Maz Saint returned to the Holy Land of Mary Geoise, transforming back into human form from his Itsumade state. He landed in front of the other four Elders.
Not far away, Kizaru raised an eyebrow in surprise.
He had never seen Maz Saint display such power before.
For decades, there hadn't been an incident in the world significant enough to require the Five Elders to act personally.
Kizaru glanced at the other Elders briefly before shifting his gaze elsewhere.
"I couldn't retrieve his blood. Saunders escaped—his speed is incredible," Maz Saint said softly.
They didn't need a Den Den Mushi to communicate, but that didn't mean they shared thoughts or perspectives directly.
"That damned bastard!"
Nasjuro Saint cursed angrily.
Today, Saunders had trampled on the face of the World Government repeatedly, and they had been powerless to stop him.
"Should we report this to…?" Maz Saint began to speak but stopped himself, realizing this was not the place for such discussions.
The five of them retreated to their usual meeting room.
This location was far from the Figarland family's base, and with their protection earlier, it had remained untouched by the destruction.
Aside from not wanting this place destroyed, it was also because deep within this building was where Lord Imu resided.
"Do we need to report this to Lord Imu?"
"Of course, but first, we'd like to hear about your battle with Saunders," Warcury Saint said, sitting on the couch.
An incident of this magnitude in the Holy Land must be reported to Lord Imu with an explanation.
This was far more significant than when the Fish-Man Fisher Tiger freed the slaves.
Back then, the escaped slaves merely sought to flee and caused no major damage. Losing slaves was trivial—they could simply capture more.
But this time, the destruction was immense.
If that massive island Saunders had brought down had crashed into Mary Geoise, most of the city would have been obliterated.
Given the scale of the event, they would have to enter the Room of Flowers and offer their apologies.
Before that, they needed to sort through what had happened.
"Saunders is extremely powerful. It's true he possesses multiple Devil Fruit abilities."
"His speed, defense, and attack power are among the best in the world," Maz Saint said.
"In terms of defense, he might not be any weaker than you," he added, looking at Warcury Saint.
The others showed subtle expressions of shock.
Warcury Saint's defense was the strongest among them, especially in his Boar King form. His formidable defense could even counterattack opponents.
For Saunders' defense to rival Warcury Saint's was nothing short of astonishing.
"Isn't he supposed to have only the Zoan Mythical Fish-Fish Fruit, Azure Dragon Form? A single Mythical Zoan ability shouldn't grant such extraordinary defense," Nasjuro Saint frowned.
"Could he have some special racial lineage?" he asked.
The world held many remarkable races, such as the Lunarian race, naturally gifted with the ability to control fire.
"Unlikely. He participated in the Marine's science unit research and displayed no unusual bloodline traits," Saturn Saint, the Science Defense War God, said slowly.
"Could it be that he used other Devil Fruit abilities?"
Nasjuro Saint spoke again.
"No," Mars Saint replied.
"In terms of defense, he only used the Azure Dragon Fruit and Armament Haki. His Armament Haki is exceptionally strong."
"Then what exactly is going on?"
"It's a pity we couldn't retrieve his flesh or blood. Otherwise, we could have let Vegapunk study it," Saint Shepherd Ju Peter, dressed in a crimson suit and sporting golden hair, remarked regretfully.
"Then, would it be feasible to use other powers to completely erase the floating island Sanders is on, along with him?"
Saint Topman Warcury turned to Mars and asked.
"Erasing the island shouldn't be a problem, but as for killing Sanders—probably not," Mars replied after some thought.
Even if Sanders has elevated the island into the sky, it can still be located with some effort. However, killing Sanders is another story entirely.
"His speed is incredibly fast, and he would undoubtedly escape before any large-scale attack could land," Mars explained.
"Moreover, he can utilize Logia abilities to transform into elements, making him extremely difficult to kill."
Mars then described Sanders' final display of speed, which left the other Elders furrowing their brows.
"So, what now? Are we just going to let this slide?" Nasjuro grumbled.
