"Ace! Luffy... and Sabo and Drake! Thank goodness every single one of you is safe..." Dadan's bandits cheered in wild abandon, surging forward to crowd around them.
"Ace! Honestly, you troublemakers never give our hearts a break!"
"Yeah! Two years ago during the Summit War, you practically scared the life out of us! Good thing Luffy and the others were there to tear you free, Ace..."
"And Sabo and Drake! Seeing you two alive and breathing is the greatest blessing!"
"Waaah..."
"You should've seen the boss back when she heard Ace was going to the execution scaffold! She locked herself in her room, bawling her eyes out, screaming like her life was over..."
"Hehehe, now that Ace and the boys are home, we're definitely airing all her dirty laundry..."
"Shut your damn mouths! What kind of garbage are you bastards spouting?! There's no way in hell I cried!" Dadan charged in like a rampaging bull, swinging her wooden club and sending the blabbering lackey flying through the air.
She hastily wiped a sleeve across her tear-streaked face before hefting the club onto her shoulder, glaring murder at the rest of her bandits.
She looked desperate to salvage whatever shred of bossly authority she had left.
The clearing fell deathly quiet for a heartbeat before deafening roars of laughter erupted all at once.
"You lot of ingrates!" Dadan spat her cigarette onto the dirt, glaring venomously at her crew.
Yet instead of cowering, the bandits only laughed harder, entirely unbothered.
"BWAHAHAHA...!"
The more she listened to that uproarious laughter, the more humiliated she felt—she felt entirely seen through.
"Boss... were you really not crying just now?" an anonymous voice piped up from somewhere in the crowd.
That single question lit the fuse. Everyone present knew the answer full well, yet none had possessed the nerve to say it out loud.
Now that someone had dared to voice it...
Sure enough!
The bandits looked over only to see their boss's face turn crimson, ready to blow like an active volcano as she roared, "Nonsense! Pure slander! I didn't shed a single damn tear!"
She hurled the heavy club with all her might. By sheer coincidence, the projectile landed squarely atop the head of the bandit laughing the loudest, instantly raising a massive, smoking bump.
Clutching his head in agony, the poor thug wailed, "Boss, you hit the wrong guy!"
"I didn't say it...!"
"Hmph! You were laughing the loudest just now! Have you forgotten who calls the shots around here?!" Dadan curled her lip in defiance. Admitting she had struck the wrong target was an absolute impossibility.
"EH?!"
The bandits stood dumbfounded.
Laughter, pained groans, and comic protests melted into a chaotic, lively din.
Yet anyone with eyes could see the profound, unadulterated joy radiating from the very depths of their souls.
"Hahaha! Ace, Sabo, Drake... and Luffy!" Makino slipped over to the four brothers, whispering with a fond, knowing smile. "Let me tell you a little secret: Dadan was worried sick about you boys, truly."
"Every so often, she would stumble into my tavern just to ask if there was any word of your whereabouts..."
"I can't even count how many times she broke down and wailed like a child right at the counter..."
"In any case... seeing you all safe and sound is truly wonderful..." Makino's eyes glistened with gentle, welling tears.
"Makino..." Luffy parted his lips, completely at a loss for words.
In his entire life, expressing what he felt in moments like this had always been the hardest task.
"Oi, Makino! What kind of nonsense are you feeding them?! I never cried! If we're talking about crying, I remember plenty of nights when you closed up shop and—"
"Kya!"
Makino darted behind Dadan in a flash, clamping both hands firmly over the bandit leader's mouth.
No matter how Dadan thrashed and mumbled, not another syllable could escape.
"Ahem, cough!"
A dry, deliberate cough cut through the merriment.
Leaning on his walking stick, Mayor Woop Slap strode slowly out from the crowd, heading directly toward the four brothers.
The boisterous noise in the clearing gradually dwindled as every pair of eyes shifted toward the old mayor.
A collective sense of unease washed over the villagers. Knowing the old man's stubborn temperament, a harsh lecture directed at Luffy and the boys was practically inevitable.
