Aboard the Sunny,
"Yohoho~~ I missed you all so much!"
"I must sing a song to celebrate our reunion~~~"
The cheerful sound of Brook's violin echoed across the deck, filling everyone with joy and relaxation. While part of that might have been due to the 'soul power' infused in his music, still:
Whether it's words or smiles, isn't it because of the influence of others that people are called 'human'?
Moreover, Brook's 'soul power' truly reached people's hearts.
"You really gave up being a star, huh? That's gutsy!"
Despite his eccentric demeanor, Franky, having witnessed more human complexities and farewells than most, was surprised and touched by Brook's decision to leave behind his life as a music star and return to the crew.
"There are plenty of people who'll stick with you through hard times, but not many who'll stay through wealth and success."
The phrase "If I gain wealth, I won't forget you" was famously said by Chen Sheng. Yet when his old friends came to join him, calling him by his childhood name, he raised his blade against them...
"Yohoho, speaking of giving things up:"
Brook turned toward Roman and Nami. Without outsiders around, Roman had already retracted his 'White Knight' armor, revealing his true self.
"Roman and Nami, your Marine identities—"
In the two years that had passed, Roman had risen to fame as a Marine candidate for Admiral. He had sent tens of thousands of pirates to Impel Down, striking fear into pirates across the first half of the Grand Line.
As for Nami—or rather Rear Admiral Ann—her reputation as the 'Weather Queen' had spread far and wide, nearly eclipsing her former title of 'Master of Weather.'
"Don't worry,"
Roman waved his hand casually.
"Marine candidate Admiral 'The White Dove' Roman has nothing to do with the Straw Hat crew's strategist 'The White Knight.' As for Nami—"
"Being a war orphan, isn't it normal to have a twin sister in the Marine?"
"Maybe there will be some dramatic love-hate scenes in the future."
Ah...
You're the Marine candidate Admiral, you decide.
No one could argue with that, but no one had any other thoughts either. After all, Captain Luffy's grandfather is still the Marine hero Garp! A true Marine third-generation, and yet he happily became a pirate?
"Super Franky~~~!"
"Ohhh!!"
The increasingly outrageous Franky began to show the Straw Hat trio all sorts of new weapons and transformations, making Luffy, Chopper, and Usopp's eyes light up. Anyway,
"Roman, get ready to dive."
"Mm,"
With familiar Nami giving orders and familiar Roman steering, the Sunny, now fully coated, dove into the sea! A thin, transparent membrane, like a soap bubble, enveloped the entire ship and the Straw Hat crew.
"Ohhhhhh!!!"
"This... this is such an amazing view!"
"Super cool, no submarine could have such a 'skylight'."
Unlike the monotonous sea surface, the world beneath the Sabaody Archipelago was a colorful one: various creatures basked in the bright, warm water; schools of colorful tropical fish swam by, dancing gracefully with the waves.
"Yo-ho-ho, look over here, everyone—"
Following Brook's gesture, there was a strange underwater 'forest' nearby! Giant tree roots, as tall as skyscrapers, stretched straight down, without branches or veins, as hard as iron rods.
This 'forest' made up of the roots of the 'Yarukiman Red Trees' that formed Sabaody was covered with vivid flowers, fake rocks, and coral seaweed. Small fish and shrimp darted in and out, attracting even more fish.
"Oh, this fish looks delicious!"
Luffy suddenly lunged toward the membrane, trying to reach through and grab a giant sea king that passed by. Zoro, standing beside him, calmly drew his sword.
"Watch me slice it—"
Boom! X2
"Are you two crazy?! What if the membrane breaks?!"
Chopper and Usopp, each with one hand on Luffy and Zoro's heads, pressed them down into the deck. The two fell silent.
"Ugh, I can't do anything with you two."
Nami didn't want to deal with these idiots anymore. Even if the membrane broke, she could easily escape. Maybe this is what they mean by 'skilled people have big courage'? Besides,
"Actually, the principle of the ship's membrane is the same as Sabaody's bubbles."
It allows things to pass through without breaking.
"That means, as long as the bullets or swords don't exceed the membrane's limit, it won't break."
"Wow, it's stronger than I thought!"
"I heard that over 70% of ships passing through Fish-Man Island have sunk unexpectedly..."
"Mama~~"
"Doctor~~"
"Yo-ho-ho~~~"
The new timid trio huddled and cried!
"Hahaha,"
?!
"Roman, what are you laughing at?"
"Nothing," Roman, steering the ship, waved off Nami's question. Since Roman was now playing the role of Marine candidate Admiral, he had to steer the ship himself.
"This is more like an adventure~~"
"Adventure?"
Nami looked at the pointer on her wrist and paused.
"But at this slow speed, how long will it take to reach Fish-Man Island?"
After the novelty of the underwater scenery wore off, Usopp raised the practical concern. The Sunny was a ship, not a submarine, so its speed underwater wasn't fast. Fish-Man Island was at a depth of over ten thousand meters—how long would it take to get there?
