"I never expected Nami to have fans too," Usopp remarked with some emotion.
He had thought only big stars like Brook could have fans, yet Nami had one as well.
This...
"Isn't it perfectly normal for someone like Nami to have fans~" Sanji said while twisting his body. "I'm her fan too! Ah~"
"Miss Nami!"
At that moment, Sanji seemed to transform into an ardent fan, twisting so vigorously that afterimages appeared.
Seeing this, Perona immediately retorted, "Even if you're a fan, you're definitely not a normal one."
What kind of fan would react like that?
But unfortunately, such words had no effect on Sanji. Instead, they made him twist even more energetically.
"I wish I had fans too..." Chopper said enviously, looking at Nami.
Nami, who had flown down with Merry, smiled at Chopper and said, "Chopper, you're so adorable. You'll definitely have fans in the future."
"Really!" Chopper's eyes sparkled.
Could he really have his own fans?
"Mm-hmm!"
After receiving this confirmation, Chopper's face immediately broke into a happy smile, as if he could already picture the scene.
"Hehe, how should I face my fans~" Chopper chuckled.
Little Merry thought for a moment and then suggested, "How about... writing letters?"
Just like Nami's fan wrote her a letter, the person being admired could write back to their fans too. Chopper considered this and then nodded, saying, "Mm, that works!"
Sending a letter with his personal signature would definitely show enough sincerity.
"Hey, Nami."
Luffy moved closer to Nami and asked, "What's written in the letter?"
At that moment, Luffy grew intensely curious about the letter in Nami's hand. He really wanted to know what was inside.
Looking at Luffy, who was fidgeting like a monkey, Nami smirked and said, "It's a secret."
"Eh... why's that..."
But unfortunately, Nami still had no intention of showing it to him. Instead, she carefully tucked the letter into her chest.
As she put it, this was a little secret between girls and couldn't be shared with everyone.
Seeing Nami so resolute, Luffy didn't press further.
Then, Luffy turned away with a pout and said, "Hmph, I'll have fans someday too."
His expression looked just like a sulking child, making Nami roll her eyes.
Just then, Franky emerged from the water and successfully climbed back onto the Thousand Sunny.
"Phew..."
"Finally done."
After wiping the seawater from his face, Franky looked at his companions and said, "The float bags have started deflating. How are the preparations on your end?"
The deflation process would be very quick, so they needed to hurry with their preparations.
"That was fast."
Nami nodded upon hearing this and then turned to Merry, saying, "Merry, we'll leave the sails to you."
"Whoa!!"
Upon hearing Nami's words, Merry immediately activated her ability and took control of the pirate ship.
Soon, under Merry's manipulation, the ship's sails swooshed down, and the pirate flag began fluttering once again.
And this meant... the Straw Hat Pirates were officially setting sail!
After glancing up at the sails, Usopp murmured, "Seems I need to hurry up too."
With that, he used his ability to double the size of his slingshot, then launched an attack with the enlarged weapon, destroying the cannons on the distant marine vessel.
"Boom!!"
"Boom!!"
"Boom!!"
Looking at the destroyed marine cannons, Usopp nodded with satisfaction. "As expected of me~"
After chuckling, Usopp returned inside the bubble to wait for departure with his crewmates.
With no more enemy interference, they no longer needed to worry about the coating being damaged.
"Seems everything's ready."
Nami, who had observed everything, nodded contentedly before turning to Luffy. "Captain, we're ready to set sail."
"Give the order."
"Whoa!"
Hearing this, Luffy grinned widely, showing his teeth, then walked beneath the mast and smiled at his crew.
The others gathered around, all wearing similar smiles as they looked at Luffy.
This feeling... it had been so long!
"Everyone..."
Luffy smiled as he took in his crew's reactions. "Thank you for supporting my selfish decision these past two years!"
The others immediately laughed upon hearing this, clearly understanding what Luffy meant - he was referring to his order to stop their journey for two years.
"You idiot,"
Sanji laughed. "Do you think your selfishness just started recently?"
"You've always been like this~" Usopp added with a chuckle.
Selfishness... they were long used to it!
Hearing their words, Luffy's smile widened even more.
Glancing at the pirate ship beginning to sink, Luffy took a deep breath.
Then he shouted loudly: "Well then... everyone!"
"Set sail!"
"Destination, Fish-Man Island!!"
"Whoa!!!"
Everyone cheered together, their eyes shining with anticipation for the unknown adventure ahead!
"Boom!!"
The next moment, the Thousand Sunny submerged into the sea, rapidly charging toward the ocean depths!
Soon, this pirate ship would reach the legendary Fish-Man Island!
"Eh?!"
The marine commander who had observed the entire process said with a grim expression, "Vice Admiral! The Straw Hat Pirates' ship has entered the seafloor!!"
"What?!"
The marine vice admiral's expression immediately changed upon hearing his subordinate's report.
He then picked up binoculars to look at the sea surface.