After all, they had grown into apex figures among the most notorious scoundrels on the seas.
Super-pirates among pirates!
Though when looking at the situation from another angle... the villagers' eyes naturally drifted toward Sabo.
Sabo was currently the Chief of Staff of the New World Government. Surely that counted as bringing supreme honor to his name?
What defined true success?
Right now, Sabo stood at the absolute summit of global authority—a pinnacle of pinnacles.
Even the legendary Marine Hero Garp had never attained such institutional standing. After all, despite his legendary prestige, Garp was still an Admiral-caliber Vice Admiral by formal rank.
As for Luffy, Ace, and Drake...
Well, praising their official standing was complicated, to say the least.
Yet in the hearts of the villagers, every single one of these four brothers had matured into earth-shaking titans whose actions moved the entire world.
They had undeniably made something monumental of themselves.
While the townsfolk fretted in silent contemplation, the mayor came to a halt right before the brothers.
"Mayor..." Makino began, stepping forward to intercede, but the old man raised a hand, silencing her on the spot.
To the villagers of Foosha Village, their mayor had always been a rigid, obstinate old curmudgeon.
In his eyes, becoming a grand pirate was not merely devoid of glory—it was a profound disgrace to the community.
"Luffy!" The mayor's sharp address made everyone's posture snap straight.
A chorus of silent groans rippled through the crowd, dreading the scolding to come.
Yet before their flabbergasted eyes, the mayor stepped up to Luffy, raised an aged palm, and patted the young man firmly on the shoulder. "Well done, lad. You truly live up to the name of a man born and bred in our Foosha Village!"
Not only were the villagers struck dumb, but even Luffy's eyes popped wide in utter bewilderment.
If his memory served him right... Gramps Mayor had spent his entire childhood violently opposing his dream of becoming a pirate...
"Attention, everyone!" The mayor pivoted sharply, his voice carrying across the entire clearing. "Today, four young men of our Foosha Village have returned home draped in glory! Tonight, we hold a grand banquet to celebrate their magnificent accomplishments!"
"WHAT?!"
Jaws dropped across the clearing in sheer disbelief.
What was going on?!
Was this really their village mayor?
Could an impostor be wearing his skin?
Since when had this stubborn old man become so remarkably broad-minded?
In truth, after weathering so many world-shattering upheavals, how could the aged mayor remain blind to reality?
In this world, absolute right and wrong had never been carved in stone. The common perception that pirates were inherently evil stemmed partly from established laws, and partly from the sea of wretched cutthroats who gave the profession a vile reputation.
Yet so long as one remained true to one's conscience, whatever path a man chose to walk held genuine merit.
More than that, the old man's lifelong opposition had always been rooted in frantic worry for the boys' safety. Becoming a pirate meant painting a target on your back against the colossal World Government.
Against an unyielding behemoth like that, who could ever guarantee coming out in one piece?
Now, however, the old order had fallen, replaced by the New World Government, and these four brothers had proven themselves capable of overcoming every adversary under heaven.
If he turned a blind eye to achievements of this magnitude, he wouldn't be stubborn—he would be senile and utterly blind!
Seeing the collective sea of paralyzed, stupefied faces staring back at him, the mayor cleared his throat once more. "Ahem! I'll say it again: tonight, Foosha Village holds a grand banquet to celebrate the glorious homecoming of Luffy and his brothers!"
A spark of smug satisfaction flickered in the old man's chest. Look at you all—stunned out of your wits by my decree, aren't you? Hmph!
Keeping a stern, solemn facade, he pressed on, "Here is the arrangement: the liquor will be supplied by Makino's tavern, and the provisions will come from the food markets. I leave the preparations in your capable hands."
"As for the final tab, the entire expense will be split evenly among every household in Foosha Village—and as mayor, I shall pay a double share!"
Hearing those words, the crowd finally snapped out of their stupor.
This wasn't a hallucination—it was actually happening!