World Economic News Headline:
"Heavenly Quake" Gurn of the Marines Battles "Samurai" Kozuki Oden, Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division!
Fleet Admiral Kong, Admiral Sengoku, and Vice Admiral Sakazuki Jointly Inflict Heavy Damage on "The World's Strongest Man"!
New World Frontline Special Report—
Shocking! Yesterday, a historic peak battle erupted on Ozu Island in the New World!
According to a witness (a news bird who wished to remain anonymous), Rear Admiral Gern of Marineford's "Heavenly Quake" single-handedly confronted Kozuki Oden, the "Samurai" and commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division, who had a bounty of 1,870,000,000 Berries, and utterly defeated him!
—The Tide Turns! Marine's Top Combat Forces Assemble!—
Just as the entire Whitebeard Pirates landed, intending to rescue Oden,
Fleet Admiral Kong, Marineford Admiral 'Buddha' Sengoku, and Vice Admiral Sakazuki personally arrived on the battlefield!
The three of them jointly inflicted heavy damage on "The World's Strongest Man"! The Whitebeard Pirates were forced to retreat!
This battle marks the rise of a new generation of Marine generals!
And Whitebeard's "invincible legend" was broken by the Marines for the first time!
Countless islands within the G-3 Base region raised Marine flags, calling this battle "a milestone of justice."
Rumor has it: The G-3 Base region has been rated as the safest sea area, and real estate prices in island cities are continuously rising as a result!
(Attached: Photos of the island's collapse / Sketch of Oden pinned to the ground by dual swords / Shocking images of the Marines confronting Whitebeard)
.......
New World, Marine G-3 Base, Medical Bay
In the brightly lit room, there was only the ticking of medical instruments and the gentle sound of waves outside the window.
Gern slowly opened his eyes, his gaze gradually focusing on the ceiling.
"So thirsty..." He tried to move his right hand; a slight tingling sensation came, but it was much better than the severe pain he had expected.
Immediately after, he discovered that he could even sit up. He had taken a direct hit from "Togen Shirataki."
His chest and right shoulder were almost completely penetrated and ruined, but now...
"Gern!!!" At that moment, a white figure suddenly pounced on him, her fluffy floppy ears rubbing against his chin.
Libo hugged him tightly, tears falling continuously.
"You're finally awake! Idiot! Idiot!!!"
"Libo..." Gern was startled for a moment, then raised his hand to stroke her head, a slight smile playing on his lips: "I'm fine."
Libo looked up, her eyes red, tear drops still hanging from her nose: "You were unconscious for three days!
Uncle Sakazuki also argued with that mohawk-haired person every day!"
"Mohawk, huh..." Remembering Kong's hairstyle, Gern chuckled softly.
Just as he was about to say something, he suddenly realized something and looked down at his freely moving right shoulder.
"Why does it feel like I wasn't injured at all?" A puzzled Gern frowned and directly tore off the bandage.
As the bandage on his right shoulder came loose, the traces of the wound that had penetrated his right shoulder and even his chest from Togen Shirataki completely disappeared; not even a scar was left.
Looking at his perfectly intact body, Gern's pupils contracted as if he had thought of something, and he abruptly looked up at Libo.
"Libo! Did you use 'Complete Restoration' on me?
That shortens one's lifespan, you..." Gern hadn't finished speaking.
Libo just blinked, her ears twitching: "No."
"No, no?!" Gern was stunned, "Then this injury, no! You don't need to lie to me, you definitely..."
"Really no!" Libo pulled a bright red carrot from her pocket and proudly waved it.
"I directly used a Healing Carrot on you, Gern!"
"A Healing Carrot with this kind of effect on my body..." Gern stared at the carrot, his expression gradually becoming serious.
The power of the Heal-Heal Fruit could extract others' life force to create "Healing Carrots," but the stronger the effect, the greater the harm to the donor.
And his current body had basically fully recovered, even feeling only a slight fatigue, completely unlike after a major battle...
"You... you didn't, extract from Kozuki Oden, did you?" Gern blinked.
"Uh-huh, uh-huh!" Libo nodded, her floppy ears gently swaying.
"When Whitebeard and Uncle Sakazuki and the three of them were fighting intensely,
I saw that samurai lying on the ground, unable to move, so I just..."
"Well, I extracted it all at once." Libo made a 'very small' gesture.
