[One Piece] Hello, Single Dog Warring States Marshal!

"Wow……"

"Is it really her?"

"...Dad didn't lie to us, did he?"

"Then can she change back?"

"Do you want to ask..."

A group of half-grown boys huddled together, hiding behind a pile of debris and staring curiously at the two figures, one tall and one short, in front of them, muttering openly.

I:"……"

Newgate: "~~~~"

It's like a light on my back.

"...that..." I was wearing a men's short leather jacket that was so big that it could almost cover me from head to toe, and I was nervously holding a cup of hot water that was steaming vaguely under the cold moonlight night. Coco, embarrassed and helpless, tried to smile, and whispered to the tall blond man in front of me, who was sitting cross-legged on my deck with his chin propped up and an interesting look on his face, smiling brightly at me: "How about we let them all come over? Well, it’s okay with me…”

Rather than continue to be pierced by a group of little boys as if they were magical creatures and stared at with great curiosity, it would be better to face their confusion head on.

and……

I drank hot cocoa and carefully glanced at the person in front of me - he probably had the same doubts as these children. Although he didn't ask, it didn't mean that I didn't have to explain.

Whitebeard Edward Newgate has never been a man to be fooled.

The unusually tall blond man gave me the only bench on the deck, and he casually sat cross-legged on the cold deck.At this time, Newgate still has beautiful blond wavy hair and clear eyes, but compared to the frivolous and wanton appearance 12 years ago, he is more like a glass of fine wine that has settled. If there is too much to say, In terms of words, the most obvious thing is the calmness and domineering look between his eyebrows... and of course, his iconic crescent-shaped white beard.

The Whitebeard Pirates were established.

I watched Newgate call over those little gangsters who looked very familiar to me, and sighed silently in my heart - explaining to one person is an explanation, and explaining to a bunch of people is also an explanation, so I might as well do it all at once.

-

After half an hour...

"I see." The cold plywood became a lot warmer because of the charcoal brazier used for heating. The scene became uncontrollably lively when the children were around. Newgate had no choice but to take out the marshmallows and let them The half-grown children, who were fascinated by the story and even complained that they were hungry, were grilled and eaten.After counting all the children in the circle, he handed me the last marshmallow that was toasted to a crispy shell, and said thoughtfully: "...So, after that-" He took out his pocket watch from his pocket. He glanced at it and said: "Well - in 10 minutes, you will be back to what you were before?"

"Thank you." I basically didn't eat anything today. When the marshmallow was handed to my hand, I felt vaguely hungry. I gently pinched a piece of marshmallow that was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and put it into my mouth. I said vaguely: " If nothing else happens, yes, in another 10 minutes I can only transform back into Pikachu, and I won’t be able to speak human words.”

"Wow -" the children's eyes were filled with stars when they heard this, and they came over one after another and started chattering:

"Then we can also change? Precious beasts that can discharge electricity or something, so cool——"

"Is Irene-san really not a person with abilities? Dad, daddy, is there a Pikachu fruit in this world?"

"Then can Miss Erin still understand what we are saying after she transforms back into Pikachu?"

"...Why did I change back to Pikachu? I was originally a human." I frowned helplessly. After eating the marshmallow in two or three mouthfuls, I felt that my blood sugar began to slowly rise, and my mood also increased with the intake of sugar. And he became lighthearted and answered the boys' questions with a smile: "I'm really not an esper, at least not one who gained abilities by eating Devil Fruit. And Pikachu is not a product of this world at all. It shouldn't be possible." There’s a Pikachu fruit.”

The little devils all said in unison: "Oh——"

Me: "...How do you do it so uniformly? Have you ever practiced it?"

The little devils once again said in unison: "No -"

Me: "...it's really neat."

