"Bastard! What kind of look is that?"
Just as the atmosphere within the Straw Hat crew dropped to freezing point, an enraged roar tore through the silence.
Having just returned to the group, Yasopp turned his head and happened to see Usopp shaking off Luffy's hand.
He was already furious from being forced to lower his head and apologize. Now, seeing his ungrateful son daring to show that kind of attitude, not even giving Luffy, the boy he'd watched grow up, any face, his fragile yet arrogant pride was completely ignited.
"I lowered myself to apologize to you, and not only are you not grateful, you still dare put on airs?"
Yasopp spun around. Veins bulged across his forehead as he yanked the custom long-barreled rifle from his back with a sharp metallic scrape.
Click!
The bullet was chambered.
The dark muzzle pointed straight at Usopp's forehead.
After all, this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this.
"Yasopp!"
The Red Hair Pirates were stunned.
Quite a few of them were already looking at Yasopp with open contempt.
"Who the hell do you think you are? If I hadn't given you my blood, you'd still be playing in the dirt on that backwater island!"
His bloodshot eyes burned with rage as he roared through gritted teeth, "You ungrateful little bastard! I'll pretend I never had a son like you and teach you a lesson on behalf of your captain today!"
Killing intent.
Unconcealed killing intent instantly locked onto Usopp.
The sight immediately united Nami, Sanji, and the others against him.
A fierce light flashed through Zoro's eyes as his thumb shoved Wado Ichimonji's guard open.
Nami silently tightened her fingers.
Sanji took a drag from his cigarette, staring at Yasopp as though he were already dead.
Not far away, Rosse, who had quietly watched everything unfold, saw the lazy smile at the corner of his lips deepen.
'What a wonderful drama.'
'The human heart is always fascinating.'
Sometimes emotion really could overwhelm reason.
Shanks' face darkened the moment he saw it.
He understood the situation all too well.
Things were already on the verge of exploding. With Yasopp stirring the pot, everything would only get worse.
That idiot had not only drawn his gun in front of Luffy, he'd pointed it at his own son again.
If Yasopp said another word, or if the situation deteriorated even further, everything would be over today.
"Damn it!"
A ruthless determination flashed across Shanks' eyes. His one-armed body suddenly erupted with an overwhelming wave of force that seemed almost tangible.
Whoosh!
Moving so fast that not even an afterimage remained, Shanks vanished from where he stood. The air itself split apart under his terrifying speed with a deafening sonic boom.
A moment ago, Yasopp had still been shouting wildly.
All he saw was a flash of red before his eyes.
He didn't even have time to react.
"Shut the hell up!"
Along with Shanks' furious roar, his right leg, coated in jet-black Armament Haki, swung like a giant battering ram, carrying enough force to tear through the air as it smashed into Yasopp's chest.
BOOM!
A dull, sickening sound of flesh and bone shattering exploded through the air.
"PUWAH!"
Yasopp's eyes bulged.
A mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs sprayed from his mouth.
His body shot away like a cannonball, twisting into an unnatural shrimp-like shape under the tremendous impact as he flew toward the sea at a horrifying speed.
Crash!
His body smashed through two thick coastal trees without slowing down.
Then, before everyone's horrified eyes...
Splash!
He plunged violently into the rough sea.
Wild waves instantly swallowed him.
Only a few streaks of blood remained on the surface before they were gradually washed away.
"Uncle Yasopp!"
Luffy's eyes widened in horror as he cried out.
The Red Hair Pirates were all frozen, staring at their captain in disbelief.
No one had expected Shanks to hit that hard.
That kick had looked like it was meant to kill him outright.
The shore instantly fell into deathly silence.
Shanks slowly lowered his right leg. His black cloak fluttered in the sea breeze.
Without sparing the ocean a glance, he turned around, his expression so dark it seemed ready to drip water.
His cold gaze swept across everyone before settling on Luffy and Usopp.
"I'm sorry for frightening you."
His voice was low and hoarse, carrying both authority and anger.
