75. The Five Elders Are Too Busy, Find Something For Them To Do!

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Once again setting foot on the Holy Land Mariejois, Akira was filled with emotions.

The first time he came here, he could only meet Kong, not even the Five Elders.

The second time, he saw the Five Elders, but they left him waiting all day.

But this third time was different from the previous two.

"Akira, come and sit down!"

The Five Elders had clearly been waiting for a while. As soon as they saw Akira, they greeted him with warm smiles, waving him over.

"Alright, Five Elders."

Akira responded with a bright smile, remaining as humble as ever, not pushing himself too far.

After expressing his thanks to the Five Elders, he took a seat across from them.

Noticing that Akira was still the same as before, the Five Elders exchanged subtle glances, their expressions relaxing slightly. The wariness in their eyes also diminished a bit.

Soon after, the five of them began talking with Akira, like amiable bosses showing concern for their hardworking subordinate.

But!

Ten minutes later, it was the Warrior God of the Environment who couldn't hold back any longer, breaking the silence.

"You know why we specifically called you here, right?"

"It's about my fruit ability breakthrough," Akira replied.

He didn't try to play dumb, knowing that trying to deceive these five old men who had lived for countless years would backfire quickly.

Not only would it fail, but it would also cause him to lose their favor unnecessarily.

There was no need to make that mistake.

The Five Elders exchanged glances.

They were clearly surprised by Akira's straightforwardness.

But there was an advantage to this; at least they knew Akira wasn't hiding anything.

"You said that your ability has broken through, and you can now replicate deformed leaves without limit or consumption. Is that true?"

"Hmm! It's true. Otherwise, I wouldn't have needed to make that plan."

"Can you demonstrate it for us?"

"Sure!"

Akira agreed without hesitation, acting like a dutiful subordinate.

The fruit energy within him circulated and gathered in his left hand.

In the next second, under the widened eyes of the five, leaves began to spill out as if they cost nothing.

They floated freely in the air.

Within just a few breaths, the ground around them was covered with a thick layer.

But the Five Elders kept watching, not stopping him.

Akira felt a bit helpless.

I know you five want to get this for free, but could you be a little less obvious about it?

At least pretend a little!

"Five Elders, I don't know if you're aware, but I've set three laws for my transformation."

Akira continued producing the leaves as he spoke.

These laws weren't a secret, nor were they difficult to detect.

Rather than letting the Five Elders learn about them later through intelligence or operations and risk them thinking he had purposely kept them in the dark, which could lead to misunderstandings and mistrust, he thought it better to be upfront.

He knew exactly how his future would unfold.

Hang in there!

Build walls high, accumulate food widely, and become king slowly!

Even if you want to rise completely, you have to wait until the era of great pirates is contained, and you can receive the reward for the ultimate mission.

"What are the three laws?"

The Warrior God of the Environment asked urgently.

When they learned that Akira could replicate leaves without limit, they lost their composure and immediately summoned him. They didn't even bother with the spies' follow-up reports.

Seeing their eagerness, Akira calmly repeated the laws.

"So, what you're making now only obeys your orders and can only target pirates?"

"That's right!"

"Well, that's enough Fleet Admiral Akira, we've confirmed that you can indeed copy without limit."

Although they were speechless, they still took back his ability.

Ignoring the deformed leaves that covered their calves, Akira quietly waited for the Five Elders to speak.

For a moment, there was an eerie silence.

Six pairs of eyes exchanged glances.

Finally, the Warrior God of Finance, holding the supreme sword, broke the tension.

"Akira, to be frank, we want your Transformation Leaves."

The Warrior God of Finance pointed at the pile on the floor, cutting straight to the point. "But we want them under our complete control, not yours."

"I understand," Akira nodded.

As soon as he finished speaking, his left hand once again became enveloped by the fruit energy, and he began producing more deformed leaves.

The Warrior God of the Environment immediately waved his hand, and a gust of wind blew aside the pile of leaves that were set with the three laws, piling them into a hill.

Chug chug…

The new stream of Leaves continued to pour out.

The Warrior God of Finance picked one up from the ground, his eyes flickering slightly.

"I'll take my leave."

With those words, the Warrior God of Finance left the room.

Akira didn't mind and continued producing more leaves.

He knew what the Warrior God of Finance was up to—testing the leaves on someone. It was to be expected. Those in power are naturally suspicious. A ruler who isn't cautious is bound to fail, no matter how strong they are.

