What?
Aokiji?
This guy who looks like a zombie dares to call himself Aokiji?
Garp couldn’t hold back!
My Aokiji may not be the most handsome, but he’s definitely not this disgusting!
How dare you claim to be Aokiji!
“You bastard! Go look at yourself in the mirror! Look at that pig face of yours! How dare you say you’re Aokiji?!”
“Of all people to impersonate, you chose to impersonate an Admiral? You think we don’t know who Aokiji is?!”
“I suggest you confess immediately—where did you pick up this Den Den Mushi?!”
Garp bombarded the Den Den Mushi with accusations and threats.
He was certain that the Den Den Mushi was picked up by this ugly fool.
Even Sengoku had an expression full of disbelief.
The main issue was the sheer difference in appearance—it was simply too drastic.
He had spoken with Aokiji not long ago.
How could he possibly have turned into this in such a short time?
“That’s right, kid, fess up. Where did you pick up this Den Den Mushi?”
Sengoku chimed in as well.
Only Tsuru frowned deeply.
The voice clearly belonged to Aokiji.
But why did the face look completely different?
On the other side, Aokiji was already in a terrible mood, and after being scolded by Garp, he was even more annoyed.
Oh, alright. So this is how they wanna play it.
Fine…
“Vice Admiral Garp! Have you ever confessed about that time you accidentally flicked your booger into Fleet Admiral Sengoku’s tea…”
Before he could even finish his sentence, Garp immediately blew up!
“Shut up! You impudent scoundrel! How dare you slander me?!”
Aokiji continued nonchalantly:
“And that time when you took advantage of the Fleet Admiral being distracted and wiped a big handful of snot on his hat…”
“Lies! Lies, I say!”
“And about the Fleet Admiral’s pet goat, the time you…”
“Stop! Stop! Enough already!! My dearest Admiral Aokiji, let’s have a serious talk about what happened to you instead, shall we?!”
Garp suddenly adopted an extremely serious expression as he stared intently at the Den Den Mushi.
His tone was filled with solemnity and concern.
Looking at him, one might even mistake him for the Fleet Admiral himself.
But upon closer inspection, a thin layer of cold sweat was clearly visible on his forehead.
Meanwhile, Sengoku removed his hat with a suspicious expression.
And right there, on the brim of his hat, was a dried-up stain—a remnant of some long-forgotten nasal excretion.
Recalling the faintly salty taste in his tea before…
Sengoku’s face darkened uncontrollably.
He had thought it was a new type of tea blend!
Good! So it was you, Garp!
Just you wait!
“Tell us, Aokiji, what exactly happened? Where is that brat now?”
Sengoku took the Den Den Mushi from the ever-so-serious-looking Garp and calmly asked.
“I failed. They got away. And this face of mine is thanks to him.”
Aokiji spoke with a hint of helplessness.
“What?! You failed? What happened? With your strength, how could he possibly be your match?”
“Are you telling me that not only did you fail to capture him, but he even managed to mess up your face?”
Sengoku asked in disbelief.
“That’s right.”
Hearing Aokiji’s confirmation, Sengoku took in a sharp breath.
No way.
Even Garp and Tsuru widened their eyes in shock.
That guy actually got away?
And it looked like Aokiji was even defeated!
How did he pull that off?
They were genuinely curious now.
This was simply unbelievable.
The difference in strength was enormous!
“And I was defeated by those ‘insignificant little tricks’ of his.”
Aokiji’s tone was dripping with sarcasm.
Hearing this, Sengoku felt a little embarrassed.
He tried shifting the topic.
“You didn’t freeze him from the start? You got careless, Aokiji. If you had restrained him immediately, how could he have used those tricks?”
Sengoku tried reasoning.
“I did freeze him. I went all out from the very beginning.”
“Then how…”
“He instantly broke free with those ‘insignificant little tricks’ of his.”
“Why didn’t you put Seastone cuffs on him?! If you had, it would’ve been foolproof! You got careless again, Aokiji.”
“Fleet Admiral, do you know why I didn’t chase after them?”
Aokiji suddenly asked.
“Why?”
“Because the Seastone cuffs are right here on my wrists!”
“They were also instantly cracked by his ‘insignificant little tricks’!”
Aokiji spoke in a flat tone.
But somehow, that flat tone was laced with ridicule.
Especially those three words—”insignificant little tricks.”
This time, Sengoku was at a complete loss for words, scratching his head in embarrassment.
“Well, um, the intelligence reports, uh, they weren’t necessarily wrong. Maybe they were just… slightly inaccurate.”
“In any case, this wasn’t your fault. Just come back for now. We’ll figure out these tricks and then send someone to capture him.”
“For now, just come back and rest for two weeks! I’ll have someone send you the spare key!”
After saying this, Sengoku couldn’t stand Aokiji’s resentful gaze any longer and promptly hung up.
As soon as the call ended, silence filled the room.
Watching Sengoku’s frustrated expression, Garp could barely hold back his laughter.
But considering the current situation, he decided to hold off on that.
“What kind of tricks could actually take down an Admiral?”
Tsuru finally broke the silence.
“Don’t worry! Tricks are just tricks! We just need to figure them out!”
Garp nodded in agreement.
“Stop saying ‘tricks’ already! An Admiral got taken down! And you’re still calling them tricks?!”
Sengoku couldn’t take it anymore. Aokiji being sarcastic was one thing, but now these two were joining in!
“That guy’s methods were completely unexpected! We’ll have to wait for Aokiji to return before we can understand what really happened.”
“That brat… we can’t judge him with common sense! Tsuru, have the intelligence department reinvestigate him. Such critical information shouldn’t have been wrong.”
Hearing this, Garp quickly chimed in with a serious nod.
“Yes, yes, absolutely.”
But as soon as he finished speaking, Sengoku locked eyes with him.
Calmly. Coldly. Silently staring.
Sweat poured down Garp’s face as his eyes darted around.
“Uh, I’ll go check on the intelligence department now.”
Tsuru tactfully got up and left.
Garp: ‘Help me Onee-san!’
Not long after Tsuru left, the office was filled with Garp’s miserable screams.
—
Meanwhile, Aokiji soon received the key from the Marines.
As the Seastone cuffs were removed, that long-lost power slowly began to awaken.
But as his strength returned, a look of disbelief appeared on Aokiji’s face.
Something was off…
“What’s going on? My strength… has increased?”
With uncertainty, Aokiji released some cold air from his feet.
The ground instantly froze—but in a much smaller area than expected.
“It really did improve! The temperature is even lower than before! What is this?!”
Aokiji was utterly shocked.
If it were a minor boost, he wouldn’t be this surprised.
But this increase was substantial!
He hadn’t done anything, so why did his strength suddenly grow so much?
Aokiji’s mind raced, considering all possibilities.
Yet, nothing made sense.
This was completely unheard of!
He had only been tormented for a bit.
So how did he get this much stronger?
Could it be…
Vir’s treatment?
His treatment… can increase strength?
This thought kept circling in Aokiji’s mind.
As absurd as it sounded, it seemed like the only possibility.
That guy’s treatment can make people stronger!
And not just a little—but by a considerable margin.
Was this another one of his ‘little tricks’?
How terrifying.
A doctor like that was practically world-class.
Unbelievable.
Feeling the newfound strength coursing through him, Aokiji’s frustration seemed to lift.
Even his messed-up face… didn’t seem so bad anymore.
As he thought about it, the smile on Aokiji’s face…
Felt a little more genuine.
That brat… didn’t seem so bad after all…
—
Meanwhile, on the Going Merry.
Vir watched as Chopper groaned in pain.
A trace of worry appeared on his face.
—–
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