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"Aren't we going a bit too far?"
Viola smiled and looked at Ginrummy and Kalifa beside her.
"Hehe, what does it matter? Isn't it interesting?" Kalifa laughed.
"Um, are we bullying Perona?" Ginrummy asked, tilting her head.
"Is that even a question? You're clearly just making fun of her," Belo Betty said, crossing her arms and nodding seriously.
"Didn't you join in too?" Kalifa said to Belo Betty in an annoyed tone.
The two of them could now be considered to be on the same side, but Kalifa had once been a member of CP9, while Belo Betty had come from the revolutionary army. Because of that, Kalifa's tone toward her inevitably came out a bit sharper than intended. Belo Betty didn't seem to mind in the least.
"I thought this was meant to be seen by Captain Ikki on purpose," Ginrummy said.
"Well, we've found an honest one," Nico Robin said with a smile, turning to look at Ikki. "Captain Ikki, you must be very happy."
"Ahem. I've enjoyed a beautiful view. My mood will naturally improve quite a bit," Ikki said, rubbing his nose as his gaze drifted between Ginrummy, Viola, and Kalifa.
It wasn't hard to guess why Ginrummy looked the way she did. Viola made sense too, since she had always wanted to properly thank Ikki for saving Dressrosa and her family. But Kalifa's bold display was another matter entirely, one that didn't come easily, and so Ikki cherished the moment, determined to properly appreciate her charm while he had the chance.
"Is that really enough?" Nico Robin asked. "Would you like me to do something a little more enjoyable for you?"
She placed her hands beneath her chest and pushed upward as she spoke. Ikki turned to look at her, and for a moment it seemed as though two hands had sprouted from the buttons of her shirt, straining desperately to keep the fabric from bursting open.
"Ahem, now isn't the time," Ikki said. "I'll stay here a little while longer, then head back. If Marine Headquarters can't find me, it might cause some trouble. Besides, we can't keep Astolfo waiting next door forever."
At that moment, Ikki found himself half hoping Astolfo really was a woman after all, if only so he wouldn't feel guilty leaving him alone in the next room.
"Really? What a shame," Nico Robin said, chuckling lightly. "In that case, Captain Ikki, you should make the most of the scenery while you can."
She went back to training alongside Kalifa and the others as though no one else were watching, gradually shedding pieces of her workout attire as she went. Aside from the crew members who planned to return to Marine Headquarters with Ikki, everyone else soon joined in as well, and before long the view in front of him had reached its peak.
Unfortunately, no matter how beautiful the scenery was, there was still only so much time a man could spend enjoying it. Once that time had nearly run out, Ikki made his way over to Belo Betty. There was something important he wanted to discuss with her.
"Oh my, out of so many beautiful girls, you're choosing me?" Belo Betty said, stepping off the exercise ball and eyeing Ikki with curiosity. "Should we go next door for something more in depth?"
She was, at the moment, completely naked, but she usually dressed boldly regardless, and she genuinely hoped her charm might work on Ikki. So she stood there in front of him without a trace of shame.
"Belo Betty, I have something serious I want to talk to you about," Ikki said, his expression turning solemn.
"Isn't in depth communication a perfectly legitimate thing to want?" Belo Betty joked, before settling into a more serious mood. Ikki's expression told her this really was important, and privately, she was pleased.
If she could help him now, it would likely make him even more well disposed toward her, and by extension toward the Revolutionary Army as a whole. That kind of goodwill would make it much easier for the Revolutionary Army to ask favors of him down the line, or at least that was what she hoped.
Her time with Ikki so far had been short, but his character wasn't hard to read. He was the type to return help in kind, and the more help he received, the more he gave back. At that thought, Belo Betty found herself almost hoping the favor he wanted would turn out to be complicated. The more effort the Revolutionary Army put in now, the more they could ask of him later.
"Go on, Ikki, what do you want?" she asked seriously.
"Belo Betty, you have contact information for other Revolutionary Army members here, don't you?"
"I do. Do you want me to reach out to other revolutionary forces?"
"If it's possible, I'd like to ask the Revolutionary Army to make contact with the Whitebeard Pirates."
"The Whitebeard Pirates? Ikki, aren't you supposed to be teaming up with the Marines to deal with them right now?" A flicker of doubt crossed Belo Betty's face.
The main force fighting the Whitebeard Pirates was indeed the Marines, but since Ikki was a Shichibukai, he had every potential to join that fight himself, and unlike the other Seven Warlords of the Sea, he had far more companions standing with him. If anything, it seemed more likely that the Whitebeard Pirates already resented him and his crew. Belo Betty felt that reaching out to them now would be unwise.
"I originally planned to have a proper fight with the Whitebeard Pirates," Ikki said, shaking his head. "It's just a shame the World Government doesn't intend to let me fight the way I want."
He told her what he had heard from Blackbeard and the World Government's agents.
"So that's how it is. The World Government plans to discard us once we've served our purpose," Belo Betty said, frowning. "What a despicable way to operate."
She didn't doubt what Ikki had told her, not because she simply trusted him, though she did, but because the World Government was exactly the kind of institution that abandoned its allies the moment they'd outlived their usefulness.
"Ikki, what exactly do you need me to do? I'll do whatever I can."
Belo Betty's eyes were filled with determination. There would inevitably be plenty of difficulty ahead where the Whitebeard Pirates were concerned, but for the sake of her friendship with Ikki, she was ready to do everything she could to carry out his request.