Chapter 76: Let's end it here.

[TL/n: Fix it. Thank you for reminder.]

——

In the palace, after Tobul resisted Pikachu's electric shock once again, he quickly retreated.

"Damn it! Why are you so hard to deal with!?"

Staring at the two magical creatures before him, he couldn't understand why these two seemingly harmless little beings were so... powerful!?

Even though he had the strength of a Commodore, he was still no match for Pikachu and Purrloin, unable to resist at all.

"Purrloin, use your dirty tricks and keep him off balance!"

At that moment, Kuro, wielding a steel blade, shouted out his orders to Purrloin.

Behind Kuro, Nami immediately called out, "Pikachu, team up with Purrloin and use Attract!"

"Pika!"

Pikachu responded without hesitation.

In an instant, a barrage of heart-shaped sound waves shot from its mouth, aimed directly at Tobul.

"Damn it!"

Having already experienced the terrifying power of Pikachu's Attract, Tobul didn't dare to face the move head-on. He swiftly blurred his steps, stomping the ground dozens of times, using the "Shave" technique to escape the area.

But...

Purrloin, who was ready for this, had its eyes gleam as it stepped on the ground. A mysterious energy wave suddenly surrounded Tobul, binding him like shackles.

The Dark-type move utilized Purrloin's unique dark energy to interfere with the opponent's mind, making it impossible for Tobul to use the same move consecutively.

"Well done!"

Seeing that Purrloin had successfully blocked Tobul's Shave, Kuro grinned, adjusted his glasses, and praised.

Having realized his attacks were ineffective against this opponent, he cleverly retreated to the background, standing in front of Nami and Carina so that Pikachu could fight without distractions.

Though Nami was aware of Kuro's pirate identity, during the battle, their cooperation was seamless, with each praising the other's skill in commanding their Pokémon.

"What the hell is this power!?"

Tobul was shocked to find himself unable to use Shave again, unable to comprehend the techniques of his adversaries.

Sound waves, thunder, sand, and various interference moves...

He felt like he was fighting two monsters that had consumed multiple Devil Fruits!

No matter which one he faced alone, he was confident he could take them down, but together, these two little monsters were more than the sum of their parts.

At that moment, Pikachu seized the opportunity while Tobul was in shock, quickly building up enough energy.

Without waiting for Nami's command, golden lightning burst from Pikachu's petite body.

"Pika—chuuu!!!"

Whoosh!

A golden flash streaked across the dim night, striking Tobul directly.

Already paralyzed, Tobul's face turned pale.

"Damn it, why are the Marines not here yet!?"

He cursed inwardly.

Seeing the terrifying attack coming his way, unable to dodge, he quickly tensed his muscles.

"Iron Body!"

Boom!!!

The blazing lightning, seemingly alive, turned into serpents of thunder, slithering over Tobul's body.

The iron-hard body that had always been invincible suddenly dented deeply, his eyes bulging outward as if pressed from within.

Brilliant lightning illuminated the castle surroundings, lasting for more than ten seconds before beginning to fade.

"Damn... pirate..."

Tobul muttered with a twisted expression as he staggered forward two steps.

After 40 minutes of battle, his strength finally gave out, and he lost consciousness under the full-force Volt Tackle.

"..."

"..."

The dark night sky and faint moonlight rendered the scene eerily quiet.

At that moment, time seemed to stand still.

After a long pause, Kuro adjusted his glasses, showing a look of disbelief.

"Did... we win?"

Seeing the formidable Tobul defeated by two Pokémon, it all felt strangely unreal to him.

Nami, however, wasn't surprised, her mind focused on more pressing matters.

After exchanging a glance with Carina, they both nodded in unison.

Nami suddenly said, "Captain Kuro, thank you for your help!"

"Let's split up now, okay?"

"Huh?" Kuro was taken aback and subconsciously replied, "No, Miss Nami, there are still plenty of supplies in the treasure room. We should move them before the soldiers return!"

He clearly still considered Nami and himself to be on the same team.

Although it was the usual case, Nami had more urgent matters today.

She gently shook her head, resisting the urge to grab the treasure, and smiled bitterly:

"No, we have other things to attend to."

With that, she signaled to Carina, and the two hurriedly left.

"Well, okay then," Kuro said, a little disappointed.

The cooperation between Pikachu and Purrloin had been an eye-opener for him.

Moreover, Nami's Pikachu was much stronger in battle than his Purrloin, making him consider further cooperation with Nami.

But since Nami insisted, he had no choice but to give up.

However...

It was as if fate was playing tricks on them.

Nami and Kuro had barely parted by ten meters when a lazy voice echoed through the palace, accompanied by a chilling cold air that felt like it emanated from the abyss.

"Hey~~"

"It's so late at night, can't you guys give a break?"

"After all, even if I work overtime, I don't get paid extra..."

Zhi... zila...

A patch of frost mysteriously appeared on the palace's stone pillar.

Next to Nami and Kuro, a tall humanoid ice sculpture suddenly materialized...

Zii..ziii.

With the sound of breaking ice, the sculpture slowly took human form.

Aokiji looked at the unconscious Tobul on the ground, pulled out a radar-like device, checked it, and said wearily:

"Seems like I'm a step too late..."

"Then..."

He glanced around, spotting Nami and Kuro.

