Chapter 486: Connections
Ian had not guessed wrong. The reason Shanks had come out this time was indeed because, after Hawk-Eye met with him and had a talk, Shanks had made a spontaneous decision to seek out Ian.
However, the fact that they met at Saint White Poplar was truly a coincidence, not a case of Shanks foreseeing the future.
History had already deviated when Ian decided to join Ace in pursuing Blackbeard Teach. Originally, if Ace had been chasing Teach alone, Shanks would have ultimately chosen to meet with Whitebeard Edward Newgate, warning the old man about the danger Blackbeard posed, while hoping Whitebeard would recall Ace and stop him from continuing the hunt.
The last time Ace found Shanks, he had thanked him for saving Luffy, and the two had become acquainted. But even with that connection, Shanks had never considered directly telling Ace to give up the chase. This was because Shanks knew that Ace was a member of the Whitebeard Pirates, and the only person who could make him abandon the pursuit was Whitebeard himself. Even if Shanks personally approached Ace, he couldn't make him back down.
So originally, Shanks had planned to set sail for the New World to see Whitebeard. Even when he learned that Ace was hunting Blackbeard together with Ian, he hadn't changed his mind.
The reason was simple: at that time, Shanks didn't know Ian at all. Combined with Ian's status as a Warlord of the Sea, Shanks feared that intervening might backfire.
However, when his good friend Hawk-Eye came to him and revealed his relationship with Ian, Shanks changed his plans.
Those who become Emperors of the Sea all have their pride. Shanks understood Whitebeard's personality well, knowing that if he, as a younger generation member, went to Whitebeard, the old man might not listen. Only when there was truly no other option would Shanks choose to meet Whitebeard. But now he had a better alternative: using Hawk-Eye's connection with Ian to meet both Ian and Ace.
Shanks knew that Ian had once nearly joined the Whitebeard Pirates and was a close friend and brother to Ace. If he could persuade Ian, perhaps he could also convince Ace to abandon the pursuit of Blackbeard.
That was why he suddenly set out to sea. His unexpected movement startled the Marine ships monitoring them, forcing them to hastily report the Red Hair Pirates' activity to Marine Headquarters.
However, Shanks' understanding of Ian was limited at the time. His knowledge of this Warlord came only from hearsay. Although he knew Ian had clashed with a Marine Admiral and somehow became a Warlord, he had never actually met Ian and had no real grasp of his strength.
In his view, even if Ian and Ace were hunting Blackbeard together, there was a high chance something would go wrong, because Blackbeard was far too treacherous.
But what surprised Shanks was that when he was halfway there, nearing Alabasta's Saint Ding Island, news suddenly arrived that Ian and Ace had successfully captured the Blackbeard Pirates and handed them over to the Whitebeard Pirates to take away!
This news certainly left Shanks feeling frustrated, as it exceeded his expectations.
After repeatedly confirming that Blackbeard had indeed been captured, Shanks' purpose for seeking Ian and Ace naturally evaporated. After some thought, he decided to wait and see how events unfolded. Since he learned that Ian and Ace had already set sail and left Alabasta, Shanks had to change course.
That was why the Marine report stated that the Red Hair Pirates had "suddenly turned around"...
At that time, Ian's planned route was to Jaya Island, but since Shanks had lost his reason to find Ian, he naturally wouldn't go to Jaya. Coincidentally, their ship, the Red Force, had struck a hidden reef during the voyage, causing some damage to the hull. So after turning away, Shanks brought the Red Hair Pirates to Saint White Poplar Island, intending to buy some high-quality timber to repair the Red Force.
However, Shanks never expected that during his voyage to Saint White Poplar, Ian's ship hadn't gone to Jaya Island at all. Instead, it had been unfortunately swept up in Luffy's Skypiea adventure, going up to the sky island with them. And when they returned, because they had seized Enel's Ark Maxim, their course had deviated, landing them on the same route to Saint White Poplar!
