Being suddenly addressed as "Imu-sama" by Saint Peter and Saint Garling left everyone unsettled. The Gorosei were supposed to be the highest authorities in the World Government, and Saint Garling was even the leader of the God's Knights. Who else could they possibly call "Sama"?
"What's going on with that woman? She suddenly seems like a completely different person!" Fossa stared curiously at Naronar Crimi Palace, now possessed by Imu.
Katakuri wiped the cold sweat beading on his forehead. "It's not just her appearance," he muttered. "Her entire aura has undergone a massive change."
Big Mom's expression twisted in displeasure. "What in the world is going on?"
At that moment, the system AI voice suddenly echoed in Marco's mind:
"Mission issued: World King Imu has descended. Defeat Naronar Crimi Palace, who is possessed by Imu. Reward: 10,000 attribute points."
Reading the mission prompt, Marco instantly pieced things together. He activated his level scan:
"Naronar Crimi Palace (possessed by Imu), Paramecia-type Sniper Fruit, estimated strength: Strong King Level."
Seeing that Imu could reach Strong King Level just by possessing Naronar Crimi Palace, Marco's expression grew serious. Even so, if it was only a possession, he wasn't intimidated.
"So it was you, Imu-sama," Marco said with a playful edge, eyeing Naronar Crimi Palace's possessed body.
"You know Imu?" Imu asked in return, faint curiosity in their voice.
"Marco, do you know her?" Big Mom demanded.
Marco's lips curled into a faint smile. "Didn't you hear just now? Saint Peter called her 'Imu-sama.' The so‑called Gorosei are just the public leaders of the World Government. The true king of the world is this Imu-sama."
"What?" Big Mom shouted in shock.
Marco went on, "But he must have used some method to possess this member of the God's Knights. His main body hasn't come."
"Possession?" Big Mom repeated.
Marco nodded. "And the immortality of the Gorosei and the God's Knights must have been imparted—bestowed—by this Imu-sama as well."
The revelation stunned everyone all over again. Even Kaido, watching from a distance, growled in disbelief, "Above the Gorosei, there's actually a king of the world?"
Meanwhile, Vegapunk, who had been hiding inside his laboratory, stepped up to the dome and peered out at Imu in the sky.
He refused to watch through surveillance any longer. The moment Imu descended, an overwhelming wave of Conqueror's Haki had flooded the area. Even though he had taken measures to protect the transponder snails in advance, they'd still been knocked out by that Haki, forcing all monitoring to a halt.
"Imu…" Vegapunk murmured. "I remember seeing that name on a poneglyph. A Celestial Dragon from eight hundred years ago—the king of the Nerona family, one of the Twenty Kings from back then."
Stussy, standing beside him, stared in shock. "Are you saying this Imu is that king from eight hundred years ago?"
"I'm not certain… but it's very likely."
Vegapunk's eyes lit up as if something had just clicked, his voice rising with excitement. "Think about it. The Gorosei have lived for several centuries. The reason people across the world believe the Celestial Dragons are gods is because the Gorosei keep showing up on television and in the newspapers."
"It's been like this for hundreds of years. That kind of lifespan is beyond what humans should have. That's why the people of the world revere the Celestial Dragons as gods."
He drew in a sharp breath. "But if that person really is Nerona Imu from eight hundred years ago, then the power he's accumulated over those eight centuries is unimaginable."
Stussy's expression darkened. A bead of sweat slid down her smooth forehead.
At that moment Vegapunk spoke again, his voice tight with anxiety. "No, no, we can't win at all! Stussy, prepare to retreat—quickly. We have to run. Even the Three Emperors Alliance can't defeat a monster like that."
Stussy nodded at once, fully convinced. "Yes, Doctor," she answered gravely.
Out on the battlefield, Warcury, who had been clashing with Kaido, finally stopped holding back. He spoke coldly, without disguise. "That's right. Imu-sama is the true king of the world. We are all nothing more than Imu-sama's servants."
"Servants?"
Kaido's eyes widened. He knew firsthand how strong Warcury was. A monster of this level was only Imu's servant? So that's the king of the world?
But Imu's title as king of the world didn't frighten Kaido. If anything, it stirred a reckless excitement in him—a desire to test himself against this so‑called king.
He crushed that thought almost as soon as it surfaced. He might constantly shout about wanting to die, but that was only in front of people weaker than him. Right now, he couldn't even beat Imu's servant, Warcury. What business did he have talking about challenging Imu himself?
Marco stared at Naronar Crimi Palace—now possessed by Imu—with a solemn look. In that state, she was on the same level as him: a Strong King Level combatant. He should be able to fight her.
Originally, Marco had intended to wipe out the remaining God's Knights and harvest some attribute points. He hadn't expected Imu to suddenly descend.
Imu regarded Marco in turn, curiosity flickering in her eyes. "I never imagined a mortal would know of Imu's existence," she said. "A mortal who can slay gods… you are indeed no ordinary being."
"I'll give you a chance: surrender to Imu and become Imu's servant."
Marco let out a derisive snort. "I refuse, obviously."
