PIRATES: I WORK IN NAVY FROM NINE TO FIVE

"C-Clown... What the hell is going on? You can still protect me, right?"Caesar Clown couldn't hold back anymore—his voice trembled as he looked toward Doflamingo with desperate hope.

But Doflamingo's face had already turned a shade darker than storm clouds.

All his life, he ruled from above—commanding fear and obedience from all beneath him.And now? To be seen in such a disgraced, shackled state... to Doflamingo, this was worse than death.

And of all people to see him like this—not just Caesar, but Trafalgar Law too, a ghost from his past.

"You... damn Marine bastard," Doflamingo snarled, face twisted in fury. "You dare treat me like this?! Don't think I'm just some run-of-the-mill Warlord!"

His voice seethed with rage as he struggled to retrieve something from his tattered flamingo-feathered cloak—a Den Den Mushi.

"This isn't just any communicator—this can connect directly to the Gorosei!" he spat. "Don't believe me? Go look across the entire sea—no other pirate holds something like this!"

"I'll see how you explain this one!"

As he slammed the call button, a ripple of tension tore through the onlookers.

Even Caesar and Law, hardened and scheming as they were, looked shaken.The crew aboard the massive Marine warship froze.Even battle-hardened soldiers held their breath.

To call the Gorosei, the Five Elders—those shrouded figures behind the World Government itself—was no small thing.

Even the Marine Fleet Admiral might turn cautious when that name is dropped.But now, this infamous Shichibukai claimed he had them on speed-dial?

And then, the voice answered.

"Doflamingo, shut your mouth. Stop waving the Celestial Dragon secrets over us. Never forget—no matter how 'useful' you are, to the Five Elders, you're nothing but a heavy piece on the board."

The voice was cold. Low. Ruthless.

Everyone froze.

Then came the next line, spoken with a hint of amusement:

"What's wrong? Didn't you promise to help us suppress that unruly new admiral? Don't tell me you're calling to report a success already?"

The moment the words fell, the atmosphere changed.

Gasps broke the silence. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.

So this was where Doflamingo's confidence had come from.

He wasn't bluffing—he was working under orders from the Gorosei.And worse, those orders were to suppress Admiral Luo Yu.

The thought chilled every spine.

If the Five Elders were truly backing Doflamingo…Would they now demand Luo Yu apologize?Back down?

Everyone slowly turned toward Luo Yu.He stood calmly, sipping his wine gourd as if nothing had happened.

They waited. Would he bow his head before the Five Elders?

Then came Luo Yu's voice—light, amused, and sharp as a blade.

"That's a pretty convincing fake Five Elder you got there, Doflamingo."

"Too bad it's now three thirty—afternoon tea time. I'm going to have my tea."

BOOOOM!!!

He raised his wine gourd and took a casual swig—then released it.

His Conqueror's Haki, long coiled like a dragon in slumber, burst out in full fury.

Mixed with his Armament Haki, the overwhelming wave roared forward—an unstoppable tsunami of will.

In a single blink, it was upon Doflamingo.

He never had time to react.

Never had time to beg.

He had just enough time to register one thought:

"He really just called the Five Elders fake… and hit me again?"

BOOM!!!

The impact was deafening.

Doflamingo was blown off his feet like a cannonball, flung hundreds of meters across the island ruins.He crashed into the rubble with a sickening crunch, blood spurting from his mouth.

His eyes rolled upward.He slumped over sideways.And just like that—the Heavenly Yaksha passed out cold.

The stunned silence that followed was almost unbearable.

Everyone, from Marines to pirates, stood wide-eyed in shock.

Caesar Clown, in particular, looked like he'd seen a ghost.

His so-called backup—his powerful partner with Gorosei connections—was now a crumpled heap in the dirt.

In front of this new admiral, even "background" meant nothing.

What the hell was he worth, then?

Swallowing hard, Caesar forced a dry smile onto his face.

"Ad-Admiral Luo Yu… I-I surrender," he stammered. "I heard you're sailing the seas in search of special combat assets, right?"

"Each one's worth twenty million berries?"

He rubbed his hands together, chuckling nervously.

"I'm not bad, really—I might even be worth thirty million, considering my skills. I'm a scientist, but I can still throw hands when needed!"

"Thirty million?" Luo Yu repeated with a raised brow, the Haki receding from around him as he took another sip.

He turned toward the Marine warship in the distance.

A voice drifted from its deck, followed by laughter.

"Hah! This one really is a cunning rat—already selling himself again!"From the bow stepped a towering figure—Blue Ogre Dorry, laughing heartily.

"But Captain," he added mockingly, "wasn't the thirty million one just smashed into the ground?""So what does that say about us twenty-millioners? Are we being undervalued?"

Laughter rippled across the ship—an eerie break in the battlefield's deadly stillness.

But beneath it all, one truth remained:

In front of Luo Yu, titles meant nothing. Bargains meant nothing.

Only strength—and survival—mattered now.