"The talent I want to recruit isn't here. They're above us!" Kaito looked back at Lafayette and pointed toward the sky with a smile.
"Above us?"
Lafayette was slightly stunned. He subconsciously raised his head and looked toward the empty sky.
"Captain, what do you mean?" Luo also glanced upward. Seeing nothing but the endless blue sky, he looked at Kaito in confusion.
Kaito said, "I mean exactly what I said. The person I want to recruit is above the sky!"
"Above the sky... Could it be the legendary Sky Island you mentioned before, Captain?" Smoker, who was standing beside Luo, asked with a surprised expression.
"Sky Island?!"
The moment Smoker said those words, everyone else couldn't help looking at him.
Seeing everyone's gazes turn toward him, Smoker explained, "Sky Island is a legend I heard about once. It's said that there is a magical sea above the sky, and the islands located within that sea are called Sky Islands."
"Sky Island... I think I've seen records related to it in a book before." Robin fell into thought.
"Captain, is what Smoker said true? Does Sky Island really exist in the sky?" Sandy asked in surprise.
"That's right. Sky Island really does exist, and the talent we're going to recruit this time is on the Sky Island above Magic Valley Town."
After giving a slight nod, Kaito looked around at Lafayette and the others before making arrangements.
"Lafayette, you and I will go to Sky Island next. Robin, you stay here in Magic Valley Town."
"No problem!"
Lafayette immediately became extremely interested after hearing about Sky Island. When he heard that the captain intended to take him there, he readily agreed.
Swish!
A petite figure skillfully landed on Kaito's shoulders.
Nine tails grew from behind her, winding around Kaito's neck and arms.
"Captain, I want to go too, meow!"
Naturally, the only person in the entire pirate group bold enough to sit on Kaito's shoulders was Neferpitou.
"Uh... All right!"
Kaito thought about it for a moment before agreeing to let Neferpitou come along.
With Neferpitou's strength and her cooperation, things should be much easier when it came time to pull hair.
Lafayette and Neferpitou weren't the only ones curious about Sky Island.
However, for the sake of convenience, Kaito didn't intend to bring too many people. Lafayette and Neferpitou were enough, so he rejected the others who wanted to accompany him.
Of course, to appease everyone, Kaito also agreed to take the entire crew to Sky Island after they picked up the new ship.
By the time Kaito had finished making the arrangements, the battle at the port was almost over.
The outcome was naturally beyond doubt.
The War Pirates had won a decisive victory.
"Captain, let's go!"
At this moment, Lafayette used the Paper-Paper Fruit to create a paper Quetzalcoatlus in the air near the sea.
Although the Quetzalcoatlus was made entirely of paper, it was no different from the real thing.
It flew smoothly through the air, beating its wings as it went.
Its sturdy body was more than strong enough to carry several people.
Lafayette was the first to leap onto the broad back of the paper Quetzalcoatlus, then immediately called out to his captain.
"Coming!"
Kaito, who had been sitting with Neferpitou on his shoulders, smiled and jumped up, landing firmly on the back of the paper Quetzalcoatlus.
The wind howled around them.
Without hesitation, Lafayette immediately controlled the paper Quetzalcoatlus and sent it soaring into the sky, rapidly ascending toward the heavens.
"Come on, let's take a look around here too."
"Magic Valley Town seems to be a gathering place for pirates. I wonder if there are any interesting places."
"I don't know whether there are any interesting places, but there's a good chance we'll find some Devil Fruit users here. You might as well look around later. Maybe you'll get lucky."
"Hahaha... I wouldn't have thought of that if you hadn't mentioned it. Let's see if there's a 'lucky' guy here."
"Ha... ha..."
After the three of them—Kaito, Lafayette, and Neferpitou—left aboard the paper Quetzalcoatlus, Luo and the others didn't simply wait aboard the ships.
Instead, they entered Magic Valley Town while chatting and laughing.
"A Thunder-Thunder Fruit user?"
Lafayette looked at his captain in surprise.
Kaito nodded slightly.
"That's right. The talent we're going to recruit this time on Sky Island is a Thunder-Thunder Fruit user."
The paper Quetzalcoatlus continued climbing into the sky, and Kaito naturally didn't remain idle. He began explaining the purpose of their trip to Lafayette and Neferpitou.
Among the things he mentioned was the talent they intended to recruit on Sky Island.
Lafayette was undoubtedly shocked when he learned that the person they were going after was a Thunder-Thunder Fruit user.
There was no way around it.
The reputation of the Thunder-Thunder Fruit was simply too great.
Even among Logia-type Devil Fruits, it was considered one of the very best.
In fact, in an earlier era, the Thunder-Thunder Fruit had enjoyed a reputation comparable to the Gura Gura no Mi of the present era.
"It's unbelievable. I never imagined the Thunder-Thunder Fruit would be on the legendary Sky Island. No wonder this fruit has never appeared before."
After recovering from his surprise, Lafayette sighed with emotion.
At the same time, excitement began to build inside him.
Although he had no idea how the captain had learned that the Thunder-Thunder Fruit user was on Sky Island, he knew that if they managed to recruit a Thunder-Thunder Fruit user into the pirate group, the War Pirates' strength would undoubtedly rise another level.
The moment he thought of that, Lafayette became even more eager.
He urged the paper Quetzalcoatlus onward, making it fly toward the heavens at an even faster speed.
The paper Quetzalcoatlus was already quite fast.
Before long, an endless sea of clouds appeared above them.
This was the White Sea, located 7,000 meters above sea level, and it was also the first sea leading toward Sky Island.
During their earlier conversation, Kaito had already told them a great deal about Sky Island, including the White Sea and the upper-level White-White Sea.
But seeing an actual sea suspended in the sky with his own eyes still left Lafayette astonished.
The paper Quetzalcoatlus stopped after reaching the bottom of the White Sea.
"Lafayette, watch the timing carefully. Next, I'll cut open the White Sea. When I do, you can pass through the opening."
After looking up at the White Sea for a while, Kaito withdrew his gaze and turned toward Lafayette.
As he reminded him, his right hand moved toward the golden saber at his waist.
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