Although Whitebeard had already told the banquet to continue, at that moment, the Whitebeard Pirates were no longer the center of attention on the deck of the Moby Dick.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on Whitebeard and Shiki as the two drank boldly together.
Whitebeard did not know if it was his imagination, but he could clearly feel that the Shiki before him was different from the ambitious man he had once known.
Glug, glug, glug.
After downing several mouthfuls of fine wine, Shiki sensed Whitebeard's gaze on him. He set his cup down in front of him and asked the question on his mind.
"Newgate, tell me. What meaning is there in this new era Roger was willing to walk to his death to begin?"
The moment Shiki asked that question, the surrounding Whitebeard Pirates were all confused, unable to understand what significance it held.
Whitebeard, however, heard something in Shiki's words. His gaze shifted over Shiki's face, still unruly, but missing some of the arrogance that had once belonged to the great pirate Shiki the Golden Lion.
"How would I know something like that… Maybe it was for the hope of the future."
"The future! Hope!"
The moment that answer came out, the veins on Shiki's forehead visibly bulged. Then he stood up in anger and roared, "Why? Changing the world was something he absolutely could have done if he had been willing to join forces with me. Why entrust the result to some vague, unreachable future? Even if he didn't want to join hands with me, he could have done it himself! Do you also think that placing hope in some uncertain fate is the right answer, instead of changing this world with your own hands? You saw those people who went out to sea because of Roger's call, didn't you? Do you really think they'll do better than we would?"
Shiki's barrage of words left Whitebeard visibly stunned.
Then Whitebeard began to think.
He even remembered the young man who had challenged him earlier, only to be defeated and thrown into the sea to feed the fish.
This time, rare for him, Whitebeard did not mock Shiki. Instead, he spoke with a serious expression, his gaze filled with memory.
"Before Roger turned himself in, he came to see me once. We drank together."
Shiki was startled.
Then he watched Whitebeard pick up his cup and drink it down with a troubled air before continuing.
"He told me he had a terminal illness and didn't have much longer to live."
"What?"
Shiki's expression changed drastically, then turned deeply ugly.
"How is that possible? A man like him, falling to some mere illness…"
"It's true."
Whitebeard glanced at Shiki. Perhaps because they had once stood in the same legend, both enemies and friends, Whitebeard said a great deal.
"Roger knew long ago that he was seriously ill. That was one of the reasons he decided to sail the Grand Line again, reach Laugh Tale, become the Pirate King, and finally turn himself in."
Shiki was completely stunned.
He had never imagined that the answer would be something like this.
But at the same time, he thought of something else and suddenly laughed at himself.
"So Roger fought me in that decisive battle while dragging along a body that sick?"
Shiki was talking about one of the few great defeats of his life, the Battle of Edd War.
"Yeah…"
Whitebeard also sank into memory.
"That man fought me for three days and three nights with a body that sick, and I didn't notice a thing. He even poached my Second Division Commander."
Thinking of this, even Whitebeard, the strongest man in the world today, could not help but sigh.
"Roger was the real monster. If he hadn't gotten that terminal illness, maybe he really would have had the power to change this world."
After saying that, Whitebeard picked up his wine again and drank in heavy gulps, as if trying to drown his worries.
At that moment, Shiki suddenly looked up at the sky and said, "Fate really does love playing tricks on people."
Whitebeard looked at Shiki's sighing face, frowned, and asked, "What's wrong with you? You're not the bastard lion I know today."
Hearing the words "bastard lion," Shiki did not get angry. Instead, he put away his emotions and laughed.
"Shihahaha… You're right. I was only feeling a little sentimental."
As Shiki spoke, he looked toward the newspaper by Whitebeard's hand.
"You saw the news on there, didn't you? But that isn't the truth."
Under Whitebeard's surprised gaze, Shiki slowly said something that left him stunned.
"I did escape from prison. But unfortunately, I didn't get out on my own. I was released by a brat."
"!!!"
At this point, Shiki took a hard drag from the cigar at his mouth, then looked at Whitebeard with excitement in his eyes.
"Newgate, do you know who I met beside that brat? An old acquaintance. That little fox who used to stay by Rocks's side."
"Lillilu…"
Whitebeard's pupils widened slightly as he slowly said the name.
"That's right. And the brat who saved me is called Rocks D. White. Of course, you may not be familiar with that name. But if I say his other name, you might know him."
"Sky Pirates. Yemu."
In an instant, cries of shock rang across the entire Moby Dick.
"Impossible…"
"How could that be…"
"So Yemu, captain of the Sky Pirates, is actually Rocks's son?"
"That's huge news…"
At that moment, even Whitebeard could not control his expression. His face was filled with shock.
"Of course it's true, except for the part where he says he isn't Rocks's son."
"I see… This sea really is about to fall into chaos."
Whitebeard frowned deeply.
Seeing this, Shiki laughed.
"Shihahaha… Don't rush, Newgate. I'm not done yet. Shihahaha! Do you know what that brat did? He defeated our old friend Sengoku all by himself!"
This time, the cries of shock from the ship were even louder.
If Rocks was only a legend to many people on the ship, and some of the newer members had not even heard the name before, then the reputation of Admiral Sengoku was something they knew all too well.
To pirates, that name was like a demon.
Even Whitebeard could not believe it.
"Are you joking?"
After all, how old was Yemu? How long had he been at sea? Yet he could already defeat Sengoku, the man called one of the Marines' highest combat powers.
"Shihahaha! Of course I'm not joking. It happened four days ago. I witnessed the result of that battle with my own eyes. Although that brat Yemu was badly beaten too, in the end, he was the one still standing, while Sengoku was knocked into the sea."
At that, Whitebeard no longer had any reason to doubt him. His gaze grew extremely grave.
But Shiki was not finished shocking him.
"After defeating Sengoku, his next target is me."
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