The Great Voyage Begins with the Celestial Dragons

Now, six years later, she herself has finally reached that position, and even surpassed it.

It was time for her to retaliate.

Seeing Gion's determined expression, Luther didn't interfere much, but simply smiled at her with an approving and trusting look:

I'm waiting for your good news!

Chapter 279 Fate or Deliberate Arrangement

Three days later, in the windmill village of the Kingdom of Goa.

Luther and Uta strolled leisurely across the land of the windmill village.

Uta greeted the villagers with a smile, but gave vague answers when asked about Shanks.

As the two strolled through the windmill village, Uta's expression suddenly darkened.

"Luther, I don't want to come here anymore."

She said with a hint of sadness and anger that this place was filled with her memories of Shanks, but now it filled her with utter disgust.

“This will be the only time.” Luther’s expression was gentle, and his eyes were full of understanding as he looked at Uta. “I brought you here because the Sea King that swallowed Shanks has recently appeared in this area.”

He didn't actually receive any definite news, but he was certain that Shanks, who had taken the Gum-Gum Fruit, would eventually appear before Luffy.

The two walked along the dirt road that Uta knew all too well, and soon arrived at a beach.

Looking at the deserted beach, Uta's mood didn't seem to improve. She simply took Luther to the grass where she usually sat, lay down on the grass in a starfish position, and stared blankly at the sky.

Luther sat down beside her with a smile and quietly recounted amusing anecdotes about himself and Ace.

One listened attentively, while the other spoke leisurely. The two seemed to have abandoned their original intention of finding Shanks, treating this as a picnic for the two of them.

The sea breeze blew, and the sunlight shone on the two of them. The complex emotions gradually transformed into tranquility and harmony.

At that moment, Uta seemed to forget the troubles of the world and the pain of the past, leaving only the warm moments of companionship.

Time passed quietly in the stillness.

Uta and Luther spent almost all of their days on this peaceful meadow.

Luther always had endless stories to tell, drawing Uta deeply into this world of emotional entanglements.

Perhaps in her heart, she longs to spend her future days in such a leisurely and warm way.

However, something unexpected yet exactly what they had anticipated finally happened.

On the beach below, a little boy was playing alone; that was Luffy. Uta had seen this scene before and hadn't paid much attention to it.

However, today was completely different from the past, because the person they had been waiting for had finally appeared—Shanks!

His unconscious figure, clutching a box, was washed ashore by the waves, a sight that instantly jolted Uta to his feet.

At this moment, her first thought was not that she had finally met Shanks, but rather that she was annoyed that he had disrupted her and Luther's peace.

Although she always knew in her heart that such tranquility could not last, Uta was still filled with resentment when Shanks actually appeared and interrupted her beautiful moment.

“Shanks…” she cursed under her breath.

If Luther hadn't said that seeing Shanks again would provide a brief ending to all their stories, she would never have come.

She didn't even intend to kill Shanks. Rather than killing him, she preferred to force him to abandon his allies time and time again after he found them. This kind of torment was more exciting and more satisfying to her.

This idea was a new one that emerged in Uta's mind after the Red Foss incident. She seemed to have found a more stimulating and cruel way to vent her hatred.

On the beach below, Luffy also spotted Shanks.

Unlike Uta, whose thoughts were complicated, the simple-minded Luffy rushed over immediately. He anxiously circled Shanks' body, calling out and pushing, trying to wake him up.

However, how could such simple noise and shoving possibly wake up someone who has been knocked unconscious by the waves?

"Luffy is still the same as ever, he has no intelligence at all. I'm really afraid that Shanks will be killed by him."

Uta looked at the scene and subconsciously let out a sarcastic remark.

She felt comfortable speaking freely in Luther's presence, without needing to hide her thoughts.

"Shanks' physique should be able to withstand it. But I'm more curious about Luffy's next move."

Luther's gaze was steady. When he saw Luffy swaying and shouting until he was tired, his first reaction was not to call for help, but to open the box in Shanks' hand to look for food. A playful glint flashed in his eyes.

At that moment, time seemed to stand still. Perhaps it was fate's arrangement, or perhaps it was simply Luffy's nature.

The Nika Fruit, symbolizing the ancient sun god, was mysteriously and accidentally revealed to Luffy.

"Is it really okay to let Luffy eat this?"

