Nakama's Mark, Robin Comes Aboard

"Hahaha, I am the King of the Sky!!"

Standing atop the 'Boeing 747' Luffy spreads his arms and shouts, leaving everyone who disembarks speechless.

"In a few days, you'll probably be the king of the universe..."

Splash splash~~

As Roman retrieved the paper, Luffy, who had fallen onto the sand, angrily pressed down on his Straw Hat.

"Roman, make me a smaller 'airplane' to play with."

·······

"Hmph, why don't we just use my abilities to go to sea?"

"Let's use this 'Boeing 747' to carry everyone on the Grand Line, Luffy... and laughing at those miserable people sitting on rafts in the sea."

As the saying goes: the army is rustic, the navy is foreign, and the air force is just a bunch of hooligans!

Come and go as you please, that's how carefree I am!

·······

Golden Merry: So love will disappear, right?

——

"No! What about the Golden Merry?"

Usopp burst into tears instantly.

"No way! That's not fun at all!"

Luffy also looked completely devastated.

"I was just kidding."

??

"How can the Grand Line navigate in such treacherous and unpredictable weather with its fierce winds and waves, relying on my 'paper airplane'?"

Let alone a pirated Roman aircraft, even a real Boeing 747 wouldn't dare to fly on a day with all four seasons changing and lightning and thunder being Grand Line.

But thinking about it carefully, that lump of iron might not even be as sturdy as Roman's 'paper airplane'...

"In short, before my strength reaches the threshold of the Shichibukai, using my abilities to go to sea is just asking for trouble. I'd rather die than admit it."

"That's good, that's good~~"

The two, who had been instantly revived, patted their chests, still shaken.

"Oh, right—"

Roman looked at Luffy, "If we're going to wait until midnight, there's no need to set sail now."

The group is currently located on the outskirts of a port city in eastern Alabasta. Nami, on behalf of the Straw Hat crew, gave Vivi half a day to consider her question—meaning the Straw Hat crew will depart again from here at 12 noon today.

Whether or not Vivi wants to board the ship is entirely up to her.

"If we set sail now, it will easily attract the attention of the navy."

Strictly speaking, there are currently three Marine warship patrolling outside this port. If the Golden Merry dares to show itself, it will be met with cannon fire on the spot.

"Hmm, that makes sense."

Luffy stroked his chin. "Then let's go risk it—"

Splash splash~~

"I already have a detailed exercise plan on how to spend this time."

Sheets of white paper fluttered out, forming a huge training ground. Also present was the 'wristband' that Roman was holding, making Luffy shudder.

"Come on, come on, don't be shy."

"Luffy and Chopper each have one, and I'll take a pair myself!"

"Okay," X2

With tears Luffy and Chopper silently accepted the 'Seastone bracelet' bracelets and put them on, then:

"Ugh, I feel completely drained~~~"

"Oh no, I can't take it anymore~~~"

"Alright, everyone, let's start exercising!"

Seeing Roman sweating profusely while wearing 'Seastone' bracers, and Zoro silently lifting two giant rocks to do squats, Sanji tugged at his collar and complained.

"Those who know, tell them we're a pirate crew..."

"Anyone who didn't know better would think we were XXX Gym Club..."

"Don't underestimate gyms,"

Roman said while rapidly doing sit-ups, "You know, the 'Destruction Cannon' Ideo of the New World is a fitness enthusiast and also the champion of the 'New World Central Fighting Tournament' V2. His bounty is a whopping 200 million..."

Wait a minute!

Did Destruction Cannon win the fighting championship at this point...? Never mind those details.

Two hundred million?

In an instant, Luffy's eyes turned into stars.

"That's amazing? I want to bring him on board!"

Um... that's your future subordinate...

"Anyway, since I'm just idling around anyway, it's never a bad thing to get some exercise. —At least it'll make escaping a little faster, right?"

So a group of people began to sweat and sing praises to their youth!

Then--

"I never imagined that training with this 'Seastone' would be so tough..."

After a morning of arduous work, the group of "water people" staggered aboard the Golden Merry. Every step was a struggle, their bodies drenched in sweat, constantly getting wet and then drying again...

"I felt like I'd been touched by a Crocodile!"

"Chopper is already half-cooked..."

"Water~~ Give me water~~~"

"Give,"

A calm, mature woman's voice rang out as a large wooden barrel was handed to Luffy. After he unceremoniously picked it up and gulped it down, he exclaimed, "Ah, that feels great! I'm finally revived!"

"You have some too,"

One by one, hands handed water cups to the group, who, after a morning of exercise, took the cups and gulped down the water.

"Thank you~~" X4

Then:

"Pfft!!!" X4

Why are you here?!

"Could they be here for revenge?!"

"Ahhh, a stranger!!"

"Pretty Miss. All Sunday~~"

Faced with the roaring Nami, Chopper, Usopp, Sanji... well, Sanji's eyes had turned into... and his whole body was drifting around like seaweed.

"Huh? You guys are only realizing it now?"

Roman took a sip of water and put down the cup.

"It seems we can't let up on your ' Observation Haki 'Haki training..."

You devilish coach! X3

Usopp and Nami were in tears, while Chopper was already lying dead. —For this reindeer who lived in the icy wilderness, the desert environment was hell! Not to mention the sheer soreness of his thick fur after being dragged into crazy training by Roman ...

