IW: Chapter 184 - Imu's Past, Mysterious Person Attacks!
"Young man, got time for a drink?"
At Loguetown's port, Bai Ye had been waiting for a long time. Looking at Mihawk, Bai Ye directly extended an invitation.
Sure enough, he's still quite green now.
"So why would a big shot like you seek me out?"
Mihawk nodded in agreement, but he was still curious why Bai Ye had approached him.
On the Grand Line, compared to Bai Ye, he wasn't exactly a well-known figure, was he?
"I noticed you at the execution platform."
Just now, looking down from Pirate King Roger's perspective on the execution platform, he could indeed see the faces of everyone present.
He also noticed the locations of other people. After leaving with Roger's corpse, he hadn't gone too far, as there were still people he needed to find here.
He had considered that among the future Shichibukai present, there were only four: Hawkeye, Crocodile, Doffy, and Moriah.
Clearly, among these four, the only one he could temporarily invite was Hawkeye.
Doflamingo could cooperate with him, but would absolutely not join him. Moriah and Crocodile probably wouldn't even cooperate. Cooperating with a dangerous individual didn't suit their personalities.
As for Hawkeye, Bai Ye couldn't quite figure him out, but his strength was the strongest among the future Shichibukai, so Bai Ye had to try and win him over no matter what.
"Here?"
"Yes, right here in Loguetown."
The two of them agreed so casually, completely disregarding the Marines searching the area.
Following his memory, they arrived at the pub Pirate King Roger used to frequent. The owner was currently looking at the newcomers with some surprise.
"We were closing for today, but if it's you, how about a drink?"
The owner had witnessed the execution. In his heart, he felt happy for Roger because his dream had come true, and he hadn't died at the hands of the Marine in the end.
For Roger, this seemed to be the best possible outcome.
And although this person in front of him had killed Roger, he had also given Roger the most dignified death.
"Two drinks, please, after all, I have a friend with me."
Bai Ye pointed at Mihawk. The way he silently followed behind him made Bai Ye feel a bit helpless. This guy must be quite world-weary by now, right?
In later descriptions, Mihawk's past experiences made him hate the Marine, and he also suffered a severe betrayal. Therefore, he was somewhat lonely and found it difficult to trust human nature.
He only joined the Shichibukai later because it meant he wouldn't be pursued by the Marine and could live a peaceful life.
And this was the entry point Bai Ye chose next.
"You two drink. You can drink whatever you want here. I'm not open for business today."
The owner pointed to the bar behind him, leaving the place to Bai Ye and Mihawk.
Although he let Bai Ye and them in for a drink, he really had no intention of continuing to operate. Roger died today, so he shouldn't have opened for business at all.
With that, he turned and left the bar, walking into the back door, deciding to rest early.
"How truly casual."
Bai Ye shook his head, then picked up a glass of wine and held it in front of Hawkeye. Hawkeye was stunned for a moment, then also raised his glass and clinked it with Bai Ye.
The two kept drinking without saying a word. After an hour or two, the bar door pushed open, and an older-looking man slowly walked in, then looked around: "Is the owner not here?"
"No, he's not. If you want a drink, just help yourself."
Bai Ye glanced at the newcomer, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, but he didn't say much more.
He didn't expect to meet him in Loguetown.
"That's not good, is it?"
Then put your hands down!
A strange look flashed across Bai Ye's face. This guy said it wasn't good, but his hands didn't stop, directly reaching for several bottles on the bar, and then he started mixing drinks for himself.
"You two drink, don't mind me!"
"..."
The person in front of them drank by himself and indeed didn't bother Bai Ye and Mihawk.
Bai Ye glanced at him, then stopped paying attention.
Then he looked at Mihawk and asked, "Have you ever thought about joining a pirate crew?"
Anyway, after all the detours, he was going to invite Mihawk to join his pirate crew.
So, it might as well be straightforward and clear.
And Mihawk was clearly a bit bewildered by Bai Ye's words.
So direct?
Although he knew that when Bai Ye approached him, it was most likely for this matter.
