"So this is where Granny Nyon lives."
Merry curiously looked around the courtyard.
"The environment here is really nice."
"Hahaha, it's alright."
Gloriosa chuckled.
"Ever since I started living peacefully, I began enjoying flowers and plants."
"Before I knew it, the courtyard became like this."
She had to admit—
This kind of scenery truly relaxed both body and mind.
After placing her snake cane aside, she said:
"Sit."
Jin nodded and sat down with Merry on the sofa.
As for Luffy—
"Oi, Luffy!"
Jin stared at him in disbelief.
"Why are you raiding someone else's refrigerator the moment you enter their house?!"
He was exactly the same back at Sabaody.
And now here too.
Did this idiot seriously have zero sense of boundaries?
Even Gloriosa looked stunned.
This brat really wasn't being polite at all.
"Hm?"
Luffy turned around with a sausage stuffed in his mouth.
"But I'm starving…"
He had no idea how long he'd been unconscious.
Right now his stomach felt completely empty.
Jin covered his face helplessly before awkwardly turning toward Gloriosa.
"Sorry, Granny Nyon."
"We'll pay for the food."
"Ah, it's fine."
Gloriosa waved dismissively.
She guessed the boy had burned through enormous energy during treatment.
It was natural for him to be hungry afterward.
Besides—
She wasn't stingy enough to care about a little food.
Surely he couldn't eat that much.
Seeing her expression—
Jin fell silent.
This granny clearly had no understanding of Luffy's appetite…
Forget it.
He'd explain later.
"Go ahead."
Gloriosa spoke calmly.
Jin understood what she meant.
Without wasting words—
He immediately took out two Den Den Mushi and placed them on the table.
"Huh?"
"Why is this Den Den Mushi white?"
Merry curiously stared at the obedient little snail.
It was her first time seeing a white one.
"Whoa, you're right…"
Luffy glanced over too.
"There are white Den Den Mushi?"
"Can these make calls too?"
"Yes."
Jin nodded.
"When making calls, placing this white one beside a normal Den Den Mushi prevents wiretapping."
As he spoke—
He dialed Shakky's number.
"Prevents… wiretapping…"
Luffy tilted his head.
Clearly, he didn't understand a single word.
After thinking hard for several seconds—
He gave up completely and resumed stuffing food into his mouth.
Gloriosa: …
This Straw Hat brat honestly looked like an idiot.
Then again—
A smart person probably wouldn't randomly eat poisonous mushrooms and collapse.
"Pururururu~"
"Pururururu~"
"Pururururu~"
Click.
"Moshi moshi~"
Jin smiled lightly.
"It's me, Jin."
"Ara ara~"
"So Little Jin finally called~"
Shakuyaku said with a smile.
"Jin!"
"Jin-chin!"
"Jin!"
Hearing three familiar voices—
Jin froze briefly before laughing.
"So it's you guys."
"What are you doing at Shakky-neesan's place?"
"Ah, well…"
Hatchan scratched his head awkwardly.
"We were worried about you all…"
"So we came ashore with Rayleigh to check."
Without Rayleigh there—
He genuinely wouldn't have dared bring Camie onto land again.
After all—
He wasn't nearly as strong as the Straw Hat crew.
Warmth filled Jin's heart.
Then he smiled softly.
"I see…"
"Don't worry. We're alright."
"That's good…"
"And where's Rayleigh?"
Merry asked curiously.
"Him?"
Shakky flicked ash from her cigarette.
"Once he heard you were alive, he returned to continue coating your ship."
According to Rayleigh—
He hoped the Straw Hats could head straight to the New World the moment they returned.
Until then—
He could also watch over the ship for them.
"I see…"
Merry nodded slowly.
That meant they definitely couldn't bring the ship over here now.
Otherwise Rayleigh's hard work would be wasted.
"Alright. Back to business."
Shakky said calmly.
"Jin, did you find Gloriosa?"
"Yeah, we found—"
Before Jin could finish—
Gloriosa casually snatched the Den Den Mushi away.
Then she huffed unhappily.
"You should call me big sister, little girl!"
"With our relationship back then, that's completely appropriate!"
The moment those words fell—
Jin and Merry were instantly dumbfounded.
Even Luffy turned around in shock, forgetting to eat.
"B-Big sister?!"
