"Alright then, Mike-san, we'll see you at Fish-Man Island!"
Vista gave his shoulders a quick shake to get the dust off, a big, cheerful grin plastered on his face.
When he looked at Mike, his eyes were shining with a level of respect and admiration that was impossible to miss.
As one of the top dogs in the Whitebeard Pirates, Vista was a master swordsman who had sharpened his skills in more bloody battles than he could even remember.
And yet, that one single sword slash from Mike earlier—the one that looked like a giant blue dragon tearing the sky apart—had shown him crystal clear just how massive the gap in their power really was.
It wasn't just a gap; it was a canyon.
Looking at Mike, Vista sighed to himself.
'He's a true prodigy. A monster.'
'With a guy like Mike in the Marines' he thought, 'the future is going to be seriously terrifying'.
What's more, Mike had already gotten the stamp of approval from the Old Man, Whitebeard himself.
And for the Whitebeard Pirates, the number one rule was simple: whatever the Old Man says, goes.
His word was absolute law for all his "sons."
Jozu who was standing nearby even cracked a small smile, which was a huge deal for a guy who usually looked like he was carved from stone.
He gave Mike a respectful nod.
"Captain Mike."
Mike noticed all these little shifts in their attitude, and a flicker of amusement danced in his eyes.
'So this is the famous charisma of Whitebeard? Make friends with the boss and the whole crew treats you like family.'
'Interesting.'
After a moment, he couldn't stop himself from asking, "So, are you guys heading straight back to the New World?"
Vista let out a hearty laugh, his voice booming with energy.
"Yeah, we're heading back right now! We'll see you at Fish-Man Island, for sure. When you get there, I'll introduce you to all the other division commanders. They're gonna love you!"
Ace stepped forward too, crossing his arms with an eager look on his face.
"Yep, I'm a little worried about the Old Man's health, so I'm gonna go back and check on him first. After that, it's back to hunting Teach. That bastard is not getting away from me."
Mike looked into Ace's determined eyes and nodded slowly.
Ace was choosing to head back to the New World before he went after Blackbeard again.
'Okay', Mike thought, 'so the giant war that almost burned down the whole world won't be happening right away.'
But, he knew as long as Ace refused to give up the chase, the clock was still ticking.
The Summit War was still coming.
It was inevitable.
Mike's gaze went distant, as deep and unreadable as the ocean.
The only person on the planet who could possibly stop Ace was Whitebeard.
But knowing Whitebeard's personality, how could he ever let a traitor who hurt his family just walk away?
That pride was etched into his very bones.
Trying to talk him out of it would be like trying to push a mountain.
Mike muttered quietly to himself, "When we get to Fish-Man Island and meet Whitebeard, I'll bring it up. I'll at least try. I'll have done my part."
A short distance away, Ace was saying his goodbyes to his little brother.
"Luffy! When you make it to the New World, you better come find me, you hear?" Ace yelled with a grin.
"We gotta get going now!"
He paused, and his fun, big-brother expression suddenly vanished, replaced by a deadly serious one.
He lowered his voice.
"By the way, Luffy." Ace's eyes couldn't help but flick over to where Mike and Kuzan were standing, a look of deep caution on his face.
"The guy standing next to Mike is an Admiral from Marine Headquarters—Kuzan, the 'Blue Pheasant,' Aokiji."
"From what I hear, Admiral Aokiji is the most reasonable of the three Admirals," Ace continued, almost whispering.
"If even he is here and basically signing off on what Crocodile did… then this whole mess in Alabasta might be a lot more complicated than what you told us."
Ace gave his hand a little shake, as if trying to get rid of a bad feeling.
But the one image that was stuck in his head was the moment Mike had swung his sword.
That Azure Dragon had lit up the entire sky, it was brighter than the sun.
At that moment, even with him, Vista, and Jozu all attacking at once, they had barely managed to stop it.
And he knew, deep down, that Mike hadn't even been trying to kill them.
If that slash had been for real, would the three of them still be standing here?
Ace honestly didn't know the answer.
"Luffy." Ace stared at his brother, his voice low and firm.
"No matter what you do, do not pick a fight with them."
He almost never talked to his beloved little brother like this.
All the teasing was gone, replaced by the heavy responsibility of an older brother trying to keep his family from getting killed.
He knew that kind of power was way out of Luffy's league.
