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"Belgh~"
"The food cooked by these pirates is surprisingly delicious!"
Smoker burped, and compared to the meals in the Marine base cafeteria, he actually felt a little envious of the Straw Hats.
With nothing to do, he noticed the newspaper that Red had deliberately left for him.
Smoker was aware that Red wanted him to read it to pass the time, but he was indeed bored.
Being trapped on an enemy ship with nothing else to do, he picked up the newspaper.
And then...
He was shocked by what he read! At the same time, Smoker realized why Red had been so keen for him to read the newspaper.
"Damn Captain Nezumi, colluding with pirates to do such terrible things!"
Looking at the evidence of collusion between the Marines and pirates detailed across an entire page, Smoker clenched his fists in anger, wishing he could resurrect Captain Nezumi just to punish him all over again.
Because of Smoker's presence, the Straw Hats abandoned their planned celebration.
They settled for a simple lunch, then gathered on deck.
The rare scenery made everyone feel relaxed and cheerful.
"Wow! Clouds!"
Luffy, sitting on the Merry's sheep figurehead, suddenly exclaimed, drawing everyone's attention.
As if confirming his words, a burst of cold air suddenly descended on the deck.
Usopp shivered: "Brr~ It's freezing!"
"Well, we are at a very high altitude now," Nami explained, keeping her eyes fixed ahead.
Although Red had his Surf to guide them, no one could guarantee there wouldn't be accidents in this unknown and dangerous sea area.
"Heads up! We're about to reach the mountain's peak!" Red grinned and warned everyone.
"Amazing!!!" Luffy laughed excitedly.
The next second, the Merry shot through the thick clouds like an arrow.
In the blink of an eye, they reached the top of Reverse Mountain.
The sea water flowing in from all four seas gathered around them.
Following the turbulent current, the Merry maintained its speed and rushed into a downward channel that finally allowed Newton's laws of physics to work properly.
"Get ready, everyone!!!"
Nami called out excitedly:
"One more journey and we'll enter the Grand Line!!!"
Click.
At that moment, the Merry's hatch opened.
Smoker walked out with a serious expression.
Immediately, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji turned their attention toward him, ready for battle.
However, Smoker calmly swept his gaze across everyone, then said: "Don't worry, pirates!"
"Now that I've eaten your food, I won't cause any trouble for you in the short term."
He was the first to show he had no intention of fighting.
After reading the newspaper, he obviously could no longer think about arresting the Straw Hats.
Captain Nezumi had colluded with pirates right under the Marines' noses and oppressed people for years...
And they hadn't noticed anything.
Instead, a group of pirates had appeared unexpectedly and solved everything.
For Smoker, who had always been committed to justice, this was a great shame.
So much so that when he looked at the Straw Hats now, he even felt guilty.
Of course, compared to Tashigi, whose convictions had been shaken, his sense of justice hadn't wavered much.
Pirates were still pirates!
No matter how many good deeds they did, as long as they maintained that identity, they would bring harm to the peace of the seas.
He was convinced of this!
As for the corrupt elements within the Marines, they were a thousand times more despicable than pirates! Smoker's justice was fair justice! Whether pirates or Marines, anyone who harmed innocent people was his enemy!
"Hmph!"
Unable to understand Smoker's stubborn attitude despite his defeat, Zoro let out a dissatisfied grunt.
But after learning that Smoker wouldn't cause trouble, he stopped paying attention to him.
After all, the matter at hand was much more important than dealing with an arrogant Marine!
The Merry's descent was obviously much faster than its ascent! The Straw Hats chatted and laughed, ignoring Smoker.
Soon, they saw the bottom of Reverse Mountain.
Everyone, including Red, was filled with uncontrollable excitement.
Luffy said longingly:
"I wonder what kind of adventures lie ahead..."
"It's so exciting!!!"
Perhaps fate heard his expectation. Just after passing through a cloud, a huge black shadow suddenly appeared before the Straw Hats.
"That's strange, there seems to be something ahead," Sanji said, raising a hand to his brow. "What is that?"
Luffy imitated the same gesture, squinting ahead.
Usopp, who had the sharpest eyesight, suddenly changed expression.
He quickly put on his goggles, observed carefully, and then shouted in panic: "Something's wrong!"
"There's something like a mountain ahead... wait... it looks like a wall?!"
"Whatever it is, if we don't slow down, we're going to crash!!!"
"How can that be?!"
Smoker, who was familiar with the Grand Line, was startled. He quickly moved to the bow and looked ahead.
Then he saw...
In front of the Merry, there was a dark wall blocking the current!
"This is bad!"
"If we continue like this, our ship will be destroyed and we'll all be killed!"
In the emergency, Nami immediately shouted to the one person she knew could help:
"Red!"
"No problem, leave it to me!"
Red, who had anticipated this, smiled slightly, instantly reassuring everyone.
The next second, he snapped his fingers.
In the sea current ahead of the Merry, a wave only half as high as the ship suddenly surged up and rushed toward the bow.
BOOM!
Blocked by the wave, the descending Merry shook violently.
Everyone staggered from the inertia.
But a moment later, the rapidly descending ship suddenly slowed, then continued downward at a gentle pace.
Seeing this, Smoker's eyes widened in shock!
Watching Red control the seawater, his brain seemed to short-circuit.
"How... how can anyone control seawater?!"
As a Devil Fruit user himself, he practically roared the question.
But Red just smiled calmly at him: "Remember to keep it a secret for me, Captain!"
"You..."
Smoker was momentarily speechless.
As the Merry descended slowly, they could finally see the "wall" clearly.
"It's a whale?! But... how can it be so enormous?!"
Nami exclaimed in disbelief.
"Because this is the Grand Line!" Red smiled slightly. "In this place, even the most magical things are commonplace!"
"Such a behemoth is definitely not uncommon in the Grand Line!"
"Really?" Sanji lit a cigarette calmly. "Seems like we won't have to worry about food."
"Food?!"
As if a magic word had been spoken, Luffy's eyes suddenly lit up and he began to drool:
"I wonder what whale meat tastes like~!"
"Sanji, do you know how to cook whale meat?!"
Splash~
After leaving Reverse Mountain, the Merry splashed into the calm water, and under Red's control, slowly approached the side of the enormous whale.
Everyone stared in shock at the behemoth before them.
The Merry, which was large enough to carry their entire crew, looked as small as an ant next to the whale.
"Hey, hey, hey, let's leave this area quickly!"
The timid Usopp suggested urgently:
"Otherwise, if it turns around even slightly, we're done for!"
Compared to eating whale meat or anything else, their current safety seemed far more important!
But at that moment, Red suddenly smiled and proposed an idea that changed everyone's expressions.
"What if..."
"We invite it to join our pirate crew? Wouldn't that make our journey more interesting?!"
Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Nami, and Smoker all exclaimed:
"WHAAAAAT?!"
"So COOL!!!"
Luffy turned his head excitedly: "Can we really do that, Red?!"
"I'm not entirely sure," Red admitted, but his eyes gleamed:
"But I can try!"
"Because I... happen to know some stories about this whale!"