With that questioning shout, figures appeared one after another on the streets and rooftops of Marineford.
Some wore black suits, others purple, and still others white.
The five old men in black suits were the so-called Five Elders, each possessing a Mythical Type Devil Fruit developed to the point of awakening!
The one wearing a top hat, with a long scar at the corner of his left eye, was [Warrior God of Science and Defense] Jaygarcia Saturn Saint. He possessed the Zoan Spider-Spider Fruit, Mythical Type, Gyuki Form!
The one with a long, thin face and three wisps of long white beard on his chin was [Warrior God of Environment] Saint Marcus Mars. He possessed the Zoan Bird-Bird Fruit, Mythical Type, Itsumade Form!
The balding, short, fat old man was [Warrior God of Justice] Topman Warcury Saint. He possessed the Zoan Pig-Pig Fruit, Mythical Type, Fengxi Form!
The one holding a black blade, with a fierce and sharp-looking face, was [Warrior God of Finance] Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro. He possessed the Zoan Horse-Horse Fruit, Mythical Type, Bakotsu Form. The black blade in his hand was none other than [First Generation Kitetsu], one of the Twelve Supreme Grade Blades!
And the only handsome fellow among the Five Elders with golden hair was [Warrior God of Agriculture] Saint Shepherd Ju Peter. He possessed the Zoan Insect-Insect Fruit, Mythical Type, Sandworm Form!
The Five Elders wore different expressions, but they all generally looked as though they wanted nothing more than to get rid of Sengoku and the others.
On their other side stood several people of different builds, genders, and ages.
Yet no one dared underestimate them.
The aura they gave off was the aura of the strong!
They, too, looked over the scene with extremely indifferent eyes, their gazes mainly focused on Zhu Mang.
They were the Celestial Dragons' true trump card—the Holy Knights!
Every one of them was an absolute elite, carefully selected, meticulously nurtured, and rigorously trained!
Compared to them, the enormous force of at least several thousand Cipher Pol agents who appeared after the Five Elders and the Holy Knights was far less eye-catching.
Well, not exactly.
Zhu Mang spotted several familiar faces among them.
Rob Lucci, the "King of Pretenders," who used the pigeon on his shoulder as his "tongue."
Kaku, the "Long-Nosed King," who seemed like a distant relative of Usopp and Pinocchio.
Blueno, the "Bull demon King," whose peculiar hobby was styling his hair into bull horns.
Kalifa, the stunning mature beauty who loved wearing black skin-tight dresses and black fishnet bodystockings. (I know what you want to see. Here you go.)
These people were all CP9 agents who had originally appeared during the Water 7–Sea Train–Enies Lobby incident.
But logically speaking, they should have been arrested for failing their mission.
Unexpectedly, they had rejoined Cipher Pol so quickly.
Maybe that was the advantage of having connections.
Of everyone present, the one Zhu Mang cared about most was, of course, the stunning mature beauty—ptui, the "Bull demon King."
The [Paramecia Door-Door Fruit] that Blueno had eaten allowed him to create doors in all sorts of unimaginable places, including the air, flames, and even human bodies.
Its true essence, however, was spatial movement.
From the moment Zhu Mang learned that he had transmigrated into the world of One Piece, he had already set his sights on that Devil Fruit.
He had originally thought he would have to go through considerable trouble to find the hidden Blueno.
Who would have thought that Blueno would appear alongside the Five Elders and the others!
"Wait, why is Red-Haired Shanks in the World Government's intelligence agency?" Someone spotted one of the Holy Knights, widened his eyes, and instinctively blurted it out.
Among the Holy Knights stood a man with long red hair and a sword at his waist. Beneath that red hair was a face almost identical to Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors of the New World!
"Tch—so you mistook me for that guy." The Holy Knight who resembled Red-Haired Shanks curled his lip, drew the blade at his waist without hesitation, and slashed at the Marine rear admiral who had spoken.
Although the Marine rear admiral had not expected that a casual remark would bring about a fatal disaster, he was still a headquarters rear admiral. He had the strength and reflexes to respond.
He raised both hands as well, crossing the twin blades in his hands before him.
Iron Body: Iron Wall Blade!
Clang!
The red-haired Holy Knight's flying slash struck the Marine rear admiral. It paused for only an instant before a crack rang out.
The defense formed through an advanced Iron Body technique was sliced cleanly in two.
Along with it went the Marine rear admiral's body...
"Hmph! Marines should obediently follow orders. Who gave you the nerve to rebel?" The red-haired Holy Knight sheathed his sword and spoke coldly.
Whoosh!
Akainu's face darkened at once.
"Fuck you, Celestial Dragons!"
Hellhound!
Akainu raised his hand and launched an attack at the red-haired Holy Knight.
The red-haired Holy Knight seemed to have been prepared for it. With a flash, he dodged the attack.
The magma fist landed behind him, smashing the buildings in the rear into ruins.
"Sengoku, is this your intention as well? Are you really going to rebel against the World Government?"
Another person stepped out from behind the Five Elders.
It was Sengoku and Garp's teacher, the current Commander-in-Chief of the entire military—Kong!
At that moment, there was a trace of grief and disappointment on the old man's resolute face.
"Commander Kong..." Sengoku's lips moved.
"Fleet Admiral, they're clearly treating us like dogs. What's the point of talking to them?" Akainu roared, using Soru to charge directly at the red-haired Holy Knight.
"Red-Haired Shanks, lackey of the Celestial Dragons, die!!!"
"To hell with your Shanks! I am the noble Celestial Dragon, Saint Figarland Shamrock!" the red-haired Holy Knight roared, drawing his sword and charging at Akainu as well.
Seeing that Akainu and Shamrock had already begun fighting, the Five Elders no longer hesitated.
The Warrior God of Justice raised one hand and shouted, "Now, in the name of the World Government's Warrior God of Justice, I pronounce sentence upon Marineford: death! The World Government will erase this island from the world along with all of you!"
"You still have one final chance to atone for your sins: kill the rebel army led by former Fleet Admiral Sengoku, former Marine Admiral Sakazuki, and former Marine Vice Admiral Garp!"
"For all those who repent in time, we will show leniency. We will even grant them important positions in the newly established Marines afterward!"
The Warrior God of Justice's words were truly venomous.
A combination of threats and temptation immediately shook some Marines who had been wavering or harbored great ambitions.
After all, some had joined the rebellion out of loyalty to the Fleet Admiral and Admirals, some out of dissatisfaction with the World Government, and others simply because they followed the crowd.
But now, enormous benefits had been placed right before them.
And they had been promised personally by the Five Elders!
Before you continue