"Father, this is my brother!"
In the New World, Ace proudly showed off Luffy's wanted poster and bounty to Whitebeard.
Whitebeard took the newspaper, gave it a glance, and was immediately surprised. He hadn't expected Ace's younger brother to be this strong—facing off against Hawkeye at such a young age and already having such a high bounty in the East Blue.
"The youngsters these days are terrifying..."
Marko, Jozu, and Vista also gathered around, curious.
Marko's face was full of disbelief. "Oi, oi, oi! Is this a joke? Did Morgans mess up the report? How can a rookie who hasn't even reached the Grand Line be this strong?"
Vista tightened his grip on his swords. "The real shocker is that he fought Hawkeye."
Jozu added, "So this is Ace's little brother? But this is insane. If he dared to fight Hawkeye's black blade head-on, he must have awakened Armament Haki. Does that mean he's stronger than Ace?"
Ace scoffed when he heard that.
"Oi, oi, what's that supposed to mean? My brother can't be strong? No matter how strong he is, he can't beat me—because I'm his big brother!"
The crew laughed and bickered, their ship filled with lively chatter.
Whitebeard watched from the side, feeling an inexplicable warmth. The sense of family among his crew was something he deeply cherished.
But as he stared at Luffy's straw hat, he squinted for a long time. It looked oddly familiar… but he didn't dwell on it. Since Luffy was Ace's little brother, if he ever came here, they'd just take care of him.
Meanwhile, the Straw Hat Pirates were still sailing peacefully in the East Blue.
Carl tossed a massive cake into Momoo's mouth, and the sea cow's eyes immediately lit up.
"Alright, time to go hunting!" Carl commanded.
"Moo! Moo!" Momoo responded enthusiastically before diving into the sea to hunt.
Carl found Momoo easy to take care of. Most of the time, it didn't even need feeding since it could hunt on its own.
But every now and then, he liked asking Sanji to make some desserts as a treat.
To his surprise, Momoo absolutely loved sweets—whenever it ate them, it got even more excited about hunting.
Thanks to that, they hadn't run out of fresh meat in the past two days.
Luffy, of course, was overjoyed. He ate until his belly was round every day—he was just one step away from bowing down and begging Momoo for more.
Carl was glad he never put a bounty on Momoo. This way, the sea cow would be much safer and wouldn't get captured by the Marines while hunting.
After all, Momoo was an important source of meat for the Straw Hats—it had to be well protected.
After feeding Momoo, Carl switched into his "demon instructor" mode.
The captain and crew suffered under Carl's brutal training, but they dared not complain. Complaining was useless anyway. In the end, all they could do was focus on their training and finish their daily tasks as quickly as possible.
Sanji, being the newest member, quickly realized that Carl was the Straw Hats' instructor.
Unfortunately for him, even as the crew's cook, he wasn't spared from Carl's relentless training. Right after breakfast, he was dragged into morning exercises.
Exhausted, he barely had time to catch his breath before having to prepare lunch. In the afternoon, Carl forced him to start learning the Marine's Six Powers.
While he had to admit that the Six Powers were strong, the intense training left him no time to make desserts for Nami.
Thankfully, the afternoon sessions weren't as long, giving Sanji a bit of relief.
Carl, at the very least, was reasonable. He tailored training plans to fit each crew member's strengths and didn't strictly lock in the schedule every day. He even left time for everyone to enjoy the journey.
Balancing work and rest—that was Carl's philosophy.
Of course, if the crew ever heard that, they'd probably complain: "You call this humane?! You're training us to death!"
While everyone was busy training, Carl suddenly pulled out a special device—the Devil Fruit radar. He pressed a button.
At first, nothing seemed unusual. But the moment the radar activated, a bright signal flashed on the small screen.
Carl immediately halted all training. "Alright, training's over for today! We've got work to do!"
Everyone, except Sanji, instantly perked up.
"Wait… could it be—"
"Heh, that's right," Carl confirmed with a grin. "The radar just picked up a Devil Fruit nearby."
He turned to Luffy. "Captain, it's not far from here. Want to check it out?"
"Hee hee! Of course! Sounds like a fun adventure!" Luffy laughed excitedly.
The whole crew was thrilled. Especially Praise and Luffy—they were top candidates for a Devil Fruit power, and the newly found fruit had the highest chance of going to one of them.
This could be their chance to stop being weaklings!
Without wasting time, Nami quickly adjusted their course, steering the ship toward the radar's signal.
Carl was just as surprised as the others. Devil Fruits were known as the sea's hidden treasures, and they usually appeared in the Grand Line. But for so many to be found in the East Blue? Unbelievable.
Still, that didn't matter. What mattered was that this fruit would soon belong to the Straw Hat Pirates!
Only now did Sanji have a moment to ask, "Mr. Carl, what's going on? That thing in your hand… can it really track the location of Devil Fruits?"
Carl nodded. "Yeah, as long as the distance isn't too far, this radar can detect them with high accuracy. Both Usopp and Nami's Devil Fruits were found using this device. If there's a fruit you're interested in, Sanji, I can keep an eye out for you."
"Uh… actually, I'm not really interested in—"
"For example, the Clear-Clear Fruit," Carl interrupted.
Sanji's eyes widened. "Now that I'd eat! Mr. Carl, if you ever find that fruit, please let me have it! Of course, it's not because I'd use it to sneak into women's bathhouses or peek at Nami-san in the bath! I just want to improve my strength!"
The crew gave him looks of pure disdain.
"Yeah, sure, pervy cook. Wipe off your nosebleed first."
Nami, veins popping in anger, didn't hesitate to land a punch straight to Sanji's face.
Carl chuckled and patted Sanji on the shoulder. "Sanji, your dream is admirable, but I hate to break it to you—the Clear-Clear Fruit has already been eaten."
Sanji froze. "Huh?! Someone already ate it? Who?!"
"It belongs to a guy under the Seven Warlords of the Sea—Gecko Moria's subordinate. His name is Absalom. He's got the head of a leopard and, well… he's just as much of a pervert as you."
"OH!!! That b*****d! How dare he steal the fruit of my dreams?! AHHH, I'M GONNA KILL HIM!!!"
The crew collectively sighed, unable to even look at Sanji at this point.
This guy is the cook of the Straw Hat Pirates… do we really have to admit that in public?
Meanwhile, Carl noticed the way everyone was staring at him in amazement. It was as if he knew everything.
Carl smirked to himself. If only they knew… If the manga weren't unfinished, I could tell them exactly where Laugh Tale is and what's on it.
After tormenting Sanji a little, Carl was in a great mood. Now, he just had to decide who would get the upcoming Devil Fruit.
For now, the best candidates were Jango, Luffy, and Sanji. Zoro, of course, would never eat one.
------------------------
For Advance chapters visit : patreon.com/Mythic_Muse