175 Makima and An

"Is Machvise here?"

Inside the Marine Headquarters, Ain, who had just returned from a mission, heard Starjun's words.

At the port, Starjun seemed to be going on a mission as well.

While Starjun hadn't boarded the ship yet, Ain quickly asked, "Why is she here?"

Starjun, wearing the Marine's justice coat, shrugged. "Seems like she came to deliver something called the 'Super Soldier Serum.' She's currently discussing it in the Fleet Admiral's office."

Super Soldier Serum?

Although Ain hadn't seen it, she could tell from the name what it was.

A serum for creating super soldiers?

The World Government was indeed becoming more powerful, but Ain wondered if there was anything Machvise had done to the Super Soldier Serum.

Since the encounter with Coyote Starrk, no, even before that, Machvise's actions in Alabasta had already made Roger somewhat suspicious of her. After hearing Starrk's words, he felt even more that Machvise was not just a simple Admiral of the Blackbeard Pirates.

Dominance...

According to Aokiji and Coyote Starrk, she was related to dominance? And it seemed like she had a sister too?

Now, her sudden arrival allowed Ain to take a good look at this mysterious woman.

Although Roger had met Machvise before, the meetings were too brief, and there was no time to probe anything.

Now she wanted to use her Haki, especially the Color of Observation Haki Roger granted her, which had reached the level of 'weakness perception.' This meant she could see the weaknesses in others' abilities. Regardless of how powerful someone was or their attacks, they always had weaknesses. By targeting these weaknesses, she could easily break through an opponent's defenses.

Besides, she could also analyze a person with her Color of Observation Haki, something she seemed to have gained after battling Aokiji. This ability allowed her to determine if a person possessed devil fruit powers.

She wanted to see what kind of person Machvise really was.

With these thoughts in mind, Ain casually exchanged a few words with Starjun, then quickly headed towards the Fleet Admiral's office.

Advancing into the depths of the Marine Headquarters, Ain didn't reveal her eagerness. Machvise was a woman of mystery and depth, and acting too unusually might make her suspect something.

"Ain?"

As she was about to enter the Headquarters meeting room, a woman was standing at the entrance.

Ain stopped, squinting her eyes as she looked at the woman in front of her.

Machvise...

Was she specifically waiting for her here?

"Admiral Machvise?" Ain pretended to be somewhat puzzled, as if she had never seen Machvise before.

"That's right." Machvise, as if just coming out from inside, looked at Ain and said, "Didn't expect that even the recently famous figure on the high seas knows about me."

She wasn't being humble, but genuinely low-key.

Over the years, as the Admiral of the Blackbeard Pirates, Machvise rarely appeared in the public eye. The few times she did intervene were known only to Roger and the Five Elders. Living in seclusion made her information seem more mysterious.

Except for the initial portrait of Machvise when she took office, all information about her was sealed. Not even the Marines, let alone many members of the Blackbeard Pirates, had seen her.

Ain smiled and said to Machvise, "Actually, before joining the Marines, I did consider joining the Blackbeard Pirates. But after the Marines successfully defeated Aokiji, I thought it would be better to join the Marines."

It was a normal thought. After seeing the news that the Marines had defeated a monster like Aokiji, anyone would think that the Marines were the most powerful organization in the world.

And the most worthwhile organization to join!

Because at that time, the Marines were conducting a massive draft, and joining the Marines was undoubtedly more profitable than joining the Blackbeard Pirates.

While talking, Ain had already begun to use her Color of Observation Haki.

But...

Her heart sank because she found that when facing Machvise, her internal Color of Observation Haki...

Couldn't be used?!

What's going on?

Ain was greatly surprised; she had never encountered such a thing before. It was as if something was blocking her Color of Observation Haki from being released!

"What's wrong?" The shock in her heart seemed to show on her face, and Machvise noticed something was off, asking, "....Nothing." Ain quickly gathered her composure, shaking her head, "Maybe I got injured a bit earlier."

She hurriedly explained, "I saw Roger when I went out to sea just now."

It made sense to bring up Roger because being injured when facing Roger was entirely reasonable. The Roger she faced now was no longer the same as the one from before.

Well, even though splitting into Ain, Roger's combat power was comparable to a somewhat weakened Aokiji. At that time, he should be more powerful than Machvise.

As for other times...

It was hard to say.

In the future, if she wanted to investigate Machvise, she would have to be more cautious.

Thinking this, Ain quickly walked towards the Fleet Admiral's office. Mainly, she wanted to ask why Machvise had come, and what this Super Soldier Serum was all about.