"Old man, take care!"
"Hahaha, that's great~~"
As the old man walked away on the ice, Luffy and the others turned back.
"Why are you looking at us like that?"
Admiral Aokiji sat on the grass again, tilting his head to look at Luffy.
So similar, too similar.
"You and your grandfather, Monkey D. Garp."
At the mention of this name, Luffy was immediately startled.
"Should I say passionate and lively, or unpredictable~~~"
"Hey, hey, Luffy, why are you sweating all over?"
"Ah... it's... nothing... the weather is too hot..."
Who are you kidding?
The sea right next to you is frozen, isn't it?
"The government hasn't noticed your danger yet,"
However, Admiral Aokiji, sitting on the ground, had already started talking to himself.
"But after my research, I found that you all have great potential."
"From the time you set sail until now, your growth has been so fast that even I, who deals with big pirates all the time, find it unbelievable. So I've decided to kill you here!"
"Hey, hey, hey, didn't you say you were out for a walk?"
Ignoring Usopp's retort, Aokiji continued.
"Especially you, Nico Robin."
"A bounty not only represents a person's strength but also their threat to the government."
"You were already worth 79 million at the age of eight, a little girl hiding and surviving until today, don't you all—"
The Marine Admiral glanced at the Straw Hat crew.
" Don't you feel curious??"
...
Curious my foot, weren't you secretly acting as her babysitter?
Otherwise, how could a little girl could survive in this pirate world after she got her bounty at 8 years old.
Of course, Roman wouldn't say that, or he'd end up as an ice sculpture, frozen by an enraged Aokiji.
"It's simple, let me tell you."
"This woman uses anyone who takes her in without hesitation, and once there's danger, she runs away."
Continuing to play the 'bad guy', Admiral Aokiji pointed at the pale-faced Nico Robin.
"You survived in the underworld this way! And this time, you've chosen these naive guys as your hiding place, right?"
!!
"Hey, the way you talk really pisses me off!"
Sanji, with his chivalrous spirit, adjusted his tie.
"What grudge do you have against Robin?"
"Don't be impulsive."
Usopp held Sanji back. No matter what, the other party was a Marine Admiral. And he had just demonstrated his 'Ice Age' skill. It was best not to fight if possible.
Otherwise:
Usopp figured he could make the opponent stop in a second—
By begging not to die.
"I have no grudge against her, she just escaped from me once."
Sitting on the ground, Admiral Aokiji calmly looked at the Straw Hat crew.
"You'll soon understand your situation and regret taking this woman in."
"The evidence is—so far, every organization and pirate crew associated with 'Nico Robin' has been wiped out! Except for this woman."
—Dead silence.
These words would make anyone consider what they implied.
"Why is that, Nico Robin?"
"Shut up!!"
Luffy glared angrily at the Marine Admiral in front of him.
"The past is the past, now is now!"
"Oh?"
Aokiji wasn't surprised by this answer. After all, he was that person's grandson.
"Have you all gotten so close already?"
"What exactly are you trying to say?!"
The past 'scars' were laid bare, and in front of the Straw Hat crew! Maybe at first, many were wary of Robin joining, but after spending time together, everyone had subconsciously accepted her as a 'comrade'.
And in Robin's heart, this group of pirates who didn't act like pirates were the only ones she cared about in all these years...
"If you want to catch me, then come on—"
"Thirty Wheel Flowers - Lift and Separate!"
This was the strongest ability Robin had mastered so far. Thirty arms appeared on the opponent's body, applying joint techniques and exerting force together! It was a vicious skill capable of breaking the spine instantly. However:
Crack, crack,
What broke was just a pile of ice.
"Oh dear, it seems I've talked too much and annoyed someone."
Whoosh~~
An ice sculpture figure 'stood' up from the shattered ice, reforming into the Marine Admiral known as Kuzan, codename Aokiji.
"Although I didn't intend to take your life,"
With a grasp in the air, a long, bright sword, three feet long, appeared in Aokiji's right hand out of thin air! It was the moisture in the air forcibly condensed into ice.
He swung the long sword!
A white mist rose, and the surrounding temperature dropped by dozens of degrees, the biting cold spreading out. The target was the despairing Nico Robin.
Clang!
With a piercing screech, the ice sword was blocked by Zoro's Wado Ichimonji! At the same time:
"Meat Cut Kick!"
Sanji's fierce kick struck Aokiji's wrist from below, sending the ice sword flying. Luffy, having gathered his strength, followed closely behind.
"Gomu Gomu no Bullet!"
The next second, a fierce punch hit the opponent's abdomen! The coordination of Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji was seamless, but:
It was useless.
"Uwaa~~~" x3
Aokiji, standing there, simply reached out and grabbed Zoro's arm and Sanji's leg! His abdomen took Luffy's punch, but the ones who got hurt were the three Straw Hat fighters.
Crack, crack, crack,
The biting cold instantly spread over them, covering their arms, legs, and fists in crystal-clear ice. The bone-chilling cold made the trio, who wouldn't flinch at swords and knives, cry out in pain!
"Roman?"
I... even if you call me, it's no use, I don't even know what expression to—
Clang!
Facing Nami's exclamation, Roman rolled his eyes internally and pretended to rush up, slashing Aokiji's shoulder with his paper sword! Naturally, it didn't even cut the corner of his clothes.
Of course not, with Aokiji's level of Armament Haki, standing still and letting the current Straw Hat crew hit him wouldn't cause any harm.
"How is this possible? All four of them—"
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji clutched their frozen parts and fell back, while Roman dispersed the freezing paper sword and pulled Zoro and Sanji back one by one.
Fighting a level 30 boss with a level 60 character, without even a chance to exploit a bug, what's the point~~
Forget it, just go with the flow.
"It seems you've found some good companions. But you are still you, Nico Robin."
Aokiji didn't care about the Straw Hat crew's attacks and continued to mock Robin.
"No, I have—"
Unfortunately, before the intellectual beauty could finish her sentence, a finger touched her forehead.
"Frozen Moment."
Swish,
With a sweep of icy air, Nico Robin instantly turned into a lifelike crystal ice sculpture.
"You bastard!!"
Facing the furious Luffy, Aokiji calmly turned away.
"Don't shout so loudly, she's not dead yet. But,"
Slowly raising his fist, Roman quickly lowered his head, afraid that others would see his expression.
Control your expression! Be serious, be angry, be...
Forget it, this is too awkward. If Admiral Aokiji really wanted to fight, he could defeat the current Straw Hat crew in less than a second! There's no need for this pretense—
"If I punch down, she'll die immediately."
Swish,
A sliding tackle urgently 'rescued' the ice sculpture Robin from under Aokiji's fist. Facing Admiral Aokiji's 'slowly' descending foot, Luffy suddenly threw the ice sculpture Robin to Usopp and was stepped on himself.
"Take Robin and go, get her treated on the ship!"
"Got it,"
Swish,
Roman, creating another white paper sword to slash at Aokiji, shouted without looking back.
"Nami, start the ship!"
"Got it,"
Nami instinctively started running, while Chopper in his half-beast form and Usopp carried the ice sculpture Robin. —They all quickly retreated from the battlefield, while Roman, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji surrounded Aokiji.
"Give up on that woman, not saving her is for the good of the world."
It was a serious scene, but seeing Aokiji still dutifully reciting his 'lines' made Roman's mouth twitch.
What to do, I can't hold it in...
"Get out of the way!"
Fortunately, Luffy's voice saved the awkward Roman. Luffy, with one frozen fist, took a fighting stance.
"I'll take him on one-on-one."
——————
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