316 Chapter 316

316

As the day was ending, the crew started gathering near the Going Merry.

Now that mock town was mostly vacant with only a few remaining. The crew and Cricket docked their respective ships in the Mock port.

Due to the fight many of the establishments were destroyed but there were still more than enough to entertain the whole crew.

There were many pirates who were worried that the new Warlord might harm them. But Luffy and the crew did none of that. Minding their own business and doing things on their own.

They even paid and tipped for the services they received. And due to their relaxed behavior, it didn't take long before the remaining pirates and bounty hunters of the Mock town to gather around, trying to get on their good side.

Many were just curious, while others actively wanted to join the crew. Joining a warlord's crew was quite the easy way to get out of the Marine's radar. But Luffy didn't see anyone noteworthy or with any powers that interested him, so he rejected all the offers.

Seeing Law's crew get killed so early had gave him a wake-up call. He couldn't just let untalented people join the crew. It would harm the crew both mentally and as a structure if one member or more of it's members were the die.

Death shakes up people. And he didn't want any of his friends to die. Personally, Luffy was a selfish guy but at the same time he wasn't some selfish emo jerk that only cared for his own gain.

A crew was like a family. When you constantly stay on the same ship, train together and face life-and-death challenges. It creates a bond that is very hard to ignore.

And Luffy wanted to honor that. It was just the right thing to do.

With what happened with Law, Luffy wouldn't be surprised if he wanted to quite piracy as well. The man was a broken piece of his previous self. So if he wanted, Luffy wouldn't force him to join.

Sometimes as a man you have to do things because that's right thing to do. And self-belief was quite important in the grand scheme of things.

While this was happening Masked Deuce and Ace were also preparing to take their leave and journey back to New World. The two Whitebeard pirates remained unseen in Mocktown as they didn't Luffy to get into more trouble with the World Government.

Other than eating, they mainly stayed on the opposite end of Jaya where the Going Merry was getting modified by Cricket and his crew.

Sabo on the other hand was back to wearing his plague mask and a different style of clothing.

If Saint Cameal didn't reveal Sabo or Ace's involvement then Luffy didn't want to market it either. Also, unlike Ace, Luffy wanted to bring Sabo to sky island for more than one reason.

In the dimly lit, rough-looking bar, the grizzled owner stood behind the scuffed oak counter, meticulously polishing a glass. The air smelt of booze and blood, while the atmosphere around the room was a bit energetic due to the customers that sat there.

"Another round my man!" Luffy said slamming the large mug on the counter.

The old bartender gave a tender smile, before taking the mug and refilling it.

"Thank you, old man!" Luffy said, "That's the freshest goat milk I have had in a long while…"

"You guys are weird." Law said, who he sat at a nearby table, "Who comes to a bar to order milk?"

"Us?" Sparky said, tipping his cowboy hat, "But ya wouldn't understand, partner... Yer just a li'l too green to grasp that." he waved him off as he finished his own glass of milk, "Them things come with age and experience, ya hear?"

Law really wanted to ask as to why the monkey was speaking with that kind of accent, today, but as nobody asked. He didn't either. Weird. But then again what was even weirder was getting called 'green' by a six-armed monkey.

"Just go with it, it's less bothersome this way," Zoro grunted, as if almost reading his mind. It was almost as if he had grown used to these kinds of antics. "Another round!" He barked, as he put his own mug down. "This stuff is good… we will have to take a few barrels, I wonder how protein shakes will taste like with this." He mumbled to himself.

"Sure…" Law said, wondering if this was the secret behind their strength and insane recovery. He then looked to his side where Kuina was reading a book and Anchor who on the same table observing different kind of rocks.

"Meals ready!" Sanji said as he came out with plates filled with food. As he placed the food on the table, the crew dug in. All the while Sanji thanked the old bartender for letting him use his kitchen, and exchanging some tips back and forth regarding how to cook the local dishes around here.

As they finished the food, Law finally asked the question that was bugging him. "Why did you guys bring me here…" he asked. Most of the Straw Hat crew weren't with them, they were on the Going Merry on the other side of Jaya Island, while they were currently in Mock Town. "Did you guys have something to discuss…"

Law would have liked to be on the Going Merry around his crewmates, but when Luffy had offered him a meal with some important things to discuss. He couldn't refuse it.

"What is so important that you have to discuss it here," Law asked, they were quite far from the Straw Hat ship was. So he wondered why they brought him here.

"Well, first, I wanted to taste the goat milk here, which Sanji recommended." Luffy said holding up a finger, "And second is because the old bartender here is also a chef, and requested us to come here for a meal."

The old bartender gave a shy nod. It seemed that the old man was a fan of the Fallen Hero.