When Davy Jones and his crew returned to the area surrounding the Terror Ghost, the sight of the harbor—crushed like shredded paper—was enough to tell them just how intense the battle had been.
They stepped onto the groaning gangplank extending from the ship and boarded the Terror Ghost. Buggy was the first to greet them.
"Captain, welcome back!" he said proudly, patting his shiny red nose, which gleamed under the sunlight. "I successfully repelled the enemy, took down their leader, and protected the Terror Ghost!"
Though Davy Jones knew the truth—that the ship had done more to protect Buggy than the other way around—he still nodded and said, "Well done."
Then, he turned to Hatchan. "Call for Momoo."
"Yes…" Hatchan, despite his pain, leaned over the railing with all six arms and shouted out to sea, "Moo! Moo!"
Moments later, the surface of the sea rippled violently.
A massive dark shadow emerged. With a thunderous splash, the sea cow surfaced, towering over the Terror Ghost and gazing down at the ship.
Buggy, despite having seen sea beasts before, was still startled by the sudden appearance of such a colossal creature—his head even popped off in shock.
Momoo first spotted Hatchan and showed a friendly desire to approach. But the moment it saw Davy Jones, it shivered visibly.
Slowly, Momoo began sinking back into the sea.
Just as its horns were about to vanish beneath the waves, Hatchan called out anxiously, "Momoo, come back! Don't be scared! I made a deal with Captain Davy Jones—he won't hurt us!"
A while later, Momoo cautiously resurfaced, peeking out at the ship from beneath the waves.
"Tell him," Davy Jones instructed. "Beneath this ship, there's an abyssal whirlpool. It's spacious enough to hold him. He can stay there and travel with us wherever the ship goes."
Though Hatchan didn't quite grasp what Davy Jones meant, he was good at repeating things word-for-word.
Momoo feared Davy Jones, but trusted Hatchan completely.
So, after Hatchan relayed the message and reassured him repeatedly, Momoo finally dove beneath the Terror Ghost. As expected, the abyssal whirlpool swallowed him whole.
When he opened his eyes inside the abyss, Momoo found himself in an entirely new world—a miniature sea within the deep.
Countless fragments of shipwrecks floated upward, merging into the Terror Ghost, while broken limbs and debris sank to the abyssal floor, feeding the strange fish that swam there.
This would now be Momoo's new home.
Once Momoo was confirmed to be safely inside the abyss, Davy Jones gave the order for the Terror Ghost to set sail again.
A thick sea fog cloaked the surroundings, enveloping the ship and erasing all traces of its presence.
The Terror Ghost departed the broad coastal waters around Cocoyasi Village and headed into the deep sea, its movements hidden within the blinding white mist.
This time, its course was unmistakably set toward the entrance of the Grand Line—Reverse Mountain.
---
One day and night later...
Alvida, having removed her wide-brimmed white hat, let her black hair fall as she spread a yellowed nautical chart over a round table marked with swirling tree-ring patterns. With her fingertip, she pointed to the exact location of Reverse Mountain.
Combining intelligence she had gathered through her charms with the firsthand experience of Buggy and Hatchan—both of whom had spent time in the Grand Line—she briefed the crew.
"Reverse Mountain, which sits at the Red Line, has five rivers. Four of them flow upward, pulling seawater from the four Blues to the summit. Those streams converge into the fifth river—which flows directly into the Grand Line."
Hatchan, wrapped in layers of bandages, stretched his neck from his chair, staring earnestly at the map—even if he barely understood it.
When he had traveled to the East Blue with Arlong, they'd taken a deep-sea route. This strange sea route was new to him, and he was quite curious.
"Once we descend from Reverse Mountain, we'll be in the Grand Line," Alvida continued.
"There, winds and currents become erratic. The climate and environment grow more dangerous. If we rely on instinct and experience alone, we'll get lost easily. That's why I suggest that the first thing we do upon entering is buy a Log Pose."
A Log Pose could be thought of as an advanced compass—perfectly suited to the Grand Line's chaotic nature.
Once a crew stays long enough on an island, the Log Pose locks onto the magnetic field of the next island and provides a reliable heading.
"If only we could travel via the Calm Belt…" Buggy leaned back in his chair, hands behind his head, red nose pointing upward, looking completely relaxed. "But unfortunately, that's the nesting ground of Sea Kings. Even getting close can drag a ship to the bottom."
The Calm Belt flanks both sides of the Grand Line, forming a natural blockade between it and the four Blues.
Its climate is calm—literally windless—but unless a ship has a way to move without sails and defend against Sea Kings, it's suicide to enter.
