At the Holy Land Mary Geoise, inside the Chamber of the Highest Authority, five old men sat in their seats with dark expressions.
They had been waiting for Kuma's report.
Unfortunately, an entire day had passed, and Kuma still hadn't returned.
"What's going on with Kuma?" Saint Nusjuro said irritably. "It's already been a full day. Why hasn't he shown up yet?"
Not only had he failed to return—
He hadn't even contacted them through a Den Den Mushi.
What was that supposed to mean?
Had he been killed?
Impossible.
That was Kuma.
"Perhaps… the battle hasn't ended yet?" Saint Peter suggested.
"That's impossible," Nusjuro replied immediately.
"We know Kuma's strength. A Straw Hat crew that just finished a major battle could fight him for an entire day?"
That sounded ridiculous.
Setting aside the fact that the Straw Hat Pirates had just fought Moria—
Just consider Kuma's Devil Fruit.
The Paw-Paw Fruit, a god-tier fruit that had once come from their own possession.
With that ability, Kuma was practically unbeatable.
"That's true."
Saint Saturn nodded in agreement.
The ninja boy had managed to destroy a Buster Call mainly because the battle took place at sea.
But on land, against Kuma—
There was no way he could win.
Kuma was no incompetent Marine.
"Then… could Kuma have…"
"That's even more impossible," Nusjuro waved his hand dismissively.
"Considering his daughter alone, he would never betray us."
To save that daughter, Kuma had willingly accepted the World Government's modifications and turned himself into a human weapon.
He knew better than anyone what consequences betrayal would bring.
"That's true…"
"Speaking of which, his daughter recently went out to sea," Saint Warcury said. "What a reckless little brat."
"That simply means she's recovered, doesn't it?"
"Yes, that's true."
"As long as that girl doesn't interfere with us," Saint Mars said calmly, "she can play pirate all she wants."
As for her bounty poster—
That was merely symbolic.
Neither the World Government nor the Marines would actively hunt the girl.
If other pirates killed her—
Then it would simply mean fate had claimed her.
"By the way," Nusjuro glanced at Saturn. "You conducted experiments on that girl, didn't you?"
"Yes," Saturn nodded.
"It was also a chance to observe how far her abilities could develop."
The Devil Fruit power Bonney possessed originated from one of Saturn's experiments—
An experiment to artificially create "god-class ability users."
While she was still an infant, a Devil Fruit extract had been injected into her body.
The goal was to give power to infants who could never naturally obtain abilities.
Bonney had been one of the test subjects.
'How fortunate that little girl became Kuma's daughter,' Saturn sneered internally.
Originally, Bonney had been discarded because she inherited Sapphire Scale disease.
But Vegapunk had unexpectedly cured her.
And that had once again drawn Saturn's attention.
To him, it was good news.
After all, if the disease could be cured—
Then his experiments had real value.
Thinking about Ginny, who had contracted Sapphire Scale due to those experiments, Saturn's smile turned colder.
As long as the Celestial Dragons could gain greater power—
Cruelty meant nothing.
Just then—
A knock sounded at the door.
"Report to the Five Elders! Bartholomew Kuma has returned to the Holy Land," a guard announced. "Shall we allow him to enter?"
"Oh?"
"He's back?" Nusjuro said.
"Let him in."
"Yes!"
The five elders exchanged glances.
With perfect tacit understanding, they stopped discussing the previous topic.
If Kuma learned they were targeting his daughter—
He might lose control.
Even if he couldn't threaten them, they didn't want to lose their most perfect experimental subject.
Soon, the massive figure of Bartholomew Kuma pushed open the door.
Creak—
Thud.
After closing the door behind him, Kuma silently walked forward and stood before them.
"What happened to you?" Nusjuro frowned while examining Kuma's miserable condition.
"Did the Straw Hat Pirates do this?"
There were numerous sword wounds across Kuma's body.
His clothes were torn.
Even his signature glasses were gone.
Just how brutal had that battle been?
Did the Straw Hats really have that level of strength?
Or…
Had they underestimated them?
"The Straw Hat Pirates are partially responsible," Kuma replied calmly.
"Explain everything," Saturn said coldly.
