Chapter 39
Marco and the others must have mentioned that you stayed in your room and didn't go out for dinner. The next morning, you received fruit from Harta, which he didn't know where he got it from, as well as aromatherapy that Izang sent, which had a sleep-aiding effect, and "dried food" made by Sachi that could be stored for a long time and could be considered as snacks.
Sachi also tells you that you can use the kitchen tools and ingredients whenever you're hungry. Just as Sachi says this, Ace, whom you haven't seen for a few days, comes to visit you, his freckled face showing longing for the "ingredients" Sachi mentioned.
"Can I eat food from the kitchen anytime?"
Upon hearing this, Sachi chuckled and rhythmically tapped Ace's hair with his fist.
“Even if I don’t allow it, you’ve been doing it for a long time.”
As Ace feigns pain and cries out "Ouch!", you once again experience the warmth and care that only a large family can provide from the Whitebeard Pirates, and you can't help but chuckle at the bickering between Ace and Thatch.
Upon hearing the sound, Ace stopped arguing with Sachi, took out a folded newspaper from his pocket, and started talking to you while unfolding it.
"I'll show you a funny news story."
Under your and Sachi's watchful eyes, Ace turned to the page he wanted you to see and placed it in front of you. Guided by Ace, you focused your gaze on today's headline in the newspaper.
The accompanying picture shows Hawkeye, whom you once saw in the newspaper, Shanks, who seems to have been neglected and is hiding in a corner after not seeing him for half a year. Next are Beckman, Yasopp, and Lu, who are not far from Shanks and shaking their heads helplessly. There is also Rem and Hongo, who are squatting in front of Shanks and seem to have no way to deal with him.
The title is even more interesting.
"Even the redhead is afraid of passive-aggressive behavior, suggesting a possible rift between him and Hawkeye?"
After you read the title aloud, Ace and Sachi, amused by the title, burst into laughter. Ace even recounted the conversation he had overheard on the deck when they arrived.
"Isn't it funny? Everyone says Morgans wrote this because he didn't want to work there anymore."
The familiar naming style reminded you of news articles from the days when smartphones were still around, even though the "suspected collaboration between the two" mentioned in the report was unrelated to the headline. As Sachi glanced at the newspaper, a certain keyword brought something back to mind.
"Speaking of which, Shanks called Pops and said there was treasure on a nearby island that Pops would be interested in, and Hawkeye was on Shanks' ship. Was that because of that?"
While you were still analyzing the information revealed in Sachi's words, Ace, who was only listening to the parts that interested him, revealed an eager smile.
"Are we going to compete with Shanks for it? That sounds interesting!"
It was as if they would definitely fight if they bumped into Shanks. Before you could respond to what Ace said, Ace turned to look at you, his eyes filled with undisguised worry.
"But you were on Shanks' ship before. If we were to fight, would you get a headache seeing Shanks?"
Sachi didn't say anything, but like Ace, his eyes revealed undisguised worry. If you didn't know you boarded the ship as "Ace's friend," you'd probably suspect they thought you were a new intern.
"It's better if I don't get off the ship. After all, I can't help much, and getting off the ship would only cause you trouble."
You're talking about having to consider your safety during battle, but Ace's thoughts wandered elsewhere.
"Ah, we've been caught on camera by the news, so now we're the ones who kidnapped the families of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
As Ace punched his left palm with his right fist, Thatch punched the top of Ace's head with his fist. Accompanied by Ace's cry of "Ouch!", Thatch, who hadn't held back his strength this time, wasn't as easy to talk to as before.
"Don't bring up news from six months ago. Sorry, Ace meant no harm."
Clearly, Sachi did this because of you. Six months ago, you probably would have been alarmed if someone brought it up in front of you. But after spending six months on an unknown island without being found, you've stopped taking it seriously.
"It's alright, I'm more curious about what kind of headlines this news agency will come up with. Every time I see these interesting headlines, I have a feeling of coming home."
The two people who extracted keywords from your words each asked different questions.
Sachi: "The illusion of being home?"
Ace: "Speaking of which, you still haven't told us which sea you're from?"
This is probably the first time since you set sail that someone has asked you a question related to "home." It's quite a coincidence, you seem to have only forgotten what happened before you woke up in Crocodile's, but you remember things about the original world very clearly.
Is it selective amnesia? Lacking medical knowledge, you put the question out of your mind and responded to the two of them with a deliberately mysterious smile.
"Perhaps you can guess, and if you guess right, I'll tell you?"
Ace, who was still wondering if he had said something wrong, smiled brightly after hearing your suggestion.
"If someone says that, they usually won't say it. I'm not going to guess."
Having vaguely guessed what was going on, Sachi pulled Ace up from the chair and, amidst Ace's cries of "Why are you pulling me away?", explained why they were leaving the room.
"It's almost time. There's going to be a big banquet on the ship tonight, so we should go and prepare the ingredients."
"You always sneak into the kitchen to eat, so you should at least help out this time, right?"
