No one paid much attention to Mihawk leaving. After all, in his heart, only the way of the sword mattered.
"Hahaha~~~"
"Well, now that Ice Cube Face is gone, Ryuen, my friend, I'd like to ask you a few questions. Is that alright?" Shanks said, his expression turning serious.
Rayleigh didn't say a word. He walked to the bar, grabbed a bottle of Shakky's prized liquor, and poured himself a small sip.
Ryuen gave a cold look at this troublemaker of the pirate world.
"Shanks, before that, I want to ask you something. Do you live in the ocean?" Ryuen asked calmly.
Ryuen truly didn't get it. This guy wasn't Akainu, so why did he always stick his nose where it didn't belong? Not just him—the entire Red-Haired Pirates were like this.
They acted like noble heroes, always putting the greater good above themselves.
For the sake of peace in the seas, they believed it was their duty to make sacrifices, even if it meant giving up their own friends and family.
The biggest example? Yasopp.
"Huh?"
"How did you know?"
"Hahaha! We're pirates, of course! We live on a ship every day. The ocean is our home!" Shanks laughed.
Ryuen was stunned.
*Smack! Smack! Smack!*
He slapped himself several times. He felt like he had just had a conversation with an idiot… and in doing so, had become an idiot himself.
Shanks didn't understand what he actually meant at all. He thought Ryuen was seriously asking where he lived.
Not just Shanks—probably everyone in the bar, except for Hobart, had no clue what Ryuen was talking about…
And now, they didn't understand why he suddenly started slapping himself either.
"Forget it. My fault for running my mouth. I shouldn't have asked you that. Just ask what you want to ask." Ryuen sighed.
Hearing that, Shanks' expression became serious again.
"Captain Ryuen, can you tell me what your crew's goal is for setting sail?"
For a moment, Ryuen and Hobart looked completely dumbfounded.
The two exchanged glances, then turned to look at Shanks. They couldn't believe it.
A man as powerful as one of the Four Emperors… was asking such a dumb question?
Hobart even unhooked the axe on his back, his expression turning cold as he glared at the Red-Haired Pirates.
The atmosphere in the bar shifted instantly. The Red-Haired Pirates turned their eyes toward Hobart, but Beckman shot them a look, and they immediately backed down, taking their hands off their weapons.
Beckman had realized something.
"Uh… Shanks… are you serious about that question?" Ryuen stretched his neck forward, wanting to confirm.
"I'm serious."
"But Captain Ryuen, there's no need to call me 'old man.'" Shanks said, sounding unusually firm.
Like Mihawk, he considered himself a *cool* old man.
At that moment, Ryuen stood up, his face calm as he slowly walked up to Shanks and leaned in, staring him down.
Shanks wasn't sure what Ryuen was up to, but for some reason, he felt a chill run down his spine.
The next moment, the lights inside the bar dimmed.
Outside, the sky over Sabaody Archipelago had turned dark.
Thick, rolling clouds loomed overhead, making it look like the end of the world was coming.
All over Sabaody Archipelago, people looked up at the sky in fear. Panic spread as civilians ran in all directions.
"Bastard!"
"Shanks, don't you read the newspapers? The whole ocean knows our dream is to draw a world map."
"And now you're asking me this?"
"Are you looking down on our dream?"
"Ah!"
Ryuen shouted, his chest still rising and falling rapidly, as if he was about to lose control and punch Shanks.
"…I didn't mean… to look down on you…" Shanks was caught off guard by Ryuen's reaction. He was so startled that he stammered out a response.
Ryuen took a deep breath, calming himself down before sitting back in his chair.
He was really afraid he wouldn't be able to hold back and would end up fighting the Red Hair Pirates.
At that moment, Shanks stood up, walked over to Ryuen, and bowed deeply. "I'm sorry, Captain Ryuen. I shouldn't have asked that question."
It was clear he had realized his mistake.
"Captain Ryuen, please forgive Shanks for being rude. Sometimes he really is an idiot." Beckman wasn't the only one to apologize—every member of the Red Hair Pirates also stood up and bowed to Ryuen and Hog.
"Just this once." Ryuen said coldly.
As soon as he said that, the dark clouds over Sabaody Archipelago cleared, and the sun reappeared, shining through the gaps in the white clouds.
The sky turned bright again.
"Phew~~~"
"Thank you, Captain Ryuen." Shanks let out a long breath.
The Red Hair Pirates all returned to their seats.
Rayleigh hadn't intervened at all. That was because Shanks really had said the wrong thing.
On this ocean, as long as someone had a dream, no one had the right to insult it.
Even if that dream was evil.
"Captain Ryuen, I apologize again for my rudeness."
"But there's something I still have to ask."
"I want to know if the Judicial Island incident was really caused by your Dream Exploration Group." Shanks asked seriously.
The moment he said this, a sharp glint flashed through Rayleigh's aged eyes. He wasn't targeting anyone—he had simply remembered the Judicial Island incident. That event was massive.
Hog showed no reaction.
Ryuen's expression remained calm as he said, "I can tell you this much—Marine's investigation into the Judicial Island incident has already concluded. They believe it was caused by an explosion from explosive rock."
"Huh???"
"The investigation is already over?" Shanks was shocked.
But inside the bar, the Red Hair Pirates and Rayleigh all remained as calm as ever.
Ryuen didn't say anything more.
Then, Shanks spoke again.
"Alright, in that case, I have one more question, Captain Ryuen. When do you plan to enter the New World?"
As soon as Shanks asked that, everyone in the bar, except for Hog, turned to look at Ryuen—including Shakky, who had returned to the bar entrance.
This was what they wanted to know the most.
The powerful presence that had nearly erupted just now made it clear that Ryuen not only possessed Conqueror's Haki but that his Haki was incredibly strong.
Once the Dream Exploration Group entered the New World, the entire balance of power there would change drastically.
But Ryuen knew one thing—the New World's power balance was already shifting, even before they had arrived.
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