel and charged onto the island.
Scenes like this were unfolding across the sea.
Battles erupted everywhere, plunging the world into chaos and death within an extraordinarily short time.
…
Holy Land Mary Geoise.
"It has stopped."
The Five Elders quickly noticed that no new outbreaks were being reported.
They exchanged troubled glances.
"Lord Imu must have another objective."
All five frowned.
Did they truly want to rule over a completely ruined and chaotic world?
Of course not.
They had already discussed that question many times.
The situation had long since escaped their control.
Once the crisis began, they could find no solution and could only place their hopes in the great Lord Imu.
But events were not developing as they wished.
In only a few years, the World Government had fallen from ruling the entire world to its current desperate condition.
They had hoped Imu's methods would resolve everything.
Now even that seemed impossible.
And even if the plan succeeded, what value would remain in a world that had been completely destroyed?
"Another world."
Saint Nusjuro, who held his sword close, spoke quietly.
The other four Elders' expressions changed.
They had been the ones who reported Cyrus's possible origin to Imu.
They had also personally delivered the strange creature into the Room of Flowers.
They could guess what Imu intended.
What they did not know was whether she planned to take them with her when she left.
Even if she abandoned them, they had no power to resist.
Their lives and deaths had always depended upon a single thought from Lord Imu.
Even if Lord Imu ordered them to march to their deaths, they would be incapable of resisting.
That was the extent of Imu's power.
In their eyes, Lord Imu was a god.
For centuries, that belief had never changed.
Yet even a god could encounter problems beyond her ability to solve.
"Perhaps Lord Imu truly can succeed."
Saint Saturn glanced at the other four Elders and lowered his voice.
"But given the current situation, we may not live long enough to witness it. Lord Imu is clearly still holding something back, and all of us can guess what she ultimately intends."
The other four wore varying expressions after hearing him.
Naturally, they understood.
Anyone who had lived for centuries would become skilled at handling difficult situations through experience alone, even if they had once been as stupid as a pig.
For hundreds of years, however, Imu had controlled the entire world on their behalf. That had sometimes made them stop thinking for themselves.
Now the immediate threat to their survival had forced each of them to begin making his own plans.
They did not dare betray Imu.
Lord Imu could kill them with ease.
What they needed to consider was how to make certain she took them with her when the time came to carry out her future plans.
To accomplish that, they had to prove they were still valuable.
"The Marines have betrayed us. We must show them the price of betrayal."
Saint Nusjuro, who had been sitting in a crouch, suddenly spoke.
He rose, gripped the Supreme Grade Blade Shodai Kitetsu, and strode away.
"He intends to focus on the Marines?"
The other four watched the bald swordsman leave but made no move to follow.
They understood his objective.
However…
"Even if he resolves the Marine problem, it won't change our overall situation."
The four exchanged glances and recognized the same thought in one another's eyes.
"We haven't received the results of the assassinations yet, but we shouldn't expect much."
The assassination plan had been developed long ago.
In fact, the preparations had already been completed when the plan was first devised.
At the time, however, they had not dared activate it recklessly.
Now the situation was already so terrible that there was little room for it to become worse.
The operation originally designed to target Cyrus had finally been launched, though Cyrus himself was no longer its objective.
In their eyes, there was no possibility of successfully assassinating him.
Instead, they intended to eliminate several senior members of the Hunter Guild.
An organization needed more than a single leader. It required numerous high-ranking officers to coordinate its activities and issue orders throughout its ranks.
If enough of those middle and senior leaders were removed, even an organization whose supreme leader remained alive would inevitably descend into confusion.
That was especially true for something as vast as the Hunter Guild.
The difficulty was that while its senior members were weaker than Cyrus, none of them were easy targets.
They included formidable Devil Fruit users and accomplished swordsmen.
Crocodile was the most obvious example.
At first, the Five Elders had barely considered him worth noticing.
He might have possessed a Logia ability, but eliminating him would not have required much effort if they had truly wished to do so.
In what felt like the blink of an eye, he had become one of their greatest irritations.
And now removing him would be extremely difficult.
"Crocodile won't be easy to target. Even setting aside his own strength, numerous powerful fighters remain close to him."
"The Cipher Pol agents we infiltrated into the Hunter Guild were almost entirely purged recently. Clearly, the people we sent never truly escaped their notice."
"Then we attack directly. Even eliminating only part of their leadership would give us an advantage."
"Don't forget that we still possess forces we can control."
"We should act personally."
Saint Saturn looked toward the remaining three Elders as he made the suggestion.
"Instead of wasting our efforts on the Marines, the four of us should strike together. We may be able to accomplish it."
"That would be unwise. The enemy cannot possibly be unprepared."
The other three immediately hesitated when Saturn suggested that they intervene themselves.
If they sent subordinates, then regardless of the outcome, their own lives would not be placed at risk.
But acting personally was different.
Lord Imu had granted them immortal bodies, yet the sea now contained a monster like Cyrus.
If they encountered him, none of them believed they could return safely.
They knew perfectly well that Cyrus possessed the Door-Door Fruit.
That meant if they failed to finish the attack within an extremely short period, Cyrus could appear before them directly.
At that point, they might not even get the chance to retreat.
Such dangerous work was naturally better left to someone else.
If those agents died, they could simply send more.
As long as they committed enough people, the operation would eventually achieve something.
That was far preferable to placing themselves in danger.
Saturn had worked alongside them for centuries and immediately understood what their expressions meant.
His lips curled into a sneer.
"Hmph. Don't forget that Nusjuro has already begun acting."
"Whatever the result, Lord Imu will see that he took the initiative."
"If the future truly comes to that point…"
Saturn looked at each of them in turn.
"Who do you think Lord Imu will remember first?"
The three Elders froze.
Then they lowered their heads in thought.
"You're right. It seems we have no choice but to act."
"Even if it involves risk, we must show Lord Imu that we remain useful—and that we're willing to help her."