Journey Halfway: Den Den Mushi Paper

On the Sunny Merry—

"We've finally arrived!"

Luffy shouted to the sky;

"We've already covered half the distance without even realizing it,"

Roman also expressed a rare sentiment;

"Yes, we've been through so many adventures."

Nami stood next to Roman and looked up;

"Everyone has grown a lot along the way!"

Zoro held onto the three Famous Swords at his waist;

I remember it was a very stormy day.

Sanji took a deep drag of his cigarette, reminiscing.

"Thinking back on all the ups and downs along the way, I can't help but cry..."

Compared to his companions, whose minds were as strong as steel, Usopp, a mere 'mortal,' was already shedding tears.

From being chased by Smoker, the "White Hunter," into Reverse Mountain from Loguetown: the giant whale Laboon, the stranded princess Vivi, seeking medical help in the Drum Kingdom, joining forces to fight the Crocodile, Blackbeard from Jaya Island, the descendant of the great liar, the invincible "god" of the Sky Island, the attack of Admiral Aokiji, the final battle in Water 7, and the recently traversed Thriller Bark...

And the Straw Hat crew grew from six to ten members! Gradually, they developed the configuration a proper adventure crew should have—

Although Luffy keeps saying he wants to become King of the Pirates, Roman sees it as just an adventure crew.

"It's truly spectacular!"

Chopper was amazed as he went out for the first time;

"I came to this sea from the West Blue five years ago,"

Robin looked at the scenery before him with great interest;

"I came from the South Blue when I was a child, that was thirty years ago."

Franky pushed up his sunglasses and looked at everything in front of him.

"Wow, it took me a full fifty years to get here..."

Brook, the skeleton, was filled with emotion. His former companions were all gone... But this time, he had to reach the end with his new companions.

At the edge of the sea, in the sight of everyone aboard the Sunny Merry, there was a red expanse that stretched as far as the eye could see, towering into the clouds like a world wall.

Red Line!!

A giant highland that divides the entire world in two.

"Hehehe, that means we're halfway there!"

Luffy looked up at the Red Line that divided the world before him, "If I just travel half a circle more, I'll be the King of the Pirates!!"

Are you dreaming?!

Roman rolled his eyes. The first half of the Grand Line was called 'Paradise' precisely because the difficulty was 'extremely low'. A bounty of tens of millions was enough to make a living, and a bounty of over a hundred million made one a powerful figure...

However, in the in the Grand Line, the 'New World,' pirates with bounties exceeding one hundred million taels roam freely, and bounties of tens of millions are practically worthless! You need a billion to even dabble in anything. With the Straw Hat crew's current strength, entering the New World is far too dangerous!

Even though Roman dragged them into training every day, all they could really do was improve their basic physical fitness and gain experience in Roman. They didn't know the truly advanced techniques—although Roman did have moments of flashes of inspiration that allowed him to use various practical techniques, how could something he himself couldn't explain possibly be applicable to the rest of the Straw Hat crew?

It seems that the Sabaody Archipelago is best managed according to...

"Why?"

Nami gasped and looked at the Log Pose on her wrist; it was:

Point downwards!

"Could it be that the so-called Fish-Man Island is located beneath the sea?"

Since there are sky Sky Island thousands of meters above the ground, it's not impossible for Fish-Man Island to exist underwater. However:

"This is troublesome. How are we going to get down to the seabed? Roman— "

The saying "when in doubt, ask Roman" has almost become a habit for the Straw Hat crew. Unfortunately, this time:

"I've never been to Fish-Man Island, how would I know?"

Everyone was shocked when Roman answered "I don't know"! His chin dropped to his chest.

"Roman didn't even know some things???"

It's the end of the world!

"... Have I become an omniscient 'god' in your eyes?" Roman rubbed his temples. He actually knew why the Log Pose was pointing downwards, but:

Yes, I remember the Straw Hat crew dived down here to find Fish-Man Island, lured the Sea Beast that had swallowed the mermaid Keimi ashore to rescue her, and then reunited with the Hachi.

Later, through Hachi's introduction, they went to the Sabaody Archipelago to dive for coating, but the Fish-Man Keimi was kidnapped, which led to the 'big event' that followed:

Luffy beats up Celestial Dragons!

Admiral Kizaru appeared and instantly annihilated the Straw Hat crew and all the Supernovas present.

Then Kuma came to the rescue, using his powers to send the Straw Hat crew flying to different parts of the New World for training.

