OPTC Chapter 349: Song and Whale Cry
Crocus voiced the question Laboon wanted to ask most: "What happened to the rest of the Rumbar Pirates?"
The moment he saw Brook in his current state, Crocus already had a bad feeling. And now that he thought about it carefully, the ones who had arrived weren't the Rumbar Pirates at all, but the Amber Travel Group, who had recently become famous in the East Blue… The Rumbar Pirates were probably long gone.
Faced with the question, Brook quietly lifted his skullcap, took out the tone dial he had treasured for decades, and pressed the play button.
From inside the tiny shell came the final ensemble and chorus of the Rumbar Pirates. Upon hearing the music, Laboon became excited, swimming lightly at the surface just like when he was a small whale, humming along with soft "ooo~ ooo~" sounds.
Brook felt a rush of emotions as he watched. Unable to stop himself, he raised his beloved violin.
The melody followed the tone dial's recording, and scenes began shifting before Brook's eyes. His departed companions appeared beside him again, each picking up their own instruments. The four-hundred-meter-long Laboon shrank in his memory back into the tiny one-or-two-person-sized whale of the past, swimming and rolling through the waves with their music.
"Yohohoho, yohohoho…"
Laboon rested by the shore. The captain and Brook stroked his head together. "No matter how many times I look, your hair really does look exactly like Laboon's head!"
Brook scratched his afro. "Isn't that wonderful? Yohohoho~"
"Binks' Brew, served with a smile."
The crew clinked their cups. "A toast to Brook for eating the Duck-Duck Fruit!"
Brook instinctively bumped cups, then shouted, "That's not a reason to toast! And it was the Revive-Revive Fruit!"
"With wind and storm and crashing waves…"
The Rumbar Pirates held a swimming competition. A mischievous crewmate rode on Laboon's back. "Charge, Laboon! Don't lose to those guys!"
Brook, unable to participate, stood on the ship and raised his fist. "Compete properly! No using Laboon to cheat!"
"Under the clear sky, the flag I love most flutters proudly."
After resting at Twin Cape, the Rumbar Pirates set sail again. "Laboon, in two or three years we'll complete our journey around the world. Then we'll climb Reverse Mountain again and return here. By then your body will have grown big and strong. Then we'll go on more adventures together!"
"This sea really makes no sense! I can't deal with it! Let's sing a song—yes, that one!"
"I wonder how Captain Yorki's illness is… Did he manage to cross the Calm Belt? No matter what, we must inherit his will and continue sailing this new ship until we meet Laboon again!"
"Their weapons were poisoned… even the doctor is dead… haha… Are we going to be wiped out?"
"If we're all going to die, then let's die happily. Come on—how about a final chorus? If I really revive, I'll bring this tone dial back to Twin Cape!"
…
As the music reached the latter half, the number of performers dwindled. Laboon let out anxious low cries, feeling the presence of each illusory companion disappear one by one beside Brook. The journey of the Rumbar Pirates replayed before his eyes, and finally the scene of each crewmate collapsing during their last performance forty years ago.
He tried desperately to hold on to the sound, but he was powerless.
Laboon was an unusually intelligent island whale. Just from the shifts in the music, he understood what Brook was trying to tell him. But he wished he weren't so smart—his fleeting joy burst like a dream, swallowed instantly by a tidal wave of grief.
One familiar figure after another, one precious memory after another, appeared and vanished in his mind. The Rumbar Pirates smiled and waved goodbye. Laboon swam forward, but no matter how he tried, he couldn't reach them.
He kept swimming… kept swimming… until his scarred forehead pressed against the cliffside. The cold, hard rock of the Red Line pulled him back into reality. His enormous eyes were full of sorrow and confusion.
By instinct, he backed away. His massive tail swung, as though preparing to ram the cliff again. But this time it wasn't to break through the Red Line to search for his friends—it was simply to release the pain in his chest, to numb himself through physical hurt.
Brook still played his violin. Only his piano accompaniment remained in the tone dial. The Brook from forty years ago and the Brook of the present seemed to overlap, performing a duet across time, pouring every emotion of past and present into this one song for Laboon.
Laboon froze. He understood Brook's heart—joy of reunion, grief for lost companions, regret for the promise never fulfilled, and years of worry…
But most importantly, he understood the Rumbar Pirates' final message hidden in the song:
"We ended this journey cheerfully and with smiles."
That was the meaning of the recording. As pirates, they had long accepted that death could come at any time. There was nothing terrifying about that.
