Summary:
Admiral Aokiji informs the Straw Hats that although the World Government does not take them too seriously at the moment, he has analyzed them and has assessed that they are a group of very determined individuals. Although there are only a handful of them, the trouble the Straw Hats have managed to cause leads Aokiji to believe that they will become a serious threat. He notes that the Straw Hats have grown at an extraordinary rate in the short time since Luffy received his first bounty; and though they’ve only fought other pirates so far, he wonders what the future holds for them if they decide to pursue another quarry. Usopp wonders what this is all about since Aokiji was just out for a walk, and Aokiji adds that the Straw Hats are especially dangerous now that Nico Robin has joined them. This sets off Luffy to fight, now fully convinced that the Admiral is here to take his crew member away. Aokiji also ignores this and continues to speak directly to Robin. It makes clear that the reward is not only a reflection of the threat one poses in combat, but also an indication of how dangerous you are to the world government. Aokiji points out the fact that Robin received a very high reward despite being only 8 years old and survived all these years by betraying her partners and using them as tools. With that being said, he directly asks Robin if the Straw Hats are her new tools to achieve her goals. Sanji is outraged by the attacks on Robin’s character and questions the admiral about what Robin did to him. Aokiji claims she escaped from his custody earlier after he arrested her, but that’s a story the Straw Hats will soon learn. She goes on to point out that every group Robin has ever associated with has ended up completely destroyed, with her being the only survivor. This further angers Luffy, who claims that the past doesn’t matter. This prompts Aokiji to point out that Robin has already gained the group’s trust, at which point Robin has had enough. She asks the admiral what he’s trying to do when she takes over his body with “Treinta Flores (30 Flowers)”, reaching out her arms to grab his limbs and neck. Usopp is mad that Robin would do that to an admiral, while Aokiji himself casually laments that he thought Robin would be smarter than this. As Robin uses the “clutch” to break his back and neck, Aokiji collapses into a pile of ice on the ground.
Chopper and Usopp react frantically; Chopper thinks he’s really dead and Usopp wants the group to run away immediately. Aokiji slowly recovers from the ice much to Usopp’s dismay. Grabbing a handful of grass, he tosses it aside and blows cold air on the pieces to freeze them onto the sword. Aokiji tries to slice Robin, but Zoro blocks the attack. Sanji follows up with a kick to disarm the admiral while Luffy prepares to attack as well. However, Aokiji grabs Sanji’s leg and Zoro’s arm, just before Luffy manages to land a “Gomu Gomu no Bullet” into the Admiral’s stomach. The strike does not move the admiral at all; instead, Luffy’s hand freezes from contact with his body as he freezes Sanji’s leg and Zoro’s arm. Nami notes that the Admiral took out all three of their strongest members in one move as they all collapsed in pain. Chopper states that they need to be treated immediately or they will never properly heal. Aokiji tells Robin that she’s made some good friends this time, but she’s still herself. Robin tells the admiral that he is wrong, but before she can finish her sentence, he wraps his arms around her and freezes her.
Luffy is completely enraged by the Admiral’s actions, however Aokiji tells him that Robin will live as long as she is properly thawed. At the same time, however, he notes that her body is very fragile, and if it disintegrates, she will die. Aokiji then tries to smash Robin with his fist, though he says it like he’s doing a hypothetical demonstration. Luffy arrives barely in time to move Robin, but they’re still right next to Aokiji, so he tries to follow up with a stomp to destroy her body. This time, Usopp arrives at the last second to move Robin out of the way, leading to Luffy getting stomped. Luffy rolls away from Aoki and tells Chopper and Usopp to immediately get Robin back to the ship to thaw. Aokiji tells the crew not to bother saving a woman like Robin. Nami tries to hit the admiral with her Clima Tact, saying that the pirate world is full of women like Robin. Aokiji questions how much Nami knows about this pirate world before casually tossing her aside. This brings Zoro and Sanji into action again, but Luffy stops them both and tells them that he wants to fight the admiral alone. Luffy then asks Aokiji to settle the matter “man to man”. Aokiji agrees, but warns Luffy that the fight will be to the death.