The appearance of the three CP0 agents immediately drew attention from every corner of the battlefield.
Their auras exploded outward without restraint as they unleashed their full strength, and the masks on their faces were practically synonymous with CP0 itself. Before anyone could fully process what was happening, five more masked figures burst through the clouds behind them in rapid succession.
The atmosphere on the battlefield shifted instantly.
Panic spread like wildfire.
Everyone understood what this meant. Combat power on this level was enough to overturn the entire war. One Arest had already managed to pressure Redyat despite the battlefield advantage of the Golden Sea. Now eight more CP0 agents had arrived at once.
Even if they were weaker than Arest, CP0 was still the World Government's strongest shield. Every member was a monster carefully cultivated from countless resources.
Many ordinary people watching through Den Den Mushi broadcasts could not fully grasp the implications, but the experienced veterans of the sea understood immediately.
Across taverns, kingdoms, pirate territories, and underground intelligence bases, retired powerhouses and old veterans silently watched the battlefield while analyzing the balance of power.
The era of visual Den Den Mushi had changed the world completely.
Information no longer traveled slowly.
Forums, live broadcasts, clips, and recorded footage spread across the seas every hour. Analysts discussed battles in real time, comparing combat abilities, factions, Devil Fruits, and military strength. Once enough information was gathered, people could piece together most of the truth even without official intelligence.
The crude beginnings of a data age had already emerged.
The Marines had long started collecting information through broadcasts and public discussions. Intelligence organizations also realized the enormous value hidden within visual Den Den Mushi.
The Nightfall Pirates had naturally placed heavy focus on this field as well.
And soon, observant viewers noticed something strange.
The first three CP0 agents were not charging toward the battlefield.
They were being dragged upward.
The five remaining agents were not advancing in formation either. They were clearly pursuing the first three.
Many sharp-eyed spectators immediately noticed the distortion in the air around the three Devil Fruit users. Even in their transformed hybrid forms, they appeared to be struggling against an invisible force pulling them skyward.
That scene, combined with the sudden suppression of their abilities, caused several people to react at once.
One name surfaced immediately.
"It's Dark Emperor Teach!"
A post exploded onto the forum at incredible speed.
"The Dark-Dark Fruit can attract Devil Fruit users! Teach is on the battlefield!"
The message was instantly pinned and highlighted.
For a brief moment, the entire forum seemed to freeze.
Then chaos erupted.
"Excellent!" Morgans shouted excitedly from his broadcasting room, nearly smashing the microphone against the table in excitement. "Give that editor a raise immediately!"
The people responsible for filtering information on the forums were specially selected elites. They needed insight, reaction speed, and analytical ability capable of identifying the most shocking and valuable information before it vanished beneath countless incoming messages.
Morgans paid those people tens of millions of Berries annually for exactly moments like this.
And this moment was worth every Berry.
The revelation spread across the world instantly.
Although many had speculated about Teach's possible involvement, speculation and confirmation were entirely different things. The official acknowledgment that Dark Emperor Teach was personally hidden on the battlefield sent shockwaves through the seas.
This also confirmed another terrifying truth.
The pirate side had hidden trump cards as well.
Until now, most people believed Teach remained in the Sageros sea to guard the Nightfall Pirates' territory. After all, Redyat was fighting in the Golden Sea while Ares was battling in the New World. Meanwhile, the Nightfall Pirates were still expanding across various territories.
Leaving their homeland completely undefended during such a critical period would normally be suicidal.
That was why Teach's appearance carried such an overwhelming impact.
It revealed terrifying confidence.
The Nightfall Pirates truly believed nobody dared attack their territory even in the absence of their captain.
Far above the battlefield, Redyat glanced toward the commotion and laughed softly.
"So they finally arrived."
Although phrased like a question, he already knew the answer.
Teach making his move meant the war was nearing its end.
Even Redyat, with his Mythical Zoan physique, was beginning to feel exhaustion after fighting continuously for so long. The battle against White Ghost, followed by seven straight days against Arest, had pushed him to his limits.
But the rewards had been equally immense.
Every clash refined his Haki further.
Every near death exchange sharpened his instincts.
Now all that remained was to finish the war.
Redyat's body dissolved into shadow once more as he surged directly toward Arest again.
Arest, however, merely smiled.
Teach's appearance surprised him somewhat, but only somewhat.
In his eyes, the pirate side had already revealed its final card.
Whitebeard and Golden Lion were locked in battle elsewhere. Kaido and Big Mom remained tied down in the New World. The Four Emperors could not appear here.
So what more could the pirates possibly hide?
Even Teach alone could not overturn everything.
At least, that was what Arest believed.
Their operation had been designed precisely for this moment. By unleashing overwhelming high end combat power suddenly, they intended to end the war before the pirates in the New World could react properly.
In his view, hiding Teach was already the pirates' absolute limit.
