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Kid Eustass: "Ship spirit? What the hell is that?"
Suddenly, everyone from the Straw Hat Pirates burst into shock. Many were left dumbfounded, and Kid was no exception.
Capone Bege: "No idea. Never heard of it."
Trafalgar Law: "Neither have I. But that little girl in the bright yellow raincoat and boots doesn't seem human, does she?"
Jewelry Bonney: "I saw it clearly. She appeared out of nowhere at the moment when light and shadow converged. It was like she just materialized."
Basil Hawkins: "Could it be a ghost?"
Perona: "It's definitely not a ghost! If it were a ghost, I'd recognize it immediately."
Franky: "The ship spirit is a legend passed down among sailors. It only appears on ships cherished deeply by their crew. In short, it's the embodiment of the ship itself!"
Silvers Rayleigh: "Yes, I've heard of the legend too. But I've never heard of anyone actually seeing a ship spirit appear on their ship."
Edward Newgate: "Isn't that supposed to be just a myth? But this little girl in the raincoat and boots fits the description perfectly… Could such a thing really exist in the real world??"
Rocks D. Xebec: "Damn it! Even back when I ruled the seas, we knew about this legend. But not even my ship ever had one of those things show up. Someone else's ship having one? Impossible... Absolutely impossible!!!"
Gol D. Roger: "Are you an idiot or something??? The ship spirit only appears on ships that are deeply loved by their crew. Do you even know what kind of trash you've got on your ship???"
Charlotte Linlin: "Roger, do you have rocks in your head???"
Kaido: "If you're talking about Rocks, just talk about him! Why drag us into this???"
Shiki: "You moron, Roger!!!"
Edward Newgate: "That broadside hit a bit too wide..."
Roger: "Ahem, ahem... Pretend I didn't say anything. Anyway, the ship spirit is just a legend. At least, I've never heard of anyone who's actually seen one."
Monkey D. Luffy: "They've appeared before! Merry's ship spirit showed up!"
Scratchmen Apoo: "Oi, Straw Hat kid! Don't bring what happened over there into this conversation."
Nami: "It's not about what happened over there. Our Merry also had a ship spirit."
Kid Eustass: "So where's your Merry now?"
Roronoa Zoro: "Merry couldn't sail anymore, so we switched to the Thousand Sunny."
Kid Eustass: "So basically, your story about Merry's ship spirit can't be proven, huh?"
Scratchmen Apoo: "Aha ha ha ha!! Who doesn't know how to make stuff up???"
Usopp: "Damn it! Merry really did have a ship spirit!!!"
Capone Bege: "We saw the footage of when you guys got Merry earlier, but there wasn't a single shot of the ship spirit."
X Drake: "Yeah. If your ship really had a ship spirit, shouldn't there have been some footage of it?"
Monkey D. Luffy: "The ship spirit hadn't appeared yet at that time!!!"
Kid Eustass: "Hahaha!"
Scratchmen Apoo: "Aha ha ha ha!"
Nami: "Luffy, Usopp, stop arguing with them. Whether our Merry had a ship spirit or not, we don't need to prove anything to them."
Monkey D. Luffy: "Hmph!"
Though the Straw Hat Pirates stopped arguing in the chatroom, their minds were deeply shaken.
On the other side, Red-Haired Luffy's mere vow had caused Merry to produce a ship spirit. The emotions behind that vow must have been incredibly strong...
