Saint Saten, now transformed into the monstrous Ox-Demon Spider, felt a bead of cold sweat roll down his temple as he watched Hojo Seita being surrounded and beaten by a swarm of pirates.
And when he met Souta Kiryuu's unrestrained, predatory gaze, a trembling sense of dread rose within him.
His reservoir of Immortal Energy had already been greatly depleted when he plunged into the sea earlier to save himself.
Now, with only the regenerative strength of his Mythical Zoan "Ox-Demon" awakening keeping him functional, there was no guarantee he could withstand Souta Kiryuu—a monster who wielded the power of a man-made Azure Dragon fruit and multiple ancient bloodlines.
Without reinforcement, he might actually die at Souta's hands.
Lord Imu… your loyal servant begs for your salvation. Please summon me back, allow me to receive your divine baptism!
Saten did not hesitate. At the edge of death, even punishment meant nothing.
Originally, his plan had been simple: kill Whitebeard, return to Mary Geoise to recover his power, and remain stationed as a guardian. Hojo Seita could handle the Four Emperors' remnants.
But Souta Kiryuu's sudden intervention shattered everything.
"Oh? You're sweating. Your heartbeat's unstable. You're afraid of me, aren't you? Talking to Imu right now?"
Souta's grin was merciless as he observed every twitch of Saten's expression.
"I'm guessing you burned through a lot of your Source Energy when you fell into the sea."
Dragon God: Tyrant Fist!
Souta's eyes sharpened, and he launched forward, his clawed fist wrapped in blazing Conqueror's Haki, striking directly toward Saten—now suspected to have lost his immortality.
"You… you actually know about the Source?"
Saten's gaze tightened.
Had Isaku—the one even the Five Elders found troublesome—fallen to Souta… and revealed the truth?
"Hah! Isaku gave me quite the gift. So thoughtful of you all to deliver him right to me!"
Souta's strike slammed forward, laughter wild and untamed.
"Damn you!!"
Without Immortal Energy to rely on, Saten could no longer fight recklessly, letting attacks tear through his body.
He coated his entire frame in Armament Haki, claws wrapped in crackling Conqueror's Haki, and met Souta's dragon fist head-on.
BOOM!
"Gah!!"
Saten was blasted backward, a streak of crimson blood spraying from his spider limbs—true blood, not the pale regenerative mass from before.
"So. Gaining immortality made you neglect training your Armament Haki."
One exchange told Souta everything he needed to know.
The strength of Saten's Armament… his Conqueror's coating…
And most importantly—his immortal 'white bar' of life was gone.
Revealing a red bar beneath.
Which meant—
He could be killed.
Souta's grin widened into something feral.
A Fourth Calamity has only one rule: If you reveal your health bar, god or demon, I'll still kill you.
Saten paled further. Souta knew about the Source. Knew how Immortal Energy functioned.
And Souta was coming to end him.
He panicked—calling out desperately to Imu, and to the other Five Elders.
Hearing Saten's cry, Masato Guren, transformed into the great Sky-Devouring Divine Bird, abandoned his clash with Kaido and accelerated toward Souta.
"Block him!"
From her command vantage point, Nico Robin immediately ordered Akainu and Shiki to intercept the monstrous bird.
She had wanted to send them to help tear apart the colossal sand wyrm, or reinforce Souta and the Red Count.
But Kaido? He could just keep suffering for a while.
"Kuma! With me!"
The Pirate Empress shot forward, refusing to allow the Five Elders to gang up on her man.
Kuma flashed ahead, faster than even her.
This time, he didn't use the Paw-Paw Fruit.
He unleashed pure Armament Haki and the monstrous physical might of the Buccaneer Clan.
"This fist is for the Buccaneer Clan— for my father and mother!"
Nika Strike!
Kuma's gentle face twisted into something primal, muscles coiling as he slammed his fist into the Divine Bird's skull.
BOOM.
The enormous bird was smashed out of the sky and driven deep into the ice field, shattering it into a crater of jagged fractures.
"You wretched slave filth!! I will erase your entire line!!"
Masato Guren roared, losing all of his divine composure, black lightning of Conqueror's Haki tearing the battlefield apart.
"Great Petrification Arrow!" "Crimson Lotus Fang!" "Crescent Slash!"
The Empress, Akainu, and Shiki unleashed their strikes into the crater.
"BEGONE!!"
Masato erupted upward, wings wreathed in thick black flame-clouds, tearing through every attack as he dove toward Kuma.
"Kuma, move!!" Bonnie's voice cracked—
But Kuma had already vanished.
The bird shot upward into the open sky.
And there— he began forming a massive black magic array.
Gasps filled the air.
"That's—Imu's teleportation array!!" "Stop him!! Hurry!!"
Everyone remembered that nightmare:
Arrows and spears of shadow so powerful that even Souta and the Emperors were forced to defend.
Shiki and Kuma rushed upward to break the formation. The Empress and Akainu fired ranged bombardments from below.
Saten saw the array taking shape—and laughed.
If Imu descended, no one could resist. Knowing the Source meant nothing. Mastering it was another matter.
No way Souta could already use it.
"You've gotten arrogant!"
Souta's voice cut in like a blade.
His fist—the dragon claw—began to glow with a thin layer of something deeper than Conqueror's Haki.
Source Power.
This was a trace he extracted from Isaku—refined and fused through his own Conqueror's spirit.
A spear to pierce any defense—Armament or Conqueror.
If he added the Star-Core Cutting Blade on top of it, even Imu himself could be stabbed through if he got careless.
Dragon God: Execution Fist.