Moriah maintained his confidence, continuing,
"This is a rare opportunity!"
"That Straw Hat is now called the Fifth Emperor."
"If I can get his shadow and combine it with the strongest body we found, Oz, I can create the strongest zombie."
"With this strongest zombie, neither Kaido nor the Four Emperors will be our opponents."
"I will definitely use this to… become the Pirate King!"
"Kishishishishi…"
Moriah laughed uproariously, his eyes filled with longing and excitement.
However, the three strange cadres still had deep fear on their faces as they looked at Moriah and said,
"Master! Straw Hat's shadow is strong, but how can we get his shadow?"
"Yes, Master! That group is so strong, we definitely won't be able to defeat them."
Moriah stopped laughing upon hearing this, glanced at them, curled his lips into a sinister smile, and said,
"Who said we were going to fight them?"
Hearing this, all three were puzzled.
If they didn't fight, would the other party willingly hand over their shadows?
Seeing that the three hadn't reacted yet, Moriah sighed and said,
"You've all been scared by their bounties and reputation!"
As he spoke, Moriah's gaze suddenly fell on Perona, and he continued,
"Have you forgotten?"
"We have Perona as our trump card!"
At these words, the three suddenly froze, as if waking from a dream, and reacted sharply.
Moriah continued,
"No one can resist Perona's Negative Hollow!"
"As long as Perona uses her ability to restrict their movements,"
"Then I will appear."
"Wouldn't it be easy to take the shadows of their entire crew?"
"Those whose shadows I cut off will fall unconscious."
"During that time, we can throw them off our island. Wouldn't that allow us to obtain a powerful zombie army without fighting?"
"With the zombies' immortal nature, this zombie army with the Straw Hat's shadows will definitely allow us to become the strongest pirate crew in one fell swoop!"
"I will use this… to become the Pirate King!"
"Kishishishishi…"
Moriah laughed excitedly again as he spoke.
At this moment, the three strange cadres were also enlightened by Moriah's words, and their faces showed expressions of excitement and exhilaration.
"Indeed! We were initially scared by the name of the Straw Hat and completely forgot about our abilities. Thinking about it this way, the Straw Hat isn't so terrifying after all!"
"I even forgot my own ability! Thanks to Master's reminder! Even if they are the Straw Hat, they will never escape my ability! Halahalahala…"
"Can that demon finally be used? That's the strongest body I've ever seen. I wonder what kind of monster will emerge when combined with Straw Hat's shadow! I can't wait! Fufufufu…"
Led by Moriah, the entire room was filled with the strange laughter of several people.
...
On the Sunny!
After a brief introduction, Brook was invited by Luffy to dine with the Straw Hat.
After eating and drinking to his fill, Brook let out a long sigh, saying with great satisfaction,
"Ah! I'm so full!"
Then, Brook thanked Luffy and the Straw Hat,
"Mr. Luffy, thank you so much for your hospitality!"
"It's been 50 years!"
"Since I died, it's been 50 years since I've eaten such delicious food or eaten so much!"
"I'm so happy!"
"It's truly wonderful to have met you all here!"
Brook's tone was filled with emotion.
He had drifted alone in this sea for 50 years; this feeling was truly too long-awaited and too exciting for him.
Usopp and the others still kept their distance from Brook, looking fearful.
However, Sanji, upon hearing Brook's words, suddenly asked in confusion,
"You said you've been dead for 50 years?"
"Then what's with this body of yours?"
Brook immediately explained to everyone,
"Oh! I forgot to tell you all!"
"I am a Devil Fruit user who ate the Revive-Revive Fruit. This fruit grants a second life, a truly incredible ability."
"Actually, I was once a pirate, just like you all!"
"My companions and I sailed to this Devil's Triangle, but we encountered a group of powerful enemies here."
"We were completely wiped out in that battle!"
"Of course, I died at that time too!"
"But miraculously, after I died, the power of the Revive-Revive Fruit, which had been dormant during my life, finally activated."
"My soul returned to the living world from the underworld."
"However, because the fog in this sea area was too dense, my soul was lost in this thick fog for a year."
"After a year, when I found my body, I discovered it had turned into this skeleton!"
