Chapter 208 Epilogue (Final): A Good Captain
I want to drink!
As soon as he pushed open the door, Luffy loudly demanded without any politeness. Ace, who was more socially adept, quickly covered Luffy's mouth, glanced around, and smiled at Sabo, saying, "Juice is fine."
"Then we'll have three special mixed fruit juices. Could you give us a corner seat?"
“No problem, Lord Sabo.” The waiter clearly recognized Sabo and smiled as he led the three behind a patch of greenery. “Your mixed fruit and vegetable juice will be served shortly.”
Sabo smiled and nodded: "Thank you for your help."
Lord Sabo...
Luffy and Ace exchanged a glance, pondering the way that person had addressed Sabo.
Luffy: That's so cool! From now on, he'll make everyone call him Lord Luffy!
Ace: It seems Sabo has gone through a lot during the time he was out of contact...
After the drinks were served and the waiter politely left, Sabo gently stirred the juice in his glass with the wooden spoon and said frankly, "I've lost a piece of my memory."
Ace opened his mouth. Although he had a vague guess from Sabo's previous behavior, he still felt a little... bitter after hearing Sabo admit it himself.
Has Sabo forgotten about him and Luffy, forgotten about them drinking together and becoming sworn brothers?
"I had an accident, I think I hit my head, which caused me to lose my past memories."
Sabo briefly recounted how he was saved by Mr. Dragon and then entrusted to Violet by him.
Ace: "...So, is there any possibility of recovering that memory?"
"Hmm? Hmm!" Sabo nodded affirmatively. "The chances are very high. Many doctors have examined him, and this amnesia is not pathological. There is a possibility of recovery at any time."
“Actually… after seeing you all, I felt a sense of familiarity.” Sabo smiled. “It seems that in the part of my lost memory, we had a very good relationship.”
"Of course!" Luffy nodded firmly. "We're brothers!"
"Yes, Sabo, we're brothers who've drunk together and sworn oaths together."
Drinking? Sabo recalled the age when Mr. Dragon found him...
"It seems I wasn't such an obedient child before. But it's so good to see you all again... If I hadn't lost my memory, I would definitely say that. Of course, even now, this is my true feeling."
Sabo harbored a deep-seated worry that he was a damned bastard before he lost his memory, just like the blood-stained nobles he and Mr. Dragon overthrew.
Now, seeing Luffy and Ace sitting across from him, the heavy worry that had been weighing on his heart vanished.
He can become friends with people like Luffy and Ace, so he can't be a bad kid, right? Well, excluding underage drinking, he must have been led astray by Luffy and Ace.
“Perhaps the stories from the past will help me recover that memory, and I’m also very curious about our past experiences.” Sabo blinked expectantly. “Can you tell me about the adventures we went through together, the oath we made when we became brothers?”
Those memories recorded by time have not disappeared, just like the history and knowledge on this island that were burned by gunfire. One day they will be unearthed again and treasured in his own memory palace.
“Of course!” Ace’s eyes lit up. Great! Even with his memory loss, Sabo was still very interested in their past. He believed that after hearing their story, Sabo would remember even more. “We have so many interesting adventure stories…”
"Me too, me too, I want to speak too!"
Sabo smiled as he looked at the two men in front of him, who, according to them, were supposed to be called brothers.
The seed, buried in a dark environment, felt the sunlight shining on the soil and struggled to grow upwards.
The forgotten past is like an old photograph thrown into developing solution, from blank to blurry, then from blurry to vibrant and lifelike, finally leaping before his eyes and pulling him to that dangerous back mountain with tigers and crocodiles.
Standing opposite him were two tiny, two-headed kids, their faces covered in mud and their clothes filthy. Beside them lay bottles of unlabeled liquor, seemingly from nowhere. Luffy and Ace simultaneously raised their full goblets and looked at him.
Sabo chuckled, raised his glass in imitation of them, and looked down at the spicy liquid reflecting his face.
Minors shouldn't drink alcohol... Never mind, this won't happen again.
——
Bang!
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't notice there was someone in front of me."
Kuina, who was looking forward to seeing the precious sword manual, didn't pay attention to her surroundings and bumped straight into a girl opposite her.
Kuina, who had practiced swordsmanship for many years, had an extremely stable lower body. After regaining her senses, she not only immediately regained her balance, but also reached out and caught the orange-haired girl she had bumped into.
"How are you?"
When Nami snapped out of her dizziness, she saw a pair of bright eyes filled with concern.
