It was the Temple of God.
Allen and his crew had suddenly invaded the very home of Enel. It was an unprecedented event, but it raised one important question: how had something like this even happened?
Enel's Mantra could cover all of Upper Yard and Skypiea. On top of that, the priests could use it as well. Even if they had been distracted by Enel's anger, the idea that Allen could reach the Temple of God without being detected was absurd.
But everything had an explanation.
From the very beginning, Allen had been keeping an eye on Enel's priests, and the moment they left their assigned areas, he was able to pinpoint the exact location of the Temple of God.
As for how the Black Pearl managed to approach without being detected, it was thanks to two Legendary traits: Sky Navigation and Stealth, though the latter had been upgraded and could now avoid Observation Haki to a certain extent.
If Enel had kept his attention on Allen and his crew, he would have noticed them. But after realizing that he had been paying too much attention to Allen's group, he felt that such behavior didn't suit an almighty god, so he consciously decided to ignore those "mortals," something Allen, with his unparalleled talent for pissing people off, took full advantage of.
"Mortal, how did you avoid my mantra?" Enel said.
Allen sneered. "You piece of voyeuristic trash, do you think you're the only one with Observation Haki?"
"How dare you speak to Enel-sama like that!" Ohm shouted.
The Sky Breeder didn't hesitate to attack after such an insult.
He leaped toward Allen, unsheathing his sword at a speed beyond human sight.
"Stop, Ohm!" Enel shouted.
His Mantra was stronger than Ohm's, and he had already seen the outcome of that attack.
"I'll show you what happens to those who don't respect God!" Ohm ignored him. He was blinded by rage, his bloodshot eyes visible behind his sunglasses.
"Even after two of you have already fallen, you still underestimate us."
A flash of light pierced through Ohm's chest before he could even react.
"Ugh..." Ohm's eyes widened as blood poured from his mouth.
The man collapsed to the ground.
Another priest had fallen, and just like the others, he hadn't been able to put up the slightest resistance against his opponent.
The verdict was clear. The invaders were far stronger than the priests.
Gedatsu looked at Allen with a cold expression. The man seemed too stupid to feel fear, or perhaps his faith in Enel was so absolute that he wasn't afraid despite witnessing Allen's power.
"Well, that makes three dead priests. And I'm still wondering... when exactly is God's punishment supposed to arrive?" Allen mocked.
Several of the girls felt a little awkward. Sure, you were strong, but was there really any need to humiliate the poor god like this?
"Pfft, this god isn't impressive at all~" Mikita mocked.
"That's right! He's nothing compared to our captain!" Kaya added. "Let's break his legs and steal his women! Muahahaha!"
Mikita and Kaya backed Allen up, trying to make Enel even angrier.
Mikita acting like this was understandable, but seeing Kaya behave like a street thug, even if she was only pretending, left everyone speechless.
Enel, who had maintained a dark expression, didn't explode the way everyone expected. But it wasn't because he wasn't angry. It was because of Allen's ship.
"Mortal, can that ship fly, or is that your power?!" Enel asked with a piercing gaze, as if there weren't more important matters to discuss.
"Who knows?" Allen smiled.
Lightning began crackling around Enel, and at the same time, the sky filled with electricity like the moments before a thunderstorm.
There was no need for further confirmation. Enel possessed the Lightning Logia.
"Fairy Vearth... For years, my goal has been the land of dreams. I spent the last six years completing the Ark Maxim for that purpose. And now you appear, mortal. Not only do you kill my chosen ones, but you also bring that abomination with you! This sin goes far beyond a Grade 1 offense!"
Allen's smile disappeared.
"You just called my precious Black Pearl... an abomination?"
Enel wore a contemptuous expression, as though Allen were nothing more than an insect in his eyes.
"What else could I call something as gloomy and disgusting as that ghost ship? I'll show you what a true dream ship looks like."
A golden staff appeared in Enel's hand, making Nami's eyes sparkle, while Allen, still angry over the insult to his ship, couldn't help but feel curious about what Enel was about to do.
Enel struck the cloud floor, and an electric current raced across the clouds and into the stormy sky.
Allen, Nami, and Nojiko, thanks to their Observation Haki, heard an explosion from a nearby mountain.
From inside the mountain, an enormous ship, even larger than a galleon, emerged into the sky.
"What is that?" Allen's eyes widened.
There were technologically advanced creations in this world, such as Vegapunk's inventions, but there were no flying means of transportation.
Allen closed his eyes and focused his Observation Haki.
