Doctor? Sniper?

"Hah!"

Up in the crow's nest, Rogge was still pumping iron. He had practically become a second Zoro. It was all for the sake of becoming stronger. Even with a Devil Fruit, he still would not stop moving forward.

He lifted a barbell weighing five tons with one hand. He repeated this motion thousands of times every day. The old Rogge had never imagined that one day, he would be able to lift something this heavy with one hand.

Yet now, he could do it several thousand times a day. It had surpassed the limits of his common sense and reached an unimaginable level.

Still, Rogge enjoyed the feeling. He had been training constantly these past days. Whenever he had time, aside from eating and sleeping, he was practically always here. He believed that as long as he kept training and fighting, one day he would become a true powerhouse.

"Hey, Rogge, we're about to reach the Red Line!" Jelly shouted up at Rogge from the deck.

Hearing Jelly's shout, Rogge set down the barbell, wiped the sweat from his body with a towel, then jumped down with the towel draped over his shoulders.

"Thud!"

He controlled his strength perfectly and landed steadily on the deck. If this had been an enemy ship, that one stomp of Rogge's would probably have shattered the entire deck.

"We're here?" Rogge asked, raising his head toward the others while gripping the towel in both hands.

"Can't you see for yourself? You spend all day working out. You're practically obsessed," Jelly complained.

"How many times do I have to tell you? It's not working out. See these fists? My strength has increased. Keep yapping and I'll crush you with one punch," Rogge said, clenching his fist.

"Tch." Jelly did not want to waste words on Rogge. The two had fought before, and Rogge's ability completely countered his. It had nearly destroyed even his sword. Rogge's power made it impossible for him to get close; anything could be shattered. It was practically a cheat.

"Ham, no problems, right?" Rogge asked the navigator Ham as he looked at the distant outline of the Red Line.

"Although it's my first time crossing Reverse Mountain, there won't be a problem. We have the best helmsman in the West Blue on this ship," Ham said confidently.

"Cook!" Rogge looked at Cook.

"No problem. Conditions in waters like these are nothing. As long as the weather doesn't get too bad, getting this ship over will take no effort at all," Cook said.

"Then we'll leave it to you two." Rogge nodded.

He was a little nervous as well. Leaving the West Blue for the Grand Line meant that Rogge had taken another step closer to his ambition, and he was gradually drawing nearer to those legends.

"If only we were in the East Blue. I'd like to see the birthplace and execution site of the legendary Pirate King," Ares said calmly. At some point, he had come out and stood behind them.

"Loguetown," Rogge said softly.

Cook glanced at Rogge. He had always felt there was something strange about him, but he could not put it into words.

"We can visit the East Blue when we have time. For now, let's talk after we enter the Grand Line. Hahaha! Brothers, don't forget our dreams!" Rogge laughed.

Rogge was the youngest of the five, so there was nothing wrong with calling the other four brothers. Though companions might squabble, they would never hesitate at critical moments. They were people sharing one ship and one fate; they had long since become inseparable.

"Dreams... It's been so many years since I last mentioned them." Ham sighed as he smoked.

"What's the difference between someone without dreams and a salted fish?" Rogge said with a smile.

"Young people really are nice," Ares said blandly.

"You two aren't old yet," Jelly said, looking at Ham and Ares.

Cook held the wheel as they gradually approached the Red Line. Staring ahead, he frowned and shouted, "Something's happening up ahead."

"Sea Kings?" Rogge stepped forward and asked. It was still too far away, and his eyesight was nowhere near as good as Cook's. He shaded his eyes with one hand and looked into the distance.

"Not Sea Kings. Ships," Ham said calmly as he peered through his telescope.

"Ships? Merchant ships?" Rogge asked excitedly.

Ham shook his head. "No, pirate ships. Heh, I knew it. How could those people possibly hold back? They've been waiting here specifically for us."

"Who is it?" Jelly took the telescope from Ham and looked through it. Before long, he started laughing. "Yo, yo, it's actually them. They still dare to show themselves? I thought they'd all gone into hiding."

"Who exactly is it?" Rogge still could not see clearly, so he anxiously asked the two of them.

"The pirate crews we tricked before. I heard they suffered terrible losses. Out of nearly twenty thousand people, fewer than ten thousand escaped in the end. Of more than sixty pirate crews, only thirty-one remained," Ham said with a grin.

"Oh, so it's them." As soon as Ham said that, Rogge remembered.

Ares asked nervously, "They're all enemies? Just how many people have you offended? There are so many ships!"

"Don't be scared. They had even more people last time, and didn't we still trick half of them to death? They've come for revenge now. I heard before that they showed up on Thousand Lake Island. I thought they would make their move there, but I didn't expect them to wait for us here," Jelly said with a laugh.

"They probably know you're all Devil Fruit users, so they chose to fight at sea. Even if they can't beat us, they have the advantage in numbers. They can completely destroy our ship with cannon fire. When that happens, aside from me, it'll be hard for any of you to survive," Cook said.

"What do we do now?" Ares asked nervously.

"You're a ship's doctor. Why are you so timid? Don't you have poison? What are you afraid of?" Jelly said, turning around.

"Who's timid? I-I can fight too." Ares pulled out a long rifle.

"Huh? You actually have a weapon?" Rogge asked in surprise.

Rogge had never thought Ares could fight. If not for the man's medical skills, Rogge had not really wanted him to join the pirate crew. After all, Ares had little combat ability. Once aboard the ship, if they could not protect him, he would die even sooner than the rest of them. A ship's doctor like that seemed no different from having no doctor at all.

Ares said unhappily, "I used to be a member of a musketeer unit. I just haven't used one for twenty years, so I'm a little rusty. And don't underestimate me. I've been researching these past few days. See this?"

Ares took out several syringes. Each one was as thick as a child's finger and filled with purple liquid.

He pulled back the bolt of his rifle, inserted a syringe inside, then slid it back into place.

"Poison?" Rogge asked.

"Yeah." Ares nodded. "I modified it based on a tranquilizer gun. The poison goes inside the syringe, and as long as it hits someone, the poison will immediately enter their body."

"Looks like we have a sniper now." Rogge smiled.

"Not a professional one, probably just a half-baked amateur. What kind of ship's doctor moonlights as a sniper? Can you fire cannons?" Jelly gestured at Ares.

Ares shook his head. "No."

"See?" Jelly spread his hands.