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Chapter 1053: Lying Low?
Chapter 1053: Lying Low?
Inside a private room on the second floor of a restaurant behind Headquarters, everyone gathered around a table. Kuro sat at the head, with Lida and Klah on his left and right, followed by their respective subordinates—Sazil and others who were now Commanders.
Tina occupied the seat directly opposite Kuro, accompanied by her own subordinates. She leaned back in her chair, one hand resting on the backrest, her legs provocatively crossed as she smoked a cigarette like a seasoned female big shot.
As for Navy? Whether a warlord or a big shot, they never followed formalities anyway.
"Come on, don’t hold back! I brought the stock from my office. This stuff’s expensive."
Kuro lifted a wine bottle from the table, pouring himself a glass. His gaze shifted to Tina. She had an identical bottle of red wine in front of her.
Hearing his words, Tina arched a brow. She grabbed her red wine bottle, pushed the half-open cork with her thumb, and poured a thick, rich liquid into her glass.
She raised the glass, swirled it gently, smelled it, and looked at Kuro in surprise. "Bordeaux? Where’d you get this?"
Kuro chuckled. "A friend who’s a king gave it to me. You’ve got a good nose to recognize it just by smell. Don’t you want to taste it?"
"I drank one once. I wiped out an entire pirate crew and took this bottle of red wine from them."
Tina swirled her wine, her lips stained a faint crimson as she sipped and licked them. "This wine’s a rare one—production stopped long ago. Each bottle is irreplaceable."
Once, there was a kingdom on the Grand Line famous for its red wine: Bordeaux. They produced only one type of red wine. Originally named after the kingdom, the wine became simply known as "Bordeaux" after the kingdom’s annihilation.
It sold for a million Beri on the market, though even that price was theoretical—real bottles were virtually unattainable. A genuine bottle would start at thirty million.
A precious drink indeed. No one expected Kuro to have one.
"This stuff’s not bad. If you like it, I’ll give you a couple more bottles. I prefer cigars over wine." Kuro said.
David had handed him a crate of these wines out of nowhere. Kuro wasn’t particular about wine—he usually drank bottles worth several million Beri. Their flavor satisfied him just fine, though this Bordeaux didn’t quite match their taste.
But add historical significance to anything, and it became sentimental. Sentiment made it valuable.
Even a pile of dung would find buyers if someone claimed it was the last preserved piece ever pooped by One Piece. Not for its utility, but for rarity and its link to legend. Once someone died, its value skyrocketed further, turning into art.
Otherwise, why would no one want Kuro’s dung?
"Tina won’t hold back then", she said with a nod.
She didn’t hesitate with Kuro. A wine enthusiast herself, she’d collect such a treasure to savor anytime.
"I wanna drink too", Lida piped up, looking longingly at the scene.
"Kids don’t drink—have juice", Kuro replied, pouring her a glass of fruit juice.
"Hey, Kuro, you’re doing this on purpose! I’m already twenty-one!" Lida protested. "I’ve been past the drinking age for a year!"
The legal drinking age on the Grand Line was twenty.
Of course, few followed it. Even children drank malt liquor or rum. Drinking was practically a norm here. Kuro had known this for ages.
"Even if you’re past the age, you’re not touching alcohol here. Juice is delicious—sweet and sour", Kuro said, sliding the full glass of juice toward her. Ignoring her glare, he turned to Tina. "Tina, you’ve got your wine. Tomorrow, work hard and give me a few warehouses of Black Guns?"
"A few warehouses? Tina says she’s tired", Tina sighed, taking a drag of her cigarette. "But I’ll do my best."
"Good enough", Kuro smiled. He raised his glass toward Sengoku. "You ordinary guy, how did you let that old bastard into the New World?"
"Who?" Sengoku blinked, not catching on.
But under Kuro’s piercing gaze, he suddenly realized. "Sam William?"
Sengoku had been stationed at Shabondy and once let William slip through. Later, Kuro had personally ordered that if they encountered him again, they’d use full power. Yet Kuro hadn’t heard anything since.
"It’s not my fault, Big Brother. I was on high alert at Shabondy, but that guy never showed up there. He probably coated his ship beforehand and bypassed Shabondy entirely, heading straight into the New World", Sengoku explained.
He’d followed Kuro’s orders strictly. As a subordinate, he knew better than to disobey—especially after experiencing Kuro’s "special training."
"He didn’t go through Shabondy?" Kuro mused, stroking his chin. "So he was cautious back then. But once he entered the New World, he turned reckless. I wonder if that’s changed."
"By the way, Big Brother Kuro, have you heard what Gramps has been up to lately?"
Sengoku asked, recalling something. "I haven’t gotten any news from him in ages. He doesn’t take missions anymore, stays at Headquarters all day, and just smiles when I ask him about it."
"Hasn’t he always been like that?" Kuro replied nonchalantly. "If he weren’t, he wouldn’t be him. But… he hasn’t gone out at all?"
"Nope. Not once. No missions, no contact. He acts like he’s got nothing to do with the Navy anymore", Sengoku confirmed.
He and Gramps kept regular contact. Unlike Kuro, who avoided trouble, Sengoku often stayed at Headquarters.
"Lying low? Impossible. That old man doesn’t need to hide. We haven’t been sidelined either. This is strange."
In Kuro’s eyes, Gramps should’ve been sidelined long ago. But that clearly hadn’t happened. Lucius Kro’s faction had too many influential members, all holding key positions.
The faction couldn’t have been stripped of power.
As for Gramps himself—Kuro was the faction’s second-in-command. If anyone was going to outmaneuver him, it’d be Kuro. Yet here he was, standing strong with everything running normally.
Something was off. Gramps slacked off plenty, but he’d always had work to do. Why hadn’t he left Headquarters in months?
"Forget it. He’s got his reasons. Since he didn’t tell us, we shouldn’t interfere. Let’s keep drinking", Kuro dismissed, raising his glass.
(End of Chapter)
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