Then he saw it.
Although it looked like an ordinary ship, it possessed a set of rotating propeller engines that kept it suspended in the sky. They seemed to run on Enel's power. However, what made Nami gasp and filled both Allen and Nojiko with disbelief was that the ark was made of gold.
Not entirely, but there were dozens, if not hundreds, of tons of gold on that ship, all of which seemed to serve as conductors for Enel's electricity.
"Lenalee... is that..."
[It's gold! Massive amounts of gold!... I can't estimate its full value, but maybe five billion... No! Maybe ten billion! Even more!]
"Ha... haha..." Allen began laughing in a disturbingly unhinged manner. As for Nami, she had fainted at the sight of the golden ark.
Completely unaware of what he had done by revealing the Ark Maxim to Allen, Enel continued his arrogant speech while the Ark Maxim flew toward the Temple of God, becoming visible in the distance.
Enel's men dropped to their knees as if witnessing a miracle. However, for the girls who had traveled aboard the Black Pearl, what caught their attention even more was Allen's and Nami's reactions.
"What's wrong with them?" Vivi asked worriedly.
Nami looked as though she had ascended to Nirvana, while Allen laughed as if he had completely lost his mind.
"That," Nojiko said while pointing at the golden ship. "It's made of gold."
The girls stared with mouths agape in disbelief. It certainly looked that way, but none of them believed it could actually be real gold. Just how much gold would it take to build a flying ark?! It made no sense!
Robin, Uta, Vivi, and Kaya also realized what it meant. If Allen obtained even a portion of that gold, it would result in a massive increase in his strength.
"Behold, mortals, my dream made manifest!" Enel declared.
Enel finished speaking and looked at Allen with arrogance and superiority, expecting him to be awestruck. Instead, he met Allen's warm, friendly smile, as though Enel were a good son who had just made his father proud.
Even a man as arrogant as Enel felt uncomfortable under Allen's gaze.
"Enel, my son, you've just made me very happy. Because of that, I might forgive your life... if you surrender right now," Allen said.
At that moment, he was so pleased that he was willing to forgive Enel for attacking him. No, even the gift Enel had presented was enough to redeem him completely. Perhaps he'd even accept him as a subordinate... provided he acknowledged Allen's glory.
"GO TO HELL!"
Enel exploded with rage. Ever since becoming a god, no one had ever treated him with such condescension. How dare Allen offer him mercy if he surrendered?!
"I've had enough!" Enel growled.
"Enel-sama, your orders?" Commander Yama asked, glaring murderously at Allen and his crew.
"Of course. Kill them all!" Enel ordered.
At that moment, fifty Divine Soldiers appeared around him. They had bizarre appearances, wearing robes similar to Yama's, while their faces had goat-like features with drooping ears and horns.
Gedatsu, the last remaining priest, also prepared for battle. Finally, a giant dog landed in the courtyard. It was Holy, and upon seeing his master lying in a pool of blood, he let out an enraged roar.
The girls were not intimidated.
Some of them hadn't spent much time at sea, but the moment they decided to follow Allen, they had to act like what they truly were: the crew of the future King of the World!
"You heard God. So naturally, we'll return the favor," Allen said.
The girls prepared themselves while Allen focused his attention on Enel.
....
There was a brief pause between them before they both vanished, and an explosion erupted among the clouds.
Meanwhile, the girls' battle also began.
"I can finally fight!" Tashigi shouted.
She unsheathed her katana, "Shigure," and cut down several Divine Soldiers.
"Hina Lock!"
Hina used her powers to capture them. However, she couldn't help watching Tashigi with concern. Perhaps because of her lack of experience or because of her youth, but without realizing it, the girl was slowly beginning to adopt the mindset of a pirate.
"One Hundred Flowers!"
Robin sprouted hands all over the bodies of several Divine Soldiers and snapped multiple bones without warning.
"I understand you're grieving, but that doesn't mean I'll let you hurt any of my friends. Let's go, Karoo!"
Vivi mounted Karoo and confronted Holy, Ohm's dog, who had become like a beast completely out of control.
"Khee!"
Mikita appeared in front of Yama, who looked at her with disdain.
"Fools. You've just doomed yourselves. You have no idea who you're dealing with."
The blonde girl smiled mockingly.
"I'll give those exact words right back to you. You have no idea who our captain is~" Mikita said.
Yama was offended and attacked with his own body. He was so fat that he looked like a giant boulder crashing down on Mikita.
