Chapter 62 – Opening a Sea Route Through the Red Line!
"Hey, Akira."
"You've been staying in the Land of Wano all this time. That means you've never actually gone to the first half of the Grand Line, right?"
Vice Admiral Gion, known as Peach Rabbit, frowned as she asked a very realistic question.
"From the New World to Paradise, there are only three routes in total."
She raised three fingers.
"The first route is through the 'Holy Land' Mariejois—either flying over the Red Line or using the World Government's lift. But that's the territory of the Tenryuubito. If we steer this ship there, we'll definitely be treated as target practice."
"The second route is through Fish-Man Island, ten thousand meters under the sea. But this ship doesn't have bubble coating at all. It can't dive."
"The third route…"
Momousagi pointed toward a certain region of the sea.
"…is passing through the Calm Belt. There are giant Sea Kings there, but this ship should still be able to handle them."
Gion looked straight at Akira.
"So, which route are you choosing to get to Marineford?"
Hearing that, Akira smiled.
He didn't answer Gion's question.
Instead, he walked straight up to the helm.
"Which route do we have to take?"
Akira placed his hand on the massive steering wheel.
"Who said I had to use a 'route'?"
"Huh?"
Momousagi froze.
Before she could even react—
"Hold on tight!!"
Akira shouted in a low voice.
He suddenly twisted the wheel with tremendous force!
BOOM—!!!
The Moby Dick let out a thunderous roar!
The ship didn't turn toward Fish-Man Island.
Nor did it head for the Calm Belt.
Instead—
It charged straight ahead!
Toward the gigantic barrier that stood at the center of the world, splitting the Grand Line into two halves—
The Red Line!
"Are you insane?!"
Gion's face turned deathly pale in shock!
"That's the Red Line right in front of us!!"
"You're going to smash us to death against the Red Line?!"
"Die from a collision?"
Akira snorted coldly, his tone full of disdain.
"Who said I want to die?"
"What I want is—"
A terrifying light burst from Akira's eyes.
"TO OPEN A PATH!!"
"O-Open a path?!"
Gion was completely stunned.
She stared at the rapidly approaching Red Line, the crimson cliffs towering into the clouds like a wall separating heaven and earth, filling one with despair.
"You mean…"
Gion's voice trembled.
"You want to… open a route straight through the Red Line?!"
"You're joking… right?!"
"Why would I joke?"
Akira nodded calmly.
"If there's no road, then we'll make one. Isn't that perfectly reasonable?"
"What kind of logic is that?!"
Gion roared in despair.
"You should know! It's precisely because the Red Line exists that so many pirates are blocked and can't easily enter the New World!"
"This is the boundary of the world! The foundation of order!"
"If you break through the Red Line…"
Gion pointed toward the sea.
"Wouldn't that mean… pirates from the Four Blues could freely enter the New World?!"
"At that point, what kind of chaos would the New World fall into?!"
"That's right."
Akira snapped his fingers.
"You're not wrong."
"That's exactly the goal."
"..."
Gion fell silent.
"Look."
Akira turned around and leaned against the helm, wearing that familiar "scheming merchant" expression.
"Later, I'll build collection checkpoints here at fixed intervals. Multiple checkpoints can even be set up inside a single tunnel."
"First, we squeeze every last berry out of the ships that pass through. Again and again."
"Then—"
"Once they reach Dressrosa—"
"I'll directly convert them from 'pirates'…"
"Into my very own 'working cattle.'"
Akira spread his arms wide.
"Like that, wouldn't the number of pirates in the world drop drastically?"
"Wouldn't this be… a huge contribution to world security?"
"..."
Gion's mouth fell open.
She stared at Akira blankly.
Even though what he said sounded absurdly ridiculous and reeked of rotten capitalist thinking…
For some reason…
"Why do I feel like… your twisted logic actually makes sense?"
A trace of doubt crept into Gion's heart.
If idle pirates could truly be turned into "workers" with jobs, that might be far more effective than simply arresting them and throwing them into Impel Down!
"But still…"
Momousagi came back to her senses and looked at the immovable Red Line.
"Even if you want to open a path…"
"This Red Line… breaking through it should be extremely difficult, right?"
"Difficult?"
Akira smiled.
"For ordinary people, it's impossible."
"But for me—"
Akira let go of the steering wheel.
He slowly walked toward the bow.
"This isn't a problem."
Before he finished speaking—
Boom!
Akira's figure vanished from where he stood!
The next instant—
He appeared right in front of the steep cliff of the Red Line!
"Watch closely!!"
Akira roared in a low voice!
He didn't use any Divine Manifestation Technique.
Nor did he use any flashy move.
Just a simple, straightforward punch!
BANG!!!!
A heavy impact echoed through the air!
The unbelievably hard rock of the Red Line shattered before Akira's fist like tofu!
Fragments of stone exploded outward!
A deep hole roughly ten meters in diameter instantly appeared in the crimson cliff!
"..."
On the ship.
Momousagi stared at the "ten-meter-wide hole."
Before she realized it, she laughed.
"Pfft…"
"This is what you call 'opening a path'?"
Gion pointed at the hole and mocked him mercilessly.
"Isn't it… way too narrow?"
"Even a small ship couldn't get through, right?"
"Let alone a giant ship like the one we're on!"
"You don't understand anything."
Akira stood at the edge of the hole, brushing dust off his hands.
He turned his head and shot Gion an annoyed glance.
"If I make it too big right away—"
"Wouldn't that let too many pirates through?"
"If that happens, my money would escape."
"..."
Gion fell silent again.
Is this guy… really obsessed with money to this extent?
"But…"
Gion pointed at the Moby Dick beneath their feet.
"Our ship still can't pass."
"A ship this size would need a passage dozens of meters wide, wouldn't it?"
"Who said we have to bring the ship through?"
Akira looked at Gion like she'd just said something incredibly stupid.
"..."
"What's the point of bringing the ship?"
Akira pointed toward the sea below.
"Get off the ship."
"And get ready to swim with me."
"S-Swim?!"
Gion was completely dumbfounded.
This was the Red Line!
How could anyone possibly swim here?!
"That's right."
Akira showed a devilish grin.
"We'll swim while—"
"DIGGING A TUNNEL!!"
"This is a journey and 'training' at the same time!!"
"It's just a shame… the Red Line can't be used to gain Layer Accumulation!"
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