Shanks

For fish-men, crossing the Calm Belt was far easier than it was for other races. Through their connection with schools of fish, they could avoid many dangers.

It was not as simple or effective as the Marines embedding Sea Stone into the bottoms of their warships, but it was enough to ensure their safety.

The news of Chu Yang’s imminent departure caused quite a stir aboard the ship. Months of fighting side by side had led most of the fish-men aboard to regard Chu Yang as a companion.

Even the extremist fish-men led by Arlong no longer continued to oppose Chu Yang at every turn. Aside from their respect for his strength, they also felt some gratitude toward him.

Human hearts were made of flesh.

Everyone knew perfectly well that without Chu Yang, many fish-men aboard this ship would have died or been injured under the Marines’ relentless pursuit.

Some did not say it aloud, but they still remembered Chu Yang’s kindness.

An inexplicable melancholy began to spread across the ship.

Aside from Arlong, every fish-man wore a heavy expression.

"Everyone still likes you." Jinbe refused to give up and tried to persuade Chu Yang to stay.

"I’ll come back to see everyone within three years!" Chu Yang made the promise with utter conviction because he knew Tiger would meet his end three years later. He wanted to change that tragedy.

The Sun Pirates spent three days crossing the Calm Belt.

They encountered several sudden crises along the way, but the overall risk remained under control.

After arriving in the East Blue, Tiger took advantage of the moonlight to settle Chu Yang on a small island. Leaving behind a small boat, he hurried away again with his people.

Chu Yang spent the night by the shore. Early the next morning, he asked the local residents for the exact direction of the Goa Kingdom, then bought an expensive sea chart.

The small boat was piled with supplies Tiger and the others had left behind, saving Chu Yang the trouble of purchasing provisions. Once he had gathered the information he needed, he immediately set off for Foosha Village.

Sailing in the Four Seas was basically difficulty-free. Other than watching out for accidents around certain islands they passed, the sea itself was actually the safest place.

This was the complete opposite of the Grand Line.

Having learned quite a few steering techniques from Jinbe, Chu Yang handled a small boat with ease. The vessel, only a few meters long, rode the wind swiftly toward its destination.

About another day later, Chu Yang successfully found the Goa Kingdom’s only port village.

Foosha Village!

It was a place where hidden dragons and crouching tigers lay. Not only was it the hometown of Marine hero Garp, it was also the hometown of Dragon, leader of the Revolutionary Army, and the future Pirate King.

It was where the Pirate King Roger’s son and the future second-in-command of the Revolutionary Army grew up. Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, had even left an arm here.

Looking across the entire history of the anime, was there any beginner village more famous than this?

This bunch had elevated the Goa Kingdom to heights it never deserved!

Before he even reached the port, Chu Yang spotted a huge pirate ship floating on the water by the shore, its Pirate Flag bearing a skull fluttering in the wind.

The Pirate Flag’s design was very simple: at its center was a skull with three red claw marks across one eye socket, with two crossed swords behind it.

"Red Force!"

The moment he saw the Pirate Flag, Chu Yang’s heart jolted. Before coming here, he had worried that he might miss the time Shanks stayed in Foosha Village. Now, all his concerns vanished into thin air.

No other ships dared approach the Red Force.

Chu Yang did not rashly steer his little boat over either. Instead, he slowly docked nearby.

Chu Yang swept the Red Force with Observation Haki and found that only a small number of crew members were remaining on deck. He then headed straight for the only tavern in Foosha Village.

Foosha Village was not large. Chu Yang casually asked the villagers nearby for information and easily found the tavern run by Makino.

"Where did this little kid come from? Coming out to drink at such a young age?"

"Kid, where are your parents? You can’t play in a tavern alone."

"There are pirates in there. A kid like you should stay far away!"

Chu Yang tossed all those well-meaning warnings to the back of his mind and plunged headfirst into the tavern occupied by the Red Hair Pirates, where laughter and cheer filled the air.

That was how the Red Hair Pirates were. A small feast every three days, a grand feast every five days; the rest of the time, they were either fighting or on their way to fight.

Fight—feast—fight—feast…

An endless cycle.

This tradition had been inherited from Pirate King Roger’s crew. Luffy’s Straw Hat Pirates later carried on the same tradition, except nearly every one of Luffy’s fights was a life-or-death battle.

The tavern was filled with singing and dancing, and the atmosphere was at its liveliest. Little Luffy was clowning around.

He had the Red Hair Pirates laughing uproariously.

Most people did not notice the young man entering from outside, except for the proprietress, Makino.

"Little friend, did you come to the wrong place? This isn’t somewhere to eat." Makino kindly reminded him. Though she felt the pirates before her were not bad people, she still hoped Chu Yang would leave quickly.

"A glass of rum." Chu Yang calmly took a seat at the bar, his every movement faintly revealing a maturity beyond his age.

Makino froze for a moment, then firmly shook her head. Her tone became unusually stern. "I’m sorry, but I can’t serve rum to a child. Even if it has the lowest alcohol content, I still can’t."

Just then, one of the crew members noticed Chu Yang, and someone immediately began egging things on from the side. "Boss lady, give him a drink. Put it on my tab. A little man is still a man. As a man, how can he not drink?"

"How can you give alcohol to a child?" Makino shot the pirate an angry glare. "Say any more nonsense, and none of you will get a drink today!"

The man could only sit down sheepishly, drawing loud laughter from the companions around him!

Had it been another pirate crew, Makino’s attitude would have been enough to get her killed. But with the Red Hair Pirates, it became a highly amusing joke instead.

The laughter around him grew louder and louder. Under those teasing gazes, Chu Yang helplessly lied, "I’m already an adult. I just had an illness before, and I never grew any taller."

It was a clumsy lie that most people would not have believed, but the innocent Makino believed Chu Yang.

"Really?" Makino covered her mouth in surprise, then quickly apologized to Chu Yang. "I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken so rashly."

Chu Yang smiled. "If you can put my rum on the table a little faster, I’ll forgive you."

"Please wait a moment." Makino turned toward the cabinet behind her to find the liquor.

"Hey… kid, lying to adults isn’t a good habit!"

The red-haired man with a prominent scar over his left eye suddenly leaned close to Chu Yang. Draping an arm around Chu Yang’s shoulders, he said, "I was curious about alcohol at your age too, so I understand. But next time, you can’t deceive people again."

Chu Yang said nothing. He turned his face away in distaste, whether because he disliked the red-haired man’s lecturing tone or the heavy smell of alcohol on him.