One Piece: Dungeon Shop. Scamming Garp, Reward: Eight-Tails Jinchuriki-Chapter 345: The Love of a Family—Katakuri’s Heart Breaks!

Chapter 345: Chapter 345: The Love of a Family—Katakuri’s Heart Breaks!

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Chapter 345: The Love of a Family—Katakuri’s Heart Breaks!

The tavern air, usually thick with the scent of Makino’s spiced rum and the salty breeze of Foosha Village, felt heavy—almost viscous. The suffocating pressure that had radiated from Edward Newgate during his final moments in the dungeon lingered like an ozone-charged mist. Slowly, as the old pirate’s rumbling laughter filled the room, the tension began to settle into the floorboards, though the silence that remained was far from relaxed.

Every eye in the room was fixed on the center of the tavern. There stood a group of small, ragged girls, their clothes torn and faces smudged with the soot of a world that had tried its best to erase them.

They were the reason the "World’s Strongest Man" had discarded the power of a god. The pirates, Marines, and Warlords alike stared, trying to discern some hidden value, some secret strength that would justify such a massive sacrifice. To them, the girls looked like nothing more than wreckage.

"Pops..."

Aihara Enju’s voice was a mere whisper, barely audible over the crackle of the fireplace. She gripped a handful of Whitebeard’s thick trouser fabric, her knuckles white. Her ruby-red eyes, wide and hyper-vigilant, darted around the room.

In her world, she was a "Cursed Child," a monster to be hunted. Here, she felt like a rabbit in a den of wolves. These people weren’t ordinary; she could feel the heat radiating from them, the sheer weight of their presence. Some looked even more terrifying than the Self-Defense Forces back home.

Especially that man in the corner—the one with the pink feather coat and the wide, predatory grin that didn’t reach his eyes. He looks like he wants to peel the skin off the world, she thought, shivering.

"Gurararara..."

Whitebeard felt the tremor in her small hands. His massive hand, scarred and calloused from decades of wielding a naginata, came down with the gentleness of a falling leaf. He patted Enju’s head, his fingers barely brushing her twin-tails, treating her with a reverence usually reserved for ancient treasures.

Then, his posture shifted. The "Father" receded, and the "Emperor of the Sea" surged forward.

He looked up, his golden eyes turning into cold, sharp slivers of ice as he swept his gaze across the tavern’s occupants. He slammed the butt of Murakumogiri into the wooden floor. THUD. The impact wasn’t just a sound; it was a physical blow that caused the bottles on the high shelves to rattle and the liquid in every glass to ripple in perfect, concentric circles.

"Listen up, every one of you!"

Whitebeard’s voice was a low, guttural growl that vibrated in the chests of everyone present.

"From this day on, these brats are my family. They are the most precious treasures the Whitebeard Pirates have ever claimed."

He leaned forward, his massive frame casting a shadow that seemed to swallow the tavern.

"While they are under my roof, they eat what they want and go where they please. If I see even a flicker of disgust on any of your faces—if I catch one of you looking at their eyes or judging their past..."

Whitebeard’s gaze narrowed, and for a split second, the air turned cold with a killing intent so thick it felt like a blade pressed against every throat in the room.

"I will personally drag you to the docks and bury you at the bottom of the sea."

The silence that followed was absolute. Not even Doflamingo’s trademark chuckle broke the quiet. Sengoku, his face a mask of iron, simply snorted and looked away, his jaw tight. No one was foolish enough to challenge a Yonko who had just cleared an [SSS-Class] dungeon.

"Whoa! Are those red eyes? That’s so cool!"

The heavy atmosphere didn’t just break; it was shattered by a voice filled with genuine, childlike wonder.

Before anyone could react, a boy in a straw hat had blurred across the room. Luffy was now inches from Enju’s face, crouching low so his eyes were level with hers. He looked like he was examining a new species of beetle, his eyes sparkling with stars.

"Hey, hey! Are you a rabbit? Or did you eat some kind of Red-Eye Fruit?"

Luffy poked a finger toward her face, a small string of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth.

"Do they glow in the dark? Can you shoot lasers? Like... biu-biu! Bang!"

Cold sweat instantly broke out on the backs of every Marine and Pirate in the room. Whose brat is this?! Sengoku’s heart nearly stopped. Luffy, you idiot! You’re playing tag in a minefield!

Ace, sitting nearby, buried his face in his hands, his ears turning red with secondhand embarrassment. I don’t know him. I’ve never seen this person in my life, he thought desperately.

To everyone’s shock, Whitebeard didn’t strike the boy. Instead, a glint of amusement appeared in his golden eyes. He watched the interaction like a man watching a curious puppy.

Enju, startled by the sudden invasion of her personal space, hissed and jumped back like a cornered kitten, her red eyes glowing with a faint, defensive light.

"Y-you... you rude commoner!"

"This lady’s eyes are not like a rabbit’s! They are a symbol of my power! They are my pride!" She shouted, her voice high and "mighty," waving her small fists in a way that was far more adorable than it was threatening.

"Power?"

Luffy’s grin widened until it nearly split his face. He rolled up his sleeves, flexing his skinny arms.

"I’m pretty strong too! I’m the man who’s going to be the King of Myriad Heavens Dungeons!"

He took a step closer, his tone turning conspiratorial.

