Seeing Bob steering the lifeboat towards them, the Rocks Pirates' ship came to a halt.
From Bob's perspective, he could see a group of people on the deck waving enthusiastically at him from afar. The last time he returned, it was aboard a luxurious ship owned by the Celestial Dragons. This time, however, it was far less glamorous.
Originally, he had hoped to encounter some Sea Kings to hitch a ride on, which would have looked pretty impressive. But instead, the journey had been perfectly uneventful, with calm seas all the way. Bob had serious doubts. Perhaps that Sea King he had bullied earlier went back to report what happened.
The lifeboat docked alongside the Rocks Pirates' ship. Bob and John each picked up two large sacks and leapt onto the deck. As soon as the pair appeared, warm gazes and enthusiastic cheers erupted from the crew members aboard the ship. Witnessing this scene, Bob and John both furrowed their brows.
What is this about? We didn't bring back any Heavenly Tribute this time, so why are they so excited?
"Gurararara!"
"Bob, welcome back! News of what happened with you and Zephyr has spread across the whole ship. Everyone's been talking about it nonstop!"
"Didn't expect you'd come back at just the right moment!"
Whitebeard, having noticed Bob confusion, greeted him while explaining the situation. Hearing this, Bob suddenly understood. Isn't there a saying that good news stays under the radar while bad news travels a thousand miles? How did this spread to the Rocks Pirates so quickly? And for the Navy, this wouldn't even be considered good news!
"I didn't think news could spread so fast!"
"All I wanted was to gamble a little, and I end up brawling with a Vice Admiral from the Navy Headquarters. What can I even say?"
Shrugging, Bob placed the sack he was carrying on the ground. John, overhearing this nearby, suddenly looked panicked. If news about Bob defeating Zephyr had spread here, what about the story of Zephyr defeating him? Was that going to get out too? But looking at the expressions around him, no one seemed to know about his humiliating defeat. They only knew about Bob's battle with Zephyr.
John felt a stone lift off his chest. Thankfully, he'd escaped disgrace this time. Still, as he thought about it more, frustration bubbled up inside him. For someone in his position as a commander under Rocks, it stung that he wasn't even deemed significant enough to warrant a mention.
These feelings didn't go unnoticed by Wang Zhi and Silver Axe, whose expressions seemed to suggest they had picked up on something. They exchanged knowing smirks.
"John, you don't look too good," Wang Zhi said with a teasing tone, eyeing him playfully. "Where were you when Bob and Zephyr were duking it out?"
"Ah!" John stammered. "I was... uh, dealing with those small fries. Those Navy underlings may not be much, but there were a lot of them, so it took me some time!"
Hearing Wang Zhi's pointed question, John quickly made up an excuse.
"Is that so?" Wang Zhi replied mockingly. "Funny, I heard that right before fighting Bob, Zephyr sent someone flying like a ball, tracing a humiliating arc through the air."
"The person in question wouldn't happen to be you, would it?"
Wang Zhi's voice was dripping with sarcasm.
"Screw you!" John snapped back angrily, but his reactive tone and the subtle expression on his face, coupled with Bob unmoved demeanor, made the truth obvious—it was him. Seeing this, Wang Zhi and Silver Axe burst into laughter. They relished seeing John humiliated, and the other commanders on the ship seemed to share the sentiment. Even some crew members watching couldn't help but secretly laugh, though they stifled their chuckles, fearing to laugh too openly.
John was boiling with rage, knowing he had become the butt of everyone joke. But he couldn't take it out on them directly. In a fit of frustration, he vented by kicking the sack he had carried on board, sending it flying far off. The other crew members, seeing John's indignant state, laughed even harder.
With an expression as dark as a brewing storm, John said nothing. He silently walked over to retrieve the sack and disappeared swiftly, carrying his belongings away.
"Gihahahaha!"
"This John is hopeless! To think he got beat up by Zephyr that badly!"
"If I'd been there, Bob wouldn't even have needed to step in!"
Golden Lion Shiki laughed heartily, clearly taking joy in John embarrassment. Among them, Shiki seemed to be enjoying this the most. He had never forgotten the humiliation of being defeated by Bob—his loss had turned him into a laughingstock and a topic of conversation among the crew.
The other commanders frequently brought it up just to poke at him, which infuriated him to no end. But now, with John humiliating defeat taking center stage, it was as though a brighter future awaited him. In comparison, at least he had been bested by Bob, while John... well, John was defeated by someone bested by Bob. If anything, it made Shiki look better by contrast. Or so he thought…
'Wait, why am I even proud about something like this?'
"Gurararara!"
"Shiki, no one beats you when it comes to spouting nonsense!"
"If you're so confident, why not challenge John yourself and prove it?"
Whitebeard laughed heartily before poking fun at Shiki again, throwing down a casual taunt.
"Hmph!"
Golden Lion Shiki snorted. He couldn't be bothered to continue this vein of conversation and turned to leave, his disdain plain as day.
"…By the way, where's Kaido?"
At this moment, Bob finally realized that his newly appointed vice-commander, Kaido, was nowhere to be seen. As the commander, he had arrived, and yet Kaido hadn't come to greet him. Such lackluster discipline… unacceptable behavior.
"Him? Lately, he's nowhere to be found! Haven't seen him around for some time," Whitebeard responded. "Ever since you left, Kaido's rarely shown his face. Nobody knows what he's been up to lately."
"Oh, really?" Bob raised a brow, his curiosity piqued.
"Gurararara! Why don't you just go find him and ask yourself?"
Whitebeard gestured lazily towards Kaido's quarters and grinned. As if remembering something else, Whitebeard added, "By the way, someone brought me a stash of premium sake recently—top-notch, collected over years by other pirates. I've been waiting for someone worthy to drink it with. Now that you're back, don't think you can slip away tonight!"
"Hahaha, with pleasure! I'll drink with you tonight."
"Gurararara!" Whitebeard gave Bob a hearty pat on the back before departing without another word. The other commanders exchanged a few pleasantries with Bob before also making their exits. Glancing around, Bob noticed that Big Mom (Charlotte Linlin) and Streusen were nowhere to be seen, likely sneaking off to indulge in their guilty pleasures—eating.
Meanwhile, with most of the leadership gone, the remaining crew members surged forward.
"Commander Bob, we heard you took down Zephyr in a single punch! Is it true?"
"Commander Bob, are you accepting more recruits for your squad?"
"I haven't been assigned to any division yet. Could I join yours, perhaps?"
"Commander Bob, please—"
'Fuck'
'Just where is that bastard kaido running of to'
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