After returning to the palace, Hancock looked at the stone statue of Elder Nyon being guarded in the middle by Anishida and the others, her expression complicated.
Even now, she still could not understand why that man had made such a request.
After all… he had seized her weakness.
Seeing Hancock remain silent, Jin said, "Undo Elder Nyon's petrification."
As he spoke, Jin released his control over Anishida and the others.
Since he had already returned, there was no need to keep controlling them.
"Mm?"
The moment Anishida regained consciousness, confusion appeared in her eyes.
Had she been standing here just now?
At that moment, she saw Hancock standing together with Jin, and her heart jolted.
"Lady Snake Princess?"
"Why is Lady Snake Princess standing with a man…"
The warriors inside the room were filled with confusion. They had no idea what had just happened.
It was as if… part of their memory was missing.
"They were just…" Marigold asked.
"Ah, to make them behave, I temporarily hypnotized them," Jin said.
Marigold: "???"
So he really had controlled Anishida and the others?
What a… terrifying man!
"You damn man, what exactly did you do?"
"Lady Snake Princess, what is going on?"
"It's nothing. You may withdraw for now." Hancock waved her hand. "Also, from now on, aside from Sandersonia, no one is allowed to enter the palace. Do you understand?"
Anishida blinked.
Although she did not know what had happened, since Lady Snake Princess had spoken, she could only obey.
Thinking this, Anishida nodded and said, "Yes, Lady Snake Princess."
Then Anishida led the warriors out of the room.
Hancock paid no attention to them and strode toward Elder Nyon.
After coming in front of her, she dispelled her Devil Fruit ability.
"Hm?"
Elder Nyon, who had returned to normal, looked at Hancock in confusion, her mind momentarily blank.
"Hancock?"
"Mm."
This time, Hancock did not nitpick. She simply nodded in response.
That surprised Elder Nyon a little.
Then Elder Nyon gradually remembered what had happened earlier.
She remembered…
At that time, Hancock seemed to be trying to petrify Jin, and she had jumped over to push him away.
Then…
When she saw Hancock again, this girl was already standing in front of her.
Did that mean she had been petrified just now?
This girl really showed no mercy…
No, wait!
Where was Jin?!
Thinking of this, Elder Nyon quickly asked, "Hancock, what did you do to Jin?"
"Elder Nyon, I'm here."
Seeing that Elder Nyon was still worried about him, a smile immediately appeared on Jin's face.
After hearing Jin's voice, Elder Nyon subconsciously turned around.
Only after seeing Jin clearly did she breathe a sigh of relief.
"Good, you're fine…"
She had truly been afraid that Hancock had used her Devil Fruit ability to petrify Jin, then shattered him with a kick.
Hiss…
Wait a minute!
Elder Nyon suddenly noticed something strange.
Where was Jin's coat?
No, wait. Wasn't the thing Hancock was wearing Jin's coat?
Turning back to look at Hancock walking toward her seat, shock instantly appeared in Elder Nyon's eyes.
'That really is his coat…'
No, during the time she was petrified, what exactly had happened?
Thinking of this, Elder Nyon asked, "What is going on here?"
"Ah, the two of us had a fight," Jin said.
Elder Nyon: "???"
A fight?
With Hancock?
Looking at Jin, who had no injuries on his body, Elder Nyon fell silent.
She knew very well how strong Hancock was.
It could be said that even against a Marine admiral, Hancock would still have the strength to fight.
Yet this boy had faced Hancock and did not even have a single wound?
Was that reasonable?
'In that case… did I still underestimate this boy's strength?' Elder Nyon thought in shock.
"He did indeed fight Sister," Marigold said. "It happened at the mountain behind the village."
"That place has already been destroyed beyond recognition."
Elder Nyon: "…"
Elder Nyon fell silent again.
After experiencing such an intense battle and still remaining completely unharmed…
This boy's strength was definitely far more terrifying than she had imagined.
Looking at it this way…
They really did have the qualifications to participate in this war.
"Elder Nyon." Hancock stopped and turned to glance at her. "What were you trying to say earlier?"
"Did I say something?"
A question mark seemed to appear over Elder Nyon's head.
Why didn't she remember what she had wanted to say back then?
'After being petrified, there's a brief confusion in memory…' Jin thought silently. 'And judging from this, she also doesn't know what happened while she was petrified.'
