"How come you're in a place like this?"
Shanks, who was sitting at the bar with a bottle of wine in his hand, was a little surprised when he saw the young man walking into the bar. Then he put on a faint smile and asked in a calm tone.
The young man who appeared in the Windmill Village Tavern at this time was none other than Yoshiichi Tsugikuni, who had left the North Sea and rushed here.
After he incorporated Desolo's forces, he rushed to the East China Sea without stopping to confirm the news he had heard before about the rubber fruit.
The intelligence network of Tsugakuni Yoshiichi's new navy in the East China Sea is not very strong. If he wants to know the whereabouts of the devil fruit, Shanks and his Iron Wall Pirates will surely be able to provide him with a lot of valuable information.
Now Shanks is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea recognized by the government and will not be hunted by the navy. The Goa Kingdom has also become one of the bases of the Iron Wall Pirates.
Although Yoshikazu Tsugakuni could not fully confirm the purpose of a pirate like Shanks staying in the East China Sea, according to his judgment, the rubber fruit must be one of Shanks's goals in staying in the East China Sea.
Shanks will not leave easily before he gets the rubber fruit.
Under the gazes of the pirates, Tsugikoku Yoshiichi slowly walked to the bar and sat down on the bench next to Shanks. He then looked at Makino behind the bar and asked gently:
"Boss, do you have any juice? Give me a glass of juice, and if it's convenient, give me some staple food as well."
As Ji Guoyuan spoke, he took off the long sword from his waist and leaned it against his side.
"Yes, please wait."
Makino's eyes were fixed on Tsugikoku Yoriichi. She had already recognized Tsugikoku Yoriichi. After taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she nodded immediately. Then Makino seemed to have thought of something and asked anxiously:
"For the main course, is seafood fried rice okay?"
Upon hearing this, Jiguo Yuanyi nodded slightly, then turned his head to look at Shanks and replied with a smile:
"Why am I here? Don't you know the reason?"
"I heard that thing appeared, so I came here to take a look and confirm it."
"If necessary, I will take that thing away."
Tsugikoku Yoshiichi didn't say everything. There were ordinary people present here, and if Makino knew some things, it would be of no benefit to her.
"Is it for that devil fruit?"
"Aren't you already a superpower user? Even if you get that devil fruit, it will be of no use to you."
“Sometimes I really don’t understand you!”
"From your various actions, it's clear that you know a lot. If you knew the value of that devil fruit, why did you become a esper so early?"
"Since you chose to become an esper, it means you don't believe in the so-called destiny. If that's the case, why are you so obsessed with that devil fruit?"
"Isn't that really contradictory?"
"You should be well aware of the movements of the Navy Headquarters. Their goal is probably to target you."
"At this sensitive time, instead of staying in the New World to stabilize the army's morale, showing up in this place for the sake of a devil fruit, wouldn't that be a loss of the greater good?"
Shanks and Yoriichi Tsugakuni have a very special relationship. It's not quite true that they are enemies. Although the Iron Wall Pirates are called pirates, their actions are quite different from those of traditional pirates.
However, it is not accurate to say that Yoriichi Tsugakuni and Shanks are partners. Their relationship is not that good.
If we have to say that there is any relationship between the two, I'm afraid their goals in certain things are consistent. It is precisely because of this that Tsugikuni Yoriichi and Shanks have some intersections.
"The distinction between believing in fate and not believing in fate is not so clear."
"Humans are very complex. Saying I don't believe in fate? I'm afraid that's not entirely true."
"But it's impossible to say that I completely believe in fate."
"If I had to define it, my attitude towards fate would be 'believe it'."
Shanks' face showed astonishment, and he didn't quite understand what Tsugikuni Yoriichi said.
According to his understanding.
Perhaps Tsugikuni Yoriichi believes in a "fate" that is only useful to him?
How arrogant!
"Ha ha ha ha!"
"You're really interesting!"
Shanks carefully pondered what Yuichiro Tsugakuko said, and suddenly burst into laughter. He raised the bottle with one hand, gestured to Yuichiro Tsugakuko, and then gulped down a few gulps.
The pirates in the tavern saw that there seemed to be no conflict between their captain and Yoriichi Tsugakuni, and heard the conversation between Yoriichi Tsugakuni and Shanks, and led by Shanks, they also laughed out loud.
In an instant, the tavern returned to its previous lively atmosphere.
