"Admiral, what's going on? Are you being a sore loser?" Hina said, a cigarette already dangling from her lips.
"You lit another one when I wasn't paying attention? Do I look like that kind of person?" Finn dusted himself off and looked at Sphinx. "Back when you were running around with Shiki, you were just a brat, so I didn't plan to do anything to you. Now you've been retired for so many years. Why pick a fight with me? Why not just pretend you didn't see me?"
"What brat? I had a 370 million berry bounty back then!" Sphinx said angrily.
She pointed the Bull revolver in her hand at Finn again. "Originally, since Boss Shiki fell, I really didn't plan to continue being a pirate. But seeing your face, you bastard, makes me so angry! What the hell did you use to kill Boss Shiki, you despicable piece of—"
At that moment, Hina seemed to come to her senses. She said with surprise, "You're Violent Loli Sphinx? From the Flying Pirates?"
"It's me, so whatm?" Sphinx said, pointing her other revolver at Hina.
"The Flying Pirates?" Vergo looked surprised. "If it's rekally the Flying Pirates, czswouldn't she have been a pirate at age ztwo or three? Judging from hedr appearance, she's less than twenty years old."
"Bullshit! I just look young. When I was sailing the seas, you were still eating dirt!" Sphinx cursed with a mouthful of profanity.
Vergo looked helpless. What a shame. Such a pretty little girl, yet she'd open her mouth with "old hag this" and "eat shit that." Come to think of it, she really did seem like she'd grown up in a pirate den.
Finn shifted his gaze from Sphinx to Issho. "What's your story? Tell me your name. Are you a pirate too?"
Issho smiled helplessly. "What a misunderstanding. I'm Issho, just a wandering ronin. Although I know she was a pirate before, she really hasn't done anything wrong over the years. I think she was just a child who didn't know better and was tricked into becoming a pirate. Your Excellency Admiral, could you please let us go?"
"All these years?" Finn asked with surprise.
Good grief, you gambler. Have you been hanging around with Sphinx all this time?
How did you two even get together?
"I guarantee with my character that she's turned over a new leaf." Issho said sincerely.
Hina looked around the gambling house, then said doubtfully, "You mean you want our Marines to trust the character of a gambler?"
Issho was speechless for a moment.
You make an excellent point!
"You rotten gambler, why are you wasting time talking to those bastard Marines? You're the man who inherited Boss Shiki's will! Let's join forces, start by killing Finn, and fight for dominance of this sea!" Sphinx shouted as if afraid the world wouldn't descend into chaos.
Issho almost cried at her stupidity. He quickly said, "Don't talk nonsense! I didn't, I'm not, I have nothing to do with Shiki!"
"The man who inherited Shiki's will?" Vergo looked at Fujitora Issho strangely.
Issho had never been a Marine Admiral at this point. As a folk master, he had no fame. He even mingled with common people in marketplaces, and his most frequent haunt was gambling houses in various locations.
What kind of imposing temperament could he possibly have?
At least not now.
And what about Shiki? Shiki had been a legendary figure, a man who'd dared to challenge Marine Headquarters single-handedly. He'd once dominated half an era and had been just one step away from reaching the pinnacle of piracy.
Issho really wasn't comparable to him in presence right now, so Vergo was very curious how this Sphinx character knew he'd inherited Shiki's will.
"Finn, you despicable bastard! You stole the Devil Fruit from Boss Shiki, then had the nerve to use that power against him, and even killed him in Impel Down. How dare you call yourself a Marine Admiral? You're despicable, shameless, filthy, and disgusting..." Sphinx cursed.
"Don't think I won't hit you just because you're small. I obtained my ability fair and square, just like Shiki took his Devil Fruit from someone else. What's the problem with me taking it from him? I'm a Marine and he's a pirate. It's only natural for me to fight him. As for his death, if he hadn't tried to escape from Impel Down and I had nothing better to do, why would I have gone there to kill him? I could have killed him at Marineford! What's more, he fought me fairly, so there's nothing despicable about it!" Finn shouted at Sphinx.
Sphinx was stunned for a moment. "Prison break? Aren't you just petty and went to Impel Down secretly to kill Boss Shiki?"
"Are you insulting me?" Finn said, anger flashing in his eyes.
Enormous gravitational pressure from his body instantly enveloped both Issho and Sphinx.
At that moment, Issho stepped forward lightly. An equally invisible and intangible force rose from his body, slowly resisting the momentum Finn was casually releasing.
It was at this moment that Finn's anger dissipated instantly. He looked at Issho with surprise.
He was very familiar with this power.
Because this power could be said to be the top-level ability that his first major nemesis in this world had wielded, the kind of power that had once dominated the seas.
Back when he'd killed Shiki in Impel Down, he'd regretted not having the Dark-Dark Fruit, ultimately wasting a top-tier Paramecia ability.
That's right. At this moment, the power Issho had unconsciously used to resist Finn's aura was the power of the once-mighty Flying Pirate, Golden Lion Shiki!
"I see. No wonder. No wonder Sphinx said you're the man who inherited Shiki's will. No wonder a hot-tempered person like her would listen to you and retire from piracy. I understand now." Finn said softly.
"Float-Float Fruit..." Hina said, surprise clear in her eyes.