Then he glanced back at Big Mom and added with a mocking grin, "Big Mom, want to test the quality of this 'king of the world'? If you beat her, you'll be the new king of the world."
Big Mom's eyes flashed with brief excitement, but reason quickly smothered it. She couldn't even defeat Saint Peter, let alone the World King Imu. That guy was a monster standing above the Gorosei themselves. Challenging her now would be nothing but throwing her life away.
She immediately declined with forced politeness. "Mamamama, as much as I would love to fight the king of the world, I'll leave that opponent to you."
As she spoke, Big Mom was already thinking of retreat. Only now did she fully realize how naive she had been, believing the Three Emperors Alliance could topple the World Government. Who could have imagined their power ran this deep?
Compared to this, the Marines—the so‑called rulers of the seas—weren't even worth mentioning.
Admirals were already considered monsters, yet the Gorosei far surpassed them. And now, Imu had appeared. Even those terrifying Gorosei were nothing but servants to Imu-sama. It was almost impossible to fathom how horrifying Imu's true strength must be.
"That works too," Marco replied with a light chuckle. He lifted his gaze to Imu, floating calmly in mid-air, his expression turning grave. Imu was in some kind of possessed state, and the system couldn't even identify her Devil Fruit. Judging from her form, though, it looked vaguely like a Zoan ability.
Imu heard Marco's response, but her eyes stayed cold and indifferent. A magic circle bloomed in her palm, and a patch of darkness tore open in front of her right hand. She reached into the void and slowly drew out a three‑meter‑long dark magic scythe.
At that moment, Big Mom suddenly shouted, "Hey, Marco, Kaido, are you two still planning to keep fighting in a situation like this?"
Kaido remained silent. Marco answered at once. "Of course we're going to fight! And even if we wanted to leave, they wouldn't just let us walk away. When there's no way out, the brave win. You two are Yonko, aren't you? Show a little Yonko's spirit!"
He didn't wait for Imu to make the first move. Black flames burst from his body as he beat his wings and shot toward her, roaring, "Phoenix Flame—!"
A colossal black‑flame phoenix hurtled at Imu. She swung her magic scythe with casual ease, and a slash of purple sword pressure ripped through the fiery bird, tearing it apart. But Marco had already circled around, charging from another angle. Black flame and Haki wrapped tightly around his right fist as he bellowed, "Phoenix Fire Fist—!"
Boom!
Their clash exploded in mid-air as Marco's fist met Imu's scythe. A deafening shockwave rang out, red lightning crackled and scattered, and the air around them warped in rippling waves.
A flicker of surprise crossed Imu's eyes. Feeling the immense power behind Marco's blow, she mused coldly, "It's been hundreds of years, and this is the first time I've encountered such a powerful mortal. No wonder you were able to slay a god."
"That condescending tone is really getting on my nerves!" Marco roared.
Black flames burst from his right elbow, condensing into a blazing thruster. With a thunderous boom, the stalled clash shattered—air rippled, and the shockwave hurled Imu's body thousands of meters back through the sky.
As the dome behind her rushed closer, Imu's Devil wings snapped open and beat once. A violent gale exploded behind her, arresting her momentum and stopping her just short of impact.
Down below, a pirate and a Marine were locked blade to blade—or at least, pretending to be. Their arms strained, but their eyes were glued to the heavens.
"So strong… is that World King Imu?"
"But Captain Marco actually sent the king of the world flying. Can he win?"
All across the battlefield, the fighting between ordinary Marines and pirates had calmed compared to the opening carnage. Blows were still exchanged, but more and more of them were pulling their punches, holding back, or simply going through the motions.
With the arrival of the Gorosei, the God's Knights, and Imu herself, they'd finally understood how small they really were. No matter how fiercely they fought, it wouldn't change the course of this war. Once the monsters above decided the outcome, everything else would be settled.
Imu watched Marco rocket toward her again, fearless as ever. For centuries, he had stood at the very top, unchallenged. Now that an interesting mortal had appeared, he had no reason to rush. Playing with him was almost… amusing.
The two crashed together and split apart again and again in the sky, Haki slamming into Haki, fists colliding with bone-rattling force.
"I never imagined that after hundreds of years, a mortal this powerful would appear," Imu said coldly. "Decades ago, that mortal named Rocks was already quite surprising with his strength—but yours surpasses even his."
"However, this is where it ends. Domi Reversi…"
As she spoke, Imu invoked another spell.
A black, five-pointed magic circle flared to life beneath Marco's feet in the very next heartbeat, dragging at his body, trying to swallow him whole.
Marco looked down to see his legs already sinking into the circle. It felt as if an entirely different dimension existed beneath that ink-black sigil. The moment his feet slipped under, they vanished from this world.
"Space ability?" Marco's pupils shrank. His legs felt mired in bottomless sludge, completely immovable. He gathered his strength, ready to tear himself free by brute force—
But then, a crushing wave of mental energy slammed straight into his mind.
Along with it came a flood of rage unlike anything he had ever felt. Buried memories, long since faded, surged back up from the depths.
He suddenly remembered his past life.
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