"Hello, hello?" Kuina had a bad feeling. Had she accidentally knocked someone stupid?!
Thinking about it, having grown up in a sword-making school and later dealing with pirates at sea, I really don't know what the physical condition of an ordinary person is like.
Kuina had a nightmare before about a little girl whose face she couldn't see falling down the stairs and dying so suddenly. Maybe, just maybe, an ordinary person who hasn't exercised could actually cause some problems from such a simple bump.
"Don't move! I'll take you to a doctor right now!"
"Huh? Wait, what... put me down right now!"
Before Nami could react, the girl who had bumped into her picked her up with one hand! The sudden increase in height made Nami clearly feel the surprised gazes falling on her, and realizing that she seemed to have become the focus of attention, Nami felt like she was about to die.
"Seriously!" Nami, who had been put down and was pulling Kuina away from the crowd, raised her hand to touch her burning cheek. "You're such a weirdo..."
"I'm sorry." Kuina awkwardly gripped the sword at her waist. "I'm willing to apologize for my offensive behavior, and compensation is also acceptable!"
Nami, who was about to turn and leave, suddenly stopped when she heard the word "compensation".
Although a year ago, Nami successfully got a job as a draftsman on the R'lyeh Fruit and Vegetable Express Line thanks to her superb talent in chart drawing, and her stable monthly income greatly relieved the pressure on her adoptive mother.
However, on the one hand, there are many things that need to be added to the house, and on the other hand, Nami wants to continue learning about chart drawing. The relevant books are either rare editions that are not available to the public, or they are so expensive that Nami is afraid of them.
Nami is still short of money.
Nami looked at Kuina. Although Kuina was only wearing a practical outfit, Nami could tell from the sword at her waist and her aura that she was a wealthy person.
A sly glint flashed in her eyes: "Hmm... since you put it that way, then you'll have to pay me back with a book."
A book?
Kuina, who had already amassed a considerable fortune since becoming a pirate hunter, nodded: "No problem, pick whatever you like."
Even if Nami wants the kind of rare item that only appears at auctions, that's fine too.
Of course, Nami wouldn't ask for such an exorbitant amount. She took Kuina to a bookstore and showed her a copy of "The Complete Collection of Sea Charts".
"A sea chart... Nami, you can draw sea charts?"
Kuina's heart skipped a beat. She had long felt that sparring with pirates in the East Blue was pointless. Especially after Violet defeated Im and the Revolutionary Army overthrew the Celestial Dragons, the pursuit of those brutal pirates intensified significantly. Those pirates active in the four seas were either captured or, before being found, chose to venture to the Grand Line.
To find a more suitable opponent, she must go to the Grand Line.
However, Kuina was focused on swordsmanship training, and her navigation skills were only enough to keep her from getting lost in the familiar East China Sea. She was completely helpless when faced with the unpredictable weather of the Grand Line.
"Nami, have you ever thought about going to sea?"
After the two left the bookstore, Kuina looked at Nami, whose face was beaming with joy and who was engrossed in the world of books, excitedly tearing off the plastic wrap as if she had been starving for a long time and was immersed in the world of books. Suddenly, she asked...
"Go...go to sea?" Nami was a little confused. Whether it was her or Kuina, the premise of coming here was to go to sea.
Therefore, the "going to sea" that Kuina mentioned is not a simple trip along a predetermined safe route, but rather refers to...
Nami: "The Grand Line?"
Kuina: "The Grand Line".
The two of them spoke the same place at the same time, and this unexpected tacit understanding surprised them both. Then, they both burst into laughter outside the bookstore.
Kuina composed herself and looked at Nami, formally inviting her, "I am a swordsman who wants to go to the Grand Line to find a suitable opponent, but I am completely inept at things like judging routes and observing the weather. Nami, do you have any plans to go to the Grand Line?"
After Kuina finished speaking, she pointed to the book in Nami's hand: "Although I haven't studied this area, I think that no matter what skill it is, knowledge from books alone is not enough."
Just like swordsmanship, understanding the sword manual is one thing, being able to use it during sparring at the dojo is another, but being able to apply it in battle, find the right moment, and achieve final victory is yet another.
Kuina once suffered a loss because she was too confident in her experience in sword manuals and dojos, and almost had her arm cut off by a vicious pirate.
Even today, the scar on her arm is still clearly visible, reminding Kuina that she still has a long way to go on the path of kendo.
