"Wait! Luffy!"
Sanji reacted instantly, rushing in from the side and grabbing Luffy around the waist, cold sweat pouring down his face.
"Don't act recklessly! Something's off about this guy's aura!"
Aokiji lay on his side, glancing lazily at Luffy.
A faint, amused smile appeared on his face.
"That look… really does resemble him. Just like your grandfather."
"Monkey D. Luffy… should I call you bold, or simply incomprehensible?"
"I've received quite a bit of 'care' from your grandfather in the past. I originally came here just to take a look at you… and Nico Robin."
His words suddenly stopped.
The laziness in his eyes vanished, replaced by a sharpness that seemed capable of piercing space itself.
His gaze swept across the group, lingering briefly on Nami with her golden staff and Ronan standing firm with his spear.
"And you lot as well. Luffy, Nami, Ronan, Zoro…"
"Your names have spread throughout Marine Headquarters."
"The crew that made Akainu—who believes in Absolute Justice—lose face… quite a few of my colleagues are curious about you."
—
Ronan lifted his spear horizontally.
The Seastone tip glowed with a dark-gold sheen under the infusion of his energy.
He met Aokiji's half-lidded gaze directly, his voice like clashing steel.
"And? Did an Admiral come all this way just to talk nonsense?"
—
Aokiji slowly sat up.
As he moved—
A thick layer of frost spread across the ground within a hundred meters.
"For the sake of maintaining balance in this sea…"
"I think it'd be best if you all died here."
—
BOOM!!
In an instant—
Killing intent surged across the barren land like a tidal wave.
Zoro's arm bulged with veins as Wado Ichimonji slid out an inch.
A fierce sword intent shot skyward, splitting the clouds above.
"Starting a fight, huh? I've been waiting to test this 'intermediate Vajra Body'!"
Sanji's leg ignited with blue flames laced with lightning.
The intense heat clashed violently with Aokiji's cold aura, producing sharp, hissing sounds in the air.
Ronan's lightning-infused energy surged to its peak.
His spine rippled like a coiled dragon, his body entering the perfect unity of man and spear.
—
Yet Aokiji remained calm, as if none of it mattered.
"The World Government is taking you very seriously now."
"Looking at your journey… your growth rate is honestly terrifying."
"You may not have many members, but if you continue evolving like this…"
"There may come a day when no force in the sea can restrain you."
—
A cold glint flashed in Ronan's eyes.
"So this is preemptive elimination of a threat?"
—
"That's part of it."
Aokiji turned his head.
His gaze locked onto Robin.
"And there's another reason…"
"You, Nico Robin."
—
"You bastard! So you're really after Robin!"
Luffy roared, his face more serious than ever before.
He stepped forward and stood in front of her.
Though not broad, his back radiated an immovable, mountain-like presence.
"I won't let you touch Robin!"
"Not a single hair! I don't care if you're an Admiral or anything else!"
—
Robin stared blankly at Luffy's back.
His words echoed in her ears.
The frozen wall around her heart—sealed for twenty years—
Cracked open.
—
Aokiji ignored Luffy's outburst.
His calm, chilling voice echoed across the plain.
"Robin, you understand, don't you?"
"A bounty doesn't just represent strength."
"It represents how much of a threat someone is to 'justice.'"
"And you… Nico Robin."
"At eight years old, the government placed a bounty of 79 million on your head."
His tone grew colder.
"You survived all these years through betrayal, escape, and manipulation."
"Like a lone bird with no home… using every shelter you could find."
"And this time…"
"These overly passionate fools are your new tools?"
—
His words struck Robin like thunder.
Her pupils shrank violently.
Her deepest fear had been dragged into the light.
—
Ronan snorted coldly.
His spear let out a dragon-like hum.
"Aokiji."
"Save your cheap attempts at sowing discord."
"On this ship, there are no tools."
"Only nakama."
—
Aokiji lay lazily on the rocky ground again.
Yet every word he spoke was like an icy blade.
"…You'll understand soon enough."
"Before long, you'll regret having such a troublesome woman by your side."
"Every organization that has ever been connected to Nico Robin…"
"Has ended in destruction."
"And she alone survives…"
"Like the remnant of a curse."
"Why do you think that is, Nico Robin?"
—
"Shut your damn mouth!"
Sanji roared, slamming his foot into the ground hard enough to crack the granite beneath.
"What kind of grudge do you have against Robin?!"
"If you don't—then keep that filthy mouth shut!"
—
"No grudge," Aokiji replied calmly.
"But… I did let her go once."
A trace of something deeper flickered in his eyes.
—
"Shut up!!"
Luffy clenched his fists.
Dark-gold lightning surged wildly around him, shattering the frost that crept near.
"The past doesn't matter!"
"Robin is my nakama—that's all there is to it!"
—
"Yeah!"
Usopp shouted, legs trembling but voice firm.
"If we're talking about the past, we've got a former bounty hunter and a thief on this ship too—"
Before he could finish—
SMACK!
Nami's lightning-charged fist slammed into his head.
"That last part was unnecessary, idiot!"
—
"The past doesn't matter."
Zoro lowered his stance.
All three of his swords vibrated within their sheaths, sensing his volcanic battle intent.
"What matters is now… and what comes next."
—
Ronan stood firm, spear leveled toward Aokiji.
"Robin is an important member of the Straw Hat Pirates."
His voice rang clearly in the cold wind.
"If you want to slander her…"
"Or take her away…"
"Then step over our corpses."
—
A faint smile touched his lips.
"That is… if you can."
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