One Piece: Shanks' Little Jasmine

Chapter 83 The Three Little Ones and Dumplings

"Sister!" x3

When the three little ones pushed open the door, they saw Moke standing in front of the courtyard gate. Their eyes lit up with surprise, and the three little ones excitedly rushed towards Moke. Moke opened her arms and easily caught the three little ones who rushed over. Looking at the three little ones' innocent and childlike faces, Moke couldn't help but kiss their foreheads.

"Sister, sister, why did it take you so long to come back? I missed you so much!"

Luffy was practically clinging to Moko, his outstretched arms wrapping around her several times as if afraid she would run away. Moko freed her hand and gently patted Luffy's head in a soft voice.

"I missed Luffy too. I'm sorry for making him worry after being away for so long."

"Hmm~ Sister, you don't need to apologize. As long as you come back, that's all that matters, hehehe."

Luffy shook his head vigorously, nestled in Moko's arms and laughed happily. He knew his sister was busy, but she had never been away for so long before. Even with Ace by his side, he still couldn't get used to life without his sister.

"My sister came back very quickly. You know, there are a lot of things that happen at sea."

Uta snuggled affectionately into Moko's arms. She knew that Moko planned to return after finishing her business at sea, so she had been counting down the days. She thought Moko wouldn't return until closer to the New Year, since Moko had even more work to do than Shanks. But she didn't expect Moko to come back earlier than expected.

"I finished dealing with things over there ahead of schedule, so I came back early."

Moko held the two little ones and spoke softly. Luffy and Uta looked at Moko with excitement after hearing her words.

"Then can my sister stay at home for a really, really long time!"

The two little ones' eyes were shining, and even Ace's ears twitched. He seemed not to care, but his eyes were clearly glancing at Moko.

"Yes, I'll wait until after the New Year to leave. I'll stay home with you for the next two months, okay?"

"Hmm!" x2

After receiving Moko's answer, the two little ones snuggled up to her and acted like spoiled children. Ace, after that hug, gave up his spot to the other two little ones and stood aside without saying a word, but the longing and yearning in his eyes clearly showed that he also missed Moko very much.

Moko sighed helplessly and patted the two little ones. The two little ones noticed Ace, who looked a little lonely, and obediently let go of Moko to make room for him. Moko looked at Ace gently and opened her arms to him.

"Ace."

Since Ace grew up a bit, he has matured a lot. He often takes care of Luffy, who is three years younger than him, and he acts less spoiled. Even though he is still a child who loves to act spoiled, he stubbornly pretends to be a mature little adult. He clearly loved to act spoiled when he was a child, so why has he become so awkward?

Under Moko's gentle gaze, Ace finally gave in and slowly moved toward her. How could he not care? She was the most important sister in his heart, more important than anything else. He missed her more than anyone else, and how could he possibly disappoint such an important sister?

"Sister, welcome back."

Ace shyly hugged Moko back, his ears turning pink, his voice filled with a little excitement. Moko hugged Ace tighter and rubbed against him, whispering in his ear.

"I'm back, Ace!"

"Hehehe, Ace is shy!"

"She's shy!"

Luffy and Uta squatted to the side, crickets chirping, covering their mouths and chuckling. They thought they were speaking quietly, but Ace heard everything. Ace blushed and shouted, waving his fist.

"Hey, you two are so annoying!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Ace left Moko's embrace and was about to chase after the two to beat them up. How dare they laugh at their older brother? These younger siblings deserve a beating. Watching the three little ones chasing each other, Moko laughed out loud. Feeling the touch on her shoulder, Moko seemed to remember something and clapped her hands lightly.

"Oh, by the way, let me introduce you to two new friends."

"A new friend?"

The three little ones stopped and tilted their heads to look at Moko. Ella was clinging to Moko's shoulder, peeking out half her little head to examine the three little ones. Her adorable appearance made Uta blush with excitement.

"So cute, sister, what is this?"

Before Moko could answer, Luffy's eyes gleamed, and he stretched out his arm to grab the unsuspecting Ella and pull her in front of him. "Meat!"

"boom!"

Before Luffy could even open his mouth to take a bite, he was punched far away by the teary-eyed Isla. After getting rid of Luffy's arm, Isla quickly flew back behind Moko and hid. Ace looked at Luffy, who had a big bump on his head and was standing up dizzily, still shouting for meat. He sighed helplessly and felt speechless at his younger brother who only wanted to eat meat every day. He hadn't been starving him before.

Moko covered her mouth and chuckled, then stepped forward to support Luffy. The large bump on his head gradually subsided under Moko's touch, and the pain disappeared as well.

"This child is called Ella, she's from the Demon Bear race. Luffy, she's family, you can't eat her." As she spoke, Moko affectionately pinched Luffy's nose.

"Oh, since you say so, then I won't eat it!"

Luffy nodded affirmatively. Now that he was saying that, it was clear that he really wanted to eat it. Moko smiled and shook her head, not blaming Luffy at all.

"Woo-mi-woo-mi!"

As soon as Luffy finished speaking, there was a panicked sound from Isla. Moko turned around and saw Uta grab Isla by the back of the neck. Isla was flailing her little paws, but although she couldn't break free from Uta's grip, she didn't attack Uta like she had attacked Luffy earlier.