In a certain sense, this ability was equivalent to sealing someone.
He just did not know whether the next user of the Devil Fruit could undo petrification caused by the previous user.
If they could, then there would be many things that could be done with it.
Suppressing that thought, Jin said, "Elder Nyon, what you wanted to say back then should have been: I'm Shakky's friend."
"Ah… ah, yes, yes!"
After Jin reminded her, Elder Nyon also remembered and nodded. "That's right. That was it."
"Hancock, Jin is Shakky's friend. Help him this once."
Hearing Elder Nyon's words, Hancock glanced at Jin in surprise and said, "I didn't expect you to know Shakky too."
Marigold also looked at Jin in surprise.
Wasn't this too much of a coincidence?
"Ah, we have a pretty good relationship," Jin said with a smile.
Back then, if it had not been for Sister Shakky's information, they might not have been able to find Merry.
"Not only does he know Shakky, he also knows Rayleigh," Elder Nyon added.
The moment these words came out, Hancock and Marigold both fell silent.
The benefactors who had once helped them all happened to know this man…
Was this fate?
"I don't know why you two fought, nor do I know why you two were able to return here calmly afterward, but… since you're back, then talk things over."
After saying that, Elder Nyon paused, then continued, "Jin's request is simple. He only needs the Eternal Pose to Marine Headquarters."
Elder Nyon said everything she wanted in one breath, afraid that Hancock, this willful girl, would interrupt her again.
"Elder Nyon, we've already reached an agreement," Jin said.
"You reached an agreement?"
Elder Nyon froze.
How had he done that?
"Yes, we reached an agreement."
"What did you two talk about?"
This time, Jin did not answer. Instead, he looked at Hancock.
The thing on this woman's back was special. He was not sure whether Elder Nyon knew about it, so he would not answer lightly.
Noticing Jin's gaze, Hancock fell silent for a moment.
Then she used Observation Haki to sweep through the palace. After confirming there was no one extra on this floor, she slowly said, "He… saw the mark on my back."
Elder Nyon: "!!!"
Hearing Hancock's words, Elder Nyon's face immediately changed.
She knew exactly what that meant.
Could it be…
Had this boy forced Hancock to compromise by threatening her?
Perhaps seeing through Elder Nyon's thoughts, Hancock continued, "He did not threaten me. Instead, he made a deal with me."
"A deal?"
A question mark appeared over Elder Nyon's head.
What kind of deal could make Hancock compromise?
"I can help remove the mark on her back," Jin explained. "In exchange, she will undo your petrification and give me the Eternal Pose to Marine Headquarters."
As soon as these words came out, Elder Nyon fell silent.
The fact that Jin could use some kind of ability to help Hancock remove the mark on her back truly shocked her.
But what shocked her even more was that this boy's first condition was actually to save her!
For a moment, Elder Nyon's emotions became rather complicated.
'Thinking about it carefully, this boy didn't use this matter to threaten Hancock… That alone is enough to prove his character.'
This boy might…
Thinking this, Elder Nyon made a decision.
At that moment, Sandersonia ran in from outside and said, "Sister, I'm back."
"Is everything handled?"
"Mm." Sandersonia nodded. "Straw Hat's request was a large amount of meat, so I already asked Kikyo and the others to handle it."
"Once it's ready, it will be delivered to Elder Nyon's place."
It had to be said, Straw Hat's appetite was truly astonishing.
Along the way, he had eaten countless large chunks of meat, yet he looked completely fine…
She really did not know what was going on with that body.
"Thank you." Jin nodded to Sandersonia.
"Hmph. I was only obeying Sister's order."
Jin merely smiled at that and did not mind.
"Sister, why did you call me here?" Sandersonia asked.
"This person can help me remove the mark on my back," Hancock said. "I plan to let him try."
"Eh?!"
Hearing Hancock's words, Sandersonia froze on the spot. Then she said in disbelief, "Sister, you told him about that?"
"He…"
"He saw it himself."
Sandersonia: "…"
Sandersonia fell silent.
So he had actually seen it himself?
In that case…
Clang!
Armament Haki wrapped around Sandersonia's arm, and killing intent immediately appeared in her eyes.
She was going to kill this man!
"Stop, Sandersonia!"
