Chapter 52 - Celebrating at Whisky Peak! Baroque Works Shows Its Teeth!

Still absorbed with all that joy, Nami briefly looked at all those people. She had to admit she was not used to this kind of situation.

"I was already prepared for a welcoming, but this whole celebration ..." She couldn't help but say, feeling that all that happiness was too much.

Her understanding was that most pirates were terrible, with rare exceptions like Noah, who sailed for fun and adventure. Thus, she found it odd that the townsfolk behaved this way, regardless of the nature of the newcomers.

"And call us sea heroes?" Nojiko laughed at the situation, thinking the same as her sister. "We are literally on the first island of the Grand Line. They're either liars or very excited."

Vivi and Mr. 9, who were helping to dock the ship, heard the two talking and cold sweat ran down their backs.

'Why the hell do they have to celebrate so much?? These guys are not stupid!!' Mr. 9 was about to cry. He spent 3 whole days tied to the helm just because the ship's captain didn't like him. What if he found out that they had taken him into a trap?? Death would be a grace…

°°°

After a while, upon docking the ship close enough to the shore, they all disembarked from the Black Artemis. Noah was in front, his sword at his waist, and Nami and Nojiko were not far behind him, also with their respective weapons. Despite everyone's warmth, the two women chose to trust their instincts.

Amidst the ongoing celebrations, a tall man appeared. He had a small red nose, blond hair styled to resemble a powdered wig, and he was dressed like a gentleman. Notably, the number 8 was present on his collar tips, and the curls in his hair also bore a striking resemblance to the number 8. Last but not least, he’s carrying a saxophone.

“Welco-” The man suddenly choked, making 'papapa' sounds to warm up his vocal cords, “Welcome! My name is Igarappoi and I am the mayor of Whisky Peak.”

“Thank you very much for the welcome.” Noah smiled at him and tried to avoid looking at the cheesy and strange hair while continuing, “My name is Noah D. Avery, the last one is my surname.”

“Oh, alright then, Mr. Avery.” Igarappoi seemed to have understood and proceeded warmly, “Whisky Peak is quite known for its drinks and its music. We pride ourselves on our unmatched hospitality and our drink is as abundant as sea water.”

"Do you usually receive all types of pirates like this?" Nami became even more interested when she heard what he said. It was fine if it was all this happiness and confetti. But if he was talking about hospitality and drink, then it was obvious that it was not that simple.

"Of course yes-" Igarappoi again coughed a little and warmed up his vocal cords again to continue, "As I said, our hospitality is unique. Therefore, allow us, please, to throw you a party, so you can hear our adventure tales?"

As soon as he finished saying this, Noah, Nami, and Nojiko felt the massive pressure of the people's gazes around them. And even though they were all dangerous pirate hunters, their acting skills were such that their expressions were extremely inviting and gave a good impression.

And as a good leader and someone who wants to experience everything in this new life, Noah would obviously accept. After all, why not a good party before an intense fight? He does this every night, with a different kind of fight...

"Alright then. It would be a pleasure to stay." Noah nodded his head, bringing a wave of cheers from the huge crowd. And after they calmed down, he pointed to Vivi and Mr. 9, "In addition, it was these two who guided us here. They said they were island dwellers and we did this favor for them."

Upon hearing the word favor, Vivi and Mr. 9 had different reactions. While the former was slightly grateful and with her cheeks blushing at the thought of last night, the latter seemed to control himself to not grind his teeth in anger.

"So, as mayor, I must thank you for your attitude." Igaarappoi smiled and bowed slightly. His eyes also stared at Vivi for a few seconds, as if he were evaluating her, and then continued, "Now that I owe you a favor, this party should be even bigger!"

At Igarappoi's signal, all the inhabitants began to get excited and ready for a night of joy and drinking.

"Let's party!"

°°°

While the music played loudly and everyone drank and ate as if there was no tomorrow, a large number of men and women gathered around the three illustrious guests. Even Vivi and Mr. 9 were participating in all the revelry.

"And that's how it happened. Robbing the same person twice is quite a stroke of luck." Noah placed a cup of rum he had just drunk back on the bar as he recalled the unlucky story of the Hyena Three, "Well, in any case we still saved an island thanks to them. It was exciting."

After finishing telling his story, he picked up a dart next to him and looked at a distant target, which was already full of darts all over. And without even trying too hard, he twirled his fingers and the dart disappeared from his hand.

Thud!

"He hit the bullseye again! That's at least seven in a row now!"

"Wow, isn't this guy going to get drunk?"

"I give up, I lost…"

While the people around were shocked by his incredible accuracy rate, Nami and Nojiko were smiling as they drank another cup of special wine. They were sitting next to him, on small stools.

Of course, the stunning beauty that both of them possessed seemed to cause a certain buzz from men, but none dared to do anything. First, there was Noah, their captain. And secondly, the two were wearing diamond rings on their fingers, proving their commitment to someone. And everyone knew that the first and second reasons were intertwined with each other.

After defeating everyone in a game of darts, Noah and the girls sat on a couch while those who were willing to chat went with them.

There were some girls in particular who cast bright glances at him from time to time. And they were very beautiful women, but as lethal as well. After all, everyone here was a bounty hunter.

