Vir’s clothing was merely a molded layer over his original outfit.
Now, as his appearance changed, it was only natural for the outer layer to dissipate.
As the outer clothes vanished, a white coat gradually revealed itself.
And along with the transformation of his clothes, his face also changed.
When Vir’s true appearance emerged before everyone’s eyes, they all widened in shock.
Luffy’s jaw even hit the ground!
“What’s going on?! Vi—Vir?! Why did that guy turn into Vir?!”
Luffy pointed at Vir, his finger trembling uncontrollably!
The others wore similarly dumbfounded expressions.
As for the CP9 members, they were utterly bewildered.
Was Spandam actually an imposter?
Then where was the real Spandam?
The answer seemed obvious.
He was, in all likelihood, already dead.
The moment that thought struck them, all of CP9’s expressions darkened.
No matter how useless that guy was, he was still their superior.
And yet, he had been killed right under their noses.
They could only feel.
Humiliated!
Ashamed!
Meanwhile, Vir, now restored to his original appearance, began to move.
He raised a hand and flicked his fingers like a conductor’s baton.
At the same time, two words left his lips.
“Thunderfall.”
As soon as he spoke—
Three bolts of lightning instantly descended from the sky!
Striking directly at every World Government flag on Enies Lobby!
Above Vir, behind Luffy and the others, and near the Gates of Justice.
All three flags were instantly reduced to ashes!
Even though Lucci and the others wanted to intervene, they had no time to react.
The lightning was too fast!
But even if they could react in time, that lightning was far beyond their ability to withstand…
The sheer destructive force was overwhelming.
Their gazes all turned to Vir.
Now, there was a hint of wariness in their eyes.
This guy…
Was not normal.
His power was far from ordinary!
Luffy and his crew were just as stunned.
Vir’s sudden attack had truly startled them.
But once the shock passed, they were thrilled!
Chopper, in particular, was jumping up and down with excitement!
“Nice one, Vir! The flag is destroyed! Now Robin will come with us!”
Luffy exclaimed excitedly!
Then, his gaze turned back to Lucci and the others!
A moment later—
He lowered his stance.
One hand touched the ground.
“Gear Second!”
As soon as he spoke, his body began to change!
A pink hue rapidly spread across his entire form!
Steam billowed off him, rising continuously!
His gaze turned resolute!
“Everyone!”
“Yeah!!!”
“Let’s go!!!”
With a loud shout, Luffy vanished from his spot!
The others followed right behind him, leaping downward!
And in that instant, Luffy appeared in front of Lucci!
His arm had stretched back to its limit and in the blink of an eye, shot forward!
Lucci hadn’t expected Luffy to be this fast!
He didn’t even have time to activate Tekkai!
With a resounding impact, Lucci was sent flying!
He vanished from sight in the blink of an eye!
And Luffy wasted no time, instantly dashing in pursuit!
But Kaku and Jabra moved to block his path!
They wanted to hold him off and buy Lucci some time to recover.
*Clang~!*
*Boom~!*
A flash of a blade and a shadowed kick struck nearly simultaneously.
The two who had blocked Luffy’s path were sent flying in opposite directions!
“Can’t let you interfere with our captain!”
“Ready to be served up?”
Zoro and Sanji spoke simultaneously!
Then, they charged at their respective opponents!
The others also found their own foes!
And with fearless determination, they clashed in battle!
But due to their training and Vir’s medical treatment…
The CP9 members were being completely overpowered…
Meanwhile, Vir watched as the battle unfolded, his gaze shifting to Robin, who was crying in his embrace.
Those guys could handle the fight.
He would focus on getting Robin out of here!
Honestly, he felt a bit flustered.
If it was about taking someone apart, he was fine.
But comforting someone…
That was outside his expertise.
At this moment, he had no idea what to do with his hands.
Holding her didn’t feel right, but letting go felt wrong too.
Just letting them hang there seemed awkward as well.
Watching Robin sob, her entire body trembling, Vir hesitated before softly calling out:
“Uh… Robin? Robin?”
Hearing his voice, Robin gradually calmed down.
She slowly pulled away from his chest.
Taking a step back, she stood in front of him, her head lowered.
She didn’t want to look up, afraid that Vir would see her tear-streaked, disheveled face.
The moment she had hugged Vir, she had felt an immense sense of relief.
As if the dark cloud that had hung over her for twenty years had suddenly dissipated.
In Vir’s embrace, she didn’t need to think about anything.
Vir would handle everything.
She realized she had come to rely on him.
That she…
Couldn’t leave him anymore.
On the way here, her mind had been filled with thoughts of Vir.
What would happen to Vir if she died?
Will he be sad?
Will he grieve?
Would anyone else be able to outsmart him in the future?
Vir, seeing that Robin had finally let go, secretly sighed in relief.
That was more exhausting than an actual fight.
He reached for the Seastone cuffs on Robin’s wrists.
“Molding…”
He muttered in his heart.
The rigid Seastone cuffs slowly turned to liquid and dripped onto the ground.
Then—
Robin saw Vir’s hand reaching for her face.
She thought he was about to touch her cheek.
But just like before, his hand moved under her chin.
‘What is he doing…’
Robin’s heart pounded rapidly!
Even when she faced Aokiji, she hadn’t felt this nervous.
At times like this, when a man lifted a woman’s chin, there was usually only one thing they would do…
Robin wanted to close her eyes.
But she also wanted to see Vir’s face.
So she kept them open, watching as Vir slowly lifted her head.
But once he did—
The expected kiss never came.
Instead, what she saw was…
A washcloth.
Vir, holding a cloth, wiped her face with a flurry of scrubs.
She had cried so much that her face was filthy.
Now she looked like a little soot-covered cat.
After a thorough wipe-down, her face was clean again.
But instead of gratitude, Robin’s expression was one of…
Disappointment?
Vir: Huh?