Chapter 45

"By the way, girl, there's something important I need to tell you," Shanter suddenly said to Robin with an uncharacteristically serious expression.

Robin looked up, her ears perking and twitching slightly—a gesture so cute it was hard to describe.

"Gulp." Seeing her adorable reaction, Shanter almost spat out his soup.

"What is it? Hurry up and say it." Robin, however, wasn't in the mood to let Shanter have fun at her expense.

"Whew—whew— I ran into Aokiji."

"What?" Robin's initial impatience over Shanter's dramatic pause was immediately replaced by shock. "Where? When?"

"Just earlier, when I dealt with that bounty hunter leader."

"He didn't do anything to you, did he?" Robin asked with concern.

Seeing Robin so worried about him, Shanter felt a swell of happiness. However, he still couldn't resist teasing her. "What could he possibly do? That 'perverted chicken' only likes women."

Robin froze for a moment before realizing Shanter was joking. She smiled faintly in response.

Noticing her subdued reaction, Shanter found it a bit boring. "But honestly, I can't figure it out. What's Aokiji up to?"

"I don't know either," Robin replied crisply, her tone clean and to the point.

"Whatever the case, I need to get stronger, and fast," Shanter said, clasping his fingers together as he sighed deeply.

"Brother, hasn't your War God Fruit shown any effects yet?"

"Of course, it has. Look at this wound." Shanter pulled back a bandage, revealing a small injury sustained in his recent battle. In just a few hours, it had already begun to scab and heal. "It's healing so quickly."

The War God Fruit could even cure paralysis. For minor wounds like this, recovery was a trivial matter.

"That's it?" Robin sounded disappointed, though it was unclear if her dissatisfaction was directed at the War God Fruit or at Shanter. "How could it only have such a minor effect? Are there really Devil Fruits with healing abilities?"

Shanter, oblivious to her skepticism, continued, "By the way, I've developed a new technique using this fruit. It's really powerful."

"Oh?" Robin's curiosity was piqued. "How powerful?"

"I'm not sure. I haven't tried it yet."

Robin's cheek twitched. "And you're certain it's powerful?"

"It's a move that hurts me before it hurts my enemy. I've had this idea for a long time. But before eating the War God Fruit, my body wasn't strong enough to execute it." Shanter's face showed a trace of regret as he added, "If Aokiji were to fight me, I could test it out."

"Aokiji, fight you? Would you even make it back alive?" Robin responded flatly, unimpressed by Shanter's wistful tone.

"Yeah, what was I even thinking?" Shanter admitted, startled by the absurdity of his own thoughts. "Could it be a side effect of the fruit?"

All Devil Fruits had side effects. Some were obvious, while others were subtler, possibly influenced by the duration the fruit had been consumed. For instance, the Ice-Ice Fruit made Aokiji sleepier, the Flower-Flower Fruit gave Robin a natural fragrance, the Gum-Gum Fruit made Luffy single-minded, and the Flame-Flame Fruit made Ace quick-tempered. The War God Fruit's side effect seemed to be an increased propensity for fighting.

"Never mind. Let's not dwell on it. Girl, let's keep moving and find the next Poneglyph." Shanter brushed aside his irrelevant thoughts, retracted the ship's anchor, and prepared for the next leg of their journey.

The sea was calm, the sky was clear, and there wasn't a single cloud in sight.

On the newly departed Dark Shadow, Robin and Shanter were both engrossed in reading. The difference was that Robin was absorbed in a book she'd bought from the previous town, while Shanter was scanning the latest newspaper delivered by a carrier pigeon.

"Hmm? A pirate kidnapping incident? How bizarre," Shanter muttered to himself as he finally found a piece of news that intrigued him.

"It's pretty close by," he added after a moment, murmuring again.

Suddenly, Shanter looked up and proposed to Robin, "Girl, let's head to this island. It's less than a day's sail from here. I want to check out this pirate kidnapping incident."

"Sure, I don't mind." Truthfully, Robin also enjoyed being in the midst of excitement.

"A bunch of pirates threatening the lives of 500 soldiers to demand kingship, huh? How amusing." Shanter's left hand instinctively brushed against his nose.

It wasn't uncommon in this great pirate era for a large crew to attack or even overthrow a country. Shanter himself had only met Robin because of a similar event.

But pirates aspiring to be kings? That was unheard of. In Shanter's memory, the only criminals who had ever been kings were the successive rulers of Amazon Lily and the giant Oars, who founded the "Legend of the Bandit Nation" 500 years ago.

"Interesting." Shanter smirked as he and Robin set course for the ill-fated country.

Fueled by personal feelings, Shanter had already decided that these pirates' lives would end soon.

Given his own experiences, Shanter couldn't bear to see another nation fall to pirates. Though he himself was a pirate, he lacked the mindset of one. Robin was the same.

To Shanter, being a pirate was merely like owning a tattered cloth—something utterly dispensable.

Perhaps it was out of anger, or maybe a sense of justice. Who could say?

When they reached their destination, Shanter and Robin discovered that nearly everyone in the country was talking about the heinous pirate kidnapping incident.

However, the local citizens were less than welcoming. At the sight of the Dark Shadow's Jolly Roger, many wore expressions of disgust. The more timid ones even fled upon seeing Shanter. Robin, on the other hand, didn't face such treatment.

"Why is that?" Shanter grumbled to Robin. "Why do they run when they see me but look at you with awe?"

Robin smiled sweetly and replied unexpectedly, "Because of the face."

Shanter glared at her, feigning anger, and said nothing.

By now, Shanter had grown indifferent to Robin's occasional teasing about the "S" scar on his face. Similarly, Robin had long become immune to Shanter calling her "stupid girl."

"Fine. You go ask around and find out what's going on with this pirate kidnapping incident," Shanter instructed Robin. "I'll wait for you at that tavern."

"Tavern?" Robin asked with uncertainty.

"Yes, why?"

"You're not allowed to drink," Robin said solemnly. She knew Shanter's alcohol tolerance—or lack thereof.

"Fine, fine, I got it." Shanter sighed, feeling both helpless and a bit humiliated at being underestimated.

"Remember, absolutely no drinking!" Robin reminded him again before leaving.

"Got it," Shanter replied, exasperated.

After walking a few steps, Robin turned back. "Remember—"

"Scram!"

Watching Robin walk away, Shanter sighed. "This girl, why is she such a nag?"

One could only wonder how Robin would feel if she overheard Shanter grumbling about her behind her back.

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