"At that time, it really scared me so much my eyes rolled back!"
"Ah?! Although I no longer have eyes!"
"Yohohohoho…"
Upon hearing Brook's experience, everyone understood.
"It's a Devil Fruit after all!"
"So that's it, that's why there's a talking skeleton!"
"But to revive even a skeleton, this Devil Fruit is truly terrifying!"
While others were expressing their emotions, Luffy suddenly spoke up,
"Hey, Brook!"
"Join us… be our nakama!"
As soon as Luffy said this, all the Straw Hat members exclaimed in unison,
"Eh?!!!"
"Lu… Luffy! Don't just invite anyone!"
"Yeah! This guy is a skeleton!"
The ones saying such things were mainly the timid ones like Usopp.
Although these words sounded a bit harsh, Brook didn't mind.
Instead, he sighed to himself,
"All this time, I've been in this dark sea, where time is completely unknown, shrouded in thick fog…"
"Drifting aimlessly alone on a rudderless ship."
"Fifty years have passed like this…"
"I… I'm really lonely!"
"Lonely! And scared! I wanted to die!"
The others were all stunned upon hearing Brook's words. Even Usopp and the others no longer showed their fearful expressions, deeply sympathizing with Brook's plight.
Brook, however, suddenly became very moved and said to Luffy,
"So…"
"Mr. Luffy! I'm truly so happy that you invited me to be your nakama!"
"I really… really want to become your nakama!"
Brook spoke with great sincerity, and everyone could hear his strong desire in his tone.
But to everyone's surprise, Brook refused Luffy's invitation.
"But…"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Luffy!"
"I cannot sail with you all!"
Saying this, Brook suddenly left his seat, stood under the light, and then said to everyone,
"As you can see, I… have no shadow!"
Hearing this, everyone looked down at Brook's feet and indeed saw no shadow.
Immediately, gasps of surprise rose one after another.
"No… there really is no shadow!"
"What's going on?"
"Are you really a ghost?"
"Can the Yomi Yomi no Mi make one's shadow disappear too?"
Facing everyone's questions, Brook explained.
"Please don't misunderstand!"
"My becoming a skeleton is completely unrelated to not having a shadow!"
"Years ago…"
"My shadow was stolen by a man!"
Hearing this, everyone was surprised again.
"Shadow stolen by…"
"There's such a thing?!"
"This must be another strange Devil Fruit ability!"
"After seeing an ability that can even revive people, having one's shadow stolen doesn't seem that strange anymore!"
Brook continued.
"That's right! It's a Devil Fruit ability!"
"That ability has a terrifying aspect."
"Once your shadow is stolen, you cannot survive in sunlight."
"Under direct sunlight, the body of someone who has lost their shadow will… turn to ash!"
"I once saw a person's body disappear in the sunlight with my own eyes; it was truly horrifying!"
"Ah?! Even though I'm just a skeleton!"
"Yohohohoho…"
Seeing Brook crack such a chilling joke again, several people gnashed their teeth in frustration.
Brook suddenly became serious again, looking at Roux and saying.
"So, Mr. Roux…"
"I can't go out to sea with you all!"
"If I leave this thick fog that blocks the sunlight, my body will turn to ash!"
"Thank you again for your invitation."
"I'm very happy!"
"One day, when I find my shadow, if we have a chance to meet again, at that time…"
"I will definitely accept your invitation!"
As soon as Brook finished speaking, Luffy immediately followed up.
"No need to wait until then!"
"We'll help you get your shadow back!"
After Luffy said this, the other Straw Hat members all smiled, looking full of vigor.
Even Usopp and the others, after hearing Brook's story, became less afraid of him.
At this moment, they also looked resolute.
Brook heard Luffy's words, his gaze sweeping over the Straw Hat members, and he was so moved and excited that he became incoherent.
"You… you all…"
Meeting for the first time, not only did they invite him to eat, but they also invited him to be a companion, and now they even wanted to help him find his shadow.
All these things combined filled Brook with gratitude towards the Straw Hat.
But precisely because of this gratitude, he didn't want these people to be implicated by him.
He shook his head and said.
