Chapter 88: I Haven't Even Gotten on the Boat Yet!
"The Calm Belt?"
Nami froze for a moment before her face turned pale, while the others didn't understand the urgency of the situation.
"The Calm Belt has no wind—our ship can't sail, and..."
Before Nami could finish, the "danger" of the Calm Belt actively revealed itself before their eyes.
The sea surface began to swell.
First, a smooth curved surface covered with bluish-gray scales bearing mysterious patterns. The curve grew larger and larger, rising higher until it completely broke through the sea surface—
An eye.
An eye over ten meters in diameter.
It rose from beneath the sea just like that, silently "staring" at the Going Merry, like a human watching an ant crawling by their feet.
Everyone froze.
Usopp's mouth formed an "O" shape, the telescope in his hand clattering onto the deck with a soft thud.
But that was only the beginning.
After the first eye appeared, the surrounding sea surface began to bulge one after another.
The second, third, fourth...
Each eye belonged to a completely different creature. Some resembled fish magnified millions of times, some looked like legendary sea dragons, and some even resembled insects or birds—but they all shared one common characteristic: size.
Absurdly large.
Any part protruding from the sea was nearly a kilometer long.
The Going Merry among them was as insignificant as a grain of sand.
"Th-this... this..."
Usopp's voice trembled, "These are..."
"Sea Kings," Nami murmured, her face deathly pale. "The Calm Belt is the nest of giant Sea Kings..."
"Any one of them..." Sanji's cigarette fell to the ground, "...could shatter our ship to pieces..."
Zoro's hand was already on his sword hilt, but his expression was equally grave.
Facing monsters of this size, what use was the Three Sword Style?
Just then, the Going Merry suddenly began to rise.
It wasn't the ship moving on its own—the seawater beneath the ship was lifting it.
"Oh no—" Ralph looked down sharply.
Through the clear seawater, he saw an indescribably enormous shadow rising beneath the ship.
It was a fish.
An unimaginably gigantic fish whose back alone was over five hundred meters wide.
The Going Merry was balanced on its head, rising toward the sea surface along with its ascent.
"Hold on tight!" Ralph shouted.
Everyone desperately grabbed whatever they could reach.
Seconds later, the fish completely surfaced.
The Going Merry rested on its smooth head, maintaining a delicate balance.
Then, it sneezed.
The vibration from that single sneeze sent the Going Merry flying, tumbling down from the Sea King's head.
Everyone and the Merry fell together through the air.
"Aaaaaaaah—!!!"
Usopp's scream dragged on.
"We're going to fall!"
Nami clung tightly to the mast.
"Below—there's something below!"
Sanji shouted.
On the sea surface, a massive, frog-like Sea King was looking up, its mouth wide open.
That mouth was as vast as a valley, containing bottomless darkness.
And the Going Merry was falling straight toward it.
"Usopp!"
Lufia's exclamation rang out.
Usopp had failed to grab onto the ship and was about to fall into that abyssal mouth.
Lufia's arm suddenly stretched out, instantly grabbing Usopp's ankle.
She yanked hard, pulling Usopp back.
But the frog clearly had no intention of giving up on its meal.
Its massive body lunged forward, mouth gaping even wider, this time targeting the entire Going Merry.
At this critical moment, Ralph began rapidly stomping mid-air.
"Geppo!"
His body shot toward the frog's face like a cannonball.
"Hypnosis Technique—Hypnotic Flash!"
He threw the broken saber, the fractured blade tumbling through the air, reflecting sunlight directly into the frog's eyes.
The frog's movements slightly hesitated.
Its pupils contracted, a momentary confusion appearing in its gaze.
Now!
Ralph threw his entire body onto the frog's forehead.
Compared to the frog's enormous head, he looked as small as a mosquito.
But Ralph's palm pressed firmly against the frog's skin.
"Beast Taming Technique—Loving Caress!"
This was the same method he had used to tame the sea cow Momoo back in East Blue.
Hypnosis combined with beast taming—theoretically, this dual effect could temporarily calm a Sea King.
However...
The confusion in the frog's eyes quickly faded, replaced by irritation at being disturbed.
"Guaaar—!!!"
A deep roar erupted from its throat, vibrating painfully against Ralph's eardrums.
It failed.
No, it couldn't be called completely useless.
At least during the few seconds when he activated his skills, the frog had indeed stopped moving.
And those few seconds saved the Going Merry.
The ship scraped past the corner of the frog's mouth and crashed into the sea with a loud "splash," sending up enormous waves.
Everyone on board was tossed about, but they were all still alive.
Just then, another Sea King nearby raised its massive tail from the sea, sweeping across like a mountain range.
"Boom—!!!"
The ship's hull groaned under the strain as the entire vessel was sent flying into the distance.
Fortunately, the direction... seemed to be toward the East Blue waters where the previous storm had been.
Unfortunately...
"I'm not on the ship yet!"
Ralph desperately activated Geppo, continuously stomping through the air as he chased after the disappearing ship.
But how could his speed possibly compare to a Sea King's tail swipe?
He watched helplessly as the Going Merry became a tiny black dot at the edge of his vision.
"Ralph—!!!"
Lufia's voice came from the distance, almost swallowed by the wind.
He saw her standing at the ship's stern, arms stretched to their limit, desperately reaching toward him.
But the ship grew increasingly distant.
Lufia's figure grew smaller and smaller.
Finally, it completely disappeared from view.
This sudden life-and-death separation gave Ralph the feeling of being abandoned by the world.
Just then, a strange "sound" suddenly entered Ralph's mind.
Not a sound heard by ears.
More like... "information" directly appearing in his consciousness.
The Sea Beast that sent away the Going Merry was about to swing its tail again!
Ralph froze for a moment.
There was no time to figure out how he understood the Sea King's thoughts.
Ralph used Geppo to fly to a predicted aerial coordinate, then employed Armament Haki for defense.
Then, with a loud bang!
The tail struck him squarely.
In that instant, Ralph felt like his bones were going to shatter.
Even with Armament Haki's protection, that terrifying force still transmitted to every corner of his body.
He was sent flying.
At extreme speed.
The wind howled in his ears, the scenery before his eyes turning into blurred patches of color.
He strained to open his eyes wide, seeing the sky spinning, the sea surface receding, and those massive Sea Kings rapidly shrinking in his vision.
Flying so high.
...
When Ralph forced his eyes open against the gales of extreme velocity, only one question occupied his mind.
"Where the hell did this send me? Is this still the East Blue?"
Above was the blue sky, below the azure sea.
The presence of ships on the ocean confirmed he had left the Calm Belt.
But there were no signs of storms around.
Meaning he had drifted far off course.
After finally joining the Straw Hat Pirates.
Sailing all the way from Shells Town to Cocoyasi Village, from the Baratie to Loguetown.
Bickering with Zoro, arguing with Sanji, listening to Usopp's tall tales, watching Nami draw charts.
And Lufia.
That girl wearing a straw hat, whose smile shone brighter than the sun.
Just when they were about to enter the Grand Line together—
I got separated?
Are you kidding me?
"I'm not on the ship...Lufia and the others will come looking for me, right?"
"They should... right?"
Taking a closer look, Ralph realized the ship on the sea surface was actually a navy warship!
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