Uta watched Luffy below, saw him swallow the fruit with a vomiting expression, and a complicated expression appeared on his face.

Luther did not hide anything from Uta, so she knew everything about it and the secret hidden behind this seemingly ordinary rubber fruit.

That's the strongest Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit, the Human-Human Fruit, Nika form.

The ancient sun god Nika was entrusted with the sacred mission of bringing liberation to mankind in legends.

More importantly, even the World Government is quite wary of the Nika Fruit.

As a member of the World Government, Luther had no reason not to care about this matter.

"It's just a fruit. Do you believe that fate is invincible?"

Luther stood quietly beside Uta and spoke in a calm tone.

After listening, Uta shook his head slightly, his words tinged with contemplation:

"Fate, what a ridiculous excuse. I stopped believing in it the day I saw Shanks off. Everything can be attributed to fate, but how can you grasp fate if you don't have the ability?"

"Yes, so is a mere Devil Fruit something I should be afraid of?" Luther asked calmly.

"Not worth it..."

Uta shook his head subconsciously, and couldn't help but laugh at his own previous thoughts.

If Shanks knew about this, he might have taken precautions beforehand.

But if it were Luther, the Luther she admired as invincible, he wouldn't do something so degrading.

If Luffy were truly capable enough to stand before the World Government, she would stand in front of Luther and personally defeat him.

"Compared to that, isn't Shanks' expression when he wakes up more intriguing? You know, this fruit was obtained at the cost of the lives of almost the entire Red-Haired Pirates crew." Luther changed the subject, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.

"Hmm, I really want to see!"

Uta raised an eyebrow, a sly smile playing on her lips. She truly longed to know Shanks' astonishing reaction when he learned that the fruit he had so desperately sought had ultimately been eaten by a child she knew.

Whether to be enraged, accept it gladly, or resign oneself to fate.

Neither of them are very common.

Chapter 280 King of the Near Seas

"belch..."

After eating the fruit, Luffy collapsed on the beach and let out a burp.

"It tastes awful."

Luffy turned his head helplessly to look at Shanks beside him. After eating his fill, he didn't know what to do next.

"Shanks, why aren't you awake yet... Where did Uta and the others go?"

He still doesn't believe Shanks encountered an accident, or rather, the concept of an accident simply doesn't exist in his mind.

Even now, seeing Shanks, he still thinks he must have gone through some amazing adventure and ended up sleeping on the beach, not only without any problems, but even kind of cool.

Luffy watched with a sense of regret, and after about ten minutes, Shanks' eyelids twitched slightly.

"He's about to wake up."

Luther and his companion on the grass immediately noticed Shanks' movements.

"I'm really looking forward to it."

Uta's lips curled slightly, and his eyes gleamed with a peculiar light.

After a period of confusion, Shanks slowly opened his eyes.

"Ok?"

When he saw a face close to his, his eyes narrowed.

Fortunately, he doesn't have much strength right now, otherwise he might have really slapped Luffy away.

"It's... Luffy... ah..."

Shanks spoke haltingly, a slight smile appearing on his face.

Seeing Luffy means that he has successfully escaped the disaster and drifted to the Goa Kingdom.

No matter how you look at it, it's a fortunate thing.

"Hey Shanks, I saw you float down from the ocean to the beach, that's so cool."

When Luffy saw Shanks wake up, he jumped around excitedly, telling him what he had seen and heard.

Shanks was both amused and exasperated when he heard Luffy describe his miserable escape as a thrilling adventure.

"Luffy, go and call Makino over first."

Shanks said helplessly, "If Luffy keeps talking like this, I'm afraid I'll die on the beach because I haven't eaten or drunk anything for a long time."

"Oh right! Shanks, you must be hungry. I even ate your only Devil Fruit. I'll go find some right now..."

"Wait... Luffy, what did you say?"

Shanks suddenly frowned, used his last bit of strength to get up, and quickly scanned his surroundings.

When his gaze fell on the empty box not far away, his eyes darkened, and an ominous premonition welled up in his heart.

There was no water stain in the box, and judging from the signs of it being opened, it was clearly opened by someone.

Based on Luffy's previous words, the truth is about to be revealed.

Luffy actually ate the Devil Fruit that his Red-Haired Pirates had obtained at a great cost without any hesitation...