Sure enough, as soon as Vir finished speaking, he hoisted Marco up.
He was about to toss him straight into the giant pot!
But just as he swung Marco around, a hand suddenly lashed out toward his head.
Seeing this, Marco’s face instantly lit up with boundless hope!
’I think I can hold on now!’
’I don’t need any more treatment!’
But just as that hand was about to strike Vir’s head—
A long, slender leg suddenly appeared, kicking the hand away.
"Boa Hancock?! What are you doing?!"
Momousagi stared blankly at Hancock, who had appeared out of nowhere, completely baffled by her actions.
"What are YOU doing?! How dare you try to harm my most... no! How dare you ambush this man?!"
"This one is now an ally of the Marines! That makes him my comrade! I will not tolerate you harming him!"
Hancock glared down at Momousagi with a cold expression.
Hearing this, Momousagi was even more confused.
What, are you suddenly a model worker now?
Weren’t you just slacking off this whole time?
"That’s my little brother!"
Momousagi shouted, then sidestepped the stunned Hancock and delivered a solid slap to Vir’s head.
"You idiot! Put him down right now! Killing him would be one thing, but if you dare humiliate the commander of the Whitebeard Pirates’ First Division , they will never let you off the hook!"
"Even if they don’t do anything now, they’ll hunt you down later!"
She spoke with grave sincerity, staring straight at Vir.
Her words struck a chord with Marco.
’If you keep this up, the Whitebeard Pirates won’t let this slide.’
’I’m the First Division commander!’
’This beautiful lady is speaking nothing but facts!’
’Say more! Slap him a few more times! I’m begging you!’
"I want to eat a phoenix."
Vir didn’t elaborate.
That one sentence was enough.
Momousagi didn’t find it strange—after all, her little brother was a lunatic!
She was about to give him a proper scolding when—
Vir suddenly crouched down.
At the same time, a pale, slender leg swept past where his head had been, slamming straight into Momousagi beside him!
"I just said I wouldn’t tolerate you harming him!"
Hancock’s voice was low and dangerous as she launched her attack.
Caught completely off guard, Momousagi barely managed to block but was still sent flying!
Hancock winked at Vir before charging straight at Momousagi.
Seeing this, Marco’s jaw dropped.
’What the hell! I thought a savior had arrived!’
’But she’s gone just like that!’
’How the hell did Hancock recognize him even after he changed his face?!’
’She even winked at him!’
’I wouldn’t have recognized him without the code phrase!’
’Is this what women are like?!’
What Marco didn’t know was that a certain stunning woman had already discovered Vir’s presence shortly after he appeared.
"Alright! Let’s get started!"
Vir grinned mischievously at Marco.
With a flick of his foot—
Straight into the pot.
Green onions, ginger, garlic, cooking wine, soy sauce—all sorts of seasonings were tossed in without restraint.
Marco, now submerged in the pot, was utterly dumbfounded.
’Are you fucking serious?!’
’You’re actually cooking me?!’
’You even added oil! This can’t possibly be treatment!!!’
Meanwhile, the shrunken, invisible Chiba was also bewildered.
When he saw his older sister suddenly appear, he thought it was over.
He was worried his Big Boss might end up fighting her.
But when Hancock suddenly stepped in to help, he was even more confused.
’The most beautiful woman in the world... helping me?’
’Did she fall in love with me at first sight?’
’Is my appearance that captivating? Enough to make the world’s most beautiful woman instantly devoted to me?’
But after Vir smacked him twice, he stopped thinking that way.
’...Okay, maybe it’s not about me.’
’Wait, what’s Big Boss doing?’
’Is he really going to eat a phoenix?’
’That doesn’t seem right.’
’Rumor has it he’s on good terms with the Whitebeard Pirates, right?’
’Would he really kill Marco?’
’Then... is he actually...’
When this thought crossed Chiba’s mind, he rejected it outright.
But the more he thought about it, the more it seemed like the truth!
Given Big Boss’s absurd methods...
Using a sword to impale someone... could that actually be a form of treatment?
And it wouldn’t raise suspicion.
It’s a phoenix—even if it gets stabbed, not bleeding would be normal.
And while boiling a giant bird in a pot seems even less credible than stabbing...
With Big Boss, maybe even that can be considered treatment.
The more Chiba thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t spot anything unusual.
Big Boss was only adding cooking ingredients—nothing related to treatment.
How was this supposed to heal Marco?
Indeed, some of the more cunning individuals suspected Vir might be up to no good—like Kong, for instance.
But Vir, from start to finish, acted as casually as if he were cooking at home.
Adding just the right amount of everything.
Not a pinch more, not a pinch less.
Kong, who was skilled in cooking, took one look and concluded that this dish wouldn’t taste bad at all.
There was simply no room for suspicion.
This kid was so straightforward it felt almost sinister!
He could make poison that doubled as juice.
Turning medicine into seasoning? Hardly a challenge.
Two seconds, and it’s done.
Old Marco, just enjoy it.
As for heating the pot?
Chiba happened to be a Devil Fruit user.
The kid had eaten the Steam-Steam Fruit, becoming a Steam Human.
He could produce all kinds of random steam.
Vir could simply use his lightning to instantly vaporize water, creating the illusion that he was using the Steam-Steam Fruit’s powers.
Soon, the pot began to heat up.
Before long, it was glowing red.
While carefully maintaining the temperature, Vir used the nearby ice blocks to make himself a large chair.
He settled at pot level, looking down at the increasingly uncomfortable Marco inside.
Vir gave him a helpless look.
"Don’t worry! You’ll be flying again in no time!"
Hearing this, Marco didn’t respond verbally.
Instead, he mouthed a few words.
Judging by his lips...
It was probably "FML"
Hah! Learned a new skill.
Lip-reading mastered, he was practically a genius now.
Vir shook his head in amusement.
As he did, he cranked the heat up to maximum.
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