Earlier on his ship, Shanks hadn't noticed the pirate flag hanging on the Ark Maxim. He had only been attracted by the golden ship. But his first mate, Ben Beckman—that handsome uncle with a pipe in his mouth—had noticed it and informed Shanks.
The sudden appearance of the Dragon Hunter Pirates' ship here was a great surprise to Shanks. He had specifically sought them out but failed to meet them, and now that he had stopped looking, they appeared by chance. It could only be called a twist of fate.
Regardless, since they had met here, Shanks decided to see Ian. He was also curious about this person, because his usually solitary friend Hawk-Eye had suddenly acquired a martial nephew and had even come specifically to drink with Shanks, looking very happy. So naturally, Shanks wanted to meet Ian.
After sitting down and listening to Shanks explain everything in detail, Ian finally understood what had happened after he and Ace left Alabasta.
Looking at the red-haired uncle before him, who occasionally burst into loud laughter, Ian felt a strange sensation.
Although Red-Haired Shanks was one of the Four Emperors, his usual personality was actually very easygoing. Even when Enel had attacked him earlier, he barely mentioned it, seemingly not bothered at all.
Ian could understand this, because in his memory, when Red-Haired Shanks was in East Blue's Windmill Village, he had still been smiling even when provoked by a group of mountain bandits.
But this didn't mean Shanks was harmless. It was just that as long as these provocations didn't touch his bottom line, he wouldn't care.
This seemingly carefree personality felt very familiar to Ian, as if Luffy had the same character.
Luffy might have been influenced by Shanks' personality. So who had influenced Shanks? After thinking it over, Ian felt there was only one person: Pirate King Gol D. Roger!
Thinking of Roger, Ian suddenly remembered someone: the Dark King Rayleigh!
Uncle Rayleigh, is he doing well? Ian suddenly missed him a little.
As the first mate of the Pirate King, Rayleigh had once mentioned Shanks to Ian. So Ian couldn't help but say to Shanks: "Um... Brother Shanks... I'll call you that. Uncle Rayleigh once mentioned you to me..."
Pfft! Shanks had been chugging the beer Matthew had brought, but upon hearing Ian's words, he sprayed it out!
"Cough! Cough!!" Shanks coughed a few times, then looked up at Ian with a shocked expression. "You... who did you just say!?"
"Uncle Rayleigh! The Dark King Rayleigh!" Ian repeated.
Shanks stared at Ian in disbelief. "You... where did you hear that name?"
"Uncle Rayleigh told me himself!" Ian said, then realized something. "Oh! Right, you probably haven't seen Uncle Rayleigh in a long time, so you might not know. I've already become Uncle Rayleigh's disciple!"
Shanks was truly stunned at this moment. He had never expected Ian to be Rayleigh's disciple!
He indeed hadn't seen Rayleigh for many years. After the Roger Pirates disbanded, Rayleigh had been living in seclusion on Sabaody Archipelago. Because of his identity, Shanks rarely approached that island, as it was near Marine Headquarters. If he appeared, a fleet of Marine warships would likely be waiting for him...
"And... Luffy has also mentioned you to me!" Ian added, as if wanting to shock him further. "My junior brother Zoro is in Luffy's crew, and Luffy is Ace's younger brother. This time on Skypiea, we were all together..."
Shanks was completely dumbfounded. He had never imagined that besides his connection with Hawk-Eye, Ian had such deep ties with him!
He couldn't describe his feelings at that moment. Two people who should have been complete strangers, after chatting like this, suddenly discovered they were on the same side. It was truly incredible!
Shanks finally understood why Ian had called him "Brother." Shanks was about 37 years old, and Ian was only 20. With such deep connections between them, calling him "Brother" was perfectly natural...
"Wahahaha!" After recovering from his shock, Shanks burst into joyful laughter. If he had known this earlier, why had he hesitated so much? He should have just found Ian and had a drink with him.
Laughing heartily, he patted Ian's shoulder vigorously, then turned to shout at Ben Beckman on the Red Force across the way: "Ben! Come over! Hahaha, come meet our little brother! Let's start a banquet!"