"Then Luffy—or Zoro and Sanji—if you're ever pushed into a tough fight, just one of these pills will let you fully recover your inner energy in an instant and reignite your fighting spirit!"
The moment Luffy heard that, his sluggish mood vanished. He sprang up and rushed over to Ronan.
"What?! Something like that exists?! Ronan, is it better than meat?!"
"Meat restores energy, but the conversion is slow, and it consumes a lot of stamina to digest."
Ronan explained calmly.
"But this kind of high-energy pill works instantly, is compact, and its energy flows directly through the meridians."
"One pill is equivalent to eating an entire Sea King."
Zoro and Sanji both turned their attention over.
"Oh? Instantly restoring inner energy?"
Zoro crossed his arms, his hand resting on the hilt of Wado Ichimonji, eyes sharp.
"If that's the case… even against someone like a Marine Admiral, we'd stand a chance."
"Hey! Don't start talking about Admirals like that!"
Nami instantly jumped in and smacked Zoro on the head.
"Stop jinxing us! I don't want to run into one!"
While they bickered, Ronan had already taken out the remaining rare herbs.
These were ancient plants he had collected back on Little Garden.
"Chopper, these herbs grew in prehistoric conditions. Their potency is extremely violent. I tried refining them before, but couldn't control the process well."
Ronan scratched his head slightly.
"But you have top-tier medical knowledge and experience with Rumble Balls. You should be better at handling this kind of precise combination."
Chopper's eyes lit up the moment he saw the herbs.
"So much life energy!"
"I'll study them carefully! If I combine this with my Rumble Ball theory, I might even be able to create pills that enhance physical strength!"
Just as everyone got excited—
Ronan suddenly frowned.
The airflow… had changed.
He slowly looked up.
At the massive pink shadow above—the giant octopus acting as their balloon.
Its inflated head—
Was shrinking.
The once taut surface sagged.
The buoyancy keeping the ship afloat was rapidly disappearing.
"…Hey."
Ronan's voice turned serious.
"Don't you think that octopus… is getting smaller?"
Everyone looked up.
The massive balloon-like octopus—
Was deflating.
As its lift weakened—
The Merry's heavy weight began to take over.
The descent shifted—
From a gentle glide—
To a dangerous vertical drop.
"It… it's shrinking!!" Usopp's face turned pale.
"Nami! Check our altitude!" Zoro braced himself, inner energy surging.
"It's not just shrinking!"
Nami shouted.
"It can't support the ship anymore! Hold on—we're entering free fall!"
"BOOM!!"
The ship suddenly pitched downward.
The sensation of weightlessness slammed into everyone.
"We're gonna die! We'll turn into takoyaki!!"
Usopp and Chopper clung desperately to the mast, bodies lifted sideways by the wind.
"Leave it to me!"
Amid the chaos—
Luffy hooked his feet onto the golden railing at the stern.
He took a deep breath.
His chest expanded like a furnace.
"Gomu Gomu—Balloon!!"
His body inflated massively—
But he didn't stop.
"Gomu Gomu—Parachute!!"
Stretching to the limit—
Luffy turned himself into a giant living parachute.
But the strain was immense.
"GRAAAH!! It's so heavy! The Merry weighs like a mountain!!"
Veins bulged on his forehead as his muscles stretched and reformed under extreme pressure.
"Hold on, Luffy!"
Ronan stood at the center of the deck, stabilizing the ship with his spear and inner energy.
"Chopper! The medicine!"
"Got it!"
Chopper fought back nausea and threw the ancient herbs into a grinder.
"Inner energy recovery… activation… plus Rumble Ball vibration frequency!"
His expression turned sharply focused.
"The energy is too strong—I can only turn it into mist and disperse it!"
He slammed the switch.
A dense, glowing herbal mist filled the deck.
"HA—!"
Luffy inhaled deeply.
His strained muscles—
Repaired instantly.
His inner energy surged back.
"Strength… it's coming back!!"
The Merry continued its descent—
Now passing through violent storm clouds.
Lightning flashed around them.
"Zoro! Left side—cut that lightning cloud!"
"One Sword Style—Thirty-Six Pound Phoenix!"
Zoro unleashed a powerful slash.
The blue arc cut through the storm, splitting the cloud in half.
Nami gripped the railing, eyes wide.
"We're breaking through! I can see the Blue Sea!!"
With a final explosive burst—
The Merry broke free from the clouds.
Below—
No more white emptiness—
Only the vast, deep ocean.
Fog spread across the sea surface.
"BOOOOOOM—!!!"
With a thunderous crash—
The Golden Merry slammed into the ocean like a falling mountain.
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