The moment those soldiers appeared, even Bins and Redfield's expressions turned serious.
Just from the aura surrounding them, both of them could tell that these were elite troops forged through strict training, nothing like the rabble seen everywhere. Who said the World Government only had the Marines as its elite force?
But this time, the World Government had truly gone all out. Even for them, gathering so many elite troops at once had to be an extremely difficult task.
In order to deal with Rosinante, to wear him down and bury him here, the World Government had really paid a huge price.
And among this army, it wasn't just soldiers. There were also quite a few capable officers.
Most eye-catching of all was the figure standing in the center of the military formation, dressed in an admiral's uniform, staring coldly at the three of them.
"So this is the World Government's army? Judging by how elite they are, they're probably no weaker than the soldiers at Marine Headquarters!" Bins said in shock.
"Well, that makes sense. These army troops are responsible for guarding the World Government's stronghold, so of course they'd be elite. Besides, a lot of these soldiers were probably Marines to begin with, just selected and transferred here to protect the Government. They may be called the Army, but in truth, there isn't much difference between the Navy and the Army," Rosinante said with a smile.
"To make the World Government bring out this kind of lineup... it seems, little brother, that in their eyes, you really are an enormous threat," Redfield said, looking at the massive army with a grin.
"They're just here to drain my stamina. The real trump card is still waiting behind the scenes," Rosinante said as he looked toward a certain direction.
In the distance, Sengoku watched the battlefield, and his expression grew even heavier.
"It looks like he noticed us," Momousagi said from beside him.
"That guy has incredibly powerful Observation Haki. It would be normal for him to notice us. It would be strange if he didn't. And now it only confirms it further... he really is Rosinante himself," Sengoku said with an extremely grim face.
When he first heard that Rosinante had returned, even Sengoku found it hard to believe. Especially after seeing that Rosinante's appearance had not changed in the slightest after ten years, he had even suspected someone was impersonating him.
But now, it seemed it really was Rosinante.
At the same time, inside the Five Elders' meeting chamber in the World Government, a screen was monitoring the entire battlefield.
The moment Rosinante's figure appeared on the screen, every one of the Five Elders was visibly shaken.
"Ten years have passed, and he doesn't seem to have changed at all."
"He was likely in a state of bodily dormancy during those ten years. Combined with his enormous vitality, that's why he managed to preserve such a youthful appearance."
"What matters most now is how much of his strength he still retains. After spending ten years in a soulless slumber, his strength should have declined greatly. But based on the information from Impel Down, not only has his strength not weakened, it seems to have increased quite a bit."
"That's right. CP0 has already examined Magellan's injuries. They were wounds left behind by sword intent. But even for a Great Swordsman, injuring a top-tier fighter like Magellan with sword intent alone would be extremely difficult."
"Ten years ago, Rosinante's strength was indeed terrifying. But his swordsmanship had only reached the level of a swordsman," the sword-wielding Elder said calmly.
"In other words, Rosinante, who was unconscious for ten years, somehow cultivated his swordsmanship to the realm of a Great Swordsman... perhaps even beyond that."
"Perhaps he awakened long ago and simply endured in silence until now."
"That should be impossible. With his personality and his domineering spirit, if he had awakened, he would never have remained hidden until now. Besides, swordsmanship isn't even his primary source of combat power."
"Don't forget, he wasn't merely in a simple coma. His soul was exiled into another spacetime. In other words, during those ten years, his soul may have existed in some unknown alternate dimension. Perhaps he obtained some kind of power there. I even suspect that it was precisely the power of that other spacetime that helped him return to this world."
At those words, the other Elders all fell silent.
The unknown was always the most unsettling. Even beings who stood at the very summit of the world and the Celestial Dragons felt uneasy in the face of it.
"Kill!" At that moment, on the screen, the Army Admiral pointed coldly at Rosinante and shouted the order.
Immediately, nearly ten thousand army soldiers launched a charge at Rosinante, while the remaining troops behind them slowly pressed forward.
"Under Purple Steed's leadership, the Army has shown some improvement over the past few years," one of the Five Elders said indifferently as he watched the charge.
"Well, funding has been more abundant in recent years. Not only has the Navy carried out several major recruitment drives, but as the force responsible for protecting the World Government, the Army has also had to strengthen itself. Normally they aren't very useful, but after Fish-Man Tiger climbed the Red Line and caused chaos last time, and with the Revolutionary Army becoming increasingly active over the years, the Army guarding the Government had no choice but to raise its guard. They also conducted several large-scale recruitment drives. These troops were selected from among a million soldiers and are the finest elites, so naturally they possess some real combat strength."
"Speaking of Purple Steed, he was originally selected during the Navy's major expansion. His strength is extremely formidable. If the Navy had still had an admiral slot open, he probably wouldn't have been placed in the Army. Still, no one expected that under his command, the previously lazy and undisciplined Army would actually start to resemble an elite force."
"Purple Steed really does have some ability. Having him lead the Army to stop Rosinante is the most suitable arrangement. If it were anyone else, these soldiers probably wouldn't even be able to remain standing in front of Rosinante. Based on the information from Impel Down, Rosinante's Conqueror's Haki has already reached a terrifying level. Without Purple Steed here, no matter how many troops they sent, they wouldn't have much effect on Rosinante at all," the other Five Elders agreed.
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Note: Purple Steed is an OC by the Author