A Chat with Shakky

Buggy replied, "Really? Mr. Rayleigh isn't boring..."

"Or maybe he prefers to talk to young girls more," Shakky said casually, a cigarette dangling from her lips.

"Haha, Xia Jie looks very young too," Buggy laughed. "Lilina, put these clothes on the sofa. Xia Jie will look absolutely gorgeous and young in these clothes!"

Lilina pouted unhappily. She had thought Buggy had bought the clothes for her, but it turned out they were for another woman. All that careful selection had turned them into just a clothes hanger!

"Buggy, you're really thoughtful, but I'm not particular about clothes."

Despite saying that, Shakky still seemed quite happy. After all, no matter how old a woman is, she will be irresistibly attracted to beautiful clothes, especially since the gift was given by Rayleigh's old friend.

She came out from behind the bar and noticed Lilina by the sofa. Somewhat surprised, she said, "Aren't you that super popular singer...? No doubt about it! I even went to your tour in Sabaody Archipelago a few years ago. Come to think of it, I'm practically a fan. I still have that 'Angel in Dreams' album."

If an ordinary person recognized her, Lilina wouldn't have any particular feeling. However, Shakky in front of her was someone Buggy valued highly. Being able to gain her affirmation and recognition made her feel a little proud, even secretly pleased. She smiled broadly and said, "So you know me!"

"Yeah..." Shakky said, "By the way, how come you're with Buggy? Are you two...?"

Buggy interjected, "She just likes playing One Piece games, so she joined my crew."

"Oh, I see. Hehe~"

Shakky smiled knowingly, then looked at the others, "These must be your companions, right? Please sit down."

"Hello, my name is Mohji." Mohji was surprisingly a little reserved.

"I'm Shuma." Shuma grinned and pointed to himself, looking completely harmless.

"Hehe~ Buggy's crew must be some interesting guys," Shakky said. "Want something? Rum, whiskey, cola, or...?"

Buggy said, "I'll have a cup of hot tea."

Shakky looked at the other three. "You don't need to be so polite, what would you like to order?"

Mohji said, "A glass of rum, please!"

Shuma raised his hand. "Please give me a glass of milk!"

"Give me a cup of coffee, with sugar," Lilina said, then asked curiously, "What should we call you?"

"If you don't mind, just call me Shakky... As for being called Sister Xia, I still find it hard to get used to." Shakky returned to the counter and then brought out a tray with various drinks, placing it on the table.

"But..." Lilina hesitated for a moment, then looked at Shakky and said, "Wouldn't it be too abrupt to call you that? You still look so young..."

Shakky laughed, "Hehe~ I was a pirate forty years ago, and then I retired from the business. Considering my age, this title is quite appropriate."

"Really!" Lilina exclaimed in surprise, unable to contain her curiosity. "Then Shakky, can you tell me what kind of skincare products you usually use to maintain such good skin?"

"I never use skincare products. If you really want to know..." Shakky exhaled a smoke ring lightly, "Perhaps it's a kind of optimistic attitude."

"An optimistic attitude, huh..." Lilina lowered her head, pondering Shakky's words.

After taking a sip of milk, Shuma asked bluntly, "I've already drunk the milk, are you sure I won't get ripped off?"

"What an interesting little brother," Shakky said. "Since Buggy is an old friend of Rayleigh, I certainly wouldn't do such a thing to you!"

"I see!" Shuma rubbed his fingers under his nose and drank the milk in one gulp.

"Sister Xia," Buggy asked, "When will Mr. Rayleigh be back?"

"You mean Rayleigh is back?" Shakky said. "It's a real shame. He just came back about two weeks ago, and he won't be back for a long time." She shook her head. "He still can't shake his bad habits from when he was a pirate. He always disappears without a trace. He's probably off to find some young girl again. Speaking of which, I'm a little worried about his health."

"Hmm..." Buggy continued, "Then... does Natsumi-neechan have Rayleigh's Den Den Mushi number?"