"Shakky-neesan is…"
Before Jin could finish—
He very wisely shut his mouth.
Because the Den Den Mushi's face had changed.
That expression…
Was terrifying.
Just how old is Shakky-neesan exactly…?
At that moment—
Jin became overwhelmingly curious.
But his instincts screamed at him:
Don't ask.
Absolutely do NOT ask.
Otherwise—
The next time he met Shakky, he'd definitely get beaten up.
"You're talking a little too much."
Shakky said expressionlessly.
"S-So scary…"
Hatchan, Camie, and Pappag huddled together trembling.
Why had Shakky suddenly become so terrifying?!
Was it because of what Granny Nyon just said?!
"But what I said was—"
Before Gloriosa could finish—
Shakky coldly interrupted:
"If you keep talking nonsense, I'll expose everything you did back then."
At that moment—
A frightening glint flashed through Shakky's eyes.
Gloriosa: …
One sentence instantly silenced her completely.
After several seconds—
She laughed awkwardly.
"I was joking earlier."
"Shakky is actually very young."
She deliberately said this toward Jin and the others.
Though honestly—
It wasn't convincing at all.
Still—
This definitely wasn't the time to argue.
Otherwise something dangerous might happen.
Jin coughed lightly.
"…Understood."
"Enough nonsense."
Shakky's expression turned serious.
"These kids are close to me."
"So…"
"I hope you'll help them."
That statement alone completely proved Jin's earlier claims.
His relationship with Shakky truly was extremely good.
After confirming this—
Gloriosa secretly relaxed.
At the very least—
These kids weren't enemies.
However—
Another problem quickly surfaced.
She wasn't the empress anymore.
Thinking that—
Gloriosa sighed helplessly.
"Shakky…"
"I'm retired now."
"There's only so much I can do."
"You understand that too."
At best—
She could try her hardest to protect these three in front of Hancock.
As for whether Hancock would actually listen…
That depended entirely on fate.
"Hancock should still listen to you somewhat."
Shakky replied calmly.
Gloriosa smiled bitterly.
That little girl definitely might not listen.
Still—
Now that things had reached this point, refusing was impossible.
"…Fine."
"I understand."
"Mm. I'm counting on you."
Click.
After the call ended—
Shakky rubbed her forehead tiredly.
Hopefully Gloriosa could help Little Jin somehow.
Then—
She glanced toward the three trembling figures on the sofa and revealed a gentle smile.
"What's wrong with you three?"
"Ahahaha…"
"We're just a little cold…"
"R-Right, Hatchan?!"
"Y-Yeah!!"
Seeing how terrified they were—
Shakky sighed helplessly.
She wasn't going to do anything to these kids.
At that moment—
BANG!
The tavern door was kicked open violently.
Several young pirates swaggered inside arrogantly.
"Heh. So this is the Rip-Off Bar?"
The pirate leader sneered.
"Let's see what kind of place this is."
"Ara~"
Shakky smiled pleasantly.
"Looks like some stress-relief punching bags delivered themselves~"
"…Huh?"
The young pirate froze.
He clearly didn't understand what she meant.
"Boss! There's a mermaid here!"
"And a fish-man too!"
The pirates stared excitedly at Camie and Hatchan.
Dollar signs practically appeared in their eyes.
If they captured them and sold them at auction—
They'd make a fortune!
"HAHAHAHA!"
"We're rich this time!"
"Boys, grab them!"
"YEAH!"
BANG!
Suddenly the tavern door slammed shut behind them.
The loud sound startled everyone.
Turning around—
They instantly noticed Shakky standing by the entrance.
"…Weren't you behind the counter just now?!"
How had she appeared there instantly?!
"Hehe. That's not important."
Shakky smiled kindly.
"Since you entered my establishment…"
"You should at least order a drink first."
The pirate leader hesitated.
Though wary of her speed—
His greed for money ultimately overwhelmed his fear.
After all—
That was tens of millions of Beli!
Thinking that—
He sneered arrogantly.
"Don't know who you are, lady…"
"But the Rooster Fire Pirates are conducting business."
"If you don't want to die, then hurry back to—"
Before he could finish—
An overwhelming killing intent crushed down on him.
Instantly—
His remaining words got stuck in his throat.
"…Then maybe we should have a drink."
