"Crack~"
"Boom!"
A terrifying roar echoed as the sky turned black in the blink of an eye, startling the group who had been fishing.
"So soon...?"
"Hey, Nami, what's going on?"
Nami, who had also heard the noise, rushed out from the cabin and stood beside Meiser, gazing at the sea.
"The fish are fleeing..."
Nami's expression changed as she clearly sensed something amiss.
"A huge school of fish just swam away—what does that mean?"
"Dammit, these guys aren't even biting the hook..."
"Hey, is this really the time to worry about whether they're biting or not?" Usopp yelled with a shark-like grimace. "Nami's face is practically screaming 'something's very wrong right now'!"
"Nami, what exactly is happening?"
Before Nami could answer, the sea underwent a shocking transformation. In an instant, countless whirlpools appeared across the surface!
These whirlpools spread across the waters ahead, their momentum terrifying.
"It's the Wandering Serpent Current!"
"The Wandering Serpent Current...? What's that?"
The crew looked at Nami with confusion—this was the first time they'd heard such a term.
What the heck is that?
"Boom!!"
The sea trembled violently as massive streams of water erupted from the whirlpools, writhing wildly in the air like enormous sea serpents!
"So... that's why it's called the Wandering Serpent Current..."
At that moment, Usopp and the others finally understood the origin of the name—it truly resembled giant snakes.
"Hey, everyone, stop gawking! The current's coming at us!" Nami shouted in alarm.
"Boom!!"
An enormous serpentine current surged toward the Thousand Sunny at incredible speed.
"Two-Sword Style: Seventy-Two Pound Phoenix!"
"Whoosh~"
"Boom!!"
A razor-sharp Flying Slash effortlessly shattered the current, reducing it to harmless seawater that splashed onto the deck.
"Seawater... seawater...?"
Chopper, drenched by the current, immediately weakened.
"This isn't working. If we keep blocking like this, we'll be at a disadvantage."
"Nami, what should I do?" Merry asked. "Which direction should we go?"
Everywhere they looked, these massive currents surrounded them. She had no idea which way to escape.
Thinking quickly, Merry added, "Can we use Wind Breath?"
Nami, observing through binoculars, grimaced. "No... even Wind Breath won't get us out..."
"There's no end in sight..."
Even with the binoculars, she couldn't see where these currents ended—it was as if the entire sea had been engulfed by the Wandering Serpent Current.
"How can this be...?"
"Then let's charge in one direction until we break through!"
"Break through?" Usopp turned to Meiser. "How? Which way?"
They could use Wind Breath to make the ship fly or have Meiser lift the vessel with Ninjutsu.
But the problem was... without knowing the right direction, reckless movement might plunge them into even more dangerous waters.
"These currents are flying high, so we'll go even higher!" Meiser looked at Nami and said, "Nami, tell me the direction!"
Seeing the extremely serious look in Meiser's eyes, Nami frowned in thought before lowering her gaze to the Log Pose in her hand.
"Straight ahead, full speed ahead."
At this moment, Nami also understood Meiser's intention.
If they headed toward Fish-Man Island, they might just break through these currents!
No matter what, it was better than staying here waiting to die.
"Understood."
Meiser nodded, then activated his Ninjutsu.
The next moment, the sea beneath the ship began to tremble violently, and an enormous Water Dragon surged forth, lifting the Thousand Sunny onto its head.
Witnessing this, Brook remarked, "This Water Release Technique is so convenient..."
"Yohohohoho~"
"Everyone, hold on tight!"
"BOOM!!"
Under Meiser's control, the colossal Water Dragon began moving straight ahead, forcibly surpassing the height of all the currents as it charged rapidly into the distance.
However, to Meiser's surprise, the currents seemed to have gained consciousness, frantically attacking the Water Dragon beneath the Thousand Sunny as if trying to shatter it.
"BAM!"
"BAM!"
"BAM!"
"Hey hey hey, don't tell me these currents are sentient?!" Usopp exclaimed in shock.
It clearly looked like they were unwilling to let them leave.
"No, it's because Meiser's Water Dragon is affecting the surroundings, which is drawing those currents toward us."