"But, I didn't expect the effect to be so good!
I was so worried about you then, so I extracted a super-grade one...
Sigh, if I had known, I would have extracted five or six more."
"Five or six..." Gern was silent for a moment, then sighed, reaching out to pinch her cheek.
"Idiot, do you know what this level of Healing Carrot means?
That guy's physique is monstrous; the 'life force' you extracted is enough to make an ordinary person drop dead on the spot."
Libo, her cheeks squeezed, mumbled: "He's a pirate anyway..."
Gern stared at her for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled: "That's true."
He then moved his right shoulder; his muscles felt no stiffness, even more flexible than before the injury.
Oden's "life force" not only healed his injuries but also seemed to have strengthened his body in some way.
"The better my effect..." Gern narrowed his eyes.
"It means someone is probably going to be suffering now!"
.......
New World · Moby Dick · Medical Bay
In the dim cabin, the smell of medicine mixed with blood.
Kozuki Oden lay on the sickbed, his once robust body now displaying a strange pallor, his breathing so faint it was almost imperceptible.
"It's too strange, Oden's physical recovery shouldn't be this bad!" Marco's palm was covered in blue flames, his brows tightly furrowed.
What a joke! How could a monster like pops have such poor recovery?
His pops had already recovered to the point of freely drinking and holding banquets!
While Marco was puzzled, Toki Amatsuki knelt by the bed, her slender fingers tightly clutching Oden's hand, tears silently dripping onto the bedsheet.
In the corner, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi stood in silence.
"Hey, you two." Jozu turned to them, "You haven't said a word since just now; Oden is your boss!"
Inuarashi's ears twitched, but he didn't answer.
He simply kept his gaze on the surging waves outside the porthole, Libo's pink eyes, full of disappointment, seeming to reappear before him.
Compared to seeing you alive as pirates... you might as well have died the day you left Zou on your adventure.
Libo's voice had been echoing in their hearts all this time, piercing them like a knife.
Nekomamushi's claws unconsciously scratched the floor, wood chips rustling down.
He remembered when he had a fever as a child, it was Libo who held him all night, running to town.
The first time they were injured, it was also Libo who, while scolding them as idiots, carefully bandaged them.
At that time, Big Sister Libo always smiled and said: "You must become warriors worthy of Zou's name."
But now... (Mink Tribe are very emotional.)
"Inuarashi! Nekomamushi!" Vista frowned, "What exactly are you two..."
"We heard it!" Inuarashi suddenly growled, his fangs bared ferociously, "You don't need to remind us!"
The cabin instantly fell silent.
Nekomamushi suddenly stood up, his tail bristling: "Let's go to the deck for some fresh air!"
As the cabin door slammed shut, Marco and Jozu exchanged a puzzled look.
Only Toki Amatsuki, as if sensing something, looked in the direction the two had left and sighed softly.
Deck · Late Night
Waves crashed against the ship, and the Moonlight stretched Inuarashi's shadow long.
The veins on his hands gripping the railing bulged, and the wooden railing twisted out of shape.
"Hey, Inuarashi." Nekomamushi squatted on the mast, his tail flicking irritably, "You think Big Sister Libo... really thinks we..."
"Shut up!" Inuarashi punched the ship's side, wood chips flying, "We are members of the Whitebeard Pirates now!
Lord Oden's retainers! Our Mink Tribe identity has long since..." His words caught in his throat halfway through.
The sea breeze brought distant memories—young Pekoms happily spinning around, holding a carrot cake made by Libo.
Little Wanda hiding behind Libo's tail, timidly watching them train...
If even Big Sister Libo looked at them like this, then how would the other companions on Zou look at them?
Nekomamushi suddenly jumped down from the mast and grabbed Inuarashi's collar.
"Then why didn't you dare to look into her eyes?! Back on the island, you clearly..."
"Because I was scared!" Inuarashi roared, his voice trembling.
"Scared of seeing us in her eyes... having truly become 'pirates'..."
Having been with the Whitebeard Pirates for a year, both of them clearly understood what 'pirate' represented on this vast sea.
Although the Whitebeard Pirates were different, a 'pirate' was still a 'pirate.'
Under the Moonlight, the cat and dog stood with hunched backs.
And in the shadows where they couldn't see, Marco silently sighed and turned to leave.