Luffy, having finally regained consciousness, stood motionless, his mind still reeling from everything that had just transpired.
Nami and Chopper slowly pushed themselves up from the ground. With visible hesitation, Nami called out softly,
"L… Luffy?"
Luffy turned his head toward her.
"Nami."
The familiar tone in his voice erased all doubt. This was truly their Luffy.
Tears welled up instantly in Nami's eyes as relief overwhelmed her. Chopper leaped forward without hesitation, wrapping himself tightly around Luffy's neck, crying as he repeatedly called his name.
Only then did Lindbergh snap out of his shock. His eyes widened in disbelief as he exclaimed,
"He actually defeated Joy Boy?!"
Luffy gently stroked Chopper's head. Hearing Lindbergh, he turned slightly and said,
"Uncle Lindbergh, I'm starving. Can you get me something to eat?"
Lindbergh nodded stiffly, still processing the situation. Before he could move, however, Nami had already rushed off and returned with a massive pile of food.
She placed it all in front of Luffy, smiling brightly through her tears.
"Eat quickly, Luffy. If it's not enough, I'll get more!"
Luffy grinned, sat cross-legged, and immediately began devouring the food with his usual ferocity.
Watching him eat like this, Nami's expression softened into a relieved smile.
Lindbergh approached, concern evident in his voice.
"Luffy, you haven't eaten in a long time. It would be better to start with something light, like nutritional porridge."
Luffy ignored the suggestion entirely. He grabbed a large piece of meat straight from the pile. Despite it being cold from storage, he barely chewed before swallowing it in one gulp.
Chopper rested his chin on his hooves and chuckled.
"It's fine, Uncle Lindbergh. Luffy's always like this. This is our Luffy!"
Still feeling guilty for his earlier hesitation, Lindbergh chose not to argue further and simply watched in silence.
In no time, the mountain of food disappeared.
Luffy took the water Nami handed him and drank it in one go. He patted his now swollen belly and said with satisfaction,
"I'm full. If Sanji had made it…"
His voice trailed off briefly, his expression stiffening for a moment before he quickly changed the subject.
"Where are we now?"
Lindbergh answered,
"We're still in the East Blue. The Celestial Dragons are here as well. His Observation Haki is extremely powerful, and we still don't know its full range. If we move too quickly, we might draw his attention. Unless you can use that straw hat like last time…"
Luffy frowned slightly. He removed the straw hat from his back and placed it in front of him, studying it carefully.
"I don't know how to use it," he admitted.
Lindbergh hesitated before asking,
"Joy Boy didn't tell you? Is he still inside your body?"
Luffy shook his head.
"He said the straw hat originally belonged to me, and that I could use it whenever I wanted. But I haven't figured out how. And after what just happened, he's no longer responding. I don't intend to communicate with him again."
Nami nodded vigorously.
"That's right, Luffy. That Joy Boy was trying to take your body. You must never let that happen again. Your body belongs to you alone."
Chopper chimed in angrily,
"Exactly! Anyone who tries to take over someone else's body is definitely a bad person!"
Luffy gave a faint smile and slowly rose to his feet.
In the next instant, white, flame-like clouds began to drift from behind him. His entire body transformed as he entered his Nika form.
Nami and the others instinctively stepped back, startled by the sudden surge of power, their eyes filled with caution.
Luffy covered his face and laughed. The rhythmic sound of the Drums of Liberation echoed faintly as his bloated stomach rapidly returned to normal.
His expression gradually settled. Feeling the immense power coursing through him, he clenched his fists.
"This… is power that truly belongs to me."
Lindbergh reacted first, astonishment clear in his voice.
"Luffy, can you already control it?"
Nami and Chopper stared at him in disbelief.
After a brief silence, Luffy nodded.
"Yeah. It's thanks to Grandpa. His punch is etched into me."
Nami and Chopper spoke at the same time,
"Then who's stronger now, you or that Celestial Dragon?"
Luffy fell silent.
That silence itself was the answer.
He exhaled slowly.
"I've only just started to grasp this power. If I face him again, I can probably only protect myself. It'll take time before I can match him."
A trace of unease flickered across his face. Despite his fearless nature, the Celestial Dragon's overwhelming strength had left a deep impression on him. Each encounter had come at a cost, one that could not be ignored.
Even so, Nami's expression remained bright. She wrapped her arms around his and smiled warmly.
"You're already incredible, Luffy. I know you'll defeat him someday."
Chopper raised a hoof enthusiastically.
"Yeah! You can do it!"
Their unwavering support brought a genuine smile back to Luffy's face.
He deactivated his Nika form and asked,
"Thanks, everyone. By the way, how's Brook? I haven't seen him."
Chopper replied,
"Brook's injuries are pretty serious. He shouldn't move around for now. But don't worry, as long as he drinks enough milk, he should recover in a few days."
Lindbergh hesitated, then spoke with some difficulty.
"There's just one problem… we're running low on milk. At Brook's current rate, it'll only last less than three days."
"What?!"
"And it's not just milk. The rest of our supplies are running low as well. In about half a month, we'll have to surface to resupply."
He glanced at the empty plates scattered across the ground and added quietly,
"Originally, we could have lasted nearly a month. But after Luffy ate all that just now…"
Luffy blinked twice, completely unfazed. Scratching his head, he laughed.
"Is that so? That's troublesome."
Lindbergh spread his hands helplessly.
"So I'm planning to send Hark up first to scout. He's a Fish-Man, so it's easy for him to move between the sea and the surface. Once he confirms it's safe, we'll follow and resupply."
===
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