"Now it's time for you to tell me what I want to know, Taro!"
Aokiji looked at Taro, his tone solemn.
The corners of Taro's mouth curled up into a slight smile,
"Behind the Gorosei, the world's highest authority, there exists another person. This person is the true 'King of the World'!"
Aokiji's expression changed drastically. "What did you say?!"
Taro nodded, feeling somewhat emotional.
"That person is called Imu, the 'King' on the Void Throne, who wields one of the ancient weapons, uranus. What you have been protecting for decades is the order established by Imu!"
"When did you find out about this?!" Aokiji's brow furrowed.
"Not long ago!"
Indeed, it hadn't been that long; Imu had only appeared for a few chapters.
"The spying incident that occurred in Marijoa not long ago was my doing!"
Taro thought for a moment before saying, "That incident confirmed Imu's strength for me. For now, it is far beyond mine!"
Surprise flashed through Aokiji's eyes, and then he noticed Taro's choice of words.
"'For now'? You seem very confident about defeating that Imu in the future."
Taro smiled. "Yes, very confident. I just need a little more time!"
Aokiji stared at Taro for a long moment. "Taro, although your strength has grown rapidly, someone who can stand above the Gorosei is not..."
Taro waved his hand, interrupting Aokiji, an inexplicable smile appearing on his face. "The rate at which my strength grows is more than just 'rapid'."
With that, he glanced toward the shore once more.
"Alright, the Whitebeard Pirates Remnants seem to be reaching their limit. I don't want to see Blackbeard's smug expression..."
"This Payback War is also a final settling of scores between me and Blackbeard. As for you... forget it. As long as you haven't joined Blackbeard, I can still tolerate you!"
At the shore.
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit ability had been activated multiple times, tearing the entire coastline into dozens of bottomless abysses as colossal waves continuously swept in.
In the sky, a pitch-black canopy covering the entire coast continuously devoured the power of lightning.
Then, it was released again by Blackbeard.
The Division Commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates Remnants were all wounded, clearly on the verge of collapse. A crushing defeat was imminent!
"Zehahaha! Marco, you've already lost this war. Hand over what I want. Otherwise, I'll have to search every single island protected by Pops. There's no telling what might happen then! Zehahaha!"
Blackbeard's previously suppressed mood vanished; the battle was entirely under his control. The only reason he had toyed with Marco and the others until now was to find out the location of that item to save himself the trouble of searching for it later!
"Shut up, Teach! You're the only one unworthy of being called Pops' son!"
Despite the powerful recovery abilities of his Phoenix form, blood still seeped from the corner of Marco's mouth, indicating he had suffered severe internal injuries.
"Zehahaha! It doesn't matter if you don't want to hear me call him Pops. That old fellow is already dead anyway!"
Blackbeard laughed even more wantonly. "Hand over the item that old fellow brought out from God Valley! If I'm in a good mood, I might spare your lives! Zehahaha!"
Vista and the others looked at Marco, filled with confusion. What exactly was Blackbeard looking for?
Marco had been with Whitebeard the longest; if anyone in the Whitebeard Pirates knew about the events of thirty-six years ago, it had to be him!
However, Marco's brow was tightly furrowed.
"I don't know what you're talking about! And even if I did, I would never give it to you!"
Blackbeard's gaze suddenly turned cold, and his smile became cruel.
"Is that so? Then I'll be kind enough to send you to see that Pops you respect so much! Zehahaha!"
He raised his left arm, and white-hot Vibration Energy surged around his fist.
"Die! Zehaha— hic!"
Blackbeard's laughter cut off abruptly, his expression turning instantly somber.
A mass of cyan-colored air currents was particularly dazzling beneath the dark canopy, approaching at high speed.
"Keep laughing. Aren't you the best at seizing opportunities? Laughter like this... every time you laugh is one time closer to the last!"
Taro's Internal Energy surged wildly throughout his body as he hovered in mid-air, a mocking smile on his face.
Hatred flashed through Blackbeard's eyes, and his ugly face twisted and twitched.
"Taro, it's you?!"
Beside Blackbeard, the expressions of Catarina Devon, Avalo Pizarro, and San Juan Wolf also soured.
There were also two unfamiliar faces Taro hadn't seen before.
One was a burly man with a head of brown hair, a fleshy face, and buck teeth.
The other was a very short young man, but with distinct Fish-Man Race characteristics.
Taro glanced at these two 'newcomers'.
"Knowing that I intend to wipe out the Blackbeard Pirates, you still dared to join? Such ignorance... tsk tsk!"
Terrified by Taro's cold tone, the two men's pupils constricted violently. They looked up at Taro in mid-air before timidly lowering their gazes.
Taro sneered disdainfully.
"Is this your newly recruited help? They really are just a bunch of trash!"
Dense black mist billowed from Blackbeard's body.
"Taro, how do you know about this place?!"
Taro descended a bit closer and smiled.
"Oh, Burgess and the others told me."
Blackbeard roared, "Impossible! How could Burgess...?!"
Taro shook his head slightly. "I'll send you to see him later. You can take your time asking him whatever questions you have!"
"You... you killed them?!"
Fury surged in Blackbeard's eyes as he let out a great roar. "Argh!"
The Vibration Energy on his left arm flared up as he struck out with all his might.
Taro gathered his Internal Energy at the same time and threw a Quake Fist.
"Rumble!"
Two masses of Vibration Energy erupted, shattering the air and making the earth tremble.
Taro landed slowly on the ground, a smirk on his lips.
"You haven't made much progress, have you?"
With that, he walked slowly toward the Blackbeard Pirates.
"String-String Fruit Awakening!"
"Second Gear!"
"Armament Hardening!"
"Conqueror's Haki Infusion!"
"Vibration Energy Infusion!"
"Billowing White Lines!"
His Internal Energy Domain spread rapidly, and in an instant, the Blackbeard Pirates were all trapped within it.
Then, tens of thousands of Internal Energy threads suddenly rose from the domain, surging up from beneath their feet and converging into several wave-like torrents of attacks.
"Dark Water!"
Blackbeard opened his right hand wide, a massive gravitational force locking onto Taro and pulling him in. At the same time, his left arm bulged as he gathered Vibration Energy once more to blast the incoming waves.
San Juan Wolf's size ballooned to nearly 200 meters. He clasped his fists together and spun his body like a hammer throw, smashing everything around him.
Avalo Pizarro unslung a cannon from his back and roared. Fiery red energy began to charge within the barrel before a brilliant beam of light blasted out.
Catarina Devon put away her spear as a puff of white smoke rose. She instantly transformed into her Nine-Tailed Fox form, and her tails ballooned in size.
Her furry tails curved forward, and a cold fire ignited at their tips, merging into a wall of flame that shielded her entire body.
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