"EH?!"
The underlings stared blankly at their captain.
Wasn't that personality shift a little too fast?!
No—
Their boss was terrified.
"Excellent."
Shakky smiled.
"One Blood Rose cocktail each."
"…H-How much?"
"The price?"
Shakky's expression turned cold instantly.
"Your lives."
Since they had seen Camie was a mermaid—
None of them would be allowed to leave alive.
Some mistakes—
She refused to let happen a second time.
Meanwhile—
Back on Amazon Lily.
After hanging up the Den Den Mushi—
Gloriosa fell into deep thought.
No one knew what she was thinking about.
Jin didn't disturb her.
Instead—
He lowered his head and fed food to the Den Den Mushi.
These things were incredibly valuable.
He couldn't let them go hungry.
"The little guy is so cute."
Merry smiled brightly.
"Can I feed it too?"
"Of course."
Jin gently rubbed her head.
"If you like it, you can keep it with you for now."
"Okay!"
Seeing Merry so happy—
Jin smiled too.
Then—
He looked toward Gloriosa, who had finally snapped out of her thoughts.
"We can discuss the next matter now, right?"
"Mm. Go ahead."
Gloriosa rubbed her face tiredly.
"What exactly do you want my help with?"
"Leaving the island?"
Hearing that—
Luffy instantly perked up.
"Granny! You'll help us leave?!"
If she helped them leave—
That would be perfect!
"…About that…"
Gloriosa looked awkward.
"That still depends on meeting Hancock first."
Luffy: ???
If she couldn't help—
Then why say it like that?!
"Granny Nyon, that's not what I wanted to discuss."
Jin stared at her seriously.
"Do you have an Eternal Pose pointing toward Marine Headquarters?"
"…Marine Headquarters?"
Merry tilted her head.
"Why do we need to go there?"
"Oi, Jin!"
Luffy shouted.
"We need to return to Sabaody!"
Why go to some Marine place?!
Their priority should be reuniting with their crew!
"Luffy…"
Jin silently placed a newspaper on the table.
The article about Fire Fist Ace's execution.
Then he said quietly:
"Fire Fist Ace is your brother, right?"
"The Marines are going to publicly execute him."
"…WHAT?!"
Luffy froze instantly.
The sausage in his hand dropped to the floor unnoticed.
Then—
He rushed over in panic and grabbed the newspaper.
Although he couldn't read many words—
He still understood the headline.
PUBLIC EXECUTION OF FIRE FIST ACE AT MARINE HEADQUARTERS
The moment he understood—
Luffy panicked completely.
"Jin!!"
"What do we do?!"
"Ace is my brother!!"
"Luffy's brother?!"
Merry panicked too.
Public execution…
Didn't that mean death?!
If Luffy's brother died—
Luffy would definitely be devastated.
Meanwhile—
Gloriosa looked at Luffy in surprise.
She truly hadn't expected the man about to be executed to be this Straw Hat brat's older brother.
What an unexpected twist.
"That's right!"
Luffy shouted anxiously.
"Ace is my brother!"
"What do we do?!"
"No…"
"I'm going to save him!"
Reuniting with his crew was important.
But—
If Ace died because he failed to go save him—
Luffy knew he would never forgive himself.
"Jin!"
"Hurry!"
"Let's go to Marine Headquarters!!"
"We don't have an Eternal Pose pointing there."
Jin sighed helplessly.
"Without one, we can't even locate Marine Headquarters."
Then—
He looked directly at Gloriosa.
"So…"
"What's your answer?"
If they had a pose—
Everything would become much simpler.
Gloriosa looked at Luffy.
Then at Jin.
Finally—
She let out a long sigh.
"…Sigh."
"Brat."
"Come with me."
"I'll take you to Hancock."
"She should possess one of those."
"However…"
"You'd better prepare yourselves mentally."
Jin froze briefly.
Prepare mentally?
Because he was a man?
Thinking that—
He nodded calmly.
"Alright. I understand."
No matter what kind of person Hancock was—
If she truly possessed that Eternal Pose…
Then even stealing it by force would be worth it.
"Good."
"Then let's go."
Gloriosa said quietly.
After all—
This brat had killed a Celestial Dragon.
Maybe…
Just maybe…
He really could persuade Hancock.
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