Only then did everyone realize something was wrong.
Chopper's side had been quiet for far too long—there hadn't been a single sound.
"That's strange…" Luffy frowned.
"Wasn't Chopper treating those people in the infirmary?"
"I don't know," Usopp said nervously.
"But being this quiet for so long definitely isn't normal."
Who knew if someone had attacked Chopper?
"Chopper isn't weak," Jin said calmly.
"And there was only a child with him at the time."
That kid probably couldn't even beat Merry, let alone threaten Chopper.
When Chopper went berserk, his destructive power was terrifying.
"Let's go check it out."
Zoro immediately grabbed his swords and rushed off—
but he came running back just as fast.
"Chopper's not in the infirmary."
"You actually managed to find the infirmary that fast?" Sanji said in disbelief.
"What the hell do you mean by that?!"
Seeing the two about to start fighting again, Jin quickly interrupted.
"I think Chopper probably went over to their ship."
"You mean…" Robin's eyes narrowed slightly.
"The captain of the Phoenix Pirates?"
"Yeah. Him."
That spiky-haired man had mentioned their captain before.
There was a good chance Chopper had gone to treat him.
Given Chopper's kindness, if that child told him someone was badly injured, he'd absolutely go save them.
"Idiot… at least he should've told us first," Zoro frowned.
Saving people was Chopper's principle as a doctor—Zoro respected that.
But showing kindness to strangers still required caution.
At the very least, they should've been present.
Otherwise, anything could happen.
"Let's go," Luffy said, pulling down his hat.
If anyone dared hurt his crewmate—
he'd punch them flying.
Just then—
BOOM!!
A violent explosion rang out, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
"That was—cannon fire?!" Usopp cried out.
"Don't tell me those bounty hunters have already arrived?!"
"Everyone, outside!"
They rushed out of the cabin—only to find the sky had somehow darkened.
Because of the snowfall, night had fallen unusually early.
"Look!" Usopp suddenly shouted.
"What's that black shadow over there?!"
He raised his binoculars, but the darkness made it hard to see clearly.
Still… those sails looked strangely familiar.
The next second, lights flared in the distance—
Revealing sail after sail painted with Marine insignia!
Usopp's face instantly turned green.
"M-Marine ships?!"
"That many warships…" Zoro stared in disbelief.
"Are they all here to hunt us down?"
Within visible range alone, dozens of ships were forming a massive encirclement.
Were they planning to wipe them out here?!
"Isn't the Navy overestimating us a bit?" Nami said weakly.
A Buster Call only had ten warships—
this time there were dozens.
"They might be reacting to Jin defeating the Buster Call before," Robin guessed.
She had personally witnessed how terrifying Jin's naval combat ability was back at Enies Lobby.
It wouldn't be strange for the Marines to overcompensate this time.
"Heh… interesting."
Jin's lips curled upward with excitement.
"Looks like I get to fight properly again."
Trying to surround him on the sea?
Even if they sent a hundred ships, it would still be pointless.
If they wanted to kill him, they should've done it on land.
"Eh? We can fight now?!"
Merry pulled out her tiny hammer, eyes sparkling with anticipation.
She hadn't fought alongside everyone since being revived.
"Merry too…?" Usopp's face collapsed.
Why was this kid just like Jin?!
"There's a chance Marine Admiral Aokiji will appear," Zoro said suddenly.
The atmosphere instantly froze.
Even Jin frowned.
"He might come too?"
The last time they met in Water 7, Aokiji hadn't seemed intent on chasing them.
Had something changed?
Like Luffy's grandfather—forced to act under orders?
"It's possible," Sanji said seriously.
"The Navy knows that fighting Jin at sea puts them at a disadvantage."
"So the man who can freeze the ocean…"
"…might very well come."
Zoro nodded—that was exactly his concern.
Robin frowned slightly.
Strangely, after hearing this, something felt off to her.
"We should run!" Usopp grabbed Jin's arm desperately.
"I'm begging you—let's not fight this time!"
"Nami! Think of something!"
