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"You're right, Ikki," Gion said, nodding. "It wasn't just me. Other Marine personnel at sea also received this mission. After all, we don't know where that bastard Blackbeard went."
Regarding Blackbeard's disappearance, Gion was undeniably fired up. This guy was planning to team up with the World Government to deal with Ikki. If she could, she really wanted to kill Blackbeard herself.
'Wait a minute, maybe this is an opportunity,' she thought. 'If we could find Blackbeard at sea, we could just kill him outright.'
"If it's about Blackbeard," Ikki began, "I think I can lend a hand."
"Ikki, are you planning to help me find Blackbeard?" Gion glanced at him in surprise, then shook her head. "No, you're going to the execution ground soon. Fleet Admiral Sengoku won't allow you to go anywhere else at this time, especially given that one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea has already disappeared."
Ikki laughed. "Of course I know that. I won't go to sea with you personally. I plan to have Astolfo go to sea with you instead."
"Astolfo?" Gion looked at the Heroic Spirit in surprise.
"Astolfo was summoned by me later. He isn't included in my combat strength for this trip. If I let him go with you to cause trouble for Blackbeard, I don't think Sengoku would say anything about it."
Ikki gave Gion a big smile.
"I see. In that case, it does indeed work." Gion sighed. "Ikki, you and Blackbeard really have a lot of grudges between you. Even reducing the fighting force around you, you still want to cause trouble for that guy."
"Heh, you know what happened between that guy and me. Besides, he even agreed to the World Government's plan to take action against me. I certainly won't let someone like that get away with it."
Ikki smiled and looked at Astolfo. "There's a Command Speer to draw on. Trull connection between Astolfo and me. It can be said that as long as I don't fall, he'll have an inexhaustible supply of magic powst me, he won't hold you back. He might even be able to help you in some way."
Astolfo's strength was naturally no match for Gion's, whose strength had reached the level of a Marine Admiral. Even so, Astolfo carried magical qualities all his own. Ikki believed that with Astolfo around, Gion would be better able to cope with the dangers she'd face outside, even fighting against two of the Four Emperors.
Astolfo could also summon a hawk and carry Gion away, though the other Marines she was with might not be so lucky.
"I have faith in Mr. Astolfo's abilities," Gion said with a smile. "I've heard before that he used his own strength to knock Admiral Aokiji to the ground."
"Hehe, you don't need to praise me like that." Astolfo raised a hand to touch the back of his head, looking at Gion with an embarrassed expression.
"How about we take her with us?" Ikki asked Gion.
"I'll tell Fleet Admiral Sengoku. I don't think there should be any problems." Gion nodded. "Understood."
"So, when are you leaving?" Ikki asked.
"I'm leaving soon."
"In that case, I suggest you go to Impel Down."
"Impel Down? Why?" Gion looked puzzled.
"Blackbeard has disappeared. I'm worried he might have gone to Impel Down. I've taken out many of that guy's promising allies. The partners he recruited afterward, when I looked them over, most of them were weaklings. If Blackbeard wants to rule this sea, he'll definitely need stronger partners. Gion, where do you think we should look for companions like that?" Ikki asked.
Looking for partners?
"Ikki, you mean Blackbeard might be heading to Impel Down to make the criminals there his partners?" Gion asked in surprise.
"It's not impossible, is it?"
"But in that case, Blackbeard will no longer be able to serve as a Shichibukai." Gion frowned.
"I know that guy to some extent. In my opinion, he never intended to serve as a Shichibukai for very long. After he grows stronger, he'll become one of the Four Emperors and strive to become the Pirate King."
"Phew, he really is an ambitious guy." Gion sighed.
If it were someone else saying these things to Gion, she wouldn't have believed it so easily. But since the speaker was Ikki, everything was different.
"Ikki, this is a serious matter. I'll be leaving now. I'm sorry, I probably can't help you with the Marine Headquarters business." Gion placed her hands on Ikki's shoulders and said earnestly, "Promise me that if there's any danger, saving your life will be the top priority."
"Don't worry, I still have my partners. It won't be that easy to encounter danger. Besides, I don't want to die like this. If I die too easily, I won't be able to see you again, Gion."
Ikki laughed. A smile appeared on Gion's face as well. She opened her arms and gave him a big hug. After a while, she left with Astolfo.
"They've all disappeared. Do you want to continue watching?" someone asked, laughing loudly.
"Who can blame them when Gion is such a great beauty?" Nami said, crossing her arms. "It's understandable that Captain Ikki couldn't help himself."
"In a way, Gion can also be considered one of our partners. It's normal for me to worry about her," Ikki said.
"Yes, and you lent Astolfo to her. You really are worried about her." Nami shrugged helplessly.
"Captain Ikki, is Astolfo going to be alright?" Nojiko asked worriedly.
If it were just Blackbeard, Nojiko would have nothing to worry about. But the mission Gion had taken on also involved Shanks and Kaido. Under such circumstances, it was hard for her not to worry about Astolfo, especially since he was a Heroic Spirit that Ikki had summoned with great effort.
"Don't worry, there won't be any problems. Gion is strong, and Astolfo isn't weak either. They'll both be fine. And if there are any problems, Astolfo and I can also communicate through Command Spells."
Ikki gave a thumbs-up as he said it.