"Leave out no details."
Kuma showed no change in expression.
"After disconnecting from the elders, I approached the Blood-Eyed Ninja to ask his decision."
"Unfortunately, he refused."
"Refused?!" Saint Mars exclaimed in disbelief.
He had offered extremely generous terms.
The title of Shichibukai was second only to the Four Emperors in the pirate world.
Not only that—
He had promised immense convenience.
Even if the ninja didn't want to suppress pirates with force, he could simply assist them at the Holy Land.
If he wanted wealth, power, women—
All would be provided.
And yet…
He still refused?
Mars found it hard to accept.
Did that brat look down on the World Government?
Saturn glanced at Mars before asking,
"Did you relay all of our conditions?"
"Yes."
"Then the brat simply doesn't know what's good for him."
"What an ignorant fool."
Mars' face darkened.
Just who did that boy think the World Government was?
Rejecting their invitation meant only one thing—
They would have to use force.
"Did you at least bring him back?" Warcury asked.
"No," Kuma replied.
"This mission failed."
"Failed?" Warcury frowned. "Is the ninja that strong?"
"He is quite formidable," Kuma said without hesitation.
"Even you couldn't defeat him?"
"He possesses Lightning Release, which counters me."
"Lightning…"
The Five Elders frowned.
Kuma's cybernetic body was indeed vulnerable to electricity.
A strong lightning strike could short-circuit his internal systems.
If those components were destroyed—
He would lose mobility.
"But even so, that shouldn't have been enough to defeat you," Saint Peter said.
"Your Devil Fruit can repel injuries."
Even if lightning damaged him, Vegapunk's technology would restore him eventually.
Once operational again, Kuma could simply push the damage out.
"I did repel my injuries."
"Then why—"
"My condition is not solely due to the ninja," Kuma said.
"Continue."
"After I recovered, Moria appeared."
"Moria?"
Nusjuro looked surprised.
"You said he was unconscious after being defeated by Straw Hat."
That had been the reason they sent Kuma.
A Shichibukai defeated by a rookie pirate had no reason to exist.
That was why they had abandoned Moria.
But now…
Kuma was saying Moria had returned?
What had happened?
"Moria was indeed unconscious after being defeated by Straw Hat," Kuma said.
"But due to Blood-Eyed Ninja Jin's lightning ability, he regained consciousness."
The exact circumstances were unclear to Kuma.
He simply hadn't been paying attention.
It was an accident.
"Electric stimulation…" Saturn murmured.
As the Warrior God of Science and Defense, he understood electricity's effects well.
Perhaps Moria had been on the verge of death—
And the lightning restarted his heart.
Thus restoring consciousness.
That had certainly been unexpected.
"So what happened next?" Saturn asked.
"If the two of you worked together, capturing the Straw Hats should have been easy."
Two Shichibukai against one pirate crew—
It should have been effortless.
As for Moria being dismissed—
If he hadn't been defeated yet, he was still technically a Shichibukai.
All they needed was to eliminate witnesses.
Unfortunately—
"Regrettably, he refused to cooperate," Kuma said.
"Why?"
"He learned my purpose."
The elders frowned.
"How could he know? He was unconscious."
They had verified his condition before sending Kuma.
So how had Moria discovered everything?
"Perhaps through his subordinate."
"Subordinate…"
"Oh," Warcury said suddenly.
"He has an invisible man among his crew."
The other four elders' expressions darkened.
That explained everything.
The invisible subordinate must have overheard the secret and informed Moria.
They didn't blame Kuma.
No one could have predicted Moria waking up.
And without Observation Haki, detecting an invisible enemy wasn't easy.
"So Moria refused to cooperate… and interfered?" Nusjuro asked.
"Not only that," Kuma said.
"He stopped me and allowed the Straw Hats to escape."
"He stopped you?"
"Yes."
"I don't know what Moria experienced, but after regaining consciousness…"
"…his strength changed drastically."
"That's impossible," Warcury scoffed.
"A failure who's been depressed for decades suddenly regains his will?"
"If he had that determination, he would've gone to challenge Kaido long ago."
Instead of hiding on that island playing with zombies.