Why,

Roman sighed. He was just an ordinary transmigrator, not even a 'master,' let alone a renowned teacher. The Straw Hat crew really needed to go to a special island to improve their strength, so:

"Robin, could you come to my room for a moment?"

Faced with Roman's invitation, the sophisticated beauty nodded without hesitation and followed.

·······

"How are things, Luffy, Zoro, Usopp?"

Franky launched the "Shark III"—a shark-shaped submarine—from the Luffy Sunny Merry's dock for exploration. Luffy, as captain, naturally took a seat. Zoro was quite reliable when he didn't need to walk, and Usopp was only chosen because he knew how to pilot the submarine...

"No, it's too dark..."

"Huh? Something just flashed—"

"It's the eyeball of Sea Beast."

"Aaaaaahhhhh~~~ I want to surface, surface!!"

Holding the Den Den Mushi in her hand, Nami rubbed her forehead with one hand. Couldn't these three be a little more reliable...? And speaking of reliable—

Nami looked around but couldn't see Roman or even Robin, Nami sigh in frustration.

They should have had one of the 'reliable duo' go diving...

"Sanji, have you seen Roman and Robin?"

After handing the Den Den Mushi to Franky, Nami made her way to her room, only to unexpectedly see Sanji circling around the door, the smoke making Nami frown.

What are you doing here?

"Ah! Ah, ah? I'm alright..."

Seeing Sanji, Nami gave him a strange look, her Sanji full of embarrassment, and stepped forward.

"What the hell—"

'Be gentle...'

Isn't that Robin's voice?

Before Nami could even reach for the doorknob, another familiar voice rang out.

Don't worry... I have experience...

Roman? He and Robin—

'Pain····'

?

'... Pain... is normal...'

!

'Ah... it's bleeding...'

?!

'Don't panic... Leave it to me...'

!!!!!!!!!!!!

For a fleeting moment, Nami felt her hair color was trending towards Zoro's! In her room, on her bed, and with her...

This is intolerable! Watch me blast you scum with a million volts!

Bang!

He kicked the door open, causing the two members of the Luo family in the room to Guotou.

"You... you all..."

What came into view was not the strange thing Nami had imagined. As the blood flowing from Robin's wrist turned into flower petals on the paper, Roman wrapped a piece of emerald green paper around Robin's wound, and then looked strangely at Nami standing at the door.

"Nami? What are you doing—"

"Practicing your 'face-changing' skills? I didn't give you Mr. 2's ability certificate..."

"Pfft,"

Seeing Nami's embarrassed expression, Robin gracefully stood up.

"It seems our navigator is jealous. I won't stay here any longer."

"Sister Robin, you're bullying me!"

Nami, blushing furiously, first grabbed Robin, then looked curiously at Roman, "How did you come up with the idea of recording Robin's abilities? -- Let me make it clear, don't expect me to have time to develop the 'Flower-Flower Fruit Mi'..."

"Ha, with your development speed—"

Roman's disdainful expression Nami's fists itch again. She was so angry! If she could beat him, she would definitely teach him a lesson in 'domestic violence'!

It's decided, I'm sleeping on the floor.

"I've got a great idea,"

Unaware that he was about to sleep on the floor, Roman unfolded the paper in his hand, and a 'mouth' immediately appeared on it.

"How?"

As the paper opened and closed, a sound came from the mouth on it, surprising Nami, Robin, and Sanji who was outside the door.

"Robin's ability allows organs to appear on the target, so—"

Roman's lips remained still, and another 'ear' appeared on the paper in his hand.

"With this, we can communicate remotely!"

Ears receive, mouths speak, and paper carries:

This is an Apple phone!

"It is indeed powerful," Nami hesitated for a moment, "But isn't it just like Den Den Mushi?"

It's the same.

"Den Den Mushi isn't as convenient as I am,"

Roman stood up and shook his head, instantly splitting the paper in his hand into ten sheets.

"Den Den Mushi) are vulnerable to being tapped on, and they're inconvenient to carry. But mine is different—"

Whoosh~

The paper flew through the air and wrapped around Robin, Nami, and Sanji's wrists, forming a 'wristband'.

"With this, we can communicate and track each other's locations anytime, even if we're separated..."

"This is great stuff!"

Roman snapped his fingers at the delighted three.

"This move is called—"

"Paper Dance - Cellphone!"

Of course, this is just the oldest kind of "brick phone," still a long way from smartphones...