Isn't Fifty Years of Waiting Romantic Enough?

"It must be very painful!"

He then Teleportation directly to Crocus's side, unleashing his Space Domain and controlling Crocus's Island as it headed towards a tall iron gate obscured by a painting in the distance.

"Old Man, hurry up and give it a sedative! This guy is terrifyingly persistent!"

"Do you know Laboon?"

"Hmm! You could say you know them, or you could say you don't."

"Don't give me that convoluted talk, you little brat."

Crocus roared at Kuta.

Then he looked at Kuta, especially his silver hair and Azure-blue Pupils, his brows furrowed slightly, and suddenly his eyes narrowed.

"Silver Hair Kuta".

"What, does the Old Man recognize me?"

Kuta turned to look at Crocus, a hint of curiosity flashing across his face.

Has his fame spread throughout the entire Sea so quickly?

Unbeknownst to him, his name was spread throughout the Grand Line and even the Four Blues by the World Economy News Paper in less than a day.

Crocus was stationed at the Twin Towers. When he had nothing to do, he would read the newspaper. He knew almost everything that was reported in the newspaper, so of course he understood him.

Just two days ago he was lamenting that the Golden Lion had actually lost to a newcomer who had just set sail, but unexpectedly he met his match today.

Without thinking much, he looked at the gate in front of him and quickly climbed up the iron ladder.

It's more important to give Laboon a sedative.

"Old Man, wait a moment. I'll bring my partner over, let's go take a look together!"

"Alright! Hurry up, Laboon can't wait much longer."

"Very soon."

As he spoke, Kuta instant.

"Hmm! Teleportation?"

Crocus stared Kuta disappeared, his eyes narrowing.

When Kuta first Teleportation to his side, he didn't see it clearly and thought it was speed. Now he realizes it was Teleportation, which explains why he couldn't sense it at all.

"What a monster."

Soon after, Kuta piloted the Freedom and charged over.

Upon reaching the iron gate, Ahua Trio exclaimed in surprise, then climbed up the iron ladder.

Kuta and Kuina followed closely behind, while Indigo remained on the ship, showing little interest in the matter.

He's seen giant Sea Kings that are hundreds of meters Laboon, not just those that are hundreds of meters long. He's even seen giant sea monsters that are thousands or tens of thousands of meters long.

Therefore, he had absolutely no interest in Laboon.

Chapter 3: Isn't 50 years of waiting romantic enough?

The group followed Crocus through the small iron door on top of the large iron gate.

Inside was a passageway filled with steel.

Kuta looked at the passageway in amazement.

"Old Man, did you build all of this by yourself?"

"Yes!"

Without turning his head, Crocus said as he walked, "In order to effectively treat Laboon's injuries, we have to create these channels inside his body to apply the medicine."

"If it's just one person, that will take quite a while!"

"Not long."

"Not long?"

"It'll only be a few decades!"

"Isn't a few decades a long time?"

Ahua pushed up his glasses, staring at Crocus in astonishment. In his daze, he almost tripped over the swaying aisle.

"So, you've been here for decades?"

"Hmm! It's been about 50 years!"

"Although I left for a while, I eventually returned here."

As he spoke, Crocus stopped in front of an iron gate.

He stretched out his hands and twisted the round switch on the iron gate forcefully.

With a piercing creak, the iron gate in front of them swung open inwards.

Crocus went in first.

After passing through the iron gate, one sees a space that is neither too big nor too small.

The space was filled with wooden barrels, and the pungent smell of medicine emanating from inside indicated that these barrels were all filled with medicine.

Crocus entered through the iron gate and went straight to a large syringe shaped like a cannon. He first turned the needle, then plunged it into a wooden barrel.

Then, pull the syringe plunger upwards forcefully, and a stream of dark green liquid is quickly drawn into the syringe along the needle tip.

Everyone watched the busy Crocus without saying a word, their faces filled with curiosity.

After the syringe was filled with sedative, Crocus turned the needle around and pointed it at the outside wall.

He reached out and pulled, and a hole the size of a window appeared in the wall.

Inside the cave were blood-red fleshy walls that writhed and throbbed with each of Laboon's mournful cries and impacts.

Crocus pushed the giant syringe and forcefully plunged it into the flesh wall, shouting loudly at it.