The little devils simply huddled together and made faces: "Hehehehe——"

Me: "...Pfft, why are you doing this? Hahahaha - you are so cute -"

Little devils: "~~~~~"

"..." Newgate held his cheek with one hand and watched with gentle eyes as his little cubs actively chattered around the black-haired woman, even though he knew this Miss Irene 12 years ago. She is very approachable, but I didn't expect that even these difficult brats could be infected by her...

Seeing the young pineapple-headed kid grabbing the black-haired woman's arm and shaking it, shouting, 'It's agreed, we must make a thunder later to see', the other little kid's eyes were shining around. The blond man raised his eyebrows as the woman talked endlessly about the lively scene——

kindness……

Is it because a woman suddenly came on the boat?I always feel that this group of people has become a lot cuter from little ones to big ones.

"This is the end of the question and answer time. You guys should have had enough trouble." Newgate took out the little Marco, who was getting closer and closer to sitting in the woman's arms, and started to chase them away: " What time has it been and you’re still not sleeping? If you stay in bed tomorrow, I’ll throw you overboard. Bista, give Eileen’s brooch back to her. What do you want a women’s brooch for? Put it on your head?”

Amidst the laughter of a group of boys, the young Bista, with a red face, reluctantly took off the beautiful brooch inlaid with mother-of-pearls that the black-haired woman had taken off for him to play with and returned it, muttering something inaudible. He trotted into the cabin muttering.With him taking the lead, a group of little gangsters followed Newgate in no matter how reluctant they were to leave. Marco, who was still young, finally waved his hand to the brunette with a gentle smile through the crack of the door. Good night.

"Good night to you too~" I was so cute with the little pineapple head that I tilted my head and smiled at him. I watched the lively boys close the door obediently and go back to their room to rest. It wasn't until the door was closed that I gently He breathed a sigh of relief——

Huh... there are really so many questions, and I am tired of answering every single one of them.

"Gula la la - you're tired enough, dealing with the little devils~" Newgate smiled happily, and he sat down on the deck next to me again. He was very tall and strong, even though he was sitting on the ground and I He was still much taller than me when he was sitting on the bench, so I had to raise my head slightly to look at him sideways.

"Ah, it's okay. I quite like children. They are just curious and quite cute~" Maybe it was because the children made trouble for a while, but the embarrassment just now has faded a lot. At least now I dare to He looked at Newgate squarely.

The warm firelight swayed gently in the night breeze, and the marshmallows and hot cocoa prompted the brain to start secreting the happy pheromone dopamine. I wrapped myself in Newgate's thick leather jacket and smiled warmly at him: "What a coincidence. Fortunately, I landed on your boat. If it had been someone else, I really don’t know what would have happened...Thank you, Newgate."

As I said that, I suddenly thought of something, and the smile on my lips deepened subconsciously, and I joked: "Or, 'Dad'?"

Newgate was obviously stunned for a moment, but he quickly realized what I meant, and there was a hint of emotion on his face: "Yeah, you really got it right, 'Dad' or something like that. And white beard." At this point, he gestured with his finger on his crescent-shaped beard, and smiled at me: "But your two croissants can't match the beauty of my beard~ "

"Hahaha~ No, it's so majestic with a beard like this~" I was in a very good mood and giggled when he teased me. There is a saying that even though Edward Newgate is funny, he is also a super chatty person. ah.

The night is getting darker and the sea breeze is cold, but the atmosphere on this small boat is gradually becoming more relaxed.Thanks to the chance meeting 12 years ago and the few specious words of 'prophecy' at the dinner table, Newgate and I were not as awkward as I imagined, and he was very interested in chatting.

"It's incredible." The blond man turned his face and looked at me steadily. His blue eyes reflected the swaying firelight and tiny bits of starlight. They were full of interest but not offensive: "What on earth are you doing?" Where did it come from? The eastern continent you mentioned seems to be a far away place."

Ah, we are separated by dimensions, so far away.

