One Piece: It's always been you

Chapter 123 The Future Admiral

Before anyone could notice, Yu pressed down on the top of the stick, pushing the sharp edge back into the stick.

"Alright then, this money is enough." Unlike before, Yu didn't stop while she was ahead.

The leader breathed a sigh of relief, waved for the people around him to leave, and had someone bring out the Bailey that Yu and the purple-clad uncle had won and hand it over.

The two took the money and left the gambling den in one swift motion, without lingering for even a second longer.

"Where is Mr. Tanaka?" the boss asked his subordinate. He felt that the little girl's behavior at the end was a bit strange. How could she leave so easily?

"Boss, do we really need to explain this little thing to Mr. Tanaka?" The underling felt that their boss was making a fuss over nothing.

The eldest brother glared at him. "What do I need to tell you about Mr. Tanaka?"

He remembered now; he had always felt that the little girl looked familiar. It turned out he had seen her in wanted posters and newspapers—she was a pirate.

The boss didn't notice that not long after Yu and the purple-clad uncle left, three other people and a bear also left the casino.

Yu followed the man in purple out of the casino for a while before stopping. She handed him the bag of Berries she was carrying and said, "Uncle, thank you for not calling me out earlier."

The man in purple accepted the money bag, saying, "My name is Yisheng."

"Okay, Uncle Yisheng." You couldn't help but look at Yisheng with even more admiration.

She didn't know Yisheng, but ever since Shayoulan and You had their conversation, Shayoulan's memories no longer appeared in the form of dreams, but were triggered.

Upon learning the name of the purple-clad man in front of her, You quickly learned some things about him.

For example, he will become a Marine Admiral in the future, codenamed "Fujitora". Rather than chasing and arresting pirates, he is more concerned about the safety of innocent civilians, but he also abides by the Navy's regulations.

He'll be a very reliable navy officer in the future.

"Uncle, even though you can't see, you should know those people in front of you have been lying to you, right?" Gambling relies on both luck and skill, and this uncle probably relies on the latter, but if he keeps losing, he'll definitely feel something's wrong. "Why don't you call them out?"

"It's not that I didn't want to expose you, it's just that you appeared before I could." In their eyes, he was nothing more than a blind gambler, and they could just wait until they were off guard before making their move.

"..." Fine, she's superfluous again.

“Young lady, you seem to know a lot about me.” He was blind all his life, but he had ways of seeing. “You want to use me, but you mean me no harm.”

“I can sense that you respect me.”

Although Yu knew from Sayuran's memories that Uncle Yisheng's Observation Haki was very powerful, she was still shocked when she actually saw it.

Because he has been blind for many years, he possesses a powerful Observation Haki that allows him to "see" the shape and movement of objects. His Observation Haki can detect malice and goodwill, and he can even know the movement of clouds in the sky. Moreover, he can accurately know the location of meteorites in space, and use this to his Devil Fruit ability to bring down meteorites.

Yu didn't hide anything. The uncle had already made it clear, so what was there to be embarrassed about? "Yes, I know the uncle is a very good person. After all, who would use their body as a cushion for someone else? Besides, even I can't react that quickly. If it were me, I might have just rushed in, which would only make things worse."

"And you have Observation Haki, Uncle. Among all the people I know, you are the only one with Observation Haki like that."

As soon as she finished praising him, You noticed that the uncle, who had been calm and serious just a second ago, was visibly embarrassed. His lips were pursed into an oval shape in surprise, and some sweat was seeping from his face.

"..." is quite easily flattered.

Yu felt that this uncle was probably incompatible with her; he always managed to leave her speechless. Speaking is an art, and in front of this uncle, Yu simply didn't need to say a word.

Seeing that the uncle wouldn't change his expression anytime soon, You continued, which was also a way of being honest with him. After all, she was the one who had taken advantage of him first. "I only used the uncle to get to the third floor. The owner behind this gambling den is someone I know, but I can't accept what he's doing now."

"Although I am confident that I can deal with them, I am very sorry to have dragged the uncle into this so rashly."

It's a blessing to be able to see nothing; there are simply too many filthy and despicable people in the world that are unbearable to look at.

He chose to close his eyes for life precisely because he didn't want to see the evil in the world.

The young girl in front of him was very frank; to maintain this in such a world was something others couldn't do. If he weren't blind, he would gladly remember her face.

"Young lady, although I cannot see your face, may I know your name?" Yisheng asked You quite earnestly.

"Hehe, my name is Yu." Yu introduced himself. "Uncle, would you be interested in joining the Navy in the future? If there were Navy personnel like you, people's lives would be much better."

"Yu?" That little witch Yu? "You are the little witch Yu, wanted by the Navy."

“It’s me.” Yu could see the surprise in Uncle Yisheng’s eyes. A pirate asking others to join the Navy? If others heard this, they would probably laugh their heads off.

"I just think you're more suited to the Navy. You're calm and reasonable, so even if you become a Navy officer, you won't arrest me randomly."

You believes in life, and even more so in yourself.

Honestly, she hadn't done anything heinous. The newspapers embellished her story, but anyone with even a little knowledge would know that the pirates she suppressed had a long history of misdeeds.

But she doesn't care about any of that. She just wants to be herself and doesn't feel like she owes anyone anything.

"Besides, uncle, you know I'm a kind person, you certainly wouldn't label me like that."

Yisheng laughed at You's words, "Little girl, your Observation Haki is no worse than mine."

"However, I have no intention of becoming a naval officer right now. I just want to gamble every day and eat a bowl of noodles, that's enough for me."

Yuu had anticipated this; otherwise, becoming a Marine now would seem different from what Sayuran remembered.

"Uncle, are you very confident in your gambling skills?"

He never spoke a word, but you could tell from his expression that he was confident.

You grinned and said, "Uncle, how about a bet? I bet that within the next eight years, you'll be at the same level as me."

"You really think highly of me. I wonder if you're referring to my reputation or my abilities?"

"Well, all of them count." Yu was gambling more on herself; her future was predetermined, if there were no deviations.

But hers is unknown; she's betting that she'll still be here then, and that she'll be a famous and powerful pirate.

What's the stake?

Yu's smile vanished instantly, replaced by a serious expression. "If I win and you become a powerful naval officer, then when you encounter my brother, you can let him go."

He didn't think about his own request at all, but still agreed, saying, "As for my request, I'll ask you about it after I win." But Yi Sheng felt that he probably wouldn't win.

"Little girl, you love your little brother very much."

"Yes, because they are my brothers, I will definitely protect them." Ace, Sabo, Luffy, and Law.

The person I'm most worried about right now is Ace.

Sayuran said Ace would die, but there was no information about when, where, or why.

The shared memories include Ace, but what puzzles Yu is that she knows Ace will become a pirate and join the Whitebeard Pirates, but that's about it.

To be precise, you can see it, but it's extremely blurry, almost no different from not seeing it at all.

Yu guessed that it might be because their relationship was too close, or because they knew each other before Yu saw it in Sha Yulan's memories, or it might be for some other reason.

In any case, everything should be prepared in advance.