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Luffy and the others watched as Bon Clay was surrounded by Marines on the ship, and they couldn't help but feel sad.
"Hey! Jason! You're really strong! You must have a way to help him, right?" Luffy pleaded.
"Yeah, yeah! Just this once! Please help him!" Nami echoed.
Jason typically wasn't one to pay much attention to the pleas of others, but when Luffy approached with Nami, it shook him. These were people he had known for a long time, and in his eyes, they were like family. When faced with their earnest expressions, Jason couldn't help but relent. Luffy was determined, and Nami was still as cute as ever.
Jason had originally planned not to intervene unless it was a life-or-death crisis after joining the crew, but seeing the situation, he figured helping out wouldn't be too much trouble. Still, he needed to set some boundaries—after all, constantly intervening would be exhausting.
He had joined the crew to take it easy while searching for historical records. Some of these records were in the hands of the Four Emperors, and tagging along with Luffy was like a working vacation for him.
"Alright, just this once! But I won't step in for your own battles in the future!"
"Of course! We don't want your help for our fights! Just help Bon Clay!" Luffy agreed.
"That's more like it!" Jason replied.
In an instant, Jason disappeared from the ship with a whoosh. When he reappeared, he was already on Bon Clay's ship, facing the Marine officer Hina.
Jason extended his hand toward her. "Look, I don't want any trouble. Can we talk this over? Just pretend you didn't see us and let them go?"
Hina's expression turned serious. "Portgas D. Jason? Why are you here?!"
As a senior Marine officer, Hina had heard of Jason. It was said that he was stronger than some vice admirals, but just how strong was unclear. Now, faced with him directly, she couldn't just let things slide.
"As you can see, I'm destined to be a pirate."
"I see! Then you're also a target for Hina to arrest!"
"Can't we avoid this?"
"Hina cannot allow it!"
Jason sighed internally. As the most attractive woman among the Marines, Hina had a ship full of admirers. But that wouldn't help her now... Soru!
In an instant, Jason's blade was at Hina's neck.
"Don't move!" he commanded.
"Colonel Hina!" Her subordinates exclaimed in shock, unable to believe what they were seeing.
Hina herself was stunned, unable to comprehend how Jason had subdued her so quickly. She was one of the strongest among Marine colonels, and yet Jason had restrained her in an instant.
"Hina is humiliated! Let go of Hina! Capture him, quickly!" she ordered, but her voice betrayed her disbelief.
"Colonel Hina!" her crew shouted in concern.
"Didn't you hear what I said? Stop shouting!" Jason snapped. "As long as I have her, you won't dare make a move! Though this scene is quite dramatic, I'm not interested in watching it play out, heh heh heh!"
Hina gritted her teeth, feeling the bitter sting of humiliation. She had never imagined she would become a hostage one day.
Jason, enjoying his rare role as the villain, grinned. Bon Clay and his crew on the swan ship were stunned. Jason had immediately neutralized Hina, one of the most formidable Marine officers. His strength was terrifying.
"Hey, why aren't you running yet?" Jason prompted.
Bon Clay and his crew snapped out of their shock and quickly moved their ship away from the warship.
"Jason-chan! What about you?" Bon Clay asked, tears streaming down his face in reluctance. His flamboyant outfit only made Jason feel more awkward.
"None of them are a match for me, don't worry!" Jason reassured him.
"Oh~! This is so touching! Jason-chan~" Bon Clay cried, overwhelmed.
"Get lost!" Jason finally snapped, veins throbbing on his forehead. If Bon Clay didn't leave soon, Jason would be tempted to knock him out himself.
"It's no use! Even if he leaves, Straw Hat Luffy's ship hasn't sailed away yet. You'll still have to return! Unless you kill Hina, she'll definitely come after you again!"
"Oh, you reminded me!" Jason mused.
"Colonel Hina!" the surrounding Marines grew tense at Jason's words.
Initially, Jason had planned to let her go and return to the Going Merry, but Hina's reminder made him realize that leaving loose ends could lead to more trouble later on.
Conqueror's Haki surged from Jason, instantly overwhelming the Marines on the surrounding warships. They all collapsed, unconscious, leaving only a few, including Hina, still standing—but barely.
"Conqueror's Haki? Hina doesn't understand..."
"There are a lot of things you don't understand," Jason replied smoothly before delivering a swift chop to the back of her neck, knocking her unconscious. With that, he returned to the Going Merry.
"Amazing, Jason! You handled it so quickly! Those Marines didn't even dare to move and let Bon Clay escape!" Usopp exclaimed, running up to him. He had watched the whole thing through his binoculars, seeing Jason capture the Marine officer as soon as he boarded the ship.
"It was nothing. Just a matter of capturing the leader first," Jason said, waving off the praise.