"I'm sorry!"
"I can't let you all take risks because of me!"
"That man is too powerful!"
"I can't bring you all to provoke such a powerful existence."
"Besides, I don't know how to find him."
"Since he took my shadow last time, I haven't encountered them again!"
After Brook finished speaking, he suddenly took out a violin, immediately switched to a lighthearted and cheerful tone, and said happily.
"Enough of that!"
"It's rare to meet you all today, so I'll play a song for you!"
"Let's have a cheerful song!"
As Brook spoke, he got into position, ready to play the violin.
But before he could even start, he suddenly sat down on the ground in fright, saying in terror.
"Gh-… Ghost!"
Everyone saw Brook looking at the wall in terror, and immediately looked there in confusion.
They saw a white ghost revealing half its body on the restaurant wall, quietly looking at them.
"Woah! What is that thing?"
"A ghost!"
As everyone exclaimed, Brook suddenly thought of something and became serious.
"Has this ship already been monitored?"
He muttered, then rushed out of the cabin.
The others, curious, also followed Brook out onto the deck.
And with just one glance, everyone was shocked by the sight before them.
In front of them was an incredibly eerie-looking island.
And behind them was a giant gate shaped like teeth.
At this moment, the Sunny, along with Brook's ghost ship, were all trapped inside, as if swallowed.
"What is this place?"
"Why is there an island here?"
"The Log Pose isn't reacting at all!"
As everyone was confused, Brook explained.
"This island came from the West Blue, so the Log Pose won't react."
After explaining, he couldn't help but exclaim again.
"Today truly is my lucky day!"
"Not only did I meet people, but I can also fulfill my wish!"
Just as everyone was filled with various questions they wanted to ask Brook, he had already leaped to the side of the ship.
Then he said to Luffy and the others.
"Mr. Luffy! Thank you all very much today!"
"Now I have something to do."
"You all should quickly find a way to leave here; absolutely do not drop anchor and land here."
"Well then…"
"Farewell! If fate allows, let us meet again on the high seas!"
Brook waved goodbye to everyone, and without even waiting for their response, he suddenly leaped and jumped into the sea below.
This scene immediately made the Straw Hat members exclaim in surprise.
"That guy actually jumped down; that's the ocean down there!"
"Isn't he a Devil Fruit user?"
Everyone ran to where Brook had jumped down in confusion, but were shocked to see him running on the surface of the sea.
And very quickly, he disappeared from their sight.
This made the Straw Hat sigh with emotion again.
"What a strange skeleton!"
"But that guy is very interesting!"
"Hey! Luffy! He said we should leave here quickly; I think we should listen to him! Although I don't know what's going on, this island looks too eerie and scary! And just now a ghost appeared, there must be something terrifying on this island."
Usopp said to Luffy, cowering and looking terrified.
However, to his despair, after he finished speaking, he saw Luffy smile.
Then, he heard Luffy say.
"Brook said that in all his years drifting at sea, besides us, he only saw the people who took his shadow once."
"And now he's abandoned his ship and gone to this island."
"I think…"
"The person who took his shadow must be on this island!"
"Let's go help him get his shadow back!"
Hearing Luffy's words, everyone else nodded in understanding.
"Now that you mention it, it really seems that way!"
"So, there's a terrifying strong person on this island that Brook is afraid of?"
"Oh?! I'm slightly interested!"
"That kind of guy should have a lot of treasure, right?! Hehe!"
In an instant, besides Usopp, Chopper, and Karu, everyone else's eyes lit up.
...
Meanwhile, inside Moriah's castle.
Perona reported with a smile.
"Master, they've arrived!"
"They should be landing on the island any moment now!"
Moriah couldn't help but laugh when he heard this, saying.
"Kishishishishi…"
"They've finally arrived?!"
"Hogback, are the corpses for the Straw Hat ready?"
Hogback smiled and nodded.
"Except for Oz's body, which is too big for Straw Hat to carry, everything else is ready."
Moriah smiled contentedly, then continued.
"I will personally deliver Straw Hat's shadow to Oz later."
"Now, gather all the Zombie Generals and bring all the corpses."
"Let's go…"
"To welcome them!"