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'Is Garp in Water 7? Is it possible that the Straw Hat Pirates are still in Water 7?'
Ikki raised his eyebrows, feeling a little surprised.
"I don't mind, but you, Gion... if you leave this pool, your body will quickly become weak again. Even if you're by my side, that feeling of weakness is still uncomfortable. Do you really want to disembark with us?"
"I'm much better now. And if I stay with you, although I will become weak, it'll be much slower. It shouldn't be a problem to stay in Water 7 for a while." After Gion finished speaking, she stood up directly from the pool and walked to the changing room nearby.
Seeing Gion's persistence, Ikki said nothing more. But after seeing her leave the pool, her steps were slightly unsteady. Ikki slightly opened the Demon Slayer Mark on his forehead and followed Gion, staying about a meter behind her.
"Mm? Is my body feeling lighter?" Gion put her hand on her heart in confusion, then looked behind her as if realizing something. After seeing the spreading Demon Slayer Mark on Ikki's forehead, she understood the reason and smiled gently again. Encouraged by the inexplicable throbbing in her heart, she walked over to Ikki and took his hand. "Please hold my hand, Ikki. Physical contact can lessen my burden, and it can also reduce some of your strain from opening the Demon Slayer Mark."
"I don't mind, but you're going to change clothes now, right? Can I come with you?"
"You can wait outside the door for a bit."
"Aw, that's too bad. I was hoping I could get a good look at your beautiful figure, Vice Admiral Gion."
"You're so direct..." Gion's face flushed as she took his hand and walked forward.
Walking behind Gion, Ikki raised his head and glanced at the tall Gion, and couldn't help but murmur in his heart. 'Why do we look like siblings?'
"Ikki, we look a bit like a sister holding a younger brother." Gion raised the corners of her mouth and said without looking back.
Hearing this, Ikki glanced at Gion in surprise, then laughed.
"If it were a beautiful sister like you, I'd be happy to be a brother."
"Really? Then why don't you call me sister?"
"Sure, but can I watch you change first? It'd make for great painting material."
"No way! You can't do that to your sister." Gion turned back with a smile, then hurried toward the changing room.
Explorer, deck.
"Ikki, what are you doing?" Looking at Ikki and Gion walking out of the cabin holding hands, with Ikki's forehead still covered with a small area of Demon Slayer Mark, Nami walked over worriedly. As someone who had also awakened her Demon Slayer Mark, she knew that marks couldn't be kept active for long periods. Even with her S-rank life force level, she could only use it at full power for an hour. If an hour passed and the enemy wasn't defeated, she would be the one who fell.
"Don't worry, I'm just using a small amount of my Demon Slayer Mark. I can control it pretty well, so this level won't be a problem for a few hours. We need to meet Garp and collect that 4.6 billion Berry bounty from him anyway. Having Gion here might help us avoid some trouble." Ikki waved his hand and said.
"4.6 billion Berry?! I can collect it in Water 7?" Nami's eyes lit up like stars as she looked toward the city, completely forgetting about any side effects from Ikki's Demon Slayer Mark. Such a scene left Ikki speechless, while Gion chuckled.
Putting on a long dress with her golden hair completely hidden under a peaked cap, Kalifa wore a ball mask as she looked at Gion curiously. 'Is this woman... the Marine Admiral candidate, one of the strongest women in the Marines? I wonder how her combat effectiveness compares with female CP0 agents?' Because Ikki and the others had warned her beforehand, Kalifa wasn't surprised when she first saw Gion.
On the contrary, Gion was slightly surprised when she saw Kalifa and the famous swords Oto and Kogarashi that she carried around her waist. "Wow, you got a new partner already? And you gave her Golden Lion Shiki's swords too. I wonder if those swords have some special power now." As she spoke, Gion looked Kalifa up and down with obvious curiosity.
While Gion was thinking, she looked at Nico Robin who was dressed similarly to Kalifa. Although she had spent most of these days in the bathhouse, that didn't mean she was unaware of what happened between Ikki and Nico Robin - Tsuru had already told her the whole story. Although Kalifa's face couldn't be seen, her temperament and figure made it clear to Gion that Kalifa would be Ikki's type. However, she was sensible and didn't ask about Kalifa's identity. She couldn't see Kalifa's face, and as a Marine, she had no interest in prying into Kalifa's affairs.
"You guess." Ikki smiled and didn't answer Gion's question.
"Come on, can't you tell me something? I mean, you gave me the partner seal too, right? Not only did I not get a sword from you, but you took my sword and gave it to Robin. Now I can't even know what the newcomer's sword does?" Gion pouted, staring into Ikki's eyes with fake tears starting to form.
"Alright, quit the act. If you want your sword back, challenge Robin or me in a year. When one of us loses, you'll get Konpira back."
"Can it even still be called Konpira?" Gion glanced at the sword on Robin's waist. "Wait, you want me to challenge her in a year? Are you saying I can't beat Robin even after a whole year of training?" Her expression turned serious as she looked at Robin.
Nico Robin wasn't nervous at all when facing Gion's gaze. Instead, she smiled generously and held the Senbonzakura sheath at her waist tightly.
"Sorry, Gion. I know this sword used to be yours, but it's my most precious treasure now. I won't lose to you."
"I see... looks like I've got my work cut out for me." Gion sighed softly.
"Stop sighing. There's a Marine warship coming from Water 7. Besides Garp, looks like there's an old friend of yours on board."
Ikki took Gion's hand and walked toward the bow. Opposite them, a Marine warship with a dog-headed bow was speeding toward the Explorer.
Seeing this, Kalifa and Nico Robin looked at each other and walked toward the cabin. Although they were wearing masks, they didn't want to test whether Garp could recognize them.
Especially Nico Robin, who had just experienced being recognized by Aokiji, made her afraid to contact Marine's senior officers again too soon.
Gion glanced at the backs of Kalifa and Nico Robin. She didn't say anything more, but followed the direction of Ikki's finger.
On the bow of the Marine warship, the muscular Garp and a tall man wearing dark yellow clothes, trousers and wooden sandals, with a slightly wretched appearance, first caught Gion's eyes.
"Chaton, why is this guy here?"