"So, why are you here, woman?"

With his hand on the hilt of his sword, Zoro, the only one who didn't accept the water cup offered by the other party, raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, it's you,"

"Thank you for the antidote~~"

Luffy, on the other hand, remained calm, as if the person in front of him was not his former mortal enemy.

Nico Robin!

Indeed, the person appearing on the Golden Merry was none other than this tall, intelligent beauty. She had taken off her imposing white fur trench coat and changed into a shirt and trousers. However—

The top two buttons of the shirt collar couldn't be fastened, and the trousers looked like capri pants.

When did you board the ship?

In response to Nami's question, the tall Robin moved a chair over, sat down, and calmly opened the book in her hand.

"I've been on the Golden Merry the whole time, reading, taking showers..."

"Is this outfit yours? Can I borrow it for a bit?"

Hmm, no wonder this outfit looked a bit strange, it turns out it's Nami's clothes—

"Roman, are you thinking about something rude?!"

??!!

No, not at all.

"Lie!"

Hmm... Could it be that Nami Awakening 'Observation Haki'? Roman, stroking his chin, pondered seriously, which Zoro couldn't bear to watch.

"Roman, I think you should learn how to manage your facial expressions..."

Although Roman doesn't possess the exaggerated facial expressions typical of the Straw Hat crew, he has a habit of stroking his chin when thinking, and he unconsciously looks up at the sky when lying through his teeth... These little details have long been thoroughly figured out by the others...

"Don't worry about the details."

"The important thing is—"

Roman waved to change the subject, then looked at Nicole Robin, who had changed into casual clothes and was now reclining in a chair reading. Although her presence here was part of the 'deal' with Roman, the final decision rested with...

Um?

As the Golden Merry slowly sailed out of its hiding place, the Marine warship on the sea immediately noticed the Straw Hat Jolly Roger on board. After circling around, they sped towards it! Of course, this wasn't Roman's main concern; the main concern was—

Tap tap tap~~

Amidst a series of rapid footsteps, a giant land duck galloped toward the harbor.

Seated atop the throne was a blue-haired girl in a magnificent long dress— Nefertari Vivi, the princess of Alabasta and the next heir to the kingdom.

"Oh, Vivi's here!"

"Stop! Stop! Wait for Vivi to get on the boat!"

Following Luffy's command, Roman immediately slowed the Golden Merry, even though he knew Vivi wouldn't be joining them. But—how could a few mere Marine warship compare to the importance of his comrades?

If Luffy didn't always avoid the Marines, Roman would have flown over right now and utterly destroyed those three warships...

"Everyone!"

Vivi, waving this way, took the Den Den Mushi from the 'Fast Runner' Den Den Mushi, and her voice came from the nearby port city!

"... I've come to say goodbye."

This·····

Luffy was taken aback.

"I'm sorry, I can't go with you."

"Thank you so much for everything during this time!"

·······

"Impossible, that's the princess of Alabasta?" Not to mention the Golden Merry, even the soldiers on the three Marine warship that surrounded them were stunned.

A princess of a country and a pirate... you can't possibly imagine them being mixed together, right?

"I really want to go on an adventure with you guys, but—"

Vivi's voice echoed across the sea.

"I love my motherland!"

"I've decided to stay..."

If she could, wouldn't the naturally bold Vivi also want to set sail with Luffy?

But she was, after all, a princess of Alabasta and the heir to the throne.

She represents not only the Nefertari royal family, but also the millions of people of Alabasta! A princess and a crown prince joining a pirate crew... how can the Alabasta Kingdom maintain its foothold in this world?

Don't forget, this world is still dominated by World Government and navies!

"I see..."

Luffy wore a delighted smile.

"If we meet again someday..."

Vivi's voice, already streaked with tears, was clearly transmitted to the Golden Merry without needing Den Den Mushi amplification.

"Would you still be willing to call me your partner!?"

"········"

"This is impossible! Is that person really the princess of Alabasta, the next king?" Chaos erupted on the nearby Marine warship. It was as bizarre as witnessing Rat getting married!

"Of course, we—waaaaaah~~~"

Luffy, whose Luffy was grabbed by Nami's "Ruthless Iron Hand," swallowed the words that were about to spill from his mouth. Roman, standing beside him, shook his head, stopping Luffy from struggling.

"Luffy, the Marines over there are almost scared to death."

He pointed to the side with his thumb; the three warships were clearly within firing range, but they looked like they were unmanned.

"So, stop provoking them. You should know that colluding with pirates is a serious crime! Even royalty can be killed on the spot."

Of course, pirate crews secretly building their own power are basically an accepted 'rule of the game' among most royal families. It's just that such things can't be made public.

"Roman is right, so we can't respond to her."

Everyone silently turned around, and then—

One by one, left hands were raised, lined up along the ship's side! Wrapped with paper strips made by Roman, one of a kind in the entire ocean!

'This is the Nakama's mark!'

"Luffy, everyone..."

With tears streaming down her face, Vivi looked at the row of arms; the Straw Hat crew had given her a silent answer without a doubt.

As Vivi and the chocobo beside her raised their left hands, Luffy shouted with great energy.

"Raise the sails!"

"Set sail!!"