The Marine Intelligence Department had been searching for this Devil Fruit since Shiki's death, but there had been no information or clues whatsoever. Could it be this Devil Fruit had been eaten by such an unknown person years ago?
What was even more surprising was that after obtaining this kind of power, this guy hadn't made any headlines at all. He'd just lived peacefully as a gambler and even taught Sphinx, the former pirate, to reform.
"Although I didn't witness that incident, I followed Admiral Finn for many years and learned some of the secrets from that time. Golden Lion Shiki cut his legs and escaped from Impel Down. He happened to encounter Admiral Finn who was visiting Impel Down. The two engaged in a fierce life-and-death battle, but the final victor was the Admiral. The Admiral gave Shiki enough respect, and your Boss Shiki also let go of all hatred before he died. Over the years, countless pirates have fallen to the Admiral, but Shiki was the only one he buried with his own hands and built a grave for!" Hina said quickly.
With shock and disbelief in her eyes, Sphinx asked with a slightly trembling voice, "Boss Shiki... Boss Shiki has a grave?"
"Hmph!" Finn snorted coldly. Although he didn't respond directly, both Fujitora and Sphinx understood his meaning. He'd admitted it.
"In the end, did Boss Shiki recognize you?" Sphinx asked Finn, her voice still trembling.
"Do I need his approval?" Finn asked with anger.
But after his anger subsided, he nodded. "Both Shiki and I held mutual respect in our hearts. He may have been a damned, evil bastard pirate, but judging by his demeanor and bearing, I have to admit he was a well-deserved hero. For such a person, even when death was approaching, I was willing to show respect."
"Yes... Boss Shiki mentioned you many times back then. He said he watched you rise from obscurity in the North Blue. He also said that because he didn't kill you with a single blow in the North Blue, the world became a more exciting place..." Sphinx said softly.
Her tone was deeply melancholic.
It was clear she'd had strong feelings for Shiki.
At that moment, Sphinx raised her head again and looked at Finn. Tears flashed in her eyes. She lowered her head in humiliation, jumped off the stool, and slammed her forehead against the gambling table.
It looked as if she was kowtowing to Finn. "Finn, you can kill me or arrest me. I won't resist. I only ask one thing of you. Before you punish me, let me see Boss Shiki's grave! Just one look!"
Finn looked at Sphinx with surprise. He couldn't fully understand this kind of devotion. Shiki had been dead for so many years, yet Sphinx was still loyal to him and willing to do this for him.
But if he didn't understand, he wouldn't mock it.
After a long while, Finn said, "Alright."
"Thank you!" Sphinx suddenly raised her head.
Issho quickly stepped forward. "This is truly a misunderstanding. Sphinx was just a child back then. She had no choice but to be adopted by pirates, which is why she did wrong. Now she's truly reformed. There's no need to actually kill her or take her to Impel Down..."
"What if I insist on doing exactly that?" Finn looked at Issho.
"You rotten gambler, don't worry about me. In fact, I already knew you didn't inherit Boss Shiki's will at all. I was just deceiving myself. Every time I saw your ability, I thought the Boss wasn't dead yet... that he was still alive. But now I realize you're nothing like him. Go away. Don't worry about me anymore. Continue being your gambler!" Sphinx pushed Issho away.
However, Issho raised his hand, grabbed Sphinx's collar, lifted her up, and tossed her behind him. He looked at Finn with a serious expression. "Perhaps this choice is wrong, but... I can't just watch you take my friend away."
"Oh? You want to make an enemy of the Marines and an Admiral?" Finn grinned with a fierce smile.
"Maybe I just want to ask for your forgiveness, Admiral." Issho touched the sword at his waist and said softly.
"Hahahaha!" Finn laughed loudly.
After his laughter subsided, Finn said, "You haven't caused any trouble in all these years. I can actually consider you dead. Sphinx, our Marine Intelligence Department has already confirmed your death. Capturing you or not doesn't make much sense at this point. I can take you to Shiki's grave, but from now on, you must join my organization..."
Issho was just that kind of person. Even as an Admiral in the original timeline, he could so easily let the Straw Hat Pirates go. Not to mention he wasn't even in the Marines yet. As for Sphinx, Finn really didn't have much interest in pursuing her anymore. She'd been retired for so many years. It was fine for her to stay with Issho. However, she had made mistakes back then, so he couldn't completely ignore them. Instead, he should give her a chance to make amends.
In fact, the Marines also had a tradition of recruiting pirates. For example, in the original story, Hina had recruited the hypnotist from the Black Cat Pirates.
But there was no need for Sphinx to join the Marines, nor would it be appropriate.
"Impossible! You can capture me, kill me, it doesn't matter. But wanting me to join your bastard Marines is impossible!" Sphinx refused without hesitation.
"It's not the Marines. Actually, it suits you very well. I'm hiring you as security personnel. There's a place called Gran Tesoro. I think you'll definitely be very interested in it..." Finn said with a smile.
"This entertainment city is ten thousand times better than this one. It has everything from the lowest-level gambling dens to top-tier luxury casinos..." The little devil Hina also tempted.
Issho, showing he had no moral integrity whatsoever, immediately pulled Sphinx close. "No problem at all! It's not about gambling. I just think the name Gran Tesoro sounds nice and it seems destined to connect with me!"