"Hmph, trespassing on someone else's territory,"
The old man put away the newspaper and stood up.
"Do you think this is a mouse's stomach?"
...
"Indeed, we were swallowed by a whale."
Nami, who had recovered, looked around thoughtfully.
"No wonder, I was wondering why the clouds in the sky hadn't changed..."
"I painted them."
...
"Then... why is there light?"
"It's a plant called glowing moss, which parasitizes the whale's stomach walls." The old man pointed to the 'sea surface'... well, actually, it was the whale's stomach acid, far away where there was a huge iron door.
"That's the exit over there. Once you pass through it, you can..."
Boom!!
The violent shaking interrupted the old man's words, making his face turn serious.
"Wait for me here,"
After saying that, without waiting for Nami, Luffy, and the others to react, he jumped into the sea... the stomach acid.
"What do we do now?"
As everyone looked at each other, the Going Merry slowly turned around.
"Don't just stand there! Come and row!"
Long oars were thrown onto the deck by the 'White Knight,' and Roman, who was steering, looked at the three laborers with annoyance.
"Get to work! We'll wait for that old man to open the door at the exit."
Being lazy is not an option; in this world, there's no future for slackers. — Didn't you see, Arlong was once a Fishman officer fighting on the Grand Line, but after slacking off in East Blue for eleven years, he became useless!
"There's no wind here, so we have to row manually. It's up to you guys."
The Going Merry was a sea-going ship, weighing at least dozens of tons. Fortunately, the three laborers were all strong monsters, so rowing the ship wasn't a problem for them. However:
"This shaking... what's the whale doing...?"
"It's ramming into the Red Line,"
Roman answered irritably, "Didn't you notice the dense scars on its head before?"
"Why is it ramming into the Red Line?"
Facing Usopp's question, Roman, who was steering, rolled his eyes, "Maybe it's feeling down."
...
Soon, the violent shaking gradually stopped, and the Going Merry arrived in front of the huge iron door. If the old man was right, opening this door would—
Bang!
On a platform above the huge iron door, a normal door was violently opened, and two figures rolled out from inside...
"Ahhhh~~~"
"We're falling~~~"
Splash, splash!
A man and a woman flailed as they fell into the sea... the whale's stomach acid, but there was another figure:
"Ah~~?"
"Beautiful lady, I'm here to save you~~"
Who else on the Going Merry would act like this besides Sanji? The others watched calmly, so after Sanji rescued the blue-haired girl and the man with a... crown:
"Who are these two~~"
"And they're carrying a cannon, could they be bounty hunters?"
As everyone casually examined the oddly dressed man and woman, the old man's angry shout came from the small platform above the iron door.
"As long as I'm here, I won't let you harm Laboon!"
??
"We didn't..."
Luffy and the others were bewildered, just short of denying it with 'It's not me, I didn't do it, don't accuse me,' when the iconic villainous laughter came from behind them.
"Hehehe~~~"
"Hahaha~~~"
"Now we're inside the whale's stomach..."
"If we just make a hole in the stomach, we can..."
As they spoke, the two people who had just been rescued picked up their... rocket launchers... and fired two rockets at the 'wall' near the old man!
"Don't even think about it—"
At the critical moment, the old man leaped in front of the rockets! With two loud bangs, he fell down, smoking.
!
"Hohoho, if you want to protect this whale, go ahead~~~"
"Hahaha, we're going to make it our town's food supply—"
Bang, bang!
The villainous-looking man and woman had just struck a pose when Luffy knocked them both to the ground with a single punch each!
"Well, I couldn't help but hit them."
...
While everyone else's attention was on the two clowns, only Roman noticed the old man who had been blasted into the water and climbed back out: Crocus.
Heh,
Taking a cannonball to the face without even damaging his glasses, and he claims he doesn't know Haki?
——————
"This whale's name is Laboon, and it's an 'island whale'." Because Luffy stopped the two people who intended to harm the whale, the old man explained the situation.
"These two thugs were after Laboon because its meat could feed a town for years."