The only regret they had was failing to keep their promise to Laboon. And they knew Laboon would be heartbroken after learning the truth.
They were the Rumbar Pirates—able to make even crying children smile. How could they allow their beloved companion to weep for them?
So, with the last of their lives, they left behind this grand "never-to-be-repeated" chorus, telling him:
"We may be gone, but we left smiling. And you must continue living with a smile too…"
Brook knew exactly what this song meant. For forty years, whenever loneliness overwhelmed him, he would listen to the tone dial once more. This "song of life" let him feel the presence of his companions. It was a gift both to Laboon… and to him.
Shark Chili had been the first to understand the song, which was why on Thriller Bark he listened to it completely without running away. He could feel the joy the performers wished to share. Not even Tom could replicate such a performance.
And now Laboon, as a true companion of the Rumbar Pirates, understood it as well. That was why he didn't ram the Red Line again. He would no longer hurt himself on purpose. He would fulfill his companions' final wish—live well, live with a smile… together with Brook.
Laboon quietly listened to the final note, then looked at Brook as Brook slowly lowered his violin.
After a moment, Laboon gently opened his mouth. "Oooo~~~"
"I understand, Laboon! I understand!" Tears burst from Brook's eyes. He lifted the hand holding the bow and wiped them away with his sleeve.
"You still have me! I truly am hopeless, needing you to comfort me at a time like this. But it's not just that you have me—I still have you!"
"Oooo~~~"
Laboon lowered himself against the shore, as if inviting Brook onto his back.
"Yes. This is the last time I cry." Brook wiped his face dry and hopped lightly onto Laboon's back. "Then let me play for you. Let me sing your favorite song!"
"Ooo~ ooo~"
Just like long ago, Laboon carried Brook steadily across the sea.
Violin, song, and whale cries filled Twin Cape.
…
While Brook and Laboon played in the water, Crocus explained Brook's experiences and shared Laboon's past with the members of the Amber Travel Group.
Naturally, that included the origin of the scars on Laboon's head.
"Eh? Those scars really came from him ramming the Red Line?" Wendy touched her own head in sympathy. "That must have hurt so much…"
"His body is far too large. He can't pass through the canal to return to the West Blue. So he could only ram the cliff day after day." Crocus looked up at the towering Reverse Mountain. "More than pain, what Laboon feared most was that his years of waiting might have been meaningless."
Rui Meng Meng said, "But he waited so long. If he believed his companions would return, is it really okay for him to hurt himself?"
"Well… it's actually my responsibility." Crocus said with some guilt. "I once confirmed through a 'reliable channel' that the Rumbar Pirates had left the Grand Line. After I told Laboon, he refused to believe it. He grew agitated and tried to break through the Red Line to confirm the truth for himself…"
The "reliable channel" was from the years he spent as ship doctor aboard Roger's ship. During that time, he heard news that the Rumbar Pirates had successfully escaped the Grand Line.
Perona said, dissatisfied, "What reliable channel? That was obviously wrong."
"Perhaps… maybe it was my fault." Crocus said uncertainly.
"No." Zhang Da Ye said. "That information should be correct."
Everyone turned to him in confusion.
Zhang Da Ye explained, "Brook once said that Captain Yorki and several crewmates contracted a deadly disease. To prevent infection, they took the old Rumbar Pirates' ship and forced their way into the Calm Belt, intending to leave the Grand Line."
"The remaining crewmates were led by Brook aboard a new ship to continue their adventure, but they disappeared in the Devil's Triangle. Their deaths were unknown to the outside world."
"So the information Crocus received referred to Yorki's group leaving the Grand Line. It wasn't exactly false. Crocus didn't deceive Laboon, so you don't need to blame yourself so much."
"Thank you for your reassurance." Crocus smiled faintly. "Even so, my information caused Laboon great pain for many, many years."
"Yohohoho~ Please don't worry, Mr. Crocus!" Brook rode Laboon back to shore. "Laboon doesn't blame you at all. If anything, I should thank you for caring for him all this time, and for collecting information about us for his sake."
Brook hopped down, removed his small top hat, and bowed. "Thank you very much!"
"Ooo~ ooo~" Laboon responded cheerfully.
"Is that so?" Crocus smiled. "I'm glad to hear it. And congratulations on your reunion!"
"Ooo~ ooo~"
"Thank you!" Brook said again, then turned to Zhang Da Ye and the others. "And thank you all for taking care of me along the journey. Without you, I wouldn't know when I would have seen Laboon again. I'm truly grateful!"
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