"Ella is so cute, I love her!"

Uta really loves cute little things. When she was little, she loved chasing after Sweetie. Back then, she wondered why Shanks liked such a cute little thing. At first, she thought Shanks had found it specifically to keep her company, but later she found out that wasn't the case. Shanks treated Sweetie better than her, almost spoiling her without any limits. It wasn't until her sister appeared that she understood that Sweetie was a gift from her sister to Shanks. No wonder Shanks's gaze towards Sweetie could almost be described as indulgent.

Ella is fluffy, just like sweet fruit and rice cakes. Uta absolutely adores her, hugging her and rubbing his face against her. Perhaps Ella doesn't sense any malice from Uta, such as Luffy's desire to eat her. Coupled with Moko's reassuring look, Ella no longer resists Uta's affection and relaxes, letting Uta hug her.

"Sister, aren't there two?"

Ace spoke up at the right moment. He listened very carefully to every word Moko said and took notes on each one. Moko gently pinched Ace's serious little face and slowly spoke.

"That child is a bit special; he's still in the bay to the east."

Moko came ashore from the gap in the eastern sea cliff. It was the closest bay to her home and was very secluded. Usually, apart from Ace and the others, almost no one else would go there. Tuanzi couldn't stay out of the water for too long, so that was just right.

"bay?"

Seeing Moko's mysterious smile, the three little ones were full of questions, but they still followed Moko to the bay. However, they did not see anyone when they arrived at the bay, which made them even more puzzled. Moko curled her lips and called out towards the bay.

"Tuanzi, come out and meet the little ones."

"...Ooh!"

A distant echo came from the sea, and the three curious little ones quickly approached the shore and looked down. Then they saw a huge white seal leap out of the sea, its beautiful white fur shimmering in the sunlight with splashes of water. Then it did a beautiful 360-degree spin and flip, landing gracefully on the ground.

The three little ones exclaimed in admiration, clapping their hands and giving it a perfect score. Moko raised an eyebrow, watching Tuanzi make a funny face, and only after Tuanzi had stood up straight did she extend her hand to introduce the three little ones.

"This is Dango, a family member who has been with Shanks and me on our adventures for a long time."

"Wait, adventuring with her sister and Shanks, that was over ten years ago, that's so long!? How old is Dango now?"

Not to mention Uta's curiosity, Ace and Luffy were also very curious. Moko, however, hadn't thought about this question before. After all, Sea Kings don't reach adulthood based on age. Looking at the dumpling's enormous size, Moko stroked her chin and thought for a moment.

"Sea Kings use a different age calculation method than we do, but Tuanzi should be considered your aunt, since Tuanzi was already close to adulthood when I was very young."

"!!"

Hearing this, Tuanzi proudly held its head high, meeting the shocked gazes of the three little ones. Its dark seal eyes followed, scrutinizing the three little ones in front of it. Sea kings are dozens of times more sensitive to smell than humans. Once they remember a scent, they will not forget it. Coincidentally, the three little ones all had scents that it was familiar with. Even though a long time had passed, it could still smell the scents belonging to those two people.

Sea kings are no less intelligent than humans, let alone a little dumpling that is extremely perceptive even in its infancy. Long ago, it smelled the stench of decay on that person, a smell it was familiar with, the kind that only appears on those of its kind who are about to die. It knew that the man was going to die. And now, it smelled that person's scent again on this stubborn-eyed child, but this time it didn't smell of decay, but of life, a fresh scent mixed with various other fresh smells. So, is this little guy that man's child?

"You should get along well with Yui from now on, Ace, Luffy, and Uta-chan."

"Don't worry, sister!"

Uta answered the fastest. Luffy was probably hungry; his eyes were gleaming and he was practically drooling. Ace, lost in thought, simply walked silently to Moko's side and took her hand.

He felt uneasy as the seal stared at him, as if it were looking through him. It was a little creepy. Sensing Ace's unease, Moko took Ace's hand in return. The warmth of her palm calmed Ace's heart, and the creepy feeling disappeared.

"Tuanzi, we're going back now. We'll come see you later."

"Whoa!" Tuanzi withdrew her gaze from Ace and happily responded to Moko.

The temperature on Mount Gorbo in November was already very low, and it would probably snow soon. Tuanzi is an amphibious sea king, and the shore is not far from the house. Even if Tuanzi goes ashore to the house, there will be no problem. However, Moko is still worried that the temperature is too low and Tuanzi will get frostbite. On the contrary, staying in the sea can keep it warm better.

Ace had started heating the fireplace early in the morning, and the house was warm and cozy with the steam. Even wearing just a single layer of clothing wouldn't make you cold. After taking off her backpack, Mihua lay down in her big cat bed.

The three little ones sat around on the fluffy carpet, unpacking the gifts Moko had brought back, especially the new winter clothes. They couldn't wait to start trying them on. The fluffy winter clothes made the three little ones look chubby and super cute.

Moko was making lunch in the kitchen when she caught a glimpse of the three happy little ones out of the corner of her eye. In a great mood, she smiled and looked out the window.

Through the huge, transparent floor-to-ceiling windows, you can easily see the scenery outside. The dappled shadows of the trees and the dazzling light all fall into your eyes. Even the inconspicuous cobblestone path becomes colorful. Everything is so peaceful and serene.