Chapter 147: Artist
The defiant look in his eyes, a few freckles on his face, and a large band-aid on his forehead made it clear that he was tough.
Noticing Eric looking at him, Ace turned around and bowed seriously, "Hello, sorry to disturb your meal."
"Hahaha, what a polite little guy, would you like to eat together?"
"Is that okay?" Ace immediately showed a childlike happy expression but quickly realized something and returned the expression, declining, "Thanks for the invitation, but I need to go back and find my brother."
"Is that so? What a good big brother you are."
"Speaking of which, the hero of the Navy, Vice Admiral Garp , seems to be from the Goa Kingdom. According to newspaper reports, he often comes back to vacation," Chiron , who held multiple roles such as strategist and lookout, suddenly asked, "Do you locals know when Vice Admiral Garp might be coming back next?"
At the mention of Garp , Ace noticeably froze.
"Mm..." Makino showed a thoughtful expression. "It's not certain. Sometimes Vice Admiral Garp suddenly runs off from work, so it's hard to say when he'll be back."
"Is it really appropriate for a vice admiral to do such things...?" The others were speechless.
"Big brother, what are you looking for that old man, what do you want with Vice Admiral Garp ?" Ace tried to act cute, but the smile on his face made him look more sinister, causing the others to laugh involuntarily.
"Ah, little friend, you really need to work on controlling your expressions. That's going to scare the young girls."
"Yeah, this guy's a master of facial expressions. He says all kinds of terrifying things with a bright smile."
"I'll slice you up~"
"See? Just like that..."
"Ah..." Ace's face was filled with shock.
"We don't want to look for Vice Admiral Garp , we just don't want to run into him," Eric answered Ace's question.
"You don't want to meet Vice Admiral Garp ? Why?"
"We're pirates, how could we want to meet the Navy?"
"You're pirates?" Makino and Ace exclaimed in surprise, "You don't look like it."
"There are no bad guys in this world who wear the words 'I am a bad guy' on their faces, right?"
"But you..." Makino suddenly froze. She didn't know Eric's name.
"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Darren Eric, and I'm the captain of this pirate crew. These are my reliable companions."
The others nodded in acknowledgment.
"Eric-kun seems really kind. You actively help civilians who are attacked by pirates."
"I have no choice, since I've been wanted by the Navy, I had to become a pirate, hahahaha..." Eric laughed it off, not wanting to explain his past to everyone.
"So, even Vice Admiral Garp , who chased down the Pirate King Gol D. Roger, we definitely don't want to meet him."
"I'd really like to meet the hero Garp and fight him once," Esdeath said with a slight regret.
Upon hearing his father's name mentioned, Ace felt a flash of emotion—whether anger or something else, he wasn't sure—but he still wanted to know more about Gol D. Roger's deeds.
Finally, unable to hold back, he asked, "Have you met the Pirate King Gol D. Roger?"
Everyone except Eric shook their heads.
Ace's eyes were fixed on Eric. He both wanted to hear and didn't want to hear it. Whenever people spoke of Gol D. Roger, it was often with anger.
"I saw the execution of Pirate King Gol D. Roger when I was five," Eric turned his head to face Ace, "I don't know much about him, but he died with the dignity of a king."
"But most people cursed Gol D. Roger, blaming him for starting the Great Pirate Era, causing countless families to be destroyed."
"Hahahaha, don't listen to those guys. They didn't work hard to protect their families, and they didn't put in the effort to change the world, to make it better!"
"They just threw the blame for their unfortunate lives onto a dead man. That way, no one can say they didn't try, no one can say they weren't right, they just complain helplessly, going with the flow, unable to do anything!"
"..." Ace's eyes widened. No one had ever said this to him before. His blood felt like it was boiling.
"You have a brother, right? Only by training hard can you protect him. The things you saw when you were young, as you grow, you'll look at them with different eyes."
"Thank you..." Ace bowed again, this time even deeper than before.
Then, he turned and ran off.
Da Vinci, curious, said, "He said so much, this is unlike Eric-kun."
"Gol D. Roger must have something to do with him," Esdeath glanced toward where Ace had gone, "Otherwise, why would he care so much about the Pirate King?"
"Mmhm." Akame nodded while eating.
Looks like more than one person could figure it out. I really want to write a book about how everyone on our ship is sharp-witted.
"I don't know, well, let's eat first! Escorting the civilians to the East Blue has at least resolved one of my worries."
Since Eric didn't want to talk, the others didn't press him further.
[Completed Monthly Task Nine: A Man's Word is His Bond, Task Rewards: 1 Achievement Point, 2 Bond Points]
The system information in Eric's mind confirmed the task completion.
...
Eric looked at the amount of money he had: 2.416 billion 675.32 million Berries. Not enough.
There was no choice but to keep saving money. For now, he would use the Paramecia Clay Clay Fruit he obtained from the auction to summon someone new.
Eric, with Esdeath, Kurumi, and Akame, arrived in a deserted jungle.
"..." Under everyone's watch, Eric couldn't bring himself to say the humiliating summoning words.
"Appear, new recruit!"
As soon as he finished Speaking, a blinding white light erupted from the summoning circle.
"Is this heaven? Hmm."
After adding the strange "Hmm" at the end, it sounded like he was talking to himself.
A figure with yellow hair tied in a high ponytail, with long bangs covering his left eye, added with the odd catchphrase "Hmm."
"Deidara ..."
"Hmm? You know my name? Looks like this isn't heaven, huh? Where am I? Hmm."
Eric looked at the character panel:
[Name: Deidara]
[Age: 19]
[Physique: 5 Stars]
[Ninjutsu: 7.5 Stars]
[Martial Arts: 6 Stars]
[Chakra: 6.5 Stars]
[Armament Haki: 0]
[Observation Haki: 4 Stars]
[Devil Fruit: 4 Stars]
[Bond Level: 1 (Casual Friend)]
[Skills: Explosive Clay, Chakra Levels from C1 to C4]
[Overall Combat Power: 6 Stars]
[Notes: Motto - Art is Explosion! Dislikes when others dismiss his art, and during his fight with Uchiha Sasuke, he chose to self-destruct to prove his art, taking Sasuke down with him.]
"Hey, I'm talking to you! Can you hear me? Hmm."
"This is the world of pirates, welcome, explosion genius Deidara."
(END CHAPTER)
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