Nami, who was invited by Kuina, was also very tempted. She knew that Kuina was right. Her colleagues had suggested more than once that she could go to the four seas, or even the Grand Line, to experience the weather, ocean currents, and reefs firsthand. R'lyeh Fruit and Vegetable Line could keep her position and even provide some financial assistance for her studies.
What prevented Nami from setting off, besides her worry about Bellemere and Nochiko, was that Nami herself believed she didn't possess any remarkable fighting skills and that venturing into unfamiliar and dangerous waters would easily lead to encounters with villains.
But if Kuina were there...
Nami: "Is Kuina inviting me to go to the Grand Line...? Kuina wants to be the captain?"
Captain? Hmm, although she wasn't sure exactly what a captain of an adventure party did, Kuina felt that her personality wasn't really suited to be a captain.
"I still prefer to be a swordsman."
"Then we'll need to find at least one more captain... uh, and maybe we'll also need a cook, a doctor, a helmsman, and a musician?"
Kuina stood there blankly, silently calculating in her mind how big a ship would be needed to prepare rooms and supplies for Nameti's crew.
Oh no, it seems her savings can't buy such a big ship.
“How could I possibly let you pay for everything?” Nami nudged Kuina with her elbow, and after Kuina looked over, she deliberately coughed to clear her throat. “Since I’m also part of the crew, I’ll be included in the fundraising.”
Kuina's eyes welled up with tears: "Nami..."
Just then, two young boys walked over one after the other.
"So, Luffy, are you still going to the final island? Didn't you hear what Sabo said..."
At that moment, when he and Luffy were taking turns telling Sabo about their past adventures and their visions for the future, Sabo's expression turned a little strange for a moment when he heard that Luffy was planning to set sail to find the final island and become the third person to conquer it.
Sabo's ambiguous smile, his barely suppressed laughter, and the guilt beneath it were all so complex that even someone as oblivious as Luffy could tell something was wrong.
Under Luffy and Ace's persistent questioning, Sabo had no choice but to surrender and share inside information about R'lyeh with the two of them.
"Island owner, cough, we're planning to open a tourist bus route."
After defeating the final boss and collecting almost all the crop seeds, the restless Violet decided to create a "R'lyeh Tourist Route." She enthusiastically stayed up all night with Law and Sabo, writing down four tourist routes: "Underground Cave Adventure," "Four Seasons Boss Challenge Route," "Shadow World Challenge Route," and "Final Island Journey."
Luo and Sabo, after seeing Violet's travel itinerary: "..."
In order to prevent this newly opened tourist route from becoming a route to hell and reincarnation, Luo and Sabo ignored the island owner's reluctant gaze and ruthlessly cut the remaining three routes, keeping only the safest one.
Sabo, under Ace's "No way" gaze, looked at Luffy and nodded heavily: "It's the one that leads to the final island."
In other words, if Luffy had been even slightly slower, he could have paid to board R'lyeh's ship, wearing a small hat and carrying a small flag, and boarded Laugh Tale with a guide.
Ace originally thought Luffy would be disappointed by this, but to his surprise, Luffy remained enthusiastic upon hearing the news, saying that he wanted to go to the final island before the R'lyeh tourist route opened, and then check out the other three tourist routes that Sabo mentioned had been cut.
"Thank you for telling me all this, Sabo! I will ascend to the final island, conquer the underground caves and the Shadow World, and I will defeat all those seasonal bosses you mentioned!"
Luffy was not disappointed by the news Sabo brought. He wanted to go to the final island for an adventure, not only because it was the land Roger and Violet had once set foot on, but more importantly because it represented the end of all adventures.
He didn't care whether others would be able to reach the island more easily in the future; his adventure would not end because of that.
More importantly, the other three routes mentioned by Sabo have deeply attracted Luffy.
"Of course, I'm serious!" Luffy nodded vigorously. "Time is running out, Ace, come aboard my ship and become my crew member!"
"...Do you have a boat? I'll get on your boat."
Ace was speechless for a moment, then a eager smile appeared on his face: "But Luffy, it's impossible for you to be the third person to land on the island..."
"Because I will be the third person to land on the island!"
"What?! Damn it, you wait, I'm gathering the crew and setting off right now!"
Nami and Kuina exchanged a glance as they listened to their conversation.
"I think we're thinking the same thing?"
"yes."
Kuina's gaze fell on Luffy: "My intuition tells me..."
"He would be a good captain."
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Now the main story is truly finished. What follows are the different "what if" scenarios for various characters [shy emoji].
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