"Want to have a match? Loser has to buy the winner a giant pile of meat!"

Enju froze. She looked into Luffy’s eyes—the big, round, black eyes that held absolutely nothing but pure curiosity and a desperate desire for a playmate. There was no hatred. No "Cursed Child" rhetoric. No fear.

"Meat...?"

Her stomach betrayed her with a loud, cavernous growl. In the ruins of Tokyo, "meat" was a luxury she hadn’t tasted in months.

"Shishishi! I knew it! You’re hungry!" 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Luffy laughed, the sound bright and infectious. He reached into his shirt and pulled out a half-eaten, greasy piece of meat on a bone. Without a second thought, he shoved it toward her.

"Here! I already ate half, but the rest is still the best part!"

Enju stared at the piece of meat. Her vision blurred as her eyes welled up with tears. Aside from her sisters and Pops, no one had ever just... given her food. No one had ever shared their "treasure" with her.

"Th-thank you... I shall accept this tribute..."

She took the meat and began to devour it with the ferocity of a starving animal. Seeing this, the other Cursed Children began to creep forward, their small faces lit with hope as they looked at Luffy.

"Ah! I’m out of meat!"

Luffy scratched his head, then turned toward the counter.

"Uncle Blake! Fifty... no! A hundred plates of meat! The good stuff!"

He pointed a thumb toward the corner where a certain Marine Hero was trying to hide.

"Put it on my grandpa’s tab!"

Garp, who was mid-sip, did a spectacular spit-take. "PFFFFT—!!!"

"Luffy, you little brat! You’re trying to bankrupt me! That’s my retirement fund, you spendthrift!!!"

The tavern erupted into laughter, the lingering dread of the "Black Bullet" world finally washing away in the chaos of the Monkey family’s antics. Whitebeard watched Luffy with a faint, nostalgic smile.

Monkey D. Garp... your grandson has the same reckless heart as Roger, he thought. Maybe this world isn’t so bad after all.

—————

Outside the tavern door, the air was cooler, but the tension was rising. A group of pirates from the New World, recently arrived and full of unearned bravado, were eyeing the scene through the windows. Their gazes were predatory, focused on the small girls.

"Look at those red eyes... they’d fetch a fortune at the auction in Sabaody."

"Yeah, imagine what a Celestial Dragon would pay for an ’otherworld’ pet."

They whispered, their voices dripping with greed as they reached for the door handle.

Suddenly, a massive shadow fell over them. A thick, muscular arm covered in obsidian-black dragon scales slammed into the doorframe, blocking their path like a mountain.

"Huh?"

The pirates looked up, and their blood turned to ice. Standing before them was a man who looked like he had been carved out of nightmares. He was wearing a black security uniform that looked as though it might burst at the seams, and a small, crooked ID tag was pinned to his chest: [007].

Kaido of the Beasts stared down at the two "trash" pirates. His eyes were bloodshot, radiating a primal, draconic fury.

"Looking to die today, you scum?"

Kaido’s voice was a low, raspy rumble, like shifting tectonic plates.

"This is a Combat-Free Zone."

He leaned in, the scent of brimstone and old sake wafting off him.

"But it is only a ’Combat-Free’ Zone... Blake-sama said nothing about ’accidental’ crushing."

"If those filthy dog eyes of yours wander toward the girls one more time..."

BOOM!

A pulse of Conqueror’s Haki, tinted with a dark, sinister energy from the Pokémon dungeon, exploded from him. The two pirates were slammed into the dirt, their knees shattering as they hit the ground with sickening cracks.

"I will turn you into chum and feed you to the Sea Kings," Kaido snarled. "Now... GET OUT!"

A roar that sounded more like a dragon’s scream erupted. The two pirates didn’t even have time to beg; they simply frothed at the mouth and passed out. Kaido picked them up by their collars and tossed them like bags of garbage into the village square.

He turned back to the tavern, smoothing his uniform with a fawning, almost desperate smile toward Blake behind the counter.

"Master Blake, the trash has been cleared."

"Regarding my performance... for the next dungeon slot... could you perhaps..."

Blake took a sip of his coffee, his expression unreadable.

"I’ll think about it. Keep working."

"Yes! Understood! I will be the best bouncer this world has ever seen!"

Kaido snapped to attention, standing like a wall by the door. His eyes, like giant, burning bells, scanned the tavern for any sign of disorder. He was "grinding" with a terrifying intensity.

If that old fool Whitebeard is willing to throw away godhood for children, fine, Kaido thought, his teeth grinding. That just leaves more room at the top for me. I just have to be the best damn security guard first.

From a darkened corner of the tavern, a man wrapped in a thick, tattered scarf watched everything. Charlotte Katakuri remained perfectly still, his back straight, his spine refusing to touch the wood of the chair.

He wasn’t looking at Whitebeard’s power or Kaido’s subservience. He was looking at the way Whitebeard’s hand stayed on Enju’s head. He saw the way the red-eyed girl looked up at the old man—not with the "useful subordinate" look his mother demanded, but with pure, unadulterated love.

Katakuri’s hand moved instinctively to his scarf, touching the jagged, hidden fangs beneath the cloth.

Family... he thought, the word feeling like ash in his mouth. Is that what it’s supposed to feel like?

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