Shinigami the Unforgiven, Chapter 78: The Jail- "That guy Kuma..."
Shiraishi looked at Zoro, who was enveloped in the light of Retsu Unohana's Kaidō, radiating an emerald glow, and rubbed his temples.
"That was too heavy-handed."
If it were any of the other members of the Straw Hat Pirates, they'd probably be dead by now.
Shiraishi only remembered that the other party meant well; he only recalled the famous scene when he saw it.
"It's good enough that we're alive."
Despite being seriously injured, Zoro remained calm in the face of Shiraishi's complaints.
"The other side is from the World Government. We should be thankful that they didn't wipe us out."
In fact, I had prepared for the worst at the time...
Dreams shattered!
"By the way," Zoro glanced at Shiraishi beside him, " Shiraishi, you seem to know that man named Kuma? He swatted you away before you could say anything."
He meant no harm.
Shiraishi nodded.
Perhaps fearing that Shiraishi would reveal his true thoughts, that person chose to simply slap him away.
Perhaps there were other reasons, but none of that matters anymore.
Shiraishi patted Zoro on the hospital bed, "Anyway, just focus on recovering. After all, you guys defeated another Seven Warlords of the Sea, didn't you?"
Although he was the weakest one, this time there were no external factors involved; he genuinely defeated his opponent!
Even with the entire crew working together, it's still the Straw Hat Pirates's record.
However, this is the Straw Hat Pirates's current limit.
"Hey, the food's here!"
A spirited Luffy arrived carrying a huge bundle. As is customary for the Straw Hat Pirates: after defeating a powerful enemy, it's time for the traditional feast!
Besides the Straw Hat Pirates, there's also the " Rolling Pirates " led by Lola, and the Victims' Association, which includes the "Seriously Injured Old Man."
To celebrate their return to the light of day, everyone spontaneously organized themselves and moved food and wine from Moria's castle.
What exactly happened after we lost consciousness?
Sanji walked over and glanced at Zoro on the hospital bed, then tilted his head and handed him a bowl of porridge with a strong medicinal aroma.
"This was prepared for you, but... never mind,"
Sanji had wanted to say something, tossed his head one last time, leaving behind a mumbled, indistinct sentence.
"I won't hold it against you for hitting me..."
" Zoro, you need to get better soon!"
Seeing Luffy grinning, Usopp and the others couldn't help but tease, "Why do you look like nothing's wrong?"
How would I know?
"Get out of here," Shiraishi started to shoo people away, "What are you all doing here? Don't you know the patient needs to rest!"
"Hey, doesn't Zoro recover just by drinking alcohol?"
What kind of treatment is that???
"Actually, I saw it all at the time,"
When Sanji went to the makeshift "kitchen" to prepare food, Brook quietly followed him in.
"Perhaps because I'm just a skeleton now, that man named Xiong didn't notice I was conscious, so this is how it happened..."
"... Did Zoro take all of Luffy's 'damage'?"
After listening to Brook's explanation, Sanji silently lit a cigarette. "I see. That's why Luffy recovered, while Zoro ended up like that."
They actually said "nothing happened"?!
That bastard...
Should we tell Luffy about these things?
Sanji shook his head at Brook's question.
"No."
" Zoro didn't do that for anyone's reward, and... if Luffy knew that all his pain had been transferred to Zoro, what would he think?"
"I see,"
Brook, the skeleton with the afro, nodded.
"It's so great to have companions; you're all such good partners who would risk your lives for each other~~"
"I'm glad everyone is safe and sound. I need to cook."
As Sanji finished speaking, an "ear" suddenly transformed into flower petals and fell from behind the wall next to him.
"I see."
Robin smiled sweetly. Although the Straw Hat Pirates were full of such fools who eagerly volunteered to "carry the sword," it was the most reassuring place in the world.
"The banquet is starting!!"
At Luffy's shout, everyone began to eat and drink heartily, singing and reveling!
In this way, they vented their praise for being alive! And Brook walked to a piano next to them.
"Let me play a piece for everyone to liven things up."
Ding-dong~~
As the white finger bones danced across the piano keys, melodious piano music began to echo in the hall.
" Binks' Sake? That's a familiar song~~"
"Hey, Brook."
