Chapter 114: He Won't Go Quietly into That Good Night
VMMM!
The moment Shakky asked her question, intense Conqueror's Haki erupted instantly.
Yes.
As the former Empress of Amazon Lily and former captain of the Kuja Pirates, who once fought Roger and Whitebeard on the seas.
Shakky naturally possessed Conqueror's Haki.
But...
VMMM!
In the next moment, Shakky felt the aura emanating from the person in front of her.
It seemed like Conqueror's Haki, but also different.
If the "King's Haki" held by powerhouses was a defiance of worldly order and rules—where almost all users possessed their own will and followed their own path...
Then the aura displayed by Yuji now was filled with wildness and savagery.
Like a King of Beasts standing above all living things in ancient times, roaring in the wilderness.
But undoubtedly—that aura alone proved the rumors on the sea were true. The person in front of her was even more terrifying than rumored.
"Just one of The Zodiac, and he possesses the 'Disposition of a King'?"
Shakky's eyes grew serious.
CRACK!
The collision of wills shattered the glass on the table instantly.
This surprised Yuji—he knew the Tyrant Pteranodon Fruit effect was similar to Conqueror's Haki, but he didn't expect it could actually clash with it.
Of course, that wasn't the point.
So he chuckled softly. "Don't be so tense, Ms. Shakky—I'm not here to fight."
"I came to find the 'Dark King' Silvers Rayleigh to ask him some questions."
Hearing this, Shakky looked at him deeply.
The former legendary pirate understood the key point from Yuji's casual words.
Her and Rayleigh's hidden identities were no secret to The Zodiac.
So...
Click.
Shakky retracted her aura and lit another cigarette.
"Then you came at a bad time."
"Old Ray isn't on Sabaody."
Not here?
Yuji frowned under his mask, looking at Shakky skeptically.
But Shakky shrugged casually. "It's true—he received an invitation recently to meet two old friends."
"Old friends?"
Yuji frowned deeper.
He looked at Shakky and realized the proprietress wasn't lying—after all, no one could have known he was coming to Sabaody.
Moreover, neither Rayleigh nor Shakky were the type to hide for such reasons.
"That's unfortunate..."
Yuji sighed.
But just then...
"However—if you want intel, asking me might be the same."
Shakky took a drag and spoke suddenly.
"When it comes to intelligence, I'm quite confident."
Yuji paused slightly.
Then he realized—wasn't she right?
This former Empress, though not a member of the Roger Pirates, was a flower of the pirate era, a woman admired by both Roger and Rayleigh.
She was a genuine intelligence broker. She might know something.
But before that...
"Why help me?"
He looked at Shakky curiously.
"I don't know. Intuition, maybe—my intuition is very accurate."
Shakky smiled. "Besides, I'm not doing it for free... For every piece of intel you ask, you tell me something I'm curious about—of course, sensitive intel can be withheld by either side."
She extended her hand. "Trading intel for intel. Reasonable, right?"
"Reasonable."
Yuji nodded lightly.
"Then, please ask."
Shakky gestured calmly, seemingly unworried Yuji would break his word.
"About the Sky Island 'God's Land' and the two messages on it... did Mr. Rayleigh mention anything to you?"
Yuji didn't waste time, getting straight to the point.
He saw Shakky's usually composed face show clear surprise.
Clearly—she didn't expect Yuji's first question to involve such things.
"That is..."
She took a deep drag, her expression returning to normal. "Old Ray did mention that Sky Island to me—it was one of the islands Roger visited on his final voyage. It had Rocks' message, and Roger asked Kozuki Oden to carve his own message there."
She adhered to the rules, speaking concisely.
"We know all that."
Yuji said softly. "I want to ask about the content of the messages... and related intel on Rocks' message, preferably the time it was carved."
As he finished speaking, he saw Shakky smile.
"If I'm not mistaken, you want to ask about 'Star Lord', right?"
She said the name directly.
"..."
Even though Yuji had guessed, his heart shook.
Did the powerhouses of the past era really know this name?
It doesn't make sense—if so, why do the Marines and World Government have zero info?
But Shakky's next words answered his doubts.
"If it's about that name, I don't know anything—and I can tell you, Rayleigh doesn't know either."
Shakky gave the answer directly.
"Rayleigh told me—after leaving the Sky Island, the Roger Pirates were curious about the message and asked Roger about 'Star Lord'."
"But Roger told them nothing. He only said... it was 'another possibility to change the world, and he promised someone not to spread it'."
Shakky chuckled, recalling her lover's disgruntled expression when recounting this. "Rayleigh held a grudge about that for years."
"..."
Yuji fell silent.
Under the Bird Mask, Roy was stunned.
Roger didn't even tell his own crew about Star Lord?
Before he could react, Shakky voluntarily addressed his other question.
"As for Rocks' message... I did hear Rayleigh mention something."
Speaking the name, Shakky's expression shifted slightly.
For people from that era, the name carried weight.
