"You... how can you say such a thing?"
Seeing Hancock's decisive refusal, Granny Gloriosa was once again astonished. She pointed at Hancock and reprimanded, "It is the duty of every Kuja warrior to protect the Amazon Lily Kingdom. Have you forgotten that?"
"Of course, I haven't forgotten!" Hancock held her head high and retorted, "I will protect the Amazon Lily Kingdom, but not by becoming an empress. I'll do it by waiting until Master and I become the overlords of the sea and then using the flag of the Cross Family to protect Kuja Island."
"No."
Granny Gloriosa shook her head and said, "The Kuja warriors only obey the Empress. Only when you become the Empress and lead the Amazon Lily Kingdom to glory will you truly shine!"
Seeing that Granny Gloriosa was still so stubborn, Hancock's face suddenly sank. Blue and white electric arcs swirled around her, and she said coldly, "Anyway, I won't go back with you."
"Are you going to fight the old woman?" Granny Gloriosa glared at Hancock.
"You want to do it with me?" Hancock stared back, pointing at Rayleigh and Shakky. "If you brought these two with strong auras and can't reach an agreement, are you planning to take me back by force?"
"Ugh..."
Granny Gloriosa, furious, pointed at Hancock with her crutch, speechless.
"See, Gloriosa? I told you to be nice," Shakky stepped forward, laughing. "You should be able to tell from the bounty poster that little Hancock is very proud. You can't force her."
"Who are you?" Hancock looked at Shakky and Rayleigh warily, her posture guarded.
Had it only been Granny Gloriosa, Hancock's attitude wouldn't have been as harsh. But these two people in front of her had auras as strong as her own, especially the blond man, who exuded an extremely dangerous aura. The last time Hancock felt such an aura was from the Marine Admiral who fought Master at the Sabaody Archipelago.
"Roger Pirate's Vice Captain, Dark King Silvers Rayleigh."
Before Granny Gloriosa could introduce them, and before Rayleigh and Shakky could introduce themselves, Kahn's voice rang out.
Kahn walked slowly with Robin, looking at Rayleigh. "I didn't expect to meet such a big name like you here."
"Dark King Rayleigh?" Robin's eyes widened in surprise. "He's the Vice Captain of the Pirate King?!"
"Yo, young man... You seem to have made quite a noise in the Sabaody Archipelago," Rayleigh greeted Kahn with a smile. "It's something that we old-timers couldn't manage to do: making Sengoku suffer."
"Indeed, with such strength at the age of fifteen, even that woman from Big Mom's crew was far inferior at fifteen," Shakky said, flicking the ash off her cigarette. "Also, little Kahn is obviously a natural destroyer, but he doesn't have the augmented human body like Big Mom and Whitebeard. He's also a handsome guy and little Hancock is really a match made in heaven."
"A match made in heaven?" Hancock, who was initially full of hostility, was immediately charmed by Shakky's words.
She held her beautiful cheeks in both hands and said shyly, "What, so you're a good person!"
"Ara ara..." Seeing the innocent Hancock, Shakky smiled meaningfully. "Little Hancock, you just said you would use your life to repay little Kahn, so you don't want to go back to Kuja Island, right?"
"That's right," Hancock, regaining her composure, put her hands on her hips and said seriously, "Master is our benefactor, and it is because of Master's trust and investment that I am who I am today. No matter what, I will never leave Master!"
"Well said, a girl who knows how to repay kindness is a good girl," Shakky nodded in agreement, making Hancock full of affection for her.
"But..."
In the next second, Shakky said, "If you want to repay your favour, I suggest you go back and become the next Empress."
Before Hancock could respond, Shakky continued, "I have investigated your Cross Family. Right now, your family is still in its early stages with limited territory. Becoming the Empress will give you the power and influence to better support Kahn's ambitions."
Hancock looked conflicted, her loyalty to Kahn warring with her sense of duty to her homeland.
"Shakky has a point," Kahn said gently. "With you as Empress, we can protect Amazon Lily with the strength and resources of the Cross Family. It would also mean more power and influence for us."
Hancock sighed, feeling torn. "But Master, I want to stay with you..."