Davy Jones had considered going through the Calm Belt—and even capturing a Sea King to help them travel.
But the abyss beneath the Terror Ghost already housed Momoo, and there was little room left. Plus, he didn't yet have a way to tame a Sea King. So, he set that idea aside.
As for intimidating Sea Kings, he could try using his sporadic bursts of Conqueror's Haki—but long-term taming would require another method entirely.
Kuro adjusted his glasses and offered no comment. He knew little about the Grand Line, having only heard scattered rumors.
Alvida paused before continuing, "With a Log Pose, we'll be guided onto one of seven fixed routes. We'll follow one of them through the Grand Line's first half—known as Paradise."
Though the Grand Line was also called the "Pirates' Graveyard," its first half being known as "Paradise" seemed contradictory—but also made sense.
Compared to the New World, the Grand Line's second half, Paradise was a playground for pirates. With some strength and luck, one could establish themselves there.
Countless pirates who had failed in the New World retreated to Paradise—either giving up piracy altogether, or lying low until they were ready to return stronger.
The boundary between Paradise and the New World was again the Red Line.
"The captain's destination—Fish-Man Island—lies beneath the Red Line, at the end of Paradise and the entrance to the New World," Alvida concluded, sitting back down.
Then, the more familiar voice to the topic—Hatchan—picked up.
"Fish-Man Island is down below." Surprisingly, that was all he said, as if even he wasn't sure what more to add. "The Flying Dutchman is down there too."
Davy Jones hadn't hidden his desire to go to Fish-Man Island and claim the Flying Dutchman.
Whether or not his crew connected the dots between his current title, "The Deep Sea Reaper," and that legendary ghost ship—he didn't really care.
Hatchan wasn't trying to be subtle. He just didn't quite understand what was going on. "Captain, actually—I know Vander Decken. When we get there, I can talk to him. Maybe he'll hand the ship over."
"You know the current captain of the Flying Dutchman?" Davy Jones wasn't offended by Hatchan's informality. He knew the Fish-Man's nature. "What kind of person is he?"
"Not easy to deal with," Hatchan scratched his head with one arm, his back with the other two. "Back when Arlong invited him to come to the East Blue, he turned it down. Said he wasn't willing to be anyone's subordinate."
A proud Fish-Man who refused to serve under others—fitting, perhaps, for a ship like the Flying Dutchman. Davy Jones just hoped he'd keep it safe until his arrival.
As he thought this, he nodded.
"Ah!" Hatchan's eyes suddenly widened as he remembered something. "Captain, back in our Fish-Man District, there's this young guy named Hody Jones—same last name as you! What a coincidence! Do you two know each other?"
Hody Jones?
"I don't know him," Davy Jones shook his head, though now a bit curious. "What's he like?"
"He really admired our old boss, Fisher Tiger, and Arlong. He'd always come to us, asking about them."
Fisher Tiger? Another new name.
Davy Jones didn't press further. Of all the information presented, only Vander Decken was relevant to him.
However, the names Fisher Tiger and Hody Jones caused visible reactions from Kuro, Alvida, and especially Buggy.
Buggy, who had been to the Grand Line, gave Hatchan's forehead—a tattoo of the sun—a long, meaningful look, and nodded to himself.
Fisher Tiger—the man who once climbed the Red Line with his bare hands, broke into Mary Geoise, and freed slaves of all races. His heroic deeds had spread across the Grand Line and the four seas.
Even the most ruthless pirates couldn't help but respect a man who had dared declare war on the World Government. But such bravery also led to a tragic end.
With the planning meeting concluded, the crew had a clear understanding of the voyage ahead—and began preparing.
Hatchan, still recovering, remained in his room, but would emerge at mealtimes to call for Momoo and feed him.
The food came from various sources: some caught at sea by Kuro, others purchased by Alvida from small towns along the way.
Sometimes, Momoo would catch his own "snacks," bringing fresh meat to the Terror Ghost in return.
Alvida managed food, water, alcohol, tobacco, clothing, and other essentials—and also handled Buggy's shopping list.
With the tools, metals, and powders she brought back, Buggy made Buggy Bombs, or maintained and upgraded weapons: Alvida's iron club, Kuro's claws, and Hatchan's new blades.
He had already dismantled Krieg's armor completely, and fully understood the mechanisms behind its various gadgets.
And so, in the rhythm of sea voyages and harbor stops, the Terror Ghost drew ever closer to Reverse Mountain.
PS: Access advance (100+) chapters at