After clearly seeing the situation, he was rendered speechless.
"Vice Admiral, what should we do now?" the marine commander asked with a troubled expression.
They had thought they could keep the Straw Hat Pirates here, but... they ended up letting them escape."
The vice admiral remained silent for a moment before turning away. "What can we do? Report this incident up the chain of command."
"Yes."
The subordinate nodded, then showed a helpless expression.
Ultimately, they were just too weak...
If an Admiral were here, they definitely could have brought the Straw Hat Pirates to justice!
At this thought, he sighed silently and turned to leave.
Unbeknownst to him, the Marine Rear Admiral's expression shifted strangely the moment he departed.
"Though it's a pity we couldn't capture the Straw Hat Pirates, letting the adorable Chopper and... that cute little intern escape isn't so bad..."
"No! I'm a Marine Rear Admiral—how can I think like this?!"
But... but they're just so adorable!!
Damn it!!!
"Hm?"
"What's wrong with the Rear Admiral?"
The Marines behind him watched his trembling back with confusion.
"The Rear Admiral must be blaming himself too much."
Everyone fell silent at these words, then regarded him with renewed respect.
Truly, this was their Rear Admiral!
"Hey, Vice Admiral Smoker, slow down!!"
Tashigi felt utterly helpless watching Smoker surge forward as white smoke.
At this speed, how could they possibly keep up?
Even if she used Shave to chase, she couldn't catch up to Vice Admiral Smoker after his Elemental Transformation!
Unfortunately, instead of slowing down upon hearing this, Smoker accelerated even faster.
After all... if he arrived late, they'd escape!
"Hey, Vice Admiral Smoker?!"
"I'll go ahead—hurry up and follow!!" Smoker declared.
Tashigi: —
Watching the receding white smoke, Tashigi was rendered speechless.
He's always like this.
"Colonel Tashigi, what should we do?" a Marine nearby asked.
Snapping back to attention, Tashigi replied, "Head to the shore at Grove 42 immediately! Assist Vice Admiral Smoker in capturing the Straw Hat Pirates!!"
Grove 45 was very close to Grove 42—they could get there quickly.
"Yes, ma'am!"
The Marine nodded and turned to lead the others in a charge.
Tashigi herself gazed intently toward the shore, muttering, "Roronoa, I will reclaim the sword in your hand!"
Having trained under Senior Bogard for nearly two years, she was certain she could defeat Roronoa Zoro!
Her eyes grew even more determined at this thought.
She then joined the Marine recruits in rushing toward the distance.
Meanwhile, Smoker was racing at top speed toward the shore at Grove 42, soon reaching its outskirts.
"Hm?"
Noticing several giant beetles flying away in the distance, Smoker's head filled with question marks.
"Since when were there such large insects here?"
Though puzzled, he had no intention of investigating—capturing the Straw Hat Pirates was his priority.
With that, Smoker fixed his eyes on the shore and charged forward.
Soon, he arrived at the target area.
"Hm?"
Scanning the tranquil coastline, Smoker frowned. "Weren't the Straw Hat Pirates supposed to be here? Where are they?"
Had he arrived too late?
His expression darkened at the thought.
The Marines who noticed Smoker exclaimed in surprise, "It's Vice Admiral Smoker!"
Why was he here?
Shouldn't he be in the New World at this time?
"Ah, it's me."
Smoker, with a cigarette in his mouth, approached the group and frowned as he asked, "Where did the Straw Hat crew go?"
"You're too late..."
A Marine Recruit pointed to the sea nearby and said, "The Straw Hat Pirates just went underwater."
"Underwater..."
Smoker glanced at the sea and remarked, "They coated their ship to go to Fish-Man Island?"
"Yes," the Marine Recruit replied helplessly.
If Commodore Smoker had arrived just a bit earlier, he might have been able to stop the Straw Hat Pirates.
What a shame... sigh.
Hearing this, Smoker fell silent, then stared wordlessly at the sea, lost in thought.
No one dared to disturb him, so they all waited quietly.
Just then, a girl's voice reached Smoker's ears.
"Let me go!!"
"Damn it, you guys let me go!"
"Huh?"
Hearing the noise, Smoker was taken aback and turned to the side, demanding, "What's going on?"
The others exchanged glances but remained silent.
"I'm asking you a question!" Smoker glared. "Have you all gone mute?!"
The Marines shuddered, and one Commodore stepped forward from the crowd, explaining, "We've captured a girl suspected of having ties to the Straw Hat crew."
"She might be a pirate spy."
"A spy?" Smoker frowned. "Take me to see her."
"Well..."
The Commodore hesitated, unsure if the girl was truly a spy.
But for certain reasons, he had no choice.
Now, with Commodore Smoker involved, he...
"Hmm?"
"Yes, I'll take you right away," the Commodore said, wiping sweat from his forehead.
Seeing this, Smoker narrowed his eyes, sensing that something was off.