"A secret"
Qingyun smiled mysteriously.
He knew that the more powerful and mysterious a man was, the more he could pique a woman's curiosity, making them actively explore and firmly attracting them.
"Stingy."
Nami pouted.
Nojiko and Kaya were very curious, but also very helpless.
"Alright, hurry up and make dinner."
Slap!
...One day later.
On the sea surrounding Cocoyasi Village.
Smoker, with a large cigar in his mouth, constantly exhaled smoke, looking forward with sharp eyes.
"Colonel Smoker, we've found Qingyun's latest movements."
Tashigi came up behind Smoker and reported:
"He appeared in Orange Town yesterday and killed everyone in the Buggy Pirates."
"After that, he headed towards Windmill Village."
Smoker pondered:
"Are both the Marines and pirates targets for that guy's slaughter?"
"It seems he's an extremely dangerous individual; he must be eliminated as soon as possible."
"Full speed ahead to Windmill Village! We must find and capture that guy quickly."
...At the same time.
Qingyun had already arrived alone at Windmill Village, outside Makino's small tavern.
His purpose in coming to Windmill Village was not to kill Luffy, acquire the Gum-Gum Fruit's power, or the Gum-Gum Fruit itself.
It wasn't because he was afraid of retaliation from Garp, Dragon, Ace, and others.
On the contrary, he wished these powerful people would come to kill him.
One of the real reasons he didn't kill Luffy was because his true target for this trip was Makino.
He knew Makino was very kind to Luffy.
If he killed Luffy, Makino would most likely refuse to join his Sea King, even if it meant her death.
The second reason was, of course, that Luffy was the person best suited to develop the Gum-Gum Fruit's abilities.
You raise the pig until it's fat before you slaughter it.
Anyway, he wasn't afraid of overeating and bursting.
Pushing the door open, Qingyun immediately saw Makino, who was standing behind the counter, busy working, and his eyes lit up.
Makino had striking short green hair, wrapped in a yellow checkered headscarf.
Although her face was a bit less beautiful than Nami's, she possessed a maturity and sensuality that Nami and the others lacked.
Noticing Qingyun's unfamiliar face, Makino immediately showed a gentle smile:
"Welcome. What can I get for you?"
Qingyun didn't rush.
He walked to the counter, looked at the menu above, then looked at Makino, and said with a smile:
"A glass of wine and a bowl of fried noodles."
Although he knew Sanji's cooking was excellent, he didn't plan to invite Sanji to be the chef on the Sea King, benefiting that perverted cook.
His chef on the Sea King would be Makino, who ran a small tavern.
After all, Makino was the proprietress who could keep the Red Hair Pirates well-fed and well-drunk, so her brewing and cooking skills must be very good. He planned to taste them first.
What?Makino is Red Hair's CP?
Is Qingyun looking for death?
Exactly!
He is looking for death!
He's only afraid that Red Hair won't come for him!
"Alright."
Makino immediately poured a glass of wine and placed it in front of Qingyun, saying with a smile:
"Here's your wine."
"Please wait a moment for the fried noodles."
With that, Makino turned and walked towards the stove, feeling somewhat puzzled at the same time:
Why do I feel like I've seen this person somewhere before?
Although Qingyun's face was unfamiliar, Makino felt she had seen him somewhere, but couldn't recall where at the moment.
"Mm!"
Taking a sip of wine, Qingyun found it very palatable and was quite satisfied.
He scanned the people in the tavern and found that Luffy and Dadan's group were not there; there were only some ordinary villagers, which made him a little disappointed.
Because he had planned to use Luffy and Dadan's group to directly force Makino onto his Sea King.
However, Makino was gentle and kind, so even these ordinary villagers in the tavern, she probably wouldn't stand by and watch them...
"Here it is."
"Please enjoy."
Before long, Makino brought a bowl of fragrant fried noodles and placed it in front of Qingyun.
Without much talk, Qingyun took a bite, and his eyes immediately lit up. He couldn't help but praise:
"Delicious!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Qingyun devoured the fried noodles ravenously.
Makino was truly worthy of running a tavern; her cooking skills were much better than Nami's, Nojiko's, and Kaya's.
"Thank you for the compliment."
Makino was very happy.
The reason she opened this small tavern, besides making money, was because she loved seeing the happy faces of people when they enjoyed her food and drink.
"Where are Luffy and Dadan's group?"
Qingyun asked Makino while eating the fried noodles.
Makino frowned, stopped wiping the wine glass, and looked at Qingyun:
"Did Luffy cause trouble again?"
"I'm not sure."
Qingyun replied indifferently.
"Then why are you looking for him and Dadan's group?"
Makino was very puzzled.
"It's nothing major, I just want to borrow their heads for a bit."
After saying that, Qingyun finished the fried noodles, then calmly drank his wine, as if talking about a very ordinary matter.
Bang!
However, Makino was so shocked that she froze in place, and the wine glass in her hand dropped directly to the floor and shattered.
"You... you're a bounty hunter?"
Makino looked at Qingyun in horror.
The villagers in the tavern also stopped eating and drinking, and looked at Qingyun.
"No."
Qingyun looked at Makino and said unhurriedly:
"I want to invite you to be my chef on my Sea King, but I know you definitely won't agree, so I want to borrow Luffy and Dadan's heads for a bit."
Hearing this, Makino and the villagers immediately understood that Qingyun was threatening Makino to join his Sea King. If she dared to refuse, he would go and kill Luffy and Dadan's group.
Everyone was momentarily flustered, not knowing what to do.
Especially Makino.
After all, she was the one being threatened by Qingyun.
She knew that since Qingyun dared to threaten her like this, he must be capable of dealing with Luffy and Dadan's group, otherwise, it would be no different from seeking death.
Suddenly, Makino remembered where she had seen Qingyun before. Her pupils dilated, and she looked at Qingyun in astonishment, trembling as she said:
"You... you're Qingyun!"
"Qingyun?"
"The great pirate who was just given a 50 million Berries bounty!"
Hearing this, the villagers were all greatly shocked and looked at Qingyun in horror.
As the weakest sea, the East Blue's pirate bounties are generally very low.
Qingyun's 50 million Berries bounty was already the highest in the East Blue at that time.
"It really is him!"
After recognizing Qingyun, the villagers all felt even more afraid.
Not only because Qingyun's bounty was high, but also because they had read in the newspapers that Qingyun killed without batting an eye.
However, none of them chose to flee; instead, they stayed to face Qingyun with Makino, because they had long considered Makino, Luffy, and Dadan as family.
But they were also too afraid to take the lead and say anything.