Then, Ron smiled and added, "And isn't Luffy already very interested?"
Luffy was already hanging entirely on Brook's skeleton, curiously tapping Brook's ribs with his fingers, making a "thump-thump" sound, and shouting:
"Hey, hey, Mr. Skeleton! Be my companion! You look too interesting!"
The Straw Hat crew looked at the absurd scene before them, then at the confident Ron and the excited Luffy, and once again fell into a collective stupor.
Zoro's tense body relaxed slightly. He let out a big yawn, and his other hand, which had been resting on his sword hilt, finally loosened.
He glanced at Brook, who was being enthusiastically "researched" by Luffy, and his tone carried a hint of lazy helplessness:
"Tch... Since you're a new companion, I won't cut you for now."
But his sharp eyes did not completely relax; they scanned the thick, impenetrable black fog around them like a hawk, his brows slightly furrowed.
"But... this eerie place always makes one feel uncomfortable. It's as if something is hiding in these fogs, watching us."
He concentrated and sensed for a long time, but apart from the dead silence and coldness, he found nothing concrete. In the end, he could only click his tongue and remained in a state of vigilance.
Usopp cautiously hid behind Franky, poking out half his head, pointing at Brook, his voice still trembling with disbelief:
"Wait... wait! Our new companion... is just like that? A skeleton?! A skeleton that can talk, move, and has an afro?!
Does it have to be this outrageous?!
This has already gone beyond the scope of a normal pirate crew recruiting companions, hasn't it?!
At least they should be living people, come on!"
On the other side,
Nami and Chopper huddled together, their faces pale, almost shrinking into a ball.
"Ske... skeleton... it really is a skeleton..." Nami's voice was tearful, "Even if... even if he's a companion... he's still so scary! I'll have nightmares at night!"
"Waaahhh... I don't want to sleep with a skeleton..." Chopper's tears were already welling up in his eyes. Although he himself was a reindeer, a skeleton was clearly beyond his acceptable range of cuteness.
Amidst the fear and questioning, Robin, however, showed a gentle and tolerant smile.
She took a few steps forward, maintaining a certain distance, but her gaze was full of scholarly curiosity and kindness.
"He is indeed a very special gentleman," she said elegantly, her voice calm and with a hint of interest. "To exist in such a form and maintain clear consciousness and etiquette, he must have an extraordinary past."
She nodded slightly, welcoming Brook: "Although the way we met was somewhat unexpected, I still welcome your joining, Mr. Skeleton."
Brook seemed somewhat overwhelmed by this sudden welcome and quickly bowed again: "Ve... very much obliged to you, beautiful lady! Your tolerance and understanding fill me with gratitude! Yohohoho!"
Listening to everyone's varied but mostly kind reactions, especially Robin's polite welcome, he seemed deeply moved.
He bowed elegantly again, even though the movement made his skeleton emit a slight "clack."
"Yohohoho~ Thank you all very much!"
His voice was full of genuine emotion, "To be honest, I have been drifting in this sea in this form for decades without seeing any living people!
To meet you all today is... it truly makes my bones tremble with excitement!
Although I no longer have tears to shed, yohohoho~"
"Decades?!"
"Haven't seen a living person in decades?!"
This span of time surprised everyone.
Nami temporarily suppressed her fear of the skeleton and asked curiously, "Wait! You said you haven't been out for decades? You've been trapped in this fog all this time?"
"Yes!" Usopp also leaned in, though still not daring to get too close, his gossip soul already burning.
"Although this dense fog is strange, as long as you pick a direction and keep going, you'll eventually get out, right? Haven't you tried for decades?"
Chopper also whispered in agreement: "That's right, even if it's a mist, there must be an end..."
Listening to their naive yet concerned questions, Brook's hollow eye sockets seemed to reveal a hint of helplessness and bitterness.
He raised his bony hand and pointed to the extremely dense darkness around them.
"My kind living friends, what you say is indeed theoretically possible."
His tone became somewhat low, "However, this sea area, known as the 'Thriller Bark,' is far more strange and dangerous than you imagine."
"It is not static," Brook explained. "This dense fog itself is like a huge, constantly moving and changing labyrinth.
What's more terrifying is that many 'things' you can't imagine are lurking in the fog..."
He paused, his skeleton seeming to tremble slightly,
"They interfere with your sense of direction. I have tried countless times to find a way out," Brook's voice carried a deep sense of powerlessness, "but in the end, I would always be forced back into the depths by 'those things' in the fog, or completely lose my way.
Over time... even my ship was completely damaged and sank, leaving only these bones of mine, unable to completely die due to the Revive-Revive Fruit, drifting alone in this eternal mist... Yohohoho... I apologize for speaking of such sad topics."
Just as everyone was immersed in Brook's decades-long story of solitude, Ron's calm voice broke the silence, providing a deeper footnote to Brook's predicament.
"Brook cannot leave, not only because of the strangeness of this fog, but also for a more direct and crucial reason." Ron's gaze fell on Brook's hollow eye sockets, as if he could see through the secret behind him.
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn, and they looked at Ron in confusion.
Ron continued to explain: "His shadow has been stolen."
"Shadow?!"
"Stolen shadow?!"
"Are you kidding me?! How can a shadow be stolen?!"
This news shocked and bewildered the Straw Hat crew even more than a talking skeleton itself!
Usopp's jaw almost dropped to the ground, and Nami and Chopper huddled together, their faces expressing a "this is even more outrageous than a skeleton" look.
Even Zoro and Sanji showed expressions of disbelief.
"Stealing a shadow... is such a thing... really possible?"
....
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