Vir might have had grand plans, but Momousagi, who had suffered at his hands, was in for a world of trouble upon returning to Marine Headquarters.
As soon as she arrived, she and Akainu were summoned to a meeting.
Chaton was immediately taken in for emergency treatment.
In the conference room, nearly all of the Marine high command was present.
After all, a Vice Admiral had died this time.
This was no small matter.
Sengoku had received the news immediately and wasted no time in convening the meeting.
Before long, everyone took their seats.
But from this day forward, one seat would remain empty.
Seated at the head of the table, Sengoku’s expression was grim.
“Has Doberman’s pension been issued?” Sengoku asked in a low tone.
“Reporting, Fleet Admiral! It has already been delivered to his family.” An adjutant quickly responded.
Hearing this, Sengoku’s expression eased slightly.
Then, he turned to look at the recently returned Momousagi and Akainu.
However, as soon as Momousagi met his gaze, she turned her head away, seemingly unwilling to make eye contact.
The steadfast determination that usually defined her was gone.
In its place… was fear?
This sight did not escape Tsuru’s notice, and her expression changed dramatically!
With her years of experience in reading people, she instantly realized something was very wrong!
Momousagi would not behave this way unless something terrible had happened!
Seeing Momousagi turn away, Sengoku frowned slightly.
He then shifted his gaze to Akainu.
“Tell me, what happened?” Sengoku demanded.
Akainu did not mince words and recounted the entire situation.
When he finished, the entire room fell into a heavy silence, and many frowned deeply.
That guy not only escaped from an admiral but also killed a Vice Admiral on his way out?
And if Akainu hadn’t arrived in time, he might have killed everyone there?
What level of strength did this man possess?
Was even an admiral incapable of stopping him?
Akainu then added, “By the time I arrived, Chaton was already unconscious, so I don’t know what exactly happened.”
He glanced at Momousagi before continuing, “As for how he managed to escape right in front of me, it was due to some kind of spatial ability.”
“He traversed space directly. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to get away from me.”
“Also, before he left, that brat said something to Momousagi… ‘Your lips are really soft.'”
“Not sure what he meant by that.”
After finishing, Akainu calmly took a sip from his teacup.
He was always straightforward—if he had something to say, he said it.
Since Momousagi refused to speak, he would.
Who knew? Maybe it was useful information.
The moment those words left his mouth, the entire conference room fell into dead silence.
All eyes immediately locked onto Momousagi.
Tsuru’s face changed dramatically.
Lips?
Really soft?
The implication behind those words was obvious!
Vir had kissed Momousagi?!
This…!
Everyone’s eyes widened, even Garp’s.
The intense stares felt as if they would burn Momousagi alive.
She had dreaded this incident getting out.
And now Akainu had just blurted it out in front of everyone!
Was he trying to roast her over a fire?!
“Momousagi, what happened? Did he—?” Sengoku asked, his expression filled with anger.
At this moment, he was convinced that Vir was utterly despicable!
But his question left Momousagi completely dumbfounded.
Could she even answer this?!
Her face visibly reddened.
Being asked this in front of so many people—just remembering how it felt at the time was already overwhelming.
Let alone explaining it aloud!
Even though Vir had done it to neutralize the poison…
That poison was his doing in the first place!
Still…
If he hadn’t detoxified her, she wouldn’t have been able to accept that either.
A room full of men continued to stare at Momousagi, waiting for an answer.
But Tsuru gestured for her to stop.
“You can leave for now. Talk to me privately later.”
Hearing this was like receiving a royal pardon.
Blushing furiously, Momousagi quickly rose and hurried out of the room.
She left, but those who remained all had unpleasant expressions.
This was unacceptable.
Not only had they failed to capture that brat, but they had lost two Vice Admirals in the process!
One dead, one…
If they couldn’t take action against him soon, the Marines reputation would be in shambles!
“The only way to catch him is to break through his spatial ability.” Akainu remarked.
The room once again fell into deep thought.
Then, Tsuru proposed a solution.
“Space? If you want to stop someone from traversing space, you either prevent them from using the ability in the first place, or you shake the space itself with such force that it disrupts their escape.”
“And to accomplish that, only admirals or Garp are capable.”
“So if we want to take him down, we have no choice but to send admiral-level combat power.”
Tsuru’s reasoning was sound, and everyone had to admit it—Vir was now an opponent that only an admiral could handle.
Sending Vice Admirals was just sending them to their deaths.
“Where is that brat headed now?” Sengoku asked with a frown.
“Reporting, Fleet Admiral! He’s heading to the New World with Jozu of the Whitebeard Pirates.”
After the adjutant finished speaking, Sengoku’s frown deepened.
What? How did this get tangled up with Whitebeard again?
This situation just got even more complicated.
The New World was not an easy place for the Marines to operate.
