Lesser of two evils
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While Aokiji was showing his ridiculous power once more by creating a road in the water that extended from this island all the way to the next one for the people to leave home.
The Strawhats were currently gathered around Yuki.
"Yuki, what did you talk about with Aokiji for him to accept letting me go?" Robin suddenly asked with a suspicious look on her face prompting Yuki to recall what he had to do to convince the admiral to leave her and the crew alone.
Flashback Starts
"I didn't expect a pirate like you to have conquerors Haki… I wonder if Sengoku-san and the elders would regret accepting you as a warlord if they discover this" Aokiji spoke with a lazy look on his face as if he didn't care, but seeing how he wasn't letting down his guard at all while standing in front of Yuki, it said it all about how much he trusted him…
"That's not what we are here to discuss… Why are you after the Strawhats?" Yuki replied with a sigh, feeling regretful that he had to show one of his powers in front of this admiral but he knew it was needed for him to get this chance to talk…
"I'm sure you already know why, let's not mention that they are pirates and it's my job to hunt them down, but I'm pretty sure you know the identity of Nico Robin… She's a threat to the world government and they want her eliminated" Aokiji replied calmly but Yuki could see the helplessness in his eyes…
'Something must have changed, if I didn't exist in this world, Aokiji would have definitely let them go, so the only thing that might have caused a change in his decision-making and that of the elders is probably my relation to the Strawhats… do they consider me a threat and fear that I might use Robin to discover the true history of the world… This is most likely the consideration I have the strength and the potential to do it'
After countless thoughts flashed through Yuki's head, he raised two chairs with his earth power and gestured for Aokiji to sit down…
'Is this his devil fruit power? Or is it something else?' Aokiji wondered as he recalled Shizue manipulating fire but he was distracted when he heard Yuki say "I know about Robin's past and how you are involved in it"
Aokiji was slightly surprised by this but he allowed Yuki to continue
"I'm sure you already know the dark side of the world government so I don't have to reiterate useless information to you… It's the reason why you are conflicted right now whether you should follow their orders and capture Robin or not, but how about I give you a way out of this and we can both avoid repercussions"
"Oh, you think you have a way for me to abandon this mission and you can keep your position as a warlord after interfering?" Aokiji asked with a mix of intrigue and sarcasm at the absurdity of Yuki's statement, but Yuki had a dead serious look on his face as he nodded and said "Yes, I do"
"Arara, things are getting much more interesting than I expected, go ahead, tell me what do you have planned" Aokiji spoke calmly, and seeing that he wasn't directly refusing his offer, Yuki smiled slightly and said
"CP9 are waiting at the next island the Strawhats are heading to, I already encountered them there, you can say that you left hurriedly because you got this piece of information from me and knew that they can capture her in your place since they are very competent"
Hearing this, Aokiji's eyes narrowed slightly and he asked "You want them to fight the best secret unit the world government has to offer? That's no different than me capturing them here you know?"
"No, I'd rather pick the lesser of two evils and at least give them a chance to fight back against the CP9, but most importantly, it makes it a better reason for you to abandon the mission at ease" Yuki replied calmly but Aokiji still shook his head and said "That's not enough reason for me to abandon my mission…
Hearing this, Yuki smiled slightly and said "I know, which is why I plan to give you another solid reason"
"Go ahead, I'm listening"
"Haven't you noticed the pirate ship that came with me?" Yuki suddenly asked prompting Aokiji to shoot a look at the ship Yuki was referring to and stared at their emblem but it didn't ring any bells in his mind which Yuki noticed so he said
"I guess it's only normal for you not to know them, they aren't that strong with the exception of their captain, and they lack a notorious reputation because they aren't really pirates"
"What do you mean?" Aokiji was truly confused as he could sense the well-organized people on the ship with his Observation Haki 'Are they revolutionaries?' Was the first thought that came to his mind, but Yuki quickly cleared his cloudy thoughts
"These are the knight pirates, they originate from the Kingdom of Lumina…" Yuki quickly explained to him the situation of these pirates and Aokiji's eyes couldn't help but widen and ask
"You seriously want me to accompany you to help the true heir of that kingdom get back to her throne? Why are you helping them in the first place?"