"This bastard has repeatedly disobeyed my orders and has once again pointed a gun at his own family. He's disgraced the name of the Red Hair Pirates. I will never tolerate it."
He looked every bit the righteous captain punishing one of his own for violating principle.
Even Luffy was stunned speechless.
Only Shanks himself knew that beneath his cloak, his hidden hand was trembling.
He turned his head ever so slightly, stealing a glance at the churning sea, and sighed silently in his heart.
'Don't come back up! Yasopp, even if you have to hold your breath until you pass out, don't come back up!'
'As long as you stay under the sea, you won't be able to make things worse.'
From an angle outside Shanks' line of sight, Rosse quietly watched the entire act.
The smile on his lips grew even deeper.
He even applauded with satisfaction, "What a splendid punishment, Shanks. It seems your way of disciplining your crew is truly... unique."
Rosse clapped as he praised him in his usual unhurried tone.
A warm smile rested on his face, as though what he'd just witnessed wasn't bloody infighting but merely a circus sideshow.
Shanks turned around.
Without drawing attention to it, he slipped his slightly trembling left hand back beneath the shadow of his cloak.
Meeting Rosse' gaze, he forced out an apologetic smile and casually replied, "My apologies for making a spectacle of ourselves, Rosse. The Red Hair Pirates have always enforced strict discipline. Since one of my men acted so foolishly and disturbed your enjoyment, naturally he had to pay the price."
"Oh? Is that so? Then I do hope he reflects on it properly."
Rosse chuckled softly, smoothly accepting the hypocritical explanation.
The sea breeze drifted between them, stirring the sand on the ground.
To anyone watching from afar, they would have looked like old friends casually chatting after years apart.
Not a trace of hostility could be seen.
Yet this was actually the most absurd stalemate in the world.
Shanks knew everything, yet had absolutely no power to resist. All he could do was desperately maintain this fragile illusion under the watchful eyes of a god.
As for Rosse... he simply felt the play hadn't reached its climax yet.
As its most honored audience member, he had no desire to leave early.
That was all.
Around them, aside from Luffy, who had been shouting earlier, every other member of the Straw Hat crew had more or less fallen into an unnatural stiffness.
Zoro's hand still rested on his sword hilt, but cold sweat had already run down the back of his hand to his wrist.
Nami hardly even dared to breathe, afraid that the slightest movement might displease Rosse and ruin the entire plan arranged above.
Usopp wore a gloomy expression, saying nothing, maintaining the role he was supposed to play.
At this moment, everyone was behaving exactly as they should.
Just as the suffocating stalemate seemed ready to drain every bit of air from the surroundings...
Puff!
A cloud of white smoke slowly drifted out beside Rosse.
Sanji quickly swept his gaze over everyone present.
He knew his father's twisted sense of amusement all too well.
If this deadlock continued, whether Shanks' nerves finally snapped or Luffy's single-celled brain blurted out something unbelievably stupid again, the script they were all following would probably collapse ahead of schedule.
If the script ended early, Father certainly wouldn't be at fault.
After all, if the audience enjoying the show wanted it to end this way, how could that be wrong?
The only one to blame... would be him.
Just thinking about it, he knew Shirahoshi would definitely take out her anger on him.
Sanji casually flicked his burnt-out cigarette to the ground and crushed it beneath the toe of his dress shoe.
Then he naturally stepped forward and reached out to grab Rosse by the sleeve.
"That's enough, Dad."
Even the way he addressed him had changed, sounding familiar and slightly complaining as he tugged Rosse away.
"The sea breeze's giving me a headache. Come to think of it, I haven't been back for days. How's everyone at home? Is Mom and the others still busy?"
Rosse paused slightly.
A trace of approval flashed through his eyes.
Following the pull of Sanji's hand, he allowed his clever son to lead him away from the center of the storm.
Every surprise was a pleasant one to him.
It seemed the ending of this play had become even more interesting.
"Everything's fine at home. Let's find somewhere to sit and chat."
Rosse played along with Sanji's cue.
