Fish-Man Island, the port of the Ryugu Kingdom.
The Sunny Going Merry slowly sailed into this island, hidden ten thousand meters beneath the sea.
On deck, Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Nami, Usopp, Chopper, and Brook stared at the dazzling, multicolored island before them in shock, their eyes practically sparkling with stars.
Because there had been no Celestial Dragon incident in the Sabaody Archipelago, no scattering of the crew when they faced Admiral Kizaru, and no Marineford War or despair at witnessing Ace die before them, the Straw Hat Pirates had lost the chance to spend two years training and were preparing to enter the New World directly through Fish-Man Island.
However, even without experiencing those events, the Straw Hat Pirates still grew rapidly.
During the Enies Lobby incident, the overwhelming power displayed by CP0 had given the Straw Hat Pirates a harsh lesson. The helplessness and despair of being forced to watch Vivi leave had made them grow even faster.
"I'm still too weak!"
"If I weren't so weak, Vivi wouldn't have left with Crocodile and the others!"
Ever since the Enies Lobby incident, those were the words the members of the Straw Hat Pirates had repeated most often.
Yes, Vivi had left of her own accord because she knew that staying would only hold them back.
But that made the Straw Hat Pirates even less able to accept it.
They had long since regarded Vivi as one of their companions!
Because of their own weakness, they had been unable to protect their companion and had forced her to leave the ship. That despair and helplessness...
It had left the entire Straw Hat Pirates in a somewhat gloomy mood.
Fortunately, every member of the Straw Hat Pirates had a strong heart. After arriving at the Sabaody Archipelago and meeting Mr. Rayleigh