Chapter 224: Ace: Finally Arrived!
All good things must come to an end.
After the banquet, the Straw Hat Pirates left Partia and continued their voyage.
The sea was never short of surprises, big and small, to spice things up.
First came the giant whirlwind.
Reportedly a specialty of the waters around Partia.
The seawater suddenly began to rotate, forming a massive tornado that connected the sky and the sea.
The Going Merry was nearly swept in, but fortunately, Nami commanded skillfully and they escaped in time.
Then came the Navy pursuit.
A Navy warship chased them for an entire day, only to be driven back by Zoro and Sanji working together.
Finally free from all troubles—
"Ah—!"
Nami's scream echoed throughout the ship.
Everyone rushed over and found her staring at the Log Pose in her hand.
"What's wrong?"
Usopp asked.
Nami raised the pointer.
Everyone looked up.
The direction the pointer pointed—
Was the sky.
"P-pointing to the sky?"
Chopper stammered.
"Is the pointer broken?"
Usopp asked.
"It's not broken."
Robin walked over and looked at the pointer.
"This is... Skypiea."
"Skypiea?"
Lufia tilted her head.
"A legendary island that exists in the sky."
Robin explained,
"In the field of archaeology, there have always been legends about Skypiea. But no literature records whether Skypiea truly exists."
"An island in the sky!"
Lufia's eyes lit up.
"There's an island above the clouds?"
Chopper's eyes lit up too.
"Will there be flying fish up there?"
Usopp's eyes lit up as well.
The three looked at each other.
Then they jumped up simultaneously.
"To Skypiea!"
"To Skypiea!"
"To Skypiea!"
Nami held her head.
"Even if Skypiea exists, how is the ship supposed to fly up there?!"
The three froze.
Oh, right.
How does a ship fly?
They all looked at two people on the ship at the same time.
Ace.
Ralph.
Ace was a commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, well-traveled and knowledgeable. He surely knew whether Skypiea existed, and perhaps even the method to reach it.
But he only smiled and remained silent.
This was his respect for his sister and her crew.
This is your adventure.
If you don't ask, I won't offer.
Lufia naturally wouldn't ask Ace.
Because she had Ralph.
"Ralph! How do we get to Skypiea?"
Ralph was about to speak—
"Look over there!"
Usopp suddenly pointed into the distance.
On the sea, a water column shot up into the sky.
A water column hundreds of meters high, like a pillar connecting heaven and earth, pierced the clouds.
"..."
Nami's eyes widened.
"Knock Up Stream."
Ralph said.
Before his words faded—
Boom!
A massive shadow fell from the sky, crashing into the sea and sending towering waves.
When the waves subsided, everyone saw what it was.
The wreckage of a pirate ship.
Fallen from the sky.
"Wow—!"
Lufia was excited, "There's treasure!"
Without another word, she jumped onto a small boat and rowed toward the wreckage.
Chopper and Usopp were dragged onto the boat with her.
"Wait for us—!"
The three rowed the small boat and quickly approached the wreckage.
Ralph stood on the Going Merry, watching them.
The words he wanted to say were swallowed back.
Ignored, huh.
A few minutes later, the three returned.
Lufia held something in her hand, waving it excitedly.
"Ralph! Look what we found!!"
She jumped onto the deck and held the thing up to Ralph.
It was a skeleton.
Ralph fell silent.
"Where's the treasure?"
Nami asked.
"This is it!"
Lufia said matter-of-factly.
Nami facepalmed.
The archaeologist Robin examined the skeleton, pointing at the skull.
"There's a hole here."
Everyone gathered to look.
On the skull of the skeleton, there was indeed a round hole.
The edges were smooth, as if drilled by something.
"What kind of injury is this?"
Usopp asked.
Chopper, hiding far away out of fear, glanced over out of curiosity:
"This is a type of cranial surgery treatment from 200 years ago."
"200 years ago?!"
"Yes."