Luffy the instrument.
"You'll join us, right?"
Splash!
In the deserted ruins of the mansion, a huge, broken wall "self" flipped open, revealing a fat, middle-aged man with purple hair dressed in a fishnet outfit below.
"Hey, get up!"
A beastly voice murmured in the air, yet the obese middle-aged man beneath the ruins remained motionless, like a real corpse.
A threat that annoyed Absalom, who was still invisible.
" Hogback, your body has already been modified by yourself! You can't die so easily. If you don't get up, I'll bite your throat out!"
Faced with threats from his colleagues, the eccentric doctor who had been feigning death was forced to get up.
"Hiss... cough cough, it's Absalom! Those damned Straw Hat Pirates, are they gone?"
"No,"
A figure "emerged" from thin air. Absalom, the "invisible man" with blond hair, wearing a gorgeous trench coat, a hat with Moria's symbol, appeared beside him, causing the eccentric doctor Hogback to look at him in surprise.
" Absalom, your hands?"
Licking the blood from beside the lion's mouth, the "invisible man" named Absalom had both hands severed at the wrists. "That woman cleaved both of my hands in two with a single stroke."
"... Hiss, hiss, hiss. To be able to remain calm despite such injuries, I'm truly impressed."
After standing up and stretching his obese body, the eccentric doctor prepared to make a run for it.
brush,
A blood-soaked arm wrapped around his neck, and behind him came Absalom's cold voice.
"Where are you going, Hogback!"
"Hiss, hiss, of course we're running away! Do you really want to go looking for trouble with those Straw Hat Pirates who defeated Master?"
"I'm not that presumptuous, but before we leave, let's rescue our master!"
"Alright, Lord Moria shouldn't get caught up in this mess. I'll go with you to rescue him!"
After the two, or rather the cyborgs, finished their discussion, they vanished instantly under Absalom's power, leaving only a trail of footprints. Under the watchful gaze of a raven perched on a tree trunk with vacant eyes, they stealthily disappeared around the hall where the banquet was being held.
"What!"
" Moria is missing?!"
"It's over, it's over..."
"Oh no, if he comes back, we..."
"Don't panic,"
Shiraishi waved his hand at the panicked members of the " Rolling Pirates " and the " Victims' Association."
" Moria was severely injured by us before. Even if he escaped with his life, he must be recuperating somewhere else now. The ocean is so vast, do you really think you'd be so unlucky as to run into him again?"
After saying that, Shiraishi pointed to the Straw Hat Pirates were listening intently to Brook playing the steel tune.
"Besides, with us here, does Moria really want to be defeated a second time?"
"Yeah, there are these heroes..."
"No! It's because the great pirates are here that we have nothing to fear from that Marine lackey Moria!"
"Long live Straw Hat!!~~~ Hahaha, keep drinking! Keep eating! And then enjoy the long-awaited sunshine~~"
"It's so good to be alive!!"
As the music ended, Brook, now only a skeleton, looked up at Luffy lying on top of the piano.
"May I join?"
"OK,"
!
"Why did this guy join so readily!?" X5
Didn't our behavior back then seem rather "awkward"?
Faced with the shocked expressions of Usopp, Nami, Sanji, Chopper, and Franky, Robin simply covered her mouth and chuckled.
"Then, please allow me to reintroduce myself:"
Snap,
Brook, kneeling on one knee, faces Luffy, placing his top hat and sword beside him like a knight taking an oath.
"I am Brook, dead and reduced to bones."
He once served as the captain of the Royal Guard, and later Rumbar Pirates, where he served as acting captain, musician, and swordsman.
"From this day forward, I will obey Straw Hat Luffy!"
When faced with Brook's vow, Luffy didn't resort to any sentimental tricks like "please get up quickly," because he knew that this was Brook's way of doing things.
"I'd rather be shattered to pieces!!"
"Welcome, Brook-- "
"Yohoho~~~"
"Cheers!"
Two days later,
Burying the remains of Brook's companions on this island is a fitting way of "returning home," as the Thriller Bark was originally an island-type ship from the West Blue.
"Great, Zoro's injuries have healed too! Let's go!"