"He would never carry a Den Den Den Mushi) with him, because you know, those things restrict his freedom."

After Shakky finished speaking, she raised her head slightly to think, "If you want to look for him now, you should be able to find him in the casinos and bars numbered 1 to 29. If he's not there, you can try checking the Sabaody amusement Paradise. In any case, he won't leave this island."

"Amusement Paradise!"

Shuma quickly tugged at Buggy's arm. "Buggy! I want to go to the amusement Paradise!"

Buggy patted Shuma on the shoulder to signal him to be quiet, and said to Shakky, "Okay, I got it!"

Shakky reminded you, "Rayleigh's coating technology is quite good. If you're going to Fish-Man Island later, you can have him do the coating for you."

Buggy said, "We're not in a rush. We plan to stay on this island for a while."

"Hmm...?" Shakky looked at Buggy and asked curiously, "The New World is the sea where the strong fight for supremacy. Every pirate who sets foot on this island harbors an incredibly strong desire to go to the New World and fight for a place. Buggy, your thoughts... are quite subtle."

"I have my own calculations. I am not yet strong enough to challenge the New World. I need to wait for an opportunity."

Shakky spoke frankly without any reservations, "I remember Rayleigh mentioned that you and Red-Haired Shanks of the Four Emperors, had a close relationship when you were apprentice crew members on Roger's ship. If you're worried about your strength, you can ask him for help when you get to the New World, right?"

"Ask him for help..." Buggy smiled noncommittally. "If I ever find myself with nowhere else to turn, I'll seriously consider this suggestion. But as a pirate, what I want is an ambition to overthrow the world, and living under someone else's roof will only slowly erode my ambition."

"Hmm..." Shakky paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "You're quite an interesting person. Ten years ago, when Shanks came to this island, I met him with Rayleigh. My intuition tells me that you two have many similarities, yet you're like two completely different extremes... Crew members who have served on Roger's ship certainly have a unique personal charm. Buggy, I'm starting to think highly of you."

"It's an honor to be praised by Sister Xia," Buggy replied with SMILE, then continued, "Well then, I'd like to go find Mr. Rayleigh now."

"It's alright, but if you're not in a hurry, Buggy, you can listen to some intelligence I have here to understand the current situation on this island... After all, intelligence is a weapon."

Buggy drank a cup of hot tea. "Alright, I'd like to hear more."

"Besides you, there are a few other strong guys on Sabaody Archipelago. The first one is 'Rockstar' Rockstar, with a bounty of 88 million. He's a pirate who's very concerned about his reputation."

The second is Suleiman, a Class A war criminal from the Battle of Diaz and an executioner who seems to be a very persistent guy.

The third is "Blue Eyes" Johnson, with a bounty of $81 million. He seems to be very low-key. All three of them only arrived on the island not long ago.

The fourth is Gold, with a bounty of 103 million Beli, nicknamed "Squid Gun". He is a bit different. He did not come from the Grand Line, but was a pirate who retreated from the New World. He is cunning and has been recruiting recently, seemingly wanting to return to the New World.

As for the bounty hunters, there's a weapon thief named Jean Ango who's said to be eager to defeat high-bounty pirates and become famous. These are the people who have gained some notoriety on Sabaody Archipelago recently. Although they're still far from being as good as you, Buggy, it's never a bad idea to keep an eye on them."

"Thank you for the information, Sister Xia."

Buggy nodded. To be able to find out so much about these people's backgrounds was truly impressive; he was a first-rate information broker. Moreover, since Shakky chose to tell him this information, it meant that she no longer considered him an outsider, which pleased Buggy.

Buggy looked at Mohji and the other two, then drew a very simple and crude portrait and handed it to Mohji. "Mohji, Shuma, you two go to the amusement Paradise and find the person in this portrait. If you find him, please contact me as soon as possible. As for Lilina..."

Lilina interjected, "I want to stay here and ask Shakky for skincare tips."

