One Piece: Hashirama Template

"Um... who are you?"

Shirahoshi was not sleeping at this time.

So, the sound of the door opening quickly caught the mermaid princess's attention.

Looking at Link walking in from the outside, Shirahoshi asked timidly.

However, judging by her appearance, she didn't seem to be afraid of Link.

Besides being one of the Three Ancient Weapons, Poseidon, Shirahoshi was a one-in-a-hundred-million chosen one, possessing a natural Observation Haki rarer than even Conqueror's Haki.

Like Patrick Redfield and Queen Otohime, Shirahoshi could hear the voices of others' hearts and could tell if someone was good or bad at a glance.

For the pure-hearted Shirahoshi, the way to distinguish a good person from a bad one was simple.

It was whether the other person was full of goodwill or malice toward her.

Because Vander Decken IX was full of malice and greed toward Shirahoshi, she had rejected his marriage proposal and was terrified of him.

Link, on the other hand, was filled with goodwill toward Shirahoshi.

Therefore, in Shirahoshi's eyes, Link was like the sun, radiating a warm glow.

Even though it was their first meeting, Shirahoshi wasn't afraid.

Perhaps out of habit, Shirahoshi pulled the blanket up, revealing only the top half of her head, her beautiful blue eyes curiously sizing up Link.

"Hello, Princess Shirahoshi."

Link instantly appeared on the desk beside the bed, waving to Shirahoshi. "My name is Link. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"...Hello, I'm Shirahoshi."

The polite Shirahoshi responded subconsciously.

Then, looking at Link's legs, Shirahoshi's eyes suddenly lit up. She asked with a slightly excited expression, "L... Lord Link, are you a human?"

Link nodded and smiled, "Yes, I'm from the land ten thousand meters above."

"Really?" Shirahoshi immediately emerged from her blanket, gripping the edge of the bed with both hands and moving her head closer to Link. She asked excitedly, "Then, Lord Link, have you seen the real sun, and flowers and animals?"

"Of course, everyone on the surface has seen them."

Link slowly recounted, "There are all sorts of incredible islands on the surface, like a city of water that's like a fountain, a winter island that's covered in snow all year round, an island that looks like a cactus, a primeval island where many ancient animals live, and even a sky island ten thousand meters in the air. I've seen them all."

"I'm so envious!"

Shirahoshi's eyes shone as she said with a look of longing.

Possessing natural Observation Haki, she knew clearly that Link was not lying, that such islands truly existed on the surface.

Shirahoshi, who already yearned for the surface world, wanted to see it even more.

But the next second, Shirahoshi's eyes dimmed.

Without resolving the problem of Vander Decken IX, she couldn't leave the Hard-Shell Tower. She couldn't even attend her own mother's funeral back then.

"Don't you want to go out and see?" Link suddenly asked.

"I do."

Shirahoshi first nodded, then shook her head. "I can't go out, or Father and my brothers will worry about me."

"Don't worry, you'll be able to go out soon."

Link smiled. "I've sent someone to find Vander Decken IX. I believe there will be results soon."

"Really?"

Shirahoshi's beautiful eyes instantly lit up. She looked at Link with anticipation and said, "Then can I leave the Hard-Shell Tower and go to the Sea Forest to pay my respects to Mother?"

"Not only can you go to the Sea Forest, you can also go to the surface with me."

Link extended his hand to Shirahoshi and smiled, "Let me introduce myself again. My name is Link, the new protector of Fish-Man Island, and also your captain."

"Really? Lord Link, you'll take me to the surface?"

Shirahoshi's beautiful eyes shone even brighter.

The innocent mermaid princess had no idea, nor did she care, about the meaning of the last part of Link's sentence.

She only judged based on her natural Observation Haki, knowing that this Lord Link was a good person, was currently helping her get rid of the trouble that was Vander Decken IX, and was going to fulfill her dream of taking her to the surface.

Therefore, Shirahoshi's affection for Link was soaring.

Link nodded and said, "Of course. From now on, we are companions and friends."

"Friends?"

Shirahoshi was slightly taken aback, then she asked excitedly, "Lord Link... you want to be Shirahoshi's friend?"

"What? Does Shirahoshi not want to be friends with me?" Link asked teasingly.

"No, no, no..."

Shirahoshi shook her head repeatedly, her voice stuttering.

Looking at Link's smiling face and his incredibly sincere emotions, Shirahoshi's eyes suddenly became moist. She reached out a finger to touch Link's palm, her voice choked with emotion, "I... I'm willing."

For those who didn't know, this scene might have looked like a marriage proposal.

Who would have thought that Shirahoshi was crying with joy just from making a friend?

Among the officially named Three Great Beauties, Hancock and Shirahoshi were the easiest to recruit.

To recruit Hancock, one must have a certain level of strength; otherwise, you might be turned to stone before you even speak.

Besides strength, one must also be qualified. This qualification required not fearing the Celestial Dragons, or helping her remove the Hoof of the Soaring Dragon brand, and not looking down on her for once being a slave.

Without a certain level of strength and qualification, Hancock was the most difficult to recruit.

Among the Three Great Beauties, only Shirahoshi was the easiest.

Because Shirahoshi had been in the Hard-Shell Tower since she was six, her mental state hadn't grown much. She was a kind and lovely child.

It's just that this child possessed a special ability to see the good and evil in a person.

To win over Shirahoshi, one only needed to be sincere.

This was something Link was best at.

Towards the female characters he liked, Link was always sincere.

Because he didn't just want to win their person, he wanted to win their heart.

So, in Shirahoshi's eyes, Link was now a good person radiating a golden light, a hero who descended from the heavens to pull her out of the darkness, and her very first friend.

And just like that, the mermaid princess whose beauty was renowned throughout the world despite being confined to the Hard-Shell Tower, praised by all and said to be a match for the world's most beautiful woman, was secured.

The difficulty of recruiting her was as simple as Hancock's.

And just like with Hancock, her affection was maxed out right from the start, unlike with Carina, where there was a barrier that needed time to be broken down.

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