The father and son's silhouettes stretched beneath the setting sun, looking completely relaxed.
Only after Rosse disappeared around the corner of the street, and the all-encompassing oppressive pressure vanished with him, did the frozen air along the shore finally ease a little.
But although the pressure was gone, the rift between the Straw Hats and the Red Hair Pirates remained like a bottomless chasm separating everyone.
Usopp stared coldly at the turbulent sea where not even another bubble had surfaced.
Then he turned around.
Without even looking at Shanks, he faced away from Luffy and spoke in a voice devoid of warmth.
"I'm not in the mood to stay here. I'm going into town to buy supplies."
With that, he walked away without another glance.
Nami and Zoro exchanged a look.
Zoro released his sword hilt.
Clang!
The blade slid completely back into its sheath.
"What a buzzkill."
Zoro curled his lip, his tone indifferent, "I'm heading to the weapon shop."
"Wait for me, Zoro! We'll buy supplies together. The air here makes me sick!"
Nami hurried after him.
Before leaving, she merely gave Luffy an extremely perfunctory wave.
"Luffy, don't forget we still have to set sail. Don't cause trouble here. Stay and watch the ship."
After tossing out a few emotionless reminders, everyone scattered in different directions, leaving decisively.
In the blink of an eye, the enormous shoreline was left with only Luffy standing there alone.
"Huh? Why did everyone leave?"
Luffy scratched the top of his straw hat, utterly confused.
Watching his crewmates' backs disappear into the distance, his eyes were filled with innocent stupidity and bewilderment.
Shanks silently looked at Luffy.
Deep within his eyes surged a bitterness and struggle beyond imagination.
He stepped forward.
Just like back in Foosha Village, his rough hand rested on Luffy's shoulder.
"Shanks, that kick just now was really scary! Uncle Yasopp will be okay, right?"
Luffy looked up at him, still wearing his carefree, simple-minded expression, even showing a bit of curiosity about that flashy move.
Hearing those incredibly innocent words, Shanks' heart suddenly ached.
How desperately he wanted to shake this boy awake.
How desperately he wanted to point in the direction the others had left and shout: 'Do you even know what kind of people are around you?'
'Those so-called companions of yours are all spies watching you, plotting against you, ready to push you into the abyss at any moment!'
'And the man who just left is the mastermind controlling every one of your destinies!'
Shanks' lips trembled slightly.
His throat bobbed.
Those truths, enough to overturn Luffy's entire world, had already reached the tip of his tongue.
But when his eyes met Luffy's, those eyes as pure as a newborn's, free of the slightest impurity, the words stuck in his throat.
He couldn't say it.
He absolutely couldn't.
The current situation was like a glass sphere suspended over a bottomless abyss by an impossibly thin spider's thread.
The slightest disturbance would send it shattering.
With Luffy's straightforward, single-minded personality, what would he do if he learned that his voyage, his dream, and his companions were all part of a cruel deception?
He wouldn't endure.
He wouldn't lie low.
He didn't even understand what it meant to play along while hiding his true intentions.
He would storm over to question Zoro.
Question Nami.
He might even charge straight at Rosse with his fists raised.
And then?
Then Rosse would erase him as effortlessly as crushing a real ant.
Every hope they had placed in this era would come to a complete end.
A person with a simple heart could never play games of balance and manipulation.
Telling a fool who had no ability to protect himself the cruel truth wasn't helping him.
It was sending him to his death.
"He'll be fine, Luffy. Yasopp's the toughest sniper on these seas."
After a long while, the struggle in Shanks' eyes gradually faded, becoming a pool of lifeless stillness.
He forced a gentle, though somewhat stiff, smile and ruffled Luffy's hair with his other hand.
In the end, all the truths heavy enough to crush the world were swallowed back down by him alone.
He said nothing.
Forget it.
Some burdens were enough for them to carry themselves.
There was no need to make Luffy worry too
[🎉 Shoutout to Leisercom and Mozart111 for joining p@treon. Consider joining to keep the stories going. Thank you very much.🤗]