Just as Gawain was pondering, not far away, Shirahoshi rushed towards him, her face streaked with tears.
Hearing the sound of a tail slapping the air, Gawain casually turned his head, and then he was stunned.
He's not some weirdo who uses his Observation Haki to observe the entire ship around the clock; normally, he only uses it to focus on a safe distance of one or two hundred meters around himself.
Gawain, unaware of Shirahoshi and Vivi's conversation, was naturally a little confused by the tears in Shirahoshi's eyes.
At that moment, the little Merfolk, over nine meters tall, rushed towards him, her tail wagging in the water, crying and sobbing.
Logically speaking, he had countless opportunities to dodge Shirahoshi's lightning strike.
However, Gawain remained standing, his arms slightly outstretched.
The next moment, Shirahoshi pinned Gawain to the ground...
Duang~~~.
After a loud bang, Shirahoshi lay down beside Gawain's legs, carefully pinching Gawain's collar and gently shaking it.
"My lord, waaaah, please don't leave me behind~~~!"
"Why?"
Gawain frowned and asked Shirahoshi in a low voice.
"What do you mean 'lost'? Who said anything strange to you?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain turned to look at Kalifa. Faced with Gawain's gaze, Kalifa involuntarily trembled.
The adults are furious!
After Gawain gestured to Kalifa to investigate, he gently rubbed Shirahoshi's cheek.
How could I abandon you, Shirahoshi?
Let's talk. Who said I would abandon you?
As he asked the question, Gawain gently pursed his lips.
He wanted to see who was really ruining his good relationship with the Ancient Weapon Poseidon!
Hearing Gawain's question from the side, Shirahoshi felt extremely aggrieved.
"My lord, I don't know anything, waaaaah!"
Am I so stupid? Will I be abandoned when I grow up? Waaaaah!
Vivi has been practicing combat lately, and Uta is also working hard on her new song.
It's just me, sob sob sob, all I do is play with rabbits, ski, eat, and sleep, sob sob sob!!!
"Will you hate me sooner or later?"
After saying that, Shirahoshi looked at Gawain with tears streaming down her face, her large tears completely soaking Gawain.
And Gawain.
Listening to Shirahoshi's explanation, he vaguely understood.
This matter may not be related to anyone maliciously slandering us.
This whole thing sounds like a child who didn't want to get caught up in the competition, but was forced into it and ruined by others...
While pondering, Gawain pinched Shirahoshi's soft, tender cheek.
"Why would you think that? Because Uta and Vivi have been working hard on something lately, and you're the only one who thinks there's nothing to do?"
"Mmm~~~."
Hearing this, Shirahoshi stopped crying and simply lay there, gazing longingly at Gawain.
Gawain, however, pinched Shirahoshi's cheek and said...
"Uta keeps writing songs because music is her favorite thing."
Vivi has been training lately because she had a dream of becoming a strong person before she boarded the ship, and training is also one of her hobbies.
On my ship, no one is obligated to work in a job they dislike. Just as choice is a fundamental right, we should all have the opportunity to choose.
So, little girl, I'll say the same thing again.
Do what you want to do, and what you enjoy doing.
If everyone in the world has to make things difficult for themselves just to survive, or to be accepted by others...
That kind of world would be too boring.
After saying that, Gawain nudged Shirahoshi's cheek, making the little girl beam with joy.
She smiled and nodded repeatedly.
"I knew it. The adults would never abandon us just because we're useless."
Vivi is just worrying unnecessarily. I'll go talk to them right now...
Wait, sir!
Shirahoshi suddenly realized something and became nervous again. She carefully continued speaking to Gawain.
"Sir, I'm still young, don't lie to me. I know children should be free."
But what if we grow up? Will you still be the same as you are today?
What if we grow up and still have no value?
"Value?"
Hearing Shirahoshi's question, Gawain shook his head with amusement.
"Don't worry, little girl, your value was demonstrated the moment you boarded the ship."
"You are my greatest value on my ship, and that value will not diminish over time."
At this point, Gawain couldn't help but smile as he thought about it.
Of all the people on my ship, which one is worthless?
Even if Shirahoshi remains naive to the end, she is still one of the Three Ancient Weapons, the legendary Poseidon!
All she had to do was play with the animals and build a bond with the Sea King; they were even born with Observation Haki.
Uta was born to be a thread that could bind Red-Haired Shanks. As a member of the Figarland Family and one of the Four Emperors, it was enough for Red-Haired Shanks to hold onto him tightly.
What's more, Uta is a money-making machine; his record sales are almost equivalent to the annual Heavenly Tribute that two or three small countries have to pay!
As for Vivi, she is the heir to Alabasta. If he wants to completely abolish the right of the Affiliated Nation in the future, then a kingdom heir like Vivi, who is absolutely loyal to him, will be very important.
