Krokus and Laboon

Onboard the Yanhuang.

The Going Merry was moored alongside.

The Straw Hat Pirates and the One Piece ship doctor Crocus were all gathered on the Moya Adventure Group's ship for a banquet.

"No wonder Laboon hasn't been ramming the mountain these past two days. It turns out it accidentally swallowed Luffy and the others, and the senior has been treating Laboon."

Moya took a sip from his wine glass, looking at Crocus with an expression of sudden realization.

Crocus, meanwhile, was observing Moya's crew—El Drago, Bartolomeo, and Mao Xiong—but noticed that Buggy seemed not to recognize him.

Indeed, even though Moya had specifically instructed Buggy to greet Crocus and pretend to know him, Crocus still sensed something off about Buggy.

A shadow flickered in Crocus's eyes.

This Moya is not simple. A memory-type Devil Fruit? To think he would do such a thing to Buggy; unforgivable.

He is definitely not the person Roger was waiting for. He lacks the purity of Luffy; he is a man full of ambition and devoid of scruples.

"The Log Pose for the route through Whisky Peak is gone, but I do have one or two for other routes."

Old thing, have you figured it out?

He is worthy of being the ship doctor of the One Piece; beyond his extraordinary medical skills, he is a master of the harpoon and proficient in both types of Haki, possessing strength comparable to an average Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral.

He has guarded Twin Capes for over fifty years. In the year 1470 of the Sea Circle Calendar, he parted ways with Brook, promising to look after Laboon.

In 1494, he was invited aboard by Roger; in 1495, he fought in the great battle against the Golden Lion's fleet; in 1497, Roger reached the end of the Grand Line to become the One Piece; and in 1498, Roger turned himself in.

Aside from the three-plus years he spent following Roger, Crocus has spent all his time at Twin Capes, watching new pirates from the four seas for over fifty years, yet he remains unscathed to this day.

Such insight and such strength are not to be underestimated.

Moya calculated that, ultimately, he could not defeat this seemingly elderly Crocus at present.

Even if the entire crew swarmed him, even if they won, the casualties would be heavy.

"Then give us a standard Log Pose; we'll choose a route at random."

At this moment, Moya's smile was hypocritical; he had long since prepared a contingency plan for this situation.

"Senior Crocus, could my ship doctor Kaya observe and transcribe your collection of medical books?"

"That is acceptable. I have some medical texts I no longer need that I can give to you."

Crocus also realized that Moya's group was not to be trifled with. While ambitious, they were also a potent seed in this era of piracy.

"Senior Crocus, actually, I have news regarding Brook."

Moya dropped a bombshell. Crocus faltered for a moment, and Laboon suddenly became restless, causing the sea surface to begin churning.

When Crocus joined Roger back then, it was with the intention of finding Brook.

Though he still told Laboon there was hope, in his heart, he had long since abandoned the belief that Brook's crew had survived.

After all, having traveled the entire Grand Line and the New World with the Roger Pirates, there had been no news.

"Is this something you foresaw?"

The hostility and wariness Crocus had been hiding diminished significantly.

Brook was an idol of the older generation. The song "Binks' Sake" had spread from the West Blue to the Grand Line and even the entire pirate world precisely because of the Rumbar Pirates, to which Brook belonged.

It had become a mandatory song at pirate banquets; even Count Patrick Redfield was a fan of Humming Brook.

"Yes, I know Brook's location, which is why I wanted the Log Pose for that specific route."

Moya watched Crocus with interest. Naturally, he wouldn't tell Crocus that Brook was in the Florian Triangle, as that location was already deep into the Grand Line.

The seven routes would eventually converge at the Sabaody Archipelago, and the Florian Triangle was located just before Sabaody; practically every route had to pass through that area.

Moya watched the shifting expressions on Crocus's face, curious to see what kind of excuse he would come up with.

Crocus knew Moya was intentionally trying to disgust him. What a detestable brat—probing to see if he still had the Log Pose for that route, even though he had just claimed he didn't.

On the other hand, it was his own long-held wish to have Laboon find Brook's crew.

Having sailed for so many years, where had Crocus ever seen such a slippery pirate? Most pirates were straightforward, the type to fight if they disagreed.

The sound of Laboon's mournful cries came from nearby, and Crocus sighed.

"Actually, I do have a Log Pose for that route tucked away. Let me look for it."

"Really? That's wonderful, Senior Crocus."

At this moment, Moya wore the expression of a master manipulator, showing none of the heroic spirit of one who had awakened Conqueror's Haki.

Seeing Moya's "no reward, no effort" attitude, Crocus returned to Twin Capes to retrieve the Log Pose, along with a stack of precious medical books.

"You brat, are you satisfied now?"

"My thanks for the gift from such a great senior!"

Having achieved his goal, Moya thought: no matter how cunning you old foxes are, you'll still end up drinking my foot-washing water.

Even if you hadn't given me the Log Pose or didn't have one, couldn't I just tail the Straw Hat Pirates into that route?

As long as I enter that route, I can use a standard Log Pose to continue the voyage.

"Actually, Brook the Humming is not dead—well, he has actually died once already, but thanks to the Revive-Revive Fruit, he was resurrected. He is currently trapped in a certain place, while the rest of the Rumbar Pirates have perished."

"Why would it end up like this?"

Crocus and Laboon both wore expressions of sorrow, yet they were fortunate that at least Brook had survived.

"What a miraculous Devil Fruit, to actually be able to resurrect someone!!"

The members of the Moya Adventure Group and the Straw Hat Pirates were all filled with astonishment.

"Then I leave it to you to find Brook and bring him back."

Crocus felt a bit frantic inside as Moya still hadn't revealed Brook's location, but he was helpless to do anything about it.

"It is my bounden duty!!"

Moya wore a solemn and sacred expression; Brook's Revive-Revive Fruit was somewhat of a counter to Big Mom's Soul-Soul Fruit, so how could he possibly let such a crewmate slip away!!

"Laboon, we will find Brook. Before that, stop ramming the wall and take care of yourself."

Upon hearing news of Brook, Laboon's mood improved, and he gave Moya his promise.

Crocus watched the Moya group; although Moya was a bit cunning and unscrupulous, there was still a heart of kindness buried deep within, provided that one did not infringe upon his interests.

The Straw Hat crew had eaten their fill and were already impatient to set off on their new adventure.

Moya did not forget to gift the Skillful Grade Sword Yubashiri to Zoro; this was one of the terms of his deal with Dragon.

Under Zoro's grateful gaze, the Straw Hat Pirates set sail.

The Moya Adventure Group followed suit, having had the entire crew help copy most of the important medical texts, supplemented by a few gifted volumes.

A day later, Nami had become familiar with using the Log Pose, and the Moya group set off right on their heels.

Since the Moya Adventure Group had Sea Cow Moo pulling their ship, their speed was significantly faster than the Straw Hats.

The distances between islands on the Grand Line were not short; the larger the island, the more stable its magnetic field, but the longer it took for the Log Pose to collect the necessary magnetism.

For an island like the prehistoric Little Garden, the Log Pose alone required over a week to collect enough magnetism before it could point toward the next island.

In that case, for Moya, stopping at some unnecessary islands was indeed a bit of a waste of time.

It seemed it was time to get in touch with Dragon and Umit.

It was time to collect the rewards for their cooperation.