At dawn the next morning, the Terror Ghost once again set sail—like a caged beast unleashed—gliding out of the harbor.
Those remaining behind on Black Pearl Island—Mikita and the pirates stationed there—gathered at the shore to see them off, a dark crowd waving toward the departing black ship.
Only Kuro, standing by the rail, returned the gesture.
When the island had faded into the distance, Kuro adjusted his glasses and turned to observe the seven "Supernovas."
Through the Den Den Mushi, he was already aware of what had transpired on Fishman Island, and that "Sea Knight" Jinbe had joined Davy Jones's ranks—now serving as the great general guarding Fishman Island.
Jinbe's character was known across the world.
Even Fleet Admiral Sengoku had been reluctant to execute him outright, preferring instead to imprison him in the lowest depths of Impel Down, hoping time would erode his will to resist and eventually bring him under control.
But Jinbe had refused to yield, leaving Sengoku helpless.
Then, by a twist of fate, he'd escaped from Impel Down and later joined the "Paramount War" to rescue "Fire Fist" Ace.
After that, Sengoku had no choice—Jinbe's "Warlord of the Sea" title was stripped immediately, along with all the privileges it granted him.
Now, Jinbe carried a renewed bounty of 438 million Berries—and having joined Davy Jones's forces, it was certain to rise even higher in time.
All in all, Kuro regarded the famously upright Jinbe with a measure of trust.
But as for these seven so-called "Supernovas" before him—he doubted their loyalties deeply.
Still, their thoughts didn't matter much for now.
Once aboard the Terror Ghost, once branded with the "Contract Mark," they would all submit eventually.
Crocodile, Kuro himself, Alvida, Buggy, Law—each of them had walked that same path.
What worried Kuro now was that these "Supernovas" possessed frightening strength and even greater potential.
If one day their mindset shifted—and they chose to devote themselves fully to Davy Jones's banner—then he would find himself facing seven formidable rivals all at once.
Just imagining it made Kuro uneasy. It was as if seven fierce hounds were nipping at his heels—if they caught up, he'd be torn apart.
He would have to perform better, move faster—to secure his place in Davy Jones's second echelon before the "Supernovas" found their footing.
So, he walked to Davy Jones's side and waited silently for the captain's orders—vowing inwardly that, once they reached Raijin Island, he would make sure to prove himself.
As he expected, the "Supernovas" all kept their distance. They still weren't accustomed to acting under Davy Jones's command.
Raijin Island lay close to Black Pearl Island. In less than an hour's sail, they could already see it.
Even without Kuro pointing it out, Davy Jones and the others knew at once—this was Raijin Island.
Even in daylight, the island was shrouded in heavy clouds, casting its entire surface into a dim, menacing gloom.
Bolts of lightning struck ceaselessly from the swirling storm above, like venomous serpents plunging into the land below—flashes bursting in rapid succession.
Just from a distance, the island exuded danger.
The faces of the "Supernovas" shifted subtly in the flickering light.
"Damn it… are we really going to land on that island?" Apoo asked, grinning habitually—but no one answered.
They all knew: once Davy Jones made a decision, he never turned back. To do so now, over a few bolts of lightning, would make their entire journey a farce.
Hawkins performed a brief divination, his floating cards spinning in midair. After a moment, he nodded calmly. "I won't die today. It should be safe enough."
Apoo snorted, waving his long arms mockingly. "You say that every day, Hawkins. When are you gonna come up with something new?"
Hawkins shot him a cold glance but said nothing.
Though the seven were all "Supernovas," most of them didn't get along. They were gathered together now only by Davy Jones's will.
Apoo was about to stir trouble again when Davy Jones's deep voice cut through the air.
"Everyone—take your Thunder Umbrellas. Prepare to land."
"Yes, Captain," Kuro responded immediately.
The others echoed halfheartedly, voices uneven and scattered.
Only Kid and Killer stayed silent—but even they took up their Thunder Umbrellas and fell in line.
No one dared gamble with their own lives. The Thunder Umbrellas were their best hope for safe passage onto the island.