"To be honest, I don't know how to describe the location of my hometown. Well... just listen to it as a legend. There is no need to take it to heart." I stirred the crackling coals in the brazier. Let the air rush into the bottom of the basin to coat the underlying charcoal that has not been burned through with flames: "If it weren't for that accident, I wouldn't be here. But I am also grateful for that accident, which allows me to see the scenery outside my hometown. , and met a lot of nice people~”

My original intention of saying this was actually to express to Newgate euphemistically, 'I'm glad to meet you and your little gangsters.' But the big blond pirate seemed to have thought of something else. He raised his lips and said with a smile. : "Oh - this also reminds me, why is the 'Guardian' who was by your side 12 years ago not by your side? If he gave up..."

"Ah, ah ah, no, no, it's not like that!" I waved my hand to clarify before he finished his teasing words, for fear that he would take the topic in a strange direction: "I just got separated from Warring States. He is now It's coming towards me, you should be able to find me soon... right?" When it comes to the latter part, I don't feel confident myself.

I don’t know if Rosinandi and Sengoku have met. The last time I checked their positions before the system went offline, they were still far behind each other. I don’t know what the situation is now...

And...when Warring States really comes to me, how should I face him?

'Hi, long time no see. '

…It’s only been 12 years, not that long.

'I swear I didn't mean it, it's all the fault of the system. '

...If you say such hindsight, will you get beaten?

…………

What does he think 12 years later?

How does he view me now...

Unconcealable anxiety began to stain my brows, and I subconsciously lowered my eyes to avoid Newgate's slightly playful gaze. I murmured as if to convince myself: "We are fine, I just... was killed without warning." I was forced to leave for a few days, that’s all.”

Have you spent some time away?

Compared to the black-haired woman's sudden depression, Newgate raised the corners of his mouth with interest. The stars in his blue eyes gradually dimmed, and some kind of undercurrent with metaphorical meaning began to emerge. move……

"Did he just let you leave then?" Pretending to approach unintentionally implies some subtle ambiguous signal. The blond man squinted his eyes slightly while slowly speaking inductive words with his extremely lethal subwoofer tone. While leaning forward, he leaned closer to the black-haired woman who was holding an empty mug and repeatedly rubbing the side of the mug, showing a wave of restlessness: "That man really doesn't know how to cherish..."

"...No, he didn't either, ah," I said, while subconsciously turning my face in the direction of the sound, but I didn't expect that the distance between the two of us had become so close that I couldn't even realize it. As soon as I raised my eyes, I encountered the hot breath on his lips...

"Ah, I..." I stepped back subconsciously, but what moved faster than me was his strong arm around my waist——

"Shh..." The gentle but ambiguous tone of words caused the depths of his blue eyes to heat up. The handsome and domineering strong man slowly came closer, gradually tightened his arms and brought me into his sphere of influence. The deep voice said to him Every word that comes out is wrapped in temptation: "Remember, that proposal in 12?"

"...?" I felt extremely uncomfortable. Although my reason kept shouting loudly, 'Push him away, why are you standing there? However, I was struck by impulse and sensibility. My hands should obviously push him away, but they were held feebly above my knees. Even though I was faintly shaking, I could not push away the blond man who was gradually overturning...

"It seems I forgot, ha..." He chuckled, put one hand around my waist, and slowly raised the other hand, twisting my hair and putting it to his lips for a kiss.

When I raised my eyes again, the dazzling starlight had been completely lost in the darkness. Under the moonlight, the blond man was like a dangerous beast, as if he could devour me in the next second. Staring into my eyes, he said in a deep voice: "You were very beautiful that night when the oiran paraded..."

I:"!"

At this moment, the memory of that night immediately came up——

Next to the audience in the Courtyard, a young blond man's eyes were calm, and the smile on his lips was frivolous but not annoying.

'Gu la la la - is this hinting at me?Like we were lucky enough to spend the night with you or something. '

"Tonight..." Newgate's breath finally came to my lips, caressing my cheeks with a touch of rum, making me tremble subconsciously...

"Would you be lucky enough to spend the night with me?"