At the sight of that ship, Shirakawa's expression shifted from solemn to surprise, and finally lit up with excitement.
"Captain, what's up?" Anyone could tell Shirakawa was overjoyed—he was grinning so wide the corners of his mouth practically reached his ears.
"Notify the crew. We're throwing a banquet. Bring out all the treasured wine we've stashed away. Tell them—my friend has arrived."
Shirakawa gave the order to Mute.
"Yes, Captain."
Mute put his Longleg Tribe legs to full use, racing off to deliver Shirakawa's command to his crewmates.
"The captain's friend? The captain actually has friends?"
Hearing this, Jora froze for a second, then blurted out in surprise. Of everyone on this ship, he'd been with Shirakawa the longest. How come he'd never heard the captain had other friends?
"Why overthink it? When the captain's friend gets here, we'll see for ourselves, won't we?"
Ulisitine was perfectly calm. Wasn't it normal for a person to have a few friends that others didn't know about? Nothing to fuss over.
"True."
After that, they went aboard and dug out every last bottle of fine wine they'd brought from the South Blue and hidden away. If the captain was making this much of a fuss, then this had to be someone very important to him.
"Isn't that Shirakawa's pirate crew?"
A little earlier, the people on that ship had spotted the Silver Pirates' vessel docked at Little Garden and remarked with some surprise.
"Let me see."
A young man with a red nose and blue hair snatched the telescope and looked toward Little Garden himself. Sure enough, there was a pirate ship flying a Jolly Roger.
"Yep, that's definitely the Silver Pirates' flag. The papers have run it so many times I've lost count."
The red-nosed young man said it with absolute certainty.
"Didn't expect to run into him here. It's really been a long time, hasn't it?"
A red-haired young man said with a sigh, his voice full of nostalgia.
That's right—the people on this ship were the members of the Roger Pirates who had stayed together after the crew disbanded. The two who just spoke were, of course, Shanks and Buggy.
"Looks like he's spotted us too."
Scopper Gaban took the cigarette from his mouth and blew out a cloud of smoke.
Then the ship sailed toward Little Garden.
"Hey, Shirakawa! Long time no see!" Once Shirakawa's figure came into view, Shanks stood at the bow, waving and shouting at the top of his lungs.
"All this time and you still haven't changed one bit, Shanks."
That brash, boisterous temperament—in the Roger Pirates, besides Shanks, only Buggy had it.
And sure enough, not to be outdone, Buggy popped up beside Shanks, striking the exact same pose.
Shirakawa saw plenty of familiar faces—Scopper Gaban, Seagull, Crocus, along with Shanks and Buggy, and others he knew well.
"Long time no see, everyone."
After they came ashore, Shirakawa opened his arms wide, as if offering a big embrace. But the only ones who actually threw themselves at him were Buggy and Shanks. The moment they saw those open arms, the two of them dove right into his hug, letting their longing for him pour out.
After all, the three of them had been the closest playmates of the same age back in the Roger Pirates.
"You've gotten a lot stronger in the time we haven't seen you, Shirakawa."
Scopper Gaban spoke with a touch of wonder. To think that the frail young man who'd once needed protection now stood shoulder to shoulder with him.
"Heh, mainly I ran into all sorts of adventures out on the sea. That's how I ended up with this kind of strength."
Hearing that, Gaban stepped forward and squeezed his shoulder. As expected of a Great Swordsman—even his muscles felt sturdier than before.
What did being a Great Swordsman have to do with sturdy muscles? Shirakawa was utterly baffled by Gaban's comment.
"By the way, what brings you here?"
"Well, the crew's disbanded, and some members are heading home. So I'm playing bodyguard along the way, making sure nothing happens to them."
Gaban explained. The Roger Pirates came from all over—the Four Blues, the Grand Line. He figured the ones still with him now were probably all from the Four Blues.
"What about you? What are you doing stuck here?"
"Mainly training my crew. As they are now, they're not qualified to enter the New World yet."
"Is that line really okay coming out of your mouth?"
Gaban shot him a look.
"What do you mean?"
"Back when you first entered the New World, you were probably even weaker than your crew is now."
Gaban hadn't seen Shirakawa's crew yet, but if they were any weaker than Shirakawa had been when he first joined, they probably wouldn't even make it through the first half of the Grand Line.
"Hehe, well, I had you guys backing me up back then."
Shirakawa said it a little sheepishly. When he'd first arrived in this world, he'd just been an ordinary young man with a special ability, after all.
"Right, I haven't introduced my crew yet. They're all incredibly reliable partners."
"Oh? Then let's see how good your eye is."
With Shirakawa leading the way, they all headed to the banquet site.
But when the Silver Pirates saw the people Shirakawa was leading, they froze on the spot.
Weren't these the Roger Pirates who'd been making headlines just a little while ago? What were they doing here?
"Those are the friends the captain was talking about?"
Jora stood next to Mute and whispered into his ear.
"I think so." Mute wasn't sure either. He'd never imagined the captain's friends would be figures of this caliber.
"Don't forget, the captain was once a member of the Roger Pirates too—part of the Pirate King's crew. What's wrong with having a few Pirate King crewmates as friends? Perfectly normal."
Ulisitine reminded them.
That's when it hit them. After so long, they'd practically forgotten the captain's former identity—though they'd recalled it once about half a month ago. This time, they'd probably gotten such a shock from seeing these crewmates that they'd forgotten all over again.
"These people, I don't think I need to introduce them. You all must know who they are."
Shirakawa said to his crew.
"Of course. The Pirate King's crew—is there anyone in the world who doesn't know them now?"
After that, Shirakawa introduced both sides, and then the day's banquet began. Probably because of the Pirate King's crewmates being there, the Silver Pirates were all a bit stiff and reserved at first.
But they'd loosen up once they'd had a few drinks.
"The crew you've chosen really isn't bad."
While drinking, Gaban said to Shirakawa. As a former core member of the Roger Pirates, his eye for people was naturally sharp. He could see that every one of Shirakawa's crew had strong talent.
"Of course. Look who picked them. By the way, where are Oden and Rayleigh? They didn't come with you?"
"Oden's already gone back to Wano Country. As for Rayleigh, you know that guy. The moment he sets foot on the Sabaody Archipelago, his feet refuse to carry him any further."
"Haha, the Vice-Captain's still got that vice, huh? Looks like I'll have to go see him in Sabaody from now on."
Not seeing Rayleigh and Oden left Shirakawa a little disappointed. After all, those two had taught him the way of the sword, and now that he'd become a Great Swordsman, he really wanted to test himself against them.
/-\
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