One Piece: Shanks' Little Jasmine

Chapter 14 Oden's Joining

"Good girl, good girl, lift her up high, lift her up high!"

Roger held Rihe in his arms, smiling happily, and sighed nostalgically, "Rihe is just as cute as Moko was when she was little."

After gaining experience in raising Moko, Roger's baby-holding skills improved dramatically. Hiyori was amused by Roger and giggled, not afraid of Roger lifting her up high at all.

"Yes, it brings back memories of the past."

Rayleigh smiled, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes. It felt like just yesterday that he found Moko as a baby. In the blink of an eye, Moko was already five years old. From childhood to adulthood, Moko had never caused him any trouble. Just thinking about it made him feel lonely when Moko was about to leave the ship and start her own adventure.

On the deck, everyone looked at the two young children with smiles in their eyes. Oden also made faces and amused his precious daughter. The atmosphere was peaceful and serene.

Shanks and Buggy sat on a wooden barrel to the side, looking at everyone with some annoyance. They couldn't quite put their finger on what they were feeling. They were a mix of distrust towards Oden, who had suddenly boarded the ship and acted like one of their own, and frustration at the two kids stealing their attention. They felt a bit of both, and they were both feeling extremely irritated.

Suddenly, the barrel the two were sitting in began to shake violently. Shanks wobbled and then fell off the barrel. At that moment, a hand burst out of the barrel. Shanks stared in surprise, turned his head to look at Roger, and shouted.

"Captain, someone's trying to cross the border illegally!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a cat that looked like a lion and a dog with long ears jumped out of the barrel and pounced straight at Oden.

"Lord Oden!"

"Inuarashi, Nekomamushi!? What are you doing here?"

Oden's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets; he never expected that the two who were supposed to stay on Whitebeard's ship would end up here.

"We still feel happiest when we're by Lord Oden's side."

As Nekomamushi spoke, Inuarashi scratched his head sheepishly. Oden gritted his teeth, already able to picture Whitebeard's angry face.

"Little Baiji is probably very angry right now."

With that said, Oden turned to Roger with a grin, his voice slightly apologetic, "I'm sorry for the sudden turn of events, but please take care of these two as well."

"boom!"

Suddenly, a dull thud against the wall drew everyone's attention. Jaba pouted, looking displeased, and stared intently at Oden before speaking sharply.

"Are you mistaken, Oden? All the captain needs is your knowledge, understand?"

The atmosphere on the deck instantly froze. Everyone stood together, glaring fiercely at Oden. The Roger Pirates, led by Jabba, stood opposite Oden. In the tense atmosphere, Oden suddenly grinned and laughed. Jabba and the others were even more displeased when they saw Oden's expression.

Just as tensions were rising, Tuanzi and Mihua tumbled out of the cabin in a ball, crashing straight into the mast before stopping. The two little ones, dazed and disoriented, bumped into the mast again, their silly appearance breaking the tense atmosphere on the deck.

Moko followed closely behind the two children and walked out of the cabin. Looking at the two sides, which seemed to be about to fight, she blinked helplessly and tilted her head slightly. Haven't they fully accepted each other yet?

That makes sense, since they boarded from another pirate crew and don't know anyone there. It's normal for them to be resistant. The best way to find out who someone is in this world is to fight them. But let's forget about that now, since there are two kids around. We can't let them be corrupted.

Seeing that the situation might get worse if it wasn't resolved today, Moko thought for a moment and suggested that they hold a banquet. Maybe that would solve the current problem, since everyone likes banquets.

Let's have oden tonight.

"Oh! Little Moko, you know about oden too!?"

Oden was overjoyed and strode towards Moko, but before he could get close, Shanks appeared and blocked his way. Shanks looked at Oden warily. He would never let anyone who posed a potential threat get close to Moko. Sensing Shanks' tension and annoyance, Moko stepped forward, took Shanks' hand, squeezed his palm, and looked at Shanks with gentle eyes.

When Shanks met Moko's all-seeing gaze, he awkwardly turned his head away. He could hide his emotions, but he still couldn't hide them from Moko.

Seeing that Shanks was no longer interfering, Moko smiled and looked at Oden, "Hmm, I've seen it in a book before, it should be a delicacy from Wano Country."

"Hahaha, that's the most delicious food in Wano Country!"

"In that case, the task of buying ingredients will be left to Mr. Oden."

"Haha, leave it to me!"

After Moko forcefully changed the subject, the tense atmosphere immediately relaxed. Rayleigh and Roger exchanged a glance and couldn't help but smile. Sure enough, no matter how big the conflict was, as long as Moko was there, it would definitely be resolved. It was really reassuring.

The ship quickly arrived at Gaya Island. Apart from a few people who stayed on the ship, the others disembarked in groups to purchase supplies. Coincidentally, Oden was grouped with Jabba, Shanks, and Buggy. Since Oden knew the ingredients, Moko didn't give him a special list.

Moko handed the purse to Shanks and Bucky, and squeezed Shanks's hand. "Shanks, I'll make you something delicious when you come back. Don't be sad."

"Moko-chan, I want some too!"

"Okay, but you can't argue in public."

"Hmph, don't worry, I, Lord Buggy, don't stoop to the level of ordinary people."

