"This is the greatest sea in the world! We finally made it!"
Luffy sat on the sheep's head at the bow, gazing happily at the vast, endless ocean below. After climbing the high Reverse Mountain and piercing through the clouds, their ship continued to ride the upward-surging current, climbing still higher.
After Tom grabbed Luffy's hand and returned to the Merry, and was pulled aside by Nami for a quick questioning, he couldn't wait to run to the bow with Luffy, shouting and cheering excitedly.
The clear blue sky above and the seawater rapidly climbing the canal shone brilliantly together. The upward-rushing current crashed against a corner at the peak ahead, spraying countless tiny water droplets into the air.
Under the sunlight, the water droplets sparkled like stars. Luffy and the others, all gathered at the bow and looking up from below, saw what looked like countless stars shimmering beneath the blue sky. It was daytime, yet they could see a dazzling starry sky—a truly dreamlike sensation.
Luffy sat on the Merry's sheep figurehead. Tom and Nami stood on the port side of the bow, while Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji stood on the other side.
Nami leaned on the bow railing. The constant sea breeze made her beautiful orange short hair flutter. She glanced at Tom beside her and realized that, before she knew it, they were standing extremely close. The slightest movement would make them touch.
Seeing Tom staring intently ahead, completely absorbed in his thoughts, a glint of mischief sparkled in Nami's lively eyes. Her gaze shifted, and with a slender hand, she flicked some of the spray flying toward them onto Tom's face.
"What are you doing?"
Coming back to his senses, Tom felt his face was wet. The storm had stopped after the ship broke through the cloud layer. He was wondering why he felt damp—turns out Nami beside him had splashed him.
"What's the big deal? Isn't this nice?"
Nami laughed cheerfully, her face sporting a brilliantly sunny smile.
"You're so dumb. Who likes having water thrown in their face?"
As Tom spoke, he also used his hand to flick spray from the waves back at Nami.
The ship continued its climb on the upward current. The young man and woman on board kept splashing each other's faces. Droplets landed on Nami's fair skin, and for some reason, she seemed to laugh even more happily.
"Hey, stinky fisherman! How dare you bully Miss Nami!"
Sanji righteously stepped forward to help Nami.
"You're not kids anymore."
Zoro, seeing Sanji grab water and hurl it at Tom, said with a thick black line on his forehead. But the moment he finished, Usopp beside him splashed water right in his face. Zoro immediately retaliated in kind, but unfortunately, Usopp pulled out a water pistol, leaving Zoro completely outmatched.
Usopp had bought the water pistol at the tool shop in Loguetown. The shopkeeper had told him it was once used by the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger. He only realized he'd been tricked after buying it, but now it finally came in handy.
"Is this really that fun for you guys?"
Luffy turned his head to look at Tom and the others playing with water on the ship. Sitting on the sheep figurehead, he watched the spray flying toward him. He thought for a moment, crossed and intertwined his arms, plunged them into the large patch of spray ahead, and started spinning them rapidly, churning the water and spraying it toward the ship: "Check this out! Rubber Sprinkler!"
Tom and the others on the ship were soon drenched by the barrage of water flying from the front like gunfire. All five of them shouted at Luffy sitting on the figurehead: "Stop it, you idiot!"
When the Merry, following the upward current, reached the peak of Reverse Mountain, the current sent the ship flying into the air. It burst through the countless tiny water droplets, then landed on a steep, long slope behind the corner. Riding the current, it sailed down this slope and smoothly passed the Twin Capes.
Being so high up, when Luffy and the others looked down at the sea, they could also see vast expanses of white clouds floating in the air.
"When I reach the end of the Grand Line, Laugh Tale, I'll be the greatest hunter in the world!"
"Mihawk is in that Grand Line!"
"All Blue is in that sea!"
"I will become a brave warrior of the sea!"
"I will draw a map of the whole world!"
As their ship sailed downward, Luffy and the others all gazed at the endless sea beyond the white clouds ahead, each thinking of their own goals. The determination in their eyes and the confidence on their faces, greater than ever before, showed they were truly ready to enter the Grand Line.
"I see the Grand Line! The One Piece is right ahead!"
Luffy, barely making out the boundless sea in the distance ahead, said excitedly.
