Just then, a long, deep whale call rang out.
The sound pierced the air, resonating through the ships' keels and the seawater in a low tremor.
As the call continued, a gentle but powerful force pushed the sea upward.
A stretch of black "land" dotted with gray patches slowly emerged, wider than the White Pearl, followed by a massive, streamlined body.
Over a thousand meters long, the whale resembled a blue whale, only more robust, with jet-black skin covering its entire body.
"It's Big Black!"
Many pirates cried out in surprise. Almost everyone recognized the giant whale Norton had subdued.
The distinctive gray patches on Big Black's head stood out like markings. Its blowhole opened, releasing great clouds of grayish-white mist.
The mist spread rapidly, enveloping most of the ships.
Meanwhile, Big Black continued calling, its voice rising and falling, sometimes deep, sometimes clear, carrying a complex, ancient rhythm as though it were saying something.
Something changed.
The nearest purple-black tentacle froze in midair, its tip twitching uneasily.
The enormous orange-yellow eye turned toward the whale calls, hesitation creeping into its icy gaze.
The approaching shadows beneath the sea slowed noticeably, and several smaller ones quietly began retreating.
The Sea Kings were actually hesitating because of Big Black's "words."
Big Black's calls took on an air of authority as its enormous body emerged fully, like a wall standing between the danger and the fleet.
At last, under the persistent whale calls and Big Black's imposing presence, the Sea Kings chose to retreat.
The huge orange-yellow eye slowly sank, the tentacle withdrew, and the shadows faded away one after another.
The Calm Belt grew peaceful again.
Big Black gave a short, gentle call and slowly submerged until its broad, flat back lay level with the sea.
"Is Big Black trying to talk to us?" Funing covered her mouth.
"But we don't understand!" Nami clutched her head.
"I think it wants us to get onto its back," Kuro said, adjusting his glasses. "It's going to take us out of here."
"Then get aboard!" Norton swept his arm forward.
With the order given, the pirates shook off their amazement and began maneuvering the ships.
Under cover of the gray mist, all twenty-seven ships settled safely onto Big Black's broad back, one after another.
Big Black gave another low call, then began swimming once it had confirmed that the ships were in place.
Its enormous body cut through the Calm Belt at a steady pace, the water ahead seemingly parting of its own accord.
But just as the fleet was about to leave the Calm Belt, with rolling clouds already visible in the distance and muffled thunder reaching them from Reverse Mountain, something unexpected happened.
Without warning, the deep sea ahead to the right churned violently, and an enormous shadow, darker than the others and almost pure black, rose at an astonishing speed!
With a vicious, piercing screech, a Sea King shaped like a giant deep-sea scorpion burst through the surface, its shell jagged and craggy.
It was nearly eight hundred meters long, only slightly smaller than Big Black. Its massive pincers gleamed eerily, and the venomous stinger on its tail glowed blue.
Making no attempt to communicate, the giant scorpion Sea King raised its hill-sized right pincer the moment it broke the surface, dragging seawater with it, and smashed it straight toward the densest cluster of ships on Big Black's back!
Big Black gave an angry call, but carrying the fleet restricted its movements. It could only try to turn sideways and brace for the blow.
Just then, a silver figure vanished from the White Pearl's figurehead.
In the next instant, Norton appeared directly in the falling pincer's path.
Without a single unnecessary movement, he threw a straight punch at the crashing shell.
His fist met the jet-black armor.
Boom!
An impossibly deep crash erupted!
Time seemed to freeze for an instant.
Then countless web-like cracks spread across the shell from the point where his fist had struck!
The giant scorpion Sea King's entire descending pincer exploded, along with a huge section of its armored body!
Fragments of shell, flesh, and seawater mixed into a bloody downpour that lashed the sea.
The Sea King shrieked in agony, its remaining limbs thrashing wildly. But it could no longer fight and slowly sank into the depths, leaving only foul blood churning on the surface.
Norton withdrew his fist and landed back on the White Pearl's bow.
Big Black gave a low call, steadied its course, and sped away with the fleet on its back.
Soon, a deafening, unending roar overwhelmed every sense.
Reverse Mountain loomed before them-five towering currents struck the crimson mountain from every direction, converging at its center before roaring skyward through steep channels!