"First—regarding the time the message was carved. Rayleigh said after Roger refused to tell them about 'Star Lord', to compensate, he told them..."
She took a deep drag.
"That message was carved 32 years ago."
Hearing this, Yuji was stunned.
"32 years ago?"
This number completely defied his knowledge.
Because—he was certain the God Valley Incident happened 33 years ago!
In other words...
"Rocks' message was carved after the God Valley Incident!?"
The implications were immense.
This meant Rocks didn't die at God Valley.
"Surprising, right?"
Shakky took another drag and dropped the second bombshell. "Besides that, Roger also told them—he heard 'dying weakness' from Rocks' text."
She said softly.
"He might have survived, but that was all."
Yuji fell silent.
His mind raced, processing the intel.
He knew Roger had the 'Voice of All Things', so even without reading ancient text, he could sense the general content—like hearing 'powerful force' from the Skypiea Poneglyph leading to Poseidon.
If Shakky spoke the truth, Roger's words were credible.
It wasn't hard to deduce—Rocks survived God Valley but was extremely weak, almost dying, for some reason.
Then, due to some promise, he went to Skypiea and left the message.
"Wait... he carved a message of that scale in a weakened state? How strong was he at his peak?"
Yuji's thoughts wandered.
But he quickly focused, looking at Shakky. "What happened in the end?"
His gaze was sharp. "If Rocks didn't die at God Valley, what was his final fate?"
Why was there no news on the sea?
Shakky shook her head. "...I don't know."
Perhaps this was why her intuition prompted her to mention this to Yuji.
She knew Rocks. In the past, she spent a long time on Rocks' 'Beehive Island', and Rocks pursued her for a long time.
Even if Shakky didn't love Rocks, she had to admit—Rocks · D · Xebec was indeed the banner of an era.
This was the strangest thing.
She was certain that man wasn't one to be silent.
He wouldn't go quietly into that good night—if he had to die... it would be a thunderous death.
But the fact was, no one knew his end.
It was as if he died quietly in some corner.
Even the Roger Pirates, knowing he might have survived God Valley, couldn't find any news on the sea.
The only one who might know something was Roger, but he refused to tell his crew.
"..."
Yuji's questions ended here.
He pondered silently.
When, how, or if Rocks died—he was curious but couldn't find the answer.
But clearly, that wasn't the most important thing.
The most important thing was that he vaguely confirmed the source of all changes.
"God Valley."
He misjudged the timeline before.
According to Shakky—the Skypiea message was carved after God Valley.
The biggest plot divergence was clear now.
The point in time he traveled to in the future was likely the most dangerous time and place in history—The God Valley Incident!
"...Too coincidental."
Roy suspected—the timing was too coincidental.
If he returned to the past via the Return-Return Fruit's Awakening, the time should be random.
Appearing exactly at the God Valley Incident was almost impossibly coincidental.
So the only explanation was...
"I chose it actively."
He didn't know why or how he achieved it yet.
But he could be certain...
"For some reason, I solved the side effects of the Return-Return Fruit and actively chose that most dangerous time point?"
Just as he was thinking...
"Now, it's my turn to ask questions?"
Shakky spoke suddenly.
"...Ask away."
Yuji paused, suppressing his thoughts.
"I only have two questions."
Shakky held up two fingers. "First, is 'Star Lord' related to The Zodiac?"
"Second, your purpose in coming to Sabaody Archipelago."
She was concise and didn't ask overly sharp questions.
Yuji was silent for a moment, then answered directly. "'Star Lord' is our Leader."
Simple words caused Shakky's hand holding the cigarette to tighten instantly.
Although she guessed it from Yuji's questions, hearing the name that existed only in Rayleigh's stories become reality...
She still found it somewhat unbelievable.
But Yuji clearly wouldn't elaborate on this.
"As for my purpose in Sabaody—I'm here to find someone for a subordinate..."
His voice turned cold.
Puru Puru Puru.
Puru Puru Puru.
Just then, the Den Den Mushi in his pocket rang.
Yuji nodded to Shakky and picked up.
Then...
"Lord Yuji, that guy... he's here."
From the other end came a voice.
It was Alan.
But his voice was filled with hatred and anger, as if grinding his teeth to dust.
"I understand."
Yuji whispered, hanging up.
He pushed aside distracting thoughts and looked at Shakky.
"Looks like the person you're looking for arrived."
Shakky said softly.
"Exactly—so... thank you, Ms. Shakky, for answering my questions. I should take my leave."
Yuji adjusted his mask.
He bowed elegantly and stepped back into the light streaming through the window.
VMMM!
Light flashed, and he vanished.
The bar returned to emptiness.
"...Phew."
Shakky watched the fading light particles, took a drag, walked to the door, and reached out to remove the 'Closed' sign.
But then, she paused and lowered her hand.
Because her intuition told her.
"This place might become very troublesome soon."
As mentioned before.
Her intuition was always accurate.
So she dropped the cigarette, crushed it, and sighed. "Forget it. Let's stay closed for a while."
☆☆☆
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