Chopper nodded, "I read about it in a medical book."
"This treatment method was popular 200 years ago but was later abandoned because it was too dangerous."
Everyone fell silent.
A treatment method from 200 years ago.
Then this ship...
"This ship is at least 200 years old."
Robin checked for other clues.
She examined the skeleton and suddenly found a piece of paper in its embrace.
It was a map.
"A map of Skypiea."
Robin said.
Lufia's eyes lit up again.
"Skypiea really exists!"
She jumped up, spinning three times in the air.
Chopper and Usopp jumped along with her.
"Skypiea! Skypiea! Skypiea!"
Nami looked at them, then at Ralph.
"What were you going to say earlier?"
Ralph's expression was a bit sour.
What he had wanted to say earlier was about Skypiea and the way to get there.
But before he could finish, they had run off.
Now they're curious?
Ralph wanted to keep everyone in suspense, but facing Lufia's request, he immediately gave in.
Lufia jumped in front of him, "How do we get to Skypiea?"
Ralph looked into her sparkling eyes.
All his frustration vanished.
"There are two methods."
Everyone quieted down.
"The first is to go up from Upper Yard."
"I heard there's a path there that leads to Skypiea, but it's extremely dangerous."
"Out of a hundred people, only a few survive to reach Skypiea."
Lufia frowned.
"A few?"
"Yes."
She thought for a moment, then asked:
"What's the second method?"
"The second method—"
Ralph pointed toward the sea, "Ride the Knock Up Stream we saw earlier."
"That water column?"
"Yes."
"The Knock Up Stream will send the ship straight into the sky."
"Either everyone reaches Skypiea, or—"
He paused.
"Or?"
"The ship is destroyed, and everyone perishes."
Nami's face turned pale.
Usopp's face turned pale.
Chopper's face also turned pale.
Lufia thought for a moment.
Then she smiled.
"Then the second method."
"Why?"
Nami asked.
"Because we're partners."
Lufia said matter-of-factly, "Of course we should live and die together. And—"
She looked toward the sea.
"The Knock Up Stream looks really exciting!"
Nami: "..."
Usopp: "..."
Chopper: "..."
The three of them cried simultaneously.
"Why do we have to choose something so exciting?!"
"Because we're Pirates!"
Lufia's answer left them speechless.
Just then, Ralph said with a smile:
"Actually, we don't have a choice."
"I only know about Upper Yard, but I have no idea how to get there or where it is."
Nami, Usopp, and Chopper exchanged glances.
Then they all pounced on Ralph at the same time.
"You don't even know and you still brought it up?!"
"You were just scaring us for fun?!"
"Beat him up!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Ralph was pinned to the ground by the three of them and given a thorough beating.
But he just laughed.
Robin watched from the side and also smiled.
So there were things even Ralph didn't know.
That felt more real.
Otherwise, he wouldn't seem human at all.
After the three had vented their frustrations, Ralph got up from the ground and straightened his clothes.
"But we can't just wait around here."
"The Knock Up Stream doesn't appear at any time; it requires precise calculation of timing and location."
"We need to find someone familiar with these waters."
"Where do we look?"
Nami asked.
Ralph tapped his own head.
"Don't worry, I've already seen this scene in my dreams."
He stretched out his hand and pointed forward.
"Follow that ship, and we'll find someone who knows the currents."
Everyone looked in the direction he pointed.
On the sea, a pirate ship was sailing toward them.
The ship had a peculiar shape, with a huge monkey decorating its bow.
Sounds of hammering and clattering came from the ship, creating a lively atmosphere.
A figure stood at the bow.
A massive figure.
That was a Masira.
"M-Masira?!"
Usopp stammered.
"A pirate crew?"
Chopper also stammered.
Ralph looked at the ship, then turned to Ace.
"There's a town on the island where they live."
"The person you're looking for is staying there."
Ace's expression didn't change at all.
But his eyes shifted slightly.
Finally, the wait was over.