"To Rayleigh:
Long time no see. How's your health holding up? Don't go dying as suddenly as Roger did! Ha ha ha.
We all agreed to wait for twenty years! When the time comes, we'll gather again and throw the Captain the wildest party ever... His adventure isn't over yet!
Also, this young man has potential. If you're willing, you could give him some Haki guidance.
- Signed, Crocus"
......
At Shakky's Rip-off Bar, Rayleigh sat at the counter, sipping his drink while reading a letter from Crocus.
The letter was old, the ink faded along the creases, but Rayleigh recognized the handwriting of Crocus, his former crewmate.
While Rayleigh read the letter, Liam and Robin pored over the newspaper.
Liam quietly took a couple of sips of floral milk tea to calm his nerves.
After more than a year apart, seeing Hancock's face again, he realized the girl seemed even more beautiful than before.
Even just a photograph, not her actual presence, radiated a mesmerizing charm that seemed to leap off the page. Even Shakky had jokingly declared herself a Hancock fan.
Liam noticed the article mentioned Vice Admiral Momonga of the Marine Headquarters. This meant that after her contact with the Marines, Hancock had already released Momonga from his petrification.
Compared to the sensational headline trumpeting Hancock's appointment as a Warlord of the Sea, the news of Laut. Haiyna being stripped of his Shichibukai title seemed almost insignificant, relegated to a smaller section below...
As Liam had predicted, the article only stated that Haiyna was no longer a Shichibukai, offering no details about his whereabouts. Whether he had reverted to his pirate ways or suffered the wrath of the World Government and Marines remained unspoken.
After all...
Liam knew that criminals imprisoned in Impel Down's Level 6, Eternal Hell, had all information about them completely suppressed. The World Government sought to erase all traces of these wicked criminals from the world.
For a long time to come, at least until Luffy's eventual rampage through Impel Down, Laut. Haiyna's name would likely never be heard again.
'...assuming Luffy's future rampage and mass prison break still occur.'
......
"Mr. Crocus is right!"
......
'Seeing the words is like seeing their faces.' Rayleigh repeatedly read the two notes Giorno had produced, and he could almost picture the expressions on old Crocus's face and young Shanks's as they wrote these letters.
'Even after all these years, they haven't changed a bit.'
An overwhelming surge of emotions welled up in Rayleigh's chest, choking him. He poured himself two more glasses of sake and downed them in quick succession.
Thud.
Robin finished her small glass of sake and set it down, pressing it against the newspaper.
After all, this was a bar, and Shakky's cabinet had never held much tea to begin with. The last of it had already been used to make floral milk tea for Liam.
As for B.I.B.... it didn't need to eat at all.
Robin was somewhat surprised that Shakky could sense Stands, but B.I.B. and Liam seemed completely unfazed.
As a former pirate once pursued by Garp who had now washed his hands of that life and retired in seclusion with Rayleigh, Shakky was highly likely to have been a member of the original Rocks Pirates, defeated by the combined forces of Garp and Roger.
It was only natural that she would possess Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki).
"Still, what exactly is this...?" Shakky, ever the information broker, couldn't help but feel curious about B.I.B., such a peculiar specimen. "Is it a Suke Suke no Mi (Clear-Clear Fruit) Ability user? Or perhaps the Ghost Fruit? Naturally, if you're not comfortable sharing, don't bother with me."
Looking at Liam at this moment would have been a direct hint that the phantom was connected to him. Hearing this, Robin merely smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying her.
Liam saw no reason to hide anything. He raised his fist and gently bumped it against the extended fist of his Stand, laughing. "Ah, this? You could think of it as an incarnation of a part of my soul!"
"Ooh..." Shakky nodded slowly, a cigarette curling smoke into the air. It was impossible to tell if she understood, but she glanced back and forth between Robin and Liam with a playful glint in her eyes.
The woman's gaze exerted an inexplicable pressure. Robin forced herself to remain calm, picking up her cup to drink, only to realize it had long been empty.
Liam pushed the remaining half-cup of floral milk tea toward her.
Robin naturally picked it up, brought it to her lips, and drank half of it. Catching Shakky's knowing smile, she couldn't help but feel her ears warm slightly. Through the cup, she heard Shakky chuckle, "I've been watching you two for quite a while now. Seeing how close you really are makes me so happy. Heh heh heh..."
Liam suddenly thought, 'So this is the truth behind the CP organization?! I never imagined that someone working in Information would also moonlight as a CP shipper.'
"You always seem to be thinking about the most outlandish things..." Robin glanced sideways at the guy beside her.
"Heh heh..."
Shakky chuckled softly as she picked up the two slips of paper Rayleigh had left on the bar. After examining Crocus's note, she laughed in surprise. "Someone recommended you come to Rayleigh to learn Haki? But your Haki is already so refined, you don't need his guidance anymore. Hmm, this note is quite old." She ran her fingers over the heavily worn, yellowed paper. "About six years, I'd say."
'Can she really tell just by touching it?' Even the archaeologist Robin was astonished.
Shakky gave Shanks's note a cursory glance. "This one looks like it's only a little over a year old."
'You must be a monster…'
Robin, Liam, and the Black Ghost behind them all thought simultaneously.
Liam said cheerfully, "Now that we're here, it's a rare opportunity to meet a master like Mr. Rayleigh. Exchanging insights and learning from him can't hurt."
"I admire your attitude," Shakky said with a smile.
"How's Crocus doing?" Rayleigh removed his glasses, wiped them, and put them back on, taking a sip of his wine. "Back in the day, he was taking care of an Island Whale, and that's why he joined us on the Grand Line, to find the whale's pirate companions... How's the whale doing?"
Liam replied, "Mr. Crocus is doing well. As for the whale's health, we don't know."
Rayleigh looked slightly surprised. Liam explained, "We let slip a bit too much back then, and the guy slipped away..."
Liam said cheerfully, "Since we're already here, it's a rare opportunity to meet a master like Mr. Rayleigh. Exchanging knowledge and learning from each other can't hurt, right?"
"Your attitude is truly admirable," Shakky said with a smile.
"How's Crocus doing these days?" Rayleigh removed his glasses, wiped them clean, and put them back on, taking a sip of wine with a gentle smile. "Back then, he was caring for an Island Whale and joined us on the Grand Line to help the whale find its pirate companions... How's the whale?"
Liam replied, "Crocus is doing well, but we don't know about the whale's condition."
Rayleigh looked slightly surprised. Liam continued, "We let slip a few extra words back then, and the guy slipped away..."
(End Of This Chapter)
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