But in reality, Mihawk also didn't know what exactly Bai Ye valued about him.
"No."
Mihawk wasn't sure what exactly Bai Ye valued about him.
But he indeed had no intention of joining any other pirate crew.
After all, his past experiences made him somewhat unwilling to trust others.
And this made Bai Ye realize, isn't this experience very similar to Bullet's?
Even Kaido was betrayed by his former kingdom!
So, the strong people in the Pirate world are all betrayed once, and then they start on the path to becoming stronger?
It makes it seem like everyone who becomes a pirate does so because of betrayal. If that's the case, then the Marine and World Government are all great villains!
"Sailing alone?"
"Yes."
Mihawk nodded, then continued, "If it's to invite me, I don't think it's necessary."
"Your goal in sailing is to defeat all the swordsmen in the world and become the strongest, right?"
Although Hawkeye's dream has never been specifically described, from his challenges against various swordsmen, it's clear he is a person with a fervent pursuit of swordsmanship.
So, ever since he set sail, he has been challenging various swordsmen, until finally, he had no opponents, and he was called the World's Strongest Swordsman!
After Bai Ye pointed out his goal so directly, Hawkeye wasn't overly surprised. From the fact that the other party was trying to recruit him, it seemed he understood him, otherwise, he wouldn't have invited him to join right away.
"My pirate crew has swordsmen, and also punching bags. There are also those who have suffered betrayal and can't trust others. And I won't restrict the crew members. If you feel you can't stay in the pirate crew, you can leave directly."
Bai Ye never forced Kaido and Bullet to stay.
If they wanted to stay, they could, and if they wanted to leave, Bai Ye wouldn't stop them. Bai Ye didn't want his pirate crew to become a place of authoritarianism where his word was law.
And upon hearing Bai Ye expose his past experiences, Mihawk was somewhat surprised. He had even investigated that thoroughly.
"I want to challenge swordsmen all over the world."
"I won't stop you. You can come and go as you please, just like now. However, you must tell me before you permanently leave the pirate crew."
Just a heads-up is enough. There's no need to hide your departure, right?
"And our place is very safe. If you want to live a peaceful life, you can stay there directly. The Marine won't find that place!"
Bai Ye directly brought up the condition under which Mihawk joined the Shichibukai.
Didn't Mihawk join the Shichibukai back then precisely because he wanted a peaceful life and didn't want to be pursued by the Marine?
Although he wasn't afraid, it was truly annoying. Constantly on the move on the Grand Line, and as soon as he stopped, the Marine would come knocking. He truly disliked that kind of thing.
And the conditions Bai Ye offered truly made him tempted.
He wasn't yet the famous World's Strongest Swordsman; he was just a newly debuted swordsman with a bit of fame.
And Bai Ye valued him, offered him a safe and undisturbed place, and even gave him the right to leave the pirate crew at any time. It seemed like he was getting the better end of the deal no matter how he looked at it.
"What do I need to pay?"
Mihawk admitted he was tempted.
Now that he had Bai Ye's attention and such generous terms, it would be hard for any pirate to refuse, let alone someone like Mihawk who had no ambition to be king.
But before agreeing, Mihawk needed to know what price he would have to pay if he accepted Bai Ye's offer.
"You don't need to pay anything. You'll know when you get there. Our pirate crew doesn't have that many rules and regulations. Joining us doesn't require any payment. If I had to say what you'd pay, it would be some combat power to protect our comrades."
Although currently, Kaido wants to snatch the Captain's position, Bullet thinks about defeating him every day, and Old John constantly thinks about getting money from him, at least this pirate crew gives Bai Ye some hope.
And he doesn't need others to pay anything; he just needs them to contribute some combat power when he needs their help.
"Is that so..."
How does it sound not like a pirate crew?
Mihawk fell into deep thought after hearing Bai Ye's words.
He pondered whether Bai Ye's words were true.
But on second thought, he felt that Bai Ye had no reason to lie to him.