At this time, Makino also prepared juice for Tsugakuni Yuichiro, placed a huge wooden barrel cup in front of Tsugakuni Yuichiro, and then started to busy himself.
"What?"
"What was Shanks saying to that guy?!"
"Hey, Uta, Shanks seems to know that guy very well. Who is that person?"
Just as Yoriichi Tsugakuni and Shanks were chatting, Uta and Luffy stopped fighting and focused their attention on Yoriichi Tsugakuni and Shanks.
Luffy was fostered in Windmill Village. The village chief and Garp were very good friends. It was impossible for Garp to take his grandson around all day. Although Luffy was placed in the headquarters, he could get very comprehensive care.
But that is in great conflict with Garp's training philosophy. The people in the headquarters will give Luffy special care because he is his grandson. A pirate raised in such an environment will never be able to become an excellent navy!
For this reason, Garp brought Luffy to Windmill Village.
Although the residents of Windmill Village do not have strong strength or powerful connections, they have correct values, which is helpful to Luffy's growth.
When Luffy grows up a little, Garp plans to send Luffy to Dadan. Living in the mountains can better train people!
But Garp probably never dreamed that Shanks, who was one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, could actually mingle with ordinary people and even begin to influence his grandson.
Over the years, Shanks has rarely appeared in front of Ace and Sabo, but often appears in front of Luffy.
Windmill Village happens to be on the coast. The Iron Wall Pirates often go out to sea for adventure to find the whereabouts of the Rubber Fruit. Windmill Village has become one of their more important strongholds.
Of course, the main reason is that Uta has a "peer" in Windmill Village with whom she can chat.
At this time, Uta was staring blankly at Tsugikoku Yoriichi, a little dazed.
She was still young when she first met Yuichiro Tsugakuni, but after seeing Yuichiro Tsugakuni, memories deep in her mind began to emerge, and a hint of enlightenment appeared in her eyes.
"It's Shanks' brother!!!"
After a long silence, Uta answered.
"puff--"
Jesus, who was drinking, happened to hear Uta's words and immediately spit out the wine he had just taken. Uta actually still remembered Tsugikoku Yoriichi? And still thought Tsugikoku Yoriichi was really Shanks's older brother?!
Turning his head slightly to look at Uta's serious expression and Luffy's "I see" expression, Jesus Bu could no longer control himself and couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"What's wrong?"
"Is there anything funny?"
Uta heard Jesus' laughter and turned around to ask innocently. Seeing this, Jesus couldn't hold back any more and waved his hands while laughing:
"No, no, no, you're right, that's the captain's eldest brother!"
"'Dear' brother!"
"Look, both of them have red hair, but Tsugikuni Yoriichi's hair is darker and longer!"
"Ha ha ha ha--"
Jesus Bu's words caused the pirates in the bar to burst into laughter.
In front of the bar, Tsugikuni Yoriichi couldn't help laughing, with a faint smile on his lips, he turned around and looked at the two children, Uta and Luffy.
Shanks shook his head helplessly and couldn't help but sigh, "This joke isn't funny! Bastard!"
Yoriichi Tsugakuin waved to Uta and Luffy. Seeing Yoriichi Tsugakuin's greeting, Uta and Luffy walked hand in hand to Yoriichi Tsugakuin and Shanks.
It is hard to imagine that the two people who are holding hands at this moment were just quarreling.
Jiguo Yuanyi reached out and stroked Wuta's head, smiling and saying hello: "Long time no see, Wuta."
"I didn't expect you to still remember me."
"She's grown into a big girl."
The warmth coming from her head made Uta recall the brief time she spent with Yuichiro Tsugakuin when she was a child. When it came to Uta's impression of Yuichiro Tsugakuin, there were only two adjectives in her mind: "mysterious" and "gentle".
"Long time no see, Mr. Tsugikoku Yuichi!"
Uta raised his head slightly, his eyes curved into two crescents, and he greeted crisply.
"Little friend, I know you too."
"Luffy, right?"
Yoriichi Tsugikuni moved his hand away from Uta's forehead, gently pinched Luffy's little cheek, and asked with a smile.
When Luffy heard Tsugikoku Enishi call out his name, he was bewildered and asked:
"Why do you know my name?"
Yunyi smiled and opened his mouth to talk to him about his relationship with Garp and Dragon, but changed his mind and said:
"Because I'm Shanks's older brother!"
"By the way, I'm a marine."
