As a flash of golden light streaked through the sky, Kizaru appeared above Egghead Island.
Looking down at the ruined island below, Kizaru felt something strange inside.
He clearly remembered this operation was supposed to be just a small stir-up. But now, how had Egghead Island ended up in such a mess?
Especially that massive magma pit—it looked like it could swallow the whole island. It was a terrifying sight.
Just then, Sentomaru caught a glimpse of Kizaru.
In that moment, it was like Sentomaru had been injected with energy. He was clearly excited—he didn't want to stay locked up any longer.
So, he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted toward the sky, "Hey! Kizaru, sir! Stop staring and get us out of here already!"
The others who were trapped saw Kizaru too, and hope lit up their faces. Everyone was eager to be freed as soon as possible.
Kizaru finally turned his gaze toward them after hearing Sentomaru's call.
He saw Sentomaru, Vegapunk, and the others all staring up at him, their eyes filled with hope and urgency.
The Marines nearby also looked happy when they saw Kizaru.
Then, Kizaru turned into light again and shot down like a falling star, landing steadily inside the seastone prison.
As he looked around the small prison, he reached out and touched the walls. He immediately felt a wave of weakness.
He couldn't help but exclaim, "This is some seriously pure seastone!"
Seeing this, Sentomaru quickly said, "Kizaru, sir, this really isn't the time to admire the seastone! Please, just help get us out of here! We've been tied up for way too long—everyone's at their limit!"
Kizaru nodded to show he understood and started looking around for the key to unlock the cell.
But after checking all over, he couldn't find it. He frowned and asked, "Where's the key?"
"Oh, right~"
"Pythagoras, where's the key?" Vegapunk looked over at Pythagoras.
After all, this prison had been built by Pythagoras and his four other clones along with Sentomaru, and Vegapunk didn't remember anyone handing a key over to Ryuen.
"Uh (⊙o⊙)…"
"Well... guys, I know where the key is," Sentomaru said awkwardly in a quiet voice.
"Huh?"
...
Kizaru had no choice but to first release the Marines and let them leave. Only then did Sentomaru admit the key was on him the whole time.
"Can someone explain to me what exactly happened here?" Kizaru finally asked, clearly confused.
Egghead Island was in total chaos now—it honestly looked like a war zone. This was nothing like the original plan.
"It's like this, Kizaru," Sentomaru explained, "the reason things turned out this way is because Ryuen and Saint Saturn ended up clashing with their Conqueror's Haki. Their Haki was just too powerful!"
As he spoke, Sentomaru was clearly still shaken by what he had witnessed.
"A clash of Conqueror's Haki..." Kizaru muttered to himself.
······
Meanwhile, not far from Egghead Island, the Dream Exploration Team was sailing toward Zou, guided by a vivre card.
Everyone on board looked excited and happy—especially Reina, who was running back and forth on the deck like a cheerful bird.
She was finally going home!
~~~~~~
Time quietly passed, and another day went by.
As the news birds delivered the latest papers across the world, the entire sea was shaken by a sudden, earth-shattering story.
All the shocking events on Egghead Island had now been spread far and wide.
And the part that left everyone stunned and unable to believe their ears: the leader of the Dream Exploration Team had taken down one of the Five Elders—on their own!
For most people,
Even an ordinary Celestial Dragon felt like a god—completely out of reach.
What's more, the one who fell this time was one of the Five Elders—people at the very top of the world's power, holding absolute authority.
It was something no one could imagine, something that shocked the whole world.
Only now did everyone realize—even gods can die. And this time, one of them died at the hands of Ryuen, the leader of the Dream Exploration Group!
And so—
A worldwide wave of chaos began to spread.
Across the four seas, ambitious pirates started to move. One pirate ship after another rushed toward rich nations, hoping to tear off a big piece of their wealth.
But just as these pirates started to act, they ran straight into Marines who had been ready and waiting!
What shocked them even more was that, normally, the four seas were guarded only by Marine Captains or maybe a Rear Admiral. But this time, Marine Headquarters actually sent Vice Admirals!
The pirates didn't stand a chance. These well-prepared Vice Admirals took them down with ease.
The unrest in the four seas came quickly, but the Marines acted even faster. In a short time, countless ambitious pirates from the four seas were locked away in Impel Down!
~~~~~~
New World.
The death of a Five Elder caused an even bigger shock across the pirate world.
The Four Emperors' crews were all stunned. Ryuen actually took down one of the Five Elders of the World Government. It was hard to believe!
"Mom mom mom mom~"
"That kid just keeps surprising me," Big Mom said, looking at the day's newspaper with both joy and shock. "First he blew up the Celestial Dragons' holy land, Mary Geoise, and now he took out one of the Five Elders? What a crazy little brat!"
Even during the legendary God Valley battle years ago, the Five Elders never showed up. But now, one of them was dead!
Kaido felt the same way.
Back at God Valley, they hadn't even seen the faces of the Five Elders. But this time...
"Wororororo~"
"King! The Dream Exploration Group's goal is to map the whole world, right? That means they'll definitely come to Wano Country. When they do, I want to buy Ryuen a drink!" Kaido shouted excitedly.
"Got it, Kaido," King nodded slightly.
But unlike these two Yonko crews, the Whitebeard Pirates, while surprised, didn't have the time or energy to focus on this right now.
Things weren't going well for the Whitebeard Pirates at the moment.
As for the Red-Haired Pirates...
The mood in their camp was heavy. The balance of the world really was about to be broken. Everything was about to change.
"Hey."
"Beckman, by the looks of it, we're out of time. I don't think I can wait for another 'god' to show up..." Shanks said in a serious voice.
"In that case, Shanks... let's get started."
"One Piece, huh?"
"Yeah."
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