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"Oh my, how scary, Vice Admiral Gion," Kizaru said, raising his eyebrows as he looked at Gion with genuine surprise.
The Marine officers who had been discussing Ikki also turned to look at Gion, somewhat confused about why she had suddenly reacted so intensely.
"Gion, what's gotten into you?" Sengoku frowned and stood up from his seat.
"Admiral Kizaru, please take back what you just said," Gion said, taking a deep breath before speaking solemnly to Kizaru.
"Ikki saved my life. I'm not sharing this information to make you consider him an enemy."
"I was just joking, Vice Admiral Gion," Kizaru replied with a shrug.
"I hope so," Gion muttered quietly, looking away from Kizaru.
Although both Gion and Kizaru sat back down, the atmosphere in the room remained somewhat tense.
'It seems that Ikki holds a very important place in Gion's heart,' Tsuru thought, observing Gion carefully before speaking up.
"Ikki's power is formidable. If we treat him as an enemy without cause, it may not be worth the cost for us. Even if we captured him, he probably wouldn't be willing to help train Marines."
"It would be better to approach him in a friendly manner. As long as we meet his conditions, I believe he'll provide us with assistance, just like he taught Gion, Tashigi, and Hina."
After Tsuru finished speaking, Aokiji nodded in agreement.
"I agree with Vice Admiral Tsuru's proposal. Ikki's strength is impressive, and so is the strength of his companions. If we really fought against them, the Marines might pay an unacceptable price."
As a Marine Admiral who had fought against Nojiko, Aokiji was deeply impressed by the power of Ikki and his crew.
"Tsuru and the others are right," Sengoku declared.
"If Ikki and his team can defeat the Golden Lion, their strength definitely isn't weak. Besides, we have to deal with the Whitebeard Pirates later, so we can't afford to get involved in other conflicts."
"As for Ikki, we'll just handle things with him normally."
As Fleet Admiral, Sengoku made the final decision regarding Ikki's situation.
When the surrounding Marines heard both Tsuru and Sengoku speak, they naturally stopped their discussions.
"Famous swords... Speaking of which, Impel Down's Hannyabal and Shiryu each possess a famous sword," Admiral Akainu said, speaking up for the first time.
"Hannyabal's famous sword aside, Shiryu's demon sword might be usable. After all, that man is already on death row."
Everyone was somewhat surprised to hear Akainu speak up. After all, he was the representative of the hawkish Marines.
Not only was he not suggesting they force Ikki to become Marine strength, he was actually pushing for cooperation with him.
"That man isn't a pirate," Akainu said in a low voice, as if sensing the confusion of those around him.
"He's simply a bounty hunter and famous sword hunter. He doesn't oppose justice."
Hearing this explanation, everyone nodded in understanding.
Indeed, Akainu was only extreme toward pirates. But Ikki wasn't a pirate—he had even captured legendary pirates like the Golden Lion.
For such a person, Akainu really had no reason to oppose him.
However, Akainu would never have imagined that there was now a wanted criminal like Nico Robin aboard Ikki's ship.
"Right! Shiryu's sword can definitely be used," Sengoku agreed, nodding as he quickly analyzed the situation.
"As for Hannyabal's sword, I'll find an appropriate time to communicate with him and ask for his opinion."
"The question is, with one sword, how many Marines would Ikki agree to train?" Zephyr asked thoughtfully.
"Konpaira convinced Ikki to train Gion. Would Shiryu's sword only make Ikki agree to train one person? If we can only train one person, who should we send?"
"According to what Gion just explained, if someone wants to completely master the Demon Slayer Mark, the Transparent World, and even Future Vision Observation Haki, they need to have sufficient swordsmanship talent."
"There are very few people who can reach Gion's level in swordsmanship. And in terms of unlocking the Innate Demon Slayer Mark, it may require spending considerable time with Ikki."
"Based on this theory, to truly master such power, we might need to have our Marines stay aboard Ikki's ship for an extended period."
"Isn't this easy to handle?" Kizaru said, touching his chin thoughtfully.
"Ikki once mentioned that the Marine Sergeant named Tashigi seemed to have decent swordsmanship skills. She must have a pretty good relationship with Ikki."
"How about letting her stay with Ikki? If it's just a Marine Sergeant temporarily leaving the team, there shouldn't be much of a problem."
"It's precisely because of the good relationship between Ikki and Tashigi that I think we can send someone else to Ikki's ship as a trade candidate," Gion said with a smile.
"As for Tashigi, even without a formal trade, Ikki might be willing to train her anyway."
As someone who had spent time aboard the Explorer, Gion had heard Tashigi's name mentioned favorably by both Ikki and Nojiko.
She knew that Ikki and his crew had a good impression of Tashigi.
Under such circumstances, Ikki would most likely be willing to teach Tashigi greater power.
"Hina thinks what Vice Admiral Gion said is correct," Hina said, standing up from her seat with a very serious expression.
"Tashigi can serve as a bonus where Ikki is concerned. In addition, Fleet Admiral, please give this assignment to Hina."
"Hina has already mastered the Flame Breathing swordsmanship and might be able to master the Innate Demon Slayer Mark and Transparent World abilities faster."