Ace, convinced, gave up struggling: "Eh, okay, I got it."
Before officially leaving, the two reminded you to attend the banquet on the deck that evening. After receiving your affirmative reply, they closed the door and left you to rest in the room.
-
Pirates don't need a reason to hold a banquet; at least among the pirates you know, they can hold a banquet for any reason. Even so, you still feel a bit uncomfortable in this kind of setting. But the advantage of the Whitebeard Pirates' ship is that it has nurses, and the crew members who accompany them will come up when they hold a banquet.
That's how you met Whiteybe, who, despite being a woman, managed to intimidate pirates including Marco.
Since it was your first time meeting her, you, sitting with the nurse, cautiously observed Whiteybe, who was drinking with Marco and the others. It wasn't until Whiteybe caught a glimpse of you out of the corner of her eye that she broke away from the lively group of people drinking with her and walked over to the table where you and the nurse were sitting.
"So you're Ace's friend. You seem much better than I heard from Yuka and the others."
As Whitebeard spoke, she laughed amidst the nurses' complaints about what she had revealed, then put her arm around your shoulder and placed a wooden wine glass in front of you.
"Can you drink alcohol? If you can, let's have a drink."
Honestly, you don't know why the topic of One Piece can be so easily diverted. But being in a corner surrounded by women, and despite not being particularly interested in alcohol, you still gave a positive answer to Whitey Bay under the expectant gazes of the nurses.
"I can drink, but not much."
Yuka, who is closest to you, shoves a half-filled wooden glass into your hand, puts her arm around your shoulder, and lets out a hearty laugh.
"Then drink first, and I'll take you home when you're drunk!"
With the clinking of wooden glasses, you drank your first glass of wine at the banquet. Well, "glass" isn't quite accurate, because Yuka, concerned for your health, only poured you half.
However, even half a glass of high-alcohol-content liquor can make someone with a low alcohol tolerance feel drowsy. Seeing that you were getting tipsy, Whitey and the others stopped urging you to drink and instead offered you various kinds of food while chatting.
Because Whiteybe and the nurses chatted about everything, you ate too much while listening, and your stomach felt a little bloated. Whiteybe, on the other hand, got a bit tipsy and started talking about Marco's time as a trainee crew member. Not just Marco, Whiteybe recounted the stories of all the earlier crew members who boarded the ship with Whitebeard.
The nurses had probably heard a lot; they just smiled and didn't interrupt what Whitey was saying. The people mentioned not far away, however, were all very attentive, as if they would come over and pull Whitey away as soon as they were mentioned.
Noticing that some crew members, who usually didn't pay much attention to these things, looked at Yuka with a particularly alarmed expression, the nurses glanced at her. Then, Nurse A, who was closest to Yuka, whispered something in her ear. After they separated, Yuka asked Whiteybe a question with a smile.
"Could you tell me about Harta and Sachi or Izang? She hasn't been on board for long and doesn't know anything about their past."
The three people whose names were mentioned by Yuka turned around at different speeds to look at Whiteybe, who had come close to you.
"Of course! Let me tell you, Sachi—"
Sachi, who was standing in front of the grill, quickly spoke up.
"Hey, Whitey, didn't you want some barbecue? Come and get it! Otherwise, Ace will eat it all!"
Ace, his mouth still full of roasted meat, turned around, his eyes filled with disbelief at Sachi's framing. Whiteybe, who had been interrupted, didn't take the bait and waved his hand dismissively, continuing his story.
“Sachi used to get up early and spend a lot of time styling his hair, and he wouldn’t feel like cooking because he ran out of hairspray. Isn’t that different from how he is now?”
As the effects of the alcohol began to take hold, you glanced at Sachi, who seemed both shy and angry, not far away, and the crew members who were laughing heartily because Sachi's affair had been exposed. Among them were Ace and Harta, who were fond of playing pranks.
Amid the laughter of the crowd, you nod to Whitebeard to indicate that you understand.
Seeing this, Whiteybe laughed and, amidst the nurses' jeers, began to talk about someone else.
"Halta looks like a baby, but actually—"
Before Whitebey could finish speaking, Harta, who had been laughing just a second ago, rushed forward and quickly covered Whitebey's mouth, pleading for help from the crew who were laughing at Harta's actions.
"Whitey Bay is drunk! Someone, take her away!"
The scene that followed was chaotic. Although Whiteybe was drunk, she still possessed considerable fighting skills, so the scene turned into a brawl between Whiteybe and the crew members who wanted to take her back. The crew members who were listening to the gossip also joined in the chaotic fight, with Whitebeard's laughter and Marco's headache-ridden sighs being particularly clear in the midst of the chaotic battle.
As more and more crew members joined the fray, verbal attacks also became increasingly frequent. From everyday disagreements to something as trivial as not having had a drink enough, anything could become a reason for them to fight.
And with your thoughts clouded by the alcohol, you laughed along with the nurses. The only downside was that you didn't last until the end of the banquet, as you succumbed to the alcohol and fell asleep on the table.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