Some time later, Luffy and the others' ship finally arrived safely in the waters of the Grand Line.
"We've reached the Grand Line!"
Luffy jumped down from the sheep figurehead, stood at the bow, raised his arms high, and shouted excitedly to Tom and the others.
"Alright! Yeah!"
The moment Tom and the others cheered, they heard a tremendous roar: "HOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOH!"
This sudden beastly roar nearly shattered the eardrums of everyone on board. Even their ship shook from the massive sound waves.
"Tell me that sound was you, right?"
Usopp's face turned green, his legs trembling as he asked Tom beside him.
"I really wish I was the one who made that sound."
Hearing the enormous roar, Tom knew exactly what was making it. His expression changed, and he urgently said to Luffy and the others, "Our ship needs to leave this area, fast! I'm certain there's a giant whale nearby!"
"Lower the sails! Use the oars! We need to get away at top speed!"
Hearing Tom's words, Nami immediately panicked. The moment she finished speaking, another deafening roar echoed. Her ears throbbed painfully from the sound.
No one doubted what Tom had just said. If this guy couldn't even recognize a whale's call, then his stated goal would be a joke.
Before Luffy and the others could lower the sails, several giant waves rose on the sea surface, causing the Merry to shake violently and rapidly retreat backward.
"A giant whale! We just entered the Grand Line and already ran into something this interesting! Hahahaha!"
Luffy, hanging from the mast like a monkey while lowering the sails, laughed heartily.
"How can you say that, Luffy!"
Tom, tightening the sail ropes below, looked up at Luffy and said, "This isn't 'interesting.' This should be called 'thrilling and exciting' instead."
"Both of you, shut up!"
Zoro and Sanji, who were helping Tom secure the sail ropes, nearly stumbled on the deck from the violently rocking ship on the turbulent sea upon hearing Luffy and Tom's conversation.
"That's right, you two big idiots! Be careful or I'll punch you!"
Nami was right beside Tom, her arms tightly wrapped around the mast. After lightly bumping her fist against Tom's face, she clung to the mast with one arm. The ship, swinging wildly side-to-side, made her lose balance, and she almost fell overboard—fortunately Tom pulled her back in time.
"Not good! Our ship is about to crash into the rocks on the shore!"
Usopp, almost thrown overboard by the violently rocking ship, desperately grabbed the ship's railing to steady himself. Looking back, he realized that if the Merry kept retreating, it would crash head-on into the rocky shore behind them. The ship would definitely be smashed to pieces. He shouted urgently.
Originally, after the Merry entered the Grand Line via the steep slope's current, it had sailed forward a short distance. The Red Line was behind them.
Now, the Merry was indeed being pushed by the giant waves toward the rocky shore wall at the rear, where there was also a lighthouse-like structure on land.
"Don't worry! I won't let the Merry be destroyed like this!"
Luffy, having lowered the sails, nimbly jumped down from the mast. He tossed his straw hat to Zoro, rushed to the stern, and jumped down. As the ship was about to crash into the rocky shore wall, he used Rubber Balloon, forcibly pushing the ship back.
Seeing the Merry escape disaster, everyone on board just breathed a sigh of relief when, on the sea surface not far ahead, a shadow as huge as a mountain suddenly surged upward.
The sudden appearance of such a colossal creature right before their eyes left everyone on board speechless, their jaws agape. Nami and Usopp screamed in panic.
When this mountain-like shadow appeared, it stirred up massive waves on the sea surface once more, pushing the ship backward again. So the Merry crashed into Luffy, whose body was inflated like a balloon at the rear, and was bounced forward.
But the Merry, impacted by the giant waves ahead, didn't sail forward for long before retreating again. Then Luffy, who hadn't had time to catch his breath, was hit by the Merry again.
Thus, the same scene repeated. Luffy kept pushing the Merry back, and the Merry, washed by the waves, kept crashing back into Luffy's inflated body.
For a while, the Merry moved back and forth between the waves ahead and Luffy's collisions behind, maintaining a delicate balance.
"Luffy! Stay just like that! Don't you dare take a breath!"
Nami, clinging to the mast, shouted toward Luffy at the stern.
"You're a devil!"
Tom, Zoro, and Usopp, hearing Nami's words, were so shocked their jaws nearly dropped. They spoke to Nami in unison.
