Chapter 573 - 752 – An Overwhelming Pressure, Almost Like Conqueror’s Haki

Earlier, while Hina was washing herself in the bathroom and helping Arton clean up as well, Tashigi whispered some things about the Flame-Blade Pirates into Hina's ear.

Naturally, that included which crewmates had already entered negative-distance territory with Arton, as well as which ones were still eagerly waiting for the distance between themselves and Arton to become negative.

Now that she knew all this, Hina naturally felt she should avoid doing anything that might cause trouble.

Fortunately, she felt that her physical condition would not prevent the pain from fading quickly. After a while, she would at least be able to walk normally again.

That was enough.

"Now that everything's settled, you two should go rest in the room first," Arton said. "I'm going back to the deck to help everyone."

After venting thoroughly, Arton felt refreshed and invigorated. Since that was the case, he naturally had to go help the others.

If he never helped with sailing, even Arton would start feeling like he was not doing a very good job as captain.

Just as Arton was about to leave, Hina grabbed his hand.

"Is there something else, Miss Hina?"

Arton looked at her curiously.

"Well…" Hina's face flushed as she spoke somewhat bashfully. "Captain, you probably still haven't been completely satisfied, have you?"

"Hahaha, how could that be?"

Arton rubbed the back of his head.

"Don't worry about me. I can tell you're not satisfied yet either."

Hina shook her head.

At such close range, if she could not even sense Arton's condition, then her perception truly would have been cultivated for nothing.

It was obvious that Arton had held back earlier out of consideration for her body and had not used his full strength.

Tashigi could help shoulder some of the burden, but there was naturally a limit to how much she could handle.

In the end, Arton was still left with plenty of energy.

"Why don't you come to the room with us?" Hina suggested with a smile, stroking her cheek. "I can think of another way to make you feel satisfied, Captain."

"Another way?"

Arton raised an eyebrow.

"Actually… I made sure to clean out my bowels beforehand."

Hina lowered her head and spoke in embarrassment.

"Although we can't engage in actual combat for the time being, I can still manage a little practice."

Arton froze on the spot when he heard her words.

With everything he knew, how could he possibly fail to understand what Hina meant?

He simply had not expected her to possess that kind of knowledge as well.

She could even clearly distinguish between actual combat and practice.

What Arton did not know was that Hina had acquired that knowledge entirely for his sake.

He stared blankly ahead, wondering where exactly she had learned such things. By the time he snapped out of it, he was already inside the room with Hina and Tashigi.

Hina had long since assumed a position that left her ready to strike.

"Then I'm going on the offensive, Captain. Please enjoy my new technique."

The moment she finished speaking, Hina directly launched her attack.

Arton instantly felt a powerful impact, along with an intense pressure that almost seemed like Conqueror's Haki bearing down on him.

He closed his eyes, his brows knitting together slightly as the corners of his mouth trembled, as though he were enduring something.

His expression was reflected in Hina's eyes, naturally filling her with immense excitement.

After all, this was also a form of recognition for her.

For Hina as she was now, managing to make Arton react like this was something truly worth celebrating.

Arton still had no idea what she was thinking. Had he known, he probably would have been just as delighted.

"This really is… impressive."

Arton let out a long breath.

Although Hina's actions had surprised him, he had encountered something similar before. So even though his opponent was Hina, a highly renowned Marine officer, Arton quickly calmed down.

"You're amazing, Arton. As expected of you."

Hina looked at his current state and could not help sighing in admiration.

She had originally assumed Arton would at least reveal an ugly, flustered expression, yet the result was completely different from what she had imagined.

Looking at Arton now, Hina could almost already picture her own defeat.

In the end, that was exactly what happened.

Hina tried extremely hard to display the powerful physical abilities she had forged while training under Z, Zephyr, but the gap between her and Arton was not something that could be closed in a short amount of time.

With Arton as her opponent, there was naturally no way for her to imitate him and win through sheer endurance.

Even if Arton were compared to Hina and Tashigi from before, Hina still would not have been able to win.

In the end, Hina had no choice but to give up and let Tashigi take over.

"Damn it. I'll still have another chance in the future."

Hina shook her head and collapsed.

Although Arton was incredibly powerful, Hina believed that as long as she kept persevering, the day would eventually come when she could personally make him foam at the mouth.

She believed that with enough effort, she would eventually be capable of accomplishing that no matter what technique she used.

Just like Tashigi.

…

Some time later, Arton returned to the deck with Hina and Tashigi.

The moment everyone noticed the three of them, they immediately came over to greet them.

"You're finally here, Captain."

"We've been waiting for you for quite a while."

Nami stood with her hands behind her back, sounding slightly resentful.

"Hehe, what's the rush?"

Uta bounced over and said, "Hina was locked away for so long. She must have had plenty she wanted to say to Captain."

"And I'm sure she had plenty she wanted to say to Tashigi too. It's perfectly understandable if they needed a little more time."

"Besides, we haven't been waiting that long. We only just left the dangerous waters and entered a safe area, didn't we?"

As she spoke, Uta winked suggestively at Arton, Hina, and Tashigi.

Given her understanding of Tashigi and Arton, she did not believe the three of them had refrained from doing anything exciting during all that time in the cabin.

Uta was also one of Arton's intimate companions, so she did not care about one more person joining them.

"You really do indulge Captain."

Nami did not know Uta's true intentions. After hearing her explanation, she could only shake her head helplessly.

"All right, all right. Hurry up and start the banquet. I can't wait any longer."

Uta bumped Nami lightly with her elbow and urged her on.

The thought that Arton, Hina, and Tashigi might have done something together in the cabin made Uta feel restless.

She could no longer wait for the banquet to begin.

Once it started, everyone's attention on Arton would lessen. Then she could naturally drag him into either an intense game or a more relaxing one without many people noticing.