Beside the island, the Straw Hat Pirates prepared to set sail again, while Lola, who was saying goodbye to Nami, pulled out a piece of paper.
Naïve Lola, clearly unaware of how much her mother hated her, still enthusiastically said, "This is my mother's Vivre Paper."
If you encounter any trouble in the New World, you can go to her...
The Big Mom's Vivre Card!
It's definitely a useful tool, capable of commanding the " Homies " under Big Mom's command.
It exists among Totto Land like an imperial sword.
However, because Lola "ran away from her wedding," the Big Mom hated Lola so much that she almost beat her twin sister Chiffon to death!
"Hey, I have one too."
The conversation caught Luffy's attention, and he pulled a piece of burnt paper from his straw hat!
This means the owner is in very bad condition.
" Luffy, are you really okay?"
"Um?"
Luffy, sitting on the gunwale, adjusted his straw hat.
"Oh, Äs's Vivre Paper..."
"Don't worry,"
When Luffy looked up again, his face was all smiles again.
" Äs is incredibly strong! I've never beaten him, and..."
Even if there's danger, he doesn't want me to worry. Äs hates seeing him make a fool of himself! Besides, Äs has his own "adventures."
The Straw Hat Pirates responded to Luffy's words with smiles, except for Shiraishi, who sighed inwardly.
That's the logic, and Luffy actually understands it very well.
However, when he learned that Äs was imprisoned in Impel Down, he was willing to crawl under the Empress's skirt to sneak into the Jail.
When he learned that Äs was being taken to Marine Headquarters for execution, he charged at the three admirals without hesitation...
Who could remain unmoved when faced with their own family?
" Luffy, we can go around!"
"Yes, there's Vivre Paper as a clue—"
"No, no, hehehe~~ It's really okay!"
Compared to Luffy, who is actually very worried inside but has to comfort everyone.
Äs really is more like a "younger brother".
"I've heard that if a person's physical strength is insufficient, their Vivre Paper will wither..."
Sanji walked over carrying two plates of sake.
"So maybe Luffy's brother is just sick?"
After saying that, Sanji glanced at Shiraishi thoughtfully.
"You're right, aren't you, Shiraishi?"
"Ah, yes, that's right."
Shiraishi nodded in agreement, "It's hard to say, Äs is already suffering in the Great the Jail."
" Zoro had been recuperating, so..."
A ring of small wooden barrel-shaped wine glasses was passed around to everyone.
"To celebrate the addition of new member Brook!"
Let's drink!
at the same time,
Located in the Calm Belt, the world's largest the Jail: Impel Down, Level 6!
"Lieutenant General Garp, this way please!"
Led by attentive the Jail staff, the tall old man arrived at a cell.
The Seastone chain, so strong that it rendered countless powerful individuals helpless, bound a man covered in wounds with Seastone chain as thick as an arm.
"Oh, oh, it's a truly horrible sight."
The tall old man looked at the shirtless man inside. "Not dead yet, Äs?"
The familiar voice made the chained man raise his head, revealing a stubborn face.
"Grandfather."
"You may leave."
The tall, elderly naval officer waved his hand. Even though the person imprisoned inside was his "grandson," Vice Admiral Garp's unwavering integrity and resilience over the decades still impressed the Jail staff, who had grown up listening to his legendary stories, who saluted him before turning and leaving.
" Äs,"
The old man sat down, facing his "grandson" in the Jail, his face lined with wrinkles.
"I had hoped that you and Luffy would become excellent Marines, but things didn't go as planned, and you both became pirates."
Garp's face was filled with a sigh as he recalled Roger's words entrusting the child to him.
Thinking back on the years, watching Äs grow up, the weight of justice on his back felt so heavy...
"That's impossible, Grandpa."
The man in the cell spoke up, mocking, " Luffy and I both have the blood of world-class criminals flowing in our veins, so there's no way we can be Marines..."
"And."
Compared to that "Pirate King" whom he had never met since childhood and who even caused his mother's death...
"It would be such a waste if you died like this, kid."
The tall man extended his hand to him.
"Bear my name, roam freely across this vast sea, be my son!"
"I only have one father," the battered Äs raised his head, "And that's Whitebeard!!"