Big Black paused briefly at the foot of the mountain and let out a long, resolute whale song.
Then it aimed for the deep-blue rising current on the far left and surged forward, plunging into the water rushing against gravity with the entire fleet on its back!
The raging current swallowed every ship in an instant.
The hulls tilted almost vertically and hurtled upward amid the roar.
Crimson rock walls flashed past on one side, while open air and the whirlpools below lay on the other.
The ships groaned as though on the verge of breaking apart, but supported by Big Black's steady back, the fleet held together and climbed this relatively stable "passage."
Every crew member clung desperately to anything secure within reach, gritting their teeth through the jolting, roaring water.
After an unknown stretch of time, the bow of the White Pearl at the front suddenly grew light. It was the first to cross the boundary and break free of the column of water.
Then came the second ship, the third... the entire fleet burst over the summit of Reverse Mountain in succession.
They had reached... the Grand Line!
At the end of the crimson rock walls stood two towers, one on either side.
"What are those towers?" Zoro asked curiously.
"Twin Cape," Nami answered seriously. "It's a landmark at the entrance to the Grand Line. Its sheer cliffs were formed where Reverse Mountain's five waterways converge."
She had done plenty of studying ahead of their journey into the Grand Line, buying quite a few books on the subject in Loguetown.
"The doctor we're looking for is right here," Norton suddenly said.
"Huh?" Everyone looked surprised.
Norton offered no explanation. Instead, his gaze swept around as though searching for something.
Big Black seemed to sense something too and gave a soft call.
Ripples suddenly spread across the sea nearby, and an enormous black whale burst through the surface!
The black whale was nearly four hundred meters long, almost half Big Black's size. It rose from the sea like a mountain, its head covered in fresh wounds and old scars.
Upon seeing Big Black, a Mist Whale twice its size, the whale visibly froze for a moment, then submerged again.
"That's the whale!" Norton's eyes lit up.
If he remembered correctly, Roger's ship's doctor lived inside that whale!
He was about to jump into the water and subdue the whale named Laboon when Laboon burst from the sea again. This time, however, it charged toward the crimson cliff!
Even for a creature nearly four hundred meters long, this was sheer foolishness. The Red Line rose tens of thousands of meters high and stretched around the entire planet. A mere whale could never shake it.
The others aboard were just as puzzled by the whale's actions.
"Has that whale gone mad?"
"That's the Red Line! Even a god couldn't destroy it, right?"
Laboon rammed its scar-covered head into the Red Line again and again. Amid the thunderous crashes, the Red Line looked down on Laboon like a silent giant, as though mocking its futile efforts.
Watching this, Big Black quietly sank beneath the sea.
The entire Norton Pirates fleet settled back onto the water.
Just then, Norton noticed an old man in a floral shirt and shorts walking out from Twin Cape nearby.
The old man wore round, rimless glasses and had a strange, petal-like hairstyle.
"Hey! Laboon! Stop already! Keep this up and your old wounds will reopen!" the old man shouted at the whale.
But Laboon ignored him and continued ramming the Red Line over and over.
Seeing this, the old man could only sigh helplessly and gather his tools, preparing to treat Laboon's wounds.
"Who's that old guy?" Nami asked, noticing that Norton's gaze had never left him.
"A flower!" Sanji was stunned by the old man's hair, though he quickly realized it was merely a hairstyle.
"I've forgotten his name, but he's the doctor we're looking for," Norton said with a smile. "Kuro! Bring me the list of wounded!"
Kuro took the glasses case from his trouser pocket, then pulled out the list of wounded he had prepared earlier and handed it to Norton.
"Every wounded person's condition has been recorded," Kuro told Norton, adjusting his glasses.
Norton nodded, took the list, and flashed over to the old man.
"Uncle Sam!" Norton called, picking a name at random.
"My name is Crocus! Rude youngster!" The old man turned to look at Norton, then noticed something amiss and narrowed his eyes as he studied Norton's face.
"You... are you that billion-Beli rookie?"
"Right, Uncle Crocus."
Having learned the old man's name by deliberately getting it wrong, Norton smiled. "You know me? I'm Norton. I'd like to ask a favor, and you can name your price."
"Yes, I read the newspapers often. I could hardly overlook someone who beat that fellow Garp."
