"Wind southeast, force three... adjusting the angle..."
Usopp muttered to himself, his hands rapidly turning the adjustment wheel.
"Watch closely, Luffy! This is Captain Usopp's—ultimate move!"
"Boom—!!"
With a deafening blast, the cannon muzzle spewed a burst of orange-red flame and thick smoke.
The black solid cannonball whistled through the air, tracing a perfect parabola.
Though Ronan lay still, his Observation Haki instinctively caught the cannonball's trajectory.
What accuracy. Ronan silently praised him.
The next second.
"Boom!!"
Several thousand meters away, the enormous black reef was struck dead-on by the cannonball!
The immense Kinetic Energy erupted instantly, sending shattered stones flying and raising a water column into the sky.
That reef was blasted clean through at the middle by a single shot, collapsing thunderously into the Great Sea!
"Whoa—!!"
Luffy leaped up excitedly, raised both hands over his head, and shouted, "Amazing!! It hit in one shot! Usopp, you're incredible!"
As the gunpowder smoke cleared, Usopp blew at the nonexistent smoke from his gun barrel and proudly rubbed his nose.
"Heh heh, of course! I'm an excellent shot! Aren't you impressed by me?"
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm!" Luffy nodded frantically, his gaze resolute as he declared, "I've decided! You're the sniper of our pirate crew!"
"What are you talking about?!" Though Usopp was overjoyed inside, he haughtily retorted, "Aren't I the Captain? How did I become the sniper?!"
"Hehehe!"
"Fine, This Lord will reluctantly take on the role of sniper as well."
Usopp laughed. "But if you do too badly as Captain, you'll be replaced immediately!"
Inside the Merry's cabin.
Sunlight streamed through the round porthole onto the long wooden table.
Ronan and the others sat around it, while a faint aroma of tea filled the air.
This was the Straw Hat Pirates' first official "tactical meeting."
Luffy sat at the head of the table. Rarely serious, he propped his chin on his interlaced hands and said solemnly:
"Before entering the Grand Line, I think we still need to fill an important position!"
Holding a teacup, Ronan's eyes shifted slightly.
He glanced at the fully equipped kitchen and thought, Looks like it won't be long before that Curly Eyebrows chef—Sanji—joins us.
After all, everyone had been eating Nami's "nobles' high-priced quick meals" these past few days. Their food situation truly needed improvement.
Nami nodded in heartfelt agreement and looked around the spacious, bright kitchen nearby.
"That's true. The Merry's kitchen is so lovely, and the facilities are so complete. It would be such a waste to leave it empty."
"If I'm paid... I could reluctantly take on the cooking, but I'll only be responsible for making it, not making it taste good."
Zoro folded his arms and said in a low voice, "That's an indispensable role on a long voyage."
"Without sufficient nutrition and delicious food, we simply can't sustain intense battles and sailing."
Everyone was hinting at a "chef."
Seeing that his companions all understood him so well, Luffy excitedly slapped the table, rose to his feet, and loudly announced:
"Right?! That's what you all think too, isn't it?! Just as I thought, what a Pirate Ship needs most is—"
Everyone held their breath, ready to hear the word "chef."
Luffy took a deep breath, his eyes gleaming with the light of dreams.
"—A musician!!!"
"..."
"..."
The air suddenly fell silent.
Even the cries of seagulls outside the window sounded especially awkward.
Ronan nearly dropped his teacup. Even as a transmigrator, he was still stunned by Luffy's bizarre train of thought.
This was probably... an extreme obsession with romance, wasn't it?
After a brief dead silence, furious roars instantly erupted throughout the cabin.
"Are you an idiot!!!"
Veins bulged on Zoro's forehead as he roared at Luffy, "We were talking about food! Food! Can music fill your stomach?!"
Nami also slammed her palm onto the table in anger and snapped, "What do you think sailing is?!"
Even Usopp couldn't help complaining, his face filled with exasperation. "I thought you were finally going to say something sensible for once!"
Faced with everyone's attack, Luffy showed no intention of repenting.
He picked his nose and muttered righteously:
"But... Pirates have to sing! Without a musician, what fun is an adventure?"
Watching this scene, Ronan's corner of the mouth twitched involuntarily as he thought:
Although this really did happen in the story, seeing it in person still makes me feel... Luffy really is unreliable.
Just as Luffy wanted to argue further for the position of "musician"—
"Bang!!"
A massive impact suddenly sounded outside the cabin, as if something heavy had slammed violently onto the deck.
Immediately afterward, a rough, somewhat weak voice came from outside:
"Hey!!! Come out here, pirates!!"
This sudden disturbance instantly interrupted their argument.
The atmosphere inside the cabin froze at once.
Ronan's eyes sharpened instantly. His beginner Observation Haki spread outward like ripples, passing through the cabin's wooden plank walls.
Within his senses, a life force appeared on the deck.
But that presence... was not strong.
"Only one person." Ronan calmly said, setting down his teacup. "The presence isn't strong. No threat."
Meanwhile, Zoro also closed his eyes. Though his newly awakened Observation Haki was not as practiced as Ronan's, it was enough to catch that familiar presence.
Zoro abruptly opened his eyes, a trace of surprise and nostalgia appearing on his face.
"This presence... is Johnny?"
"Johnny?" Luffy asked in confusion. "Who's that? Your friend?"
Zoro stood and fastened Wado Ichimonji at his waist, a faint smile curling his lips.
"Yeah, I guess so. We used to run together... two little bounty hunter underlings who specialized in catching petty thieves."
"Let's go take a look."
The group pushed open the cabin door, and dazzling sunlight poured down.
Then they saw a man standing on the deck, wearing sunglasses and bearing a tattoo of the character "sea" on his cheek.
He was soaked from head to toe, furious, and looked utterly bedraggled.
"To think... I'd run into you here, Johnny!" Zoro's lips lifted slightly, revealing a nostalgic smile at the sight of an old acquaintance.
"Zo... Zoro, big bro!!"
Johnny's voice cracked with excitement as he stumbled toward Zoro.
"B... big bro! Why are you on a Pirate Ship like this?!"
Zoro raised an eyebrow. Without explaining his changed identity, he keenly noticed Johnny's extremely abnormal anxiety.
"Forget about me for now. Why are you alone? Where's Joseph? You two were always inseparable, weren't you?"
At the mention of that name, Johnny's face instantly fell, and his original excitement turned into profound despair.
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