Although Ain had never witnessed Arton fight in person, she had experienced his power indirectly through the copy of the diary. Truthfully, she didn't believe Zephyr could defeat Arton. He may have once been a Navy admiral, but his strength had clearly declined. If that weren't the case, he wouldn't have lost his arm to a brutal pirate. Perhaps from the day his wife and child were killed, his abilities had already begun to deteriorate.
Arton, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. His strength was increasing at a terrifying pace. Even if he couldn't currently reproduce the exact method he used to defeat Mihawk, he was still likely stronger than Zephyr—at least, that's what Ain believed deep down.
Just as she was debating whether to leave on a lifeboat before the Flameblade Pirates arrived, a familiar voice called out behind her. "Ain, what are you doing here?"
"Zephyr-sensei!" She turned around and saw that Zephyr had already walked up behind her.
"Zephyr-sensei, I was just wondering… can we really expect to meet Arton here?" she said, frowning and hesitating. She knew that if they waited at the entrance to Reverse Mountain, they would definitely encounter Arton. But with no way to guarantee Zephyr's safety, she couldn't bring herself to tell him the truth, fearing he'd be placed in danger.
"I see," Zephyr nodded. "You don't have to worry about that. Just now, Gion contacted me. She received intel that Arton is already approaching the entrance to Reverse Mountain. So I plan to redirect our ship toward that location. Ain, I need your help."
Ain's eyes widened in surprise. She had been hesitating whether to tell Zephyr about Arton, yet Gion had already informed him via Den Den Mushi. As Zephyr turned to pass on his orders, Ain quickly stepped forward and blocked his path.
"Zephyr-sensei… are we really going after Arton with just us?" she asked. "You know how powerful he is. He's defeated both Shiki and Dracule Mihawk, and he has strong companions. Can we really stop them?"
Zephyr looked at the worry on her face and was mildly surprised. In the past, she had never questioned him—no matter the task or the danger. This was the first time she'd raised such a concern. Still, he answered seriously.
"Ain, I know Arton is strong. He's even mastered a special fusion technique with his partners that allows him to wield multiple Devil Fruit abilities. Dealing with someone like that is obviously difficult. But even so, as Marines, it's our duty to capture him. What that man did in Loguetown was far too outrageous."
Just recalling how Arton had dared to publicly burn a World Noble in Loguetown stirred waves of fury in Zephyr's heart. Since stepping down, this was the first time he'd heard of such a brazen pirate. No wonder the Navy and World Government had issued a death order for him.
"But you don't need to worry too much, Ain. Gion didn't just contact me—she also reached out to Garp. He may have been away from us for a while, but he's not far from the Reverse Mountain region now. So we only need to hold Arton and his crew at the entrance for a little while—Garp will arrive in time."
"I believe that no matter how strong Arton and his crew are… they can't possibly stand against Garp and me together."
A confident smile appeared on Zephyr's face. Though he was no longer a Navy admiral, his former status as one of the top powers still gave him plenty of confidence. Of course, part of that came from the weapon on his arm—Zephyr lowered his gaze to the massive mechanical arm at his side.
"Arton is a Devil Fruit user. I suppose this new arm of mine should be effective against him," Zephyr said with a confident smile.
Unlike Smoker, Zephyr wasn't a Devil Fruit user himself, so there was no risk of his own weapon turning against him. In that moment, he could already picture himself and his old comrade Garp taking Arton down together. After telling Ain to get ready to set sail, he turned and walked toward the others.
Ain watched Zephyr's back as he walked away, the worry in her eyes nearly dripping into reality like a physical weight. Arton isn't even a Devil Fruit user… Zephyr-sensei's mechanical arm won't work on him at all!
She bit her lip but still didn't speak her thoughts aloud. The world believed Arton had the powers of a Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit—able to create a world of swords and even fuse with others. But as holders of the copy diaries, they knew the truth: Arton had no powers from a Devil Fruit at all. Things like seastone weapons and seawater wouldn't be his weakness.
No, I have to warn Zephyr-sensei. If he places too much trust in his weapon, he's going to suffer a major loss. Damn that Gion... how could she send Zephyr-sensei into danger like this? Hopefully, Garp can arrive in time… Wait… what if Garp really does make it in time? Will Arton actually be captured?
That thought made Ain's eyes go wide with anxiety. "If that happens… how can I change Zephyr-sensei's future?"
…
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the sea not far from Reverse Mountain, the very man Ain was thinking about—Garp—was dashing through the air, stepping on the sky as if flying like a bird.
"Damn it, how could things be so perfectly timed?" he muttered, visibly annoyed. "I just went off to search somewhere else for a little while, and Arton decides to show up at Reverse Mountain. If Gion's that certain about it, then it's definitely not a false alarm."
"Let's hope I'm not too late." The moment he imagined the consequences of failing to capture Arton in time, Garp stomped even harder, and with a thunderous boom, the air beneath his feet exploded in a shockwave that launched him forward at even greater speed.
At that moment, Garp was 56 kilometers away from the Flameblade Pirates.
…
Aboard the Sylvan, flagship of the Flameblade Pirates…
"Captain Arton accidentally revealed our position earlier," said Tashigi. "If there are Marines nearby, they're definitely going to gather at the entrance to Reverse Mountain."
She was genuinely concerned and, after a moment's thought, activated Tier's power. Stepping onto platforms formed from condensed spiritual pressure and holding a telescope in hand, she soared into the sky.
Arton noticed and couldn't help but make a strange face. "What's she doing? Trying to give me a little show?"
He looked up, puzzled. After all, Tashigi wasn't exactly wearing modest pants today. Thanks to Arton's recommendation, she was now wearing a proper knee-length skirt, but as soon as she took off into the sky, he saw the bear-printed underpants she had underneath.
"She must be trying to make sure Reverse Mountain is secure," Uta said with a small laugh beside him. "We don't have a lookout, after all. So she's just filling in the role with her sky-walking ability."
"I see," Arton replied, raising a brow. "Still, if we're talking about walking in the sky… you've got Elizabeth's wings, don't you, Uta?"
"Heehee, that's true," she giggled. "But rather than acting as lookout, I prefer to be a songstress."
With that, she hugged his arm gently. "Besides, you already gave me the role of your singer, didn't you? You can't expect me to suffer through other chores too, right? If I have to do everything, I won't have time to sing for you… or to do that with you either."
As she said the last part, Uta reached up and began softly drawing slow circles with her finger over Arton's chest.
...
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