Everyone turned to look at Zoro at the same time.
He leaned against the ship's railing, three knives laid out side by side beside him, his eyes still closed.
" Zoro —how come you're going crazy too!" Nami frantically grabbed at her hair.
Zoro opened his eyes, his tone as calm as if he were discussing what to eat for dinner:
" Hawk Eyes is on Hachinosu. He's the World's Greatest Swordsman. I've wanted to fight him for a long time."
He paused, then added:
"Besides, if Roy really wanted to kill us, he would have done it in Wano Country already. There's no need for him to come all the way to Hachinosu to die now."
"You..." Nami was speechless for a moment, and after a long pause, she managed to utter, "You're all crazy!"
"It's just the inevitable path for a swordsman." Zoro closed his eyes again.
Sanji, unusually, didn't argue; he simply lit a cigarette. He glanced at Zoro, then at Luffy, exhaled a puff of smoke, and said:
Let's vote.
"Vote?" Chopper looked up, his eyes still glistening with tears.
"Yes. The minority must submit to the majority."
Sanji glanced around at everyone. "I abstain."
He actually didn't want to go.
But Zoro is right, Roy has no reason to kill them.
And that man did indeed pique his curiosity.
Chopper hesitated for a while, then finally whispered:
"I... I'll go with Luffy. I trust him."
Franky thought for ten seconds, then gave a thumbs up:
"Super! It wouldn't be bad to go check it out!"
Brook resumed her violin-playing gestures. "I've already died once, it doesn't matter where I go."
Usopp's face turned deathly pale. "I... I... I object! I strongly object!"
Just as Nami was about to agree, Robin suddenly closed her book, smiled, and spoke:
"I'll go with Luffy. I trust his judgment."
" Robin--!" Nami looked at her incredulously.
Robin simply smiled, her tone gentle:
"Weren't we also brought to where we are today by Luffy?"
Every time he said it was no problem, it always turned into a fascinating story.
Nami opened her mouth, wanting to refute, but found that she couldn't utter a word.
She looked around; Luffy, Zoro, Robin, Chopper, Franky, Brook had all spoken out. Only she and Usopp objected, and Sanji abstained.
"Five against two." Luffy grinned. "Let's go to Hachinosu!"
Usopp collapsed to the ground, muttering, "It's over, it's over, my adventure is going to end in a pirate Paradise."
Nami sighed deeply, then punched Luffy hard. "If you dare to run around there, I'll kill you!"
Luffy rubbed the bump on his head and grinned, replying, "Okay!"
The Thousand Sunny changed course and headed towards Hachinosu.
The voyage was calmer than anyone had expected.
Nami had prepared for everything, including encountering storms, Sea Kings, and ambushing fleets.
He never lets go of his Clima-Tact; every time he passes through unfamiliar waters, he observes the weather changes first, his nerves taut like a bowstring.
But the sea remained calm.
It was as calm as if it were welcoming them.
"This is really not right..." Nami stood at the bow of the ship, her brows furrowing deeper and deeper.
Based on her nautical experience, the closer one gets to a sphere of influence of this level, the more likely there should be reefs and patrol fleets.
But there was nothing along the way.
It was as if an invisible hand had swept away all the obstacles on the sea.
Robin sat on the deck not far away, reading a book, a faint smile playing on his lips.
She didn't tell anyone, but she knew perfectly well that Roy's men had deliberately cleared this route.
Usopp poked his head out from the mast. "Ahead! There's a ship!"
Everyone immediately went on alert.
It was indeed a patrol vessel, its black hull painted with the emblem of Hachinosu —an overlapping skull and Hachinosu pattern.
Several armed guards stood on the lookout tower at the bow of the ship, and there were several Seastone cannons on the deck.
Nami's palms were sweaty as she gripped the Clima-Tact.
But the patrol boat did not fire at them. Instead, when the two sides were about 100 meters apart, it slowly turned its bow and sailed to the side.
They're gone.
They just moved aside like that.
"They... didn't see us?" Usopp asked blankly.
"They saw it," Zoro said in a deep voice, "But detected no hostility."
Luffy stood at the bow of the ship and waved his arms at the patrol vessel:
"Hey--hey--! We're going to Hachinosu!"
The patrol vessel did not respond and quickly sailed out of sight.
A growing sense of tension and vigilance slowly crept onto Nami's face.
Roy knew we were coming.
Three days passed quickly.
On the evening of the third day, Roy was sitting in his office reviewing intelligence when Stella pushed open the door and handed him a report.
The Straw Hat Pirates are still a day's journey from Hachinosu.
Roy took the report, glanced at it, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.
"Order all patrol fleets to give way."
As long as they don't attack, no one is allowed to intercept them.
Stella nodded. "The orders have already been given."
"Also, make arrangements at the port. Once they arrive, let them into the main island."
You are free to move around outside the restricted area.
"We won't restrict their access to the training grounds?" Stella asked.
Roy picked up his coffee and took a sip. "Let them see. Let Luffy see as much as he wants."
Let them know the gap; this will motivate them to improve.
Stella turned and left.
Roy walked to the window and gazed at the sea in the night.
The night was gentle, and the sea breeze was clear. The moonlight spread across the sea like a flowing silver corridor.
He whispered something:
"You're finally here. Perfect, let me see how much you've improved in the last six months."
The next day, the Thousand Sunny sailed into the waters surrounding Hachinosu.
The patrol fleet gave way as agreed.
As they drew closer to the port, the Straw Hat Pirates's expressions became increasingly varied.
From the sea, the harbor of Hachinosu looks like a giant beast with its mouth wide open, swallowing and spitting out countless ships.
Cargo ships, passenger ships, warships, pirate ships—all sorts of sails moved in and out of the port in an orderly fashion.
On the stone-built wharves on both sides of the port, the cables are automatically raised and lowered by the winches, and the workers who are moving goods work together in perfect harmony. At first glance, it looks like some kind of sophisticated machine in operation.
"Wow... that's amazing..." Chopper's eyes widened and his mouth opened into a circle.
"This place is even more prosperous than Water 7!" Usopp exclaimed, leaning against the ship's railing, his eyes filled with awe.
"The maintenance costs of these facilities, tsk tsk..." Franky stroked his chin, his professional habit prompting him to begin estimating the structural strength of the port.
Luffy was the first to jump off the ship and land on the dock. He looked around like a child who had entered a candy store, his eyes shining like light bulbs.
"Wow, amazing! So much delicious food!"
He sniffed, already catching the aroma of meat wafting from the depths of the street.
Sanji's eyes were also drawn to it.
He saw a stall displaying skewers of rare Sea Kings meat, the texture of the meat glistening in the sunlight, and next to it piled up various spices that he had never seen in the first half of the Grand Line.
"These ingredients... God..." Sanji's cigarette fell out of his mouth, and he drifted toward the food stall as if his soul had been sucked in.
Nami, caught off guard by her professional instincts, subtly scanned the shops on both sides of the street, her mind racing to calculate the scale of trade here.
The more I calculated, the more alarmed I became, and the more alarmed I became, the more I felt that this place was truly uninhabitable.
"The daily turnover of any single stall... is more than our total capital..."
Usopp muttered to himself, "This place doesn't seem scary at all..."
Robin put away his book, his gaze sweeping across the street corners and alleyways, observing the seemingly casual vendors and pedestrians.
But everyone's eyes would occasionally sweep over these unfamiliar faces.
The whole street was like a huge, loose net, covering them neither too tightly nor too loosely.
Robin smiled but said nothing.