Only Sanji looked infatuatedly at Nami, his eyes turning into hearts: "Such a merciless Miss Nami looks so beautiful too."
After a while, the giant waves ahead gradually subsided. The Merry, bounced back by Luffy's Rubber Balloon, was no longer pushed backward by the waves this time.
Even so, the Merry's crisis wasn't over. Usopp pointed at the huge shadow ahead and said, "What do we do? Our ship will crash into that mountain!"
"That's not a mountain. It's a very big whale!"
The moment Tom said this, the whale that had surfaced vertically let out a roar that shook the heavens: "HOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOH!!!!"
Without the barrier of seawater, hearing the whale's furious roar at such close range, Tom faintly sensed a thread of sorrow hidden within its cry.
The Merry's hull shook slightly from the giant whale's roar. Zoro and the others could bear it, but Nami was somewhat unable to endure it. Even covering her ears, she felt dizzy, with ringing in her ears.
"At this short distance, the ship has no time at all to change course."
Nami certainly didn't want the Merry to have any contact with the terrifyingly large whale. She thought maybe the whale hadn't noticed them yet, and slipping away quietly was the right move.
It must be said, the whale blocking the Merry's path was indeed enormous—even larger than some of the giant Sea Kings they'd seen in the Calm Belt.
"The ship's helm is broken too."
Sanji originally wanted to try using the helm to change the ship's course and avoid the whale ahead, but he quickly remembered that he and Usopp had broken the helm earlier.
"Could this be the first challenge I face after entering the Grand Line? An unbelievably huge whale! Amazing!"
Tom went to the bow. As the ship advanced, he looked at the enormous whale that had surfaced head-on, blocking their path, and spoke excitedly.
"It's not like that at all, you idiot!"
Nami came to Tom's side and unceremoniously knocked him on the head. "Think of a way to stop the ship, quick!"
"That's not hard. I already have a good idea."
Tom stroked his chin, speaking to Nami with confidence. He took out the fishing rods from the sheaths on both arms, merged them, then rapidly extended the rod, pressing it against the giant whale less than twenty meters ahead.
Seeing the fishing rod touch the whale and it showed no reaction, Nami sighed in relief.
"I'll help you."
Seeing Tom struggling alone, holding the rod pressed against the whale trying to stop the ship, Zoro handed the straw hat in his hand to Nami and joined Tom, both pushing against the rod with all their might.
"I'll help too."
"How could I miss out on this?"
Sanji and Usopp quickly went to help Tom and Zoro. All four of them gripped the extended fishing rod tightly, pushing forward with all their strength. They gritted their teeth, their faces turning red and necks thick from exerting every ounce of energy.
Moments later, Tom and the others noticed that the whale seemed a bit farther away. But this wasn't a cause for celebration.
Nami, baring her sharp teeth, shouted at them: "What are you doing?! Look clearly! You're the ones moving backward! The ship is about to crash into the whale now!"
That was indeed the case. Tom and the others, pressing the rod against the whale, not only failed to push the ship back, but the four of them were pushed back several steps by the steadfast, motionless whale floating on the sea, while the ship continued drifting forward.
Tom, standing at the very back holding the rod's end, was already half a step in the air. Another half-step back, and he would fall from the bow onto the deck below.
Tom held the rod with one hand and lightly tapped the right side of his belt with the other. Instantly, a small compartment popped out from the belt, and something shot out from it. Then the compartment automatically retracted into the belt.
Attaching the component containing soft-flow particles to the end of the fishing rod, Tom adjusted the soft-flow particles' intensity. The originally rigid, straight rod pressing against the whale gradually began to bend.
"Guys, on my signal, we all move to port together. That should change the ship's direction."
"Got it!"
As Tom said this, Zoro and the others holding the front of the rod shifted to port. The bending rod followed, changing direction. Then, pushed by the increasingly curved rod, the ship turned, finally altering its course.
"Now we can finally relax."
Usopp wiped the sweat from his brow. Though he'd only held the rod for about ten seconds, he was already panting heavily.
Seeing the ship successfully avoid the giant whale blocking its path, Nami had just begun to smile when she heard a crack. Something flew over her head and landed on the ship's deck.
