"Brook?!"
Luffy blinked in confusion, clearly having already tossed everything Red had told him to the back of his mind.
Seeing this, Usopp could only cover his face helplessly.
Chopper, on the other hand, became excited instead.
"Brook?! You're the Brook that Laboon has been waiting for all this time?!"
Among the Straw Hat crew, Chopper was one of the few who could communicate with Laboon, and because of that, his bond with the island whale was far deeper than anyone else's.
Upon learning that the person before him was the "last companion" Laboon had been searching for, there was no way Chopper could remain calm.
Brook, who had still been puzzled by Luffy and the others, suddenly stiffened when he heard the name "Laboon."
"Lab… Laboon?!"
"You just said Laboon, didn't you?! And the Rumbar Pirates?!"
"Fifty years have passed—there shouldn't be anyone left who even remembers the name of our pirate crew!"
"Y-you… who are you people?!"
The relaxed skeleton who had been humming to himself moments ago suddenly stepped forward in agitation, a ghostly green flame flickering within his hollow skull.
And with a skull abruptly looming right in front of him, even though he was mentally prepared, Usopp still jumped in fright!
"H-Hey! Don't suddenly get so close!!!"
He shouted in terror, then forcibly calmed himself down and said,
"We're the Straw Hat Pirates. That guy who looks like an idiot over there is our captain."
"And Red said you've been drifting in this foggy sea for nearly fifty years, so it's normal that you haven't heard of us."
"The Straw Hat Pirates, huh…"
Brook's emotions gradually settled after hearing Usopp's explanation.
He slowly removed his top hat and gave a gentlemanly gesture toward Luffy and the others.
"My apologies. I was quite rude."
"It's been far too long since I last spoke with others, and hearing the names of my departed companions made me lose my composure."
"But… if any of you have news about Laboon, I beg you—please tell me everything you know!"
"I would be eternally grateful!!!"
Brook suddenly bent forward and bowed deeply to Luffy and the others.
At that moment, Luffy suddenly smacked his fist into his palm, realization dawning on him.
"Oh~! I remember now!!!"
"You're the musician Brook that Red talked about—the one who came back from the dead, right?!"
"Hah! I thought you were a zombie too!"
"Y-you've heard my story?!"
Hearing Luffy call him by name so casually, confusion flashed across Brook's face.
But Luffy, having finally put everything together, burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! This place is awesome!"
"First there are zombies you can't kill, and now there's a talking skeleton!"
"Oh right—you must be really worried about Laboon, huh?"
"Don't worry! He set sail with us to look for you, and now he's a member of our crew!"
"With everyone taking care of him, he's super happy every day!"
"Oh yeah, Brook, wanna join us?"
"My ship just happens to be missing a musician!"
"And also…"
"Can you poop?!"
"..."
Luffy's rapid-fire barrage of words left Brook completely stunned.
Fortunately, he quickly grasped the key point.
"Laboon… has already found new companions?"
A miraculous liquid overflowed from Brook's empty eye sockets.
Reuniting with Laboon had been the spiritual pillar that kept him going through fifty years in the fog, yet now that the moment was finally approaching, it all felt strangely unreal.
As though he were dreaming.
"Yohohoho~"
Brook let out his signature laugh, then answered solemnly,
"I can poop!"
"HEY! Was that really the first thing you needed to answer?!"
Usopp immediately shouted his complaint.
Brook hurriedly apologized.
"Sorry, sorry! I got too excited!"
"So Laboon already has new companions…"
"May I ask… could you take me to see Laboon?"
"I… really miss him."
By the end of his words, Brook could no longer suppress his emotions, his voice breaking.
Seeing this, the gentle Chopper stepped forward, lightly patting Brook's body and smiling softly.
"Don't worry, Brook."
"Laboon misses you just as much!!!"
...
...
"LABOOOOON!!!"
Half an hour later, at the harbor of Thriller Bark.
Brook raised his head and stared upward. When he saw Laboon's enormous body—larger even than Thriller Bark itself—he froze, utterly at a loss.
Fifty years.
Both Laboon and he had changed beyond recognition.
The Rumbar Pirates were gone, leaving him alone.
At this moment, Brook felt a strange sense of hesitation, like returning home after a long absence.
He was afraid—afraid that Laboon would resent them for breaking their promise, for making him wait fifty long years.
However, in the very next instant—
"ROOOOOOAR—!!!!!!!"
A sharp, resounding roar echoed through the skies, reverberating throughout the foggy sea.
SPLASH!!!
A tear as massive as a mountain ridge slid from the corner of Laboon's eye and crashed into the ocean below, sending up enormous waves.
Then, like a waterfall, torrents of tears streamed from Laboon's eyes, pouring endlessly into the sea.
The bizarre sight left Moria's group utterly dumbfounded.
Perona stood on her tiptoes, her mouth forming a perfect "O."
"Th-this… this is the Straw Hat Pirates' pet?!"
Looking at Laboon's gigantic body, Perona couldn't help but recall the corpse of the ancient giant Oars, frozen deep beneath the ground.
Moria always claimed that Oars had been a real powerhouse from centuries past.
But after seeing Laboon's sheer size, she truly wanted to ask—
After decades of effort to restore Oars, would he really be stronger than this island-sized whale?!
No one could give a definitive answer.
After all, none of them had ever seen Oars alive.