"He regained Haki."
Silence fell across the room.
That single sentence told them everything.
Moria had truly recovered his spirit.
Haki was deeply tied to willpower.
Without spirit—
It couldn't be used.
That was why they had despised Moria.
Without Haki, even a Logia user could kill him.
And now—
He had regained it?
"Regaining Haki would drastically increase his strength," Saturn said.
"But even then, he shouldn't have been able to stop you."
"The Shadow-Shadow Fruit is powerful and strange," Kuma replied.
"I could not pursue the Straw Hats while fighting him."
Of course—
Whether that was entirely true…
Only Kuma knew.
"Shadow-Shadow Fruit…"
Mars narrowed his eyes.
Perhaps Moria had fully mastered his Devil Fruit.
Combined with Haki—
It was plausible.
"After all," Warcury said thoughtfully, "he once competed with Kaido."
Though he lost and fell into despair—
A revived warrior could still be dangerous.
"So you fought him on the island and returned injured?" Saturn asked.
"Yes."
"My ability repels injuries temporarily. If they cannot find a host, they return to my body."
"I could not fight indefinitely."
"After sinking the island, I escaped."
"Did you pursue the Straw Hats afterward?" Saturn asked.
"No."
"Once the injuries returned, I became immobilized."
"That is why my return was delayed."
Saturn nodded.
The explanation matched the Paw-Paw Fruit's mechanics.
Though one question remained—
Why hadn't Kuma transferred the injuries to civilians?
That would have restored his strength.
But Saturn dismissed the thought.
Kuma was called Tyrant.
Someone like that wouldn't care about lower lives.
The opportunity probably never appeared.
"What a disaster," Warcury sighed.
Hearing that, Mars' anger flared.
If that ninja brat had accepted the offer—
None of this would have happened.
Now they had lost Moria and failed to recruit Jin.
"Very well," Nusjuro said.
"You may leave."
Kuma nodded and exited without another word.
After the door closed—
Mars slammed his hand on the table.
"That damned ninja brat dared to refuse us!"
"Anger is useless," Saturn said calmly.
"If he refuses to become a Shichibukai…"
"…then we'll take him by force."
"Send CP0 to make contact."
"Work with the Marines."
"Eliminate the Straw Hat crew and capture Jin."
"This time…"
"We'll treat him as an experimental subject."
Saturn looked at Mars.
Originally, Saturn had wanted Jin as a test subject.
But Mars had refused.
He had preferred turning Jin into a loyal servant of the World Government.
But now—
That option was gone.
"I have no objections," Mars said coldly.
"But extract everything from his brain first."
"Leave that to me," Saturn replied.
If they captured that boy—
He would squeeze every last drop of value from him.
Rejecting the gods' invitation had consequences.
Mars nodded.
"But Moria's rebellion is still a problem," Nusjuro said.
"Indeed."
The Marines were currently gathering forces.
The public execution of Fire Fist Ace was meant to lure Whitebeard.
And the Shichibukai were needed at Marineford.
But if the other Warlords heard that Moria rebelled—
Would they begin to question the government?
Even if the World Government claimed he had been defeated—
Moria was still alive.
If he spoke publicly—
The other Shichibukai might suspect the truth.
And if they defected…
Or even joined Whitebeard—
The consequences would be disastrous.
Though the Marines were merely their "watchdogs"—
Losing that dog would still be inconvenient.
Nusjuro's eyes turned cold.
"Send an Admiral."
"Kill Moria before Ace's execution."
"An Admiral?" Warcury asked.
"Yes."
"If he can fight Kuma evenly, Vice Admirals won't be enough."
"Not everyone is Garp."
Warcury nodded.
Garp truly was an anomaly.
He had Admiral-level strength yet refused the position.
"I agree," Saint Peter said.
"Moria will likely head to the Sabaody Archipelago."
"The New World is the only place he can escape Marine pursuit."
"But we cannot allow that."
"That Shichibukai must die."
They needed to show the others—
The price of betrayal.
"Then have an Admiral intercept him at Sabaody."
"And if the Straw Hat Pirates appear there…"
"…eliminate them as well."
"Approved."
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