His strength was greater than his own; if he wanted to do something to him, he wouldn't need to deceive him at all.
And a strong person like him should have some dignity. If he could say that, at least his pirate crew was mostly as he described.
Once it differed, he would immediately realize it after joining.
So, Bai Ye wasn't actually deceiving him?
"Young man, I'm actually very curious about something."
The person who had been sitting quietly drinking earlier now put down his glass.
"Didn't you say you weren't listening?"
"My apologies, my ears are a bit too sensitive. Could I trouble you to answer a few questions?"
"Speak."
Bai Ye nodded. If it weren't for the fact that the person in front of him was a talent, he would have kicked him out just now.
"Young man, do you think pirates are just, or is the Marine just?"
He looked at Bai Ye, but his open eyes were completely white.
When he came in earlier, he had used Observation Haki to'see' that the person in front of him was Bai Ye.
Because he was curious about what Bai Ye had done, he chose to stay. And these two were clearly about to reach an agreement, so if he didn't ask the questions he wanted to ask now, he probably wouldn't have a chance later.
"The victor is justice!"
"No, it shouldn't be like that."
Listening to Bai Ye's answer, he shook his head. Although he knew Bai Ye's words made sense, he believed things shouldn't be that way.
If the victor is justice, then does that mean whoever has the biggest fist is justice?
"So you're denying that the Marine is just!"
"I'm not..."
He shook his head, feeling a bit strange about Bai Ye's words. He clearly wasn't denying it.
But he...
And as he thought this, he suddenly realized something and stared intently at Bai Ye with his white eyes.
"So you're implying that the victor is the World Government?!"
"Exactly! The World Government won eight hundred years ago, so they are just. And what they call pirates is just a label. Who is the true thief, who knows?"
Actually, Bai Ye always had a guess, which was that Imu might be related to the Devil Fruit, perhaps a devil or something else?
Later, he was defeated once by Joy Boy, then imprisoned near Zunesha, and the guardian was the giant robot. The Five Elders were people from the Great Kingdom, and because of the Five Elders's betrayal, Imu was released, and then Imu allied with the kings of other countries, ultimately leading to the subsequent demise of the Great Kingdom.
If that's the case, it could explain why Zunesha has been atoning and why the giant robot attacked Mary Geoise two hundred years ago.
However, this was just Bai Ye's speculation. What exactly happened, he would only know after encountering Imu or understanding the truth behind the Great Kingdom's demise.
Speaking of which, if he used Edo Tensei on Roger now, he might actually be able to learn the secrets from eight hundred years ago.
But Bai Ye thought about it and gave up. After all, he could only discover the fun of it by experiencing it himself.
"Not many people know about the events from eight hundred years ago, and the World Government has been burying these facts. Regardless of what they were like before, at least the current World Government is corrupt.
The Celestial Dragons divide everyone into different classes, and they always remain high above, enjoying everything.
The world has changed. The people I invite are not just members of a pirate crew, but people who will change this world together."
Bai Ye said, taking a sip from his glass.
Mihawk, listening beside him, felt a sense of empathy.
This guy seems to have been fighting the World Government ever since he became famous, right?
While all other pirates were pursuing power, beauties, and treasure, he directly declared war on the World Government and the Celestial Dragons.
"If we follow your viewpoint, it seems the Celestial Dragons are indeed the greatest evil." Issen sighed, looking at Bai Ye with his white eyes and slowly said, "To be unable to see is also a blessing. There are truly too many vile and filthy people in this world that one cannot bear to look at!"
Issen had traveled many places across the Grand Line, witnessed the evil of nobles and the evil of pirates. He suddenly felt that viewing this world with his eyes was simply too tragic.
And he was unable to change this world, just as Bai Ye said, this world seemed to be sick.
"So, do you want to change the world or become a new Celestial Dragon?"
Issen's words instantly solidified the atmosphere here.
....
Want to read 40 chapters ahead? Join my Patreon! Want to read 10 FREE chapters ahead? Join as a free member!
patreon.com/Rogue_Reader