From an ordinary point of view, handing her body over to Arton and letting him do whatever he wanted with it would undoubtedly mean Arton was the one taking advantage.
Even if Arton was a very handsome man, he had already been with many women.
Looking at herself, she was still an innocent maiden.
No matter how she looked at it, interacting with Arton that way meant Arton was the one getting the better deal.
But from a practical standpoint, Arton's template really could let a person grow at a rather terrifying speed.
If Gion could obtain a template, then even if Arton stopped mentioning her name in the Navigation Diary in the future, Kujaku felt that through her own efforts, she would still be able to make the template's power manifest.
Once she developed the abilities of her Devil Fruit, Kujaku was confident she could become a powerful Marine.
She even felt that if she were given enough time, she might be able to clash with the Emperors someday.
Even if that might take a very long time, her strength would definitely grow in the short term.
By then, whether she was facing enemies or trying to protect herself, she would have plenty of advantages.
If she really relied on the template to save her life during some operation, then Arton giving her that template would be a life-saving favor.
No matter how she thought about it, that kind of favor was much greater than something like offering her body.
"So if I can get a template from Arton, does that mean I'm the one taking advantage?"
Kujaku bit her thumb and murmured to herself.
"Kujaku, what are you mumbling about?"
Gion patted Kujaku on the shoulder and asked curiously.
"N-Nothing."
Kujaku shook her head again and again, completely unwilling to voice the embarrassing thoughts in her heart.
Seeing Kujaku's behavior, Gion understood her well enough to realize there was no way she had no problem.
But Gion was a mature woman. Since Kujaku did not want to talk, she had no intention of pushing the issue to the end.
After all, Gion herself also had many secrets, especially secrets related to Arton.
So even if what Kujaku was thinking was most likely connected to Arton, Gion had no intention of digging too deeply into it.
"Since you've come back to your senses, let's continue chatting in the diary."
At Gion's reminder, Kujaku hurriedly focused her attention back on her copy of the Navigation Diary.
[Gion: I think capturing Arton and handing him over to the World Government would be an extremely inappropriate thing to do. Arton's power can clearly be used to carry out justice. It would be far too great a pity if he were eliminated by the World Government.]
[Kujaku: If Arton's power disappeared just like that, it really would be a bit of a waste.]
[Gion: After Arton disappears, this world probably won't become better. There will still be plenty of pirates running rampant on the seas. After all, the power of the Marines and the World Government is not absolute in this world.]
[Kujaku: That… Sis Gion has a point.]
Kujaku sighed.
Even if she did not want to admit it, she had no choice but to acknowledge that point.
If the pirates on the seas really were so easy to wipe out, the World Government should have done it long ago.
After all, the World Government had already existed for hundreds of years.
In all that time, the World Government still had not succeeded in completely purging the seas. That alone showed just how difficult such a thing was.
...
Chapter 709: Gion Feels Comforted by Kujaku
If the pirates on the seas really were that easy to clean up…
Then Garp, Sengoku, Tsuru, and the others should have managed it already.
Kujaku let out a quiet sigh in her heart. After Gion's reminder, she had no choice but to admit that reality.
As a Marine with more seniority, Gion had naturally realized this point long ago.
However, in the past, she had never thought too deeply about it.
After going through something like Arton, though, she could not help beginning to think carefully.
Since neither the Marines nor the World Government could bring absolute peace to this world, what would happen if they relied on Arton's power instead?
[Gion: Unlike the Marines and the World Government, Arton has extraordinary potential. As long as he keeps writing in the diary, both his own strength and the strength of his companions can become extremely powerful.]
[Gion: Sooner or later, they'll grow so strong that no one in this world will be able to rival them. Even if all the strong people in this world joined forces, they still wouldn't be able to match them.]
[Gion: Kujaku, you should still remember the Serval template Arton obtained before.]
[Kujaku: Of course I remember. Serval's power of fate is a cosmic-level power.]
Although Arton had mentioned before that even if the power of fate was a cosmic-level power, possessing that power did not mean someone could automatically become a cosmic-level powerhouse.
But that was only under ordinary circumstances. Now Arton had copies of the Navigation Diary, and Arton and Arton's companions could conveniently become stronger.
As small gains accumulated, the person who obtained Serval's template would one day grow into a cosmic-level powerhouse.
By then, what would the people of this sailing world be able to do against them?
It couldn't possibly be a Marine Buster Call.
Something like a Buster Call was useless even against slightly stronger New World powerhouses.
There was even less need to mention using it against a cosmic-level powerhouse.
Kujaku raised her head and looked at Gion. By now, she more or less understood what the woman in front of her meant.
[Gion: Arton and Arton's companions will eventually become powerful enough. If he can use that power to protect the peace of this world in the future, I think letting them destroy the World Government wouldn't be impossible. Those people can't be called peaceful anyway.]
She was going all out…
[Kujaku: And if Arton uses his power to control this world, no one will be able to jump out and resist him either. Besides, judging from the personality Arton has shown so far, he won't become someone like the World Nobles.]
[Gion: You finally understand, Kujaku.]
[Kujaku: More or less.]
[Gion: It's good that you understand. Aside from the things I mentioned, I also hope the Marines will no longer suffer losses or even be destroyed because of opposing Arton.]
[Kujaku: After all, whether we can capture Arton is still unknown. If both sides keep maintaining the current situation, the chances of the Marines' position becoming extremely dangerous will only grow higher and higher.]
[Gion: And as time passes, he'll only become stronger and stronger. The chances of him accepting our proposal to cooperate will also grow smaller and smaller.]
[Kujaku: So if we want to become Arton's collaborators, we have to act as quickly as possible. That said, even if we really decide to do this, how are we supposed to win Arton over? Sis Gion, he's even made a move on you before.]
...
For every 50 Power Stones → +1 extra chapter.