The only concern was Teach himself.
Every CP0 agent was precious. Losing even one was painful, especially since several among them possessed hidden identities and long term missions buried deep across the seas.
Still, they held the advantage.
And they were not alone.
Far away in Dressrosa, Donquixote Doflamingo lay sprawled across a luxurious chair at the Royal Plateau while multiple Den Den Mushi screens played around him simultaneously.
"Fufufufufu! Interesting…"
He tilted his head back and laughed loudly while drinking wine.
"To think Teach would really appear in the Golden Sea."
A single broadcast feed was insufficient for someone like him. He watched several perspectives at once, effortlessly following the battlefield through overlapping streams of information.
Most people would have gone dizzy instantly.
Doflamingo, however, thrived in chaos.
He had long wanted the World Government to fail.
Weapons, logistics, supplies, he had secretly funneled massive support toward the Jaya Island pirates. Anything that destabilized the World Government benefited him.
Originally, he had not placed much hope in the pirates' chances. The first half of the Grand Line was effectively the World Government's home territory.
But as the war dragged on and the world situation deteriorated, he gradually saw cracks appearing.
And now those cracks were widening.
"You definitely planned this carefully, Teach."
Doflamingo narrowed his eyes.
Among all the people on the sea, Teach was the one he understood the least.
The rise of the Nightfall Pirates had been far too rapid and far too precise. Every major action carried hidden layers beneath it.
And during this war, Doflamingo had repeatedly sensed something strange about the pirates' behavior.
Not wrong.
Just... too calm.
As though they were waiting for something.
That subtle inconsistency was what gave Doflamingo confidence.
The World Government might actually lose.
His body trembled slightly with excitement as he stared at the screens.
Meanwhile, high above the battlefield, Teach looked down coldly at the struggling CP0 agents.
"You think you can resist?"
Dark gravity surged violently.
The pull of the Dark-Dark Fruit was terrifyingly fast. Moonwalk alone was nowhere near enough to escape it.
The difference in speed was overwhelming.
Unlike Doflamingo's strings, which allowed stable movement through the air itself, Moonwalk lacked solid footing. Their ability to resist was limited.
"Dark Bind."
Teach's calm voice echoed through the clouds.
Suddenly, thick black chains erupted downward from the darkness above.
The chains wrapped around the three CP0 agents instantly.
Their necks, joints, arms, and legs were all tightly restrained before they could properly react.
"Damn it!"
Fuji Snake struggled violently, veins bulging across his body. Yet the harder he resisted, the tighter the chains constricted around him.
The chains were forged from compressed darkness itself, much like Teach's Dark Jade constructs. They possessed horrifying density and terrifying gravitational force.
Their bodies became completely immobilized.
Under the combined pull of the chains and the Dark-Dark Fruit's gravity, the three figures were dragged directly into the clouds.
"What a shame," Teach's mocking voice drifted down softly. "Your mission ended before it even started."
Before they could react further, a black shadow flashed past.
Three claws pierced forward simultaneously.
Blood exploded into the air.
Teach's blackened fingers punched directly through all three hearts.
The three CP0 agents widened their eyes in disbelief.
They wanted to speak.
Wanted to resist.
Wanted to curse him.
But life was already leaving their bodies.
Their eyes dimmed rapidly.
It was not that they were weak.
Teach was simply far too strong.
A dark vortex opened behind him, swallowing the corpses along with the black chains into darkness.
The chains themselves had taken years of compression and refinement to create. Like Dark Jade, they were solidified manifestations of darkness that could be stored and reused repeatedly.
Below the clouds, the remaining five CP0 agents rushed upward frantically.
Then three corpses suddenly fell from above.
The agents' expressions changed immediately.
They caught the bodies at once and hurriedly covered their faces with torn clothing before quickly disfiguring them further out of public view.
But it was already too late.
Teach had deliberately removed their masks beforehand.
The entire world had already seen their faces.
Nobody cared much about their appearance itself. The seas were filled with strange looking people.
But hidden identities were another matter entirely.
Across the world, various organizations, underground groups, and kingdoms stared at the exposed faces in shock.
Several powerful factions recognized them instantly.
Expressions turned ugly.
Some became furious.
Others became terrified.
They had unknowingly harbored CP0 spies within their ranks for years.
"Damn you…"
Arest's face darkened instantly.
That single move had destroyed years of carefully buried operations.
The exposure of even one hidden CP0 identity could trigger massive purges, political collapses, or internal wars within organizations.
Nobody tolerated spies from the World Government.
Especially not CP0.
His momentary distraction created a fatal opening.
Redyat seized it immediately.
His fist slammed directly into Arest's body with explosive force, blasting him backward through the sky.
Redyat transformed into shadow and pursued without hesitation.
At the same time, another figure slowly emerged from the clouds above.
And in that instant, the attention of the entire world shifted upward.