"Stop it, Laboon, don't hurt yourself anymore."

"That wall is the wall that divides the world's oceans; even if you crash into it until you die, you will never be able to break it."

"Laboon."

As the medicine from the syringe was gradually injected into the flesh wall, the flesh wall in front of him gradually stopped writhing, and the huge screams and crashing sounds coming from outside also stopped.

"Phew~"

"Has it finally stopped?"

As he spoke, A-Luo wiped the cold sweat from his brow.

Clearly, being inside a constantly shaking giant creature is not a fun thing.

"By the way, when we rushed down from the Red Line, we saw that Laboon's head was covered in wounds, and now it's constantly howling and crashing."

Kuina frowned, staring at Crocus, and asked, "Grandpa, could you tell us the story of Laboon?"

"Pull

"Don't you know the story of the cloth?"

Crocus turned to look at Kuina, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes. Then he turned to stare at Kuta, "Look at this guy, he helped me get here quickly and told me to use the sedative as soon as possible. Obviously, you knew about this!"

"By the way, young man with Silver Hair, I still don't know how you knew that Laboon needed tranquilizers!"

"And the way you look at me, it's like you know me."

Feeling everyone's gaze on him, Kuta shrugged. "I said I was just guessing, I don't know if you believe me or not."

"As for the way I look at you."

"Yeah! I think I look at everyone like that."

As he spoke, Kuta stroked his chin and nodded.

"Yes, I look at everyone like that."

"Oh, so you were just guessing!"

Crocus looked like Satori. "I thought you knew me because you learned about Laboon from that old man!"

"Uh... I actually believed it."

Kuta's lips twitched.

Crocus closed the window, turned to look at everyone, and said, "The wound on Laboon's head was caused by the constant impacts with the Red Line."

"Impact with the Red Line?"

Everyone was taken aback, but Kuta stood calmly in place, looking up, left and right, his eyes full of curiosity.

"How amazing! Not only can it understand human nature, but it also allows humans to perform such miraculous feats within its body."

Crocus, observing everyone's reactions, had a glint of shrewdness in his eyes.

The Silver Hair kid definitely knew about him and Laboon, but he didn't expose him. Instead, he told Kuina and the others Laboon's story with a look of reminiscence in his eyes.

"So, does that mean that Pirates crew abandoned Laboon?"

"How awful!"

After listening to Crocus finish telling Laboon's story, Ahua couldn't help but curse.

"I don't know, maybe they really did perish in this devilish sea!"

Crocus adjusted his glasses and continued, "Laboon's collision lasted for decades. It missed its companions, but it couldn't. As its body grew larger, it could no longer return to the West Blue."

"It can only keep shouting and crashing here endlessly, hoping that one day that Pirates crew will really keep their promise and come back to see it."

"Since Laboon can understand human speech, didn't you explain the situation to him?"

Kuina glanced at the wooden tubs filled with medicine, frowned, and said softly, "It must have been very painful!"

"Why didn't you say so!"

"The years I spent away from here were spent searching for that Pirates crew—whether they escaped or perished at the Sea."

"Did you find it?"

"Without."

"I told Laboon when I got back, but it wouldn't listen and instead rammed the Red Line even harder."

"In its world, it never believed that its companions would abandon it!"

A-Tao, puffing on her cigarette, sighed, "Almost 50 years! That's a long time indeed."

How romantic!

"Old Man, I do know where Laboon's former comrades are."

Just then, Kuta spoke.

"What?"

"Do you know where the 'Rumbar Pirates' are?"

Crocus's aged eyes suddenly lit up.

He stared intently at Kuta, his body ramrod straight, extremely nervous.

After nearly 50 years together, Laboon can be said to be his only family in this world.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have stayed in Twin Capes for nearly 50 years.

This guy went to great lengths to be romantic for Laboon!

Looking at Crocus, Kuta's eyes showed admiration. Laboon was worthy of admiration, then this old man was even more worthy of admiration.

Not everyone can wait 50 years, and not everyone can stay with someone for 50 years.

"The Rumbar Pirates set sail from here, and within two years, they were all lost at the Sea."

Are they all dead?

Crocus felt a sudden lightness in his body, quickly lowered his head, and the light in his eyes dimmed rapidly.