Chapter 105: Uta and Rayleigh's Meeting
Sabaody Archipelago, Grove 13.
Inside Shakky's Rip-off Bar.
A tall, slender woman with short black hair, an appearance that belied her age, and a spider-patterned top sat at the bar, looking rather speechlessly at the pirates lying all over the floor. "Honestly. They don't even bother to find out where they are before trying to spend money here. Such courage."
Not far from the bar, an old man in a floral shirt and pants, with a white cape draped over his back and graying hair, had a glint of white light reflect off his glasses as the corners of his mouth turned up slightly. "They're probably just used to being arrogant. They've lost their sense of reverence for many things."
To this, the tall, slender woman lit a slim cigarette, glanced at the white-haired old man, and said, annoyed, "You're not much better, Rayleigh!"
The old man called Rayleigh heard this and gave the tall, short-haired woman an innocent look. "Don't be so grumpy, Shakky. We can just hand them over to the Marines in exchange for the bounty money. Won't that cover our losses? We might even make a small profit!"
Shakky looked at the pile of pirates, a hint of displeasure in her eyes. She slowly exhaled a puff of smoke. "Leaving aside what these small fry are even worth... the people in the Marines who remember me aren't all dead yet. Wouldn't this be walking right into a trap?"
Rayleigh laughed awkwardly, then skillfully took a bottle of liquor from the cabinet. After opening the cap, he poured it into his glass.
Hearing the sound, Shakky turned her head, her gaze falling on the bottle. She then said in a casual tone, "I'll put it on your tab."
A look of embarrassment appeared on Rayleigh's face. He mentally calculated how much of his coating wages he had left. If it wasn't enough to settle the bill, he might have to auction himself off again...
CREAK—
With a piercing sound, the tightly closed door of the bar was pushed open. A beam of sunlight shot into the room.
THUD—THUD—
Two figures, one tall and one short, both completely covered by cloaks, walked into the bar with their backs to the sun. Under the strange gazes of the two in the bar, they stepped straight over the pirates lying on the floor and sat down at the bar.
Rayleigh slowly put down his glass and turned to look at the slightly taller figure. He frowned slightly, ready for a fight at any moment.
Suddenly, a clear and pleasant young girl's voice came from under the shorter cloak. "You are the Dark King Rayleigh, second-in-command to the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger?"
As the girl's voice fell, the atmosphere in the bar gradually became subtle. The air seemed to freeze.
Shakky slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, then casually stubbed out the slim cigarette in her hand. She narrowed her eyes, looking at the red and white hair peeking out from under the smaller figure's hood, a flash of understanding in her eyes.
Rayleigh raised an eyebrow, lifted his glass again, and replied in a relaxed tone, "I'm just an ordinary retired old pirate."
"I see. Looks like I didn't find the wrong person," the girl's voice rose a few pitches, as if her mood had brightened.
Rayleigh heard this, a thoughtful look on his face, his mind racing to figure out the identity and purpose of the two before him. The next moment, the question in his mind was answered.
The petite figure reached out with her fair, slender hands from under her cloak and slowly took off her hood. Smooth, long hair, half red and half white, cascaded down. An exquisite and perfect face was revealed, her two-toned hair braided into a butterfly-shaped bow behind her head, her ears covered and protected by special headphones.
Uta took a deep breath and gave the white-haired old man a bright, brilliant smile. "I'm Uta, the musician of the Archangel Pirates, and also Shanks's daughter!"
Seeing this, an "I knew it" expression appeared on Shakky's face. She then smiled, walked out from behind the bar, and began to drag the still-unconscious pirates out the door.
Rayleigh was stunned for a moment. It took him a while to gradually come back to his senses. Looking at the smiling girl before him, he subconsciously recalled the photo that Shanks had shown him when he came to visit several years ago. Although Uta had grown up a lot, the resemblance to her younger self was still there.
"I see. I thought I had been caught by the Marines or the World Government," Rayleigh said, feigning a look of lingering fear as he took another sip of his drink.
To this, a subtle change came over Uta's expression. "Uncle Rayleigh," she said bluntly, "you're treating us like children, aren't you?"
Rayleigh pushed up his glasses, his expression seeming to become serious. "How could I? You are all incredible great pirates now. There aren't many existences like you, even in the depths of the New World!"
After saying this, Rayleigh looked to the other side, at the young woman who had also taken off her hood, who had a pair of black oni horns and a head of loose white hair. "Shanks mentioned you to me. You're Canaan III's granddaughter, Yelena, right?"
Yelena slowly sat down, meeting Rayleigh's scrutinizing gaze, her expression incredibly serious. "Yes. If not for the help of the Roger Pirates back then, we probably wouldn't have been able to hold on."
To this, Rayleigh's eyes became nostalgic. "Back then, we destroyed their army and let Canaan III return to the plains," he said with emotion. "But what we didn't expect was that Jacob actually had a prince who had joined the Marines and become a Vice Admiral. And after we left, he returned there, making all our previous efforts for naught."
No one had expected that a city-state in the East Blue was hiding a fighter of the Marine HQ Vice Admiral level.
To this, Yelena shook her head and replied sincerely, "It wasn't your fault. You all did more than enough for Canaan." Although her grandfather hadn't stayed on the plains for long, Roger destroying their army had still bought Canaan a lot of breathing room.
Just then, Shakky, having dealt with the pirates, walked back into the bar and closed the door tightly. She returned to the bar and poured a glass of liquor for Yelena and a glass of juice for Uta.
"Thank you!" Uta accepted without hesitation. After thanking her, she picked up the juice and began to chat with Rayleigh.
Yelena, however, smiled and politely declined. "Thank you very much, but I don't drink."
Yelena's words made Shakky raise an eyebrow slightly. "You don't drink? That's a very good habit!" she said pointedly. "Isn't that right, Rayleigh?"
To this, Rayleigh sat upright opposite Uta, his expression serious. He would nod from time to time, looking as if he was paying no attention to anything else in the world.
Shakky saw this, shook her head, and lit another slim cigarette, looking as if Rayleigh was a lost cause. Then, Shakky leaned on the bar with her elbows, slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, and asked with a face full of curiosity, "Are just the two of you here? What about that little brother Louis?"
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