Nami, leaning over the ship's edge to observe, quickly analyzed the crux of the problem.
"So they're not sentient after all..."
"Idiot! If they were really sentient, we'd have been wiped out already!" Nami snapped irritably.
If all these currents had consciousness, they would have attacked them immediately.
But clearly, that wasn't the case.
And so, under Meiser's control, the Water Dragon carried the Thousand Sunny, quickly covering a great distance.
"Why haven't we gotten out yet...?"
"Hey, Nami, does this thing really have no end?"
"No, I can already see the end..." Nami, holding a telescope, pointed excitedly ahead. "I can see the Red Line!"
At these words, everyone's faces lit up with excitement.
Spotting the Red Line meant... they were already halfway there!
The thought made them even more exhilarated.
"Ahahaha, does that mean we'll reach Fish-Man Island soon?" Sanji cheered.
Sanji twisted his body excitedly on the deck, brimming with enthusiasm.
"Whoa!"
"Fish-Man Island!"
"Fish-Man Island!"
"Fish-Man Island!"
Luffy and the others also cheered, linking arms and jumping around, making Meiser's blood pressure spike.
"You idiots, hold on tight!" Meiser bellowed, his shark-like mouth wide open. "Don't fall off!"
Just as Meiser spoke, several serpentine currents appeared again, slamming violently into the Water Dragon and causing a massive tremor.
"BOOM!!"
"Ah!"
Caught off guard, Chopper was sent flying into the distance.
"Chopper!"
Luffy's expression changed instantly as he stretched out his arm to grab the other person.
"Gum-Gum Catch!"
His extended arm accurately seized Chopper's short legs, yanking him back forcefully.
"Thud~"
"I...I almost died..."
Chopper, who had fallen onto the deck, was so frightened that tears streamed down his face. If he had fallen into the sea below, he would have been done for.
Whew.
"Thank goodness you're okay..."
"Okay my foot, you idiots!" Meiser shouted. "Hold on tight, everyone! I'm speeding up!"
"Got it!"
"BOOM!!"
Under Meiser's control, the massive Water Dragon suddenly accelerated, smashing through the oncoming currents and forcefully breaking free from the encircling serpentine whirlpools.
The moment they escaped that sea area, the color of the sky began to change.
The dark clouds gradually dissipated, replaced by a bright, clear sky!
"We...we made it!!"
"Woohoo!!"
Glancing back at the terrifying sea they had just left, Chopper wiped the water from his forehead and said, "The Grand Line is really scary..."
If they had been even slightly weaker, they might have been swallowed by that dreadful sea.
"The Grand Line isn't just terrifying because of its enemies—it's also full of bizarre seas and unpredictable weather," Nico Robin chimed in. "That's why it's called the graveyard of pirates."
Weaker pirates who can't even handle the weather at sea end up being devoured by the ocean.
"Hahaha, that just makes it more fun, doesn't it?"
"Heh, you're right."
"Hahaha!"
Rather than frightening Meiser and the others, Robin's words only excited them further.
Sailing through one uneventful sea after another would have been downright boring. Like before, when they spent an entire day without even spotting a single bird—that was truly dull. Aside from fishing to pass the time, they really hadn't known what else to do.
"Nami, now that we can see the Red Line, which way should we go next?"
As he spoke, Meiser lowered the Thousand Sunny back onto the sea's surface and dispelled his Ninjutsu. Since they had escaped that dangerous area, there was no need to keep wasting Chakra.
"Let me check."
Nami glanced at the Log Pose in her hand. Although the needle had tilted slightly, it still pointed straight ahead. Though puzzled, she said, "Straight ahead."
"Got it!"
Soon, under Merry's control, the Thousand Sunny steadily approached the base of the Red Line.
"So this is the Red Line..."
Chopper stared in awe at the towering mountain that seemed to pierce the clouds, his eyes wide with amazement. Just how massive was it?
"Yep, this is the Red Line!!"
"Feels nostalgic..."
"Yeah, hahaha."
"The last time we saw this was at the entrance to the Grand Line."
"Laboon is on the other side of this continent, right?" Brook said.
"That's right."