"Sister, he must be lying to you!" Sandersonia said. "I don't believe he can do something like that."
"Kill him, and we…"
"Sandersonia!"
"Sister…"
Seeing Hancock's extremely stern gaze, Sandersonia trembled. Then her arm fell weakly.
She only wanted to protect their secret.
What was wrong with that…
Seeing Sandersonia like this, Hancock's heart softened. Then she sighed and said, "Sandersonia, we have no other choice."
Sandersonia: "???"
Sandersonia looked at Hancock, then looked at Marigold, who had lowered her head. Confusion appeared in her eyes.
Had something happened that she did not know about?
"Step back, Sandersonia."
Sandersonia was silent for a moment. Then she walked to Marigold's side and said nothing more.
"Don't worry. I won't deceive you," Jin said.
Hearing Jin's words, Sandersonia turned and looked at him coldly.
"Whether that is true or not, I will see for myself."
Since Sister had already spoken, she could not say anything more.
But…
If he was deceiving them, then even if she died, she would kill this man!
"When can we begin?" Hancock asked.
"I can start anytime," Jin said. "As for tools and such, I carry them with me."
As he spoke, Jin took out a sealing scroll.
Inside was a set of surgical tools, specially prepared for delicate work.
Marigold looked at the scroll in Jin's hand in confusion, not knowing what it was for.
Could it be…
Was that the tool he used to remove the mark?
At that moment, Elder Nyon suddenly spoke.
"Wait!"
"Hm?"
Hearing Elder Nyon's words, the other four were all stunned.
"What is it?"
Jin, who had been about to release the sealing technique, looked back at Elder Nyon in confusion and asked, "Do you have a question?"
Could it be…
Did she want him to explain the surgical process?
That was not a problem, but…
Would she be able to understand it?
"Before that, there is something I want to say."
As she spoke, Elder Nyon took out the newspaper about Jin killing three Celestial Dragons and faced it toward Hancock.
"This is… a newspaper?" Marigold asked in confusion. "Elder Nyon, what are you trying to say?"
Sandersonia also looked at Elder Nyon in confusion, not knowing what the old woman was doing.
Hancock, however, stared blankly at the words on the newspaper. Then her body began trembling as she walked over step by step.
"Celestial…"
"That's right." Elder Nyon's expression became serious. "Not long ago, a shocking piece of world news happened!"
"At Auction House No. 1 in the Sabaody Archipelago, three Celestial Dragons were killed."
"And the person who killed them…"
"Is the man standing before you."
"The Blood-Eyed Ninja, Jin, with a bounty of 400 million berries!"
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
With three dull sounds, the Hancock sisters all collapsed to the floor at the same time.
Not only that, cold sweat appeared on all three women's faces, and their bodies trembled uncontrollably.
Jin: "???"
Jin looked at the three of them in confusion, not knowing what was going on now.
Wasn't it just three dead Celestial Dragons?
Why did they look as if they had suffered a massive shock?
Could it be…
Did those Celestial Dragons have something to do with them?
Thinking of this, Jin frowned.
Seeing this scene, Elder Nyon sighed deeply.
"Sigh…"
She had known this would happen.
"He killed Celestial Dragons…"
Sandersonia stared at Jin in disbelief.
This man actually…
Dared to kill gods?!
"Who exactly are you…" Marigold said in a trembling voice.
"Me?"
"I'm just an ordinary ninja."
"Ordinary…"
A man who dared to kill Celestial Dragons was calling himself an ordinary ninja…
Was this what it meant to be strong?
"You… you really killed Celestial Dragons?" Hancock looked at Jin with a trembling gaze. "You… really…"
"Yeah."
Jin nodded. "Those three bastards wanted to take my friends and companions away as slaves, so I cut them down."
Hancock: "!!!"
Looking at Jin, who said those words so casually, Hancock clenched her fists tightly, gripping the hem of her clothes in her palms.
She had never imagined that there truly was someone in this world who dared to strike at Celestial Dragons.
And he had killed three of them at once!
"There actually… really is someone like that…"
"Someone who dares to challenge the heavens…"
Hancock's trembling body shook harder, and tears poured uncontrollably from her eyes.
It was as if…
The great mountain that had been pressing down on her heart had finally been moved away.
In the end, this woman could no longer hold herself together.
Covering her face, she broke down and cried.
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