Rejecting Shanks

"Order whatever you want!"

"I'm paying."

Ye Tong said calmly.

"Awesome!"

"Makino, I want ten glasses of orange juice, and lots and lots of meat!"

"I want meat too!"

"I want booze!"

The three little ones eagerly began ordering as well.

They had been saving money all this time so they could eventually set sail.

So forget spending money in Foosha Village—they usually got everything they needed from Kalidadan.

That was why they were so excited when Ye Tong said he was treating them.

"Ha ha ha ha! Makino, your place is really lively today, isn't it?"

Just then, a rough voice reached Ye Tong's ears.

Then a whole crowd of people came flooding in.

"Shanks!"

Hearing that voice, Luffy was undoubtedly the most excited.

He absolutely worshipped Red-Hair!

"Huh, there are three little brats here too!"

"Kid, I haven't seen you before. What's your name?"

Red-Hair walked over to Ye Tong and spoke directly.

"My name is Ye Tong."

Ye Tong wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and said excitedly.

He was not excited because he had met Red-Hair, one of the Four Emperors.

He was excited because he knew that every member of this pirate crew was an expert.

Anything they casually tossed aside was top-tier trash!

"Ye Tong, not bad, kid."

"Who's your master?"

Red-Hair asked directly.

Under the sweep of his powerful Observation Haki, Ye Tong's physical information appeared clearly within Shanks's perception.

Twelve years old, carrying a Skillful Grade Blade, with distinctive marks on his arms from sword training.

His physical strength was not bad either.

How had someone like that ended up hanging around with Luffy and the others?

Although Shanks usually seemed carefree, he was the most inscrutable of the Four Emperors.

"I don't have a master."

Ye Tong replied calmly.

He had no interest in whatever Shanks was thinking.

Right now, he only wanted to know when they were going to throw a feast!

Picking up trash was the true path to wealth and success!

"Ah ha ha ha ha..."

"Kid, you're interesting. Want to join my crew?"

For the first time ever, Shanks extended an invitation to Ye Tong.

Back then, he had not even wanted Luffy to become a pirate.

Why was he inviting him instead?

Ye Tong put aside his thoughts of scavenging and looked seriously at Shanks before him.

This guy was definitely not the Shanks he had come to know from the anime.

"No. I'm not interested in being someone else's underling."

"I'm the big brother of those three!"

Ye Tong decisively refused, then used the three little ones as a shield.

"Oh?"

Shanks glanced at the three of them, who were stuffing their faces with meat, and stopped staring at Ye Tong.

Instead, he went to Makino and ordered some food.

Then he prepared to hold a feast here.

At the same time, Shanks took out a box and placed it on the counter.

Was that... a Devil Fruit?

The moment Ye Tong saw the box, he thought of the Gum-Gum Fruit.

It seemed Luffy would soon eat the Gum-Gum Fruit.

That also meant Ace was nearly ten years old.

The events he had anticipated would soon take place.

But since no one was going to die anyway, he should focus on the trash for now.

"Miss Makino, you must be very busy running this place by yourself!"

"Thank you for taking care of Luffy all this time. I'll help you clean up!"

After saying that, Ye Tong ignored whether Makino agreed or not, picked up a broom, and got to work.