"Yohohoho~"
Brook laughed, his mind involuntarily picturing the day he would finally reunite with Laboon.
That little guy... no, that big guy.
He must be eagerly waiting for this day to come!
"Anyway, we've made it halfway here," Luffy grinned, showing his teeth. "It's really great that everyone arrived safely."
"As long as we circle half the world and see this Red Line again... I'll be the Pirate King!"
"HAHAHA!"
Watching Luffy laugh heartily, the others joined in.
It wasn't just Luffy who was looking forward to that day—they all were.
They couldn't wait for the day Luffy would become the Pirate King!
After the laughter subsided, Luffy turned to Nami and asked, "Nami, which way should we go now?"
He was already eager to begin the next leg of their journey.
"Well..."
Nami glanced at the Log Pose in her hand, her expression troubled.
"What's wrong?"
"This Log Pose situation is similar to when we encountered Skypiea," Nami explained. "It's a bit tricky."
Clearly, reaching Fish-Man Island wasn't something they could achieve through normal sailing—after all... Fish-Man Island was 10,000 meters beneath the sea!
But since Kokoro said it was possible, there must be some way.
Lost in thought, Nami pondered deeply.
"Skypiea?"
Usopp's head tilted in confusion before he looked up at the Red Line. "So... we have to climb it?"
Hearing Usopp's words, Franky instinctively turned his gaze toward the towering cliff.
Franky: "..."
"That's impossible!" Franky roared, his shark-like mouth wide open. "The Thousand Sunny is amazing, but it can't climb up on its own!"
"It hasn't eaten a Zoan-type Devil Fruit!"
As he spoke, Franky recalled Spandam's weapon—the one that could transform into an elephant.
Though he didn't know how it worked, the fact that such a phenomenon existed meant even inanimate objects could consume Devil Fruits!
If their Thousand Sunny had eaten, say, a gecko-type Devil Fruit, maybe it really could climb.
But unfortunately, that wasn't an option right now.
"A ship eating a Devil Fruit? That's ridiculous," Sanji quipped.
"Then tell me how we're supposed to climb it?"
"When we first entered the Grand Line, we rode the Reverse Mountain's current," Usopp said. "But there's no current here..."
"Current?"
At those words, the group instinctively turned to Meiser, their meaning obvious.
Why don't you give it a try?
Meiser: "..."
Meiser studied the towering mountain before them. After some thought, he realized that with Water Release, it might actually work.
"Should I... try?"
"Try what?!" Nami snapped, snapping out of her thoughts. "Fish-Man Island isn't in the sky—what would we do at the top?"
Meiser: "???"
Meiser stared at Nami in bewilderment. Wasn't she the one who said it was similar to Skypiea?
"I said the situation is similar to Skypiea, but we're not going to the sky," Nami clarified. "Fish-Man Island is 10,000 meters under the sea! Did any of you even listen to what Kokoro said?"
"Nope."
Nami: "..."
Nami sighed in exasperation. Now that she thought about it, she and Kokoro had been the only ones in the room at the time.
In that case, it's normal they wouldn't know.
What surprised Nami was that even Robin was unaware... It seems this knowledgeable historian doesn't know everything either.
Noticing Nami's gaze, Robin spread her hands and said, "While I know many things, I'm not omniscient."
Though she's read countless books, that doesn't mean she knows everything in the world.
Nami nodded in understanding.
"So we're not going up a mountain, but descending into the sea..." Meiser stroked his chin while looking at the ocean surface. "But how do we take the ship down to 10,000 meters?"
The water pressure at that depth would be terrifyingly immense - far beyond what ordinary people could withstand.
Even if he could handle it, the others might not, especially while bringing the Pirate Ship
along.
"If Fish-Man Island truly exists, there must be some way to reach it," Nico Robin said.
"That makes sense."
"How about... we use Shark Submerge III to scout ahead?" Franky suggested. "Its maximum depth is 5,000 meters. While it can't reach Fish-Man Island directly, we might discover something useful."
"Shark Submerge III, huh?" Meiser's eyes lit up with interest. "Count me in then."
"Yosh!" Luffy cheered excitedly. "Alright crew, our undersea adventure begins now!"
"Ooooh!"