"Don't worry, actually, there are 'ocean currents' in the sea. We just need to catch the 'downflow' and..."
"What is the downflow?"
Facing Luffy, who looked like a curious child, Nami seriously explained:
"The so-called 'downflow' is a sea current with different temperatures at different depths, just like the 'Four Seasons Island' on the Grand Line..."
While Nami was explaining, Roman automatically entered 'idle' mode. Because:
On the warship's deck, 'Roman' stood proudly at the bow.
"Caribou, Coribou, the combined bounty for both of you is 400 million berries."
These two, who were originally causing trouble behind the Straw Hat crew, now fell into Roman's hands, which meant they wouldn't get any chance to cause trouble. Impel Down would be their only destination. Whether you're a dragon or a tiger, you'd still be trapped!
After all, even someone like the Golden Lion, who was destined for greatness, had to lose his legs to escape.
And in 'Roman's', or The White Knight's, hands, there was also:
A swamp page.
"Ugh, how can someone with a 'earth' element Devil Fruit be turned into a space for storing things... Is this talent or just luck?"
"Boss, they're just two supernovas,"
Bolkin, the blonde Commodore, looked bored as he watched the two pirates chained with Seastone handcuffs on the deck. Two years ago, supernovas were practically invincible in his eyes! But now:
"Using a Logia to bully regular people, do we really need to be so cautious?"
A punch from Haki would take them down!
Of course, it was necessary. After all, this guy had 'luck' on his side. Don't underestimate Caribou because of his low skills and disgusting behavior; his luck was astounding. Not only did he escape from Sentomaru, but he also managed to keep causing trouble for the Straw Hats.
Though it ended up giving them fame for Fish-Man Island and treasure, Roman didn't care about those things. So he decided it was best to let him rot in prison.
As for the fact that after escaping, Caribou ended up working for Kaido and doing some menial labor, which indirectly helped Luffy...
Ridiculous!
With Roman around, how could Luffy ever fall into such a situation?
—
———
"...In conclusion, we will enter a cold downcurrent and quickly reach Fish-Man Island."
After Nami's long explanation, Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Chopper suddenly understood.
"So it's just some amazing sea current," X4
!!!
"I wasted all this breath for nothing!?" Nami helplessly covered her forehead, feeling more speechless than she had in the past two years. But this was the atmosphere the Straw Hat crew was supposed to have~~
"Don't panic. Just find something for them to do,"
Roman calmly pointed ahead.
"Go, Straw Hat Beast Tamer Luffy!"
?
"Ohh, a huge squid~~~"
!!
"There's no way this is a squid, it's a 'North Sea Giant Beast,' right?!"
In front of the Sunny, a giant underwater 'waterfall' hundreds of meters long was rapidly descending due to the clash of warm and cold currents. This was the 'downcurrent' the Straw Hat crew needed to take. But:
A massive sea monster, looking like a cross between an octopus and a squid, blocked their path.
Its tentacles, hundreds of meters long, were thrashing wildly, so large that they resembled an island. The Sunny seemed like a toy in comparison. In fact, several pirate ship wrecks were tangled up in the monster's tentacles! It was clear the monster was intentionally blocking the way. But:
"Hehe, I've decided, I want to keep it as a pet!"
"What did you say?!!"
Usopp was speechless. Although he had made rapid progress these past two years, he couldn't help but say:
"Look at its size, then look at the 'tiny' Sunny. What are you going to use to tame it?!"
"Hehe, I'm going to make it pull our ship."
"It's so cute~ I'll draw it."
Ah, Robin's taste...
"Oh, that's a nice sketch."
Franky, who was standing next to Robin, nodded in approval. By the way, Franky was also an excellent artist—don't forget his designer background!
"Hey, who wants to go fight the sea monsters? Look over here!"
Roman had already created several large bubbles, each one tall enough to stand in. With the oil from the special products of Sabaody Archipelago, making these magical bubbles that could withstand deep-sea pressure was easy. As for why Roman knew this:
You think the Celestial Dragons wear what on their heads?
A fish tank?
Wrong!
It's the bubbles from Sabaody Archipelago; otherwise, how could that snot-nosed Saint Charlos eat and pick his nose at the same time...
"Put on these bubbles, and you'll be able to move freely in the sea."
As the captain, Roman couldn't just leave his post and go have fun. Among the crew with abilities, the only one who truly wasn't afraid of dying was Luffy, so in the end, it was Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji who excitedly suited up in bubbles and went off to:
Beat up the sea monsters.
...
"Hahaha, little squid! Full speed ahead!"
In just a few minutes, the giant sea monster, tamed by Luffy's Armament Haki and Gear Third punch, started diving rapidly, heading straight for Fish-Man Island with the Sunny.
"Let me think..."
What's next?
A hundred thousand weaklings offering their heads? Hody Jones on drugs?
Neptune, Vander Decken?
Yeah, sounds good, a relaxed adventure~~
----You can read 10 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu