Put Away Your Lofty Attitudes and Let Imu Come!

Peacock's sudden appearance and her "Nicely done" instantly made Vice Admiral Tsuru and Kong's CPUs smoke. The two elders, whose combined age was nearly two hundred, both turned their heads aside, their facial muscles twitching repeatedly.

"Peacock, if you don't want to be hung out on a clothesline, shut up!"

After promptly rebuking her wayward granddaughter, Vice Admiral Tsuru immediately turned her gaze toward Akira, the man she had once placed great hopes in but who had committed mutiny. She wanted to say something, but swallowed the words when they reached her lips.

At this point, nothing she said would matter.

Akira was no longer silent. Taking a step forward, he looked at Kong. "Fleet Admiral, it's been a while. Did you come under orders, or did you simply want to ask me why I went this far?"

"I am the Fleet Admiral of the entire military!"

Kong suppressed the anger in his heart and said in a deep voice, "You've caused such a huge disturbance. How could I not show up?"

"Let me go! Let me go! Ow, my hand... My hand's about to break!"

Just then, a burst of wailing suddenly rang out.

Immediately afterward, Spandam, half his face covered by a leather mask, was forcibly brought over by two members of the Knights of God.

"Akira!"

Dragged before Akira, Spandam was consumed by the fear of death. Although this was his first time meeting Akira, he recognized him at once. Then, like a madman, he lunged forward and hugged Akira's leg, pleading in a trembling voice, "Lord Akira, it has nothing to do with me! Please spare me. I promise you, I'll never seek revenge on you again."

"What are you doing?"

Akira had not expected the Knights of God to bring Spandam here. His brows instantly furrowed as he said coldly, "What I wanted was his head, not to hear him wail in front of me!"

Hearing this, the two Knights of God members who had brought Spandam immediately looked up at Shamrock.

Shamrock said nothing, merely giving a slight nod.

Seeing this, one of the Knights of God members dragged Spandam away without hesitation and cleanly drew his sword, bringing it down in a swift slash.

"Bad luck."

Akira lifted his foot slightly, tossed out those two words, and stepped onto the moving walkway.

"Akira, wait for me~"

The moment Akira stepped onto the moving walkway, before Gion and the Three Admirals could follow, Peacock reacted swiftly and ran toward him.

However, just as she was about to approach Akira, Gunko, who had reached his side before her, stopped her. "You cannot accompany him!"

Peacock's face darkened as she was forcibly stopped. "Why can't I accompany him? I'm a colonel of the Blade Unit!"

Hearing that, Akira, who had already entered the moving walkway and pulled away from the others, helplessly turned back. "Peacock, this is not the time to fool around. Go back."

"Okay~"

Under Akira's gaze, Peacock, who had wanted to argue further, hurriedly swallowed her words and returned to Vice Admiral Tsuru's side with an unwilling expression.

Gion, who had remained silent at the side, did not greet Vice Admiral Tsuru. Although Tsuru was her closest personal friend, as Akira had said, this was not the time for idle conversation.

After silently glancing at Vice Admiral Tsuru, Gion did not linger and walked past Tsuru and Kong together with the Three Admirals.

"Garp, stay behind!"

Just as Sengoku, Zephyr, and Garp were also walking past the two of them, Kong suddenly spoke. "You cannot meet the person Akira is going to see!"

Garp abruptly raised his head, staring straight at Kong with wide eyes. "Why can't I?"

Kong's expression was grave. "Because you are a D!"

As soon as those words fell, Sengoku, who stood beside Garp, suddenly stopped. He then looked up at Kong, somewhat caught off guard. "Lord Kong, did you already know that there was a mysterious ruler behind the Five Elders?"

Faced with Sengoku's question, Kong shook his head and sighed. His tone softened as he turned to look at the young figure slowly moving away on the moving walkway. "Perhaps you learned of it even earlier than I did."

"I understand."

Sengoku nodded, then turned with Zephyr and quickly stepped onto the moving walkway.

Garp did not follow them. Instead, he looked at Kong with dissatisfaction. He wanted to flare up, but ultimately held himself back.

Though he was already over seventy, he was still a youngster before Kong, who was now nearing a hundred years old. Of course, age was not the issue. The key was that Kong was not only his direct superior, but also his teacher.

Kong ignored Garp's dissatisfied stare. With his arms folded, he watched the figures gradually recede along the moving walkway, a trace of unprecedented confusion flashing through his eyes.

Before learning of the mysterious existence known as Imu, he had been thinking about how to salvage the situation. As Fleet Admiral of the entire military, with mutiny breaking out at Marine Headquarters under his command, he had to bear full responsibility. Even if it ultimately meant going to war with Akira, who controlled Marine Headquarters, he would not hesitate.

But after learning that there was a mysterious ruler above the Five Elders, his initial shock had gradually turned into confusion. For a time, he did not know what the right choice was.

More than Garp, he wanted to see with his own eyes the hidden ruler who stood above the Five Elders. But the Five Elders had explicitly forbidden both him and Vice Admiral Tsuru from getting involved. Unless he imitated Akira and staged a mutiny himself, he could only obey their orders.

Accompanied by Gunko and Shamrock, Akira took the moving walkway into Pangu City of the Holy Land. He looked up at the magnificent World Government headquarters building ahead, then quickly swept his gaze around the area and could not help sighing. "Such a vast and beautiful piece of land, yet it is inhabited by only a group of Celestial Dragons. What a terrible waste."

As soon as Akira finished speaking, a group of figures suddenly emerged from the doors of the World Government headquarters building.

Leading them were none other than the Five Elders, the highest authority on the surface.

The first to emerge was the Legal God, Topman Warcury.

The Agricultural God, Shepherd Ju Peter; the Science Defense God, Jaygarcia Saturn; and the Environmental God, Marcus Mars followed side by side.

Walking at the very end was the Financial God, Nusjuro, holding a samurai sword in his arms, his expression dark.

The Five Elders emerged from the gates and lined up with Topman Warcury at the center. As the five stood shoulder to shoulder, the oppressive presence unique to the highest authorities of the surface world surged forth, stirring the air at their feet and sending out visible ripples.

The Five Elders had barely come to a stop when Figarland Gringo, commander of the Knights of God, immediately led several Knights of God out in single file and took up positions beside them. With the advantage of standing on the steps, they looked down at Akira from above.

"Tut, tut, tut. What a grand formation."

Feeling the air around him suddenly solidify, Akira narrowed his eyes as Conqueror's Haki quietly erupted. In an instant, it scattered the invisible pressure bearing down on him and briefly freezing the air. He then raised his head to look at the Five Elders and the Knights of God, whose formation at least showed some taste. His own presence continued to rise, forcibly suppressing theirs!

"A gentleman does not stand beneath a crumbling wall!"

"Since I dared to come, it means not only can you not keep me here—you might all end up getting killed by me!"

Before his words had even faded, overwhelmingly tyrannical Conqueror's Haki swept forth like a mountain avalanche and engulfed the Five Elders and Gringo.

Then, Akira pressed one hand against the hilt at his waist and stepped forward. "Put away your lofty attitudes. You are not qualified to negotiate with me from a position of strength or status."

At that, Akira suddenly raised his head and said, word by word, "Bring Imu out!"