After several days of round-the-clock feasting on Zou, Leno and his crew finally found themselves overwhelmed by the Mink Tribe's boundless enthusiasm.
Despite repeated attempts to persuade them to stay, they ultimately decided it was time to depart.
That morning, at the main gate of the Mokomo Dukedom.
Duke Inuarashi led a large group of Minks to see them off, bringing along crates upon crates of Zou's local specialties.
As one group after another disembarked from the ship, the moment of farewell arrived.
The Minks watched as the vessel slowly ascended, waving reluctantly at those aboard.
"Lord Thunder God, fair winds on your journey!"
"You have to come back again!"
"Everyone's always welcome to visit Zou!"
"..."
"Goodbye! Hahaha..."
By the railing, Yamato, Nami, and the others waved back at the adorable Minks.
After spending several days together, they had all grown fond of these simple, warm-hearted people.
They were just like little animals—once they got close to you, they would shower you with affection and constantly try to snuggle.
If not for their overwhelming hospitality, the crew might have stayed a few more days.
Standing at the bow, Leno nodded toward Duke Inuarashi. With a shift of will, the ship shot away from Zou like an arrow.
The moment they reached open sea, they were greeted by dark clouds and violent winds. Lightning split the sky as torrential rain came crashing down.
The waves surged higher and higher. With no other choice, Leno lifted the ship back into the air.
Crack—crack—
Gale-force winds and heavy rain raged across the world, countless bolts of lightning exploding overhead.
Even suspended midair, the ship still rocked violently.
Just as everyone focused intently on dealing with the storm, a scream suddenly rang out from the storage room below deck.
"Ahhh! Help!"
"What is this? Lightning?!"
Recognizing the somewhat familiar voice, Leno instantly transformed into a streak of lightning and appeared inside the storage room.
A small, snow-white figure was crouched on the floor, covering her ears with both hands, trembling as she stuck her backside up in fear.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
"Carrot?! What are you doing here?!"
"C-Carrot? You—"
Nami, Nojiko, and the others arrived a moment later, equally stunned. When had she gotten on board?
An entire person had been added to the ship, and none of them had noticed.
Hearing their voices, Carrot cautiously turned her head. The moment she saw Leno, her eyes lit up with delight.
With a quick roll to her feet, she darted forward and latched onto him, biting his ear.
"Garchu!"
"Hiss—"
Leno shuddered from head to toe. Before he could react, Carrot went around and bit each of the others on the ear as well.
After finishing her greetings, she blinked her big eyes and stood sweetly before them.
Leno swept his gaze around, his expression shifting slightly. Looking at the little girl, he asked cautiously,
"Carrot… did you forget to get off the ship when everyone came to deliver supplies?"
"What?!"
The others' expressions changed drastically. Nami even turned to arrange for the ship to turn back.
If the people on Zou discovered she was missing, who knew how worried they would be.
"No, no…"
Carrot hurriedly waved her hands and ran to a corner to pull out a backpack, looking a bit embarrassed.
"I… I couldn't help myself and followed you…"
"What?!"
Black lines appeared on Nami and the others' foreheads. So she had run away on purpose.
Only then did Leno remember that this little rabbit had never been the obedient type. In the original story, she had secretly boarded Monkey D. Luffy's ship as well.
The past few days on Zou had been too comfortable. Since she hadn't shown anything unusual, Leno had pushed the matter to the back of his mind.
Yet the "stowaway incident" had still happened.
After a brief moment of thought, he turned to Nami.
"Nami, go tell Chopper. Let's turn back."
Fortunately, they hadn't gone too far.
Carrot was still too young. Cute, yes—but staying on the ship wasn't exactly appropriate.
The journey ahead would be anything but smooth. That was why Leno had arranged special training on Thunder God Island for his crew beforehand.
Nami nodded and headed for the door, but before she could take more than a few steps, she froze.
Carrot.
Seeing Nami about to leave, Carrot slid across the floor and grabbed onto her leg, hugging it tightly.
Turning her tear-filled eyes toward everyone, she pleaded in a choked voice,
"I don't want to go back. Please let me go on adventures with you. Waaaah..."
"Th-this…"
Looking down at Carrot clinging to her leg in tears and snot, Nami hesitated.
Back on Zou, Carrot had spent the most time with her.
If she remembered correctly, there had been a few drunken moments where she might have made some rather bold promises.
But in this situation, she couldn't decide on her own. She looked toward Leno for help.
"Big idiot, what do you think…"
"…She's too young. It's not—"
Before Leno could finish, Carrot dropped to her knees in front of him, crying again.
"Please! I can do anything. I won't cause trouble. Take me with you!"
She had finally managed to sneak out. There was no way she would give up halfway.
If she went back now, Wanda would definitely be furious. Getting scolded would be the least of her worries.
After she finished sobbing, Leno asked seriously,
"Does anyone else know you ran away?"
"I left a message for Wanda."
Carrot sniffed and looked up at him.
"I had someone pass it along!"
"...Sigh. Fine. You can stay on the ship for now. You'll start as an apprentice."
In the end, he softened.
He would see how capable the little rabbit actually was.
He remembered the people of Zou being quite fierce by nature. Even children had combat ability.
Someone like Carrot… probably wouldn't hold them back. Probably.
At the very moment Carrot successfully secured her place aboard, the little monkey who had delivered her message was being interrogated by Wanda.
Squatting down, Wanda looked expressionlessly at the small monkey before her, her tone filled with reproach.
"So Carrot is already out at sea? Why didn't you tell me sooner, Bariete?"
"Sorry, Wanda!"
The curly-tailed monkey in a tall hat glanced around nervously. After apologizing, he quickly tried to defend himself.
"I told her it'd be better to inform everyone! But she said if she told anyone, they'd stop her..."
Wanda said nothing. She simply stared at him calmly until sweat began forming on his forehead. Only then did she speak again.
"Forget it. As long as I know where she is. I was just worried she'd suddenly disappear."
She stood and looked toward the distant sea of clouds, relief filling her eyes.
"If she's with the Thunder God and the others… she should be fine."
...
...