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"What are the two Marines talking about?"
Nojiko approached Tsuru and Aokiji with a gentle smile, carrying two dishes in her hands.
"Just having a casual chat," Tsuru replied.
"Miss Nojiko, it's hard to believe you're the same person from before." Aokiji turned around and took a long look at Nojiko. He was remembering how she looked when she used that flesh-melting technique to perform her abilities during the battle.
"Admiral Aokiji is referring to what happened during the fight, right? That state is part of my ability. Please don't worry too much about it." Nojiko smiled warmly as she handed the dishes to both Tsuru and Aokiji.
"By the way, I heard you mention 'emperor' earlier. Please don't worry - Ikki has never been interested in becoming a pirate. As long as you two keep your promise and don't force our crew to become pirates, everything will be fine." Nojiko's smile remained gentle but carried a hint of warning.
"I hope that's true," Aokiji nodded slightly. "You mentioned abilities just now. Your power..."
"Sorry, but I choose to keep details about my abilities, or Ikki's abilities, secret." Nojiko shook her head and directly cut off Aokiji's question.
She had overheard the discussion between Aokiji and Tsuru earlier. Nojiko didn't mind their speculation about her and Ikki's powers, but that didn't mean she would volunteer information about their true capabilities.
"Alright, I'm being too nosy." Aokiji shrugged and picked up his food, starting to eat.
Nojiko's smile widened slightly as she turned to Tsuru, who was holding her dish but seemed lost in thought. "Vice Admiral Tsuru, we've prepared a place for you to rest. You can sleep in the cabin. Of course, if you're worried about Vice Admiral Gion's condition, you're welcome to stay with her and keep her company."
She then looked at Aokiji. "As for Admiral Aokiji, because of the earlier battle, everyone on the ship is still wary of you. To avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, please feel free to spend the night here in this room."
Aokiji froze mid-bite and stared at Nojiko in surprise. She responded with a bright, innocent smile.
"Arara, looks like I'm completely unwelcome. Well, I suppose this is my own fault. Don't worry, I won't enter the cabin without permission," Aokiji said with a resigned shake of his head.
"Thank you for understanding, Admiral Aokiji." Nojiko bowed politely before turning to Tsuru.
"I'll go check on Gion again." After thinking for a moment, Tsuru quickly finished her meal and followed Nojiko toward the cabin, entering the bathhouse area of the captain's quarters with ease.
As soon as she arrived at the bathhouse, Tsuru's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
"Oh, hello there, Vice Admiral Tsuru." The sound of footsteps made Ikki look up from the hot spring. When he saw Tsuru, he immediately raised his hand in greeting.
Tsuru nodded slightly and walked over to where Ikki and Gion were sitting side by side in the water.
"Ikki, should I assume you're taking advantage of Gion?" Tsuru asked directly.
"You can't put it like that, Vice Admiral Tsuru. I'm doing this to help Gion recover quickly." Ikki spread his hands and opened his fingers, revealing the Demon Slayer Mark on his forehead.
"I activate my Demon Slayer Mark to speed up the process of assimilating the mark on Gion's forehead with mine. But I can only keep this thing active for short periods. In this hot water, though, I can maintain the mark for much longer. So I think you understand the situation."
"Don't worry - I'm wearing shorts, and Gion is wearing a bathrobe. I won't disappoint you." Ikki gave Tsuru a thumbs up with a confident grin.
"You're being awfully direct about this," Tsuru said, twitching the corner of her mouth as she looked at Ikki with exasperation.
"Isn't that what you were thinking anyway, old lady?" Ikki said casually.
"Forget it." Tsuru shook her head. After seeing Gion cover her mouth and laugh softly, Tsuru felt even more speechless, though also more relieved.
During these days aboard the Explorer, Gion's mood had indeed become much more relaxed and peaceful.
"Don't worry, Sister Tsuru. Although this man likes me, he's still a gentleman. He won't cross any lines," Gion said with her hand on Ikki's shoulder, smiling warmly.
"What do you mean I like you, Gion? I never noticed you being so confident before," Ikki protested.
"Ah, but you've been asking me and Hina to wear all sorts of beautiful clothes for your entertainment. I assumed you must like me."
"Please, that's just appreciation! I won't deny that I like mature women, but it's hard to say that I like you. What if Tsuru gets excited and uses her Devil Fruit ability to hang me out to dry on a clothesline?"
"Then... I could just ask Sister Tsuru to take you down from the clothesline later, right?" Gion's teasing expression made Ikki pat his forehead in defeat.
"Forget it, I'll leave this place to you two sisters. As for assimilating the Demon Slayer Mark, we can do that later." Ikki started to stand up from the pool.
"Wait, Ikki. I have one more thing to ask you," Tsuru called out to stop him.
"What is it, Vice Admiral Tsuru?"
"Your partners Nami and Nojiko have both awakened their Demon Slayer Marks, and they did it in a very short time. You... should have some special ability to help others quickly awaken their marks, right?"
"Vice Admiral Tsuru is really observant. You noticed Nojiko and Nami's Demon Slayer Marks? But a special method..." Ikki looked down at Gion in the pool, thinking for a moment before continuing.
"Well, it doesn't hurt to tell you a little about my abilities. There is indeed a special method that can help Gion quickly unlock the power of her innate Demon Slayer Mark. With Vice Admiral Gion's own strength and my special method, it should take less than ten days to awaken her innate mark."
"Of course, Vice Admiral Gion's body is currently in a weakened state, so it might take longer for the innate Demon Slayer Mark to appear."
The special method he was referring to was, of course, engraving a partner's seal. This way, Ikki's power could naturally affect Gion faster and more directly.
"What method? If you don't mind, please use this method on her," Tsuru asked with determined eyes.
Gion looked at Ikki with the same curiosity.
"It's not something that will harm the body... well, actually, it will have some impact." Ikki smiled at their slightly nervous expressions and continued:
"Vice Admiral Tsuru's observation is so sharp, you must have noticed the sword patterns on Nami, Nojiko, and the others. That's something I created using my abilities. The function is to allow my power to affect my partners relatively quickly. It's a special pattern I engrave on my partners."
"Vice Admiral Gion, would you like to try this pattern?"