"Stomach Mountain!" Yama shouted.
Mikita jumped and floated in the air. From there, she looked down at the mountain of flesh with contempt.
"How dare you throw yourself at me? Only my captain is allowed to do that!" Mikita instantly increased her weight to ten thousand kilograms and plummeted like a meteor. "Kilo Kilo Kick!"
Yama didn't dodge. Instead, he smiled maliciously and grabbed his belt to use it as a shield.
Mikita didn't know that the dials embedded in his belt were Axe Dials. Like Impact Dials, they could release shockwaves, but these produced slashing attacks instead.
"Die, heretic woman!" Yama shouted.
But at that very moment, a gunshot struck his hand, forcing him to drop the belt.
"Argh! You!"
When he looked toward the attacker, he saw Nojiko watching him with cold eyes, and Yama finally understood that the woman could use the mantra. Unable to do anything else, the ten-ton kick came crashing down on his head, shattering his skull and burying him into the ground.
Mikita jumped backward after finishing her attack and looked at Nojiko in surprise.
Had Nojiko helped her?
Mikita thought they still hadn't accepted her.
"What's wrong, Lemon Girl?" Nojiko laughed as she walked over. Then she patted Mikita on the shoulder and whispered, "Didn't you realize Allen already accepted you? That trial was just an excuse."
Mikita stood there in a daze for a moment before looking away. She didn't want Nojiko to see her right then because she was smiling with tears glistening in her eyes.
....
"Huh... hhh!" Gedatsu shouted.
"Sorry, I don't understand you!" Uta said as she looked at the last priest.
Gedatsu couldn't answer because he had once again forgotten how to speak.
Uta shook her head, cleared her throat, and smiled.
"You people are good at listening, aren't you?"
"...!"
Gedatsu sensed danger and prepared his Mantra so he could dodge any attack. Unfortunately, he had no idea that the very Mantra that allowed him to "listen" was a fatal weakness against Uta.
The moment Uta sang her first note, the battle ended. Gedatsu collapsed to the ground with foam coming out of his mouth.
"Well, that was easy..." Uta said.
She looked around and realized it had been a complete victory. Enel's forces had been annihilated without causing them any real trouble.
"Haki..."
Haki had been a huge surprise for all the girls in the crew. It had turned Nami and Nojiko into genuine powerhouses.
Uta blushed. She knew that if she wanted Haki, she would have to "level up." Deciding not to think about it any further, she looked toward the sky where thunder echoed. All that remained was for Allen to defeat Enel, and every enemy would be gone.
....
High above the sky, Enel exchanged blows with Allen while his body remained in its elemental lightning form.
Allen couldn't fly, but he could use Geppo, a Rokushiki technique that allowed him to kick through the air.
'This is strange. Why can't I electrocute him?' Enel thought.
His strikes were infused with millions of volts, enough to kill an ordinary person a hundred times over. Yet every time his staff collided with Allen's arms or fists, the electricity seemed to be isolated from the rest of Allen's body.
"It's Haki," Allen said before kicking Enel. Sensing danger, Enel instantly vanished, taking advantage of the speed granted by his Devil Fruit.
Enel felt confused. He couldn't injure his opponent, and for reasons he didn't understand, his Mantra constantly urged him to dodge Allen's attacks as though they were poison.
"Haki... Is that what you call Mantra in the Blue Sea?"
Allen smiled.
"Yes. One type of it, specifically Observation Haki."
Observation Haki... Are there other types of Haki?! Impossible! How could the people of the Blue Sea have developed Mantra further than we have?!
Allen shifted his gaze away from Enel and toward the Ark Maxim. The reason he hadn't gone all out against Enel was that ark. It was flying above the Sea of Clouds rather than directly over Upper Yard.
The moment Enel was defeated, it would plummet. If Allen was unlucky, it might even fall from the sky into the Blue Sea and disappear forever. That was unacceptable!
Lenalee, do you have any suggestions?
[It's difficult. I can't make myself large enough to swallow the entire ark. Maybe you could dismantle it little by little.]
That's too risky. If I damage the turbines—or whatever is keeping it airborne—it's game over.
The situation was absurd. Allen had enough gold within his reach to become as strong as Gol D. Roger, or perhaps even stronger, but Enel was keeping his ark above the Sea of Clouds instead of over Upper Yard.
'I have to make Enel move that ark over Upper Yard!' Allen thought.
====
A/N: Well, I think with that much gold, a massive increase in power is inevitable 🍷🗿
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