The massive silver airship slowly descended above Zou.
Below, Luffy and the others stared up at it, a nagging sense of familiarity tugging at their minds—but they just couldn't recall where they'd seen it before.
"Hahahaha…!"
As the ship drew closer to Zou, a wild, manic laugh erupted from above.
"Haha… I've finally returned to this land! I will rule it once more.
Your god has returned!"
"God?"
Hearing those words from the sky, the crew's confusion began to clear. Their memories gradually sharpened—until suddenly, as if all at once, they realized something.
"Eh!!"
Everyone's eyes went wide as they stared at the silver ship.
"N-no way… it couldn't be… that guy?"
Luffy's eyes widened in disbelief, his mind flashing back to a man with long earlobes, his whole body crackling with lightning.
The tone of that voice, the outline of the ship—bit by bit, they overlapped perfectly with the figure from Sky Island.
And the image in Luffy's mind was exactly the same as what was resurfacing in the minds of the others.
Only a few, who had never met him before, remained puzzled.
"Do you guys… know that ship?"
Franky, ever the craftsman, was struck by the unique design of the vessel. His eyes gleamed with curiosity as he asked.
"He's a dangerous one."
"Looks like trouble's on the way."
Zoro and Sanji's expressions hardened as they spoke.
Remembering his powers, they knew full well—among the entire crew, only Luffy had any real way of countering that terrifying Devil Fruit.
And after all these years, who knew how much stronger he'd become?
The Straw Hats tensed, standing at the ready, their eyes locked on the looming silver ship. Memories resurfaced—memories no one expected to face again in this place.
And thinking back on that man's madness—madness bordering on deranged obsession—everyone but Luffy wore grim faces.
They knew: aside from their captain, none of them would come away unscathed against him.
Yes, they'd grown strong enough to strike Logia users now. But against someone who moved as fast as lightning itself? That was a nightmare.
"Heh heh heh… what a surprise. I've only just returned from the great land of the moon, and already I run into you…"
"Fate really is amusing, isn't it? How about it—want to join me in conquering this world?"
"What?!!"
As everyone's focus remained fixed on the ship above, a mocking, detached voice suddenly sounded—right behind them.
The crew spun around in disbelief.
And there he was: the long-eared man, standing among them as if he'd been there all along.
They were all stunned speechless.
"Eh… uh, what was his name again…?"
Even as everyone braced themselves for battle, Luffy broke the silence with a typically reckless question.
Hearing him, the others felt a chill run down their spines.
Crack!
Enel twitched, a vein bulging on his forehead—clearly irritated that Luffy had forgotten his name.
Back then, his lightning powers had been useless against Luffy. Seeing his old nemesis now only stoked his fury further.
And yet—strangely—there was no real hatred in his heart this time. Only a simmering annoyance.
Clenching his jaw, he forced out:
"Enel! Remember it, Straw Hat!"
On the vast, boundless moon, he had witnessed many things—learned even more. His newfound knowledge had elevated him.
Though he still carried himself with that same "godly" air, his manner was… far easier than before.
"Oh, Enel! Welcome back!"
Luffy grinned wide, responding cheerfully without a trace of fear.
For a moment, Enel froze. That smile… it didn't annoy him. If anything, it stirred something long forgotten—perhaps a faint longing born of too much solitude.
The crew, on the other hand, nearly choked.
They had been bracing for disaster. But instead… the scene unfolding before them was nothing like they expected.
Enel stepped up to Luffy, raised a fist—and knocked him lightly on the head.
"That damn face of yours… somehow, I missed it."
His proud, icy features softened into something almost warm, a smile like one worn when seeing an old comrade.
"Leaving this world back then… that was my mistake. If I'd known things down here were this interesting, I'd never have gone up there."
Whether speaking to himself or to them, Enel muttered these words before casually strolling over to a nearby table and helping himself to the fruit piled there.
The sudden shift left the Straw Hats completely dumbfounded.
"What the—?! Turns out he's easy to get along with! Scared me half to death… well, not that I'm alive anyway, yohohoho!"
Brook cracked a joke, then, satisfied that no fight was breaking out, turned toward Robin with his usual flirtatious antics.
The rest of the crew, however, couldn't believe their eyes.
What on earth happened to this guy?
If the Enel they once knew had been cold and arrogant, then this one was like a bizarre mix of arrogance, street-thug charm, and chatterbox tendencies.
Sitting with no care for his image, tearing into fruit like a glutton, Enel froze mid-bite when he noticed everyone staring at him.
Pointing at the fruit in front of him, he stammered awkwardly:
"Th-this… it's not poisoned, is it?"
"Bwahaha! Of course not!"
Luffy laughed, plopping down beside him and cramming two apples into his mouth at once.
"Whew… you had me worried there!"
Enel sighed in relief, then went right back to devouring his meal.
The abrupt change was almost too much for the others to process—especially Zoro and those who had fought him before.
"Chopper… is this guy mentally unstable?"
Nami, standing closest to the little reindeer, whispered while keeping her wary eyes on Enel.
Chopper, remembering full well what Enel used to be like, frowned deeply.
He studied the man whose behavior was utterly at odds with his memories. After a long silence, he finally muttered:
"This guy… he's seriously messed up.
It's like… he's just been alone for way, way too long."
With his powerful Mantra, Enel had caught Chopper's words instantly. His hand froze mid-bite, and he turned to stare at the doctor.
Chopper's heart leapt in his chest. He snapped his mouth shut, trembling.
They locked eyes for several tense seconds—until Enel suddenly smirked, as if it were nothing, and simply went back to eating his fruit.
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