Ace knew how stubborn Luffy was.
Once he got an idea in his head, it was almost impossible to stop him.
But he had to try. He had to make him understand that there are some people in this world you just can't afford to mess with.
Provoking them meant you die.
Period.
"You can't handle that kind of power at your level," Ace said, his eyes burning with intensity.
"Remember that! And whatever you do, don't provoke Mike."
"Got it, Ace," Luffy said, scratching his head.
He looked at his brother's super-serious face.
"I'll ask Vivi about it to make sure." He could tell this was a big deal, so even if he didn't totally get it, he gave a vague nod.
Zoro stood nearby, frowning, not saying a word.
He could feel the weight behind Ace's words—that mix of respect and fear you only have for a true monster.
As a swordsman, he felt it more than anyone.
The image of that "Azure Dragon Strike" flashed in Zoro's mind again.
It was like watching the sky itself get torn in half.
Even though he saw it with his own two eyes, he couldn't track the blade's path at all.
All he felt was the crushing pressure, like a tsunami coming right for him.
That move, just like that "Mugetsu" thing he'd seen before, was on a whole other level of existence.
It was so far beyond his understanding it was like it was from another dimension.
"Another move I can't even begin to understand..." Zoro gritted his teeth, pure frustration bubbling up inside him.
"… could Mihawk even see that attack coming? I don't know..."
His fists clenched so tight his knuckles turned white.
That feeling of being left in the dust, of the goalpost being moved a million miles away, sparked a dangerous flicker of doubt in his heart.
Even for a guy as confident as Zoro, seeing two impossible sword techniques back-to-back was starting to mess with his head.
'Can I… can I really ever catch up to Mike?'
Just as Zoro was starting to sink into that dark pool of self-doubt, a hand slapped down hard on his shoulder.
—Thwack!—
Zoro's eye twitched as he looked up.
It was Sanji, and for once, he had a serious look on his face as he stared at Mike.
"Hey, moss-head," Sanji said, blinking.
Then a smirk started to creep onto his face.
"If I dyed my hair silver-white, you think I'd look as cool as Mike did just now?" As he said it, he couldn't resist running a hand through his blond hair like a movie star.
Zoro just stared at him for a second.
He glanced over and saw Nami and Vivi literally squealing, with hearts in their eyes, as they stared in Mike's direction.
"..."
Zoro rubbed his forehead, his lip twitching.
'These idiots', he thought.
'They're not even focused on his god-tier strength! They're just freaking out over his fucking hair!'
To be fair, the moment Mike had transformed, with the silver hair and that regal aura… even Zoro had to admit, he looked incredibly handsome.
But was that really the point?! That slash is soooo overpower!
Shouldn't they be freaking out about that?!
Zoro snapped back to reality and glared at Sanji, who was now striking different poses, lost in his own little fantasy world.
"Tch—" Zoro crossed his arms. "Give it up, curly-brows. Your face is miles behind his."
Sanji's face immediately went dark.
"What did you say, you damn moss-head?!"
"Was I wrong? Look at Mike's face. Now look at yours! It's not even close!"
"You bastard! You directionally-challenged swordsman!!"
"I'll teach you a lesson today!"
"Bring it on! Who's scared of who?!"
BAM—!
BAM—!
Two fists rained down from above, slamming into Zoro and Sanji's heads at the same time.
They both hit the dirt hard, with giant lumps instantly popping up on their skulls.
"SHUT THE HELL UP, BOTH OF YOU!!" Nami roared, standing over them with her hands on her hips.
"You're too damn loud! You're ruining our view of Mike's perfect face!"
"..."
Just then, Kuzan, having finally shaken himself out of his own daze, strolled over.
His deep, sharp eyes landed right on Vivi.
"You're the princess of Alabasta—Nefertari Vivi, right?"
Vivi was a bit startled to be addressed by the famous Admiral Kuzan.
She nodded, lifting her chin with a calm and respectful air.
"Admiral Aokiji... yes, I am."
"I'd like to discuss the situation in Alabasta on behalf of Crocodile," Kuzan said, his tone casual.
"After we're done, I'll head to Alubarna to have a word with your father, King Cobra."
"Go ahead," Vivi said, bracing herself.
Kuzan's eyes flickered for a moment.
"It's about Crocodile becoming Alabasta's true 'guardian deity.'"
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