"Were you two the ones who defeated the World Government's intelligence agent?"

"Who are you!?"

The moment Aokiji appeared, both Kuro and Nami were back on high alert.

They exchanged a glance, instantly agreeing to continue working together.

But...

This time, they weren't facing a World Government lackey like Tobul.

Instead, they were up against...

One of the true titans of the pirate world—the Admiral, Aokiji!

Ignoring Nami's question, Aokiji, lazily disinterested in answering, extended his hands towards Nami and Kuro.

"Sorry, you two."

"But I'll have to ask you to take a little nap now!"

"Ice Capsule!"

Whoosh!

A terrifying wave of cold air suddenly burst from Aokiji's palms, enveloping Nami and the others in an instant.

In just the blink of an eye, Nami and the others were frozen solid, turned into ice sculptures.

"Pika!!!?"

Pikachu, caught off guard, froze in shock. By the time it realized what had happened, Nami had already been encased in ice.

Pikachu's eyes widened in horror.

This couldn't be happening...

Someone had actually hurt its trainer!?

An inexplicable pang surged through Pikachu's heart.

It all happened so suddenly that its mind went blank.

But then...

Tears welled up in Pikachu's eyes, streaming down its cheeks uncontrollably.

"PIKA, PIKA, PIKA-CHU!!!"

Boom!!!

With a heart-wrenching roar, immense thunder filled the entire space.

Under the influence of psychic power, Pikachu's physical potential surged, and its level skyrocketed!!!

Despite being newly born, it instantly broke through from level 10 to level 25.

Its eyes crackled with unparalleled electrical power as it glared at the one responsible for all this.

Whoosh!

Lightning tore through the void.

The thunder, now a spear capable of piercing anything, shot straight for Aokiji's head.

"Huh? A mouse that ate a Devil Fruit?"

Aokiji remained unfazed as the lightning closed in, not even bothering to move.

Click...

The sound of breaking ice echoed.

The thunderbolt, which had been aimed with deadly precision, pierced Aokiji's head, falling to the ground and revealing a panting Pikachu.

But Pikachu's eyes trembled for a moment.

The shattered ice that had been Aokiji's head quickly reformed, his body unscathed.

At that moment, Butterfree, who had been keeping watch high above, sensed something amiss and rushed into the palace.

Seeing Nami, now frozen as an ice sculpture, a flame of anger ignited in its enormous ruby-like eyes.

"Piii!!! (Nami!!! Damn it!!!)"

The aged Butterfree, no longer caring for its deteriorated body, unleashed a terrifying aura upon seeing Aokiji facing off against Pikachu.

As a former Quasi-King, even Aokiji couldn't underestimate its presence.

 "Another one?"

  Aokiji frowned for a moment, realizing something was wrong.

  Thinking of the information he had just received, he suddenly had a guess in his mind:

  "Could it be that these two strange animals are all that magical Pokémon?"

  However...

  Butterfree was blinded by anger. And Pikachu didn't give him much time to think at all.

  The terrifying energy instantly condensed in front of Butterfree, aiming at the location of Aokiji with a destructive aura that devoured everything.

  And Pikachu's body also burst out with thunderous light, filling the entire space like the incarnation of thunder and lightning!

  Seeing that everyone on the left and right were going to kill him, Aokiji said that he was really innocent.

  He just froze the two and prepared to interrogate them later.

  Why does it seem like the hatred for killing his father or taking away his wife?

  After all, it is a case related to the Celestial Dragons, and Aokiji is not sure that the enemies of the Celestial Dragons people are the bad guys.

  But seeing that the moves on the left and right have been fully charged, they will be launched towards him in the next second.

  Aokiji had no choice but to shake his head in his heart, spread his hands, and his eyes suddenly darkened!

  "Frozen time capsule..."

  Boom! ! ! !

  In an instant, the frosty air that was enough to freeze everything burst out from Aoki's body, like a tsunami, rushing towards the figures of Butterfree and Pikachu.

  The long-prepared destructive death ray and 100,000 volts were also shot out instantly, fighting against the cold air.

  The mighty energy fluctuations surged through the castle, making the whole castle start to shake as if it had been shaken.

  However...

  even though Butterfree and Pikachu had exhausted all their strength, and even burst out with more powerful power out of anger...

  but facing the world's top combat power, they were still crushed instantly.

  The cold air overshadowed the energy beam with the aura of destruction, freezing the power of thunder and lightning that pierced the void, and continued to surge towards Butterfree and Pikachu.

  "Alas... I'd better let you calm down first." Aokiji sighed.

  He planned to freeze these two creatures that were suspected of being Pokémon, including, of course, the little kitten that looked like a human being.

  Against the grain of tradition, pack it up and take it back, ask what happened, and then find a way to give the Celestial Dragons an explanation.

  However, at the moment when the cold air was about to envelope Butterfree and Pikachu...

  a crisp finger snap suddenly sounded.

  Snapped!

  It seems to come from heaven and earth, but it rings in the ears of all people (beasts).

  Immediately afterwards, a young man stepped across the void and appeared in front of Aokiji.

  Looking at Butterfree and Pikachu, the young man smiled and said,

  "Please give me some face."

  "This is a premature battle..."

  "Let's end it here."

(End of this chapter)