Aokiji hadn't opened his mouth yet. Smoker, who was on the side, suddenly opened his mouth, and said to Aokiji, "He's someone that our Navy wants. You can't take him away."
Smoker knew very well that if Aokiji wanted to take away the Kid Pirates, with their strength, there was no way to stop him. So, he stated his attitude in advance.
Aokiji looked at Smoker, and said slowly, "That's really embarrassing, Smoker. You know, I'm now in the Whitebeard Pirates. As a member who joined halfway, if I can't complete the mission that the captain has assigned, then my situation will be very awkward. I might even be ostracized, and not be trusted."
"Don't be ridiculous, Kuzan. You're a former Navy Admiral. You killed so many pirates of the Whitebeard Pirates during the Summit War. Do you think they will treat you as one of their own? Even if you join the Whitebeard Pirates now, they just want to use your combat power to increase their strength. So, don't even think about exchanging for that Death God's trust by completing some mission. It's completely impossible," Smoker unceremoniously attacked Aokiji, and what he said was also very unpleasant.
"Hey, Smoker boss, that's a former Admiral. Can you watch your words a bit?"
Smoker himself didn't feel that there was anything inappropriate in what he said. But the Navy soldiers under him were all frightened. Aokiji was a big figure to them, and they couldn't afford to offend him at all. So, they were afraid that Smoker would anger Aokiji, and they would also be unlucky.
However, their worries were obviously unnecessary. Aokiji didn't get angry. Instead, he said to Smoker with a face full of helplessness, "Hey, hey, Smoker, do you have to be so mean to an old friend?"
Smoker snorted, and said, "It's precisely because I treat you as an old friend that I'm saying this to you. If you weren't an old friend, I wouldn't be talking to you now, but would be taking action directly."
"You're really impolite enough," Aokiji shook his head helplessly. But he said firmly, "However, no matter what you say, I can't give up on this matter."
Smoker said in a deep voice, "What if I insist?"
Aokiji smiled slightly, and said, "You should understand me. Once I've decided on something, I won't give up."
Hearing Aokiji's reply, Smoker's expression was extremely solemn. He was very familiar with Aokiji. So, he also understood Aokiji very well. Although he couldn't figure out what Aokiji was thinking in his heart, he was very certain that if he continued to insist, he would definitely take action. He didn't want to take action against Aokiji, and he couldn't beat him either.
So, Smoker's expression changed several times. In the end, he said in a deep voice, "Alright, I understand."
Saying this, Smoker shouted loudly to the Navy under his command, "Everyone, retreat!"
Then, he took the lead in withdrawing from the Kid Pirates' ship. The other Navy, seeing that Smoker had all left, naturally wouldn't stay. One by one, they quickly withdrew from the pirate ship, and went onto the warship.
Smoker stood on the warship, looked at Aokiji below, and said, "I don't want to be enemies with you, and I don't want to ask you the real reason for leaving the Navy and joining the Whitebeard Pirates. But I hope you remember the justice that you have always adhered to, and don't do anything that would shame you."
For Smoker, Aokiji leaving the Navy was a very difficult thing to accept. Although Aokiji was his friend, he was also the existence that he had always yearned for. Now that Aokiji had actually left the Navy, and had become a pirate that he hated, the anger in his heart could be imagined.
Aokiji replied, "I know what I'm doing. The justice that I have always adhered to isn't the same justice as the World Government and Navy Headquarters. It's just my own justice. After leaving the Navy, I can see things more clearly than before, and I also know what I need to do. I've become more free now."
"Free?"
Smoker said in a cold voice, "Joining the Whitebeard Pirates, and being commanded by a pirate. I can't see any freedom in you."
"That's because you don't understand that Death God person. He's very unusual."
Speaking to here, Aokiji's eyes suddenly flashed, and he said to Smoker, "Go back and tell Akainu. It's best not to get involved in the struggle between the Whitebeard Pirates and the Blackbeard Pirates. I can be certain that Blackbeard won't be Death God's opponent. Letting Death God become the new emperor is far better than letting that Blackbeard guy become the emperor, even though Death God's threat to the Navy and the World Government is greater."
"You?"
Smoker was stunned. He hadn't expected that Aokiji would actually say these kinds of words. At the same time, he also understood one thing in his heart. Although Aokiji had joined the Whitebeard Pirates, he hadn't truly regarded Death God and them as companions. At least not now. Otherwise, he wouldn't have given this kind of advice. So, he wrote down all the words that Aokiji had said.
"I hope you take care of yourself. The next time we meet, we might be enemies."
