On a small fishing boat in some part of the East Blue, a young, carefree man in a straw hat was lounging, reading a newspaper. This man had short, red hair and bright, lively eyes. Yes, this was the man who would one day become the great Yonko, the infamous Red-Haired Shanks.
But for now, Shanks didn't even have a bounty. As a former apprentice on the Roger Pirates, neither he nor Buggy had managed to earn a bounty. Buggy spent twenty years in the East Blue just to get a 15 million bounty. After the execution in Loguetown, Shanks and Buggy stuck together for two more years. Although they constantly bickered, their friendship was strong.
However, their paths were now diverging.
After their captain, Roger, died, Buggy decided he no longer wanted to be a big-shot pirate. He just wanted to find more treasure, believing that was the true path of a pirate.
In contrast, Shanks, who had inherited Roger's straw hat and will, was a free spirit. Having sailed the world with the Roger Pirates, his horizons had been broadened, and he had no desire to coast along like Buggy. So he tried to persuade Buggy to form a new pirate crew with him so they could set sail together once again. But Buggy refused without hesitation, declaring that he was happy to be a small-time pirate in the East Blue. And so, the two officially parted ways.
After saying goodbye to his best friend, Shanks had been wandering the East Blue for the past two years. Being well-traveled, he wasn't a narrow-minded person. He knew that while Captain Roger had praised his talent, he was still in a growth phase, and his strength wasn't enough to wander the New World. Therefore, he had no intention of leaving the East Blue just yet.
In fact, Shanks's true peak was around four years before the main story began, roughly between the years 1515 and 1516, when he officially became a Yonko in the New World. Of course, he must have been very strong a few years before that, since he frequently clashed with Mihawk before he lost his arm.
Now, with Luffy already scheduled to live in Marineford, Shanks would likely never get to have that fated encounter with him. In a way, Diarmuid was his benefactor, as he had indirectly saved him from having to make his famous proclamation of "betting an arm on the new era." He wouldn't have to become a one-armed swordsman!
Shanks would never know any of this, and Diarmuid wasn't about to explain it to him.
While honing his skills, Shanks was also looking for talented individuals in the East Blue. Although many people considered the East Blue the weakest of all seas, as a member of Roger's crew, Shanks knew better. How could the weakest sea produce a powerhouse like Captain Roger? And Marine Hero Garp is from the East Blue, too. With just those two, they could take down most of the world's powerhouses. How could anyone still call the East Blue the weakest sea? That's just ridiculous!
In Shanks's view, the East Blue only seemed "weak" because the environment was so peaceful that many talented people never developed their skills or chose to become pirates. There had to be powerful people in the East Blue somewhere.
And he had recently found one. He heard about a man named Yasopp, a sharpshooter known as a prodigy in the Four Seas Shooting League, who had won the championship three years in a row, never missing a single shot. And he was a man from the East Blue who lived in a small village called Syrup Village.
Shanks was currently sailing toward that village, intending to invite this shooting genius to join his nascent pirate crew and become his first mate.
"Marine Admiral Diarmuid… Hero Garp… Are they in the East Blue, too?" Shanks said to himself, looking at the newspaper.
The news was about Diarmuid and the others visiting Marine Branch 19. Shanks was, of course, very familiar with Garp, who had chased his captain for years. Shanks had seen him many times. Diarmuid also left a strong impression on him; he was the man rumored to have captured his captain, and Shanks had seen him at the execution.
Shanks never doubted Garp's strength, and as for Diarmuid, he was an Admiral now. There was no doubt about his power. He must be just as formidable.
"Tsk, tsk. I hope I don't run into them," Shanks grumbled.
Just then, he turned his head and looked out at the sea. His eyes narrowed, focusing on the distant horizon, and his expression changed. "Speak of the devil!" Shanks complained.
He could see a large, standard Marine Headquarters warship sailing in his direction, cutting through the waves. As far as he knew, Diarmuid and his party were the only ones from Marine Headquarters currently in the East Blue. Shanks felt a momentary panic; he knew he couldn't win if he clashed with both Garp and Diarmuid.
But then he paused, tapped the straw hat on his head, and gave a self-deprecating smile. "What am I afraid of? I don't have a bounty. I worked under Captain Roger for a while, but the Marines never put a bounty on my head. Technically, I'm a law-abiding citizen…"
With that thought, Shanks relaxed. He leaned on the side of the boat, watching the warship slowly approach.
Meanwhile, on the warship's deck, Diarmuid was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and floral shorts, with a pair of flip-flops on his feet, leisurely fishing. In the end, Dragon never took him to see Koshiro; he received a Den Den Mushi call from the Revolutionary Army and left in a hurry. Their meeting was over.