"But... aren't we pirates?" Luffy asked, looking puzzled.
Everyone facepalmed. Luffy, ever the simple-minded captain, always managed to miss the point.
Usopp, ignoring Luffy, continued his questioning. "But what happened to those Marines just now? How did they all collapse?"
"Yeah, yeah! We all saw it!" Chopper added, eager for an explanation.
Jason grinned mischievously. "Actually, there's a type of poison in my body! I can control it to release into the air, and all those Marines were poisoned by it!"
Robin rolled her eyes at his blatant lie. She knew Jason too well to be fooled by his antics. But Chopper, Usopp, and Luffy were wide-eyed, completely taken in by his story.
"Sugee—! Are you some kind of monster?" they exclaimed in awe.
"Well, yes! I almost poisoned an entire country once!" Jason continued, thoroughly enjoying himself.
"Eh! That's terrifying! Wait, could we be poisoned by being so close to you?" Luffy asked, suddenly concerned.
"Maybe you've already been poisoned!" Jason teased.
"Nani?! Chopper, detoxify me! I'm going to die!" Luffy panicked, causing a commotion.
"Enough! We're heading to East Port!" Nami shouted, knocking Luffy and Usopp to the ground with a well-placed punch. The others, more familiar with Jason's antics, knew better than to believe his tall tales. Only the three gullible fools had fallen for it.
Noon.
"This is Tamalisk, right? Why hasn't Vivi come yet?" Luffy lay on the side of the ship, looking bored.
"She's the princess of a country. It's normal if she can't come. You should've heard her voice on the radio," Robin said, trying to manage his expectations.
"I don't believe it! The voice just sounded like hers!" Luffy protested.
"Let's go! It's past noon. If she were coming, she'd be here by now. We still need to find Jason's boat!" Zoro reminded them.
At that moment, Usopp came down from the crow's nest, shouting urgently. "The Marines are chasing us again! That woman is after us! Jason, didn't you deal with her earlier?!"
"Why would I kill her? She's a beauty, after all... I mean, killing Marines would cause too much trouble!" Jason quickly corrected himself, glancing at Robin, knowing she wouldn't appreciate the slip.
But with the Marines on their tail, it was time for the crew to move on. Luffy's mood was low, thinking of his friends. Just as the ship began to turn away, Vivi's voice rang out from the shore!
"Hey, everyone!"
"Oh haha! It's Vivi! Turn around quickly!" Luffy shouted, his spirits lifting instantly.
"Marine's almost here, grab Vivi and let's get out of here!" Usopp urged, as everyone began to move excitedly. Sanji, ever the fastest when it came to Vivi, had already started turning the helm.
"I'm here to say goodbye!" Vivi's voice called out again, stopping everyone in their tracks.
"Though I'd love to continue our adventures together, I love this country too much! I can't leave with you!" Vivi's voice cracked with emotion.
"That's okay!" Luffy smiled, though there was sadness in his eyes.
"But if we meet again someday, will you still consider me your nakama?" Vivi asked, tears streaming down her face as she looked at the Going Merry in the distance.
Luffy was about to shout, "Of course!" but before he could, Nami clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Idiot! What are you trying to do? The Marines have already noticed Vivi! Do you want a princess of a country to be connected to pirates?!" Nami hissed. "This is how we say goodbye."
Vivi received no verbal response, but her expression of grief turned to surprise when she saw Luffy and the others raising their left hands, showing the "✘" mark—the symbol of their bond as comrades.
Her face brightened, and she raised her left hand in return. Even Karoo, her loyal pet, lifted his wing.
Jason watched, feeling a pang of nostalgia. These moments always triggered old memories, making him recall famous scenes from his past
"Jason, what are you doing? Come join us!" Luffy called out.
"I'm busy! And I don't have an X on my hand! Just say goodbye for me!" Jason retorted, trying to keep his distance from the emotional farewell.
"Huh? What are you saying? Do you want to fight?" Sanji rolled up his sleeves, but Chopper quickly intervened, reminding him that the Marines were closing in.
"Sanji, calm down! Get back to the helm, the Marines are almost here!"
Under a barrage of Marine gunfire, the Going Merry slowly pulled away from Tamalisk, though the Marines continued their pursuit. The crew scrambled to respond, and finally, Luffy threw back an iron cannonball fired by the Marines, hitting their warship and buying the crew enough time to escape.
Meanwhile, Bon Clay had also managed to evade capture, but in his panic, sailed in the wrong direction and ended up encountering Smoker's warship. Unfortunately for him, being part of Baroque Works meant he wouldn't receive the same leniency that Luffy might have, and he was captured.
