Inside the spacious restaurant, the pirates who had been laughing wildly and anticipating their friend's cruel entertainment suddenly fell silent. They stared down in confusion at the broken furniture scattered across the floor and their unconscious crewmate, then turned angry eyes toward the group of strangers standing in the doorway.
Shirley bit her lower lip and pressed closer to her mother's side. She noticed that the pockmarked pirate's outstretched hand had frozen in mid-air, and heard a voice that seemed somehow familiar. She immediately turned her head and went perfectly still for a moment.
Then Shirley rubbed her bright, shining eyes and looked again, asking tentatively with uncertainty creeping into her voice. "Big brother?"
After she spoke, she noticed the young man's distinctive fishing rod held high on his back. Her uncertainty vanished instantly as she shouted with pure excitement. "Big brother! It really is you!"
The group that had entered the restaurant was none other than the Black Star Pirates.
After arriving in town, they'd witnessed devastated streets and injured people lying everywhere throughout the settlement. The crew had quickly dispersed to deal with the many pirates still looting around the community before reuniting and following Jerry to this final gathering place of the criminal gang.
Hearing the little girl's joyful call, Jerry's expression immediately softened into warmth. He smiled and waved back at her. "Little Shirley! It's been way too long."
Jerry's gentle response made Shirley feel like she was basking in familiar sunshine again. The courage she'd mustered earlier and the tension and fear gripping her heart gradually melted away, replaced by calm and complete peace of mind.
It wasn't just her—everyone in the restaurant found themselves gazing at the group silhouetted against the slanting sunlight streaming through the doorway, especially the smiling leader that Shirley had mentioned so often over the years. Many of them felt a strange sense of recognition, as if they'd been waiting for this moment without knowing it.
The fear that had been choking the proprietress and the people huddled in the corners began to unknowingly fade away.
Seeing that this group of newcomers didn't seem to take him seriously at all, the one-eyed captain wanted to slam his fist on the table in protest, but realized the table was already destroyed in the earlier chaos.
Furious, he smashed the chair beneath him with a violent slap, stood up abruptly, and howled at the top of his lungs. "Who the hell are you people? How dare you ruin my fun!"
Jerry glanced at him but remained silent, his expression unreadable.
The pockmarked pirate standing near Shirley at the counter suddenly began trembling violently. He pointed a shaking finger at Jerry and stammered with obvious terror. "You... you, you, you... Boss! He... he, he... he's the... Lev... Leviat..."
"Are you deaf or just stupid? I'm not deaf yet!" the one-eyed captain roared, kicking a broken piece of wood across the floor that struck the pockmarked man square in the face.
The subordinate didn't dare dodge the projectile. After crying out in pain, he continued desperately. "But he... he's Leviathan! The Leviathan Jerry!"
At that revelation, his legs gave out completely and he collapsed to the floor, shouting in pure panic. "Please spare us! We didn't know!"
"Leviathan?" The one-eyed captain first murmured in confusion, processing the name. The next second, understanding flashed across his features, but instead of fear, his expression twisted into something fierce and arrogant. "Well, well! I've been looking everywhere for a big name to make my reputation, and here you've walked right into my hands! Once I defeat you, I'll be recognized as the strongest of the new generation!"
"Heh! You think a one-eyed loser like you can beat Brother Jerry? Keep dreaming!" little Bonney stuck out her tongue with playful but ruthless mockery.
"That's right!" Carrot chimed in enthusiastically. "Even if Brother Jerry was tied up and lying on the ground, he could easily handle you without moving a finger!"
Hearing this exchange, Jerry—who had been smiling warmly in the sunlight—suddenly frowned and the corners of his mouth twitched several times. He reached out to pat both girls on their heads with obvious exasperation. "While what you're saying might be technically accurate, you should be more careful about bragging like that. Don't write checks my reputation can't cash."
"Hee hee hee," both Bonney and Carrot giggled in response.
Carina covered her mouth and chuckled softly before adding her own commentary. "Ha! You've boasted plenty yourself over the years, so why are you worried about this? You're hardly one to talk about modesty."
Jerry spread his hands and shrugged helplessly while Deuce and the others burst out laughing at the familiar dynamic.
Since entering the restaurant, the one-eyed captain had been either ignored completely or subjected to casual ridicule. Blood rushed to his head as veins bulged visibly on his forehead from sheer rage and humiliation.
"You're all dead!"
Like a wounded and cornered beast, the pirate captain roared furiously and charged forward with murderous intent.
Seeing their boss launch his attack, the other pirates also pounced toward Jerry and his crew like a pack of wolves descending on prey.
Faced with this chaotic assault, Jerry didn't move from his position, but his fishing rod had somehow appeared in his hand and was already in motion.
All the Black Star Pirates except Cavendish—who remained where he stood due to his injuries, simply pointing his finger in a casual gesture—rushed toward their respective opponents with practiced coordination.
"Are you blind?" the one-eyed captain sneered, noticing that Jerry's fishing rod swing couldn't possibly reach him across the distance. "The gap between us is too far! I'm confident I can finish off this so-called 'Leviathan' in the next few seconds!"
However, even as that thought raced through his mind, the pirate captain suddenly felt his entire body constrict. He looked down in shock to discover that transparent fishing line had somehow wrapped around him multiple times, binding him completely.
"If I'm Leviathan, then I guess that makes you Shrimp," Jerry said conversationally. "You can't even see a fishing line this obvious? You should donate that remaining eye if you're not going to use it properly."
As he spoke, Jerry gripped his fishing rod tightly in his right hand and flicked his wrist up and down with precise, rapid movements.
The tremendous force transmitted along the fishing line caused the struggling one-eyed man to involuntarily rise from the ground, then crash headfirst into the floor with bone-jarring impact.
At the same time, tiny electric currents visible to the naked eye sparked from Cavendish's fingertips, and any enemies that made contact were immediately paralyzed and fell to the ground twitching helplessly.
Brook flashed behind the enemy group with supernatural speed, slowly sheathed his sword, and muttered to himself with characteristic humor. "You confused and ignorant people really are braver than I am—though admittedly, I'm not particularly brave to begin with. Yo ho ho ho!"
The swift, coordinated assault by Carrot and the others ended the battle against this nameless pirate crew in the literal blink of an eye.
Within moments, the scene that had just erupted into chaotic violence returned to perfect calm.
In Shirley's wide-open eyes, stars seemed to twinkle with pure amazement. Her gaze followed Carrot and little Bonney's movements before finally settling on Kotatsu with obvious fascination.
"Wow! That was incredible!" Shirley couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
The proprietress and other civilians had witnessed the entire battle and shared the same feeling of awe, but they still didn't dare act carelessly. Even though they were no longer consumed by the previous terror and fear, and despite knowing that Shirley was familiar with the victorious group, these were still pirates after all. Who could say whether they might turn hostile the next moment?
Jerry and his crew found ropes from somewhere and efficiently tied up all the surviving pirates before unceremoniously dragging them outside and dumping them in the street.
"All right, that takes care of that," Jerry said, clapping his hands together and wiping his forehead—though not because he was actually sweating from such minimal exertion.
Then he turned toward Shirley, who was staring at Kotatsu in fascination, and the civilians who were still crouched nervously in place. He offered them a gentle, reassuring smile. "Don't be afraid. We mean no harm to any of you."
His words snapped Shirley out of her trance. She let out a delighted shout and ran toward him, launching herself through the air. "Big brother! Why are you here? How did you find us?"
"Ha ha! Just happened to be passing through the neighborhood," Jerry caught her easily and lifted her high above his head, spinning her around in a joyful circle before gently setting