A cook, vice-captain of the Rocks Pirates?

What he wanted was a family he could rely on, a group of people he could eat meat and drink alcohol with.

A drop of scalding liquid, without warning, slid down his resolute face and dripped into the bowl.

Those weren't sweat, they were tears.

It wasn't sadness, but the feeling of finding a home.

"Gu la la la..."

Newgate lowered his head, wiped his face with his huge hand, and let out a low, ambiguous laugh.

He looked up at the chef, who was only eight years old but had conquered his soul with a single meal, and then at the arrogant and unruly captain, who possessed a charisma that drew the strong to his side.

He made a decision.

"Hey, kid chef."

Newgate's voice was a little hoarse.

Raine looked up at him calmly.

"Your food is delicious."

Newgate grinned, revealing a smile more radiant and bold than ever before.

"I've made up my mind, I'm joining you."

Newgate's declaration, like another bombshell dropped in his battle with Rocks, instantly froze the atmosphere on the deck.

Gatz stopped stuffing crab leg meat into his mouth, his mouth wide open and unable to close for a long time.

Dorum's brief moment of joy at the restoration was immediately replaced by even greater panic.

One Locus was already overwhelming for this ship, what if another monster of the same level came?

This ship... it's probably going to sink any second now!

Silver paused in his wiping of his spear, his sharp gaze sweeping back and forth between Rocks and Newgate, as if assessing the impact this decision would have on the pirate crew.

The smile on Lox's face vanished. He stared at Newgate silently, his eyes unreadable.

On deck, the only sounds were the bubbling of food in the pot and the waves crashing against the hull.

Newgate ignored everyone's reactions, took another big gulp of soup, and looked at Rocks, his tone calm but full of undeniable power.

"But let me make this clear first: I'm joining you, not becoming your subordinate."

“I, Edward Newgate, will not be subordinate to anyone. I acknowledge your strength and enjoy the atmosphere on your ship. We can be partners, allies, drink together, fight together, and turn this world upside down together.”

"But my crew will be my family, and I will protect them. We will have an equal working relationship."

These words are very powerful.

He didn't want to join an organization, but rather to form an alliance.

What confidence and arrogance this is!

Chapter 28 Whitebeard boards the ship

After hearing Newgate's words, the seriousness on Lockes' face suddenly vanished, replaced by a louder and more joyful laugh than ever before.

"Wahahahahahaha!"

He stood up, walked over to Newgate, and slapped his huge hand heavily on Newgate's shoulder.

“Well said! What I, Lox, have never wanted is a bunch of lackeys who only obey orders! What I need are kings who can stand shoulder to shoulder with me and overturn the world together!”

A burning ambition blazed in Lox's eyes.

He looked Newgate straight into the eyes and said, word by word, "I don't care about subordinates, partners, or family! As long as we share the same goal, as long as we can still sit at the same table drinking and eating, then we're all in the same boat!"

"From this day forward, you, Edward Newgate, are the number two in my Rocks Pirates!"

"Gurarararara! It's settled then!"

Two men, both standing at the pinnacle of their era, reached an agreement in the simplest and most direct way that was enough to change the future world order.

There were no complicated ceremonies, no lengthy vows.

Only two enormous, equally scarred wine bowls collided heavily in mid-air.

"cheers!"

"cheers!"

The strong liquor went down my throat, and I felt incredibly proud.

"Oh my god! Great! I have another drinking buddy!"

Gatz finally realized what was happening, and excitedly picked up his barrel of liquor to challenge Newgate to a drinking contest.

As soon as he approached, he was overwhelmed by the unintentional aura emanating from Newgate, causing him to stumble and nearly fall.

"You're still a long way off!"

Newgate glanced at him and laughed loudly.

Gatz wasn't angry at all; instead, he chuckled foolishly, "Of course! Brother Newgate... no, Brother Whitebeard! Please take care of me from now on!"

Looking at Newgate's signature mustache, he took it upon himself to give him a nickname.

"White beard?"

Newgate stroked his beard and thought the nickname was quite fitting.

"Gulalalalala, call me whatever you want!"

Dorum stood by, on the verge of tears, calculating the ship's load-bearing limits in his notebook while sketching out all sorts of outlandish reinforcement plans.

"No, we have to find the wood from the precious tree Adam... otherwise this ship will be blown to pieces by the aftershocks of their punches sooner or later..."

"It would be best to also build a ship with a seastone hull, just in case they get drunk and use their powers on the ship..."

"And with the food reserves, the addition of a big eater puts a lot of pressure on the head chef; we must expand the cold storage..."

The shipwright's rambling became a darkly humorous background noise in this lavish banquet.

Ryan silently handed the last piece of toast to Silver, then began clearing away the dishes.

For him, having one more person on the ship simply meant having to prepare one more meal each day.

Moreover, this man named Newgate has an extremely strong physique, with vigorous blood and energy like a furnace, making him the best testing ground for the effects of the food.

A subtle smile, like that of a scientist looking at a perfect experimental subject, appeared on Ryan's lips.