Time ticked by slowly.

As the sun began to set, Akira finally finished and walked out.

Under the escort of the guards, he boarded a warship bound for Marineford.

"I wonder what kind of welcome I'll receive the next time I come here?"

Standing on the deck, with the wind blowing and a cigar in his mouth, Akira's lips curled into a slight smile.

All day, he had been producing deformed leaves without the restrictions of the three laws. He didn't bother to count how many there were.

In truth, he understood the Five Elders' reaction.

Anyone in their position would feel uneasy if a subordinate had such a game-changing ability that could potentially threaten their rule. They wouldn't be able to sleep well unless they either eliminated the threat or found a way to control it.

Fortunately, Akira had reassured them by giving them a large quantity of free deformed leaves.

Most importantly, his current strength wasn't enough to cause the Five Elders to fear him. They knew that just a CPO captain, or even the mysterious "God's Knights," could easily eliminate him.

Not to mention the enigmatic and powerful Im, who was another source of their confidence.

It's ironic. Two months ago, Akira mocked Fleet Admiral Sengoku as a "capable minister" who wouldn't last three episodes in ancient times.

Now, he found himself in a similar situation.

He wondered how many episodes his "capable minister" status would allow him to survive in this world of pirates.

Still, he didn't regret revealing that he could create leaves without limit.

The three ultimate tasks were at the top of his priority list.

But to truly end the era of great pirates, he would either have to wait more than ten years or, as he was doing now, rely on his strengthened fruit ability to accomplish it in a much shorter time.

Ten years was too long, so he chose to move forward according to his plan.

Akira carefully considered his situation after revealing his abilities.

As long as he didn't openly oppose the Celestial Dragons or the Five Elders, he could ensure his safety. If there were truly someone powerful enough to threaten the World Government and they killed indiscriminately regardless of allegiance, the ruling class would have long since abandoned their families, and their subordinates would be filled with desperate individuals.

As for the threat to his life, his Mythical Zoan ability of "Over" wasn't just for show.

Plus, the experience he had accumulated would soon exceed 10,000 points, not to mention the reward from the ultimate mission three, which he could claim once the mission was completed.

After weighing all these factors, Akira felt confident enough to announce the news to the world.

"Go ahead and copy it; in the end, it'll all work in my favor," he thought, as he turned and walked deeper into the warship.

Soon, he returned to Marineford.

Just as he sat down in the Fleet Admiral's chair, before he could even get comfortable, the door burst open.

"Big brother!"

Robin ran in and hugged Akira around the neck, her voice sweet and affectionate.

A smile spread across Akira's face as he patted her on the head.

"What brings you here? Weren't you helping Aunt Tsuru?"

"Granny Tsuru called me over. She asked me to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"During the few hours you were away, many kings from allied nations called, hoping we could provide some free support to help them fight against pirates."

"Free? That's not happening! But if they're paying berries, then maybe."

"Hee hee, everyone thinks so. So, should I tell Granny Tsuru that you agreed?"

"Huh? What did I agree to?"

"To sell the deformed leaves to the kings and nobles. Don't worry, brother, we'll set a high price."

Satisfied with his answer, Robin immediately jumped into Akira's arms, then quickly ran off with her little legs.

Watching her bounce away, Akira couldn't help but feel much better. He shook his head with a grin and turned his attention back to his documents.

Time passed, and the sky grew darker.

"Time to call it a day!"

Akira stretched, capped his pen, pushed back his chair, and stood up.

He needed to invite Yuki to dinner tonight as a thank-you for helping him and the Marines earlier that day. Because of that, he didn't ask Rouge to wait for him to finish work.

After tidying up his desk, Akira was about to leave when—

Pere~Pere~Pere~Pere~.

His personal Den Den Mushi rang from his inner pocket.

Akira frowned and answered it without hesitation.

Very few people knew his private number, so whoever was calling, it had to be important.

"Excuse me, is this Fleet Admiral Akira?"

A steady, deep voice came from the other side. It was unfamiliar, not someone Akira knew well.

But he responded, "Yes, who's speaking?"

"I'm Monkey D. Dragon. I'm currently the captain of the Freedom Fighters. You sent someone to contact me before, and you left me your contact information."

Dragon explained, perhaps worried that Akira might not remember him.