"But I won't let them succeed, not only because Laboon is my friend, but also because of a promise."
A promise, a simple word, but it carries countless dreams and stories.
"Many years ago, a group of pirates from the West Blue passed through here. They were more like a musical group than pirates..." As the old man told the story, Roman, Luffy, and the others learned about it.
"Their ship was damaged when they entered the Grand Line, so they stayed here for a while, and we became friends."
"Laboon was too small to follow them into the Grand Line, so they left Laboon here, promising to return after circling the Grand Line..."
But that was fifty years ago!
"Fifty years? So..."
"That's right, that pirate crew has been buried by the Grand Line."
"And Laboon, over the years, has grown from a small whale into a true 'island whale.' It can't swim back to the West Blue through the Grand Line to see if its companions have returned home..."
Actually, with Laboon's intelligence, it probably knows that its former 'companions' are most likely long dead.
But... but... it just can't accept it!
"So this giant whale named Laboon is blocking the entrance to the Grand Line and constantly ramming into the Red Line?"
"Yes, and all I can do is use medicine to calm it down."
Clang, clang, clang,
As the huge iron gate opened, a waterway appeared in front of the Going Merry.
"This connects to the outside sea. Once you go through, you'll be safe."
"Wow, to build something like this inside a whale, that's really..."
Facing Nami's praise, the old man calmly replied
"Think of it as a doctor's playful heart. Laboon is so huge that I can only treat it from the inside..."
"Huh? You're a doctor?"
Luffy found a key point, "Come be our ship's doctor~~"
"Don't joke, this old man doesn't have the energy to keep up with you young folks..."
As the gate opened, the Going Merry slowly sailed out of Laboon's... stomach. As for the two who intended to kill the whale.
"What about them?"
"Just leave them nearby..."
Splash, splash,
"Ah, that blue-haired ponytail girl is really a mysterious woman~~?"
"啊,那个蓝发马尾的少女真是一位神秘的女性啊~~?".
Facing the Straw Hat Pirates who let them go, the man and woman in the water had the typical 'villain' expressions.
"We'll see about that, you country bumpkin pirates!"
"We will definitely capture this whale!"
After their harsh words, they turned and swam away quickly, leaving Roman amazed.
As expected of the Grand Line, even two small fry have such good swimming skills! Well, they aren't exactly small fry; they are agents of Crocodile's Baroque Works.
The man, code-named Mr. 9, is a fake prince who looks unreliable.
The girl, code-named Miss Wednesday, is a... well, for now, a villain with a rather 'eye-catching' style!
Of course, Roman knew she had another identity, Princess Nefertari Vivi of the Alabasta Kingdom.
A brave girl who went undercover in Baroque Works to investigate the mastermind behind the scenes for her country.
Vivi...
Roman thought for a moment, considering if he could bypass this 'plot.' The conclusion was: unless he directly changed their course, with Luffy and Nami's personalities, they would definitely not stand by and do nothing...
Which would mean facing Crocodile!
One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Crocodile.
The first real 'expert' on the Grand Line! A strong opponent who easily pushed Luffy and his crew to the brink several times!
Although Roman had once mocked him and Moria as 'stepping stones,' he had to admit that with the current strength of the Straw Hat Pirates, encountering Crocodile would be an inevitable...
Instant kill!
So, how did Luffy manage to win?!
Forget it, shaking his head to stop thinking about it, Roman's eyes involuntarily fell on the old man in a shirt and shorts: Crocus.
This ship doctor of the Pirate King must be proficient in Observation Haki, otherwise, how could he dare to dig various tunnels and buildings inside the whale Laboon? And just now, he performed the feat of catching a cannonball with his face. Even if his Armament Haki hasn't 'manifested' (showing obvious black color), it can at least be used to enhance defense...
He could only try to get something out of him.
Otherwise... should he really rely on 'fate' to defeat Crocodile?
Roman couldn't do that!
Even if it meant stealing, cheating, poisoning, or assassinating, he would take control of his own fate.
----
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