Leo had two reasons for sending Lafitte to notify that Chestnut-headed Uncle whose name he had already forgotten.
First, after salvaging the seabed for so long, the man had probably already guessed that Sky Island was not beneath the sea, but in the sky.
Second, if someone like Lafitte, who could fly, went to inform him, he would quickly realize that they possessed the means to reach Sky Island.
As for Lafitte's respect and reverence, those were minor matters. Once the man came over, his familiarity with these waters could be combined with the hot air balloon, allowing them to head straight for their target.
The South Bird was even more of a backup than that. Besides, it was quite useful; with some training, it could even replace the Log Pose's role on the Grand Line—Leo simply could not understand why the Straw Hat Pirates had not tamed a few to serve as helpers on the Grand Line.
In any case, he could never understand the Straw Hat Pirates' series of actions. There were so few of them, yet whenever a fight broke out, they always had to split up. The weakest ones—Nami, Usopp, and Chopper—would first get thoroughly beaten before becoming enraged and turning the tables.
It was always the same, over and over... After getting beaten so many times without ever learning or correcting themselves, it became rather meaningless.
A small snake suddenly shot out of the sea and swam toward Hancock and the others. After rearing up, it hissed at the Kuja Pirates' officers. Ran gave a slight nod and hissed a few words back at it.
It nodded, then swiftly swam back. This was the Kuja Pirates' unique method of communication. These snakes could travel through the water and were highly venomous, allowing them to move