Chapter 161

"Someone wants to see me? I hope it's a pretty lady."

"Just shut up and get moving," said Haia as she unlocked the chains binding him to the ground, only leaving those on his arms and legs. She put something around his neck and kicked him out of the cell. "That thing around your neck will kill you once you run off. And if you try to take it off, it will also kill you."

"Sigh, you can be so mean sometimes." Ken stood up and looked at about a hundred soldiers. "Boo!" All of them jumped back. They looked like scared chickens. "Hahaha, don't piss your pants, oh great soldiers that keep this world's evil safe. Hahaha!"

Haia kicked him again to get him moving. After more than an hour of walking inside a huge castle (mostly because Ken was fooling around), they finally arrived in front of a humongous door. Haia pushed the door slightly open and pushed Ken inside. She closed the door right afterward and left with the soldiers.

When Ken entered the room behind the doors, his playful smile disappeared into a serious look. He looked at five old men and a person shrouded in darkness sitting on a throne.

'Tsk, I didn't expect that this guy wanted to meet me. I should have escaped the moment she unlocked the chains keeping me down.'

"Congratulations for getting your arm back, old guy. But getting your sword back won't be that easy."

"Silence! Don't you dare open your mouth in the presence of the King without permission!" said the old guy that lost his sword.

Ken looked at the person sitting on the throne.

"So my hunch was right. It is said that no one is allowed to sit on this throne, not even the Five Elders or the World Nobles, as its vacancy symbolizes that the world is not ruled by a single figure, sending a message of peace by making all royals equal before it with none greater or lesser than the other. The moment I heard that, I knew that it was bullshit. And it seems like I was right."

"That brain of yours will be your undoing. I'm sure that you know what will happen since we revealed this secret," said an old guy with a bald head and a big mustache.

"What do you want from me, fake King?"

The 5 Elders gasped after hearing Ken. But the figure on the throne didn't seem to care.

"The key."

"It seems like that key is really important to you. Fine, if you want it so badly, turn around, and I'll shove it in your ass."

It turned deathly quiet. The 5 Elders didn't even dare to breathe. Their faces immediately contorted when they saw their King stand up and turn around. Their king stuck their ass out towards Ken.

"I'm waiting, Ken-kun."

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PAUSE!!! PAUSE!!! Let's try this again.

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It turned deathly quiet. The 5 Elders didn't even dare to breathe.

"It seems like I have been too lenient with you. Pirates are the same, no matter how smart. Cut off his arms and legs, then bring him to me."

"Yes, Im-sama!"

The 5 Elders immediately ran towards Ken, ready to dismember him.

"Crack, crack, crack, boom!"

The 5 Elders looked at Ken with shock as the Sea Stone cuffs around his hands blew off. He immediately crushed the device around his head and threw it towards the 5 Elders. It exploded and halted their movement. Ken took off the cuffs around his teeth and started stretching.

"Damn, sleeping on a stone floor really sucks. My body feels completely sore."

"Ryou. It has been a long time since I last saw it. I would have taken more precautions if I knew you had it," said the Im.

"Tsk, it seems like you were holding back against Kaido and us," said the old guy that lost his sword.

"It would be rude to go all out against old man," said Ken with a smirk. He took a deep breath and quickly ran towards the door. But before he could make it to the door, Im had already made it there, completely blocking his escape path.

"Tsk, I knew it. You're a cheat after all," said Ken. He got quickly surrounded by the 5 Elders.

"Tell me where you hid the key, or I will exterminate you and your crew," said Im.

"Torturing me for a week didn't get you anywhere, so you resorted to threatening me. How low of someone who claims the top of the world. If you want an answer, come and get them out of me yourself, fake King!"

"Make him kneel before me."

"Yes, Im-sama!"

---

The azure pirates are standing in front of a room that is pitch black. Not even Ace's flames could create a light in the darkness.

"What happened to Robert? You said that he was recovering and would be fine," said Sabo.

"He was making a steady recovery, but he suddenly just started screaming Ken's name, saying that he was in danger, and then his fruit went out of control, so I hurried out of the room," said Deuce.

"Does anyone here know anything about Devil Fruits going out of control?" asked Sabo.

"I have never heard about something like this. I have always been able to completely stop my Devil Fruit once something went wrong," said Kuzan.

The rest also shook their heads. Sabo frowned and took a coin from his pocket. He threw it into the room, and a second later, you could hear it fall onto the floor.

"It seems like it isn't a shadow portal or storage. Just normal shadows. Stay here; I'll go check it out."

"Wait, you can't go into there. It's too reckless to go in while we have no idea of what is going on," said Deuce.

"What do you want me to do? Stay here and just listen to him scream? Also, him screaming for Ken could either be a nightmare, or Ken could really be in danger. I am not going to wait and find out when it is too late. Laffite has also found nothing about Ken's whereabouts, so if this even gives us a 0,0001% chance of finding Ken, I'll take it!"

After hearing this, Deuce couldn't say anything and just nodded. Sabo didn't waste a second and immediately walked in. Even though the shadows were obscuring his vision, he easily managed to find Robert with his Haki. But when he was about to touch him, he got attacked by the shadows surrounding Robert and him. But the shadows didn't manage to penetrate his Busoshoku Haki that he quickly used to cover his entire body.

"Ey Robert, wake up! It's me, Sabo! Robert! Robert!" screamed Sabo as he started shaking Robert.

But no matter how loudly Sabo screamed or shook him, the shadows didn't stop attacking him, nor did Robert wake up.

'Should I punch him on the head? Garp always woke Ace and Luffy up that way in an instant.'

---

'How did I get here, and is what I am seeing real? Why is Ken fighting those 5 Elders again, and who is that person that is making every fiber on my body scream to get out of here. Did Deuce feed me some weird medicine? I swear, if he is behind this, I'll tell Captain about all the times he slacked off.'

Robert suddenly fell down and grabbed his head while screaming.

'What is happening! It feels like my head is about to explode!'

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[Drop some power stones. My 'buddy is laughing at me because I have fewer power stones than I normally have. So help me out :) ]

Anime Quotes:

I don't think I'll learn anything if I don't try to do something about it on my own.

- Chizuru Hishiro (ReLIFE)

You guys sure are a worthless bunch. If you wanna wallow in your tears, save it for after you've done everything you can.

- Seiya Kanie (Amagi Brilliant Park)

Smile. Not for anyone else, but for yourself. Show yourself your own smile. You'll feel better then.

- Rintaro Tatewaki (Magic-Kyun! Renaissance)

Remember this… no matter where you go, the strength of your mind and spirit is the most powerful magic of all.

- Princess Emeraude (Magic Knight Rayearth)

Whether a fish lives in a clear stream or a water ditch, so long as it continues swimming forward, it will grow up beautifully.

- Koro-sensei (Assassination Classroom)