Then, Haku looked straight at Five Elders' Birthmark, and said very foul-mouthedly, "Is that it?"
The Five Elders' once somewhat casual gazes all focused on Haku.
Five Elders' Birthmark gave a cold snort, because the person currently exerting pressure on Haku was none other than him!
As Haku continued to take steps up the stairs, Five Elders' Birthmark silently increased the pressure he was exerting. The intention behind it was already self-evident!
"This brat Haku!"
Hearing Haku's nearly provocative words, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, who was standing relatively close, could hear them crystal clear! Yet what could he do about it? After all, Haku would be under his jurisdiction from now on.
Meanwhile, Garp laughed heartily at Vice Admiral Tsuru and said, "Little Tsuru, look at that, Haku is truly my grandson, actually provoking those five guys."
Vice Admiral Tsuru covered her face and facepalmed, but she still asked with concern, "Will Haku be alright up on the stage? Judging by how it looks up there, the Five Elders seem to be targeting him."
Garp laughed heartily and said, "Don't worry! That guy Haku's strength isn't as simple as it looks on the surface."
In contrast, Haku maintained a relaxed and cozy posture as each of his steps fell, and the pressure weighing on him grew heavier by a few notches!
When he was halfway there, the entire flight of stairs finally could not bear the weight and crumbled into various fragments beneath Haku's feet!
???
In an instant, the entire audience fell silent, because at this moment Haku was actually not using Geppo! Instead, he stepped into the void and continued walking toward the high platform! As if the stairs beneath his feet still existed!
Only the camera in Morgans's hands kept clicking away, making snapping sounds!
"A big news story! This is a big news story!" Morgans shouted frantically in his heart.
Akainu looked at the scene unfolding before him and could not help but rage in anger, "This brat is actually still hiding his strength!" For someone as arrogant as him, this was simply an insult!
At the same time, because of Haku's provocation, Akainu grew even more eager to elevate his own strength!
Down below, Kizaru could not help muttering complaints, "Well, well, well! The strength of youngsters these days is becoming harder and harder to figure out, isn't it?"
During this period when everyone harbored different thoughts, Haku successfully stepped onto the high platform.
"Hmph!"
Despite having all sorts of displeasure, Five Elders' Birthmark ultimately still pulled back the pressure he had been exerting on Haku.
A trace of a smile surfaced at the corner of Haku's mouth, a smile that was so glaringly piercing to Five Elders' Birthmark!
Soon the Five Elders draped a marine coat over Haku, and then directly left without even a word of greeting.
Anyway, as far as the Five Elders were concerned, they had already tested Haku's strength. Although it hadn't been fully measured, they still had a rough idea in their minds, so whatever happened next had nothing to do with them!
And after the Five Elders left, Haku finally officially became the fourth Marine Admiral amidst cheers and leaps of joy!
As for Haku's admiral moniker, Haku had already had his own thoughts for a long time. Therefore, his admiral title was called "Purple Blade".
Originally Haku himself had leaned more toward his title being Red Blade, but who told that guy Akainu to have already used the character for 'red'!
With no other choice, Haku came up with this title by combining the color of Ryujin Jakka's hilt with the name of Ryujin Jakka!
Ding!
Task completed!
Task reward: Hollow Mask has been issued!
???
Haku was somewhat surprised! He hadn't expected this task to yield a Hollow Mask, something of such great importance among the Shinigami.
Which meant Haku's strength had undergone another tremendous leap forward this time!
However, obtaining the Hollow Mask had both advantages and disadvantages. Haku well knew that if he put on the Hollow Mask without managing to master the power of the Hollow, he could face the risk of completely losing control.
When Haku returned to his exclusive admiral quarters, he couldn't wait to take his Hollow Mask out of the system space.
Soon a bone-like white mask emerged in Haku's hands. The shape of this mask was extremely irregular with jagged edges, giving off a deeply unsettling and terrifying sensation. The surface of the mask generally featured various bumps and depressions, which made it look even more grotesque and ghastly.
The eye sockets of the Hollow Mask were two deep hollows without any pupils or whites of the eyes, making the mask appear even more mysterious and horrifying. The mouth part was a wide fissure revealing sharp teeth, giving off a cruel and bloody feel.
The sides of the Hollow Mask usually featured some slender protrusions; these protrusions might be ears, horns, or other shapes. These protrusions were also typically irregular in shape, rendering the entire mask even weirder and more terrifying.
Haku held this mask in his hand, and he could clearly sense a faint connection existing between this mask and himself.
At that moment, Haku suddenly spoke up and asked, "System! If I put on this mask, will I face the risk of losing control?"
A mechanical voice full of texture rang out beside Haku's ear, "Rest assured, Host! The Hollow Mask produced by the system will not cause the Host to face the risk of losing control."
Hearing these words, Haku felt a weight lift from his heart!
However, the system hadn't finished speaking, "However! Because the Host needs to master the power of the Hollow independently, until the Host fully masters the Hollow Mask, once the Host puts on the mask, there is a probability of a drastic personality change."
That was fine! Haku had thought there would be some bizarre restriction; it was just a change in personality. That was something he could still accept!
Haku pulled his gaze back to the Hollow Mask in his hands. Since there were no lingering worries, he wanted to see what kind of changes would happen if he put on the Hollow Mask!
Yet just to be on the safe side, Haku still pulled both Sengoku and Garp out of the office. After all, the system had already stated that before he fully mastered the Hollow Mask, putting on the mask carried the probability of a personality shift!
Haku figured that in case he wanted to do anything bad, having those two watching—Sengoku and Garp—would allow him to minimize losses in time!
However, because Haku was the newly appointed admiral, many people had their eyes on him. Upon hearing that Admiral Haku wanted to test out his newly researched power, quite a few people spontaneously gathered in the plaza, wanting to join in the excitement!
Among them were two candidate vice admirals, as well as three Marine Admirals!
When Sengoku was dragged into the plaza by Haku, he displayed his dissatisfaction.
He complained, "Haku, don't you know how busy my work is? If you want to test out your new power, wouldn't finding Garp suffice?!..."
Being lectured like that by Sengoku, Haku couldn't help scratching the back of his head.
He hastily explained, "Well, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, understand this, you know how unreliable old man Garp is after all. In case I really end up doing something, wouldn't that be terrible!"
Sengoku looked at Garp, who was walking along while eating a donut, and ultimately decided to stay right here!
Before you continue