The Village with No Survivors

"Looks like these people were just one of the bandits' squads," Shirakawa said, analyzing the situation for the other three.

"Yeah. This squad alone shows how wicked these bandits are. I just don't know if the four of us can take them all down," Shanks added.

"What? You're thinking of going after these bandits?" Shirakawa asked.

"If we can beat them, I think I'll give it a try."

Shanks, you bastard—GOOGLE TWKAN

"Haha, you really are something, Shanks." Shirakawa laughed and patted him on the shoulder. They were of one mind; Shirakawa couldn't stand people like that either.

If he didn't have the strength, that would be one thing. But now that he did, he couldn't just turn a blind eye.

It wasn't that Shirakawa was someone who hated evil with a passion. He simply wanted to stand up for what was right.

"Hey, hey, you two aren't actually planning to charge in, are you? We don't even know how many of them there are or how many weapons they have."

Seeing that the two seemed to have already made up their minds, Buggy couldn't help but speak up in alarm.

He wouldn't have been afraid if there were only a few of them, but the problem was that the bandits' strength was unknown.

"Don't worry. Just stay behind us. Shanks and I can handle the front."

Looking at the broken gun on the ground, Shirakawa regretted his earlier impulse. He should've kept it for Buggy to use. If they got the chance, Buggy could even use it to catch someone off guard.

"Besides, you know what I can do. Even if we can't beat them, we can still run."

"All right, then." Buggy resigned himself to it. Even if he hadn't, there was no way he could stop the other two.

Since none of them knew where the bandits' hideout was, they could only keep going. Maybe they'd run into another group along the way.

As they walked, their view gradually opened up. They seemed to have left the forest, and a narrow path stretched ahead. There were no crops around it, and no people in sight.

"You've got to be kidding. What kind of place is this? There isn't a single person around." Buggy looked around and muttered.

"Who knows? Maybe everyone who lived here moved away."

Shirakawa could tell that the land on either side of the path had once been cultivated, but now it had fallen into neglect.

"Let's keep going. There's a village up ahead. We should ask what happened here."

The four continued on, keeping a wary eye on their surroundings.

"What's that smell?" Kaiser Lynn suddenly seemed to catch a whiff of something disgusting. She covered her nose and frowned.

"Yeah." After hearing Kaiser Lynn say that, Shirakawa thought he could smell it too.

"It's the smell of blood," Shanks replied to Kaiser Lynn.

"That's right. And it's different from the blood on Akda. This is the real thing, the smell of spilled blood. There's also a stench. If I'm not mistaken, it's coming from corpses."

At Shirakawa's words, they all turned their grave gazes toward the village up ahead. The smell was coming from there.

"Be careful. Stay behind me."

"Understood." They had no choice but to be cautious in a situation like this. Buggy in particular tucked himself right behind Shirakawa, careful not to expose even a bit of himself.

As they neared the village, Shirakawa activated his shield, ready to protect them at any moment.

Now they could see the village's general appearance. It was in terrible shape, and charred marks covered much of it. It looked as though it had been set on fire.

The farther they went, the worse the four of them looked. Kaiser Lynn had already started vomiting, while Shirakawa fought back the urge to do the same.

"What happened here?" Kaiser Lynn managed to ask after throwing up. When she looked up and saw the village's horrific state, she bent over again.

"There must have been a massacre here." Shirakawa struggled to get the words out.

They could see corpses scattered everywhere, each in a terrible state. Some of their poses showed just how hopeless they must have felt before they died.

It was the first time Shirakawa had ever seen anything like this. He'd lived in a peaceful era in his previous life and had never even experienced a war, let alone a massacre.

In this life, he'd fought pirates at sea several times, but he'd never witnessed such a horrifying sight.

"Anyone capable of this can hardly be called human."

Even Buggy couldn't bear to look. He was furious at the people who had massacred the villagers.

"These must've been the work of those bandits, too," Shanks said.

"Yeah, I think so too."

"Then all the more reason not to let them get away with it."

As Shanks spoke, his expression turned especially vicious. Killing intent radiated from him, startling Buggy, who stood beside him. Even Shirakawa was slightly taken aback.

No wonder he'll become one of the Four Emperors—the Red-Haired Shanks, with his incredibly powerful Conqueror's Haki. Even as a boy, he already has such overwhelming presence.

Among the future Four Emperors, Shanks should be the youngest. Shirakawa didn't know exactly how strong he was, but he probably wouldn't be the weakest of them.

"Shanks." Shirakawa gave him a firm slap on the shoulder, urging him to rein it in. Shanks hadn't awakened his Conqueror's Haki yet, but it probably wouldn't be long now.

"Yeah."

After the slap, Shanks's aura vanished, though his expression remained as grim as before.

"Shanks, what was that just now? You scared me to death."

Buggy patted his chest. As Shanks's best friend, he was naturally the first to show concern for him.

"I'm fine."

"He looked so scary just now," Kaiser Lynn whispered into Shirakawa's ear.

"That's normal. He's definitely going to become a ruler of the New World someday." Shirakawa didn't mind playing the prophet for once.

"If you're still alive in ten or so years, I'm sure you'll hear his name."

Shirakawa smiled confidently, firmly convinced his prediction would come true.

"Hey, are you cursing me to die young?"

Kaiser Lynn smacked him hard and asked angrily.

"No. I'm telling the truth. If you really live another ten years or so, he'll be famous throughout the world by then. Remember, his name is Shanks. You'll have something to brag about—you traveled with Shanks."

"Really?" Shirakawa hadn't bothered to keep his words from anyone, so Shanks had heard him clearly.

"Of course. The Captain and the First Mate both think your potential is limitless."

"What about me, Shirakawa? Will I be famous throughout the world someday too?"

"Of course." After all, Buggy had stolen the spotlight at the Paramount War and spent some time as one of the Shichibukai. That counted as fame.