Starting as the mastermind behind Naruto

Chapter 417 Tell Me, What's Your Dream? (Third Update!)

Uehara Naraku was indeed a good person.

At least in Makino's view, Uehara Naraku is actually a person who has gone astray but is still trying to struggle in the quagmire.

Even though he joined the evil Baroque Works, he still tried his best to reduce the harm caused by Baroque Works.

"Hey, don't be so discouraged!"

Monkey D. Luffy forced himself to sit down next to Uehara, slammed his fist on the table, and said in a deep voice, "Don't you have any dreams of your own? If you really want to do something, then do it now!"

"..."

Uehara Naraku fell silent.

Are all these main characters problematic? Why does it seem like every single one of them wants to try and verbally persuade him?

After a long while.

Uehara Naraku calmly raised his head, looked at Luffy in front of him, and said softly, "After I joined Baroque Works, I lost the right to have dreams..."

Uehara Naraku's voice sounded somewhat melancholic: "Everything we, the members of Baroque Works, are doing now is in service of our boss's dream. No one dares to defy his will... until our boss becomes the Pirate King!"

Uehara Naraku casually slammed a accusation onto Crocodile, and it won't be cleared off anytime soon.

"The Pirate King is mine!"

Luffy slammed his fist on the table in a fit of rage, glaring at Uehara Naraku with exasperation: "Don't you have anything you want to do? Something you'd be willing to give your life for!"

Luffy covered his straw hat with his hand and continued in a deep voice, "Just like I want to become the Pirate King! I want to become the Pirate King, even if it means dying in battle on the high seas! Besides, you're so much stronger than me!"

"..."

Uehara Naraku remained silent.

This guy's talk-no-jutsu skills are pretty good too!

But how do you explain this to Luffy? Actually, what he's doing right now is exactly what he wanted to do! That is, to throw dirty water on Crocodile!

After a long silence, Uehara Naraku finally spoke, "I'm sorry, but the power of Baroque Works is beyond my ability to resist. Even the Navy can't do anything to them. I'm just a lowly member, what can I do?"

Uehara Naraku took a sip of his juice, his face grave, and continued, "You can never imagine how powerful the boss of Baroque Works is. Right now, he might be the most powerful person in the world, and Baroque Works might be the most powerful organization in the world..."

As Uehara Naraku said this, his expression turned extremely ugly: "Even a nobody like me can run rampant in the East Blue... The Baroque Works members are capable of stirring up trouble on the Grand Line!"

Uehara Naraku turned angrily to Luffy and said in a deep voice, "You bastard, you can't even protect your own life now! If I hadn't brought you here just now, you would be dead already!"

Uehara Naraku suddenly grabbed Luffy by the collar, his face turning incredibly gloomy: "Hey, you guys, don't just point fingers at other people's lives before you understand their pain!"

"..."

Luffy stared at Uehara Naraku, who was erupting in anger, and fell silent.

Makino's expression also showed some worry. She glanced at Luffy, then at Uehara, and softly advised, "Um...would the guest like another glass of juice?"

"Um."

Uehara Naraku nodded slowly and said softly, "Boss, your juice is delicious, but unfortunately I can't pay you."

"..."

Makino was speechless after hearing that sentence.

He's clearly a good person, so why isn't he speaking like a human being?

Just a second later, Makino's smile returned to her face, looking warm and comforting: "It's okay, as long as the customer likes it."

"Feel sorry."

Looking at Makino's face, Uehara Naraku earnestly explained, "The employees of Baroque Works have to rob one million Berries from each store, or they will destroy that store and kill the manager."

Uehara Naraku said dejectedly, "I got a windfall from a pirate thief, but I secretly helped some innocent shopkeepers who were robbed on other islands pay their debts. Now I only have a few hundred thousand Berries left in my savings. I really have no other choice..."

"Oh, I see..."

Makino suddenly realized.

At that moment, Makino finally understood why Uehara Naraku wanted to steal her money.

Makino's eyes crinkled as she smiled reassuringly at Uehara Naraku: "It's alright. I have some savings, and I'll prepare a million Berries. I promise I won't make things difficult for my guest."

Uehara Naraku looked at Makino with a pang of pity and continued, "Actually, 470,050 Berries would be enough. I still have 529,950 Berries on me, which should be enough to give to the Works Company."

Once those words were spoken…

Uehara felt much better.

The number sounds odd and even, as if this pirate is even more destitute than Makino, the tavern owner. Once Makino hears this, she probably won't blame him for robbing her, right?

Makino didn't really care. She seemed to have a lot of savings and quickly and easily raised one million Berries to give to Uehara Naraku, even giving him an extra 500,000 Berries.

This woman's kindness was beyond Shangyuan's imagination.

Makino smiled at Uehara Naraku and explained, "This is to pass on the hope of life. If you encounter another innocent victim in the future, we hope you will continue to help him."

"..."

Uehara Naraku remained silent.

This woman is so kind!

It's truly unbelievable that there are such kind women in this world. Besides being gentle, she also has a heart that is willing to protect the weak.