Are they really useless?
Of course not.
Truly useless people won't get on this ship!
Gawain had already made certain contingency plans for the crew members on board.
In the future, he will not only retain people like Utawivi who seem useless but are actually extremely valuable.
At the same time, he also needs to find a way to bring all those who are connected to the chosen ones of the next era onto his own ship!
Zoro, right? If I forcibly drag Koushirou onto the ship, and then Tashigi, who looks just like Kuina, onto the ship, and raise Tashigi to look like Kuina.
Look, even a female swordswoman of average strength Tashigi can become an excellent rope to bind Zoro and Koushirou together.
Or perhaps Gawain also wanted to bring the tavern owner from Foosha Village, who was also the legendary Red-Haired Shanks's rumored girlfriend, onto the ship.
In that case, haha.
Makino seems worthless; she's just a girl who can't lift a finger, but whose only redeeming quality is being able to handle both formal and domestic duties—a girl with absolutely no fighting spirit.
But in reality, her existence is indeed a super treasure.
It's the same for both Ace and Luffy!
Ace and Luffy are both capable of throwing a punch at Garp, but try asking them to throw a punch at Makino?
Moreover, Makino might even be using her Noble Phantasm against Shanks...
If that's the case, then Gawain is really looking forward to it too much...
In short, Gawain did his best to create an environment that would attract and entice the crew members.
For example, Ace...
This guy was resentful from the moment he boarded the ship, and behind the scenes he would often plot with his crew to escape to the New World.
But ever since he held onto Isuka tightly...
Do you see Ace still has a single complaint?
This kid keeps saying he doesn't want to be in a relationship, but a real man shouldn't be tied down by love.
But in reality, Isuka was about to replace Whitebeard and become the person Ace respected and loved most...
Ha ha!
Thinking of this, Gawain couldn't help but laugh. As he laughed, he reached out his giant thunder hand and ruffled Shirahoshi's hair.
"If you've been overthinking so much lately, it must be because you haven't had enough fun yet, right?"
Jinbe, accompany Shirahoshi...
Forget it, haha, I'll just go skiing with Shirahoshi myself!
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain simply stood on Shirahoshi's shoulder, and pointed to the distant snow-capped mountains.
"Come on, Shirahoshi. It's rare that I've had a little more free time lately because of the doctor's orders."
I'll go skiing with you on Drum Mountain.
Let's go now, but please, whatever you do, don't go into the water... slurp slurp slurp...!!!
So, about ten minutes later, when Uta and Chopper and their group of playful little guys arrived at the dock aboard the Little Dark Bird.
What they saw was Gawain slumped listlessly on top of Shirahoshi, while Shirahoshi desperately apologized...
Seeing Gawain like this, Chopper's doctor instincts kicked in instantly, and he gave Gawain a full checkup.
The results showed that Gawain's lethargy was due to drinking too much water, resulting in a belly full of Seastone Factor...
After Gawain recovered, they wrapped themselves in thick clothes and happily played on Drum Mountain.
It was during this time that Gawain discussed the Great Treasure left behind by that man with Chopper.
To this question, Chopper's answer was pure joy and a full three kilograms of tears.
Was that Great Treasure really meant for Drum Island?
No, that was a gift Hiriluk left for Chopper, and even more so, a gift he left for Kureha!
Five days later, on the highest peak of Drum Island.
Nearby, the ruins of the royal palace have been cleared, and a new palace is slowly being built.
However, the large, dense crowd inevitably slowed down the pace of construction.
However, the construction workers had no time to work. They followed behind the reporters and onlookers, excitedly looking at the huge cannon barrel placed on the ground in the distance.
Around the cannon barrel, Gawain stood leisurely, waiting silently, while Hancock beside him pondered and spoke softly.
"Sir, all we need to do in a moment is launch it, right?"
"It should be fine, didn't Franky already check it?"
As Gawain responded, he also glanced at Franky was fiddling with the cannon barrel in the distance.
Franky didn't hear Gawain's words; he was focused on checking the amount of gunpowder.
However, not far from Gawain, Kureha, who was standing with her hands on her hips behind Shakky and Rayleigh, spoke up.
"Don't worry, really, if that idiot thinks this thing can definitely work, then it absolutely can!"
Because... sigh.
That guy would never lie to me!!!
After saying that, Kureha leisurely lit a cigarette, then left the crowd and went to a corner to smoke alone.
After Kureha left, Chopper excitedly told Gawain.
"My lord, my lord, my lord~~~.
Oh my, I'm so happy! You're actually going to make my dad's dream come true!
His final dream was to make the panacea explode in the sky above the Drum Kingdom!
I've been waiting for this moment for so long! It's the legendary panacea!
