At that moment, the group chat grew active again.
[Sadi: Arton may have obtained Shirou Emiya's powers, but in the end, he isn't Shirou Emiya. Shirou Emiya's motto is "to be a hero of justice," but Arton's motto is to "repay favors and take revenge on enemies." It's better not to expect Arton to join the Marines just because of the Shirou Emiya template. If we want him on our side, we'll need enough power and enough appeal for him to choose us willingly.]
[Doll: Exactly! Even if Arton isn't like Shirou Emiya himself, at least it means that if we don't provoke him, he's unlikely to attack. He's not like those savage pirates in the New World.]
[Kujaku: By the way, what's going on with Captain Nezumi? Gion, did he follow your orders? If we get to the 16th Branch before he returns, traveling to Cocoyasi Village might be delayed.]
[Gion: He said he's going back to the 16th Branch, but apparently the Celestial Dragons gave him some sudden tasks to handle first.]
Gion frowned slightly at the mention of Captain Nezumi. She sensed something off in his words.
[Doll: In any case, we'll head to the 16th Branch first. If that guy Captain Nezumi is late, we can leave an adjutant to wait for him there.]
[Kujaku: That's all we can do! Hope that dyeing my hair and putting on makeup will be enough to keep Arton from realizing I'm actually a Marine.]
[Hibari: Really…think it'll work?]
[Gion: One way or another, we have to seize this chance. We will succeed!]
Even so, Gion herself wasn't a hundred percent certain. All she could do was hope that Hibari, Kujaku, Tashigi, and the others would stay focused when they made their move.
Sighing, Gion flipped open her Diary Copy.
A brand-new photo was posted at the top: Arton, Carina, Nami, Kaya, and the others were gathered on the deck of the Sylvan. Carina and Nami had their hands locked together, each trying to best the other, apparently bickering about something. Uta stood off to one side, covering her mouth in a mischievous giggle and holding a platter of fresh fruit.
Meanwhile, Arton lay flat on the deck, resting his head in Kaya's lap. Kaya's cheeks were tinged pink as she used her medical-nin style technique to rhythmically press certain pressure points on Arton's head.
"He's really living it up, isn't he…" Gion murmured, gently brushing her fingertip over Arton's face in the photograph. "I hope you'll 'live it up' enough to slow down your arrival at Cocoyasi Village, Arton."
…
Aboard the Sylvan – The Flameblade Pirates.
"Nami, move it! Today's my turn to feed Arton some fruit!" Carina pressed her palms firmly against Nami's, both glaring at each other, refusing to back down.
"Are you forgetting something, Carina? It's my turn this time." Nami's lips curved into a slight smile, but a vein pulsed on her forehead as she refused to yield.
"Go, Nami! Go, Carina!" With the fruit platter in hand, Uta was blatantly stirring the pot as she cheered them on. Whenever she got bored, she popped a grape into her own mouth.
"Sure is lively, wouldn't you say, Kaya?" Having just closed his Sailing Diary System, Arton lifted his head from Kaya's lap to look up at her. Except, he couldn't really see her face—only two tall mountains blocking his line of sight.
"C-Captain Arton, I mean…it's fine if you need me to help you recover your energy, but must you lie on my lap?"
Kaya asked, her face aflame. When she lowered her head to look at Arton and found her own body in the way, her blush only deepened as she realized what he might be seeing.
"Don't worry about it. I don't mind at all," Arton said with a grin.
Kaya: "…" But I mind! And especially when Carina and the others can see us…
She swallowed those thoughts and switched the subject in a low voice.
"Aren't we supposed to be prepping for something, though? Once word gets out you defeated Mihawk, a lot more people will be paying attention to you—maybe the Navy, the World Government, or powerful pirates could come after you."
Kaya knew that word of Arton's victory over Mihawk had already reached various factions—she just couldn't mention the Diary Copies outright. So this was the only way she could hint at her concerns.
But Arton, who had no idea the Diary Copies existed, didn't give it a second thought.
"Heh, I just fought a grueling battle, so I'd rather not worry about any of that right now," he said, laughing. "To put it simply: Can't I enjoy a bit of relaxation after such a tough fight? The side effects from beating Mihawk can wait until later. Right now, I want a proper rest."
He yawned contentedly and added:
"Specifically, I just want to keep resting on your lap, Kaya, and enjoy your medical-nin technique."
Kaya's ears turned red at that. Then, all of a sudden, Arton did something that made her entire body blush.
"By the way, Kaya…these two things here—haven't they gotten bigger?"
Arton spoke as he couldn't resist lifting his right index finger and giving one of them a playful push upwards.