As he spoke, more explosions erupted.
Columns of seawater blasted into the air, splashing down onto the Thousand Sunny.
Watching the water slide off the deck, Nami's expression hardened.
"We have to escape.
Facing this many ships at sea puts us at a huge disadvantage."
Dozens of warships firing together—there'd be no way to block it all.
"Wait—there's a gap!" Franky suddenly shouted.
"Look! Their encirclement isn't complete!"
"Let me see!"
Nami rushed over and immediately spotted it—
At the ten o'clock direction, a massive opening remained, though ships were already moving to close it.
"This is our chance!"
"Merry—ten o'clock! Go!"
"Okay!"
Merry immediately began steering the ship—
"But what about Chopper?" she said anxiously, pointing to the nearby pirate ship.
"He might still be over there!"
The two ships weren't connected.
They'd only been side by side because the Sunny had lowered its sails earlier.
After the bombardment, the distance between them was already widening.
"Jin!"
"Got it."
"Water Release — Twin Water Dragon Bullet!"
BOOM!!
The sea trembled violently—
As if massive beasts were stirring beneath the surface.
In the next instant, two enormous water dragons burst upward from the ocean!
They lifted both ships onto their backs.
Because of the darkness, from afar—
It looked as if both ships were flying.
"Everyone—hold on tight!!"
BOOM!!
Under Jin's control, the water dragons surged forward.
Their speed skyrocketed, and the wind pressure nearly blew people off the deck!
"AAAAH!!"
Nami clung tightly to Jin's leg, completely airborne.
Her mind went blank.
Wasn't this speed a bit too insane?!
"I'm flying~!"
Merry waved her little hammer excitedly while being held by Robin's powers.
"So cool!!"
"Damn it—I really want to learn ninjutsu too!!"
"Aaaah—!"
"Th-they… flew away?"
On a specially modified sailboat, Sarugo stared in disbelief at the two rapidly shrinking silhouettes.
He had just witnessed something utterly impossible.
Ships… flying?!
"Sa-Sarugo-sama… what do we do now?"
Coming back to his senses, Sarugo swallowed hard.
"Collect the modified sails first."
To force prey into the Ice Sea Route, they'd spent a fortune building these special ships—
Painting Marine symbols onto the sails.
Under floodlights, they looked exactly like a fleet of warships.
Most pirates panicked instantly and fled toward the prearranged gap.
It had always worked.
Until today.
"This crew is seriously abnormal…" Sarugo muttered.
A deep unease rose in his chest.
The Ice Sea Route might not work this time.
He immediately took out a Den Den Mushi and contacted his wife.
"Dear~ what is it this time?"
Aruberu answered with a gentle smile.
"Something's wrong this time."
"What's wrong? Did they head into the Ice Sea Route?"
"They did… but—"
She immediately sensed something was off.
"What happened?"
"When I activated the Seagull Trap, their ship suddenly flew out through the gap."
"…Flew?"
Aruberu froze.
"That's impossible… how could a ship fly?"
"I saw it clearly. Everyone did."
"…This…"
For the first time, she didn't know what to say.
In the past, once pirates entered the Ice Sea Route, everything was over.
But this time…
"If that's the case," Don Brindy said gravely,
"then the Ice Sea Route may not be effective at all."
"They can just fly out."
"It's because of that ninja," Campaccino said coldly.
"In that case, we need to act faster."
If they let prey worth over a billion Beli escape—
Their father would be furious.
"That ninja must be knocked into the sea," Campaccino said firmly.
"I suspect he's a Devil Fruit user. Once he falls into the ocean, it's over."
"Understood!"
"Sarugo, return immediately."
"…Yes."
Click.
The call ended.
Sarugo stared silently at the Den Den Mushi.
…When would he ever gain his brother-in-law's approval?
"Straw Hat Pirates…"
He narrowed his eyes toward the direction they'd escaped.
"Let's hope nothing goes wrong this time."
"Sarugo-sama, we're ready to return!"
"Set sail."
"Yes!"
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested:
patreon.com/ZoroTL442