Amid the thunderous roar of colliding energies, Gern rapidly digested the information Sengoku had just revealed, his brows knitting tightly together.
Lowering his voice, he pressed on immediately."So that means… the fact you're here right now—means those five old bastards have decided to dump the entire bill for this incident onto Tiger in the south?"
Sengoku maintained the shockwave, giving a slight nod. His voice was low, clipped, and urgent."It was Saint Nasujuro himself who gave the order. Once things are 'settled' with you here,the main CP0 force will immediately withdraw from the northern front and redeploy south at full strength—total suppression of Tiger and the slave uprising. No mercy. Kill on sight!We have to move quickly—"
Before he could finish, Gern's expression darkened abruptly. A trace of cold resolve flashed through his eyes.
He cut Sengoku off sharply, letting out a low shout."My apologies, Fleet Admiral."
"Hah—?! What?" Sengoku froze, completely failing to grasp the meaning behind that sudden apology.
In the very next instant, Gern violently pulled back his left hand—the one that had been holding the line against the shockwave.
Pitch-black Armament Haki exploded across his fist and forearm, muscles bulging as his stance sank low and steady, rooted like a mountain!
He gave Sengoku no time to react at all. The moment he retracted his arm, that power-packed left fist fired forward like an electromagnetic cannon, blasting out along a perfectly straight trajectory!
At the tip of his knuckles, the intensely compressed vibration particles no longer spread outward as a wave. Instead, they were condensed to the absolute limit, spinning at terrifying speed, forming a solid-looking, pure-white, drill-shaped shockwave that emitted a shrill, high-frequency hum!
"Black Quake—Piercing Execution Drill!"
This strike was fast.It was precise.It was vicious.Utterly merciless.
And completely beyond Sengoku's expectations.
"Damn it—!!! Gern, you—!!!"
"BOOM—!!!"
The heavy, suffocating impact drowned out even the lingering echoes of the energy collision!
Sengoku, transformed into a golden Great Buddha, had no chance to mount any effective defense. That drill-shaped shockwave slammed squarely into his chest!
The terrifying power detonated instantly, the drilling vibrations tearing madly into the golden Buddha's body!
"PFF—!"
Sengoku spat out a mouthful of blood as his massive form was sent flying, as if struck head-on by a high-speed ancient warship. Completely out of control, he was blasted off the ground, transforming into a golden meteor that crashed violently into the distant buildings of the Land of the Gods!
"RUMBLE—!!!"
A chain of structures collapsed in succession, smoke and dust billowing skyward.
This sudden, utterly unanticipated turn of events left Saint Saturn—who had only just managed to recover part of his human form after being crushed by the Star Ring—and Saint Nasujuro, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines, completely stunned!
They stared at Gern's ruthless punch—one that carried unmistakable killing intent—then looked toward the direction Sengoku had been blasted away.
Shock and disbelief spread across both of their faces.
Instinctively, they exchanged a glance—and in each other's eyes, they saw the same confusion… and the same absurd, creeping suspicion.
"Could it be… Sengoku wasn't putting on an act with Gern just now? Was he genuinely trying to stop him?Is he… actually still standing on the World Government's side?"
The thought surfaced uncontrollably, plunging the two Five Elders—who believed they had seen through everything—into a state of profound confusion and shattered judgment.
Meanwhile, Gern slowly withdrew his fist. A dangerously oppressive aura surged around him once more as his icy gaze locked back onto the two Five Elders, as though his earlier "exchange" with Sengoku had never happened at all.
In the distance, a mound of collapsed rubble suddenly exploded outward.
Covered in dust, the golden Buddha's glow noticeably dimmer, Sengoku shot back to his feet.
Clutching his still-aching chest, he was just about to roar curses at Gern when his eyes met that cold, resolute stare.
Then he recalled the low "sorry" Gern had uttered before striking—
—and realization struck like lightning.
"So that's it!" Sengoku cursed inwardly. "And you still dare say this wasn't planned by you, you bastard?!This Fisher Tiger move—damn it, that really was your brilliant play!You turned hostile now to buy time for those fish-men and slaves in the south to retreat—stirring the waters and dragging everyone's attention back onto yourself!"
"Not a bad strategy… but—" Sengoku grimaced as searing pain and turbulent blood surged through his chest, his mouth twitching. "That punch just now…That son of a bitch definitely added some personal grudges into it! Using public duty to settle private scores, huh?!"
Though he saw everything clearly—and even felt like laughing a little—Sengoku's outward expression was one of towering rage (if the Great Buddha form had hair, it would've been standing on end).
He thrust his massive golden palm toward Gern, his voice crashing down like thunder, brimming with "shock" and "fury."
"Gern! Have you lost your mind?! You're a Marine Admiral!Attacking the Fleet Admiral—what do you think you're doing?!Are you trying to betray the Marines?! Damn you!!Do you have any idea what that would mean?!"
The rebuke rang out with overwhelming force, righteous and indignant, as though he were truly furious at a subordinate's act of rebellion.
Yet before Gern could respond, Saint Saturn and Saint Nasujuro panicked and spoke up first!
"Sengoku! Calm down!" Saturn shouted urgently, his newly restored human form still unsteady, his tone carrying a hint of actual persuasion.
Nasujuro frowned deeply as well, his voice low and stern."There's no need to go that far! Sengoku, reason with him properly!Admiral Gern is merely acting out of momentary rage—how could this be called betrayal?!"
At this moment, the two Five Elders were perfectly in sync.
Regardless of whether Sengoku and Gern had been genuinely fighting or putting on a show, the label of "betraying the Marines" absolutely could not be allowed to stick!
This wasn't the future Kuzan, who could resign with a few words and walk away alone!
Gern Reginald Sigmar was not just a Marine Admiral—he was a towering figure entrenched in the New World, a "Marine Legend" with terrifying personal power and influence, a living embodiment of the so-called "Fifth Pole"!
Whether they liked it or not, as long as he remained within the Marine camp, he was the World Government's strongest nail hammered into the New World—used to intimidate the Yonko and every other ambitious force lurking in the shadows!
If that nail were truly forced to snap—if Gern openly defected from the Marines, or worse, from the World Government itself—
The chain reaction and upheaval that would follow was enough to make their scalps tingle just thinking about it!
It would be far more catastrophic than the deaths of a few low-tier hybrid Celestial Dragons or the escape of a batch of slaves!
They despised Gern's arrogance and even hated what he had done today in the Holy Land—he had killed Celestial Dragons, after all.
But those were things they could deal with later: negotiate, patch up, or even retaliate in a controlled manner.
What they absolutely were not prepared for… was pushing Gern into outright rebellion.
That would be nothing short of a disaster.
And so, even as Gern continued to radiate killing intent, the two Five Elders' first instinct was to rein in Sengoku—to make absolutely sure the word "betrayal" never became reality.
Their tones even unconsciously softened into something resembling… mediation.
This bizarre scene made the atmosphere on the battlefield grow even more delicate and unsettling.