The celebration of the new addition to the family continued late into the night.

The deck was littered with cups and plates, and wine barrels lay scattered about.

Gatz finally got his wish and had a drinking contest with Newgate, and naturally ended up being completely drunk. He's currently fast asleep, clinging to the anchor chain, muttering about wanting another barrel.

Rocks and Newgate leaned against each other, looking at the stars and chatting idly.

Why do you want to go to sea?

"Lox suddenly asked."

Newgate took a swig of his drink, his gaze becoming somewhat distant.

"What I want is very simple: family."

He looked at the people slumped on the deck and a gentle smile appeared on his face.

"A family like this, where we can argue and drink together, a family I would risk my life to protect."

Upon hearing this, Lockes remained silent for a moment, then chuckled.

"What a boring dream."

He paused, then finished the last sip of wine in his glass, his voice becoming incredibly firm.

"However, now that you're on my ship, I'll also help you realize your dream."

"From today onwards, the people on this ship are your family."

Newgate turned his head and looked at Rocks' face, which was full of arrogance and ambition. After a long while, he nodded heavily.

"Gurarararar... You may be a jerk, but you do say a few nice things sometimes."

The laughter of the two men carried far into the quiet night.

A brand new, terrifying combination that would one day make the world government tremble was officially born after this feast filled with delicious food and strong liquor.

……

The addition of Edward Newgate, the Whitebeard, brought about a dramatic change to this already extraordinary pirate ship.

The most obvious manifestation of this is that daily life on the ship has become much more lively.

In the early morning, it was no longer the sound of Dorum banging on the hull that woke everyone up, but the terrifying noises made by Newgate and Lockes as they exercised on the deck.

The two didn't actually fight, but the occasional clashes of their Conqueror's Haki were enough to make the entire ship tremble, waking Gatz from his sleep as he thought he had encountered another sea storm.

Gatz became Newgate's number one underling.

He stopped bothering Rocks and instead spent all his time talking about Whitebeard.

He would enthusiastically ask Newgate how to make his punches heavier, and if Newgate was in a good mood, he would casually offer a few pointers.

Just a few tips on how to use power were enough to greatly benefit Gatz, making him feel that his destructive power had reached a new level.

Silver found a perfect sparring partner.

He will take the initiative to challenge Newgate.

Although each attack was easily blocked by the opponent with a single finger, this opportunity to hone his marksmanship in front of an absolute powerhouse deepened his understanding of the assassin's way.

His gun became faster, more cunning, and more deadly.

Dorum, on the other hand, was completely caught in a happy dilemma.

He discovered that Newgate, though seemingly rugged, possessed a beast-like intuition about ship structures.

Newgate could clearly hear which plank of the hull was groaning and could feel where the weakest point of the keel was.

So Dorrum kept pestering Newgate to help him with his auscultation.

"Lord Whitebeard, listen again. Doesn't this mainmast sound a bit weak?"

"Lord Whitebeard, could you please assess the watertightness of this new plank I replaced?"

Newgate was annoyed by him, but seeing his almost obsessive obsession with the ship, he had no choice but to patiently help him check.

One asked, the other answered; a shipwright and a future maritime overlord engaged in an in-depth exchange about ship repair and maintenance in an extremely bizarre manner.

At the heart of it all remains Ryan's kitchen.

Chapter 29 Target, Branch G-8

With Newgate, a diner with an astonishing appetite and energy requirements, Ryan had even more room to showcase his culinary skills.

He began experimenting with creating bolder and more challenging dishes.

For example, by combining electric eels containing a weak amount of lightning energy with paralyzing flowers that can stimulate the nerves, a dish called "Lightning Mapo Tofu" can be made that can greatly improve the reaction speed of the diner in a short period of time.

For example, a rich broth made from the hard shell of a deep-sea volcanic crab is simmered and enriched with special minerals. This broth is then combined with powdered iron ore to create a seafood porridge that can temporarily enhance the body's hardness.

These dishes are nothing short of poison to ordinary people, but to monsters of Locus and Newgate's caliber, they are like highly effective buffs.

With the blessing of Rein's Food of Righteousness, the Rocks Pirates' overall strength is growing at a snowballing rate.

That noon, as Raine was processing a giant deep-sea octopus he had just caught in the kitchen, a new notification suddenly popped up on the system interface.

[Ding! Detected that crew member Edward Newgate's bond with the host and team has deepened. His powerful life magnetic field resonates with the "Meaning of Food," enhancing the effect of his exclusive ability, "Meaning of Food!"]

[The Meaning of Food (Resonance Version): Dishes cooked by the host will provide a moderate to permanent physical enhancement to companions, and have a very small chance of depositing special energy within the consumer's body, which can be triggered at crucial moments.]

Renn paused in his movements.

Moderate intensity increase? Accumulation of special energy?

It's like adding critical hit and hidden passive attributes to your dish.

He glanced at Newgate, who was arm wrestling with Lockes on the deck, making the ship creak and groan, and his eyes grew even deeper.