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"Ahh… got any business with me?"
The fish froze, trembling a little despite itself.
It wasn't that smart, but its size gave it some instincts.
And its instincts screamed: This guy reeks of death.
SPLASH!
The fish dove back into the ocean in an instant, bolting for the deep sea.
But it didn't realize—its sudden dive created a huge wave heading straight for the man on the bike.
"Ahhh… such a pain…"
Kuzan watched the wave rise in front of him, sighed, and exhaled a chilly breath.
Then, he stretched out his right hand — a wave of icy cold air burst forth right in front of the man.
[Ice Age!]
The freezing air charged forward like a massive swarm of locusts, slamming straight into the giant wave.
In an instant, the cold surged through it — the wave that had been roaring just a second ago…
Now it stood completely still, like time itself had stopped — turned into a towering sculpture of ice.
It looked just like a work of art.
Then—
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Fractures began to spread across the frozen wave.
As the sea breeze passed by, the giant sculpture shattered into countless small chunks of ice, falling into the ocean below.
For a moment, it was like nothing had happened at all.
Aokiji was just about to pedal off again when he saw a News Coo flying toward him.
After paying some Berries, Aokiji unfolded the newspaper.
The front page was still all about the aftermath of the Alabasta incident.
This time, it was digging deep into all the people involved.
Aokiji casually scanned the photos printed on the page.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed. In one corner of a group photo, he spotted a familiar figure.
"The first half of the Grand Line, huh?"
He went quiet for a while before murmuring to himself:
"Guess I'll make a little trip."
And so, this lone bicycle gliding across the ocean…
Because of a single newspaper…
Changed direction.
At the same time, the Straw Hat crew was also reading that very same newspaper.
"A rookie pirate who beat a Warlord of the Sea… what kind of monster is he gonna become?"
Usopp read aloud from the article, staring at Luffy's big grinning face in the photo.
He let out a sigh and said:
"This time, Luffy's totally stealing the spotlight."
Nami nodded beside him.
"Well, the whole of Alabasta basically sees him as the hero who saved their country."
She turned to glance to the side—
There, Luffy was excitedly talking to Bai Ye.
"Ha ha ha ha! Bai Ye, my bounty's totally gonna go way up after this!"
Luffy was sitting on the table in front of Bai Ye, palms on the surface, legs swinging back and forth 'cause he just couldn't sit still.
"Man, I can't wait!"
Watching Luffy act like a giddy little kid, Bai Ye smiled and said:
"Well, yeah, obviously. That 60 million bounty of yours has been outdated for a while now."
Then, he turned to look at the rest of the crew.
"Actually, not just Luffy — all of you should be ready for your bounties to go up."
Thanks to the buzz surrounding the Alabasta incident — and the World News Agency fanning the flames — the whole ocean was stirred up.
The story of a rookie pirate crew from the East Blue taking down a Warlord and saving a World Government nation?
That was a goldmine for headlines.
At this point, even if the Straw Hats wanted to keep a low profile, it just wasn't possible anymore.
The paper had even broken down everyone's contributions during the battle.
Naturally, the Navy would raise a few more bounties.
"A higher bounty? Now we're talking!"
Zoro, for once, actually smiled.
For the goal he was aiming for, a higher bounty wasn't a bad thing at all.
"This time, my bounty's definitely gonna be higher than yours, moss-head."
Sanji, who had picked up a new trick during the fight — Cloud Step — was clearly feeling confident.
"Hah? You really think you can outdo me, you damn love-cook?"
Of course, Zoro wasn't backing down from that challenge.
"Moss-head!"
"Pervert kappa!!"
"If our bounties go up… doesn't that mean more people are gonna be after us?" Nami ignored their daily squabble and said what was on her mind.
She might've gotten used to fighting for her crew now, but deep down…
She still believed less trouble is better than more trouble.
"Ah ha ha ha! I wonder what kind of number I'm gonna get this time!"
Usopp, oddly enough, didn't join Nami in the usual "coward duo" this time. Instead, he was fantasizing about his new wanted poster.
He was already trying to come up with—
A badass new nickname for himself.
His last poster just said "Sniper." Super lame. Not cool at all.
"Bounty!"
Chopper's eyes sparkled too.
"I didn't even fight… will I still get a bounty?"
Raised with pirate dreams by Doctor Hiriluk, Chopper had always looked forward to getting his very own bounty poster.
"Hehehe, of course you'll get one, Chopper~"
Right then, Robin gently scooped Chopper into her arms with a smile:
"After all, the paper already said it — you're the Straw Hat crew's doctor."
"You're a super important crew member."
As she spoke, Robin couldn't resist rubbing Chopper's head.
Seriously, who could resist a talking raccoon?
"Ughhh! I— I don't care if you praise me like that! It doesn't make me happy at all, you jerk!!"
In Robin's arms, Chopper's cheeks turned red as he twisted around, totally tsundere.
Even Nami's eyes lit up at the sight, completely forgetting her worries from earlier.
She ran over to Robin and started rubbing Chopper's head too.
And just like that, the whole room filled with—
Robin and Nami's laughter,
Chopper's flustered tsundere cries,
And Sanji…
Nose bleeding…
Screaming like a banshee in envy?
"Bai Ye, will your bounty go up too?"
"Didn't you beat that guy?"
Zoro's voice suddenly broke through as Bai Ye was still enjoying the scene.
He was obviously talking about Gachi.
"Hmm…"
Bai Ye paused, then said:
"It'll probably go up, but the Navy won't make it public that I beat Gachi."
There's no way Sengoku would be dumb enough to help boost a pirate's fame by exposing their own failures.
So Bai Ye figured they'd just sweep it under the rug.
Plus, since he was dealing with inner demons during the Alabasta conflict…
Even if his bounty did rise, it wouldn't go up by much.
Zoro nodded at that. He'd been thinking the same.
Actually, he was kind of looking forward to something—
Wondering if maybe, just maybe, his bounty might finally surpass Bai Ye's this time.
And just like that, the Straw Hats were ready to set sail once again!
"....."