One Piece: It's always been you

Chapter 78 Leisurely Enjoying the Melon

As if it possessed mind-reading abilities, the crystal very consciously guided the way. Katakuri and the crystal had already developed some tacit understanding. The crystal could not only guide the way, but also judge the distance and the frequency of its flashing based on the depth of its color to determine whether Yu was safe.

When he came out, he observed that there were no other boats on the shore except theirs, so the island was relatively safe.

There happened to be a candy store on the way, so Katakuri went to buy some candy beans. Now, he always buys extra candy beans, one for Yu and some for himself.

Further into the town, a large crowd had gathered, seemingly preparing for some kind of performance. From a distance, one could see the throng and hear shouts emanating from within.

"Little Infantryman! Let's go join the fun!" You hadn't seen a street performance like this in a long time, so she ran ahead and almost lost Little Infantryman.

"Lord Yu, slow down! If I lose you, Lord Katakuri will throw me into the sea."

The young soldier hurriedly followed, worried that Yu might get lost in the crowd. But it seemed he was overthinking it. Yu was squeezed out of the crowd, and given her current height, even if she jumped, she wouldn't be able to see her.

Yu kept flapping its wings, making a sound but not seeing anything inside. The constant applause from the audience fueled her curiosity.

"Hey little infantryman, why don't you take a horse stance so I can step on your shoulders?" You got tired of jumping and turned to the little infantryman.

After speaking, the young soldier assumed a poor horse stance, and You stepped on his knees to climb up to his shoulders. The two of them were trembling, and before You's feet even reached his shoulders, the young soldier began to lose his balance.

"Hey, hey, hey, little infantryman, steady up, steady up! I still have one foot left, just a little bit more!" Yu was determined to see the performance, and all he could think about was getting on top of the mountain as soon as possible, so he could stand at the top and look down on all the other mountains.

Unfortunately, the young infantryman couldn't take it anymore; his legs trembled, and he swayed unsteadily. Yu swayed along with him, and the two of them were destined to fall.

"Wow!"

A pair of hands caught You from behind. You felt herself rising higher and higher, while the people around her kept falling, until she could see the tops of the people who had been blocking her way from above. You could also see the entire performance surrounded by the crowd.

"Lord Katakuri, you've arrived." The little soldier wasn't as valued by Katakuri as Yu. He fell heavily to the ground, but seeing that Lord Yu was alright, he took a deep breath, stood up, and followed behind the two.

Katakuri was somewhat angry, radiating a chill, but not much. "Just a little bit more?"

Yu, the person involved, was also slow to realize what was happening. She scratched her head, a little embarrassed, and said, "Don't blame Xiao Bubing, it's just that I'm very curious. I haven't seen this kind of performance in a long time."

Knowing that Katakuri wouldn't really be angry, Yu's attention returned to the performance. It was actually just a simple animal show, with a trainer directing the animals to perform difficult stunts.

At first, Yu thought it was very exciting, but gradually she realized that no matter how difficult the action was, these little animals could do it.

"Kari, isn't this team a bit too powerful?" The two are truly working together exceptionally well. "Could they be a person in disguise, playing a puppet?"

Katakuri wasn't interested in these little performances. He and Yu had been there for a while, but Praline hadn't appeared. He belatedly realized that Praline wasn't with him. "Praline isn't with you?"

"No, I came out with the infantryman."

"Where could she have gone by herself? Yu, let's go find her first. It's too dangerous for her to be alone." Katakuri said with a serious expression.

Yu knew his worries, but it was better not to at this time. "Xiao Bubing and I secretly followed her for a while, and then, guess what I saw?"

Yu's eyes sparkled. Katakuri had known her for so long and knew her quite well. "She went to meet someone?"

"Did you see it too?" What was supposed to be a shocking secret turned into something else entirely, as Katakuri seemed to have a premonition. "I only found out much later. I discovered that Jinbe and the others were there too, and Praline went to see them."

"Jinbe is here, so she's safe." Katakuri didn't think too much about it; perhaps Praline would just go and thank him.

Looking at his reaction, You seemed utterly disappointed. "Don't you want to think more deeply about why she secretly went to see him?"

Katakuri awaited her response, "I suspect that Pralinene might like Aladdin."

After Yu finished speaking, he excitedly observed Katakuri's reaction, ready to join him in watching the drama unfold.

Katakuri's attention was more focused on Yu. Yu looked a bit like a child, somewhat like Brulee when she saw desserts as a child, but perhaps even more so.

"Do you know, you're like a child begging for candy right now." He lifted the person off his shoulder and placed them on his arm, while taking out a jar of candy with his other hand. "Candy to soothe your innocent heart."

“I’m still a kid, you know.” Yu took the jar of candy, popped one into her mouth, and said, “Why didn’t you react to Praline’s matter at all?”

"Ok?"

"Plárinne is in love! This is huge gossip!" Yu mumbled, chewing on a candy. "If it were Little Firecracker, he would definitely come over and ask him. Perospero is also gossipy, though not as exaggerated as Little Firecracker."

"Knowing too much leads to a quick death."

Yu suspected he was doing it on purpose, pretending to be oblivious to her feelings when he always remembered to buy her candy. "It's okay, I'll hide behind you."

"You're well hidden." Katakuri patted Yu's head, his eyes gentle as water.

"Uncle, why are all your animals wearing green rings?" The performance ended and the crowd dispersed, but a child didn't leave. Instead, he ran up to the animal trainer and started talking to him.

The animal trainer paused for a moment when asked the question, but quickly regained his composure and smiled, "These are the pet collars I made for them. This way, they can prove they are my pets and won't be taken away by others."

"I think they're so smart, they'll definitely be able to come back to you on their own," the child innocently said, expressing his own thoughts.

The animal trainer smiled, but only he knew whether the animals would come back after they were taken away. "You're right, but we still need to be safe just in case. Besides, my pet ring can help me find them."

The child continued, "Then, could you give me one? My puppy doesn't listen to me and keeps running away. I'm afraid it won't come back next time."

"Little friend, this isn't for free, but I can help you train your dog. I'm Breed, dedicated to building a gentle animal empire!" Breed proudly stated his idea.

The child, unaware of the situation, simply listened to Breed and decided to go home and bring the dog with him.

Yu and Katakuri hadn't left, so they naturally overheard their conversation. Watching the child run off in a hurry, Yu turned to look at Breed, feeling that something seemed amiss.

"Karry, do you really think he's that good?"

"I don't know. Didn't they say they needed to buy clothes? They haven't bought any ingredients either." Katakuri planned to leave with Yu.

Yu nodded, but her gaze remained fixed on Breed and his pet.

The little animals were lying on the ground, clearly exhausted. Breed didn't give them much time to rest; it seemed she was trying to get them up.

You watched the animals from afar without moving, but when Breed spoke again, they changed their previous reaction, mechanically stood up, and then followed in an orderly line.

On the street, apart from Yu, it seemed no one else noticed what was happening. This made Yu even more disbelieving, feeling that something was amiss.