Chapter 94: Amazon Lily (2)
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"By the way, can you wear something to- uh- cover that?" Lumi the Amazonian made one last demand, in the form question, before leaving.
Hashirama rubbed the back of his head as he watched Lumi walk away. Robin walked to him and handed over his shirt that somehow ended up on her hands.
"Thanks."
"Stop fooling around."
That was her reply to his kind words, to which he shook his head in grief and longing. Indeed, the world didn't appreciate kind men.
Though now there was another issue, their group was left alone in a foreign land. He noticed Vivi walking back towards him with a giant almost pouting Karoo. Nami and Mikita stepped closer to him as well, and now that they were all reunited Hashirama was quite lost on what to say.
Normally, being alone on a new island wasn't an issue, that's where all the fun adventuring comes from, but given the islanders' nature this time, in addition to the general vibe with the recent revelations about Hashirama, they decided against adventuring alone. Instead, opting for a resident to guide them around.
It was then that Marguerite, the blondie from before, walked to him. Some girls from her group were also behind her; it seemed despite being a young member of the group she had quite the influence. Perhaps she was just strong. No matter the circumstances, they let her do the talking as they stayed behind and showed respect.
"Thank you for helping us. If you need anything, you can come find me in the northern side of the city."
The girl put a hand over her chest and gave a low nod. This was a greeting of the Amazonians, or a goodbye in this case. With that, she turned around and left.
Or, she was about to leave anyway.
"Hey, can you show us around?"
Hashirama called back, a little hesitant.
"We are basically new here; you know? It'd be great if we had a guide and more awesome if it was a pretty lady."
Marguerite paused while her back faced him. Then she hastily turned around and smiled, a small blush appearing on her face.
"Are you sure? If you ask Madam Lumi she can provide you with someone better."
"But I want you."
"Um, then, if you don't mind..."
She stepped closer to him with a smile. While the girls behind her rolled their eyes and gave her teasing looks. In contrast with the girls behind him who starred in jealousy.
"First off, you can follow me to my home. The area there is beautiful. Do you mind?"
"Not at all. Lead the way."
Hashirama smiled at her as her cheeks grew rosier and then cleared her throat. She turned around and then walked, leading him.
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The anime tried to portray this place mostly by its different culture. However, Amazon Lily was much more than that. It was a beautiful piece of land, with the nature of calm, and the city filled with such a rich vibe.
The Amazonian women lived within the Chinese architecture – which was then highlighted by the lovely nature of the green island.
Hashirama and his crew followed Marguerite around and enjoyed the island for all it had to offer. Instead of "Berries", they used "Gor" as their currencies, since they were an isolated country. Also for that exact reason, the value of Gor was lower than Berries, so they could afford things for nearly half of its price. So looking around the island, buying this and that, was a process enjoyed by them all.
Marguerite even got gifted some stuff by his girls, who grew closer in no time. She was thankful and a bit awkward after the gifts, but she grew close to the Senju pirates.
"Whew~"
The crew released a long breath as they sat down under the large shade of a tree. People were walking all around them and living their daily lives, uncaring about them. But some did shoot a glance or two at him.
"You know, I've been thinking,"
Marguerite suddenly said. The crew was chatting amongst themselves as they stopped, slowly turning to look at her. She was looking at Hashirama, a bit skeptical.
"You didn't buy anything girls usually buy. Well, you didn't buy anything. And on top of that, your looks are somewhat different than usual. Perhaps, are you..."
A bead of sweat formed on her cheeks. She looked around, noticing there was nobody else close by. She leaned over and slowly whispered.
"Perhaps you are... a m-m-man?"
"...."
"Are you, uh, one of those things from the outside world? Are men even real...?"
"...."
The crew slowly looked at each other. It wasn't exactly a secret that men were banned from entering Amazon Lily, but they weren't aware that the citizens here didn't even know about men. In either case, it would be troublesome if Hashirama was revealed to be a man.
Yet, after a moment of thinking, Hashirama just shrugged. He made an apple pop out of his palm, bit on it, and spoke. His face was dignified as he smiled softly.
"Yes. I am a legendary creature. Emperor of Mankind, Father of Humanity, and the One Guardian, yes those are indeed me. There is no point in hiding, for I indeed am a man."
"Ohhhh...!"
While the Crewmates turned their head at him and gave him a weird look, as he didn't slip up his delusions usually. Then they turned to look at Marguerite. To their surprise, the Amazonian was impressed by the foolish speech, instead of being shocked or fearful that he was banned from entering Amazon Lily.
In fact, she looked dangerously curious. Her eyes were sparkling in curiosity. Some passersby glanced their way seeing how curious Marguerite was, but nobody caught on because the group was talking in a low voice.
"A man... a man! Is that why you can create trees and fruits? Ah, is that the power of men? So beautiful!"
"Err,"
Hashirama stopped munching on his apple. He threw it to the side, and Mikita caught it and began eating it, while Vivi gave her a narrowed-eyed look.
"Well, not really. It's kind of special. As I said, I was born with it. Not any other men have this ability. I have a sister, a woman you'd notice, but she doesn't have what I have either. Not entirely anyway. I am, uh, how to explain – you can take me like you take your Snake Empress. How she is special among women, I am similar among my fellow men."
"What's wrong with him?"
"Let him be, I think he is joking."
"He better be, otherwise it's too embarrassing."
The crewmates were insulting him while he was talking facts, but Hashirama ignored them and continued his act. Then again, it wasn't entirely an act or a bunch of lies. Just like Boa Hancock was a Queen among women due to her beauty and powers, due to his Supreme King's Will, Hashirama was the same. He was just being dramatic with how he was speaking, but he had a point. He was in no way beneath Hancock, so his point was true.
Hashirama cleared his throat. "Anyhow, I can trust you to stay silent with this, yes? It'll be troublesome if everyone finds out, given the rules of your country."
"Ah, yes, of course. I will stay silent. Nobody will know. Uh, anyway, can you tell me more about you? How does being a man work? Without a heavy chest, don't you guys feel empty?"
She casually leaned over to put a hand on his chest, over his chest, and gently ran her hand on it. The crewmates behind them turned their eyes at the scene, frowning, but in the end, they just shook their heads given it was mere childish curiosity.
Like that, Hashirama continued acting all grand and great in front of Marguerite. Until night fell, and the festival – the feast he was invited to earlier, began as well.
In this Chinese-themed town, the night was beautiful, and the festival was much more so... However, around midnight, all hell broke about, as Hashirama was faced with dangers he wasn't ready for.
Perhaps he should have asked why there was a festival today, to begin with.
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