Doll: "Aokiji, Kuzan… you really can't sit still, can you? Arton just exposed footage of you fighting Vice Admiral Garp, and now there's you versus Akainu?!"
Kalifa: "That Aokiji truly is something. I just wonder—between him and Akainu, who ultimately wins."
Domino: "When he fought Akainu he was still in Marine uniform, but he wasn't when he fought Garp. Does that mean his duel with Akainu happened before he left the Marines?"
Hibari: "Don't tell me Admiral Aokiji left the Marines because of that battle?"
Ain: "If someone stopped that duel, could we stop Kuzan from leaving the Marines? Not that it's my business anymore."
Yamato: "Ugh, I'm dying to know—can't Arton just tell us who won already?"
Ulti: "Half-saying things and hiding the rest—so annoying."
Monet: "Power that permanently changes the weather… worthy of the two top Logias!"
Arton didn't pause his diary because of the chatter—and of course, he didn't just blurt out the result of Aokiji vs. Akainu either. After a moment's thought, he began recording something new.
[Come to think of it, Kuzan's freezing trick is very deceptive.]
[Among the Marines who took part in Ohara's Buster Call, not one realized Kuzan hadn't actually killed the giant Jaguar D. Saul.]
[He merely immobilized him in ice. Which makes sense—Saul was Kuzan's friend. And all Saul did was protect a little girl.]
[In Kuzan's eyes, that hardly counted as a crime.]
[When the dust on Ohara finally settled, Saul eventually thawed and recovered.]
[No one would ever imagine that the "annihilated" Ohara didn't truly die. Before the Buster Call erased the island, its archaeologists had sunk troves of history texts beneath the waves.]
[Saul gathered all of them and took them away. From then on, he discarded his name and lived in seclusion. Perhaps he's simply waiting for a grown-up Robin to find him.]
Sadi: "Whoa… so even Saul wasn't actually killed by Kuzan?"
Gion: "Sigh… at this point I don't even know how to judge Kuzan."
Kalifa: "So Ohara didn't die out—those scholars left books behind about the forbidden Void Century."
Stussy: "If the World Government learns this, they'll rage—and might even strip Aokiji of his Admiral rank. Should we tip off Big News Morgans?"
Ulti: "Tsk, tsk—Admiral Aokiji, interesting. Anything that riles the Marines and World Government makes me happy."
Gerd: "Feels like Arton's hinting at that burned man hiding in Elbaf!"
Vivi: "Now that Robin knows this, she'll be even less willing to leave Arton's crew."
Doll: "Whatever happens, this mustn't leak publicly—or Aokiji will have to quit the Marines."
Domino: "Saul's very existence is a threat to the World Government. If they can find him, fine; if they can't…"
Kujaku: "He chose to live incognito, and the Marines and World Government have found nothing about him for years—that means tracking him down will be very hard. I wonder if Arton will reveal Saul's location. With Robin right beside him… knowing how sharp she is, she'll divert him the moment he's about to say it."
…
"Robin, your hands are shaking. Are you sick?"
Arton sounded genuinely puzzled. A moment ago, Robin had gone beyond simply letting Arton rest against her; her supple hands were kneading his shoulders in an easy, practiced rhythm. If not for worrying the gesture might cross a line, she'd already have sprouted two more hands with the Flower-Flower Fruit across Arton's abdomen to massage other places…
Chapter 386 — Robin: With Infinite Hands Come Infinite Possibilities
"Uu…!"
Arton arched a brow and glanced back at Robin behind him. "Why are you crying? Come on, it's not that serious. You're the one who offered your lap pillow, and now you're tearing up? You're making it look like I bullied you."
"No, you've got it wrong, Arton." Robin dabbed the corners of her eyes. "I'm just… too happy."
"Happy?"
"Yes. Happy."
"…What a strange woman."
Arton studied her. "Doesn't seem like a lie. So what here is worth being that happy about?"
"You, Arton." Robin smiled brightly.
"Me? I haven't even agreed to let you join the crew. That makes you happy?" Arton shook his head, at a loss.
"Even if you haven't agreed, just being allowed to stand here is enough to make me happy." Robin lifted her hands. "Please, allow me to continue the massage. This time, I can make you even more comfortable. If you don't mind… could you lie down?"
Wiping away the last of her tears, she bloomed new forearms from her own—hands unfurling like petals within line of sight—then pointed at the tatami mat beside him.
With the news that her benefactor Saul still lived, Robin wanted to thank Arton properly. And thanks, in her mind, meant using an even more exquisite technique.
"My power lets me sprout additional arms anywhere I can see," she said softly. "If you lie down, I can grow hands wherever your body needs them. Believe me—you'll experience a massage unlike any you've felt before."
"Will I, now? Are you sure?" Arton's eyebrow ticked up.
"I am," Robin nodded, confident. "And it will be the most comfortable."
"I'll admit—your ability is ridiculous for massage. Ordinary masseurs can't compare," Arton said. "But what if I pit you against Kaya? How would you answer that, Miss Robin?"
Robin blinked. Before she could speak, Arton continued, "Kaya's our ship's doctor. She understands anatomy inside and out. With that foundation—imagine her massage."
"But I can grow many hands," Robin countered.
Arton chuckled and looked toward Kaya. Robin followed his gaze. Kaya, a touch bashful, raised her palms and formed a seal.
"Shadow Clone Technique."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three crisp pops—white smoke swirled—and three Kaya clones stood at her sides.
"You see, Miss Robin," Arton grinned. "There are four Kayas in front of you now. That's eight hands ready to work."
Robin fell silent. She truly could sprout more arms—but Kaya's shadow clones created people. On that alone she was already outflanked. A whole person has far more ways to relax someone than just hands alone.
Maybe… I can imitate Kaya's shadow clones, Robin thought, eyes narrowing in curiosity. Use the Flower-Flower Fruit to assemble a full body—a double of myself.
...
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