"Monster! Monster!!!"
Almost at the same moment, the majority of the Marines in the plaza finally noticed the four gigantic figures that had appeared after nightfall.
A massive spider crouched at the center of the plaza, its bloated round body pressing down on the stone pavement. Its head was disturbingly human yet bore the features of a buffalo, with twisted horns and eerie, emotionless eyes. Eight thick legs pierced deep into the plaza, releasing sizzling, corrosive sounds wherever they touched.
Above the battlefield, a colossal monstrous bird shrieked as it flew through the air. It had the head of a bird and the elongated body of a serpent, its entire form wrapped in rolling clouds of black flame that distorted the sky around it.
Nearby, a gigantic wild boar roared, its body massive and grotesque. Four thick tusks jutted forward, sharp and uneven, while jagged fangs curved into a chilling grin. Black, irregular patterns covered its hide, sending shivers through anyone who looked at it.
And beneath the plaza itself, the ground suddenly shifted.
A huge, thick worm, wreathed in black flames, half emerged before instantly sinking back into the stone. In the blink of an eye, it completely merged with the plaza, vanishing underground as if it had never been there.
Before panic could fully take hold and before the Marines could recklessly attack, several functioning loudspeakers suddenly blared to life.
"Marines, attention!"
Fleet Admiral Sengoku's voice echoed across Marineford, heavy and authoritative.
"These five are the supreme leaders of the World Government, the Gorosei!"
His tone grew even more severe.
"They are Zoan Devil Fruit users. This is their awakened form. Do not mistakenly attack the Gorosei.
You are to stay as far away from their area as possible and focus all efforts on attacking the Whitebeard Pirates. They absolutely must not be allowed to escape!"
"Yes!!!"
Many Marines had not witnessed the slaughter that occurred when the Gorosei were first summoned. Unaware of that horror, they obeyed without hesitation, continuing to pursue the retreating Whitebeard Pirates across the shattered plaza.
…
Across the world, every active broadcast area erupted into chaos.
Countless civilians stared at their screens in stunned silence, their minds unable to process what they were seeing. The figures displayed were supposed to be the most revered Celestial Dragons, the Gorosei, yet they looked more like demons than rulers.
"T-this is the supreme leadership of the World Government?"
"They're monsters. Absolute monsters! These things are Celestial Dragons?"
"I always imagined Celestial Dragons as elegant nobles, not these horrifying creatures!"
"Shh! Lower your voice! If their spies hear you, our entire country could suffer!"
"What is there to fear? Do they really dare attack a World Government affiliated nation just for speaking?"
Such whispered conversations spread everywhere.
Normally, no one would dare even mention the Celestial Dragons. But now, faced with undeniable proof and surrounded by crowds, people could no longer suppress their disbelief and anger.
"So that's why they rule the world. They're monsters who ate Devil Fruits!"
"Celestial Dragons? They're nothing but beasts! Do creatures like that deserve to take most of our nation's income?"
As time passed, fear gave way to outrage, and the whispers grew louder.
"Silence! The Celestial Dragons are not to be discussed!"
"Anyone who continues speaking will be arrested!"
Marines and local police tried to intervene, but the crowds were far too large. Everyone was talking, and it was impossible to single anyone out. After several futile attempts, the enforcers could only retreat and allow the discussions to continue unchecked.
…
Swish!
A thick, pitch-black spider leg shot forward like a spear, grazing past the upper body of the giant Luffy.
"Great Flame Commandment, Flame Pillar!!!"
Seeing Luffy narrowly avoid the attack, Ace widened his eyes. His body erupted in roaring flames as he launched himself into the air, intercepting the falling black fire from above.
"Luffy! Are you alright?!"
Ace unleashed waves of fire to block the flames spewed by the monstrous bird in the sky. He was pushing himself to the limit just to restrain Saint Mars, God of Environment.
Meanwhile, Luffy was facing three of the monstrous Gorosei on his own.
"Hehe, I'm fine!"
Luffy turned his head and grinned, pointing proudly at the rough armor covering his body.
"I was careful about that guy's poison, so I made armor from the ground!"
Suddenly, the surface of the armor began to hiss and smoke.
"Ah! That's bad, it's corroding! I need to throw it away!"
Before he could fully discard it, Luffy twisted his body and launched an expanding punch straight into the charging wild boar's head.
Boom!
Saint Warcury, God of Law, was sent tumbling across the plaza. As he struggled to regain his footing, his massive hooves crushed both Marines and pirates alike, leaving devastation in his wake.
"Ouch! That guy's head is really hard!"
Luffy shook his arm, tears welling up in his eyes.
"It's almost as hard as Shirogai's punches!"
"Danger!"
In the next instant, Luffy's body rapidly shrank, narrowly dodging a sword swing from Financial Military God Saint Nusjuro.
Boom!
Black-glowing sword energy tore through the air and slammed into a Marineford building. The structure groaned and tilted, but barely remained standing.
"Ace! Sand Man! Get away from here!!!"
Luffy shouted loudly, clearly worried about dragging others into the chaos.
Besides Luffy and Ace, there was only one other person still fighting a Gorosei head-on.
The former Shichibukai, Crocodile.
Relying on the properties of the Sand-Sand Fruit, Crocodile had successfully held back Saint Ju Peter Shepherd, God of Agriculture.
"Gahahahaha! So this is the true face of the Gorosei?"
Crocodile's body dissolved into a swirling storm of sand as he sneered.
"It's ugly beyond belief!"
From beneath the ground, a massive mouth burst upward, lunging toward him.
"You want to eat me? Desert Spada!!!"
Hiss, hiss, hiss…
The enormous sand worm shattered the plaza as it surged upward, swallowing part of Crocodile's sandy form.
Pfft!!!
A massive sand blade suddenly burst from its belly, tearing straight through it.
"Gahahahaha, die!!!"
Satisfaction flashed across Crocodile's face as he laughed wildly, swinging the condensed blade with full force and slicing the enormous sand worm cleanly in half.
Thud!
Both halves crashed to the ground, twitching weakly.
"Freedom… this feels incredible!"
Crocodile threw his head back, intoxicated by the moment.
"Being king of some country, even ruling the world, it's all meaningless compared to this!"
For an instant, he felt as though he understood Shirogai's joy.
Not the hollow pleasure of crushing the weak, but the exhilaration of striking down the Celestial Dragons he once could only look up to.
"Fufufufu… you should be careful, you arrogant fool."
A strange laugh echoed through the air.
"What?!"
Crocodile snapped his eyes open just in time to see two massive mouths form from the severed halves of the sand worm.
"It's not dead?"
The creature twisted unnaturally as both mouths lunged at him, black power swirling around their fangs, laced with Conqueror's Haki.
Just as they were about to snap shut, several thin threads wrapped tightly around them.
Snap!
"Fufufu… Crocodile, do you really think you've won?"
A pink-clad figure sat casually atop the immobilized monster, twisting his fingers with a cruel grin.
"These monsters possess immortality."
"What?! Doflamingo attacked the Gorosei?"
Shock rippled across the battlefield.
Not only were the Marines stunned, even the Whitebeard Pirates stared in disbelief.
The current Shichibukai, the Celestial Demon Donquixote Doflamingo, had openly attacked the supreme leaders of the World Government.
___
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