"He attacked the Holy Land! He killed a number of Celestial Dragons right under the noses of that person and us! The World Government's dignity and authority have been trampled on!"
"Should we perhaps erase Dressrosa to make a statement?"
"And the consequences?" Warcury replied sternly.
"Would that just provoke Sanders into continuously assaulting Mariejois? With his speed and flight capabilities, we would be left doing nothing but guarding the Holy Land."
"Besides, do you really think he cares about anyone else?" Warcury continued.
"The only person he might care about is his adoptive father. As for the rest, even those crew members he's been with for two years—they hold little value to him."
"How much sentiment could he possibly have for them?"
"Such actions would only enrage him and achieve no deterrent effect."
Warcury emphasized that if they wanted to kill Sanders, it had to be a decisive, singular strike.
Otherwise, failing to eliminate him would bring disaster upon themselves.
Nasjuro adjusted his glasses and remained silent.
One attack was tolerable, but if Sanders started continuously dropping things on Mariejois, they'd have no choice but to give up all other activities and remain at the Holy Land, warming their seats indefinitely.
"We should report to Lord Imu," Shepherd Ju Peter said.
"Sanders' existence is unique. We should follow Lord Imu's orders."
Saint Saturn suggested.
The others nodded silently.
After reporting the events and Sanders' unique nature to Imu, the five elders knelt in the grand hall, awaiting orders.
Not long after, they returned to their room with dark expressions.
Meanwhile, Sengoku, utterly confused, received word that a meteorite had struck Mariejois, and the Marines were ordered to quickly mobilize resources to rebuild the Holy Land.
"Are they trying to suppress this matter?"
Sengoku muttered to himself in a low voice as he stood amidst the ruins of Mariejois.
Suppressing news was something the World Government was well-practiced in.
What surprised Sengoku was that he had expected the Five Elders to be furious, perhaps even ordering the Admirals to lead an assault on Dressrosa and wipe out the Thunder God Pirates.
Instead, the World Government issued a cover story about a "meteorite strike" to conceal the truth about Sanders' attack on the Holy Land.
"Sanders didn't even show himself. He just threw an island and unleashed a single attack. Aside from Mars Saint, no one saw Sanders," said Kizaru, who had quietly appeared behind Sengoku.
"It's terrifying, isn't it? The Five Elders swallowing their pride like this—absolutely terrifying!" Kizaru puckered his lips as he spoke.
Sengoku's mouth twitched.
Indeed, only a handful of people knew that this was Sanders' doing. With the World Government's expertise in controlling public opinion, suppressing this incident was a simple task. It was far easier than using a Buster Call to destroy an island and then erasing its existence from history.
"Did the Five Elders say anything else?" Kizaru asked, curious.
He usually wouldn't care, but since it involved Sanders, he couldn't help but pay attention—especially since he had a personal grudge with him.
This attack by Sanders was clearly an attempt to kill Figarland Megar Saint. Kizaru had already confirmed that the massive crater was where Figarland Megar Saint's palace once stood. The entire palace, along with Megar Saint, had been reduced to ashes, leaving not a trace behind.
As for fears of Sanders' retaliation, Kizaru had none. After all, when it came to running away, there was likely no one faster than him.
Thinking about how he came to have a grudge with Sanders, Kizaru felt rather unjustly accused.
At the time, he was simply following orders. He was just doing his job as a soldier—taking orders and earning his pay.
Back then, Sengoku was also present.
The two of them had dealt with Sanders together when he was barely at the level of an elite Vice Admiral. Even if Kizaru had wanted to hold back, it wouldn't have been possible.
"They said: no bounty increase, no public reports, no investigation, no retaliation, and to act as if nothing happened."
Sengoku shook his head and spoke softly.
Kizaru pursed his lips and said nothing.
It seemed the Five Elders truly intended to swallow their pride and let this go.
--------------
T/N:
Access 30 chapters in advance on my P@treon: [email protected]/OneFic