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"Using the witch's flames against Kuzan, huh… I understand." Robin, hearing Arton's words, nodded firmly.
Vaguely, she even felt a hint of anticipation. She wanted to see whether her flames could burn a man who had already become a Marine Admiral.
If she were on her own, she would never dare entertain that kind of thought, but with Arton helping her… it was a different story.
"Alright then. Carina, keep the ship at a safe distance. Robin, you're coming with me."
After giving his orders, Arton reached out and wrapped an arm around Robin's slender waist.
It was just that, in the instant he pulled her in, his hand instinctively slipped under Robin's clothes and brushed against her skin—skin that had become even fairer and smoother thanks to the template's power.
Feeling the warmth of his palm, Robin smiled and lifted her bright eyes to Arton.
"Captain, if you want to touch more, you can just call me over later~," Robin said with a playful laugh.
"Sorry, I didn't do it on purpose, it was just instinct," Arton said.
"Is that so~? To think I can make Captain act on instinct like that… I should probably take it as an honor." The smile on Robin's face deepened.
Feeling her breath like a fragrant breeze against his ear, Arton couldn't help cursing silently in his heart, what a little succubus.
Then he leapt into the air with Robin in his arms, streaking toward Kuzan's position at incredible speed.
At the same time, he quietly turned on the diary system's recording function.
Since this was a direct encounter with a Marine Admiral, Arton figured it was worth recording, even if that day's diary reward had already been settled. Not to mention, today's diary reward wasn't even finished yet.
Ulti: "The feed popped up—I knew Arton would turn on the diary recording!"
Stussy: "Since it's contact with a Marine Admiral, it definitely has enough weight to be worth recording."
Whitey Bay: "That silhouette… that's Admiral Kuzan, right? Arton's actually flying straight toward him?"
Gion: "That guy responds fast… This is bad. Looks like we can't rely on Kuzan to figure out where he is anymore."
Kujaku: "And he didn't just go alone—he even brought Robin with him?"
Kalifa: "Come to think of it, Arton mentioned in his diary that Admiral Kuzan once let Robin go back in Ohara. Now that he's facing her again, he has to say something, right?"
Smoothie: "If Kuzan really does that, it'll be hard proof that Arton's diary is telling the truth. Hehe… I'd love to see the look on the faces of those female Marines and female World Government agents who own diary copies when that moment gets broadcast."
Cinnamon: "If only we could show that scene to the Fleet Admiral and the others as well. Who knows, maybe the Fleet Admiral would even punish Admiral Kuzan for it?"
…
"So that's how it is… I've already been spotted after all. Looks like I'll have to face the Flameblade Pirates on my own."
Kuzan stepped off his bicycle and stood atop the ice formed by his own power, looking a bit troubled as he raised his head toward the approaching Arton.
And when he saw that Arton had even brought Robin along, the look in Kuzan's eyes grew more and more complicated.
"Bringing Robin here on purpose…" Kuzan muttered, his expression turning subtly strained. "Does that mean she's already told Arton what happened in Ohara back then?"
Chapter 480: Talk Before the Fight
Kuzan had been watching Robin for many years. Ever since she escaped from Ohara, she had lived a life of constant drifting. During that time, plenty of people were tempted by the bounty on Robin's head, and they betrayed and tried to capture her.
That directly led to Robin no longer trusting anyone for many years afterward and after that, naturally, there were incidents of Robin betraying various pirate crews and organizations.
In a situation like that, Robin absolutely wouldn't tell any of her past to any former partner, but now Arton had brought Robin here in person.
If you said Robin hadn't told Arton about her past, Kuzan simply wouldn't believe it.
Because if Robin hadn't done that, Arton would have had no reason to know about the connection between Robin and Kuzan, and he wouldn't have brought Robin to stand right in front of him.
As for Arton bringing Robin over and handing her to Kuzan, a Marine Admiral? Kuzan figured that unless he'd completely lost his mind, he wouldn't believe something like that.
"However, if Robin really did tell Arton everything that happened back then… what kind of reason would make Robin willing to do that?"
"Could it be because Arton granted Robin power?" Kuzan thought of the Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit ability the newspaper had described Robin as possessing.
As for that icy power that could clash with Fire Fist Ace, Kuzan, as a user of an ice-based Devil Fruit himself, naturally couldn't ignore it. Especially since the newspaper had clearly stated that after Arton and Robin fused, they displayed power capable of freezing Ace's ultimate move.
Even if Kuzan didn't know exactly what weight Ace's all-out strike carried, Ace was still the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division Commander, so even Kuzan wouldn't dare claim he could easily freeze a technique like that completely.
Thinking that, Kuzan's gaze toward Arton and Robin as they descended from the sky grew even more complicated.
"You're really polite, even preparing us a place to land," Arton said as he came down with Robin onto the ice field created by Kuzan freezing the sea.
"I thought you'd be worried I could activate my fruit at any moment, and choose to stay floating in the air," Kuzan replied.
"How could we? Hovering in the air the whole time is pretty exhausting too. Even if we were going to do that, we'd wait until the fighting actually starts," Arton said with a smile.
"Fighting, huh? So you came here to battle me?" Kuzan asked.
"That's what I should be asking you," Arton said. "You're the one who came looking for us, aren't you?"
"…You're right. I did come to your doorstep," Kuzan nodded.
"So then, are we fighting?" Arton's lips curled upward, a faint pressure beginning to spill off him, but Kuzan didn't rise to Arton's provocation. Instead, he turned his eyes toward Robin standing beside Arton.
"If possible, could you let me talk to the person at your side first? After that, we can have our fight," Kuzan said.
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