In truth, it was not only Sengoku and the others who were shocked by White Ghost's strength.
Everyone watching the live broadcast was stunned.
No one had expected White Ghost to fight two Admirals alone, let alone fight them without losing ground. Akainu had already been cut several times, and Kizaru was not doing much better.
At that moment, Gild Tesoro held a Den Den Mushi and roared into it.
"Bastard! Didn't you say that guy was dead this time? Open your eyes and look properly!"
The voice on the other end still belonged to the black-robed man.
"Mr. Tesoro, we never said he would definitely die this time."
Tesoro's face twisted as he shouted into the Den Den Mushi.
"Do you want me to repeat what you said that day? Is your memory bad, or is there something wrong with my brain?"
The black-robed man's tone remained calm.
"Please calm down, Mr. Tesoro. We didn't expect White Ghost to be this powerful either.
"His crew's strength is also astonishing. More importantly, that newly appeared man ruined our plan."
Hearing that, Tesoro glared viciously at the blind man fighting Kuzan.
"Have you found out who that man is?"
The black-robed man sighed.
"We found out, but what difference does it make? He's already boarded White Ghost's ship.
"Can we assassinate him now? If a peak-level fighter were that easy to kill, we would've killed White Ghost long ago."
Behind him, Baccarat massaged Tesoro's shoulders and looked at her boss's vicious expression with some distress.
She knew some of the story.
Her boss hated that man to the bone.
Though, strictly speaking, the hatred was something the boss had created on his own. That man had never really done anything to him.
Baccarat had investigated Tesoro's past and learned about Stella's existence. Only then did she understand the reason.
"What are you planning to do now?" Tesoro leaned back on the sofa while Baccarat, wearing gloves, gently massaged his temples.
The Den Den Mushi continued in the black-robed man's voice.
"Heh heh heh. Mr. Tesoro, there's no need to worry. He doesn't know you were involved in this.
"Besides, didn't this successfully sever his relationship with the World Government?
"That's a good thing for us."
"Hmph!"
Tesoro glared at the broadcast.
"You make it sound easy. Even if that's true, so what?
"Look at them now. They're stuck in a stalemate. Is the Navy going to send reinforcements or not?"
"Mr. Tesoro, don't rush. You can't get fat in one bite. These things must be done slowly. This is only the beginning."
Click.
Tesoro hung up directly, too lazy to listen to any more nonsense.
Baccarat gently kneaded his forehead.
"Boss, calm down. There will be other chances."
"Hah…"
Tesoro looked at the live broadcast. The more he watched, the more uncomfortable he felt, so he switched it off.
Then, as if thinking of something, he looked at Baccarat in front of him.
Baccarat blushed under his gaze.
"Boss, if you keep looking at me like that, I'll get embarrassed."
Tesoro took her hand and pressed it against his chest.
"Thank you… for staying with me all these years."
Baccarat did not struggle. She simply leaned into his arms.
"It's all right, Boss. From the first day I followed you, I knew I had chosen the right person."
The two subordinates nearby saw this and quietly walked out, thoughtfully closing the door behind them.
Before long, strange sounds came from inside.
Tesoro's roar came as well, but for some reason, Baccarat's voice sounded a little miserable.
Ring, ring, ring.
Kuzan was facing Issho when the Den Den Mushi in his coat began to ring.
Issho's lips curved.
"It seems we no longer need to fight. Many casualties have been avoided."
Kuzan took out the Den Den Mushi.
Click.
"Kuzan, lead the Marines in retreat. There's no point continuing."
"I understand, Fleet Admiral Sengoku."
Kuzan put away the Den Den Mushi and looked at Issho.
"Let's call this one a draw."
Issho shook his head.
"This old man's task was to stop you. There was no need to decide victory or defeat."
Kuzan said nothing more. He took out a signal flare and fired it into the sky.
Whoosh.
A yellow flare exploded overhead.
All the Marines looked up, then began to withdraw in an orderly manner.
White Ghost's crew also stopped. After all, the goal had been achieved. There was no need to fight to the death.
Onigumo was covered in wounds and bleeding heavily. He glared at Kuro unwillingly.
Kuro withdrew his mantis blades.
"Next time, it won't end this easily. After all, the weak have no right to step onto the world's stage."
"Hmph."
Onigumo snorted coldly and turned away. He did not want to look at that smug face any longer.
Kuro also had wounds on his body, though not as many as Onigumo.
Watching him leave, Kuro shook his head.
"As expected of a Headquarters Vice Admiral. He's improved a lot since last time."
Jango and Tokikake also stopped fighting. Both of them were bruised and swollen. They had fought for two days without using abilities, purely comparing whose body was stronger and more enduring.
Mainly because in the past, Tokikake had relied on his stronger body to beat Jango several times.
"Well then, Brother Jango, let's settle who the real man is next time!"
Tokikake waved and led the Marines back.
"Hah…"
Jango let out a long breath.
"As expected of someone the captain said could become an Admiral candidate one day. His strength is no joke."
Overall, Jango had been at a disadvantage this time. If not for his strong will and body, he would have fallen long ago.
But Tokikake had not had an easy time either.
Jango had grown a lot compared to before. If Tokikake had been even a little weaker, Jango might really have beaten him down.
Gion and Ain also stopped. The two women had fought for so long, yet neither had a single wound. Anyone who did not know better might think they had staged the fight.
Neither woman said a word. Each simply walked away.
Momonga finally got a chance to breathe. Shiroheko stopped attacking, since she could not kill him anyway.
"Hah…"
Momonga looked down at his chest. It was charred black from the flames. He cast a lingering look of fear toward Container, who was carrying a gun in the distance.
This time, he had experienced the terror of a sniper. One moment of carelessness, and he would take a bullet.
In the sky, on the flying ship, Katakuri stood on Zeus, his expression solemn as he stared at the two opposite him.
The girl with the Rumble-Rumble Fruit could be ignored.
But the Soul Diva was dangerous.
Her aura was weak, but her ability made him feel a fatal threat.
Uta had not acted this time.
Her ability was the most troublesome, so she had been left behind to protect the noncombatants.
In other words, other than White Ghost, no one on the ship could beat Uta when she went all out.
Over the years, aside from training her body, she had focused entirely on developing the Song-Song Fruit. Although she had not reached awakening yet, her ability was no less troublesome than White Ghost's.
That was why she had not been sent into battle.
She did not like killing either.
Katakuri faced them for a while. Seeing the Marines below begin to retreat, he gave up on the mission and left.
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