Chapter 140: Has He Always Been This Brave? [Second Update]

The air seemed to freeze in this instant.

Robin's pupils shrank to needle-points; she immediately crossed her arms before her chest, staring fixedly at Aokiji.

Beside her, Sister Sister Guyina also sensed the shift in atmosphere and instantly placed her hand on the hilt of Wado Ichimonji.

"What a coincidence?"

Siano stepped forward, his eyebrow arching slightly. "A coincidence? You clearly came looking for us on purpose. How long have you been squatting here?"

This was obviously waiting for a rabbit to crash into a tree stump; a chance encounter?

How could such a coincidence possibly exist!

The last time, meeting Akainu amidst a sky full of cherry blossoms on Toroa Island, was already an event of extremely low probability.

And now another chance encounter...

Only a fool would believe it!

What kind of unlucky bastard could consecutively have chance encounters with two Marine Admirals?

"Ah-lala, so I've been seen through?"

Aokiji scratched his messy curly hair. "Tsk, I probably arrived around noon, but since you guys were always scattered, going to find each of you individually was too much trouble, so I just waited until you all gathered before coming to talk."

"Hey, Cigar Guy, who is this old man?"

Looking at Aokiji dressed in casual clothes, Nami didn't quite understand the situation and quietly asked Smoker beside her.

"Kuzan, an old friend of mine."

Smoker, with a cigar in his mouth and eyes slightly narrowed, added, "At the same time, he is also one of the Three Great Generals, ranking among the highest combat forces of Marine Headquarters."

Hah?

A Marine Admiral?!

Nami was startled; she quickly shrank back, positioning herself to shield Siano in front of her.

"No need to be so tense, little girl."

Aokiji slowly straightened his body on the bench. "I'm not here to arrest you; otherwise, by now, you few should already be popsicles."

"Who can't talk big?"

Siano's Observation Haki had already been released, sweeping over the entire island like a tide; after confirming that only Aokiji was present, he grinned:

"So it really is just you alone, huh... Isn't this looking down on people a bit too much? A lone Marine Admiral daring to fantasize about taking me down?"

"... Mm."

Aokiji tilted his head, propping his chin with his hand as he sized up Siano.

"That's true."

He shrugged his shoulders and said seriously:

"If any other kid said such things to me, I'd probably just treat it as a joke, but you... you really do have the qualifications for it."

"Siano, hailing from the Oykot Kingdom, surname unknown, biological father and mother unknown, lineage unknown, already quite famous in the East Blue several years ago."

Aokiji narrated calmly:

"And now, having just turned eighteen and reached adulthood, he is already highly valued by the World Government, carries a bounty of one billion, and possesses power sufficient to shake the situation of the world."

"Truly a terrifying record."

He uttered this heartfelt sigh, then lifted his head, shifting his gaze toward Robin.

"No wonder you chose this group as your hiding place, Nico Robin; this time, your eye for judgment and your luck seem to have improved greatly. At least for the short term, you don't need to rush to find a new patron immediately."

"Many threats and enemies that would have made the former you tremble like a leaf and live in constant fear mean nothing to this man; he indeed possesses sufficient strength to shelter you."

Robin bit her lip, staring fixedly at Aokiji, her hands unconsciously clenching tight.

"That's enough, Kuzan!"

Smoker, biting his cigar, frowned and spoke:

"Stop deliberately saying things that make people uncomfortable. What is your intention anyway? Is it just to reopen the scars of Ohara from back then right in front of Robin?"

"..."

Aokiji glanced at Smoker with some surprise.

"At your rank, when you were still a Marine, you had absolutely no right to access those things, yet ironically, after defecting, you now seem very clear about those matters."

Aokiji raised an eyebrow. "Ah-lala, truly unexpected, Nico Robin; you actually told these people about what happened back then? It seems you have developed quite a good relationship with them..."

"If I were to know a few more messy affairs like Ohara, I'm afraid I would have left the Marines several years earlier."

Smoker sneered, interrupting him, and drew his jitte from behind his back.

"Answer my question; don't beat around the bush. Besides, Boss Siano and Robin have already laid everything out plainly to us. Back then, it was clearly you personally who let her go, so why, over these years, have you been chasing her all across the sea in secret? Kuzan, you fellow, what exactly are you plotting!"

"That's exactly what I mean."

With someone speaking on his behalf, Siano's tone became more leisurely; he sat down on the bench and crossed his legs:

"You coming to our door this time is probably mainly because of Robin, right? Even the World Government doesn't know yet that she's on my ship, yet you found her first. What, did you secretly put a tracker on her?"

"Hey, hey, hey, don't make me sound like some perverted stalker."

Aokiji helplessly raised both arms in a gesture of surrender. "Chasing her everywhere... that's going too far. I just check up on her every once in a while, wanting to see how far the spark that Saul risked his life to protect can actually go..."

"As for why I know she's with you guys now."

Aokiji looked down, patted his pocket, and pulled out a photograph. "Here, Grandpa Garp showed this to me after meeting up with me at Headquarters recently. That old man... he really thinks highly of you."

Siano reached out and took the photo.

It was unmistakably a selfie of Garp standing on the dog-head warship, grinning broadly and waving goodbye toward the Falling Curtain in the distance; one had no idea what the old man was so happy about...