The Terror Ghost docked along a patch of beach momentarily free from lightning strikes.
As soon as Davy Jones and his group disembarked, the ghost ship turned itself about and drifted away from the island—moving under no visible command, as if by its own will—to avoid being struck.
At first, the "Supernovas" had been startled to see the ship move autonomously.
But after their undersea journey—and their travels from Terror Ghost Island to Black Pearl Island, and now to Raijin Island—they had grown numb to such sights.
That was simply how this ship was. Even without a living soul aboard, it could still sail. One merely had to accept it.
No wonder it was called the Terror Ghost. Perhaps the "ghosts" weren't a metaphor at all—perhaps unseen specters really did row its oars, turn its wheel, and hoist its sails.
In the end, they all attributed the ship's eerie nature to its master.
With a captain as strange as Davy Jones, it was only natural that his ship and crew were equally extraordinary.
The Terror Ghost had barely reached open water when a thunderbolt slammed into the very beach they'd landed on.
Crack—!
But Davy Jones's group had already raised their Thunder Umbrellas, crafted from special materials.
The umbrellas acted like shields, repelling the lightning—and like conduits, redirecting its current toward nearby cliffs and trees.
Yet the trees and brush thus struck did not ignite. Instead, the current flowed harmlessly down their trunks and into the earth.
It turned out the umbrellas themselves were made from those same plants.
The witches who crafted the "Thunder Umbrellas" regularly harvested those materials on Raijin Island and assembled the umbrellas in safer areas.
Business was steady. According to what Mikita had seen from the air, there were villages on Raijin Island—people who lived and traded there despite the deadly environment.
Even on an island so hostile, humans persisted.
Keeping their umbrellas open, Davy Jones's party advanced from the beach into a field of wild grass.
Then suddenly, Davy Jones halted. He lifted his head, eyes narrowing toward the dark sky.
"What is it, Captain?" Kuro asked quickly—though he already suspected the answer.
Sure enough, Davy Jones murmured, "It's coming… this dangerous scent—it's different from ordinary lightning."
The "Supernovas" were startled.
Ordinary lightning? The bolts falling from those clouds were terrifying enough—what kind of thunder could the captain possibly call different?
They found out the next moment.
The black clouds rolled and parted like stormy waves—opening a massive rift.
From within, a blinding light flashed, bright enough to illuminate half the island.
BOOM—!
A colossal lightning pillar, nearly as wide as the Terror Ghost itself, plunged straight down—its aim precise and unerring.
"It is a Devil Fruit attack!" Kuro's glasses gleamed with reflected lightning.
The "Supernovas" moved purely on instinct, scattering at full speed.
But to their shock, Davy Jones did not move. He stood exactly where the lightning was about to strike—and Kuro remained by his side, unmoving.
Are they insane? That's a lightning strike!
For a brief moment, the "Supernovas" shared the same thought.
But Drake harbored one more.
Go on then—let that thunder take them both. Maybe then… I'll finally be free.
Yet what happened next defied everyone's expectations—save Kuro's.
In Davy Jones's hand had appeared a weapon none of them had seen before: a black trident, crescent-shaped, forged from some ancient, dark material.
He raised it high—and the massive lightning bolt struck the trident's tip dead-on, freezing there like a glowing sphere of power.
Then, with a swift motion of his arm, Davy Jones swung the trident's haft—redirecting the entire beam of lightning sideways.
The pillar of thunder that had fallen vertically from the heavens now turned horizontally, streaking out over the sea—where it detonated amidst the waves in a cataclysmic blast.
The roar that followed shook the "Supernovas" to their bones, nearly bursting their eardrums.
Only Kuro stood calmly beside the captain, hands over his ears.
He had expected as much.
An attack of this level could never harm the captain.
The captain's side was the safest place of all.
It was the "Supernovas," keeping their distance, who had it wrong.
Had Davy Jones not diverted the strike, that bolt might have engulfed them entirely—erasing them in a single instant.
Fortunately, Davy Jones had chosen not to hold it against them—and instead turned the thunder aside, sparing their lives.