After saying these words, Smoker left with the warship, leaving Aokiji to mutter to himself, "Smoker, the New World is far more complicated than you imagine. The battle between black and white is about to be decided. Navy Headquarters hasn't gained a foothold in the New World. At this time, it really can't rashly intervene in the battle between black and white. Otherwise, it will cause big changes, which will be detrimental to Navy Headquarters. I hope Akainu can see this clearly, sigh!"
Although he had left the Navy, it didn't mean that Aokiji didn't care at all. After all, the Navy was the place where he had stayed for decades. It could be said to be his home. For the previous decades, he had always been fighting and working hard for it.
The biggest reason for leaving the Navy was that he had different opinions than Akainu. He was unwilling for others to force him, and he was unwilling to drift with the tide. That was why he had chosen to leave. Although the situation at that time was very complicated, if he hadn't really wanted to leave, he wouldn't have resisted at all, and would have directly chosen to join the Whitebeard Pirates.
During this period of time after leaving the Navy, Aokiji found that he could see things more clearly than before. Previously, in his impression, all pirates were evil people, and were bad people who would threaten ordinary people. However, after joining the Whitebeard Pirates for a few months, he had discovered a different result.
Although the Whitebeard Pirates were pirates, they had never done the kind of things that threatened ordinary people and harmed ordinary people. Even in the territory under the Whitebeard Pirates, those ordinary people had a great recognition of the Whitebeard Pirates.
The Whitebeard Pirates charged a certain fee to protect the ordinary people in their territory. This was actually the same as the Navy and the World Government charging taxes. It was just that it didn't sound good. However, the effect was even better than the World Government, because in the territory of the Whitebeard Pirates, few people dared to act recklessly.
All of this had given Aokiji a different feeling. That was why he had said these kinds of words to Smoker just now.
After Smoker left with the Navy, only Aokiji and the people of the Kid Pirates were left here. As the captain of the pirate crew, Kid was naturally relatively nervous. After all, he was now facing a former Navy Admiral, someone that they couldn't afford to offend. What's more, Aokiji now had the behemoth Whitebeard Pirates behind him.
"Aokiji, I don't have any relationship with your Whitebeard Pirates. Why did you come to find me?" Kid asked.
Aokiji said, "Captain's orders. He told me to invite you to join the Whitebeard Pirates."
"What?"
Hearing this, Kid's expression changed greatly. His eyes were full of hostility, and he said in a deep voice, "Join the Whitebeard Pirates? That's impossible. I'm not planning to work under others."
Aokiji said, "You can reconsider. Our captain's conditions are still good. As long as you join the Whitebeard Pirates, he will let you become one of the division commanders of the pirate crew."
Kid's expression was very gloomy. Letting him become a division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. These words sounded nice, but it wasn't what he wanted. He was very satisfied with his current situation. As the captain of an emerging pirate crew, as long as he was given time, he would be able to grow up very quickly, and would definitely become a remarkable figure in the future.
But once he joined the Whitebeard Pirates, all he would get was the position of a division commander. Not only would he have to live under someone else's roof, but he also wouldn't be able to be ranked among the top figures in the Whitebeard Pirates. After all, there were many people in the Whitebeard Pirates who were more powerful than him now.
So, no matter how he looked at it, joining the Whitebeard Pirates wasn't a good choice for him. It was better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.
"What if I'm not willing?"
Kid said his answer word by word. As he spoke, all of his subordinates gathered around him, staring intently at Aokiji, ready to fight Aokiji at any time.
When Kid said this answer, Aokiji's eyes changed slightly. In an instant, they saw the surface of the sea around him rapidly freezing. Even the sea under the Kid Pirates' pirate ship was frozen, making the pirate ship unable to move.
"Is this your answer?" Aokiji asked.
Kid took a deep breath, and said firmly, "Hehe, although my pirate crew isn't big, I've never thought about becoming someone else's subordinate, not even the subordinate of an emperor. What's more, you haven't reached the top yet."
Aokiji said lightly, "It seems that your ambition isn't small. But what this sea lacks the least is ambitious young people. However, you have to be self-aware. You should know very well what you will face if you reject this invitation."
Kid suddenly laughed. He said with a loud laugh, "Of course I know what I'll face. However, from the moment I set off from the South Blue, I was ready for death at any time. Death isn't scary to me. What's scary is that I abandon my dreams, and become a person who abandons himself in order to survive."
"Swish!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Aokiji suddenly moved. They saw him quickly arriving at the Kid Pirates' captain. The moment he landed on the pirate ship, a terrifying cold air erupted, instantly freezing everyone on the Kid Pirates' ship.
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