In any case, the figures on the Falling Curtain were not clear, and Robin, standing discreetly at the very back, was completely indistinguishable.

Even if professional agents of the World Government came, they wouldn't notice anything.

But oddly enough, after Aokiji took a few extra glances, he was able to spot something amiss and directly tracked them all the way here.

"You really are something, to recognize even this."

Siano tossed the photo back, casting a disdainful glance at him. "And you still have the nerve to say you're not a stalker?"

"..." Aokiji was momentarily at a loss for words.

"Don't mind such trivial matters."

He spoke wearily, "Seeing what became of the Child of Ohara today was certainly my motive for setting out, but... after meeting you in person, all of that suddenly became unimportant."

"Ah, that includes Smoker too. The fact that this guy would become a pirate was another point I originally couldn't comprehend." Aokiji pointed at the person nearby exhaling clouds of smoke. "But now, I don't care about that either."

"Hah? Don't go too far, you bastard!" Smoker bared his fangs and roared. "We haven't seen each other in so long, yet you speak so hurtfully. Careful, or I'll burn you to death with my cigarette!"

"Don't misunderstand; that's not what I meant. The reason I say this is that the answers to my curiosity about both of you might be found in this man."

Aokiji shrugged, turned his head, bent over, and stared fixedly at Siano.

"Hey, can you tell me? You fellow, having walked this path until now... what exactly are you seeking?"

"What? I don't understand your words." Siano did not answer immediately; instead, he grinned.

"Do you really want me to make it clear?"

Aokiji locked eyes with him and spoke softly:

"Since you were fourteen or fifteen, you have made a name for yourself in the East Blue, resolving many troublesome pirates, and serving as a girl idol for many years, even being hailed by many East Blue citizens as the embodiment of justice."

"And since formally setting sail until now, although the World Government has blackened your reputation in the newspapers with endless evil deeds and a fearsome name, the truth of the matter is clear in both your hearts and mine."

"In Loguetown, to protect the civilians, you did not hesitate to bear the evil name of a pirate and make an enemy of Vice Admiral Onigumo."

"In Alabasta, upon witnessing injustice, you directly annihilated the Hua Zha Pirates."

"Just these past few days, you even saved some pitiful slaves from a slave ship..."

"You have never plundered a town, never attacked civilians; wherever you have gone along this path, the local people have held gratitude for you in their hearts."

Aokiji's voice gradually lowered; he bent over even further, pressing closer to Siano, emitting a bone-chilling cold aura from his body, while a trace of sharpness flashed in his eyes:

"If you continue doing this, where do you intend to place the Marines, and the justice we believe in?"

"Coupled with your active sheltering of the Child of Ohara, what exactly do you wish to become, and ultimately... what kind of ambition do you harbor?"

The atmosphere suddenly grew tense.

Sister Sister Guyina drew her blade halfway out, Nojiko clenched her fists, Zeff rose slightly onto his toes, and Nami, gritting her teeth, flashed out from behind Siano, letting a roar of Xiong Xiong flames erupt from her orange hair...

Siano stared at the wrinkled, bitter face right before his eyes.

Then he suddenly grinned.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to say something, a furious roar suddenly came from the garden entrance:

"How bold! You dare try to lay a hand on my lord!!!"

Everyone was stunned; following the sound, they saw a burly giant eight meters tall sprinting toward them, each step causing the entire garden ground to tremble.

The couples who had been whispering sweet nothings on nearby benches immediately screamed and fled frantically outward.

Wait, who is this guy?

For a moment, except for Siano, who raised an eyebrow and showed an interested expression, everyone else, whether Aokiji or the crew members, was stunned.

Is he one of your people?

Smoker and Aokiji exchanged a glance, then simultaneously shook their heads.

Then what is he running over here for?

"Wait." Nami frowned. "This guy seems a bit familiar; it seems we've seen him somewhere before..."

Before her words had even finished,

the burly giant's body began to swell and deform rapidly; thick brown fur covered his sturdy limbs, and two curved tusks extended from his mouth.

—In the blink of an eye, a massive mammoth appeared before everyone, its crimson eyes staring fixedly at Aokiji.

"If you want to harm Lord Siano, you'll have to get past me first, bastard!"

The mammoth let out a muffled roar; amidst the low growl, its huge trunk lifted high, carrying terrifying impact force as it smashed down toward Aokiji.

"Ah la la..."

Aokiji raised an eyebrow. An Ancient Zoan ability? That is quite rare.

It's just... why did it inexplicably attack him the moment it arrived?

His expression remained calm; he didn't even blink. Only when the trunk was about to smash into his head did he finally, slowly, raise his right hand—

Crack!

At the moment of contact, bone-chilling cold erupted suddenly; with Aokiji's palm as the origin, terrifying frost instantly spread up along the trunk.

Jack widened his eyes in horror, struggling desperately, but to no avail; he could only watch helplessly as his trunk turned into a crystal-clear ice pillar in the blink of an eye.

But this was only the beginning.

The layer of ice covered his entire body at a speed visible to the naked eye: the curved tusks, the sturdy elephant legs, all the way to the tail—in an instant, only his eyeballs could barely move.

In a mere two seconds, this ten-plus-meter-tall mammoth beast completely transformed into a lifelike ice sculpture, refracting crystal-clear light under the streetlamp.

(End of Chapter)