Bluster

The sky was cloudless, and the sun blazed high in the sky.

A warship bearing the mark of Loguetown slowly departed from the island belonging to Shimotsuki Village.

"Kuina is as clingy as ever..."

Atlas sat cross-legged on the bow of the warship, a smile playing on his lips as he looked toward the direction of the Isshin Dojo.

He stayed in Shimotsuki Village for a few days. At first, Kuina was a little unfamiliar with him, but after Lady Haiti and Mr. Koshiro told her about it, she showed affection for Atlas. After all, seven years had passed since they met. Even though the average person in the Pirate King world has excellent physical fitness, they don't start to remember things until they are three or four years old.

As for Zoro, Atlas had already handed him over to Koshiro, and the guy immediately shouted that he wanted to test whether Koshiro was qualified to teach him.

The result was obvious: he was easily defeated by Kuina, who was a year or two older (due to the difference in their birth months), and then he obediently stayed at the Isshin Dojo.

However, Atlas has already promised Kuina that he will take her to the Marine Headquarters in two years so that she can see the difference between them and the world. She wants to prove herself to Koshiro!

Girls can also become the World's Greatest Swordsman!

What adorable little devils...

Bang!

"Let's go! Heading towards the Foosha Village!"

Watching the coastline disappear from sight, Atlas turned and jumped off the bow of the ship, shouting loudly at the crowd.

"Yes!"

East Blue, Foosha Village.

The small village in the Goa Kingdom remained as peaceful and serene as ever, with happy smiles on the faces of the people coming and going, chatting about everyday matters from time to time.

Perhaps for ordinary people in this world, freedom has never been about being completely unrestrained.

To live a peaceful and contented life, to die of old age naturally, and to simply pass through life in this way is true freedom in life. They do not crave wealth, fame, status, or a peaceful life, but where is there peace in the world of Pirates?

This is why the vast majority of people in the world hate the Great Pirate Era started by Roger so much. Even though the root cause lies with the Celestial Dragons, many of them never get to meet the Celestial Dragons in their lifetime, but they deeply feel the cruelty of the era through the rampant Pirates.

Order has always protected the majority!

In the heart of Foosha Village, at Makino's Tavern.

Now, Makino is a beautiful teenage girl with thick, emerald-green hair styled in an updo and a checkered headscarf tied around her head, giving her a charmingly down-to-earth beauty.

It was early morning, and the tavern wasn't very busy. Only a few villagers who were fond of drinking would sneak in for a few drinks. Usually, their wives were strict with them, so they could only sneak in during the busy farming season to satisfy their cravings, but they didn't dare to overindulge, since they still had to go to work in the fields later.

Just then, the small door of the tavern was pushed open, but strangely, no one was seen.

"It's Luffy."

Makino, who was tidying up at the bar, turned around when she heard the noise and found it amusing to see that familiar figure.

She wasn't very tall or old, looking only about 5 or 6 years old. She was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt with dark blue collar and cuffs, and had short, wispy hair. Her face was smooth and clean (she hadn't met the Red-Haired yet, so she hadn't cut herself on her face). She looked so adorable that she almost melted Makino's heart.

"Makino, I'm so hungry, is there anything to eat?"

Luffy jumped onto the tall chair in front of the bar, plopped down, and rubbed his sunken belly dejectedly.

"Wait a minute, I'll make it for you right away."

Luffy's youthful face immediately brightened, and he happily made grand promises to Makino.

"Makino, Makino. I'll repay you with treasure after I set sail and become Pirates!"

Makino didn't reply, just smiled and turned to go into the kitchen, clearly not taking Luffy's pancake seriously.

Luffy was practically raised by Garp in Foosha Village from a young age. Everyone in the village knew that they were protected from Pirates because of Garp, so they took good care of Luffy. Makino, in particular, had an overflowing maternal love for Luffy, like an older sister's affection for her younger brother.

Clang!

Soon a plate of fried rice with juice was served.

"Ah~ then I'll start eating!"

Luffy's eyes lit up, and he grabbed the fried rice and began to devour it.

"Hmm..."

Makino didn't leave. Instead, she sat down on the spot, resting her elbows on the bar, her palms supporting her pointed chin, and watched Luffy wolf Luffy with a smile.

"Luffy, I heard you got into trouble again?"

Seeing that Luffy had almost finished eating, Makino asked him.

"No, I just cursed those Mountain Bandits. They're always causing trouble here in Makino."

Luffy pouted, his face completely unconcerned. Luffy wouldn't allow anyone to bully this older sister who often let him freeload off her meals.

"Okay, okay, don't do that again, or I'll be heartbroken if something happens."

"But I heard from Grandpa Village Chief that he has already called Mr. Garp."

"Huh?" Luffy instinctively shuddered, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets. "So my grandpa's coming back? He hasn't been gone that long, has he?"

Just thinking about Garp's fist sent chills down Luffy's spine; it was a childhood nightmare, and even the fried rice on his plate didn't taste good anymore.

"No, Mr. Garp has asked his colleague to look after you."

"Oh, that's all right then."

Upon hearing that it wasn't Garp himself who came, Luffy immediately breathed a sigh of relief and grabbed a glass of juice from the bar, gulping it down.

Bang!

Foosha Village is near the sea.

A Sea Kings with bloodshot eyes, a mouthful of sharp teeth, and brownish-black skin crashed heavily onto the sea surface. It looked somewhat like a crocodile, with a serpentine body, no limbs, and blue and white fins on its back. It was not very large, at least much smaller than Atlas had ever seen.

