"Burp~"
"These pirates actually make surprisingly good food!"
Smoker let out a satisfied belch. Compared to the meals served at the Marine base, he found himself—against his will—feeling a flicker of envy toward the Straw Hat crew.
With nothing better to do, his gaze soon fell on the newspaper Red had deliberately left behind.
Using something like that to kill time—Smoker had already figured out it was Red's intention.
Still, he was bored.
Stranded on an enemy ship, unsure of what to do next, he picked up the newspaper in front of him.
And then—
He froze in shock at the reports printed on its pages.
At the same time, Smoker finally understood why Red wanted him to read it.
"That damned Colonel Nezumi… colluding with pirates and committing crimes like this?!"
As he stared at the bold headlines listing piece after piece of damning evidence—Marines and pirates working together—Smoker clenched his fists in fury, wishing he could drag the already-dead Colonel Nezumi back to life just to whip him again.
...
...
Because of Smoker's presence, the Straw Hats abandoned their original banquet plans.
They settled for a simple, normal lunch, after which everyone gathered on the deck.
The rare sight before them lifted everyone's spirits.
"Whoa! Clouds!"
Suddenly, Luffy—sitting cheerfully on the sheep figurehead—let out a shout, drawing everyone's attention.
As if responding to his words, a blast of cold air swept across the deck of the Going Merry.
"Brrr~! It's freezing!" Usopp shuddered.
"Well, we are at a pretty high altitude right now," Nami explained, her eyes never leaving the view ahead.
Even with Red's Surf at their disposal, this vast and dangerous sea was still unknown territory—no one could guarantee something unexpected wouldn't happen.
"Get ready—we're about to reach the summit!!!" Red reminded them with a grin.
"So awesome!!!" Luffy laughed loudly.
The next instant, the Going Merry shot forward like an arrow, piercing straight through the thick clouds.
In the blink of an eye, they reached the peak of Reverse Mountain.
At that moment, seawater from all four seas converged beneath their feet.
Carried by the roaring current, the Going Merry surged forward without slowing, plunging into a downward stream that finally allowed Newton to rest peacefully in his grave.
"Brace yourselves, everyone!!!"
Nami shouted excitedly, her navigator's instincts flaring.
"Just a little further, and we'll be entering the Grand Line!!!"
Click.
Just then, the cabin door creaked open.
Smoker stepped out, his expression grave.
In an instant, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji snapped their gazes toward him, bodies tensing in preparation for battle.
But Smoker calmly swept his eyes over them and said instead:
"Relax, pirates."
"Since I ate your food, I won't be coming after you—for a while."
He made it clear first: he had no intention of fighting.
After reading the newspaper, he simply couldn't bring himself to feel any urge to arrest the Straw Hats.
Colonel Nezumi had openly colluded with pirates under his very nose, oppressing civilians for years…
And Smoker had noticed nothing.
Instead, it was this unexpectedly appearing pirate crew that solved everything.
For a man who took pride in upholding justice, this was nothing short of unbearable humiliation.
So much so that when he looked at the Straw Hats now, a sense of guilt even surfaced within him.
Of course.
Compared to the still-unsteady Tashigi, Smoker's sense of justice itself hadn't wavered much.
Pirates were still pirates!
No matter how many good deeds they did, as long as they bore that name, they would inevitably endanger peace on the seas.
Of that, he was absolutely convinced!
As for the scum within the Marines—those were ten thousand times more despicable and vile than pirates!
Smoker's justice was fair justice!
Pirate or Marine—anyone who harmed civilians was his enemy!
"Hmph."
Unable to stand Smoker's stiff pride—especially when he couldn't even win—Zoro let out an annoyed grunt.
Still, knowing Smoker wouldn't cause trouble, he ignored him.
After all, what lay ahead was far more important than some arrogant Marine.
The Going Merry's descent was far faster than its ascent.
The Straw Hats laughed and chatted, completely unconcerned with Smoker's presence.
Soon, the base of Reverse Mountain came into view.
Including Red, everyone's hearts were racing with excitement they could no longer contain.
Luffy gazed ahead dreamily.
"I wonder what kind of adventures are waiting for us…"
"Man, this gets me fired up!!!"
As if the heavens heard his anticipation, shortly after they passed through another cloud layer, a massive black shadow suddenly appeared before them.
"Huh? There's something up ahead," Sanji said curiously, shading his eyes.
"What what!?" Luffy mimicked the gesture.
Usopp, whose eyesight was the best, suddenly paled.
Quickly putting on his goggles, he stared ahead before shouting in alarm:
"Something's wrong!"
"It looks like a mountain—no, wait… a wall?!"
"If we don't slow down, we're gonna crash into it!!!"
"That's impossible!"
Smoker, familiar with the Grand Line, froze. He rushed to the bow and looked ahead.
And then he saw it—
A pitch-black wall truly stood right in front of the current, blocking their path!
"This is bad!"
"At this rate, we'll be smashed to pieces!"
In the emergency, Nami immediately shouted to the ship's only pillar of support:
"Red!"
"No problem—leave it to me!"
Already prepared, Red smiled calmly and spoke words that instantly reassured everyone.
The next second, he snapped his fingers.
Suddenly, within the current ahead of the Going Merry, a wave rose—half the height of the ship—and surged forward to meet them.
Boom!!!
Blocked by the wave, the descending ship lurched violently.
Everyone was thrown off-balance by inertia.
But in the next instant, the once-plummeting Going Merry abruptly stopped, then continued downward at a much slower pace.
Smoker's eyes widened in shock.
Staring at Red manipulating the sea itself, his mind went completely blank.
"H-how can anyone control seawater?!"
The Devil Fruit user roared in disbelief.
But Red merely smiled calmly at him.
"Remember to keep this a secret for me, Colonel."
"You…"
Smoker was left speechless.
As the Going Merry descended slowly, they soon saw the "wall" for what it truly was.
"A whale?! But… how can it be this huge?!" Nami cried out in disbelief.
"Well, this is the Grand Line," Red said with a smile. "Anything amazing happening here wouldn't be strange at all."
"Creatures this big are hardly rare on the Grand Line."
"Oh?" Sanji lit a cigarette calmly. "Then we don't need to worry about food supplies anymore."
"Food?!"
As if triggered by a keyword, Luffy's eyes sparkled and drool spilled from his mouth.
"I wonder what whale meat tastes like~!"
"Sanji, can you cook whale meat?!"
Splash~
Leaving Reverse Mountain behind, the Going Merry dropped into the sea and slowly drifted toward the massive whale's side under Red's control.
Everyone stared up at the colossal creature in awe.
The Going Merry—large enough to hold an entire crew—looked as small as an ant beside it.
"H-hey, we should really get out of here fast!" Usopp suggested nervously.
"If it even turns a little, we're done for!"
Compared to eating whale meat, surviving was far more important right now!
But at that moment, Red suddenly smiled and said something that made everyone freeze.
"Hey… what do you think…"
"If we invited it to join the pirate crew, wouldn't the rest of our journey be a lot more interesting?"
Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Nami, Smoker:
"…Huh? …Huhhh?!"
"Shishishi~!!!"
Luffy spun around excitedly.
"Is that really possible, Red?!"
"I'm not completely sure," Red admitted, not making any promises, his eyes gleaming.
"But I can give it a try."
"Because I… happen to know a bit about this whale's story!"
(End of Chapter)