It turned out that although the Merry avoided the whale, as it turned, the bow still scraped against the whale. Then the sheep figurehead at the bow snapped off and flew onto the deck.
Luffy, having just stretched his arm to grab the stern railing and return to the ship, was running toward Tom and the others when a sheep's head landed right in front of him. Seeing clearly what had fallen before him, his eyes nearly popped out, his jaw hitting the deck as he exclaimed in shock: "Merry! My special seat!"
It can't see us, it can't see us!
When the Merry sailed to the side of the giant whale, Usopp saw that one of the whale's eyes was larger than the entire Merry. Cold sweat poured down his forehead as he prayed incessantly in his heart.
Previously, from directly in front of the whale, no one could see its appearance. But from the side, Nami saw that this whale's head was covered in scars. The crisscrossing scars looked like deep ravines—thick and deep, a terrifying sight.
"Let's escape now while we can! It doesn't seem to have noticed us yet."
Nami, seeing such a ferocious-looking giant whale for the first time, urgently addressed Tom and the others.
"Is it so slow-witted because it's so huge?"
"Who knows? Come help us row!"
As Sanji and Zoro conversed and prepared to row, Luffy came to the bow with a dark expression.
At that moment, the Merry happened to be passing by the side of the whale's eye. Luffy stood at the bow, looking up slightly at the whale's enormous eye above. With an angry face, he said, "You! How dare you break my special seat?!"
As he said this, Luffy stretched his arm and delivered a powerful punch right into the whale's eye.
"You big idiot! What are you doing?!"
Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, and Nami—all four witnessing Luffy actually attacking the whale, delivering a heavy punch to its eye—were instantly petrified on the spot. Nami immediately burst into tears.
The whale, having taken Luffy's punch, moved its pitch-black pupil—slightly larger than the Merry—downward. Reflected clearly within that pupil was the image of the Going Merry.
"We're finished! It sees us!"
Usopp, seeing the whale's eye looking over, was so scared he clutched his head and ran around the ship in a panic.
"Come on, you bastard!"
Luffy stood at the bow, looking at the giant whale, his face showing no fear, only rage. Clearly, the loss of his special seat had made him furious.
"Luffy, why did you attack it first? And it's a whale, not a 'bastard.'"
Tom had just put away his fishing rod when he saw the whale staring at the Merry. He frowned, looking up at it. "What's with that look? Are you provoking me?"
"Don't think your size scares me. I'm not afraid. I'm going to become..."
Before Tom could finish, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji behind him saw Tom swinging his arms, clearly about to attack the whale. They rushed behind him, and all three kicked out simultaneously, sending Tom flying: "Get out of the way! Don't make things worse!"
Tom, kicked by Zoro and the others, crashed into Nami, who wasn't far away. The two fell onto the deck. Before Tom could get up, the whale turned, opened its huge mouth, and took a massive breath toward the Merry.
Everyone on board felt an irresistible wind blowing incessantly toward them, like encountering a giant tornado. It blew so hard they could barely keep their eyes open. The ship shook violently, causing Usopp and the others to tumble onto the deck.
Tom had one hand on the bow railing. Just as he tried to push himself up, Nami, lying on the deck, realized they were about to be swallowed by the whale. She screamed in terror and instinctively wrapped her arms tightly around Tom's neck: "NOOOOOO!!!!"
Caught off guard by Nami's sudden embrace, Tom lost control and was pressed down onto Nami's graceful body once more.
Tom felt Nami was holding too tight; he was having trouble breathing. As he tried to pull Nami's hands away, the ship, sailing on the turbulent current toward the whale's mouth, shook violently again. Affected by inertia, his hand, trying to pry Nami's away, landed with great force on an extremely soft place.
Feeling he had touched somewhere he shouldn't have, Tom froze. Nami's panicked scream also came to an abrupt stop. The two of them lay on the deck, one on top of the other, staring wide-eyed at each other, completely dumbfounded.
Then the Going Merry, carried by the current, sped toward the whale's mouth. In an instant, it passed between the whale's teeth and flowed into its maw.
Luffy, on board, as they were about to be sucked into the whale's mouth, stretched his arm to grab one of the whale's teeth, jumped onto the whale's head, and narrowly escaped being swallowed.
But Tom and the others, along with the Going Merry, had entered the whale's belly...
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T/N :
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