Crocus nodded and looked toward the enormous fleet in front of Reverse Mountain. "It caught my attention earlier. That's your fleet, isn't it? Pirate crews of that size are rare."
"That's right."
"You want my help?"
"That's right. Since you read the papers often, you should know my fleet fought the Navy in Loguetown. We suffered quite a few casualties. I came to ask you to treat the wounded," Norton said.
"You know I'm a doctor?" Crocus immediately grew wary.
Very few people knew he was a doctor! Knowing that also meant they most likely knew he had once served aboard that ship.
Had he not known Norton was a pirate, Crocus would already have turned and fled.
"I also know you sailed aboard the Pirate King's ship," Norton said, extending a hand toward Crocus. "But that's not important. What matters is that I'm looking for a doctor. Interested in joining my crew?"
Crocus's expression gradually grew solemn as he stared at Norton's smiling face.
After a moment, Crocus slowly shook his head. "No, I'll pass. I'm retired."
"Really? What a shame." Norton did not seem bothered. "Then do me a favor and save my men!"
Crocus considered this for a moment. "Do I have to agree?"
"You've already turned me down once." Norton flashed his white teeth. "If you refuse again, I might get angry."
"Sly little brat..." Crocus felt helpless.
An ordinary person could never have threatened him like this, but Norton was a fearsome man who had defeated even Garp...
Garp had been Roger's lifelong rival, while Crocus had merely been Roger's doctor, not a fighter. Taking on Norton, who could defeat Garp...
"All right," Crocus said, deciding to be sensible for once. "I agree, but I'll charge you. One thousand Beli per person. That's not expensive, is it?"
"One thousand Beli?!"
Norton was just about to agree when the White Pearl pulled up to shore and Nami cried out from aboard.
At a thousand Beli each, treating so many wounded would cost a fortune!
"No way! Five hundred Beli per person, at most!"
Crocus pursed his lips in displeasure. "Doesn't sound like a good deal."
Norton shrugged and held up one finger. "Then a hundred Beli per person for treatment!"
"Why did the price drop again?!" Crocus protested.
"Can't help it. Our navigator's obsessed with money." Norton tossed the list of wounded to Crocus.
"Thanks for the hard work, Uncle Flower!" Zoro jumped down from the ship and patted Crocus on the shoulder. "Got any booze? I'm a little thirsty."
Crocus gritted his teeth.
Did none of them allow anyone to say no?
But Norton and his crew had a fearsome reputation. For his own safety, Crocus decided to put up with them for now.
"Bring all the wounded up here!"
In fact, before Crocus spoke, Kuro had already ordered his men to gather all the wounded.
Crocus took one look and nearly fell over.
There were far too many!
More than half a day later.
All the wounded had received treatment. Though a small number had not been fully healed, their injuries had improved greatly. As expected of Roger's doctor, his skills were exceptional.
Utterly exhausted, Crocus collapsed onto the deck and wiped away his sweat, looking as though he had lost the will to live.
"Thanks, Uncle Flower," Nami said with a grin, slapping a handful of bills onto Crocus. "Five thousand Beli in total! Thanks for all your hard work!"
"I treated more than five hundred people!"
"Bulk discounts are a tradition! Of course we rounded it down!" Nami argued earnestly.
Crocus seethed.
Damn little girl!
Damn Norton! He was practically a devil!
Nami paid it no mind and took out the compass she had prepared beforehand. "By the way, Uncle Flower, I have a question..."
"Can I refuse to answer?" Crocus interrupted.
"No!"
"Fine, then... go ahead."
"Why does this compass keep spinning? It can't show directions like this!" Nami asked.
She had noticed it after entering the Grand Line. A compass was essential for sailing. If it broke, they would not be able to get anywhere!
Crocus froze for a moment.
"So you came here without knowing anything about the Grand Line..."
"Didn't I mention it? Common sense is useless on the Grand Line. Your compass isn't broken."
"Because a certain island contains large quantities of minerals, the magnetic field throughout the Grand Line is strange. The currents and winds follow no predictable patterns either."
"So, to sail the Grand Line, you need a Log Pose! It's a special compass that can record magnetic fields. If you want to navigate the Grand Line, you have to get one."