After successfully escaping the Marines, Luffy and his crew set sail towards the location where Jason had docked his ship. Most of the crew, except for Zoro, Jason, and Robin, were sprawled weakly against the railing on the second floor.
"What's wrong with you all? Why do you look so listless?" Zoro asked, puzzled.
Luffy and the others exchanged glances, and finally, looking on the verge of tears, they all shouted in unison.
"So lonely~"
Zoro: ...
Jason: Pfft! I'm not laughing!
"Don't show such an expression. You couldn't bring her here by force, after all!"
Chopper: "Ah! Barbarian!"
Nami: "What a shame!"
Sanji: "Green algae head!"
Luffy: "Three-sword style!"
"Wait a minute, Luffy! Three-sword style isn't for swearing!"
Usopp originally wanted to curse, but he had to correct Luffy's mistake first!
Luffy: "Four Blade Style!"
"Even if you add more swords and call them blades, it's still not for swearing! Just call him a stinky natto!"
Luffy turned around and smiled.
"Don't worry, though it's a pity that Vivi didn't go on the adventure with us, we still have new partners, Jason and Robin! These guys are really strong!"
Hearing this, everyone's eyes focused on Jason, who was currently resting on Robin's lap, enjoying a leisurely afternoon.
Robin was engrossed in her book, while Sanji gritted his teeth at the scene.
"Huh? What are you looking at me for? I'm telling you now: I won't fight back even against the strong. Even if you're in danger, I won't take action! We're here for the sake of history!"
"This guy! Sister Robin, don't you care?" Nami's fist hardened immediately, and Robin put down her book with a smile.
"Well, Jason has always been like this, don't worry! We're companions now, so let's introduce ourselves properly.
My name is Nico Robin, and I'm an archaeologist. Jason will be my husband in the future. We grew up together, and he's been protecting me all these years. Otherwise, I might have been captured or killed by the Marines. Got it?
We were put on a bounty by the World Government when we were very young, so we went to the East Blue to hide, where we met Nami and the others. There's nothing much more special than that!"
Robin said as she gently touched Jason's face, her eyes narrowing in fondness.
Jason:━Σ(꒪꒫꒪๐)❤━>
Oops, that feeling of a heartbeat! Even though it has been beating for a long time, it doesn't matter if it moves again and again!
In the evening, the group finally arrived at the coast where the Devil docked. Jason picked up Robin and jumped onto his ship!
"Hurry up, hurry up! This is still the coast of Alabasta! Marines might show up anytime, so pack your things, and let's leave here!"
"Huh? Why do we need to pack? Why don't we just sail away with your ship?"
"What? Aren't you going to sail with us?"
"No, we have too many things that can't fit on the Merry! And didn't I say yesterday that we wouldn't join the Merry?"
"Really? I forgot. I was still thinking..."
"There's a lot of meat on the boat!"
"That's no problem! Okay! Let's go!"
"Bang!" Nami punched him out.
"Though it's true that managing two ships will be troublesome, especially for me as the only navigator! And with me being the only female crew member, it's better to have one ship! But don't worry about Uncle Jason! It's better to keep both ships!"
"There are also a lot of treasures! And a famous sword, a photo of a mermaid lady..."
Jason started counting the treasures on the boat with his fingers.
Nami, Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Chopper:
"(ง 0̷̴꒨0̷̴)ง Bring it, you must bring it!"
OK! The whole crew was convinced! After successfully convincing all the members, the Straw Hats officially turned into a two-ship crew.
Jason took out a huge iron chain to connect the two boats, then lay back on a beach chair and put on a pair of sunglasses.
Someone was pulling the boat, someone was blocking the danger, and he didn't have to steer. Jason and Robin could just relax all the way to every island! Isn't this wonderful?
Robin looked at him helplessly.
"You mean you're looking for partners just to use them as tools to pull the boat? And you're so lazy?"
She had learned the word "tool man" from Jason. Jason's eyes widened, and he quickly stood up to cover her mouth.
"Baby Robin, you can't say that! Do I look like that kind of person?"
Robin: You don't look like it, but you act like it!
Seeing Robin's skeptical eyes, Jason began to lie in earnest.
"Look, when we were sailing alone, there was always one of us at the helm. We didn't even have time to enjoy the sea together. Besides, the Devil is full of our memories. You wouldn't want to throw it away, right?"
"Mm!"
"And also, the Merry has male and female crew cabins. If we don't live on our Devil, we'll have to sleep separately. Do you want to sleep separately from me?"
"Hmm~ I don't want that either!"
"So, everything else is secondary. The main thing is that I don't want to be separated from you!"
"Oh! Then I understand!"
Robin is a very smart person, but when it came to Jason, she could be fooled easily!
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If you enjoy please support me on my patreon Future 80+ chapters at patreon.com/Phoenizbeelze
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