Seeing Shaq walking over from behind, Newgate affectionately patted his head and introduced him, “Shaq, my newly adopted son.” Then he introduced Roger to Shaq.
“Ya hahahaha, what a capable kid!” Roger couldn’t help but exclaim, looking at Shaq, who had long black hair tied back, a resolute expression, and a katana at his waist.
“gurararara, of course!” Hearing his son praised, Newgate laughed heartily.
At this moment, Shaq forgot to greet them.
He was scrutinizing Roger, who was tall, wore a red captain’s coat, and had a bold, heroic face, pondering whether the hair on his upper lip was a mustache or something else a question that had puzzled countless fans.
“Kid, do I look strange?” Roger, sensing Shaq’s gaze, asked with a grin.
“Uh…
no, nothing.” Shaq awkwardly scratched his head and quickly shifted his gaze to the two men behind Roger.
The man on the left, with a long sword at his waist, blond hair tied back, wearing glasses, and a neatly shaped beard on his chin, was none other than “Roger’s right-hand man,” Silvers Rayleigh.
And the man on the right, burly, wearing sunglasses, with two axes at his waist and a bold demeanor, was Scopper Gaban, one of Roger’s core crewmates.
“Ya hahahaha.” Roger didn’t mind at all and laughed as he said, “Let’s have a feast!”
Behind Roger, Rayleigh and Gaban, each holding an infant, stepped forward and greeted Newgate.
They were all old acquaintances.
The other members of the Roger Pirates quickly set down food and sake, built a fire, set up grills, and soon gathered in small groups, drinking and chatting.
The banquet officially began.
Newgate and Roger sat together under a tree, drinking shoulder to shoulder.
Roger, cheeks slightly flushed, put down his bottle and said casually, “Hey, Newgate, during our voyage, we found a massive stone tablet with strange writings.
None of us could read it.
I have a feeling it hides a great secret.
If we can decipher it, we might uncover something that could shake the world.
Interested in exploring it together?”
Newgate raised an eyebrow, then glanced at Shaq in the distance, who was chatting happily.
Without hesitation, he waved his hand dismissively.
“No, Roger.
You know I’m not interested in treasure or secrets.
All I care about is my family.”
“Ya hahahaha, that’s just like you, Newgate.”
…
At this moment, Shaq was enthusiastically chatting with Rayleigh and Gaban.
“Uncle Rayleigh, your name is famous across the seas!”
“Uncle Gaban, I’ve heard about you too!”
Using his youthful appearance and lively personality, Shaq quickly warmed up to the two veterans.
“Hahaha, what an interesting kid,” Gaban laughed loudly, holding a blue-haired infant in his arms.
The baby reached up and grabbed at his beard, giggling.
Meanwhile, Rayleigh smiled calmly, holding a red-haired infant.
“Hey, Gaban, you’re going to scare Shanks.”
Indeed, the red-haired baby was none other than the future Red-Haired Shanks.
Compared to Rayleigh, Shaq found himself more curious about Gaban, whose bold and straightforward demeanor made him easy to approach.
“Uncle Gaban, do you think humans can have children with giants?” Shaq asked tentatively.
“Cough what kind of question is that?” Gaban choked slightly, then laughed.
“What are you thinking about in that head of yours?”
“Haha, just curious,” Shaq replied, waving his hands.
Gaban shook his head with a smile but didn’t answer, clearly amused.
Seeing that, Shaq turned to Rayleigh.
“By the way, Uncle Rayleigh, you’re a swordsman, right?”
Rayleigh smiled.
“Yes, I practice swordsmanship.
I wouldn’t call myself anything grand, just someone with some experience.
Interested in learning?”
“Ah, no need!
My old man is already teaching me,” Shaq quickly declined with a grin.
Rayleigh didn’t mind.
Instead, he stood up and gently handed the baby Shanks to Shaq.
“Then could you help me hold him for a bit?”
“Huh?
Oh sure!” Shaq quickly took the tiny Shanks.
“Leave it to me!”
Seeing this, Gaban also handed over the blue-haired baby.
“Then Buggy’s yours too.”
The two men exchanged relieved looks, then walked off together toward Roger and Newgate, clearly more comfortable drinking than babysitting.
Holding one baby in each arm, Shaq felt a strange sense of accomplishment.
Looking at Shanks, who was happily waving his tiny hands, and Buggy, who was fiddling with his own nose, Shaq couldn’t help but grin.
*So these are future great pirates… they’re just babies now.*
He imagined a future scene where Shanks would stand before him, and he would calmly say, “I used to hold you when you were this small.”
Lost in thought, Shaq suddenly felt a sharp tug on his hair.
Looking down, he saw Buggy grabbing a fistful of it, while Shanks clapped and laughed happily.
“You little brat Buggy, you’re asking for it!” Shaq said, pretending to get angry.
He carefully set Shanks down, then looked at Buggy but suddenly paused, as if struck by inspiration.
Grinning mischievously, he picked up Shanks again, stepped back, and raised him slightly.
“I’ve successfully captured Shanks!”
Then he placed him back down and pointed dramatically.
“You’re up, Shanks!
Go attack Buggy!”
As if responding, little Shanks let out an excited “wah!” and wobbled forward on his hands and knees toward Buggy, who was still distracted.
Reaching him, Shanks leaned forward and bumped his head directly into Buggy’s bright red nose.
“Waaah!” Buggy burst into tears instantly.
Meanwhile, Shanks clapped happily, clearly pleased with himself.
Watching the scene, Shaq struck a triumphant pose.
“We defeated wild Buggy!”
…
From a distance, Newgate, Roger, Rayleigh, and the others watched the scene unfold.
Without realizing it, smiles appeared on all their faces.