The rolling dark clouds that had shrouded the skies above Pangu City in the Holy Land, along with the suffocating Meteor Volcano, gradually disappeared as Imu transferred Akira and the others away through the teleportation array. The hundred-zhang-wide area of ice also quietly melted, leaving wisps of cold air drifting through the atmosphere.
As sunlight once again spilled across the sky above them, Kong, Vice Admiral Tsuru, Garp, and the others standing on the moving walkway all breathed a sigh of relief.
They all knew full well that the disappearance of the Meteor Volcano did not mean Sakazuki had given up the fight. It meant the Holy Land's probing attempt had failed.
"Kong, why can't I go with you just because I'm from the D Clan?"
Garp, now relaxed after the Meteor Volcano disappeared, glanced at Kong, the Fleet Admiral of the Armed Forces, standing beside him and asked in confusion, "Akira has basically declared open war on the World Government. Even if I'm from the D Clan, what difference does it make?"
"How could it not make a difference?" Kong glared at Garp and said irritably. "The person we're dealing with is most wary of the D Clan. If you were there, this negotiation could easily turn into a war. You just saw it yourself. Sakazuki and Kuzan both made their positions clear. The slightest uncertainty could have triggered a fight!"
"That person?"
Karp's brow furrowed at once. He asked in a low voice, "Kong, have you accepted that Imu is the one secretly controlling the World Government?"
"I..." A trace of confusion flashed in Kong's eyes.
Compared with Garp and Sengoku, Imu's appearance had shaken him the most.
He, too, had known nothing of Imu's existence until the previous night, when Imu had summoned him through the Five