Faced with Gern, the terrifyingly formidable lineup of every member of "Calamity" behind him, and their undisguised resolve to wage war against the World Government-
"Whew..." Kuzan sighed, stepped forward, and stood shoulder to shoulder with Garp.
As he took that step, freezing cold instantly radiated outward from beneath his feet.
A thick layer of solid ice rapidly formed over the ground and spread forward!
Then even half his face began turning into his element, becoming covered in crystalline ice.
His breath carried biting shards of frost, and his voice grew as cold as the winter wind. "Gern..."
"Sorry."
"These are... orders!"
Though he apologized, his actions had already made his position clear.
He would carry out Marine Headquarters' orders and stop Gern!
Beside him, Kizaru watched Garp and Kuzan, each looking more solemn than the other, putting on an act as if they really intended to fight for their lives.
He couldn't help covering his face with one hand and groaning helplessly. "Ooh~ Honestly... forget it, forget it!"
His words were mumbled, but they positively reeked of going through the motions.
Thinking about it, though, that made sense. If they really wanted to stop Gern, they could have sent anyone. Yet they had specifically sent these three...
One was Garp, who had helped teach Gern and probably couldn't bring himself to strike a killing blow.
One was himself, who never put in any effort if he could slack off instead.
And the last was Kuzan, who looked quite serious right now but might not have much loyalty to the World Government deep down...
Fleet Admiral Sengoku certainly put some thought into this lineup...
Kizaru grumbled inwardly, but he still had to keep up appearances.
So the king of slackers sighed deeply, instantly transformed into countless dazzling golden photons, and