As for Garp, with both Luffy and Ace with him now, he decided not to follow Diarmuid and stayed in Foosha Village instead. Diarmuid would just pick him up on his way back. Belle-mère did the same, temporarily staying in Foosha Village. Hina, who had gotten on the ship under the pretense of "vacationing with Vice Admiral Garp," felt it would be inappropriate to keep tagging along with Diarmuid since Garp wasn't there.
So now, it was a "two-person world" for Diarmuid and Gion on the warship.
Even without Dragon, Diarmuid still intended to visit Shimotsuki Village. It was possible Koshiro held secrets from Wano, and he might learn something valuable.
"If Luffy and Ace are both going to Marineford, what about Sabo?" Diarmuid pondered, watching his fishing rod.
The three of them definitely wouldn't become brothers. Sabo was the legitimate son of the Outlook family of the Goa Kingdom. The Outlooks were a proper noble family, and it wouldn't be appropriate for Diarmuid to just kidnap him. After all, the Outlook family would soon become the royal family of the Goa Kingdom, and Sabo would technically become a prince. It wouldn't look good for a Marine Admiral to abduct a prince from a kingdom under the World Government.
So, he would have to leave Sabo alone for now. If he was lucky, he might still end up with the Revolutionary Army. But either way, he wouldn't be able to form a sworn brotherhood with Ace and Luffy. He'd be on his own in the Goa Kingdom. Diarmuid wished him luck.
As he was thinking, Diarmuid spotted a small boat in the distance, keeping a safe distance from the warship. A person on it seemed to be watching him curiously. Diarmuid looked over and grinned. Well, well, Red-Haired Shanks!
When Shanks saw Diarmuid's smile, he even arrogantly waved his hand, as if greeting him.
"Someone!" Diarmuid called out suddenly. A Marine Commander quickly walked up to him. "Admiral?"
"Go and check if there are any bounties for Red-Haired, or Shanks, of the Roger Pirates. He was an apprentice," Diarmuid ordered.
"Yes, sir!" the Commander replied.
After a brief pause, Diarmuid added, "Also, stop the ship!"
"Yes, sir!" the Commander said again and quickly left to carry out the orders.
Shanks, who had been waiting for the huge warship to pass, was surprised when it suddenly stopped. Then he saw Diarmuid waving at him from the deck, as if greeting him.
"What's the deal?" Shanks muttered to himself, confused.
Before long, the Marine Commander returned to report. "Admiral, we couldn't find any bounty for Red-Haired or Shanks. He's not a wanted criminal. Since the Roger Pirates disbanded, he's technically not a pirate as long as he doesn't commit any crimes."
"Is that so?" Diarmuid grumbled. But with that scoundrel Shanks right there, it just didn't feel right to not mess with him. Thinking about it, Diarmuid said, "Get me a cannon."
The Marine Commander looked at him in disbelief, but he quickly went to carry out the order.
A mobile cannon was soon wheeled onto the deck. Diarmuid easily lifted it, positioned it against the railing, and aimed it directly at Shanks's small boat.
Shanks, who had been curiously watching the warship, was now utterly shocked to see Diarmuid single-handedly lift a cannon and point it at him. He was stunned for a moment, then quickly yelled, "Hey, Admiral! I don't have a bounty! Technically, I'm a civilian! Is this really appropriate?!"
"Straw Hat Shanks!" Diarmuid didn't call him Red-Haired, instead using the nickname "Straw Hat" since he was actually wearing it. He didn't wait for Shanks to speak again, laughing loudly. "You scoundrel, you were an apprentice on Roger's ship! Don't tell me you're turning over a new leaf just because you don't have a bounty yet! If you swear right now that you'll never be a pirate again, I'll leave immediately and won't bother you!"
Shanks was taken aback. He was a man of his word; there was no way he could make that kind of vow.
Seeing Shanks speechless, Diarmuid laughed even harder. "Hahaha! I knew you scoundrel still wanted to be a pirate! You dare to pose as a civilian? Eat dirt, you!"
With that, Diarmuid lowered the cigar in his mouth and used it to light the cannon's fuse.
A moment later, with a loud bang, Diarmuid fired, completely wrecking Shanks's boat.
The small boat was blown to smithereens, but Shanks was unharmed. He was now splashing around in the water, clutching his straw hat and cursing. "Hey, Admiral! Are you even human?!"
"Hahahaha!" Diarmuid laughed. He didn't bother the guy any further. After all, he really didn't have a bounty, nor was he flying a pirate flag. One cannon shot was enough.
He casually tossed the cannon tube onto a nearby mount and waved at Shanks, who was splashing in the water. "Remember this! If you ever dare to become a pirate, next time we meet, I'll burn that straw hat of yours!"
With that, Diarmuid told the Marine Commander behind him, "Set sail. Don't worry about him."
And with Shanks's cursing echoing in the distance, the giant warship quickly sailed away from the "crime scene of a Marine attacking a civilian."