"I know, Hancock," Kahn said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "But sometimes, we must make sacrifices for the greater good. Becoming Empress will make you stronger and more influential, which will ultimately help us achieve our goals."
Hancock's eyes filled with determination. "Alright, Master. I will become the Empress and use my position to support the Cross Family. But I will always be loyal to you."
Kahn smiled, proud of her resolve. "That's my Hancock. Let's work together to build a future where we can protect everything we hold dear."
With that, the group began planning the next steps, knowing that Hancock's ascension to Empress would be a significant milestone in their journey.
"If the Cross Family wants to become one of the overlords of the New World in the future, it must expand its territory and military force... Instead of using unfamiliar strangers as subordinates and gradually building trust with them, why not use someone trustworthy and familiar with their character from the beginning?" Shakky paused, chuckling under Hancock and Granny Gloriosa's wide-eyed gaze. "As long as you become the new Empress of the Kuja Pirates, little Hancock, then let your Master come over. With the power of his mythical zoan fruit, wouldn't it be enough to bring Amazon Lily back to the New World?"
"Shakky, what are you talking about?" Granny Gloriosa stammered, looking at Shakky.
With such a crazy suggestion, was Shakky planning to betray Amazon Lily?
Seemingly hearing Granny Gloriosa's thoughts, Shakky took a puff of her cigarette and said slowly, "Gloriosa, I did this for the good of the Kuja."
"Don't forget how the Empress died."
"Little Hancock and little Kahn are a match made in heaven. With her feelings for little Kahn, if we forcibly take her back, she may die before becoming Empress."
"Moreover, Amazon Lily has not made any progress in the past few hundred years. The Calm Belt cannot become a permanent safe haven. The Amazon Lily Kingdom should make changes."
Granny Gloriosa fell silent while Hancock held her chin in thought.
Shakky's argument made sense. After gaining a certain understanding of the outside world, Hancock knew well that the Kuja warriors of Amazon Lily were definitely overlords in the first half of the Grand Line. Even in the New World, a country where all fighters mastered, Haki was undoubtedly powerful.
If she became the Empress and led all the Kuja warriors and people to become the main force of the Cross Family, then the Cross Family would only need to recruit affiliated pirates in the future. The important matters would be handled by the trustworthy Kuja warriors, while the dirty work would be assigned to those affiliated pirates who used the Cross Family's flag.
Thinking of this, Hancock was even more moved.
For the first time, she didn't ask Kahn for advice but nodded to Granny Gloriosa and said, "Okay, I promise to go back with you and become the new Empress."
"But let me tell you in advance, if I become Empress, I will lead the Amazon Lily Kingdom and the Kuja Pirates to become the main force of the Cross Family. If you disagree, you can change your mind now."
"...the old woman agrees!" Granny Gloriosa's expression struggled for a moment.
Seeing this, Shakky bent over and whispered something in Granny Gloriosa's ear, and whatever she said made Granny Gloriosa's expression change suddenly. She nodded in agreement with Hancock.
Half an hour later.
"Master, wait for us. We will be back soon!" Hancock called out, standing on Shakky and Rayleigh's sailboat, waving to Kahn's ship.
"Don't worry, you can't escape." Kahn waved back.
"Master, why did you agree to Hancock's departure?" Robin asked Kahn, concerned. "Aren't you afraid that after Hancock returns, she will be brainwashed by those high-level officials, assume the responsibility of the Empress, and change her mind?"
Kahn looked at Robin silently, making her feel a bit guilty, unable to meet his gaze. He raised his hand, touched the head of Robin, who was taller than him, and preached with a smile, "Since we are all family members, we must have confidence in our family members, understand?"
"I know I was wrong, Master." Robin lowered her head, showing rare guilt.
As the most mature among the girls, Robin made it very clear that Kahn and Hancock's unique perception could eavesdrop on long-distance conversations. Rayleigh and their sailboat had just left, and the ship was still within Hancock's perception. Her words, rather than asking Kahn, might as well have been a reminder or a warning to Hancock. She still didn't fully trust the three Boa sisters, who had only been together for a few months.
At this time, Kahn, the head of the family, needed to stand up. After these words, Hancock would undoubtedly be moved.
Kahn, who was always planning, smiled inwardly, satisfied with how things were progressing.
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