Not that Noah didn't want to, but simply that it wasn't worth it. He would save his charm and energy for women who were truly worth it.

Anyway, as they chatted, Igarappoi arrived with a cheerful smile on his face.

"Mr. Avery, ladies." With a polite gesture, he drew the attention of some around him and continued to speak, "Every year, to celebrate a satisfying harvest, we organize a small drinking contest. Would you be interested?"

"Contest?" Downing another cup of drink down his throat, the alcohol having zero effect due to his refined body, Noah smiled, "And what's the prize?"

"I knew you would be interested." Igarappoi smiled from ear to ear, "฿100,000 is the reward for whoever can last the most cups of wine. So, are you going to participate?"

"I've never liked losing." Shrugging, he looked at the money-grubbing woman and already smiled when he saw her eyes slowly acquiring those special shapes, "Are you guys also going?"

"Where's my cup??" Nami immediately asked, knowing that one way or another she wanted that money. Did they already have a lot? Yes! But mosquito meat is still meat!!

"I'll abstain from this. I only drink occasionally..." Nojiko just raised her cup as an apology. And she was really telling the truth. She only drank on special occasions, and even then, not much.

"No problems, no problems!" Igarappoi did not insist much and ordered the wine bottles to be served, filling the cups of those who would participate.

And after all the cups were filled, he ordered.

"Let the games begin!"

°°°

At the peak of the night, with the moon illuminating Whisky Peak.

The party was already over and it was possible to see the figure of Noah sleeping on the couch, with Nami and Nojiko on top of him. And not far from them was another figure.

Igarappoi briefly looked at the three and left the house where the party had taken place. Some people still remained inside to watch the pirates.

After leaving, his eyes gazed at the surroundings of the town for a moment and his gaze soon went to the moon, and below it the huge rocks resembling cacti.

"Tonight, once again, the cactus rocks look beautiful, dancing under the moonlight..."

His voice echoed in the solitary night as he thought about his next steps. His mind went from the reward he found out about Mr. Avery, to the attitudes he had towards an important person to him. But all of this was interrupted when a voice sounded from behind him.

"You really are a poet, Igarappoi." Sitting on the terrace of the house where the party took place was Mr. 9. Vivi was also next to him, her cold eyes staring at the 'mayor', "Or should I say Mr. 8?"

"So it's you." Mr. 8 glanced sidelong at the two and confirmed something he wanted to be sure of, "About your previous report... did Mr. 13 and Miss Friday really die?"

"Yes." Vivi took the lead and jumped to the ground below, continuing shortly after, "They were about to eliminate us for failing our mission, but their captain, Noah, intervened and eliminated them."

"This changes a lot of things..." Even though Mr. 8 felt relieved inside, he still hid any emotion from his face, "But it's only a matter of time before they replace them, even if it's by more inefficient means. So we can't fail now."

Upon hearing what he said, Vivi suddenly felt an instinct to say something, but she controlled herself. The interesting stories that Noah told about how he saved an island and also his own nature, even though a little strange, more than proved that he was a good person.

But, above all, she had a mission to fulfill, and she didn't want to fail again. It was something of extreme importance to her, and it represented her life or death.

A sound of a door opening could be heard shortly after, and a woman dressed as a nun came out of there.

"What a tough guy. How many glasses did he handle, about 20? At least they didn't eat much, we are already quite short of food..."

With a voice akin to a child's, the nun gradually shed her outer garments, revealing the physique of a bodybuilder underneath. She was a tall, muscular woman with dark skin and pink hair styled into short twin-tails. Her attire consisted of a short dress adorned with a magenta and white diamond pattern, accentuated by three green flowers.

"Is it really worth it to capture those three? We could have done this as soon as they arrived." With an annoyed look, her condescension towards them was quite obvious. To her, even if the captain was full of muscles and tall, wasn't she also?

"Of course it's worth it." Mr. 8 looked at his partner, Miss Monday, and put his hand in his back pocket before pulling out a pamphlet, "I investigated them before they arrived, and what I found was not good."

‘WANTED’

‘Image’

‘DEAD OR ALIVE’

‘NOAH • D • AVERY’

‘฿50,000,000’

As soon as he took out the reward leaflet for everyone to see, their eyes widened in shock for the first time in a long time.

"Fifty million?!?!" The three of them shouted at the same time when they saw that huge reward, especially for someone who just arrived at Grand Line.

"What did this guy do?? Destroyed a marine base?" Mr. 9 shouted a bit scared thinking that a pirate worth this much was now one of their targets.

"I don't know. Unless I can get the version that comes with the official newspapers, all we have is his reward..." Mr. 8 took a deep breath before looking at them seriously, "But this is enough to know that we are dealing with someone dangerous. If we can capture him, alive, the money will be more than enough for the Boss to look at us favorably."

With the silence that followed, his words entered everyone's ears while their heads thought about different things, but on the same subject: How to capture this valuable pirate.

Just as they pondered this, a shadow abruptly loomed before them, enveloping them in darkness. Confused, they looked towards the moon to identify what was obscuring its light.

But another shock came to them after knowing why.

Stretching, Noah cracked his neck bones while letting out a yawn.

"Dude, that was a good hunt ..." Taking the opportunity to crack his hand bones, he looked at those figures below and smiled at them, "What were you talking about again?"

"Capture someone?"