But Moria was certain of one thing—
Even if he found powerful shadows and revived his trump card zombie Oars…
He would never stand a chance against this island whale.
Witnessing this scene only reinforced Moria's understanding of how terrifyingly powerful the Straw Hat Pirates were.
Feeling the emotions conveyed in Laboon's cry, Brook was instantly overwhelmed with tears.
The next second, he used his light, floating body to dash across the waves, landing on a drifting plank beside Laboon, gently stroking the whale's massive body with his bony hand.
Laboon let out a soft, sorrowful cry.
Countless unspoken words converged silently in the hearts of Brook and Laboon.
No matter what hardships they had endured before—
Now that they had finally reunited…
Everything had been worth it.
"That's wonderful, Laboon~"
On the shore, the emotional Nami and Chopper also had tears welling up in their eyes.
Though the others didn't cry, they all watched quietly, their gazes fixed on this reunion that spanned fifty years.
At that moment, Luffy—arms folded behind his head—leaned to the side and grinned at Red.
"Oh right, Red!"
"I already invited Brook to join us!"
"You said he's a really great musician, didn't you?!"
"With him around, our parties are gonna be even more fun!"
"You really do things your own way."
Red grinned back, as if he had expected this all along.
After all, who could refuse a violin-playing skeleton as a companion?
Right?
...
...
Time passed slowly.
More than ten minutes later, once his emotions had finally settled, Brook returned to the shore of Thriller Bark.
When he saw Luffy, he suddenly raised his cane sword upright, then dropped to one knee before everyone's astonished gazes.
"Mr. Luffy, thank you for bringing Laboon here and allowing us to fulfill the promise we made fifty years ago!"
"Although I don't know whether your invitation earlier was serious…"
"From today onward, I—Brook, former vice-captain of the Rumbar Pirates—wish to join the Straw Hat Pirates!"
"To repay the debt of gratitude I owe you all!!!"
As he spoke, Brook lowered his head deeply, showing his submission.
Through his brief exchange with Laboon, he had already learned of the bond between Laboon and the Straw Hat Pirates.
He could also feel it clearly—
Laboon had fully become one of them, a true member of the crew.
And so, in order to continue accompanying Laboon and atone for the mistakes of the past…
Brook willingly joined the Straw Hat Pirates, regardless of status or position!
Yet the one he was kneeling to—Luffy—looked utterly baffled.
"What are you doing, Brook?!"
"Aren't we already partners?"
"Huh…?"
Brook lifted his head in confusion, unable to understand Luffy's words.
But Red, who understood Luffy perfectly, stepped in with a smile.
"You're Laboon's important companion, and Laboon is our important companion…"
"So if you round things up a bit, that makes you our companion too!"
"I think that's what our captain really means."
"So… welcome aboard, Brook!"
A mysterious psychic force appeared out of nowhere, gently lifting Brook from the ground.
Because the battle with Moria never happened as it originally did, Brook still knew very little about the Straw Hat Pirates.
Even his reason for joining was simply to stay with Laboon and repay their kindness.
That kind of thinking didn't really fit the Straw Hats' style.
But that was fine!
No matter the reason someone gathered on this ship, in the end, thanks to Luffy, they would all become one big family!
Of that, Red had absolute confidence in his captain.
"Then, Luffy…"
Red suddenly flashed a brilliant smile and looked at him.
"To celebrate Brook and Laboon's reunion!"
"To welcome Brook into our crew!"
"And to celebrate our friendly cooperation with the Moonlight Pirates!!!"
"Let's…"
"THROW A BANQUET!!!!"
Before Red could finish, Luffy had already thrown his hands into the air, cheering excitedly.
And just like that…
Under the bewildered gazes of Moria's crew and Brook alike, a bizarre banquet—filled with lively music and surrounded by countless corpses—somehow began.
Songs drifted through the skies above Thriller Bark, turning the eerie, terrifying atmosphere of the Florian Triangle into one of joy.
...
...
"What?! Release all the shadows?!"
"You're not joking, are you, Lord Red?!"
One day after the banquet ended.
After eating, drinking, and celebrating, Red didn't disturb Brook and Laboon's reunion time.
After all, Brook had already joined the Straw Hat Pirates—there would be plenty of chances later to show him the wonders of the Pokémon world.
Once he had set new training plans and ideas for everyone, the ever-busy Red immediately went to find Moria and proposed releasing all the shadows on the island.
The Straw Hat Pirates weren't saints, nor did they reject methods of growing stronger.
But Red didn't mind doing as much good as he could within his ability.
After all—
Moria's zombie army wouldn't play any role in the coming wars.
No matter how many fodder there were, they were no match for true power!
On that point, Moria understood it even better than Red.
He was just… still clinging to a shred of hope for his plan.
And Red mercilessly crushed that last bit of fantasy.
"That's right! Release all the shadows!"
"Moria, a new era has already arrived."
"If you don't want to become a joke in this new age, you'd better listen carefully to my plan…"
"Don't worry! Such a powerful ability like the Shadow-Shadow Fruit won't go to waste!"
"It's just that compared to your few hundred zombies with zero combat value, I have a far better plan waiting for you!"
A sly glint flashed in Red's eyes, as if he had thought of something amusing. He spoke mysteriously to Moria:
"Moria, have you ever heard of…"
"A legendary kind of creature known as—Tailed Beasts?!"
(End of Chapter)