Luffy listened to Tsugakuko Yoshiichi's explanation and nodded. Then, he suddenly thought of something, his expression froze, and he murmured, "Sea. Navy!!!"
After a low cry, Luffy's face showed panic, and he looked at Shanks with a look of worry.
Seeing Luffy's expression, Shanks immediately laughed out loud. Seeing Luffy's face full of anxiety due to Tsugakuko Yoshiichi's teasing, he comforted him:
"Don't worry, Luffy, I'll run away if I'm in danger!"
"Besides, we run so fast!"
Shanks said to Luffy while laughing.
But after hearing Shanks' words, Luffy's anxious expression did not disappear, but became even more anxious, and he shouted:
"Run away?!"
"Shanks, aren't you pirates? Why are you running away? Can't you just fight the navy!?"
I don’t know what kind of “misunderstanding” Luffy, who is so young, has about the profession of pirate. He seems to think that Shanks’ behavior is not “pirate” at all.
Seeing Luffy's appearance, Shanks laughed even louder, but after laughing for a while, Shanks said to Luffy seriously:
"Luffy, we are pirates, the freest people on this ocean. If we encounter the navy trying to capture us, our first reaction is of course to run away!"
"We will only go to war with the navy when we have no other choice!"
"Our goal is the treasure in the sea. It's an adventure!"
"How can we waste time on the navy?"
Shanks patiently guided Luffy and passed on his "experience" to him without reservation.
After hearing what Shanks said, Luffy's face showed understanding. Although he was young, he could understand what Shanks meant.
Moreover, the words "treasure", "adventure" and "freedom" that Shanks said were very consistent with his imagination of pirates. For a moment, his eyes were full of longing, and he was full of yearning for the life described by Shanks.
Yoriichi Tsugakuni just sat quietly at the bar, watching Shanks "fool" Luffy in front of him.
What Shanks and Luffy said, was it just that Shanks wanted to lead Luffy to another path?
Not at all.
Although Luffy is Garp's grandson, in Shanks' eyes, Luffy is just a child whose personality suits his taste, nothing more.
He interacted with Luffy without any utilitarian motives, and the words he said to Luffy were also what Shanks firmly believed in his mind.
Yoshiichi Tsugakuni allowed Shanks to "perform" in front of him without interrupting him, not because he thought Shanks' words were right.
Many things require the parties involved to judge for themselves.
Garp has been instilling in Luffy the advantages of being a navy since he was a child, but Luffy was determined to become the so-called "Pirate King" after only being with Shanks for a few years.
And until Luffy went to sea at the age of seventeen, his thoughts never wavered.
It can be seen that Luffy is the kind of person who yearns for freedom and likes adventure.
Yoriichi Tsugakuni doesn't think he can change such a child. After all, Luffy's purpose of going to sea is completely different from that of Ace and Sabo.
Ace is troubled by his own life experience. He gives up on himself and thinks that since he is the son of a criminal, it is natural for him to become a criminal. Sabo, on the other hand, is troubled by the sufferings of the Goa Kingdom and simply wants to escape from his original family.
Ace hated his father and he hated his own life experience.
This can be seen from the conversation between him and Garp after he was captured by the navy.
Luffy became a pirate, or an adventurer, purely out of interest.
Another point is that Luffy admires Shanks, who is like a father to him.
"free."
"Even if I become the Pirate King, can I get the so-called freedom?"
"Roger may have set sail for freedom in the beginning, but the more truth he learns about the world, the less free he becomes! Isn't that right?"
"He who went to Raftelu actually lost his freedom completely!"
"Isn't it responsibility that drives his actions?"
"It seems to me—"
"Those who advance for freedom can be called pirates."
"It is the Navy who carries the responsibility and moves forward!"
"Raftel."
"When the truth is revealed, the world will finally understand Roger's true purpose!"
Ji Guoyuan took a few sips of juice and said with a smile.
Luffy was young and didn't understand what Tsugakuin Yoriichi meant. Uta was also young and could only understand part of what he said. Her face showed a pensive look. While she remembered Tsugakuin Yoriichi's words, she was also thinking about the meaning of the words.
Jiguoyuan glanced at Luffy's cheerful and confused face, then looked at Uta, smiled again, patted Uta's head gently, and then said to Uta and Luffy:
"One day, you will see the world with your own eyes."
"Whether you want to pursue freedom or shoulder responsibility, you will have your own answer."
“Question your own heart, question the world.”
(End of this chapter)
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