The going merry rested quietly on the reef, the tide having receded to reveal a damp stretch of land. Everyone stood on the deck, silently observing the unfamiliar sight.
"This… how are we supposed to get out?" Usopp's eyes widened as he muttered to himself.
Everyone fell silent; faced with this predicament, they couldn't think of a solution for a while. Just then, several strong beams of light suddenly shone from all directions, illuminating the entire going merry.
Jonathan stood in the command center, holding a den den mushi megaphone, and shouted, "Straw Hat Pirates, I have to admire that you have such a cunning first mate, who completely disrupted all my plans. But don't get your hopes up; this is a Marine Base, and you won't escape. Now, in the name of the Commander of the Naval Fortress Navarone, I pass judgment upon you: surrender obediently!"
His voice echoed through the fortress, yet the slap mark on Jonathan's face made him look somewhat comical.
On the going merry, everyone sat in a circle on the deck, discussing.
"This old man has a really bad temper," Luffy grumbled, taking a sip of tea with an expressionless face.
"How do we get out?" Nami rubbed her temples, feeling a headache.
"I still have a secret move!!" Usopp excitedly raised the Impact Dial in his hand. "I stored a lot of impact force when we broke out of the fortress last time. With this, we might be able to propel the ship into the air!"
Nami nodded in satisfaction: "Soga, this way we can use it to propel the ship to a place with seawater!"
Sanji frowned, reminding them, "However, it's impossible to escape in one go. If the bottom of the ship encounters any misfortune, it will sink immediately."
Robin smiled: "If we use the Octopus Balloon to fly away again, it should work."
Zoro's eyes lit up: "Ah, that's a good idea."
Nami crossed her arms: "Using the Flavor Dial and Flame Dial will inflate the octopus again."
Chopper jumped up happily: "Good idea!"
"Ah ha ha ha ha…" Everyone imagined it, laughing heartily.
Then Usopp sighed, "But there's no octopus."
Dazed Chopper, tearful Nami, Robin, Sanji, and Zoro collectively sighed, "An octopus, ah."
Luffy suddenly interjected: "I have one."
"ε = ( ´ ο ｀ * ) ) ) Eh, an octopus, ah," everyone repeated the phrase, circling around, then suddenly reacted, "You have an octopus?????"
Luffy stood up, rummaging in his pants pocket, and finally pulled out an octopus, holding it in front of him, its tentacles still in his pants. Then he tilted his head and grinned foolishly, "It's here."
Usopp's face turned into the shape of an octopus from fright.
Zoro grimaced in disgust, "Don't you think that's gross?" As soon as Zoro said this, he suddenly sensed a familiar dark aura, turned to look at Orochimaru behind Luffy, and silently moved away.
Orochimaru's voice was uncharacteristically gentle, "Onii-chan~ Is this where you usually keep things?"
"Yeah… ha ha ha ha… I'm very clever, right?" Luffy was a bit carried away by Orochimaru's "Onii-chan" and laughed loudly.
"Soga~ So all your things are kept here, huh?"
"Yeah… yeah."
"You super big idiot!!!!!" Orochimaru, enveloped in raging flames, raised his arms, clenched his fists, and slammed them down forcefully, embedding Luffy into the deck before pulling him out for another series of thumps and bangs.
"Gomen nasai (I'm sorry)," Luffy, beaten into a pig's head, knelt on the ground, apologizing tearfully.
Orochimaru was steaming, whether from anger or steam, and walked heavily towards the cabin.
"Let's go, Usopp, take the Impact Dial. I'll have my Shadow Clones assist you. Let's get out of this wretched place quickly."
Everyone watched silently, not daring to speak.
Only Zoro seemed to have realized something, suddenly remembering Orochimaru falling out of a box when they first met. That box… He offered a moment of silent pity for Luffy.
"Oh, oh, oh… coming, coming," Usopp, having reacted, hurriedly followed, throwing the Flavor Dial that had fallen from Luffy's embrace and his own Flame Dial to Sanji.
With the help of the Shadow Clones, Usopp only needed to direct, and the going merry quickly flew into the sky due to the impact.
Robin's Flower-Flower Fruit fixed the octopus legs, and under the effect of the Flavor Dial and Flame Dial, the octopus transformed back into a hot air balloon, carrying the going merry into the sky.
Jonathan, not at all surprised, relayed the order, "As expected, they refused to drink a toast and chose a penalty instead. Shoot down the Pirate Crew as soon as their ship is within range! But do not aim for the hull; we must capture them alive no matter what!! Alive!!!"
Jessica behind Jonathan looked at him with a strange expression. What surprise! It must all be a lie! Divorce!!!
With the shockwave of the third Impact Dial, the going merry completely flew out of the fortress. Everyone cheered excitedly, only Luffy's world of injuries was achieved.
The octopus hot air balloon floated in the sky for a long time; everyone and the going merry enjoyed this rare leisurely time.
Until a News Coo flew over… looking at the headline on the newspaper.
"A certain Marine strategist is facing a divorce crisis because of a certain Straw Hat Pirate Crew's first mate."
"The private life of Navarone Commander: two or three things."
"Why are you wearing Jessica's clothes?"
And many other gossip headlines.
Orochimaru's hanging heart finally died.
"Ah ha ha ha ha… this world should just be destroyed," Orochimaru tore the newspaper, spread his arms, and emitted dark aura towards the sky, his expression crumbling.
The few who also saw the newspaper swallowed hard. They had probably heard the story from Sanji, and Orochimaru was indeed quite innocent.
However, they still didn't understand why Orochimaru cared so much about the news in the newspaper.
Before, when he flirted with… no, when he schemed against Crocodile, he didn't care about such things.
He only got angry when the newspaper said he seduced Smoker and Crocodile.
Everyone expressed great incomprehension.
Even Luffy was as quiet as a chicken. He seemed to have a premonition of something, but then forgot it. What exactly did he forget?
At Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Sengoku looked at the latest headlines: "Straw Hat Luffy's Crew Causes Chaos at Navarone Base," and couldn't help but angrily slam the table.
He threw the newspaper to Garp, who was eating senbei opposite him. "Garp, it's your damn family again! How long have they been at sea to cause so much trouble? If there's a next time, you go catch them yourself!"
Garp leaned back on the sofa, completely unconcerned, even taking the time to stroke Sengoku's goat. "Don't be angry, Sengoku. Don't be so petty. Isn't my Grandson also your Grandson?"
Sengoku slapped Garp's hand off the goat. "Don't touch my goat with your dirty hands! If I had such a troublesome son and Grandson, I would have beaten them to death long ago! And what kind of people has your Grandson recruited on his ship, daring to seduce Marines and Shichibukai?"
Garp was somewhat confused, looking at Sengoku with a head full of question marks.
Sengoku's mouth twitched, and he threw the gossip section of the newspaper over.
Garp looked at the gossipy news, veins bulging. How did that saying go? Where there's smoke, there's fire. He smashed Sengoku's coffee table with a single slap.
"Orochimaru!!!!!!!!!!"
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