Two pirate ships raced neck and neck, their cannons firing almost simultaneously. Amidst the earth-shattering roars, the artillery shredded the armor along the enemy vessels to pieces.
After several rounds of trading cannon fire, the surviving pirates let out wild screeches and cast out grappling hooks. They then swung across to the enemy ships like children on a swing set. The sharp blades in their hands slashed left and right, sending blood spattering everywhere as they locked into a chaotic, desperate melee with their foes.
"Phew~~~ How lively!"
Luffy watched the battle between the two pirate crews in the distance, an excited look plastered across his face.
Cannons blasting each other, drawing blades to hack and slash—this simple, brutal style of combat was actually the traditional mode of naval warfare among pirates.
Meanwhile, the Straw Hats' "Musou Mode"—blocking cannonballs with bare hands and taking down an entire ship single-handedly—was simply way too non-mainstream...
"Thirty-Six Pound Phoenix!"
Zoro unleashed a moon-white flying slash, cutting a incoming cannonball cleanly in half mid-air before it exploded with a loud bang.
"Hey! Luffy, stop standing there watching the show!"
The green-haired swordsman didn't even glance at the explosion behind him as he took Wado Ichimonji out of his mouth and barked, "Get over here and help defend! The Merry can't afford to take a hit from their cannonballs!"
"Mirror Reflection!"
Ripples shimmered in the air. Upon making contact with the ripples, a cannonball instantly reversed its course, whistling through the air along its original trajectory.
Then, under the utterly dumbfounded expressions of a gang of pirates, the cannonball struck with dead accuracy, zooming straight back into the gun port and colliding with the freshly loaded cannonball inside.
A violent explosion caused the pirate ship to lurch violently as roaring flames erupted across its deck.
"These pirates are way too impatient. The race has only just begun."
Sherlock slowly descended from mid-air onto the deck of the Merry. He glanced at the surrounding battlefield, then turned his gaze toward Maya, focusing his mind to sense her presence.
Just as he expected, in this environment surrounded by fierce combat, Mr. Four-Eyes once again picked up that strange wave of energy emanating from the blue-haired girl.
(Fascinating. Just why is that...?)
Sherlock looked at Maya's captivating side profile, lightly pushing up his glasses.
After several rounds of long-range shelling, the other pirates also realized that this shabby little ship with the cute ram figurehead was extremely tough to mess with. They promptly redirected their cannons and engaged in battle with other pirate ships instead.
For a time, the sounds of gunfire, artillery, and explosions rang out ceaselessly. The roaring flames on the burning ship wreckage reflected a blood-red light across the surface of the sea.
"Is this... what war is like?"
Gazing from afar at the pirates driven into a frenzy by the firefight, Maya's delicate body trembled slightly. Her hands gripped the ship's railing so tightly out of instinct that her knuckles turned slightly pale.
Right at that moment, Maya felt as though she had been struck by a heavy blow. Her body swayed violently, and she nearly collapsed onto the deck. Alarmed, the navigator beside her hastily reached out to support her arm.
This sudden turn of events immediately drew everyone's attention.
"Miss Maya!"
Sanji rushed over like a whirlwind. Looking at the blue-haired girl's pale complexion, he asked with deep concern, "What's wrong?"
"I... I don't know..."
Maya shook her head, her voice exceedingly weak. "All of a sudden, I just felt really unwell..."
"Then it's probably because you're hungry! Eating some meat should fix you right up!"
The foolish captain let out a cheeky laugh and shouted to the curly-browed cook, "Sanji, hurry and make some roast meat! Make it a portion for two!"
Based on this Straw Hat foodie's experience, whenever your body felt terrible, the best solution was to eat a huge meal!
There was no problem a meal of roast meat couldn't solve; if there was, then make it two!
(Luffy, do you think everyone else is a glutton like you?)
(And why a portion for two? Don't tell me you plan on eating alongside Maya?!)
Nami and the others exchanged glances, silently complaining in their minds.
"Roast meat? No problem, I'll go make it right away! Please look forward to my roast meat of love, Miss Maya~~~~" With that, the guy spun around and darted into the galley.
