One Piece: It's always been you

Chapter 48 Shanks and Yu (5)

Yu was located in a secluded ancient castle on a small island. The place where the girl was imprisoned was a room on the first floor of the castle, away from the main entrance.

Shanks found this place based on what the captured pirates said. Originally, they planned to sneak in first to avoid alerting the enemy, but they heard Yu's shouts outside the castle room, and all their plans were ruined.

After Yu's scream, the people inside felt the sound of sand falling in the castle. Then, the castle was split in two, and light from outside shone in. The girls, who hadn't seen sunlight in a long time, all covered their eyes.

As Yu knelt down, she felt the sunlight above her head and raised it.

It's Shanks and his crew!

After the dust settled, Shanks was seen gripping his knife, his face extremely grim. Beckman, Rachel, and Yasopp beside him all wore stern expressions, devoid of the joy they once shared with Yu.

These scumbags.

"Shanks... Shanks..."

"Yu, don't be afraid, we're here."

Shanks unleashed his full power, and those people couldn't withstand it, all kneeling on the ground. The strange-looking man, however, showed no sign of panic in the face of this scene.

"Oh? Someone actually came to rescue you? Looks like you're not an orphan?"

What does that mean? These girls are all orphans!

"Bang bang bang!" Bullets shot out from Shanks' direction, one bullet for one person, each bullet fatal.

Seeing that his accomplices were dwindling, the man with the strange face grabbed You by the neck and pointed his gun at You's temple. "Which is faster, your gun or mine? Let's have a contest."

Shanks raised his hand to signal the crew to stop attacking, and he also sheathed his sword.

"Such a beautiful head with a hole in it, blood flowing freely—what a sight that would be! Too bad we won't see it." The strange-faced man looked at Shanks and his group with satisfaction. "But that's too boring. Let's bleed a little to liven things up!"

His words startled Yu; he was about to attack Shanks! No way!

Shanks!

At the end of the sentence, the surviving men around the strange-faced man opened fire on Shanks, but they dared not approach. A slight sidestep was enough to dodge, and they were impervious to any lethal force.

"If I can't do anything to you, can't I at least do something to them?" The gun's target was no longer Shanks, but the girl beside him.

"Bang, bang, bang," more and more corpses lay on the ground, but the strange-faced man showed no sign of stopping. He felt an immense sense of satisfaction watching the scene unfold.

Shanks, don't worry about me!

"Shut up!"

Yu's words shattered the strange-faced man's joy. He shot Yu in the arm, and Yu gritted his teeth in pain, unable to utter a sound. Seeing this, the group opposite lowered their slightly raised guns.

"You really are useful. Because of you, they're all going to die here today." The strange-faced man mocked Yu, raising his gun in his right hand and pointing it at Shanks.

With a "bang," the bullet flew out of the muzzle, raced through the air, and pierced Shanks' body.

"!" Shanks didn't dodge. Why didn't he dodge?

"You won't be so lucky with the next shot." The strange-faced man aimed his next shot at Shanks' forehead.

Shanks stood there quietly, without moving, his expression revealing his extraordinary domineering presence.

"Stop! I told you—stop!"

The strange-faced man sensed that Yu in his hand was different from before. She exuded a domineering aura that amazed him. No, it couldn't be called domineering aura; it was more like anger, a kind of anger that had reached its limit and was emanating from within.

In an instant, the azure sky was covered with dark clouds, and a fierce wind rose at sea. The seawater, controlled by an invisible hand, formed waterspouts from all around the island, shooting straight into the sky. The moment they touched the sky, the heads of the waterspouts stopped rising and then aimed at the strange-faced man on the island who was holding Yu.

The strange-faced man, observing the changes in You's emotions and the surrounding environment, realized that this person was the girl the adult was looking for. "The adult is looking for you!" He immediately released her and turned to scramble away.

How could Yu let him go? How could she let go of someone who hurt her friends, hurt these young children without parents, and treated life like dirt? Yu raised her hand, opened her palm towards the sky, and waved it in the direction of the strange-faced man. The next second, a waterspout surged from all around, engulfing the strange-faced man and sweeping him away.

"Yu! Stop!"

Shanks ran to Yu's side, grabbed her shoulders with both hands, and tried to make her stop.

"Shanks...?"

Yu had never used such power before. This time, it was because the strange-faced man's actions had raised her anger to an unprecedented level, prompting her to use it. After the strange-faced man died, Yu's anger subsided, and her body had long since lost the strength to control the seawater.

At Shanks' touch and call, Yu collapsed, and the surrounding seawater seemed to lose its support and fall freely.

"Shanks, I'm sorry for causing you trouble..." Yu felt guilty. If it weren't for her, Shanks wouldn't have gotten hurt here. "Take me back." She should have gone back a long time ago.

Shanks didn't say anything. He carried Yu towards Beckman and the others, "Get on board, brothers, let's take Yu back!"

"Yes, Captain!"

None of the captured girls survived; Shanks didn't care about those who captured them, knowing the Navy would find out once they left. He intended to bury the girls, but the island began to collapse, spreading from the coast near the castle. Therefore, Shanks had no choice but to return to the ship as quickly as possible and leave the island.

Yu's abilities are very powerful, but not enough to destroy the island.

This island is strange; Shanks sensed it the moment he landed. Also, when faced with the strange-faced man's gunfire, an inexplicable force seemed to restrain his movements. And watching the girls being killed earlier—it wasn't that they didn't want to act, but an invisible force was pressing down on them.

Shanks contacted Sengoku and arranged to meet him in a small town near Marineford, where he handed Yu over to him. Sengoku received Yu, who was covered in wounds and bandages, and was extremely distressed.

“Those people might come after Yu again, you need to protect her. Also, her abilities must never be known to anyone else. In a world where so many people rely on Devil Fruits, Yu has the ability to suppress everyone else, she's too dangerous!”

"I understand. You can leave now. I'll send someone to investigate the matter of that island."

Shanks met Sengoku's gaze and breathed a sigh of relief; Yu would be safe. He reached out and poked the sleeping girl in Sengoku's arms before leaving.

Yu, please keep this safe! See you again sometime!

Sengoku sent the navy to investigate the location Shanks had described, and sure enough, there was no trace of the island. Investigating the girls was also difficult; although child disappearances were common, few were discovered because they were orphans, and the navy knew very little. The matter was thus left unresolved.

After Shanks left, he also went to investigate the islands surrounding the small island. But the results were beyond his expectations; the people on the nearby islands claimed they had never seen the island before.

Just as the island appeared out of thin air, it also vanished into thin air afterward.

"Sir, the island has been disposed of; no one will find anything."

In a dark room, a woman who had locked herself up appeared behind the man with a single sentence.

"Oh, I see."

"My lord, she... has been found. Should we make a move now?"

"No! She's at the naval base now, and we can't take her away quietly. Besides, she's involved with too many people. Lulu, keep a close eye on her."

"Yes, my lord!"

(I'm so sorry for the delay! I feel this chapter wasn't written very well. The part with Shanks was a bit weird. I think Shanks is too powerful, but it's necessary for the plot. Please bear with it, hehe.)