But Akira hadn't forgotten; Dragon was well-known for stirring things up.

"I remember!"

Akira's eyes brightened as he moved to close the door, then returned to his seat.

"Dragon, during the most difficult times for the Marines, as Fleet Admiral, I greatly appreciate your righteous actions in helping us protect many people.

"So, what brings you to call me now? Have you encountered any difficulties?"

Akira recalled telling an officer to give Dragon his contact information in case he ever needed help. But for Dragon to reach out personally suggested that something serious was going on.

Dragon was silent for a moment before finally speaking. "No, there's no immediate difficulty. I'm actually calling you for something else..."

He hesitated, possibly choosing his words carefully.

Sensing this, Akira prompted, "What is it? You're Garp's son, and we're of the same age. There's no need for formalities—just tell me."

"Alright, I'll get straight to the point. Fleet Admiral Akira, I watched your live broadcast this morning, and I'm calling today to request some of your leaves."

Dragon wasn't one to beat around the bush. Once he'd made a decision, he spoke confidently without any hesitation:

"Please don't misunderstand; I don't want these for personal use. I plan to distribute them across various islands so that the villagers can use them when they encounter pirates."

"How many do you need?" Akira asked.

"The more, the better. To be honest, the Freedom Fighters is protecting a lot of places right now."

Oh ho!

Akira's eyebrows knitted together.

Dragon sure doesn't mince words.

If he says there are a lot of places, then there are definitely a lot. If CP discovers this, those five suspicious old men in Mariejois would certainly be concerned.

But Akira knew he couldn't just hand them over without consideration. What's the point of giving something so valuable to a mere volunteer group?

'The Five Elders are already overburdened—maybe it's time to find someone to divert their attention.'

'And if the right person is chosen…'

Akira's eyes flickered with a cunning thought. After a moment of internal deliberation, he brought the Den Den Mushi closer to his mouth.

"Is it convenient for us to meet? I'd like to have a proper chat with you."

"You want to see me?"

Meanwhile, in the Holy Land Mariejois...

The Five Elders sat quietly in a chamber, waiting. They only stirred when the Warrior God of Finance entered the room.

"Well?" The Warrior God of Agriculture stood up, impatient for news.

Without keeping them in suspense, the Warrior God of Finance nodded heavily under the watchful eyes of his colleagues and said:

"The leaf Akira gave us is indeed a free version, and it only obeys the orders of those who expend their energy to replicate it.

"I commanded Kuzan's clone to kill a commoner in the lower world, and he did it without hesitation."

"And to ensure there was no tampering, I randomly selected several leaves from the pile to test."

"The results were consistent across the board."

"Akira didn't lie to us."

The four remaining Warrior Gods collectively exhaled in relief.

"If that's the case, we can use this batch of deformed leaves with confidence."

"And we don't need to worry about Marine going rogue."

"While they gather strong individuals from around the world to replicate the leaves, we don't need to bother ourselves with that. We can simply have our subordinates copy them day and night."

"It's clear that Akira is quite smart. He understands the situation and hasn't entertained any dangerous ideas."

"Indeed, he's clever and knows his place. He realized that we were concerned about his abilities, so he took the initiative to alleviate those concerns."

"And that raccoon fruit ability... I didn't expect it to become so formidable after his breakthrough. Those fools who cataloged Devil Fruits never saw its true potential."

The Warrior God of Science and Defense's comment about the ability immediately drew the attention of the other Five Elders, their eyes gleaming with greed.

The Dog-Dog Fruit Model: Monster Racoon ability they had known of before seemed trivial, with so many limitations that it never caused them much concern.

But Akira had developed it to the point of unlimited replication and transformation in such a short time.

This single feature had multiplied the fruit's value by hundreds or even thousands of times.

Unlimited replication of deformed leaves means the potential for limitless clones of powerful figures like Sakazuki to serve them—as long as there's enough stamina to go around.

Bluntly put, any kingdom that possessed the Dog-Dog Fruit Model: Monster Racoon could easily rise to become one of the most formidable powers in the world.

"Mythical Zoan truly don't have any wasted potential."

"This fruit is more precious than even the Op-Op Fruit!"

"It's a pity it already has an owner—and that owner happens to be the very popular Marine Fleet Admiral."

"I think when Master Im awakens, we should inform her."

"Indeed, we should."