When Beckman and Yasopp saw the eager light flash in Shanks' eyes, they immediately grabbed him, not daring to let him provoke Borsalino at a time like this.
"This is really putting me in a tough spot. After all, they just handed Bratt over to me — that's them giving me face. If something happens to them in front of me, I can't exactly just stand by and watch, can I? Besides, I should warn you, you'd better not make trouble for them on this island. Otherwise… you might attract a certain monster." Rosinante said casually.
"Oh, scary, very scary. Forget it then. The Fleet Admiral didn't exactly order me to capture them anyway. And I'm still injured, you know — no way I could beat the Red-Haired Pirates right now," Borsalino said lazily.
Injured? My ass. Whatever little injury you had is probably healed by now! But upon hearing Borsalino's words, the Red-Haired Pirates all let out a collective sigh of relief. It seemed there wouldn't be a fight after all.
"But now that you've said that, I am rather curious. Which monster would show up?" Borsalino tilted his head, staring at the Red-Haired Pirates.
The Red-Haired Pirates tensed up again at his words.
"Wait until they leave, then you can try," Rosinante said with a smile.
"Better not. If that monster really showed up, it'd be scary as hell. I am injured, you know," Borsalino replied, shaking his head.
The Red-Haired Pirates let out another long breath of relief, and loosened their grip on Shanks' arms.
"Hmm, though I'd still like the chance to spar with the Marine Monster Vice Admiral someday," Shanks suddenly said with a grin the moment they released him — and then a wave of overwhelming dominance crashed toward Borsalino.
The Red-Haired Pirates were so shocked by Shanks' move that they nearly jumped out of their skins.
"Conqueror's Haki… scary, very scary. What a domineering man — you remind me of your old captain," Borsalino said, looking at him with interest.
Borsalino had once been on Sengoku's battleship alongside Garp, taking part in a siege against Pirate King Roger. He had witnessed Roger's overwhelming conqueror's presence firsthand.
"Oh? Is that so? He's always been my role model," Shanks said, touching the straw hat on his head.
"Wow, the Pirate King's successor has appeared! So scary, so scary…" Borsalino said with a grin.
"Seriously, if you're not going to fight, quit showing off already. This is getting ridiculous — people are going to start saying we're just padding the word count here," Rosinante said with a smirk.
"Well, if there's nothing left here for us, we'll be taking our leave. See you around!" Beckman said.
He definitely wasn't going to let Shanks linger here any longer. If they stayed, who knew what else might happen?
"See you around," Rosinante nodded to him.
He understood Beckman's concerns and didn't try to make them stay.
After all, Rosinante wasn't looking to cling to the Red-Haired Pirates' thigh. If Shanks became one of the future Four Emperors, maybe they could cooperate someday — but right now, the Red-Haired Pirates were still a bit lacking.
He had wanted to ask Shanks if he knew anything about Rayleigh, but now didn't seem like the right time.
Red-Hair might be reckless at times, but he wasn't stupid — he knew this wasn't the moment to clash with Borsalino. He gave Rosinante a nod, then led his crew away.
"Let's go. The place I'm staying on Sabaody is just ahead. I've already sent word to Bins — he'll be opening a wormhole soon to take Bratt away," Rosinante said.
He strode ahead, and Raijin Kisu quickly moved to lead the way.
"My, such an impatient fellow. A shame though — I couldn't take down Red-Hair while I had the chance. Who knows if I'll ever get another opportunity?" Borsalino said, glancing back at the departing Shanks.
But he didn't dwell on it. As far as he was concerned, Shanks might have been an apprentice on Roger's ship, but that didn't mean much — just an apprentice.
In Borsalino's mind, whether the Red-Haired Pirates would even survive after entering the New World was still up in the air.
If he knew what Shanks would achieve in the future, perhaps he would regret letting him go today… though with Borsalino's salted-fish attitude, who could say?
Their destination wasn't far. Before long, under Kisu's guidance, they arrived at a beautifully designed villa.
"What a fancy place. Sometimes I really envy you pirates — the Marines don't get treatment this good," Borsalino said with a grin as he stepped inside.
"If you envy it, why not jump ship and join the Grey Nation? Our benefits are way better than what the Marines give you!" Rosinante said with a chuckle.
"Spare me! I've no interest in becoming a wanted pirate, running around with people chasing me all the time. I much prefer chasing others — it's way more fun," Borsalino said, rolling his eyes.
Rosinante didn't take it seriously. He never expected to recruit Borsalino in the first place — and even if Borsalino agreed, Rosinante might not dare accept him. For all he knew, it could be a Marine trap.
"Let me go, you bastards! If you've got guts, let me go and fight me one-on-one!" a loud, angry voice shouted at that moment.
Everyone turned to see Bratt — awake at last.
"Wow, so this is the battle maniac Bratt? Scary!" Borsalino said, amused.
"You know how scary I am, so let me go already! Otherwise, I'll beat you so badly your own mother won't recognize you!" Bratt roared.
"Can I rough him up a little?" Borsalino tilted his head and asked Rosinante.
"Not really. After all, he's going to be one of my subordinates in the future. How would it look if I let you beat him in front of me? Where would my face be then?" Rosinante said lightly.
"Damn it, who's your subordinate? I'm no one's subordinate! With that crooked face of yours, you think you can be my boss? I'd have to think about it first! Let me go, or I'll beat you all so bad your mothers won't recognize you either!" Bratt kept shouting.
"You know what? You're right — he is too noisy and could use some discipline," Rosinante said.
As he spoke, he snapped his fingers.
Suddenly, the entire world went silent. No matter how much Bratt struggled or shouted, no sound came out.
"The power of the Silence Fruit?" Borsalino muttered.
Just then, a wormhole opened near them.
A man stepped out.
"Wow, talk about being thorough," Borsalino said, his face twisting slightly.
Sengoku still wanted to ambush Bins, but Bins wasn't even showing himself — not giving them the slightest opening.
And compared to Bins, this guy was another major headache.
It was Charlotte Katakuri, former Sweet Commander of the Big Mom Pirates, master of future-sight Observation Haki.
"So… he's the one you were talking about?" Katakuri asked, glancing at Borsalino before turning his gaze to Bratt.
"Once you take him back, lock him up in a seastone cell for a few days, then give him some proper training. He might turn into a useful fighter someday," Rosinante said.
"Perhaps," Katakuri replied simply. Without another word, he grabbed Bratt and dragged him toward the wormhole.
Bratt kept struggling and shouting along the way — but with his body restrained and his voice sealed, he could do nothing. He couldn't even curse them out.