"Is this the thing that made that Red-Haired lose an arm?"

Gazing at the corpse of the Lord of the Coast before him, Atlas fell into deep thought.

"Lieutenant Vice Admiral, should we salvage it and cut it off?"

"Forget it, it looks too ugly, the meat probably won't taste good either."

Atlas shook his head. "This thing has such red eyes, who knows if it carries a disease like rabies? Let whoever wants to eat it eat it."

"Alright, you guys stay on the ship, I can go by myself."

Atlas turned to the navy on the ship and gave them instructions. Then he dusted off imaginary dust, got up, and went down from the side of the ship that was docked.

"It's been so long since I've seen Makino..."

Chapter 134 Deception

Clang!

The tavern door, which had just been closed, was pushed open again.

"Hey! Makino, long time no see!"

Makino and Luffy turned around at the same time, and what came into view was a sunny young man with a smiling face. He was extremely strong and almost blocked most of the door frame. His clothes were spotless and dazzlingly white.

Wow~ Your clothes look just like Grandpa's!

Just as Makino was about to speak, Luffy, Luffy to the side, looked on with astonishment and exclaimed loudly.

"This must be the guy from a few years ago. Are you here to look after Luffy on the orders of Vice Admiral Garp?" Makino had a vague memory of Atlas, especially how he scared off that group of Mountain Bandits with just a glance.

"Hmm~ I just happened to be in the East Blue on vacation, so I came to see Luffy and Ace." Atlas looked at young Luffy, his mind racing. "But, my name is Kanos Atlas, don't forget my name."

Atlas immediately realized that Makino must have forgotten his name. After all, Makino was just a little girl in her early teens back then, but now she had grown into a beautiful young woman.

"Hehe..."

Makino smiled slightly awkwardly.

"Luffy, right? Your grandfather asked me to look after you. Do you want to come with me now? I'll introduce you to some new friends."

Atlas then turned to Luffy and smiled.

"Did you come from outside? Can you tell me about the adventures of the Pirates?"

Luffy showed no interest in connecting with Atlas and proceeded to ask his own questions.

"Then tell me why you want to be Pirates?"

Atlas suppressed the urge to smash the little brat in front of him and asked in a slow, gentle voice.

"I heard everyone say my grandpa is a Marine, so only Pirates can stand against him," Luffy said, clenching his little fist, his voice trembling with excitement. "My fists are as powerful as bullets! When I grow up and become Pirates, I'll definitely knock my grandpa away with one punch!"

When he got excited, Luffy couldn't help but wave his fist at the air.

Atlas stared at Luffy speechlessly.

Does your grandfather know how filial you are? But thankfully, you haven't met Red-Haired yet, and you haven't been clamoring to become the Pirate King. You just want to be Garp Pirates because you want to be filial to Garp to death, so there's still hope.

"Oh! By the way, sir, you're also in the navy, right?"

Luffy seemed a little slow to realize that Atlas in front of him was also a Marine.

"Uncle? What the hell...?"

Atlas was having trouble breathing.

Calm down! Calm down!

I'm still trying to convince this guy to join the navy, so please don't be angry.

No wonder I'm angry!

Bang!

"I'm only 22! Uncle? Uncle my foot!"

Awesome!

Looking at Luffy with a steaming hot bump on his head, Atlas felt as refreshed as drinking a can of ice-cold Sprite on a hot summer day.

"Ouch! That hurts! Just like Grandpa, you're a navy guy."

Feeling that familiar pain, Luffy was now absolutely certain that the man in front of him was a Marine like his grandfather.

This only intensified his longing to become Pirates.

Indeed, the dreams of young people are always so naive!

Seeing Luffy's obvious thoughts, Atlas decided to correct his mistaken ideas.

Even Pirates can't escape getting beaten up by Garp!

"Luffy, do you know who the strongest Pirates is?" Atlas asked Luffy in a mysterious tone.

"Is it the Pirate King?" Luffy answered honestly.

Wow, even someone as stubborn as Luffy knows about the Pirate King's reputation. It seems Roger's influence was truly significant.

"Yes, that's right, but even the Pirate King Roger was always being chased by your grandfather and often got beaten up. So, even if you become Pirates, you'll still get punched by your grandfather."

"Is it true, Makino?" Luffy asked Makino with some skepticism.

"Yes, Mr. Garp is known as a naval hero, and many Pirates are afraid of him," Makino said gently, stating this harsh truth.

As soon as he finished speaking, Luffy felt like the sky was about to fall, and he felt like he had lost all purpose in life.

"However, it's actually quite simple to make your grandfather afraid to beat you," Atlas paused deliberately.

"What method is there, sir? Can you tell me?"

Luffy looked anxious, but his face regained its sparkle.

"It's simple. Your grandfather is Marine Vice Admiral. As long as your rank is higher than his, and Marine Admiral or Fleet Admiral, he won't dare to beat you up. You might even be able to beat him up whenever you want."

Atlas ignored the word 'older man' and winked at Luffy, trying to fool him.

While it's theoretically possible to beat up Garp at will, the biggest prerequisite is first defeating that old geezer, so this isn't really Atlas trying to Luffy.

"That means I have to join the navy? That's so troubling!"

Luffy was somewhat conflicted. In truth, he didn't know much about the Navy Pirates; he had only heard some adventure stories from others. Moreover, Red-Haired hadn't told Luffy about his adventures yet, so Luffy wasn't necessarily determined to become Pirates.

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