"Ian!!"
The Five Elders were furious, their anger boiling over.
Yet none of them could do a thing about him.
"No need to rush," Ian continued calmly. "The decisive battle will come sooner or later."
"When I believe the power in my hands is enough to completely wipe you out, I'll ignite the war that decides the fate of this entire world!"
"Of course," he added with a shrug, "if you think your power is already enough to destroy me, you're welcome to start the war yourselves."
The Five Elders fell silent, staring at Ian.
And then—
"Just you wait, Ian!"
Warcury spat out his threats viciously.
The very next second, the wild boar, horse skeleton, sandworm, and Itsumade vanished into the sudden smoke.
"What?"
Bullet froze.
He had no idea these creatures were summoned beings, so it was impossible for him to understand how they could just disappear like that.
"That's what I meant," Ian chuckled. "They can't be killed."
Bullet raised his hand and pointed toward Saturn, who was still standing alone in the clearing. "Isn't this guy still here?"
And then, in the next moment, Saturn vanished as well.
It seemed the ability to summon belonged to all five of them.
Ian tugged at the corner of his mouth.
This was completely unreasonable.
How could anyone possibly take down the Five Elders?
Unless you managed to shackle all five of them with sea–stone cuffs at the same time—but that was far too unrealistic.
"Is it over already?"
Mihawk sighed in clear disappointment.
"Isn't that for the best?"
Ian shot him a glance with a smile. "That opponent you just fought wasn't even close to using his full strength."
"If he had been serious, you'd already be cut to pieces by now."
His good friend hadn't reached his peak yet; at present, his strength was only about equal to Admiral.
But Garling's power was solidly at the level of a Yonko. Even without using everything he had, he'd been pressing Mihawk down.
If he had fought with his full strength, Mihawk would have been sliced into sashimi—only a true Yonko could survive that kind of duel.
"To die at the hands of such a powerful swordsman wouldn't be so bad."
Unexpectedly, Mihawk didn't seem the least bit troubled by that thought.
"Then come over to my side, Mihawk."
Ian didn't let go of any opportunity to strengthen his own power. He smiled and extended the invitation to his good friend once more. "That way, we'll still have chances to face off against that guy in the future."
"No thanks."
Mihawk rolled his eyes and rejected him without hesitation. "Just like you said, I don't want anyone standing over me, bossing me around."
"But…"
He added, "If it's about fighting that guy, then call me."
"Alright."
Ian nodded slightly.
That was good enough.
Although Mihawk hadn't officially joined, at least he would help when it came time to confront the World Government, and that alone was enough.
"By the way," Mihawk suddenly remembered something and asked, "You drove all the monsters out of the New World. Can I stay here?"
He was no longer a Warlord, openly setting himself against the World Government.
The government probably still assumed he was part of the Beast Pirates. In that case, wandering through other seas would be extremely troublesome.
"Of course."
Ian naturally wouldn't refuse.
A lone wolf like Mihawk staying in the New World wouldn't affect his rule at all.
Not to mention, it would be fun for the crew!
"Come on, Mihawk, let's head back to Wano and have some fun!"
In the sky, Kuma had already descended. Having watched the entire battle, he now knew it was over.
It was time to return to the city.
At the same time, in Mary Geoise, Pangaea Castle.
Deep within this massive building, among the gardens, the Five Elders trembled as they knelt before the true King of the World.
Sweat had already soaked through their suits, and the muscles on their faces twitched slightly from the tension.
"Sorry, Lord Imu."
Warcury said nervously, "That guy, Ian, is far stronger than we imagined. I'm afraid only you have the ability to defeat him."
In the center of the room, beneath a sprawling, leafy tree, the dark figure resting there slowly lifted his head.
His features were completely hidden under the black hood, yet the Five Elders pressed their foreheads even more respectfully to the ground.
"Someone like Joy Boy?"
Imu asked.
"Perhaps even more troublesome than Joy Boy," Mars said.
"His abilities are extremely terrifying. All attacks against him are ineffective, while his own attacks have the unique power to destroy everything."
"Even—"
He hesitated, pausing for a long moment before finally gathering courage. "Even you might not be able to kill him…"
"Is that so?"
Imu's tone was calm. "So, what do you suggest we do?"
"Lord Imu!"
The five elders pressed their heads harder against the ground. "To completely defeat that guy, we may have to rely on the Ancient Weapons!"
"Vegapunk is already urgently transferring them. Once he develops the energy source to power them, everything will be over!"
"No matter how strange his abilities are, facing the Ancient Weapons capable of destroying everything will be meaningless."
The dark figure nodded lightly.
"At the same time, we must quickly reinforce the government's forces!"
Nusjuro said, "The government has lost far too much strength recently!"
Kisuke was killed. Zephyr, Kuzan, and Gion betrayed us.
This latest operation caused even heavier losses.
The initial explosive on the Dyna Stone sent the God Knights and CP0 officers to their deaths. Even the supreme commander of CP0 was killed, along with the government's entire high command and a vice commander of the God Knights.
The loss of just these forces is enough to rebuild an entire Marine Headquarters.
Not to mention the now-extinct Seven Warlords of the Sea, with the only survivor, Mihawk, being a traitor.
The World Government's power is now at its lowest point.
"Lord Imu, extreme times call for extreme measures!"
Saturn said, "We hope to conduct a massive global conscription! Recruit every available person!"
"…"
Imu fell silent for a moment.
"Mm… agreed."
When the Five Elders finished their work report, Ian was already on his way back to Wano Country.
Ian was enveloped in a bubble that resembled a giant meatball, swiftly flying through the sky.
Yamato and Hancock were also inside the bubble—each holding one of his hands, glaring at each other angrily just out of Ian's sight.
Finally, things should settle down for a while.
Ian thought.
The next two problems to solve were the energy source of Pluton and the awakening of his own abilities.
Only by mastering the Ancient Weapons and truly reaching the pinnacle of his own strength could he have a better chance of completely crushing the World Government.
Lost in thought, Ian looked down at the deep blue sea below.
"So beautiful," he said.
"Beautiful?"
Yamato grabbed his arm and craned her neck to look down, but all she could see was a vast expanse of blue.
"The New World?"
"No," Ian said with a smile. "This is my New World."
**********
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