By the time all the townspeople had sailed away,
Will finally sprang into action again.
First, he grabbed several nearby barrels of explosives and smashed them onto the ground, scattering gunpowder everywhere.
Then he tossed several more into the air, where they collided and burst apart, spreading gunpowder evenly over the Marines.
After everything was in place,
Will didn't linger. He bent his knees and crouched slightly, then stomped hard against the ground and launched himself into the air.
He stepped on the air to steady himself and hover in place, then slowly pulled a matchbox from his clothes, opened it, and took out a match.
Fssht~!
After flicking the match alight with a snap of his fingers,
Will slipped the burning match into the box, leaving a gap, then gently tossed the whole box downward.
Then he turned without looking back and strode away through the air.
The falling matchbox quickly caught fire.
It gradually came apart in midair, scattering sparks like stars across the sky. Against the fading light, they shone especially brightly.
Then,
the sparks met the great quantity of gunpowder below. A burning fuse instantly raced toward the nearby barrels of explosives.
The next second!
BOOM—!!!
Beneath the darkening sky, a gigantic dragon of flame shot into the heavens in an instant, and a visible shock wave compressed the air and spread rapidly in every direction!
Even the water along the shore was instantly shoved aside by the blast, sending wave after wave rolling outward!
Thick black smoke churned wildly amid the flames, billowing upward like a mushroom cloud!
The tremendous force shattered the entire island, and it began to collapse into the sea.
Though Will had already put some distance between himself and the blast, the powerful gust squeezed out by the shock wave still made his clothes whip violently.
In the dim light, the flames cast a crimson glow across his back.
"What happened?!"
Nami and Carina had finished making and eating dinner and had been waiting for quite a while. When they heard the terrifying roar, they immediately rushed out of the cabin.
As they braced themselves against the warm wind blowing toward them, they saw the astonishing flames blazing high in the distance.
"What is that...?"
Even though they'd witnessed plenty of incredible things before, Nami and Carina were still stunned. They stood there, eyes wide, staring blankly.
Fortunately, they soon came to their senses and noticed an unfamiliar ship being pushed toward them from the island by the waves and strong wind.
Clatter.
Before the two women could react to the ship, Will suddenly descended from the sky and landed steadily on the deck.
Gazing at the dazzling spectacle in the distance, Will couldn't help but marvel to himself:
Now that's true art.
Nami and Carina turned around at the sound.
When they saw Will had returned, their eyes lit up. They hurried over and asked in unison,
"Will, what exactly happened over there?!"
Will raised his brows and replied calmly,
"Nothing much. I just felt like putting on an art show."
"What? An art show?!" Carina and Nami were both taken aback, unable to understand what he meant.
Will couldn't be bothered to explain further. He walked over to the side of the ship and, using the flames to see by, looked toward the vessel that had sailed nearby and shouted,
"Everyone on that ship, listen up! Follow behind me! I'll take you back to the Konomi Islands!"
The townspeople aboard the other ship had been gaping in shock at the explosion.
When they heard the somewhat familiar voice, they came to their senses and hurriedly answered in unison, "Yes!"
Carina stepped aside. Seeing this, she couldn't help teasing him. "Will, where did you find all these recruits?"
"What recruits?" Will furrowed his brow, not understanding what she meant.
Carina teased him, "Look how obedient they are. Aren't they your recruits?"
Will paused, then explained with a somewhat helpless look, "You've got it wrong. They're just afraid of me."
"These people are all ordinary townspeople the Marines secretly captured."
"Huh?"
At that answer, Carina was the one who stared in astonishment.
Meanwhile, Nami, who had been bursting with questions for a while, couldn't help asking,
"Will, I heard you say you were taking them back to the Konomi Islands. Isn't that where my home is?"
"And you said these people are ordinary townspeople. What's going on? Were they all captured on the Konomi Islands?!"
There was a lot to take in.
Nami felt as though, in the short time they hadn't been together, Will had already gone through a great deal on his own.
It was as if she'd missed so much.
But she'd come along too!
Carina had also recovered by now and was listening curiously, ears perked.
However, the situation was a little complicated, so Will didn't explain right away. Instead, he said,
"Alright, Nami, go steer the ship first."
"It's already night. Let's get those townspeople home as soon as we can."
"As for what happened, I'll find a chance to tell you both on the way."
With that, he went over to the side and lifted the enormous anchor holding the ship in place with one hand.
Nami had no choice but to turn and run to steer the ship, while privately guessing at what had happened.
As Carina raised the sails,
the three of them set sail once more, retracing the route they had taken on the way here.
They encountered no obstacles along the way.
As Will ate the delicious food Nami and Carina had carefully prepared, he told the two women what had happened at the Marine Branch 16 base.
By the time the ship carrying Will and the townspeople reached the Konomi Islands,
it was already the middle of the night.
The sky had long since lost its colors, gradually brightened by the moon and stars.
"We're almost there! You should be able to see the rest of the way! Go on back yourselves!"
Standing by the side of the ship, Will shouted to the Cargo Ship sailing alongside them.
He didn't have time to escort the townspeople all the way to shore.
After all, he had more important things to do.
Once the townspeople reached land and met people from the other villages, they would naturally learn what had been happening on the island.
And after returning to their own villages, they would surely begin rebuilding their homes.
There was no need for Will to worry about any of that.
Nami, who was steering the ship, heard him and wordlessly turned the wheel.
The two ships gradually began heading in different directions.
At first, the townspeople aboard didn't quite understand what Will had said.
But when they saw the familiar coastline ahead, drawing closer and closer,
they belatedly realized that the tall, terrifying-looking man had truly brought them safely back to the Konomi Islands.
He hadn't handed them over and sent them somewhere else.
The townspeople rushed to the stern and waved excitedly toward the only light out on the sea, shouting loudly.
It seemed they wanted to convey their gratitude to their savior, who was now far away on the other ship.
But by then, Will and the others had already turned away and sailed a long way off.
Before you continue