"Yup you can use helping as a reason to abandon this mission, as for you second question, I was bored so I decided to help them that's all" Yuki replied with a slight smile and Aokiji could tell from a mile away that he was lying but he simply shrugged and said
"I guess it's doable, but this won't save your friends from danger" Aokiji replied to which Yuki stared at the merry go docked in the distance and said "Hardships can't be avoided in the sea… They will have to deal with them and grow"
"I agree"
Flashback ends
Yuki stared at Robin silently and said "The road ahead is still dangerous, that's why he accepted my offer… But I'm sure you guys can deal with anything you will end up facing"
Robin had a bad feeling about what Yuki meant, but she didn't pry further after seeing that he wasn't planning to tell them.
Then, he turned to Shizue who was showing Luffy how she can control fire which reminded him of his brother Ace and said "It's time for us to leave… You guys take care"
"Eh… You are leaving already? How about you have some food with us" Sanji said quickly and Zoro added right after "Ah, I want to spare with you as well"
"That's right Yuki, you left without saying goodbye last time, now you can't leave unless we all have a great party!" Luffy yelled before he wrapped himself around Yuki like a noodle…
"Tsk, fine fine" Yuki who was hugged by Luffy instantly changed his plans, but not because of what they said… It was all because the moment Luffy hugged him, his path of evolution ability almost activated and devoured his devil fruit essence if he didn't stop it!
'What's going on? Isn't Luffy supposed to be a rubber man? This might be related to the vision I saw of him when I used my dimensional link on him…Tsk, just what in the hell happened in One Piece after I died?' with these thoughts in mind, Yuki moved with the Strawhats and introduced them to the rest of his crew.
Sanji instantly started simping for the girls, while Nami and Robin instantly fell in love with Dariun…
…
Later that day, they had a great party, and the knight pirates and Aokiji joined them as well which made the atmosphere tense at first but it quickly lightened up when they noticed that he wasn't after them anymore.
Although they could tell it was thanks to whatever brainwashing Yuki used on him…
"Yuki, this ship of yours is amazing, who built it for you?" Usopp asked Yuki suddenly and Yuki replied with a slight smile "Your next island should be Water 7, it's famous for having the best shipwrights…"
"Eh? that's great! Finally, we will be able to repair merry properly!" Usopp said in excitement, and it also made Luffy and the others happy, but it almost made Yuki choke on his food as he recalled that merry was a lost cause… It was irreparable
'Should I tell him and ruin his hopes?' Yuki wondered and he noticed Maou almost seemingly contemplating the same thing and he couldn't help but frown 'This bastard also noticed their ship's in a bad state… No, he probably even noticed that it has a spirit as well, freaking devil just how strong is your analysis ability, I'm sure it got nerfed after coming to this world, yet he's still unfathomable...'
Maou noticed Yuki staring at him and he couldn't help but tilt his head in confusion but Yuki quickly communicated with him through their link "Don't say anything about their ship"
"Okay" Maou replied in understanding which made Yuki feel relieved but it was only a fake hope as he instantly added with a devilish smile on his face "How much are you willing to pay me for this?"
"Y-You… Fine" Yuki replied reluctantly before he faced away from Maou not wanting to deal with this devil anymore and enjoyed the party with his friends…
Zoro exchanged swordsmanship tips with Shizue, and Leon… Sanji enjoyed talking with Kayle about all kinds of recipes, Nami fell in love with the drawings Mashiro showed her. As for Robin, she kept talking with Rize about all kinds of books they read…
Meanwhile, Dariun went to play with Chopper who was guarding the ship during their fight against Aokiji…
A few hours later, the party was finally over and Yuki left with his crew, Aokiji, and the knight pirates while the Strawhats went to water 7 toward their new adventure!
….
On the black pearl ship, Aokiji was standing beside Yuki along with Eden and Leon and she quickly bowed toward them and said "Thank you so much for your help… The marines base in our kingdom didn't believe us and they seemed to be colluding with my uncle, but I'm sure having an admiral would be enough"
"We will see what's truly going on once we get there, I can't believe your words blindly" Aokiji replied lazily causing Eden to clench her fists, but Leon quickly patted her on the back and said "You will see the truth with your own eyes"
With this said, they used an eternal log pose that Eden had and started making their way toward Lumina… The kingdom that once was a huge source of envy for its prosperity, but it wasn't anymore...