At this moment, Momousagi, who was in front of Vir, instantly realized the severity of the situation!
She could not afford to wait any longer!
“Shadow Dance!”
Momousagi vanished from her original position and reappeared behind Vir in an instant.
Her longsword thrust straight toward his back!
*Clang!*
Vir’s Thunder Sword blocked the strike.
The two, evenly matched, immediately engaged in battle.
Vir had just expended a significant amount of stamina.
And he had already unleashed his killing blow on Chaton.
So right now, it was impossible for him to quickly deal with Momousagi.
But Vir had no intention of defeating her.
If he wanted to leave, she wouldn’t be able to stop him.
What he needed to do now was stall Momousagi.
To buy Robin and the others time to retreat…
…
Meanwhile, Luffy and the others had reached the final stage of their battles.
Zoro and the rest had already defeated their respective opponents.
At this point, these enemies were no longer much of a challenge for them.
With Robin assisting as well, their foes fell even faster.
In such a critical moment, there was no time to worry about who fought whom.
They had to act fast!
Finishing off everyone and escaping was their only chance at survival!
The only battle still ongoing was Luffy’s.
But at this point, Lucci, having exhausted too much stamina, had finally given Luffy in his Second Gear state an opening.
Luffy’s arms had already grabbed onto the incredibly agile Lucci.
Earlier, Luffy had been at a disadvantage in speed.
He had struggled to land a hit on him.
Fortunately, Luffy’s endurance was exceptional.
He had worn Lucci down to this state through sheer persistence.
And once Luffy got a firm grip, he was confident he could end the battle in a single strike!
“Hooo~!”
Luffy took a deep breath!
His head began to expand continuously!
It soon grew to the size of a Giant’s.
“Gear Third!”
As soon as Luffy declared it, his neck stretched out in an instant!
Seeing himself twisted into a pretzel, Lucci finally revealed a panicked expression.
He struggled frantically, attacking Luffy’s arms with all his might.
But Luffy ignored him completely!
At this moment! Luffy’s neck began to retract!
His massive head shot straight toward Lucci!
“Gomu Gomu no… Gigant Hammer!”
Just before impact, Luffy released his grip.
With a loud crash, Lucci, his head severely deformed, was sent flying.
By now, he was critically wounded, barely clinging to life!
*Splash*
Lucci plunged into the water!
Luffy, gasping for breath, had won the battle.
After catching his breath, Luffy was just about to go look for Robin when he saw Robin and the others rushing over!
“Luffy! We need to leave immediately! A Marine Admiral is on the way!”
Robin’s voice was urgent as she spoke to Luffy.
Hearing this, Luffy froze.
The overwhelming power of Aokiji was still fresh in their memories.
Even if it was a different Admiral this time, he wouldn’t be any weaker than Aokiji.
If they didn’t leave, they were doomed!
Luffy understood the gravity of the situation.
But he still asked about Vir.
“What about Vir? Why isn’t he here? What happens to him if we leave?”
“Forget about him! He has a way to escape. He told us to leave quickly—our presence here would only hinder him.”
Robin reiterated firmly.
Hearing this, Luffy understood Vir’s intentions.
He didn’t insist on staying.
He knew the kind of person Vir was.
Vir wouldn’t do something he wasn’t confident in.
But now the problem was…
They had no ship—how were they supposed to escape?
The old sea train that had carried them here had already been destroyed after fulfilling its mission.
“What do we do without a ship?”
Nami asked anxiously.
Robin, however, responded seriously, “Vir said… our comrade will come to pick us up.”
Comrade?
What comrade?
Weren’t they all here?
What did Vir mean?
Just as everyone was puzzled, a ghostly voice suddenly echoed in their minds!
“Everyone~ I’m here to pick you up~”
The voice felt both real and unreal.
It was difficult to discern.
But upon hearing it, everyone froze!
They had never seen or heard of the spirit of the Going Merry.
But the moment the voice spoke, only one thought filled their minds.
“It’s Merry!”
“Merry is here! Merry came to get us!”
Everyone looked down toward the sea, and sure enough, they saw a familiar small sailing ship moving beneath them!
“MERRY!!!”
Luffy shouted loudly.
His face lit up with joy.
Their comrade had come.
Their most precious comrade!
“Yosh! Jump down!”
With a loud cheer, Luffy leaped toward their invaluable ship, the Going Merry!
The others hesitated no longer!
Following Luffy, they jumped down!
Merry arrived just in time.
It caught them all safely!
Wasting no time, they immediately steered the ship in the direction they had come from!
At this speed, even if the Marines arrived, they shouldn’t be able to catch up.
The Marines were also coming from the Gate of Justice.
But they were heading in the opposite direction.
Before long, they saw the massive gate they had entered through!
Soon, they reached the entrance.
The gate was still left open after being smashed by the sea train.
As long as they passed through it, they would be completely safe…
But they still had one crucial comrade.
The one who was fighting so they could go even further.
Everyone stood at the stern of the ship.
They looked anxiously toward the perilous Enies Lobby.
Chopper’s eyes were filled with worry.
He looked at Robin, who was also filled with helplessness, guilt, and concern.
He asked in a troubled voice, “Robin… do you think… Big Bro will really come back?”
Chopper’s words made everyone’s faces darken.
Yeah.
Could Vir really make it?
How could he possibly escape?
Just facing Aokiji alone had left them completely helpless.
If it weren’t for Vir’s special means, there was no way he could have escaped Aokiji’s grasp.
But now…
Two Admiral Candidates, an Admiral, and even five Vice Admirals.
It was a lineup designed to crush all hope.
They couldn’t think of a single way Vir could escape.
“Luffy… I want… to go back… for Big Bro…”
Chopper’s voice was trembling as he spoke.
His expression carried an indescribable emotion.
The moment he said those words, he had already resolved to risk his life.
If he took twenty Rumble Balls, he could barely hold his own against Momousagi for a while.
But Vir had since limited him to ten per battle.
With just ten…
He might only be able to stall a Vice Admiral…
But even so, as long as he could fight alongside Big Bro, even if he died, he would be happy.
—–
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