The New World, only a dozen kilometers from the Red Line.
At an altitude of 10,000 meters, El and the five girls who had entered the New World did not hurry forward. Instead, the six floating islands were temporarily moored above the sea.
"Nii-san, why are you dressed like that all of a sudden?"
On the deck of the Pegasus, Carina asked confusedly, looking at El, who was wearing a wetsuit and carrying an oxygen tank on his back.
Incidentally, this world's deep-sea diving technology was far more advanced than in El's previous life. Items like oxygen tanks for diving were readily available.
During their shopping spree years earlier, their frenzied purchases had stocked the Pegasus with nearly everything.
Not to mention oxygen tanks, the lower deck even held ten Wavers and two submarines.
For safety's sake, they had bought a three-digit stock of Bubbly Coral and a double-digit supply of oxygen cylinders on the Sabaody Archipelago.
After all, since El ate the Float-Float Fruit—and including the newly added member, Nico Robin—all six of them were now Devil Fruit users.
His and Carina's cautious natures had naturally considered every contingency. Since the entire crew were Devil Fruit users, they rarely went diving.
Even when they entered the sea, their bodies were protected by Bubbly Coral, and oxygen tanks were only used when operating a submarine.
It was already night, and El was suddenly preparing to dive into the White-White Sea at this hour, so Carina was very curious why he was strapping on an oxygen tank.
"You want to know?"
Looking at the curious Carina, El didn't explain. Instead, he grinned at her, then at the other girls, and said, "Since that's the case, come with me."
Without waiting for Carina to ask more, El used his Devil Fruit ability to make the Pegasus soar upward.
The ship, flying away from the floating islands, didn't descend toward the White-White Sea but continued to climb higher. Carina seemed to imagine something incredible, her eyes widening as she looked at El, her voice trembling slightly.
"Nii-san… you're not taking us to the moon, are you?"
"For real?!"
Hearing Carina's words, Nami and Perona, who were a beat slower to react, also changed expressions.
"The answer is very close…"
El said meaningfully. "So, unless you want to pass out from hypoxia and have me save you with artificial respiration, I suggest you follow my lead and get an oxygen tank and Bubbly Coral."
"Sister Kuina, please!" Carina hurriedly looked at Kuina. Over the past few years of practicing their Asura Form, they had developed near-perfect默契.
"Leave it to me."
With just a word or a glance, Kuina understood. Her body, now grown to 1.8 meters, lit up the night sky with a blue-white electric glow. In the next second, Kuina transformed into a bolt of lightning and vanished. In less than ten seconds, she reappeared in her original spot, beside her a small and a large box.
"Tsk tsk… Electric Field Teleportation that ignores all obstacles is really convenient."
Seeing Kuina complete in under a minute what would have taken them at least ten, Carina clicked her tongue.
The large box contained five oxygen tanks; the small one held ten pieces of Bubbly Coral. Once the five girls had each strapped on an oxygen tank and pocketed two Bubbly Corals, the moon above seemed to grow slightly larger.
They didn't know how much time had passed, but a view more breathtaking than the one from Reverse Mountain finally filled their sight.
"Wow…"
By now, all five girls stood at the ship's bow, their forms leaning over the railing as they stared in amazement at the scenery below.
"Is that the planet we live on? It's so beautiful…"
"The oxygen level hasn't decreased—it's actually higher than in the White Sea and White-White Sea."
Unlike the five girls, who were admiring the planetary view from space, El's attention was elsewhere. As if remembering something, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
"This world really isn't right."
Just as El said, the moon in One Piece was like the one in Naruto—something was off. The artificial moon in Naruto was no different from a planet, and people could actually run and breathe freely on it.
The moon in One Piece—the "Fairy Vearth" the Skypieans spoke of—was the same.
Due to knowledge from his previous life, El, who had prepared oxygen tanks and Bubbly Coral, found these items seemed almost useless.
As the Pegasus climbed higher, the planet became a huge azure sphere.
El, having stepped into outer space, could still breathe normally. Even the five girls, who had donned bubble headgear like the Celestial Dragons, didn't need it at all.
Yes, Bubbly Coral still functioned in outer space, just as it did underwater or on the Sabaody Archipelago.
"Outrageous. Truly outrageous. We're in outer space, but we can breathe and communicate freely."
El spoke in a rare tone of astonishment, gazing at the cosmos before him.
"Uh… Nii-san, have you secretly been to other parts of outer space and found you couldn't breathe or communicate there?"
The five girls stared at El in confusion, Carina especially, who couldn't help asking suspiciously.
"Isn't it because the higher the altitude, the thinner the oxygen? That's why I asked you to prepare oxygen tanks and Bubbly Coral."
Hearing her question, El replied quickly. As a traveler, his worldview had just been refreshed, and he'd momentarily forgotten that the five girls were all "country folk" in this regard.
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