Just as Sanji decisively kicked away the short axe wielding old woman, a new crisis silently descended upon the Thousand Sunny.
"Aba!!"
The thin elder, who had previously fallen into the sea after being slashed by Zoro, had somehow used his terrifying stealth to sneak back onto the Thousand Sunny without anyone noticing.
"Aba aba..."
Hidden behind the ship, the thin elder watched as the old woman was blasted away by Sanji. His expression remained emotionless, but a cold gleam flickered in his eyes.
"Aba..."
Gripping a sword as thin as a needle, he suddenly thrust it downward. The sharp blade pierced through the deck and sank deep into the Thousand Sunny's hull.
"Aba! Activate, Wusheng! Release the power of the Close Close Fruit!"
Rumble...
In an instant, the entire ship shook violently.
A second later, the Thousand Sunny, which had been sailing steadily moments ago, suddenly began swaying wildly across the sea like a drunken beast that had lost all sense of direction.
Glug glug...
Barrels, crates, and loose equipment rolled across the deck, crashing loudly into one another as chaos erupted everywhere.
Swish!
The moment he sensed something was wrong, Zoro instantly appeared in front of the thin elder with his blade drawn.
"It's you!"
Clang!
The two swords collided violently.
Zoro pressed down hard with one hand on his blade, glaring at the elder with narrowed eyes.
"Your stealth is impressive. What did you do? Why is the Thousand Sunny shaking like this?"
"Heh heh, aba..."
The thin elder gritted his teeth as he struggled against Zoro's overwhelming strength.
"Aba..."
A sinister smile spread across his face as he used the force of Zoro's strike to propel himself backward into the air.
To Zoro's surprise, the elder could also use Moonwalk.
"..."
Zoro did not chase after him.
Instead, he lowered his gaze toward the pierced section of the deck and crouched down thoughtfully.
"So simply stabbing the ship caused it to lose control?"
His brows furrowed slightly.
"Looks like some kind of Devil Fruit ability. The Thousand Sunny was tampered with, that's why it suddenly became unstable."
Although Zoro could not understand the elder's strange muttering, the smug look on the man's face made one thing obvious.
The enemy believed they were doomed.
Meanwhile, the Thousand Sunny's situation worsened rapidly.
The ship that once sailed fearlessly through giant storms now rocked violently across the ocean like it had forgotten how to float.
The tilting became increasingly severe.
Massive waves slammed against the deck as seawater sprayed over everyone onboard.
Even under Jinbe's expert control, the Thousand Sunny continued to lose balance as though it could sink at any moment.
"Hold steady! You must hold steady!"
Jinbe planted himself firmly at the helm, gripping it tightly with powerful arms that resembled iron pillars.
Despite the violent rocking, he stood firm without moving an inch.
"Something's wrong, Luffy!"
Jinbe's sharp eyes scanned the sea ahead.
"The waves aren't strong enough to throw the Thousand Sunny around like this. It shouldn't be losing balance at all!"
"Aaaaaah!"
The sudden shaking threw everyone into chaos.
The crew desperately grabbed onto the railings to avoid being tossed into the ocean.
"Eeeeh!? What's happening!?"
Chopper's face turned pale as he clung to the railing with all four limbs.
"Aaaah... the ship is shaking too much... I'm gonna throw up... bleeh..."
"This is bad! Really bad!!!"
Franky immediately rushed below deck to inspect the ship.
Moments later, he sprinted back outside with a stunned expression.
"This is super weird!!! All the systems are completely normal! There's no damage anywhere, but the Thousand Sunny is still sinking! That makes no sense at all!"
"What!?"
Luffy's eyes widened in panic.
He tightly hugged the Thousand Sunny's lion figurehead and shouted loudly.
"Sunny! Hang in there! Don't sink on us!"
Usopp clutched his head in terror.
"What is going on!? Why is the Sunny sinking!? No way... I don't wanna experience losing another ship after the Going Merry!"
Sanji held onto Nami protectively while staring at the ship with a frown.
"This doesn't feel normal. I've never seen the Sunny like this before. It's like the ship forgot how to stay afloat."
"Shirogai!! Shirogai!!!"
Nami waved anxiously toward the Sky Island floating above Mary Geoise.
"Hurry up and get here! The Sunny's under attack!"
"Yohohoho..."
Brook calmly held onto the railing with one hand while sipping tea with the other.
Despite the violent shaking, he looked completely relaxed.
"What a wonderful time for tea."
Thwack!
Nami smashed her fist straight into Brook's afro.
"Wonderful my foot! This is absolutely not the time for tea!"
Robin, however, looked completely unconcerned.
Leaning gracefully against the railing, she smiled softly at everyone.
"Relax. Everything will be fine."
She brushed back her dark hair elegantly.
"Didn't Shirogai say things would go in our favor today? Nothing bad is going to happen."
"But Robin-san..."
Nami gripped the railing tightly as she looked at the dangerously tilting ship.
"The Sunny looks like it's about to flip over!"
"How disappointing."
Loki stood steadily atop the violently rocking ship without the slightest concern.
"I just joined this crew and the ship is already about to sink."
He casually patted Ragnar's head.
"Ragnar, should we just fly away? Human ships are too fragile. A little rough water is enough to destroy them."
At that moment, Zoro's calm voice echoed across the deck.
"Shirogai once said Haki can purify Devil Fruit abilities if the Haki is strong enough."
Clang!
Wado Ichimonji left its sheath instantly.
Dark Armament Haki coated the blade as Zoro pointed it directly at the section the thin elder had pierced earlier.
"Hah..."
Zoro released a low breath before his eyes sharpened.
"Break!"
Crack!!!
Armament Haki exploded outward from Wado Ichimonji and spread across the deck at astonishing speed.
Within moments, the Haki covered the entire Thousand Sunny.
The invisible force violently clashed against the Devil Fruit power affecting the ship.
Creak... groan...
The ship trembled as the two powers collided fiercely.
Sweat slowly formed on Zoro's forehead.
Covering an entire ship with Armament Haki was an enormous burden, even for him.
Suddenly, a strange and chilling aura was forcibly expelled from the Thousand Sunny by Zoro's Haki.
The energy twisted unwillingly before dispersing into the air completely.
The next moment, the Thousand Sunny miraculously stabilized.
The violent shaking disappeared.
The tilting lessened.
Then, little by little, the ship smoothly returned to its normal sailing state.
"..."
Usopp tightly gripped the railing as he cautiously raised his head.
"W... we survived? The Sunny's not sinking anymore?"
"Looks like it."
Sanji brushed back his soaked hair while staring at Zoro.
"You actually purified the Devil Fruit ability with Haki?"
"Yeah."
Zoro calmly sheathed Wado Ichimonji.
But his expression remained serious.
"Stay alert."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"That skinny bastard's stealth is dangerous. Even Observation Haki can barely detect him."
"If he sneaks onboard again and uses his ability another few times, we're going to have real trouble."