"Since that's the case, why don't you all come aboard our ship and share this information with us?"
Luffy lightly lifted his toes and, after saying this, strode directly toward the Going Merry.
The Seven Warlords exchanged glances, curiosity flickering in each other's eyes.
One by one, they followed Luffy's steps, moving toward the Going Merry.
The entire Starry Sky stood beside the Going Merry, as if welcoming guests, smiling as each of the Seven Warlords boarded the ship.
At the moment when Dracule Mihawk and Zoro passed each other, their eyes instinctively flicked toward one another.
Mihawk, a foot on the steps, spoke in a low, sharp voice:
"You've grown stronger again…"
"Hey!"
Zoro smiled at Mihawk's piercing gaze and replied slowly:
"You too!"
Before long, all of the Seven Warlords had fully entered the Going Merry's cabin.
...
Admiral Sengoku of the Marines watched as Luffy effectively "abducted" the Seven Warlords onto his ship.
A sudden chill swept around him.
A lonely sense of betrayal rose in his chest.
What is going on!!?
Weren't the Seven Warlords called to help the Marines take down Whitebeard?
Hasn't Luffy never even attended a Seven Warlord meeting or met them before?
Weren't Doflamingo and the Starry Sky Pirates supposed to be at odds, even fighting in the past?
The questions spun endlessly in Sengoku's mind.
Around him, the Marines continued frantically clearing the battlefield.
Sengoku stood frozen, staring at the Going Merry slowly sailing away from Marineford, his mind blank.
Just then, a voice broke the cold, bewildering silence:
"Admiral Sengoku!"
Blackbeard—Teach—dragged his bloodied body forward, the arm Whitebeard had severed still bleeding profusely.
Thud!
He knelt directly on Marineford's ground.
"Hmm?"
Sengoku's glasses reflected a harsh white light, concealing his eyes completely. He lowered his gaze to the kneeling Blackbeard and asked calmly:
"Why didn't you take the opportunity to escape earlier…"
He had initially decided not to pursue the events of the day.
With such a massive incident, his position as Admiral was likely lost anyway.
He had even considered retiring quietly.
Yet here stood Blackbeard—the criminal who had destroyed the Impel Down deep-sea prison—daring to face him directly.
No matter how tired he was, he couldn't let this go unchecked.
However…
Teach's next words completely shattered Sengoku's composure.
"Admiral Sengoku!"
Kneeling, Blackbeard suddenly pressed his head to the floor, shouting:
"Please take me in!"
"I want to become a Marine and atone for all my past sins!"
...
Inside the Going Merry, the Seven Warlords stared in astonishment at the ship's remarkable interior.
Luffy had even arranged for his crew to give them a brief tour of the Merry's various unique facilities.
At first, some of the Warlords had thought: how could such a famous pirate crew operate such a small ship?
Now, their perception has completely changed.
There could be no other ship in the world better than the Going Merry.
Living here… was enviable beyond words.
In a grand, resplendent hall, a large round conference table sat in the center.
Luffy and the Starry Sky crew took one side, while Moriah and Crocodile split to flank the other three Warlords.
As the host—and guide for this monumental event—Luffy spoke first once everyone was seated:
"Alright, everyone!"
"There's no one else here. I'm sure you're all curious why I've made such a scene…"
"Now that we're here, I won't keep you waiting!"
"Robin, give them the documents!"
"Understood!"
Robin immediately stood and handed out the pre-prepared files to the Seven Warlords.
The Warlords flipped through the documents with growing curiosity.
As time passed, their expressions went through stages: curiosity, confusion, bewilderment, astonishment… and finally, shock.
When they reached the last page of the scarce documents, the complex expressions fully covered their faces.
Even the usually composed Mihawk's heterochromatic eyes trembled, clearly shaken by the contents.
These documents were translations of the ancient diary obtained from the Hades Warship.
Robin had also annotated additional intelligence, such as the Celestial Dragon ancestor's hatred of the Neferutari family.
After a long moment, Doflamingo—who possessed the most intelligence—finally exhaled deeply and spoke first:
"Luffy-sama… this intelligence is truly a bombshell!"
"What… what is this!?"
Hancock, trembling, held the document in disbelief, whispering:
"Could… could… all of this is false!?"
But…
But the experiences of the three sisters' childhoods… how could they be lies!!!
Hehehehehe…
"What a fascinating world this is!"
Moriah's shadowy arm suddenly stretched across the table. He rotated his claws with the shadow, speaking:
"Could it be… that a Devil Fruit really hides a demon inside!?"
Crocodile sat silently, expressionless.
Though shocked by the intelligence, he had personally experienced the battle and was prepared.
After everyone finished reviewing, Luffy rested his elbows on the table, fingers interlaced, guiding the discussion:
"So…"
"Doflamingo, do you have any additional special intelligence?"
"Hmm."
He shook the pink feather on his cloak, his orange-tinted glasses hiding his eyes in darkness. The secretive envoy began speaking slowly:
"I'll start where I left off last time…"
"I mentioned before that among the Celestial Dragons, there are a few clear-minded individuals who noticed the abnormality of the group and secretly investigate everything!"
Doflamingo briefly explained the intelligence to the Seven Warlords and continued:
"Just like the diary says, the Celestial Dragon bloodline contains terrifying power!"
"Each Celestial Dragon lives 1.5 to 3 times longer than an ordinary human!!!"
"Perhaps even longer!!!"
"No one has ever made a perfect record!"
"And now… as you might imagine, the Celestial Dragons are just pigs raised in captivity!"
"Unknown forces take Celestial Dragons who have lost reproductive ability to an unknown place!"
"No one knows where they go."
"Because once taken, that kind of Celestial Dragon… never…"
"…reappears!!!"
….
Completed version available on [P]atreon.[c]om/Veltoria [remove brackets]