Bucky patted his chest and assured him, looking very generous. Shanks tilted his head and didn't say anything. Moko stood on tiptoe, cupped Shanks' face, and turned him to face her. Her voice was soft and delicate, making it impossible to refuse.

"Shanks~"

"Yes, we won't argue."

Watching the reluctant trio and the hip-hop lone group leave, Moko chuckled and breathed a sigh of relief. Compared to becoming friends through conflict, Moko preferred meeting at a banquet. People in this world were extremely straightforward, and often, as long as they could have a good time drinking and eating together, they could definitely become good friends. In that case, why not have an oden banquet? Speaking of oden, it would be even better to pair it with sake, and there should be some left on the ship.

Mo had no idea what happened while they were buying groceries, but when everyone returned, Shanks and the other two seemed to have accepted Oden. The resistance in their eyes had disappeared, and Shanks no longer looked as unwilling as when he left. Sure enough, when it comes to delicious food, even just going grocery shopping together has an exceptionally good effect.

Moko took out the ingredients for making soup, put the kelp and bonito flakes into the pot, added enough water and simmered over low heat for ten minutes. Then she took out the kelp and bonito flakes, added sake and soy sauce, and continued to simmer over low heat. After the time was almost up, Moko tasted it and added a little seaweed powder. Then she put the skewered ingredients in and cooked them until they were ready to eat.

The Jackson anchored in a sea area sheltered by reefs. The moon was high in the sky, and the casserole pot was bubbling away, with an enticing aroma wafting from the small hole in the pot. Everyone sniffed and stared expectantly at the pot.

This was the first time anyone on the ship had eaten oden. Because Wano Country was in a closed-off state, people outside the country naturally knew very little about its cuisine. Moko only remembered this when she saw Oden. Maybe next time she could try making some other Wano Country dishes for everyone to try.

The moment Oden lifted the lid, a wonderful aroma wafted out. The rich broth had completely permeated the ingredients, and the ingredients were cooked to a beautiful color. Everyone couldn't wait to pick up the oden and start tasting it, but they were all stunned the moment they took a bite.

"How is it? Is it delicious?" Oden asked the group with a mixture of excitement and anticipation.

"It's so delicious!" Everyone's eyes lit up; the unique and novel food had completely won over their taste buds.

"Really? It's delicious? That's wonderful!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

"My little ones, let's give a warm welcome to our new comrade! Let's have a feast that lasts all night!"

As Roger finished speaking, the ship immediately became lively. Seeing that everyone was getting along perfectly, Moko smiled faintly and quietly left the deck to return to her room.

Shanks kept glancing at Moko out of the corner of his eye until her figure disappeared into the shadows of the cabin before turning his gaze away. Buggy was having a great time, with one hand on Shanks' shoulder and the other holding a sake bottle, responding to Oden's off-key song. Laughter filled the deck.

When Moko opened the door, she saw Mika curled up asleep next to the recliner by the window, with Tuanzi close beside her. A smile spread across Moko's face as she quietly walked to the table, turned on the lamp, and began to study Crocus's notes.

"Tetanus, sunlight causes the skin to turn blue and become hard like scales, while also accelerating the progression of the disease. There is currently no treatment, and the number of survivors is zero."

Time flew by. Moko frowned slightly. After looking at it for so long, she realized that the notes did indeed record a great many rare diseases. However, almost without exception, the people who contracted these diseases all died. Why was this? Logically speaking, even if these diseases were difficult to cure, with so many patients in an entire town, there should have been some treatment notes left behind. But there were none in any medical book or notes. And the people who contracted these diseases all died suddenly. It was too strange, as if someone was deliberately hiding it.

"Ding-a-ling~"

The crisp sound of wind chimes interrupted Moko's thoughts. Moko rubbed her temples wearily. It was already late, but she could still hear the lively noises coming from the deck. It seemed that everyone was planning to keep up the noise until morning. Moko breathed a sigh of relief, closed her notebook, put it in the box, and then went to bed to rest.

The ship had been sailing at sea for many days, but had not seen the next island. Roger, Rayleigh, and Oden sat on the deck, looking at the pointer on the ground, somewhat puzzled.

"The record pointer is pointing to the sky, is it broken?"

“No, let’s go.” Roger thought for a moment, then stood up and said calmly.

"Where are we going?" Oden and Rayleigh both looked at Roger with confusion.

"In the sky."

Roger pointed his finger at the sky, his expression clearly not joking. Oden was completely stunned. Rayleigh sighed, rubbing his forehead. He was used to Roger's wild ideas; he was sure there would be a way in the end.

Without hesitation, Roger chose a spot with a powerful current. The group clung tightly to the mast and ship's edge, their excitement barely concealed. Roger stood at the bow, beaming with joy.

"It's coming, an upward ocean current."

As soon as Roger finished speaking, a huge roar came from the seabed, and a powerful current gushed out from the bottom of the ship. The ship was then propelled into the sky by the current, and screams erupted from the ship.

Shanks held Moko tightly, grinning and showing off his big white teeth, while Bucky clung to the mast and yelled, looking like he was about to faint at any moment.

"dying!"

The Jackson sailed upstream against the current, passing through layers of clouds with the towering current. When the ship finally came to a stop, everyone looked around in astonishment.

"It's an island!"

"This is..."

"Sky Island!"