After a long while.

Uehara Naraku touched his conscience, took the money Makino had given him, and asked, "Boss, what are your dreams?"

That's a bit ironic.

After all, it seems a bit inappropriate for someone who just said they don't deserve to have dreams to ask about other people's dreams.

but…

If anyone who knew Uehara Naraku were in this tavern and heard him ask those questions, they would surely marvel at how lucky Makino was.

"..."

After pondering for a while, Makino clasped her hands together, looked up at the ceiling, and said, "My current dream... is probably just that Ace is safe and sound on the other side of the ocean!"

Because Ace went to sea this year.

Makino's biggest worry was that child.

When Luffy heard Makino mention Ace, he couldn't help but scratch his head: "Huh? I think I saw Ace's bounty poster last time! He's got a 900 million bounty now! Ace must have become incredibly strong!"

"..."

Uehara Naraku fell silent.

After a while, Uehara Naraku glanced at Makino, then reached up and touched his forehead: "You are a truly kind person, and I believe your dream will definitely come true."

"..."

Makino's worry remained undiminished.

However, Makino's thoughts quickly returned, and she looked at Uehara Naraku earnestly and said, "Actually, the guest is also a kind person..."

"Hey, your name is Uehara Naraku, right?"

Luffy stood up, looking at Uehara Naraku with a serious expression, and extended his hand towards him, saying in a deep voice, "Hey, Uehara Naraku, let's make a promise!"

"What agreement?"

Uehara Naraku looked at Luffy hesitantly.

Luffy, still a big boy at heart, laughed heartily and said, "I can set sail in three years. You need to think carefully about what you really want to do..."

After saying this, Luffy laughed heartily and continued, "Three years from now, I will definitely defeat that Baroque Works boss. At that time... you can do whatever you want!"

"...The three-year agreement?"

Uehara Naraku's expression was quite interesting.

After a long silence, Uehara Naraku finally extended his hand and grasped Luffy's hand, whispering, "Actually, what I wanted to do most was... to become a Marine... to capture pirates on the high seas and protect the weak..."

"..."

Luffy's smile gradually faded.

After a while, Luffy's smile returned, and he said with a grin, "As long as you have a dream, you should pursue it no matter how late it is!"

"Never mind, it's too late."

Uehara Naraku shook his head and whispered, "I promise you, I'll take these three years to think carefully... about what I really want to do..."

"Let's cheer each other on!"

Makino, standing to the side, smiled.

The next moment, Makino suddenly remembered something else and quickly asked, "By the way, Mr. Uehara, those people who were looting the village...really won't harm the villagers?"

"Won't."

Uehara Naraku shook his head firmly, but a hint of hesitation appeared on his face: "I'm not so sure now either, although Ms. Nico Robin, the vice president of Baroque Works, is someone who appears cold on the outside but is actually soft on the inside..."

However, her hometown, an innocent city of scholars, was completely sunk by the navy with warships, and she was the only survivor on the entire island. It's hard to say whether she will take her anger out on Vice Admiral Garp's hometown because of the navy's actions...

After saying this, Uehara Naraku said in a deep voice, "Forget it, I'll go take a look! Luffy, Makino, you two stay here for now!"

It just so happened at that moment.

A figure appeared at the entrance of the tavern.

Kisame Hoshigaki, carrying a burly woman in his arms, shouted, "Uehara, we're done here! A super bumper harvest! Who would have thought that the ones protecting this village were a bunch of mountain bandits!"

"Kisame-san, I've also received one million Berries!"

After responding loudly, Uehara Naraku turned to the worried Makino and Luffy, and whispered, "Boss Makino, I have to go now... Luffy, when we meet again, I'll definitely surprise you!"

"etc…"

Luffy's expression, however, was subtly strange. He pointed to the burly woman Kisame was carrying by the door and said, "That's Dadan! Why are they taking her away?!"

"Is there a bounty on Dadan?"

Uehara Naraku frowned and then said in a low voice, "If that Dadan has a bounty on her, Baroque Works might secretly exchange it with the Navy to avoid wasting it."

"I remember there was..."

Makino looked worried and said, "Dadan has a bounty of 780 million Berries on her head, but Dadan is a good person. We've all forgotten about the warrant for her arrest!"

"I have to go save her!"

Luffy was about to charge forward!

For Luffy, Dadan is like a mother to him!

No, or rather, Dadan is like a father and mother to Luffy, and Luffy and Dadan have spent more time together and have a closer relationship than Vice Admiral Garp!

"Are you going to your death?"

Uehara Naraku sighed, reached out to stop Luffy, and whispered, "I will protect her life and take on the job of going to the Marine base to collect the bounty, and find a way to deliver that Dadan to a suitable person."

"...Thank you."

Makino, still looking worried, nodded to Uehara Naraku and whispered, "Then... I'll leave everything to Mr. Uehara."

Makino is truly kind!

I can't bear to bully them anymore!

Third update...

One more chapter to go!

I've decided to adjust my sleep schedule!

(End of this chapter)