"..." Everyone stared with lines of black on their faces.
They suddenly realized that whenever an issue involved a beautiful girl, a certain simp cook's IQ would plummet off a cliff, dropping to the exact same level as Luffy's.
"That lustful kappa is beyond saving..." Zoro curled his lip in disdain.
Chopper threw on a stethoscope and examined Maya's body very carefully, but he couldn't find anything out of the ordinary.
"How strange... Maya, your body is completely normal."
The blue-nosed reindeer took off his stethoscope, looking puzzled. "You're not injured, nor are you sick. Why is this happening?"
Just then, a certain dark-humored woman who was watching from the side suddenly spoke up.
"Since she isn't sick, then..." A strange glint flashed through Robin's beautiful dark-blue eyes, and she lowered her voice:
"Could it be... that 'that' has arrived?"
(⊙o⊙)!
The expressions on Nami, Chopper, and Sherlock's faces instantly became extremely odd, while Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp remained completely clueless.
"'That'? What 'that'? Which 'that' are you talking about?"
The long-nosed fellow was entirely bewildered. Scratching his hair, he asked the orange-haired navigator, whose face was turning slightly red, "Nami, does 'that' refer to 'I'll-die-if-I-go-on-that-island disease'? Because if it is, I've had that before..."
"Rest assured, you will never have that! Absolutely, positively never!"
Nami hurriedly cut off the rest of Usopp's words, the black lines on her smooth forehead multiplying.
"Then what on earth is it...?" Usopp refused to give up.
"There is no need for you boys to know about this matter."
After saying that, Nami didn't bother offering further explanations. She helped Maya up and guided her into the cabin, leaving the remaining crew members staring blankly at each other.
(War... Feeling unwell...)
Sherlock fell into deep thought. He had a faint feeling that this was connected to the strange sensation emanating from Maya.
After this brief interlude, the Merry sailed swiftly through Hannabal's inland river.
Without any more blind, reckless pirates bothering them, the Going Merry's speed couldn't match the larger ships of other pirate fleets, but its small size made it exceptionally nimble. Before long, the Straw Hat Pirates reached the river mouth leading out to the open sea.
Spread out before them was the vast, boundless sea. The rising morning sun shed a golden radiance that felt warm against their skin, instantly filling everyone with boundless spirit and motivation.
Along both banks of the river mouth, a large crowd of onlookers had gathered once again, cheering at the top of their lungs.
"Hey!~~~ Luffy! Usopp!"
A familiar voice called out. The Straw Hats looked over in the direction of the sound and were pleasantly surprised to find a little boy wearing a neat little suit standing on the shore, waving his hands wildly at them.
Sherlock focused his eyes and saw that the young boy was none other than Napo, the young master of the Goldglint Trading Company. Beside Napo stood Shuraiya, the head of the security detail, who was also smiling and waving at them.
However, Napo's mother—the perpetually sickly Lady Emily—was nowhere to be seen.
(Strange. This doesn't quite fit that lady's style of doing things. Or is it simply because she's too busy with the trading company's affairs?)
Sherlock narrowed his eyes slightly. Although doubts lingered in his mind, he didn't dwell on them at the moment.
"Napo! Haha, did you come to see us off?" Luffy sat cross-legged on his special captain's seat, grinning exceptionally bright.
After going wild playing together all afternoon two days ago, the boys had formed a deep friendship.
As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. Although there was a bit of an age gap among these troublemakers, they shared the common traits of mischievous kids. Naturally, it wasn't hard to understand how they had become good friends.
"Good luck! I had my mom bet a hundred million Berries on you guys! You have to win!"
Napo shouted at the top of his lungs, "When you come back, let's go to the amusement park and have fun again! And Big Brother Usopp, next time we have a shooting match, I definitely won't lose to you!"
(Ah, about that, I'm really sorry...) Zoro crossed his arms over his chest, silently remarking in his mind with a deadpan expression.
Because according to the plan previously laid out by Mr. Four-Eyes, the Straw Hat Pirates had absolutely no intention of returning to Hannabal.
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