As soon as he finished speaking, Chopper hugged Gawain's head and rubbed it against him vigorously. Then he put his arms around Gawain's neck and continued speaking.
"Dr. Kureha must be very happy too. She and Hiriluk the father must be the best of friends. Hiriluk the father often talks about wanting to see Dr. Kureha."
The day has finally come! Hiriluk's dream is about to come true! Waaaaah, I'm so happy I could cry!
Hearing Chopper's voice from the side, Hancock couldn't help but frown.
Then, she reached out and gently stroked Chopper's fur.
"Little one, Dr. Kureha doesn't look happy at all to me."
She should be the one feeling sad!
As soon as she finished speaking, Hancock uttered a word of absolute certainty.
"That's right, it's heartbreak. Her eyes are exactly the same as the eyes I had when I saw Gawain marrying that stinky rabbit in my dream. That's the look in her eyes when the man she loves most leaves..."
Wait... wait... wait... what... what did I say?!
With a scream, Hancock, incredibly shy, threw herself into Gawain's arms and refused to lift her head again.
At the same time, Gion gritted her teeth, and her Konpira trembled uncontrollably.
Meanwhile, the three little girls, Uta Shirahoshi, Vivi, and others, huddled together, all staring at Hancock in utter astonishment.
After a moment, the three of them looked at each other and finally couldn't help but speak in unison.
"Hancock is so good at this!!!" ×3!
After saying that, the three little girls quickly covered their eyes with their hands, but as expected, the gaps between their fingers were as wide as ever...
As for Chopper...
He blinked in confusion after hearing Hancock's words.
"Is Dr. Kureha... very sad?"
At this point, Gawain gently patted Chopper's head.
"Don't blink, it's about to launch!"
He had barely finished speaking... Boom!!!
With a deafening roar, the cannonball from Franky's cannon shot skyward!
Watching the shell ascend into the sky, Chopper's eyes widened; he desperately didn't want to miss a single detail.
And so, in his eyes, the shell exploded in the clouds, then burst into a huge pink cloud!
"This... this is?!?"
Ace looked up in surprise, tightening his clothes as he did so.
This fiery little guy hates snowy days the most.
Beside him, Isuka's eyes were already gleaming.
Is this pink paint?
No, it's not just paint; paint can't turn clouds pink!
Wait, look! Ace, the snowflakes and clouds in the sky have turned pink!!!
Amidst an incredibly excited scream, Isuka reached out and scooped up a handful of falling snow.
The pink snowflakes, resembling Sakura blossom petals, melted in Isuka's palm.
Strangely, the water after the snowflakes melted was exactly the same color as ordinary water.
"It's pink snowflakes, so beautiful!"
Gion looked longingly at the sky. The beautiful scenery before her made even a seasoned, straightforward woman like herself feel a sense of romance.
Influenced by this color, she gently took Gawain's hand.
Looking up at the magnificent scene before and around Gawain, Chopper couldn't help but murmur.
"Is this the breathtakingly beautiful Sakura scenery that Father Hiriluk once saw?"
As he spoke, Chopper couldn't help but recount the story of Hiriluk.
"When Hiriluk's father was young, he was a pirate. He said he did a lot of bad things. Perhaps because he did too many bad things, he eventually developed a very serious illness."
He thought he was about to die, but unexpectedly, after traveling all over the sea, he came across an extremely beautiful Sakura forest!
After he saw the cherry Sakura, his illness was miraculously cured!
From then on, Dad wanted to become a doctor and create a panacea that could cure all diseases, just like those Sakura!
Dad finally did it!!!
Amidst the roar, Chopper broke down in tears, and those who wept with him were the girls who were moved, as well as the easygoing Franky.
However, hearing the emotional cries of the people around him, Robin couldn't help but narrow his eyes.
She muttered to herself.
"No matter how beautiful the Sakura are, they can't cure people's diseases."
Even if he was truly healed by the Sakura, he should have planted Sakura trees out of gratitude, not wanted to become a doctor out of gratitude...?"
At this point, Robin glanced thoughtfully at Kureha was walking away.
"If I remember correctly, Dr. Kureha always wears a shirt with Sakura patterns."
So, is she the Sakura in Hiriluk's story... the one that heals all diseases and is beautiful beyond compare?
At that moment, Robin seemed to have figured something out, and even she couldn't help but shed two tears.
"A notorious pirate has contracted a disease that is incurable by ordinary people."
Just when he was on the verge of despair, he was saved by... by a beautiful doctor who was still young, named after Sakura, and dressed in Sakura clothes.
To repay the doctor, or... he simply fell in love with the doctor.
So, this pirate retired from his life of crime, yearning to become a doctor, and always wanting to offer a real Sakura to the one that healed him.
The most beautiful cherry blossoms in the world...