"That works too." Buggy nodded. After all, Lilina was one of his crew members, and it was quite appropriate for her to get to know Shakky better.

"Then, I'll go to the casinos and bars numbered 1-29 to look for Mr. Rayleigh ..." Buggy explained his whereabouts.

Shuma stared intently at Rayleigh's portrait, finally unable to resist flipping it over and saying to Buggy, "Buggy, is that a cheese popsicle wearing glasses in your drawing?"

Drawing requires talent, Buggy's drawing skills were indeed not very good. He could only cough to cover his embarrassment. "Ahem... Anyway, it's about right. He wears glasses and has completely white hair. You can't go wrong by following these characteristics. After finding Mr. Rayleigh, just tell him 'Buggy is looking for him'... Alright, let's go!"

"Oh~~ Great!!" Upon hearing that he could finally go to the amusement Paradise, Shuma so happy that he almost jumped off the sofa. Then, the group walked out of the Shakky's Rip-off Bar together.

Watching the group's retreating figures, Shakky rested her chin on her hand and murmured softly, "How did Buggy know Rayleigh's hair is all white now? It must have been many years since he last saw him. Do they still keep in touch...? Never mind, maybe he has his own information..."

Shuma and Mohji spent their money at the amusement Paradise on Sabaody Archipelago, while Buggy, with enough Beli, headed alone towards the nearby bars and casinos.

About 800 or 900 meters away from "Shakky's Rip-off Bar" is a bar called "Sinful Carnival". Unlike the former, this bar is much noisier and has dimmer lighting. Most of the people inside are genuine pirate villains. After a few beers, they can't help but chat about how many bad things they have done and how many marines they have killed. Even petty theft can be used as bragging rights.

Buggy walked into the bar, glanced around, and then prepared to leave. After thinking it over, he figured Rayleigh definitely wouldn't like pirates like this. Even if he wanted to steal a little money, he wouldn't come to a place like this.

Putting Rayleigh aside, even Buggy himself felt a sense of disdain looking at the pirates before him. There were countless scum like them on this sea—no goals, no dreams, no idea what they were living for, just drifting through each day aimlessly. Even if they were to die on this sea one day, they would only cry out in their dying moments, "I haven't lived enough... I don't want to die..."

Just as Buggy turned to leave, the bar's doors were pushed open to both sides, letting in beams of sunlight that were almost blinding compared to the dimly lit interior. Several menacing-looking men walked in, and one of them casually closed the door, seemingly trying to shut down the bar.

Buggy stopped, leaned back naturally, and sat down at the bar. He called out to the man in front of him, "Boss, a shot of ale, please."

"Alright!" The man quickly brought over a glass of ale and placed it in front of Buggy, who was watching the show with bated breath.

"Gentlemen!" The group that had just entered was led by a bald man in a black suit. His loud voice immediately attracted everyone's attention.

Although no one knew who the person was calling, everyone stopped talking and looked at the bald man.

The bald man took a few more steps inside and briefly introduced himself, "I am Proos, the third mate of the Squid Pirates. I wonder if any of you here would be interested in joining our Squid Pirates?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding area erupted in excitement again. Several pirates sitting nearby whispered among themselves, "Hey, did you hear that? This guy said he's the third mate of the Squid Pirates, the same Squid Spear Gold's pirate crew, right?"

"It must be that pirate crew... I remember Squid Spear Gold's bounty is over 100 million Beli, and he's said to have thousands of soldiers under his command. He's a terrifying guy... Why would he suddenly recruit us?"

"Your information is outdated. Gold entered the New World some time ago, but for some reason, he was defeated and forced to retreat. I heard that although he survived by sheer luck, his losses were extremely heavy... That's why he's now looking to recruit soldiers."

"Although this Gold has a bounty of one hundred million, it's nothing in the New World teeming with monsters. I don't want to risk my life for that guy, nor do I want to go to the New World to die."

After some whispered conversation, several Squid Pirates but also didn't want to cause trouble stood up and prepared to leave.