Fujitora slightly raised his head. Although his eyes could not see, his Observation Haki allowed him to clearly sense everything happening in the sky. The sounds of the battle echoed through the air, and the immense power radiating from both the Gorosei and Marco was impossible to ignore.
Fujitora sighed quietly.
"This world truly has people beyond people, and heavens beyond heavens. Phoenix Marco is even stronger than the last time we encountered him, and the Gorosei themselves have also grown far more powerful."
High in the sky, Marco and the three Gorosei separated after another fierce clash.
Blue flames flickered around Marco's body as his wounds rapidly healed. The regenerative power of the Phoenix Devil Fruit restored his injuries instantly. Across from him, the three Gorosei had also begun to recover, but Marco clearly saw something different this time.
They had bled.
Although their wounds quickly closed again, the blood had been real.
A faint smile appeared on Marco's lips.
"So you can bleed after all. Looks like if Conqueror's Haki is strong enough, it really can hurt you."
Saint V. Nusjuro and the other two Gorosei no longer bothered arguing. Their expressions turned cold as one of them replied calmly,
"That is true. If Conqueror's Haki is strong enough, it can harm us. But this is where your limit ends."
Marco's expression became more serious.
All of them possessed power on the level of the world's strongest fighters. However, if it were a one on one fight, Marco was absolutely confident he could defeat any of them.
During the battle, he had already discovered their weakness.
The so called Immortality the Gorosei possessed was terrifying to opponents whose Haki was insufficient. But against someone with extremely powerful Haki, it was not absolute.
Even those with Immortality could still die.
Just moments ago, Marco had injured them several times, and their blood had spilled in the sky. Still, their bodies recovered at an unnatural speed. As long as the damage was not instantly fatal, their regeneration would repair it quickly.
That was the real problem.
The current Gorosei were far stronger than before.
Fighting one of them would already be extremely difficult. Fighting three at the same time made it nearly impossible for Marco to land a decisive blow.
When Marco had fought them previously on Whole Cake Island, their Haki and Devil Fruit abilities had been powerful, but their physical attributes such as speed and raw strength were lacking. Years of sitting in offices and ruling the world had clearly taken their toll.
Now everything was different.
Even without considering their Immortality, their current strength had surpassed that of a Marine Admiral. Their power had reached the same terrifying level as Kaido after awakening his Devil Fruit.
Saint V. Nusjuro and one of the others were even slightly stronger than Kaido.
At this level of battle, Immortality was no longer their greatest advantage. When facing fighters capable of wielding powerful Conqueror's Haki, that ability could still bypass their regeneration.
In other words, their Immortality now only provided extremely fast recovery.
Their real strength had increased dramatically.
Marco narrowed his eyes.
"So this so called Four Soul Divine Blood is the Gorosei's trump card?"
Just as the thought crossed his mind, several overwhelming auras suddenly erupted above the dome of Egghead Island.
High above the island, within the sea of clouds, a massive ship floated silently.
The Moby Dick.
Mirrors suddenly shimmered across the deck of the ship, and figures began stepping out of them.
A loud laugh echoed through the sky.
"Worororo! I can feel it. Several powerful monsters are fighting here."
Kaido stepped forward as he emerged from the mirror. Behind him followed Sak, King the Conflagration, Jack, and members of the Tobiroppo.
At nearly the same moment, another booming laugh rang out.
"Mama mamamama! So this is Egghead!"
Big Mom appeared as well, stepping out with Katakuri, Smoothie, and several of her strongest subordinates.
Both the Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates had brought nearly all of their top fighters. Their territories in the New World were practically left unguarded, but it did not matter.
The entire sea was already under the control of the Three Emperors Alliance.
Their only real enemies now were the Marines and the World Government.
"Marco..."
Sak looked toward the distant battlefield where Marco was facing three Gorosei alone. Concern was clear on his face.
Kaido's grin widened as his body rapidly transformed into a gigantic Azure Dragon.
"Worororo! Linlin, let's move!"
Big Mom immediately stepped onto the thundercloud Zeus, her massive figure rising into the air.
"You're right!"
Both Emperors flew straight toward Marco.
The moment Kaido and Big Mom entered the battlefield, the expressions of the three Gorosei grew colder.
Even with the three of them fighting together, they had not been able to defeat Marco quickly. The regeneration granted by the Phoenix Fruit was simply too powerful, and Marco's Haki had become strong enough to injure them.
Kaido's enormous dragon form descended beside Marco as he laughed loudly.
"Worororo! Marco, looks like I arrived just in time!"
Big Mom also burst into laughter.
"Mama mamamama! These old men look a little different from the last time we met!"
"Captain Marco."
Sak had already transformed into his Pink Dragon Human Beast Form, floating in the air on flame clouds.
Marco nodded slightly.
Besides Kaido and Big Mom, Sak, King, and Katakuri had also arrived. Their presence instantly shifted the balance of the battlefield.
Marco spoke in a serious tone.
"Kaido, Big Mom. These guys are using a drug called God's Blood. It has greatly increased their strength. They're completely different from when we fought them on Whole Cake Island."
Kaido's eyes lit up with interest as he laughed.
"Hmph. The Gorosei are relying on drugs to strengthen themselves? Power like that can't last long."
Marco shook his head slightly.
"They claim this Four Soul Divine Blood has no side effects and can last for seven days. I don't fully believe that either, but we should still be careful."
Big Mom's expression became serious.
She had already fought Saint V. Nusjuro alone earlier on Egghead Island, and even that battle had been difficult. If the Gorosei had now strengthened themselves with some unknown drug, the fight would only become more dangerous.
Kaido also became more focused.
Even he could feel how powerful the Gorosei had become. Against enemies like this, he would have to fight seriously.
Saint V. Nusjuro slowly descended from the sky, landing on the ground below.
Marco and the others followed.
Although Marco excelled in aerial combat, he was even more dangerous when fighting on the ground. The sky had only been chosen earlier because it gave him a slight advantage against the Gorosei.
Now the battlefield had changed.
Saint V. Nusjuro looked at the gathered Emperors with cold eyes.
Marco.
Kaido.
Big Mom.
Three of the most terrifying pirates in the world now stood together.
A faint sneer appeared on Nusjuro's face.
"So all of you have finally gathered."
"Good."
"This time, I will deal with all of you at once."
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