"Brother, how many days have you been tied up?"
"That must not feel good, right?"
Bai Yun asked again, but Zoro still ignored him.
In the original timeline, Zoro was tied up for nine days before Luffy rescued him.
Bai Yun sighed. He needed to know how many days Zoro had been tied up to determine if Luffy would arrive today to save them... Meanwhile, on Luffy's side.
"Who is this savage old lady?"
That single sentence successfully made everyone drop their jaws in shock.
"Take that back! Luffy, she is, she is the most..."
Coby grabbed Luffy and shouted.
But halfway through his sentence, Luffy's resolve to become the Pirate King, even if it cost him his life, flashed through his mind, instantly shattering Coby's cowardice.
"The most savage and hateful old lady!!!"
With tears welling up in his eyes, Coby voiced the words with great determination.
He didn't know Luffy's strength yet. If Luffy was as weak as he was, then neither of them would survive.
However, brave people are always rewarded.
"Gum-Gum Pistol!"
After taking a hit from Alvida's club, Luffy was completely unharmed. Instead, he punched the obese Alvida, sending her flying. How big could she be compared to a Sea King?
"Give Coby a boat! He's joining the Marines! None of you dare stop him!"
Luffy pointed a finger at Alvida's subordinates and declared. It was quite cool.
"Y-yes, sir!"
Seeing Luffy defeat Alvida in a single move, they would be insane to resist... "You're a Rubber Man who ate the Gum-Gum Fruit, Luffy. That's incredible."
The scene shifts. Luffy and Coby were already on a small boat, sailing across the sea.
"If you want to find the Great Treasure, you'll have to enter the Grand Line."
"The place known as the 'Pirate Graveyard'."
Coby continued. His own dream was to become a Marine, so he had some knowledge about the sea.
"That's right, so I need to find some strong crewmates," Luffy replied.
"Crewmates... speaking of crewmates, where is your friend named Bai Yun? How are you going to find him?"
Coby still remembered the name Bai Yun.
"Hahaha, just like Bai Yun said, we'll meet again when the time is right."
"His strength isn't any less than mine; he just usually doesn't show it."
"No need to worry about him."
"The main thing is, the place you want to go to now is holding someone named... Roronoa Zoro, right?"
"If he's a decent guy, I'll ask him to be my crewmate."
Luffy grinned, showing his teeth as he spoke... Back to Bai Yun.
"I heard there's a bounty hunter in the East Blue named Roronoa Zoro, who has green hair. Is that you, brother?"
"How did a bounty hunter get captured by the Marines? Interested in becoming a pirate?"
..."What are you talking about, Luffy! That guy is a demon!"
"He roams the seas like a bloodthirsty stray dog, hunting down pirates everywhere."
"People call him 'The Demon in Human Guise'!"
..."The Demon in Human Guise."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, how scary."
"Come on, brother, at least acknowledge me."
"Shut up!"
After Bai Yun's persistent, annoying efforts, Zoro finally couldn't help but speak.
"Can't you keep your mouth shut just because you're tied up?"
"You're too noisy, you trash!"
"I don't like hearing that, brother."
"Aren't you tied up too? If I'm trash, what does that make you?"
Bai Yun retorted, his tone utterly provoking in Zoro's ears.
"I'm different from you. You were dragged here, but I came willingly."
Zoro replied. Early-stage Zoro believing Helmeppo's nonsense was certainly naive.
"Is that so?"
Bai Yun felt his face itch, so he lowered his hand and scratched it.
Zoro caught the movement in his peripheral vision and his eyes instantly widened. "Did you just lower your hand?"
"No, you must have seen wrong. If I could, I would have escaped already."
Bai Yun responded with a smile. How could he? He was currently presenting himself as a "lamb waiting to be slaughtered."
Just then, a little girl climbed over the Marine base wall and snuck in. Was this really the defense system of a Marine base?
Seeing the little girl, Bai Yun felt relieved. No need to go anywhere else; he could just wait here for Luffy. Although it was a bit sunny, at least he had Zoro for company.
"Big Brother, I saw you've been tied up for days, so I made you some rice balls."
The little girl held up the rice balls and spoke to Zoro.
She had only brought two, and seeing Bai Yun here made her feel a little embarrassed, so she secretly glanced at him.
Bai Yun smiled. Such innocent childhood sincerity.
"I'm not hungry. I only arrived today."
Hearing Bai Yun's words, the little girl immediately felt relieved and held up the rice balls, looking at Zoro.
"Are you looking for trouble?! Get lost! I won't eat your rice balls."
Zoro was harsh, but he was actually doing it for the girl's sake; it would be bad if the Marines discovered her.
Speaking of bad, Helmeppo walked over at that very moment, accompanied by two soldiers.
"Oh dear, bullying people is quite rude, Roronoa Zoro."
"I'll tell my father."
"I am the son of..."
"Bai Yun!"
"... 's son!"
Luffy's appearance was perfectly timed.
Bai Yun shook his head slightly and smiled, "No thanks, I don't have a son with a... butt chin like you."
...
A/N: The journey continues! If you're eager to read far ahead and support this story, consider joining the Eternal Phoenix community. You can find me on Patreon by searching for "Eternal_Phoenix".
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