The tea the Five Elders had just sipped hadn't even gone down yet. At Sengoku's words, they finally couldn't hold it in any longer
PFFF!
All five of them simultaneously spat their tea across the floor.
"Sengoku, you bastard! Can't you just say everything at once?!" they barked, realizing their uncharacteristic loss of composure and growing embarrassed.
If not for their excellent health, carefully maintained over the years, men of their age might have already collapsed from a heart attack.
Sengoku put on a show of apologetic fear, but inwardly, he was smirking. This is exactly the effect I wanted.
Acting calm, are you? As if your hearts aren't leaping with joy. Stop pretending, old men.
Outwardly, however, he bowed respectfully.
"My apologies, Five Elders. Please forgive me."
He then added slyly, "It's just… these Seraphim have so many abilities that I can't possibly list them all at once."
"Ahem!"
"Be careful. Don't you dare break even one of them…" the Elders coughed awkwardly, before gesturing for him to continue the demonstration.
At Sengoku's order, the Seraphim lined up and climbed onto each other's shoulders, forming a human pagoda. Sengoku himself stepped forward to demonstrate personally.
His body glowed brilliantly—he had unleashed his Buddha form. Radiant golden light flooded the training ground as he gathered energy into a massive palm.
The next instant, a colossal shockwave of Buddha's Might surged forth, slamming directly toward the Seraphim!
Feeling the crushing force behind it, the Five Elders cried out in alarm.
"Damn it! He's really using the Buddha Palm Shockwave?!"
"Idiot Sengoku! If you destroy even one Seraphim, we'll never forgive you!"
Their nerves were stretched taut to the limit.
Truth be told, the Seraphim had already surpassed their wildest expectations in earlier demonstrations.
Even if Sengoku hadn't tested their combined defense, they would still have approved his funding without hesitation.
Now, all they feared was that Sengoku might recklessly ruin these priceless creations.
These Seraphim were no mere prototypes—they represented the future of the Marines, perhaps even of the World Government itself.
They could not allow any damage, not even from testing.
The shockwave roared forward, just moments away from slamming into them.
But then
All ten Seraphim raised their hands at once.
A transparent barrier shimmered into existence around their bodies.
BOOOOM!!!
The Buddha Palm's power detonated across the barrier, its force shaking the very earth beneath their feet.
The impact's shockwaves ripped outward, flattening trees, toppling structures, and reducing the training ground's surroundings to dust and rubble.
A vast cloud of debris billowed into the sky, obscuring everything in its path.
The Five Elders craned their necks, eyes straining through the dust, their hearts pounding.
Slowly, the haze cleared.
And there they stood—the ten Seraphim—completely unharmed. Not a scratch marred their bodies. Not even a speck of dust had landed on their immaculate forms.
"They… they did it!!"
The Elders swallowed hard, their throats bobbing audibly. For a long moment, they could only stand frozen in place, their minds blank.
Only after some time did they finally manage to regain their voices.
"They really blocked it… That was a full-force strike from the Fleet Admiral himself! Even if it was a joint defense, it's still unbelievable!"
"Such power… terrifying beyond words! Could machines like this truly be created by human hands?"
"The genius who made them… what kind of monster of intellect must he be?!"
"With these Seraphim, the seas will surely know peace."
"Even now, I still feel like I'm dreaming…"
Their expressions twisted with disbelief and awe.
Was this reality? Or were they still trapped in some impossible dream?
A combined defense strong enough to block Sengoku's full might?
And all of this… created by an eight-year-old child?
If this was true, then without question—this boy's technological mastery had already surpassed Vegapunk himself.
Vegapunk—the man revered as the world's greatest scientist, said to be five hundred years ahead of his time!
Yet now… an eight-year-old had eclipsed him. Who would dare believe such a claim?
Even the Elders themselves could scarcely accept it, despite having witnessed it with their own eyes.
"Sengoku… you're telling us that these Seraphim were truly invented by Kizaru's younger brother, that boy Natsuha? An eight-year-old brat?"
"At eight, a child's brain isn't even fully developed… and yet he can create war machines that can shake the world order?!" They stared at Sengoku, still shaken to the core.
They had heard Sengoku's earlier reports, of course, that Natsuha had created powerful weapons.
But none of them had imagined his inventions would be so fearsome that they could overturn the balance of the seas.
Their doubts were natural.
Sengoku, however, could hardly hide the grin stretching across his face. The Five Elders' expressions mirrored his own when he had first seen Natsuha's creations.
Yes… now the time is right. Time to reveal why I truly came here.
"Of course," Sengoku said with confidence. "These Seraphim were created entirely by Natsuha. I witnessed it myself."
"Furthermore, according to him, these Seraphim are not even his strongest creations."
"With his methods, he can produce Seraphim at the level of Admirals."
"WHAT?!"
The Five Elders' eyes bulged.
Admiral-level Seraphim?
Was such a thing even possible?!
Their worldview shattered on the spot.
War machines of Warlord level were already astounding beyond measure.
But Admiral-class… that would be a force capable of rivaling the Yonko themselves.
"When?!" the Elders demanded breathlessly, excitement breaking through their shock.
If such weapons could be mass-produced within a year, the Marines would become unstoppable. Even the Four Emperors would be crushed without mercy.
If Warlord-class Seraphim had already disrupted the threefold balance of power, then Admiral-class Seraphim would erase it altogether—leaving only one true power in the world: the Navy.
Sengoku lifted a single finger.
"Not more than this."
The Elders mistook his meaning and erupted in delight.
"A year? Truly, within a year they can be produced?!"
"Blessed be the Holy Land of Mary Geoise! Hahaha!"
But Sengoku shook his head, smiling wryly.
"My lords, you misunderstand. I didn't say one year."
"It will not take that long."
"It will take… one week at most."
The Five Elders froze, stunned beyond words.
"A… a week?!"
Could this really be true?
Their minds reeled.
Even Vegapunk, with all his brilliance, had taken years and endless funding to create the Pacifista.
And yet Natsuha, only eight years old, claimed he could build Admiral-class Seraphim in a matter of days.
It was absurd—absurd, and yet… the Seraphim standing before them proved he was no liar.
The Five Elders could no longer suppress their excitement. Smiles broke across their usually grave faces.
With such weapons, the Navy's dominion over the seas was no longer a dream, but a certainty—mere days away.
Their hearts roared with triumph, though they forced themselves to remain dignified.
Sengoku stepped forward, pressing his advantage.
"Technologically, there is no problem. The only obstacle is… money. Even heroes are helpless without coin. Our budget is already stretched thin. To fund the Warlord-class Seraphim, we had to divert money intended for warships."
He let his words hang, then continued.
"So if you want Admiral-class Seraphim…"
The Five Elders exchanged glances, then burst out laughing, waving their hands.
"No matter the cost—Admiral-class Seraphim must be built!"
"How much do you need?" they asked, eager for his answer.