Chapter 303: You Were Always

The banquet continued until late into the night, and as cups and chopsticks clattered, wine had long since risen in everyone's hearts.

Kizaru lazily yawned, casually picked a guest room in the Shogun's mansion to rest, looking utterly careless and indifferent.

A person's bottom line has always been one retreat after another.

Before this, Kizaru had carefully hidden his undercover identity, fearing to reveal even a single flaw.

But ever since he encountered Garp in the Shogun's mansion in Inazuma, Kizaru had completely given up.

If he's discovered, so be it.

This damn world has long since rotted to the bone; someone willing to stand up and overthrow the World Government is not necessarily a bad thing.

Worse than this, could it get any worse than now?

Moreover, before, the Morning Star Group had only him as an undercover agent within the Navy's high command; now even the Navy Hero Garp is an undercover agent.

Kizaru's tense nerves finally relaxed with a sigh of relief.

On the other side, Garp held the exact same mindset.

From the moment he accepted the pure gold ring, Garp had already resolved to one day raise the banner of rebellion and overthrow the World Government; it was only because of his many years in the Navy that he could never quite cross that barrier in his heart.

Now that he learned Kizaru was also from the Morning Star Group, Garp instantly felt that his path was not lonely.

Even though there was still a score to settle between the Navy and Saint Saint Saiwen, in the face of overthrowing the World Government, any hatred must first step aside.

In matters of right and wrong, Garp knows clearly.

Compared to this damn world, Saint Saint Saiwen's previous act of destroying the Navy headquarters at Marineford... was actually somewhat insignificant.

Garp decided that after overthrowing the World Government and returning the pure gold pendant to Saint Saint Saiwen, he would seek justice for those fifty thousand Marines.

Regardless of whether they could defeat the opponent,

he, Garp, would fight, to honor the Marines who sacrificed their lives in the Battle of Marineford.

"Captain, do you know?"

If Kizaru and Garp were merely tipsy, then the doctor Phoenix, returning to the Morning Star Group after many years, was speaking nonsense fueled by drunkenness.

"The thing I regret most in my life is eating the Op-Op Fruit, because of Him... my wife and children are gone, my family and friends are gone."

"Because of Him... I wandered for most of my life, living in panic every day, unable to sleep soundly."

"When it's late and quiet, even the slightest sound can make me break out in a cold sweat; even in my dreams, CP agents come to arrest me."

The doctor, drunk, hugged the wine jar.

"Captain, you say I have never had a heart to harm others, so how did I end up like this?"

"When I first ate the Op-Op Fruit, I only wanted to fulfill my duty as a doctor and save a few more patients; how did it become like this now?"

The doctor's only listener was Saint Saint Saiwen.

In fact, Saint Saint Saiwen had truly been tempted before,

thinking of coercing the doctor to perform the Immortality Surgery on him, becoming an immortal long-lived being, enjoying unlimited eternal life.

But at that time Saint Saint Saiwen was only fifteen, and because his body had not yet fully developed, he had to give up.

He chose to let the doctor go.

After obtaining the pure gold, the temptation of the Op-Op Fruit greatly diminished; moreover, if those several tons of pure gold could be converted into points, Saint Saint Saiwen could have purchased better Good Items on the trading platform.

Such as the Wine of Immortality, or other elixirs and miraculous medicines that prolong life.

The doctor Phoenix's return perfectly filled the Morning Star Group's shortage of medical personnel.

And having an Op-Op Fruit user serve as the Morning Star Group's doctor simultaneously solved the problem that Senzu Beans cannot cure diseases.

It's just that... this guy the doctor is in an odd state, looking quite like his heart meridians are damaged.

How can this be allowed?

What Saint Saint Saiwen needs is a nuclear-powered workhorse that can endure and fight, never stopping, not a lazy idler lying flat and wasting time.

"Cough~" The psychologist Saint Saint Saiwen went online.

"In our hometown, there's a saying: Blame others instead of yourself; everything is this world's fault."

"Applied to you, rather than saying the Op-Op Fruit ruined your family and life, it's better to say the World Government's greed caused your tragic first half of life."

"Stay here peacefully after returning, and overthrow the World Government with this Captain to avenge your family and friends."

The doctor shook his head and smiled bitterly.

"Captain, human hearts are hard to fathom; I believe you don't care now, but what about later? Even if you don't care later? What about the other crew members of the Morning Star Group?"

"Everyone will grow old one day."

"Who can refuse immortality? Who can let go of the wealth, power, and status they possess... not everyone is willing to let me go like you are."

"People change."

Why did the World Government spare no effort to arrest him, even offering a bounty of five billion to buy the Op-Op Fruit? Only because an Op-Op Fruit user can perform the Immortality Surgery!

Precisely because Captain Saint Saint Saiwen had once let him go, the doctor, in utter despair, chose to head to Inazuma.

At the very least, performing the Immortality Surgery for the Captain is better than letting others have the benefit.

Saint Saint Saiwen casually took out a pure gold ring and tossed it to the doctor: "Then you are mistaken; every member of the Morning Star Group doesn't care."

"This is?" The doctor rubbed the pure gold ring.

"Pure gold."

"Although the effect might not be as perfect as the Immortality Surgery, the result is the same; it can also make people live forever."

Saint Saint Saiwen pulled out several hundred rings in one go: "This Captain has many rings like this."

"So, welcome home."

The doctor hugged the wine jar and burst into tears.

He mourned his wife and children who died miserably in the hands of the World Government many years ago, and felt aggrieved for his wandering first half of life.

Indeed, if anyone could make him feel at ease, without having to worry every night, then only the Captain could do it.

"Thank you." The doctor wiped his face.

"Captain, I want to join the Morning Star Crew."

Saint Saint Saiwen put the pure gold ring he had taken out back into his system space: "You already are. There is no such thing as unauthorized departure from the Morning Star Crew on my ship."

"Go wash up and sleep. You'll be busy from now on."

Saint Saint Saiwen shoved his hands in his pockets, humming a little tune as he left the banquet hall. The Ope Ope no Mi-powered workhorse was in place; from now on, he would have to train him hard.

Train until you drop, but never die.

As for whether Law, far away in the North Blue, would die because the user of the Ope Ope no Mi was still alive, what did that have to do with Saint Saint Saiwen?

If they happened to meet, Saint Saint Saiwen wouldn't mind saving him; if fate didn't bring them together, then so be it.

"Congratulations, brother." Kizaru suddenly appeared: "Another admiral has returned to the Morning Star Crew."

Kizaru had to admit that Saint Saint Saiwen indeed possessed a certain charm and extremely good luck; he had met Mihawk as soon as he set sail, and had casually recruited crew members like Master Tenghu, Bartholomew Kuma, and Jin Ni.

In the Marines, he could at least hold the rank of Vice Admiral at Headquarters.

"Sigh." Saint Saint Saiwen let out a breath: "Brother, when will you, another admiral, return?"

Kizaru was instantly speechless, suddenly wanting to slap himself twice. Why was he wandering around blindly late at night instead of sleeping?

"The timing... the timing is not yet ripe."

Saint Saint Saiwen naturally understood that it was more suitable for Kizaru to remain in the Marines than to return to the Morning Star Crew; after all, as one of the Three Admirals of the Marines, certain intelligence that Enel could not access was within Kizaru's easy reach.

"I will wait for the day the timing is ripe."