Buggy was somewhat pleased to see that the two officers had made up their minds. He held out both hands, lifting them off the ground. "Good."
There might be hidden powerhouses in the East Blue, but finding them would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. Besides, powerful people were all fiercely independent, and bringing them under his command wouldn't be easy. What's more, they couldn't match the loyalty of the two officers who had followed him for so many years.
Rather than searching aimlessly, he might as well focus on making his own pirate crew stronger and more reliable.
Buggy stood up and took a sea chart from behind the counter. He had spent years roaming the East Blue, mapping the locations of islands, and now he spread the chart across the table.
He pointed to an island circled on the chart. "This is where we're headed next."
"Where's that?" Cabaji and Mohji thought it over, then suddenly exchanged a look. The same strange, unforgettable island they had landed on a year ago came to mind.
Buggy continued, "That's right. The uninhabited island where we stayed a year ago. Once we get there, we'll stay for one or two years."
He remembered that a year ago, while the pirate crew had been roaming the East Blue, they had discovered an uninhabited island. But because of the island itself, they had stayed only two days before hurriedly leaving, marking it with a warning sign to keep anyone from going back.
But now, it was absolutely the best place to train.
Cabaji and Mohji swallowed nervously, looking uneasy. Staying on that strange island for one or two years could cost them their lives...
Seeing their expressions, Buggy asked, "If you have any objections, say so."
Mohji hurriedly began, "We..."
"Shut up, white-haired freak." Cabaji closed his eyes. "Have you forgotten what we just said? Have you forgotten the lesson that bounty hunter taught us? Better to endure painful training now than die like a pathetic weakling later. I'll get my revenge on that swordsman!"
Cabaji's rebuke irritated Mohji, but this time he didn't argue. Or rather, he couldn't find fault with what Cabaji had said. He murmured, "I have no objections."
Buggy nodded. "Good. We should reach the island in three days."
After all, these waters weren't the Grand Line, and the weather wasn't nearly so unpredictable. The navigator's role wasn't all that crucial; they could reach the island by sailing straight toward their destination. Besides, Buggy had already told the half-baked navigator and the helmsman aboard to keep the ship on course. If nothing went wrong, three days would be enough.
Two days later, the usually calm sea grew much rougher. Waves began to surge violently, washing over the deck, and the pirate ship started rocking from side to side.
Buggy, resting in the captain's cabin, could no longer concentrate on studying the notes and techniques for the Six Powers in his notebook. He stood up from his chair and headed outside.
The navigator stood on deck, occasionally directing the helmsman to adjust their course. Buggy walked up to him and looked at the thick clouds gathering in the distance. "What's going on?"
The navigator was a man around thirty with a square face. He smiled broadly. "Captain Buggy, it's just ordinary rough seas. Currents on the seafloor are being forced upward by the surrounding currents. It'll calm down on its own before long."
Buggy nodded slightly without replying. He knew nothing about sailing, but he still had a vague feeling that things weren't as simple as the navigator made them sound.
Under the Square-Faced Navigator's direction, the Big Top continued sailing into the wind. The air grew increasingly humid, and the clouds overhead began to gather into a swirling mass.
Buggy stared at the clouds, then suddenly remembered something. He shouted, "Turn the helm! Turn around! Get us out of these waters, now!"
The helmsman at the wheel heard the captain's urgent command and didn't dare delay. He quickly spun the wheel, steering the ship back toward the outer edge of the area.
The clouds shifted in an instant, and dark masses gathered even faster overhead.
Soon, the entire stretch of sea was transformed. Gray darkness descended, like a black curtain hanging from the heavens. The light vanished. Though it was daytime, it was as dark as night, so black that they couldn't see their own hands.
Thick layers of mist filled the air. Drip, drip—the raindrops, as big as beans, began to pour down.
Beneath the center of the gathering storm clouds raged a powerful cyclone, howling as it sucked in seawater from every direction.
The sea churned violently. Wave after wave of towering walls of water, more than ten meters high, crashed toward them, vast and overwhelming. Countless whirlpools twisted across the surface, forming one terrifying barrier after another.
The Big Top had turned around in time and was sailing outside the storm before the cyclone had fully formed. It wasn't caught in the strongest winds at the center, but even the winds at the outer edge were terrifyingly powerful. The Big Top struggled to make its way out.
"A Cumulonimbus Tornado!" Buggy gripped the railing, his face dark. If they'd kept going, the force of that terrifying cyclone would have dragged them into its center, where the ship would have been destroyed and everyone aboard killed.
The Square-Faced Navigator was trembling. Sea spray and rain soaked him from head to toe, leaving him looking even more miserable than a drowned rat. Just moments ago, he'd confidently guaranteed they were safe. But in the blink of an eye, the heavens and earth had changed. Faced with nature's might and his own mounting terror, his expression was nearly twisted out of shape.
Several unlucky pirates still hadn't grasped what was happening. The combined force of the giant waves and the gale swept them straight into the sea.
The wind howled, and the deck creaked and banged. Sea wind blasted into the pirates' ears and noses, making it hard for them to keep their eyes open.
The storm raged around them, as if the heavens had opened a vast mouth to swallow everything. Even Buggy struggled to stay on his feet, let alone the other pirates.
"Everyone, get below deck!" Buggy roared. Without waiting another moment, he turned and headed inside. His captain's cloak shielded him from the seawater. Though some of it still splashed onto him, it didn't sap too much of his strength. He leaned into the wind and struggled toward the cabin.
The pirates nearby weren't so lucky. They could barely keep their footing on deck. As the Big Top tilted, they lurched from side to side with it. The cabin entrance was only a dozen or so meters away, yet it seemed separated from them by an impassable chasm. Again and again, towering waves crashed down like waterfalls dropping from the heavens, sweeping forward with the gale and pushing them into the sea.
Sheets of rain flew through the air. It was as though invisible hands were dragging the ship toward the eye of the storm. Whirlpools and cyclones intertwined, and the Big Top was now like a rootless duckweed, tossed about helplessly. Compared to the boundless ocean, it was as fragile as a paper boat, carried along by the waves and lurching wildly across the water. At any moment, a monstrous wave could capsize it.