Enel quickly noticed the crowd of people suddenly dropping to their knees.
Without thinking much of it, he continued lounging on his chair. That is, until the snot-nosed Tenryuubito passed by and stopped in front of him.
The Tenryuubito turned to look at Enel, but before he could speak, Enel wrinkled his nose in disgust and muttered, "Grown man still dripping snot? That's disgusting."
Although his voice wasn't loud, the crowd kneeling nearby, heads pressed low to the ground, was stricken with dread.
"Who is this guy? He's too arrogant! Saying something like that to a Tenryuubito…"
"That idiot's done for. Offending a Tenryuubito is a death sentence. You think we'll get caught up in this?"
"Ugh, I want to run right now…"
The whispers of those on the ground were barely audible, but Enel heard them loud and clear. He raised an eyebrow in mild surprise.
This is a Tenryuubito? He had expected someone with so much power to be more impressive… but this?
"Disgusting? Who are you calling disgusting?" The Tenryuubito, clearly not the sharpest, furrowed his brow and asked, his voice filled with annoyance.
Enel remained casually seated, arms stretched across the back of his chair, and replied indifferently, "Wasn't talking about you."
Enel didn't fear the Tenryuubito, but Kaku had warned him not to provoke them—doing so would bring down a Navy Admiral, and Enel had no desire to fight an Admiral just yet.
The Tenryuubito's face darkened. "I'm in a good mood today, so I'll let you live. Kneel down and give me ten kowtows, and I'll spare you."
Enel chuckled coldly. "You're the first person bold enough to demand that the God of Thunder kneel. If it weren't for the Navy, you'd already be a corpse."
In Enel's mind, avoiding a conflict was as simple as not killing the Tenryuubito. He thought he was being rather 'generous' by not taking action.
"How dare you!" The Tenryuubito shouted angrily, pulling out a gun and aiming it at Enel's head. Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger.
Enel casually tilted his head, easily dodging the bullet.
Gritting his teeth in frustration, the Tenryuubito fired several more shots, each one missing as Enel effortlessly dodged without moving an inch from his chair.
When the gun finally clicked empty, Enel yawned, bored.
Furious, the Tenryuubito screamed, "Guards! Kill him!"
His bodyguards moved swiftly, rushing toward Enel.
Without even standing, Enel lazily raised his right hand, pointing a finger toward the advancing men. A flash of electric blue lightning shot from his fingertips, instantly electrocuting the guards.
The Tenryuubito's face twisted in shock. "What… what are you?! How dare you defy me?!"
"I am the God of Thunder," Enel said with a smug smile, his tone as lazy as ever.
"The God of Thunder?" the Tenryuubito sneered. "We Tenryuubito are the descendants of the gods! If you want to live, you'll kneel down, apologize, and change your name!"
"Descendants of gods? Ridiculous." Enel yawned again. "I don't remember fathering someone like you."
"You… You bastard! I'll have the Navy kill you!" the Tenryuubito raged.
Enel's face tightened slightly in irritation.
At that moment, Takumi and Kaku returned.
Seeing the confrontation between Enel and the Tenryuubito, along with the two charred bodyguards lying between them, it was clear that Enel had caused another mess.
"This idiot… Did he forget everything I said?" Kaku groaned. "Great, now we've got trouble with the Tenryuubito."
Takumi's expression darkened as he began walking toward Enel.
Sensing Takumi and Kaku's return, Enel quickly stood from his chair, trying to explain, "I only fried this guy's useless guards. I didn't touch him. That shouldn't be enough to bring an Admiral down, right?"
Takumi said nothing. He simply delivered a swift punch to Enel's head.
The blow landed hard, nearly knocking Enel to the ground.
Takumi didn't even use his full strength.
Seeing Enel take the hit without retaliation, the Tenryuubito assumed that Enel was afraid of Takumi. "So, do you wish to defy the World Government?"
"No," Takumi replied flatly.
His answer was exactly what Kaku and Enel had expected.
"Hmph!" The Tenryuubito sneered. "If you don't want to die, then make this tall idiot kneel and apologize. He'll become my slave, and I'll let you and the long-nosed one go. Otherwise, you'll all die here in Sabaody!"
Kaku stood silently on the side. Based on what he knew about Takumi, this guy hated trouble enough that he might actually hand Enel over.
Enel's face paled. He shared Kaku's thoughts.
Takumi turned to the Tenryuubito, his expression cold. "What did you just say?"
The Tenryuubito, oblivious to the danger, repeated arrogantly, "I want the tall one to kneel, apologize, and become my slave. Then I'll let you and the long-nosed guy go."
Takumi's face darkened further. Without a word, he blew a small, seemingly harmless bubble. It floated toward the Tenryuubito, and upon contact, it burst with a deafening pop.
The explosion of the advanced Bubble Technique was far more powerful than the entry-level version, and in an instant, the Tenryuubito was dead.
Enel stared in shock.
Kaku was equally stunned.
Neither of them had expected Takumi to actually kill a Tenryuubito—a World Noble protected by the World Government. A mere altercation with one of them was enough to summon a Navy Admiral, and now, with one dead…
Around them, the kneeling crowd was paralyzed with fear, terrified by what had just happened.
Takumi, however, remained calm. He turned back to Enel and Kaku, who were still in a state of disbelief. "Let's go. Time for the next island."
With that, he turned and walked toward their ship.
Once Enel and Kaku snapped out of their daze, they exchanged glances and hurried after him.
As the trio departed, the terrified onlookers scattered, fleeing in all directions, desperate to avoid getting caught up in the aftermath.
Half an hour later.
Admiral Kizaru arrived at Sabaody Park with a team of marines, clearly unenthusiastic about his assignment.
Surveying the scene, Kizaru rubbed his chin, his gaze lingering on the three corpses, particularly the two bodyguards who had been electrocuted.
**************
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