Chapter 104: I’m Just Here on Vacation

No matter how fast they fled, they could never outrun Kizaru’s speed.

A chill wind surged forward, cutting in ahead of Mord and Sunny.

Suddenly—without warning—that cold gust transformed abruptly into a towering wall of ice, forcibly blocking their path.

Startled by the sudden ice barrier, Mord and Sunny slammed on the brakes.

Before the ice wall, a dense cluster of cold air coalesced, reshaping into Kizaru’s form once more.

Shedding his usual lethargy, Kizaru quickly shifted from his elemental state back into solid form.

His towering figure, over three meters tall, cast a vast shadow over Mord and Sunny’s faces.

An oppressive chill radiated mercilessly, freezing the air itself and suffocating anyone nearby.

Mord’s right hand swiftly gripped the hilt of his Thousand Birds blade, while Sunny raised her gun in a flash, aiming at Kizaru and pulling the trigger without hesitation.

Bang!

The bullet pierced through Kizaru’s body as if it were nothing, failing to make any impact.

In Kizaru’s eyes, Mord and Sunny’s overreactions resembled two frightened beasts bristling at danger.

He looked at the two youngsters with resignation.

“Let’s just talk this through. Why the gunfire—”

Before he could finish, Mord suddenly drew his Thousand Birds sword, enveloped it in swirling energy, and slashed fiercely.

Shing!

A clean, decisive cut appeared across Kizaru’s abdomen.

At least, that’s how Sunny perceived it.

But in reality, the gash on Kizaru’s body wasn’t caused by Mord’s blade. Kizaru had preemptively shifted his body into elemental form, creating a hollow space that allowed the sword to pass through harmlessly.

This is a common tactic among Logia-type Devil Fruit users to evade Haki attacks.

After the futile strike, Mord didn’t hesitate to grab Sunny’s arm and swiftly retreat.

Watching this, Kizaru scratched the back of his head.

A visible surge of cold air spread from his feet, rapidly extending beneath Mord and Sunny, forming a layer of ice emitting white mist and biting chill on the ground.

Suddenly trapped by the freezing surface, Mord and Sunny lost their footing as they tried to retreat, sliding several meters before coming to a halt.

Fortunately, they remained uninjured.

Yet Kizaru’s repeated restraint made them painfully aware that their chances of escape were slim to none.

Mord sprang up from the ice with a grave expression, staring at the seemingly lethargic Kizaru.

With their current strength, escaping under the watchful eye of a Marine Admiral was nothing short of a fantasy.

Mord also roughly guessed why Kizaru kept holding back.

“Is he trying to use us to threaten Thor...?”

The thought flickered through Mord’s mind. He clenched his teeth, calculating any possible means of escape.

Though the odds seemed bleak, he refused to surrender quietly.

Noticing that the two youngsters appeared to give up fleeing, Kizaru ceased spreading the chilling aura further.

“Don’t get so worked up—I’m not planning to harm you,” he said, genuinely without intent to attack.

But he seemed utterly unaware of the weight his identity carried.

In such a situation, for a Marine Admiral to suddenly appear in elemental form and claim no hostile intent—

Who would believe that?

Different positions yielded vastly different perceptions.

Not to mention the overwhelming pressure that came with his rank.

Mord simply did not trust Kizaru’s words.

Silently, he untied the rope binding Belly, who was curled up in terror.

After freeing him, Mord held the plump creature up close and whispered, “Run. You’re just a pet—no one will hurt you.”

With that, Mord forcefully tossed Belly out beyond the icy boundary.

Belly tumbled several times before stopping.

He looked up blankly at Mord and Sunny standing on the ice, speechless.

Escape...

It seemed to be the only option left to him.

Gritting his teeth, Belly steeled himself and turned to flee.

On the ice, Kizaru glanced at the fleeing ferret.

“Was that remark meant for me?” he wondered.

Shrugging, he turned his attention back to Mord and Sunny.

“Well... how to put it... I’m just here on vacation. Thought I’d check out this rare big event.”

He tucked his hands in his pockets and tilted his head toward the direction where Karp and Thor were.

“I wasn’t supposed to intervene, but if you two run off, I imagine Mr. Karp would have quite a headache. So, please cooperate and don’t make things difficult for me—especially you.”

Kizaru suddenly shot a glance at Mord, who was poised to strike.

“That slash earlier wasn’t a joke.”

Mord tensed sharply.

Kizaru remained indifferent, scratching his cheek with a finger as he resumed watching the battle between Karp and Thor.

From here, they couldn’t see much—only the sounds of combat.

It was rather dull.

Maybe he should bring these two kids to the tallest building nearby?

But then, would he be shot down for that?

Better to have someone else cover for him.

Kizaru thought with slight frustration.

Compared to watching over these two, he much preferred witnessing the epic clash between Karp and the mysterious gunman.

Kizaru’s casual demeanor surprised Mord.

This was not what he had expected.

Mord had thought Kizaru intended to use them as leverage to force Thor’s surrender.

Instead, he only wanted them to stay put.

Was the plan to force Thor into a desperate fight?

If so, wouldn’t it be better to threaten Thor directly with their lives?

Is this what the Marines call justice?

Regardless, escape was impossible, and fighting back had no chance.

Heeding Kizaru’s nonchalant warning, Mord knew that another attack would provoke Kizaru to stop holding back.

This thought troubled Mord deeply.

The situation wasn’t dire, but far from favorable.

At least it was Kizaru blocking them, not Akainu.

“Mord,” Sunny said, reloading her gun and looking at him expectantly.

At some point, she had grown more reliant on Mord’s decisions during their stealthy operations.

Mord shook his head subtly, signaling her not to act rashly.

Sunny nodded softly, then shifted her concern to Thor and Belly.

“Mord, do you think Belly can run fast, being so fat? The pirates in town are fleeing in panic—what if Belly gets trampled to death?”

Mord’s eyelid twitched.

“Seriously, now’s not the time for that...”

Though exasperated, he could see Sunny was genuinely worried about this seemingly absurd possibility.

He offered a quiet reassurance.

“He should be fine. After all, Belly does a hundred push-ups and sit-ups every day.”

“Mm,” Sunny replied softly.

Just then, Kizaru looked over.

His gaze turned serious as white mist seeped from his arms, quietly forming a thin layer of frost.

“I’ve thought it over. Indeed...”

Kizaru’s sudden change startled Mord and Sunny.

“I want you to come with me.”

He spoke and strode toward them.

He had decided to return to the tallest building.

Only there would the view be truly expansive.

At that moment, a bullet flew in from a distance, arriving in the blink of an eye.

“Ah, dear.”

Kizaru’s eyes shifted, and he promptly dispersed into elemental form, scattering in all directions.

The bullet struck the ice beneath.

Crack!

The power of a single bullet shattered the ice spreading over a hundred meters.

A few meters away, Kizaru reformed his figure, warily eyeing the bullet’s origin.

“I told you, I’m just here on vacation.”