Clearly, the seemingly gentle but exceptionally cruel cycle of day and night on the ninth level of Floating Impel Down had worn them to exhaustion.
"Heh."
"The Big Mom Pirates."
Xia Le chuckled, drawing Katakuri and the others' attention.
"Fleet Admiral Xia Le!"
"Why have you brought us here?"
Katakuri gritted his teeth and spoke in a low voice.
"No rush."
"Not everyone's here yet."
Xia Le smiled faintly.
The Big Mom Pirates would not be the only crew attending this meeting.
After a short wait, a second group entered to the clank of shackles.
"King, one of the All-Stars!"
Katakuri and the others turned, their eyes widening in shock.
At the same time, even greater confusion swept over them.
Seeing two former crews of the Four Emperors brought together again was strange enough. It also filled them with unease.
The scale of the Marines' preparations weighed heavily on them.
Then, as time passed, more arrived.
The other two All-Stars, Queen and Jack, were brought in, along with many members of the Kaido Pirates.
The scene grew chaotic. Despite their exhaustion, the pirates rallied at the sight of familiar faces, talking among themselves and asking what was going on.
But no one answered them.
Then another group slowly entered, dragging heavy shackles behind them.
There were not many of them, but their arrival silenced everyone at once.
"Even them?!"
Kizaru's expression shifted, and he could not help looking toward Xia Le.
Xia Le's face remained calm, betraying no emotion.
Sanji watched the newcomers in puzzlement. The man leading them had crescent-shaped hair and looked faintly like Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors.
"The Holy Knights!"
Someone ground out their identity through clenched teeth.
Sanji's expression changed at once.
He had kept up with the news over the past two