The world never stops turning for the absence of anyone, let alone an unknown nobody who never appeared in the original work.
So, Kong Tai, waking up in the morning, had completely forgotten about last night's events. If it weren't for the two unfamiliar fruits that appeared in his dimensional pouch, he wouldn't even remember those two people from last night.
It was quite strange.
He had killed so many bats on the beach last night, yet he didn't see a single one this morning. It was as if the island had absorbed all the blood, leaving not a drop behind.
This must be nature's ability to evolve!
No matter who it is, even a god, once dead, is merely a lump of meat for other animals.
After breakfast, as if having had a day's holiday and a good night's sleep, everyone, spirits high, set off once more.
What interesting things awaited them next?
We look forward to it.
...
New World.
Unknown Waters.
A colossal sailing ship, resembling a true white whale, led a smaller, similarly shaped, miniature white whale-like sailing ship, continuously sailing towards the unknown.
The giant vessel, like the king of these waters, pressed down upon the sea, causing the waves to cease their tumultuous surging and appear exceptionally calm.
On deck, designed like a coliseum, sat a tall and robust man at the very rear. Despite having an IV drip attached to his arm, it did not diminish his imposing presence.
The man, however, had cast aside his usual might and was cautiously reaching for a wine jug beside him.
*Bang!*
Just as the man's hand was about to touch the wine jug, a slender arm, appearing small in comparison to the man's own, shot out and slapped the jug.
"Old man, how many times have I told you, with your current condition, it's best not to drink alcohol while on an IV drip."
Looking up, the hand holding the wine jug belonged to a man with pineapple-shaped hair.
With a helpless expression, he stared at the tall, imposing man. "Honestly, how many times do I have to say it before you listen!"
These two were none other than the current strongest man in the world, Whitebeard, and his son, the captain of Whitebeard's first division, who also served as the ship's doctor and head steward, the man known by the epithet "Phoenix," Marco.
"Gurarararara!"
Whitebeard stared at Marco, slowly retracted his hand, and let out a booming laugh. "Marco, I just wanted a sip of wine, must you guard me like this?"
Instead of easing Marco's concern, Whitebeard's words seemed to trigger something, and he loudly declared, "Is that just 'a sip'?"
"It's always a whole jug."
"Uh..."
Whitebeard scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed.
He knew that this eldest son, who had been with him the longest, was not easily fooled, so he quickly changed the subject.
"Oh! Right, Marco, what has Ace been up to lately?"
"Ace?"
As expected, Marco was drawn in by Whitebeard's question. He lowered his head, thought for a moment, and then said, "He said he was going to challenge that silver-haired guy to a one-on-one, to see why that guy's bounty is so much higher than his."
"Oh..."
"Silver-haired?"
Whitebeard pondered for a moment, then asked, "Didn't I remember that guy's bounty was only 1.5 billion a while ago?"
"Mm!"
Marco nodded, then pondered for a moment with a look of confusion. "I wonder what that guy has been doing recently, his bounty suddenly jumped by 1 billion, and even that blue-haired little girl with him increased by 1 billion."
"These two kids, their combined bounties are already 4.5 billion."
Saying this, he looked up at Whitebeard and chuckled, "If it keeps increasing, their bounties will surpass yours, Old Man."
"Oh! Surpass me..."
Whitebeard paused, then let out a hearty laugh, a glint appearing in his eyes. "It must be that the World Government has done something to their crew that they don't want the world to know!"
"And then the World Government failed, so they had to increase the bounties of the silver-haired crew to raise their value in the eyes of other pirates, hoping to lure pirates into causing trouble for them."
"Isn't that what the World Government is always doing?"
"Gurarararara!"
Marco watched the laughing Whitebeard, a smile forming on his lips. Given the World Government's usual modus operandi, his father's words were likely correct.
However, thinking of Ace, he showed a hint of worry. "Old man, won't Ace get into trouble challenging that silver-haired guy to a duel?"
"What trouble could he get into?"
The laughter abruptly stopped. Whitebeard lowered his head, looked at Marco, and said imposingly, "My son, no matter how powerful that silver-haired brat is, he shouldn't be too much stronger than Ace!"
Then, his tone shifted to a more relaxed one. "Judging by the silver-haired brat's consistent behavior, he's clearly not an evil pirate. Ace is just going to spar with him. Even if he can defeat Ace, he probably won't harm Ace's life."
Marco thought about it and felt his father's words made sense, so he couldn't help but nod.
"Mm!"
At this moment, he froze. He saw that the wine jug, which had been beneath him, had somehow appeared in Whitebeard's hand.
Whitebeard noticed Marco's realization and no longer bothered to hide it. He quickly raised the wine jug and began to gulp down its contents.
*Gulp, gulp, gulp!*
It looked more like pouring than drinking.
"Alright, alright."
Seeing that his efforts were futile, Marco could only loudly try to stop Whitebeard's gluttonous drinking. "Honestly, I turned my back for a moment and you managed to get your way again, Old Man. Stop it, I'm not going to snatch it from you. Drink slowly, drink slowly!"
Hearing Marco's voice, Whitebeard's actions immediately ceased. He swallowed the wine in his mouth, gripped the edge of the jug, put it down, and glanced at Marco, a hint of smugness appearing in his eyes.
"You're still too young to outsmart me, son."
Although he thought this to himself, the wine jug was placed on the other side of his body, far from Marco.
Marco looked at Whitebeard, a smile appearing deep within his pupils.
In reality, with the strength of his Observation Haki, it would have been impossible for Whitebeard, even as a powerful figure, to snatch the wine jug from him.
This was merely a small pleasure between father and son.
If it truly came to a point where he couldn't drink, as the ship's head steward and doctor, how could he possibly allow wine to appear on deck, let alone in front of his father?
Whitebeard raised his wine jug, clinked it against the jug in Marco's hand as he sat on the deck, and then took a small sip.
He knew his body very well. In truth, he was no longer at his peak.
Especially in recent years, as he aged, the hidden injuries from his younger days began to surface one after another.
This was particularly true for his Gura Gura no Mi.
The Gura Gura no Mi was incredibly powerful, truly capable of destroying the world, but the prerequisite was having an indestructible body that could withstand its vibrations.
Due to the frequent use of the Gura Gura no Mi, his body had accumulated numerous hidden injuries from countless tremors.
When he was younger, he could ignore these hidden injuries. But now that he was old and his body's functions were gradually declining compared to his youth, the situation was different.
He could feel his strength diminishing year by year.
However, no matter how much he declined, he was still the world's number one Whitebeard, the father of their entire Whitebeard Pirates.
Gazing at the distant sea, an imposing aura emanated from Whitebeard.
Although both he and Marco seemed unconcerned about Ace challenging the silver-haired guy, they both knew that given the World Government's emphasis on the silver-haired individual and his ability to wound Kizaru, the silver-haired guy's strength must now surpass Ace's.
Even though Ace was already very powerful at his age.
But strength was strength. He wouldn't assume everyone else was like him just because he himself was weak.
Therefore, the Moby Dick, without conscious direction, headed towards the New World, towards the waters near the Red Line, near Fish-Man Island.
Until they received news from Ace, the Moby Dick would likely be wandering in those seas.