Lord Enma

A dull voice rang out, immediately drawing the attention of countless Lost Souls.

The Lost Souls raised their heads and looked at several Pitch Black figures standing in midair.

The leader had his lips pressed tight, his brows furrowed, and an imposing expression.

What left the deepest impression was his pair of crimson Eyes, which seemed to emit a dim glow and carried an ominous Aura.

The five or six people behind him also had scarlet Eyes, their faces as cold as frost, utterly devoid of any excess emotion.

"Who are you people?"

"Marines? Or Pirates from some other faction?"

"Floating in midair—is that some special ability?"

"Looks like you've been waiting up there for quite a while. What exactly do you want?"

As the Lost Souls below looked up at them, the black figures in the air began to descend slowly.

They stopped roughly ten meters in front of Whitebeard, their bodies still floating in the air, their gazes level with Whitebeard's towering height.

A red glow flared in the leader's eyes as an invisible pressure suddenly descended upon the Lost Souls.

Boom!

The sudden immense pressure instantly forced the Lost Souls present to the ground.

"W-What's going on?"

"Conqueror's Haki? No, that's not Haki!"

"Who exactly are these people... Are they really human?"

The faces of the Lost Souls turned red with strain. It felt as though they were carrying a weight of over ten thousand jin, completely unable to move a single muscle.

Forget moving—they could not even speak.

It was as if the air had been filled with lead, unbearably heavy. Every breath required all their strength.

Some defiant souls tried to rise and resist, only to be slammed back down by the pressure, blood flowing from their seven orifices.

Across the entire field, only a handful managed to avoid collapsing miserably to the ground through sheer force of will.

Among them were the much-watched Whitebeard and Ace, who was gritting his teeth beside Whitebeard.

A solemn, majestic voice rang across the field, reaching every Lost Soul present with perfect clarity.

"My name is Uchiha Fugaku. For the time being, I am a Shinigami."

"I have appeared before you this time because my Master is merciful and wishes to grant you Lost Souls an opportunity."

"To let you Live Another Life in another world, where you may exist for a thousand years. If you agree, sign a contract. If you refuse, then disperse here and now!"

As his words fell, Fugaku turned his gaze toward the towering Whitebeard, a hint of praise flashing through his eyes.

Though he had held back and had not used his full Spiritual Pressure, Whitebeard's ability to withstand it in such a frail state was enough to prove the firmness of his will.

Fugaku slightly eased his Spiritual Pressure, allowing them room to catch their breath.

As the pressure on their bodies suddenly vanished, every Lost Soul felt incomparably lighter and breathed in the fresh air greedily, feeling unprecedented relief.

Their chests rose and fell violently, and the field was filled with the sound of people gasping for breath.

"Huff... You're actually... legendary Shinigami?"

"With such might, calling you gods would not be an exaggeration."

"Who is this Master you speak of? And what does living another life in another world mean?"

"Explain it clearly! What is this contract? If we don't agree, are you going to kill us?"

Fugaku ignored their disorderly questions and instead stared straight at Whitebeard, who wore a thoughtful expression.

Whitebeard's sons might not be particularly clever, but Whitebeard himself was different. He was exceedingly wise.

Fugaku had watched the entire Summit War and had gained some understanding of the famed world's strongest man's sharpness and intelligence.

"Whitebeard, what will you choose?"

Fugaku knew that Whitebeard held the highest prestige. His opinion was essentially the opinion of this group of Pirates.

And his Master valued Whitebeard so highly that they might even become colleagues in the future.

With that thought, he softened his attitude slightly.

"I can give you time to consider, but not much. I hope you make your decision soon."

Whitebeard looked at Ace before him, then swept his eyes over the sons surrounding him. After a brief moment of thought, he neither agreed nor refused. Instead, he asked Fugaku, who stood upon the empty air, "Shinigami, may I meet the Master you speak of?"

Fugaku nodded. "Naturally. My Master had intended to meet you in the first place."

With that, Fugaku turned around and led the way.

Just as Whitebeard took a step forward, two shouts rang out at once.

"Wait, Old Man!"

"Wait, Shinigami!"

Fugaku turned slightly and swept his gaze sideways, locating the people who had spoken.

One was a Marine General surrounded by Marines. The other was Ace, the fuse that had ignited this war.

"What is it?"

Under the overwhelming pressure of Fugaku's Sharingan, Ace stepped forward several paces and stood protectively in front of Whitebeard.

"Old Man, Shinigami, please take me with you. I want to meet your Master too."

The Marine General said, "Shinigami, I have the same request."

After those two stepped forward, the Lost Souls below—Pirates and Marines alike—also began calling out requests to Fugaku.

"Shinigami, let us come too. We can't rest easy if only Old Man goes."

"That's right! What if you intend to harm Old Man? You aren't worthy of trust."

"Hmph, even if we are dead, we cannot allow the Pirates to do anything they please."

"Not just the Pirates. We are worried about the major general's safety as well, especially with Shinigami like you who are preparing to collude with Pirates."

Faced with the clamoring Lost Souls, whose tones were full of arrogant, overblown bravado, Fugaku was not entirely angry.

Though he was indeed angry, he found their arrogance difficult to understand even beyond that.

Pirates or Marines, why was every last one of them so arrogant?

They spoke without thinking at all.

They had just experienced being ground into the dirt by his Spiritual Pressure. How had they forgotten so quickly?

Were normal people really this fearless when facing a powerful unknown foe?

"Silence!"

Boom!

Fugaku's Spiritual Pressure erupted once more, even stronger than before, pinning everyone firmly to the ground.

Some whose wills were weak had already fainted completely beneath the pressure.

Looking at Whitebeard, who was bleeding from his seven orifices and nearly unable to hold on, Fugaku felt a strange sense of sympathy.

Having subordinates who were all brainless fools incapable of reading the situation was truly difficult to deal with.

Still, to be safe, he reported the situation in full to Kenma.

After waiting for a while, Kenma's voice sounded in Fugaku's mind.

"They'll have to meet sooner or later anyway. Let them come."

After receiving permission, Fugaku withdrew his Spiritual Pressure.

The Lost Souls gasped violently once more, and when they looked at Fugaku, their eyes could not help but contain a trace of fear and obedience.

"My Master has permitted you to pay him an audience, but maintain order. My Master dislikes chaos."

"Follow me."

Fugaku led the way.

"Thank you."

Whitebeard steadied his breathing and followed after him.

"Damn it..."

Ace had just wanted to take the opportunity to resist the pressure, but he had forgotten that he was dead and could not use his abilities at all. He could only watch helplessly as Old Man suffered.

Now that he saw Old Man heading over, he gritted his teeth and followed.

"Wait for me, Old Man."

He wanted to see exactly who this mysterious Master of the Shinigami was, to dare put on such a grand display.

Once the two moved, those Pirates and Marines who could still act also followed behind the Shinigami.

Looking at Fugaku leading the way ahead, Whitebeard cautiously asked, "Shinigami, who exactly is this lord you speak of, and how should we address him?"

Seeing that his attitude was fairly good, Fugaku kindly replied, "My lord's status is exalted, and there is no need to speak his name too often. You need only address him as Lord Kenma."

"Lord Enma...?!"

Whitebeard was startled.