That was the territory of the Yonko(Four Emperors).
However, the Straw Hat Crew was still in the first half of the Grand Line. That kid should come back eventually.
After thinking it through, Sengoku let out a sigh.
“Sigh… We can’t make a move on him for now, but he will definitely return. When that time comes, Kizaru, you will be responsible for capturing him.”
After Sengoku spoke, a man lazily trimming his nails looked up.
“Me~?”
He pointed at himself.
Seeing Sengoku nod firmly, he could only sigh and agree.
This was a troublesome task.
Even Aokiji had suffered a loss at his hands. To be honest, Kizaru didn’t really want to deal with Vir.
He just wanted to relax and slack off.
Capturing such a troublesome individual? No way that would go smoothly.
But since the Fleet Admiral had already issued the order, and given that he spent most of his time basking in the sun at the base, refusing was out of the question.
There was no getting around it.
No one had any objections.
Everyone agreed that Kizaru was the most suitable choice.
But when this thought crossed their minds, they couldn’t help but feel a bit surreal.
Just over half a month ago…
They had thought that sending a vice admiral to capture Vir was a waste of resources.
But now…
Just half a month later…
Even deploying an admiral seemed entirely justified.
This…
Sigh, the only conclusion they could draw was that Vir was simply too powerful.
“Kizaru, you better take this seriously.”
“Some of his abilities could even catch an admiral off guard.”
As he spoke, Sengoku glanced at Aokiji.
“Got it~”
Kizaru responded in his usual laid-back tone.
Seeing this, Sengoku could only massage his temples in exasperation.
Fine, I warned you. If you end up getting caught off guard, don’t blame me…
And with that, they moved on to discussing the selection of new vice admiral and the issue of Vir’s bounty.
The meeting ended quickly after that.
No one objected to Vir’s bounty being raised to one billion berries.
At this point, everyone had witnessed firsthand how terrifying he was.
Aokiji had been gravely injured, Akainu had returned empty-handed.
Doberman was dead.
Chaton was still in a coma.
Momousagi…
One incident after another.
All of them were proof of Vir’s overwhelming strength.
One billion.
He was absolutely deserving of it.
—
Meanwhile, in Tsuru’s office.
Two sisters sat facing each other.
Tsuru quietly observed her younger sister, whose face was as red as an apple.
Momousagi had her head lowered, avoiding Tsuru’s gaze.
“Your heart… is actually not tainted.”
After a long silence, Tsuru finally spoke, sounding somewhat surprised.
She had the ability to vaguely sense people’s inner states.
By all logic, if something had really happened to Momousagi, her heart shouldn’t have remained untainted.
Hearing Tsuru’s words, Momousagi finally explained what had happened.
When Tsuru learned that Vir had done what he did to help Momousagi detoxify the poison, her expression darkened.
‘Ah, my little sister…’
‘She had truly suffered.’
‘It was my fault.’
Tsuru felt a pang of regret.
Before the mission, she had feared nothing—except Momousagi’s purity being defiled.
And yet, the very thing she feared had come to pass.
She patted Momousagi’s head gently, heart aching.
But she also noticed something peculiar.
While recounting the story, Momousagi had shown no overwhelming negative emotions.
The implications of this were profound.
Normally, after experiencing such an ordeal, wouldn’t one harbor intense resentment toward the perpetrator?
Yet, as Momousagi spoke, there was even a faint trace of… defensiveness toward him.
Tsuru immediately voiced her doubt.
And Momousagi’s response truly caught her off guard.
“He detoxified me… If he hadn’t, I really would have lost everything.”
This explanation left Tsuru utterly stunned.
“Wasn’t it him who poisoned you in the first place?”
“Yes, but he didn’t have to cure me.”
With just two short sentences, Tsuru finally realized the key point.
Yes, he didn’t have to.
They were enemies, so why should he help her?
Wouldn’t it have been easier to just let her die?
And yet, he had chosen to save her.
With that in mind… It didn’t seem unreasonable for Momousagi to feel a slight sense of gratitude toward him.
Initially, Momousagi had been furious.
But as they made their way back, her anger gradually faded.
The more she thought about it, the less she resented Vir.
After all, she had lost fair and square.
In the world of battle, even death wouldn’t have been unexpected.
Tsuru comforted her for a while longer, and seeing that Momousagi wasn’t particularly distressed anymore, she finally felt at ease and left.
Her biggest concern was that this incident might affect Momousagi’s mentality.
If it hindered her growth, that would be a real problem.
However, after this incident, there was one lingering issue—
There were constant rumors circulating behind their backs.
People whispered about how Momousagi had been forcibly kissed by Vir.
Sometimes, Momousagi would overhear these rumors by chance.
And every time she did, aside from feeling annoyed, all she could do was blush furiously in protest…
—–
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