*[The ship spirit, seeing Luffy and the others approaching, gradually faded away, hiding herself.]*
*["According to Master's orders, all the supplies for your voyage have been prepared and placed on the ship," said the Merry butler.]*
*["Thank you so much!" Luffy said sincerely.]*
*[The Merry butler smiled: "Don't mention it, Luffy! Master said he'll host another feast for you tonight, and tomorrow, he and his wife will come to see you off along with Miss."]*
*["Great!!!" Luffy cheered.]*
*[If there's food involved, what else is there to say?]*
*[Luffy readily agreed.]*
*["Then I'll take my leave. Familiarize yourself with the ship."]*
*[With that, the butler smiled and turned to disembark. Just then, he stared at Luffy's straw hat.]*
*["What's wrong?" Seeing the butler's expression, Luffy asked curiously.]*
*[Realizing he might have been rude, the butler shook his head: "Oh, sorry about that. Years ago, a group of pirates came to our village. Their captain wore a hat that looked just like yours. For a moment, I thought it was the same one."]*
*["Ah, this straw hat?"]*
*[Luffy took off his hat and grinned: "It was given to me by a truly great pirate."]*
*[A pirate gave it to you?]*
*[The butler was stunned: "You don't mean... Red-Haired Shanks from the Red-Haired Pirates, do you?"]*
*["Eh? You know the Red-Haired Pirates? Yeah, this hat was given to me by their captain, Shanks. Do you know him?" Luffy asked excitedly.]*
*[The butler shook his head: "I don't know him personally, but Jesus Burgess from our village once set sail with him, leaving behind his frail wife and a son who was barely five years old. Not long after, his wife passed away, leaving the boy to fend for himself. I just suddenly thought of that poor child..."]*
*[Sighing, the butler revealed his kind-hearted nature.]*
*["Jesus Burgess' son, huh..."]*
*[At this, Luffy furrowed his brows.]*
*[After a moment of thought, Luffy looked at the butler: "Where does he live? Can I go see him?"]*
*["There's a small house on the hill at the east end of the village. That's his home. His name is Usopp, and he's famous in the village as a liar. If you can't find it, just ask any villager."]*
*["Got it, thanks!"]*
*[Once the butler left, Zoro and Buggy emerged from the cabin.]*
*["This ship is awesome! There's so much more space to train!" Zoro exclaimed.]*
*["I'm going to look for someone in the village. Want to come?" Luffy asked the two.]*
*["Sure, why not? We've got time." Zoro shrugged casually.]*
*[Buggy waved his hand: "I'll pass. I think I'm getting the hang of my Chop-Chop Fruit ability. Let me try it out."]*
*[Luffy and Zoro disembarked, asking for directions as they walked. Soon, they arrived at Usopp's house.]*
*["It's you two!!!" Usopp shrieked, turning pale as he saw Luffy and Zoro standing at his doorstep.]*
*[Three days ago, Usopp had witnessed these two—and another person—effortlessly annihilate dozens of pirates from his perch on the cliff. Terrified, he had fled in panic...]*
*[Now, seeing them show up at his door, Usopp's first thought was that they had come to silence him.]*
*[Paralyzed with fear, Usopp collapsed onto the ground, stammering: "H-how did you find me?"]*
*[How did we find you...]*
*[Luffy suddenly recalled something Kaya's father had said when gifting him Merry: "It must be a special connection."]*
*[Smiling, Luffy replied: "It must be a special connection."]*
*[Connection, my ass!]*
*[Usopp screamed: "I didn't see anything that day, I swear! Please, don't kill me!!!"]*
*["Don't get the wrong idea. I heard your dream is to become a brave warrior of the sea, so I've come to invite you to join us on our journey!" Luffy extended his hand warmly.]*
*[Of course, the main reason Luffy invited Usopp was because he learned about Usopp's tragic past from the butler. Plus, he knew Jesus Burgess and had promised to meet Red-Haired Shanks again on the seas.]*
*[So Luffy thought, since Usopp's dream was to become a brave warrior of the sea, why not bring him along?]*
*[However, to Usopp, this invitation felt more like a death sentence.]*
*["No, no, no! I'm not going! You must be planning to kill me and dump my body at sea!!!" Usopp frantically shook his head and backed away.]*
*[Guess we're stuck with him thinking we're here to harm him...]*
*[Luffy shrugged: "Well, I guess we'll have to inconvenience you for a bit."]*
*[With that, Luffy unleashed his Haoshoku Haki.]*
*[Boom!]*
*[Usopp's eyes rolled back, and he promptly fainted.]*
*["Zoro!"]*
*["Got it!"]*
*[Zoro stepped forward, hoisted Usopp over his shoulder, and carried him away.]*
*[The next day, the Going Merry set sail from Syrup Village, heading back toward the vast sea.]*
And with that, the red-framed screen gradually dimmed, fading into darkness.