Brilliant sunlight filtered gently through thin clouds, warm and passionate as it bathed the vast ocean below.
On the calm, windless sea, a small and unremarkable ship sailed peacefully forward.
"All done! Finally finished!"
Usopp, who had been lying on the deck, suddenly pushed himself up.
He stretched his arms wide with a satisfied groan, then looked down proudly at his handiwork. Out of habit, he wiped a smudge from his long nose with pride.
Unfortunately, his hand was covered in paint and oil, leaving his long nose streaked in rainbow colors.
Now looking like a clown with a painted face, Usopp didn't seem to notice, or care. No one teased him anyway.
In fact, Nami simply shoved him aside and squeezed into the group that had gathered around his creation.
"Hey! Hey!!!"
Still holding his paintbrush, Usopp waved his arms and shouted in protest.
"Hey, come on! You guys are too much!!!"
"I spent half a day painting that!"
"Is this how you treat your great contributor?!"
No matter how loudly Usopp yelled, Luffy and the others didn't spare him a single glance.
They remained crowded together, murmuring in awe and admiration.
Seeing this, the corners of Usopp's mouth twitched upward. Heh, looks like they're impressed after all. But quickly, he straightened his face, pretending to be annoyed.
His furrowed brows were an exaggerated act, but he sold it perfectly.
If someone wrote "Drama King" across his forehead, it wouldn't be out of place.
After everyone admired the work for a while, Luffy finally stepped forward and picked up the now-dry black cloth lying on the deck.
With a wide grin, he spread it out completely and hung it beside the cabin door, so everyone could see it clearly.
Zoro crossed his arms and smiled, a hint of surprise in his tone as he said,
"Didn't expect that from you. You've actually got some skill."
"Haha! There's nothing that the great Captain Usopp can't do!"
Puffing out his chest, Usopp placed his hands on his hips, pride radiating from every pore, as if to say: Come on, praise me more! Go on, praise me!
And truth be told, his work was impressive enough to earn it.
Everyone began showering him with compliments, each one warmer than the last.
Koby: "Mr. Usopp! You're amazing! Please teach me, Master!"
Nami: "I can't believe it, you actually have this kind of talent!"
Robin: "Usopp's artwork could easily fetch a fortune at an auction."
Brook: "Yohohoho~! After seeing Mr. Usopp's work, I feel creatively inspired again! Yohohoho~!"
"Wahahahaha!"
Overwhelmed by the praise, Usopp burst into laughter.
He climbed onto the ship's railing, balancing fearlessly despite the rocking of the Going Merry.
Spreading his arms wide, he looked up at the sky and shouted arrogantly,
"Bow down before the great Usopp's genius! Hahahahahaha!"
His smug grin was so wide, it almost made his long nose seem even longer.
"Alright, alright!!"
Luffy laughed heartily at the cheerful atmosphere and called him down.
Then he waved Zoro over.
Zoro understood instantly and walked up to him.
The two of them each grabbed one end of the black cloth and lifted it high into the air.
"I declare!"
Luffy's radiant smile gleamed beneath the clear blue sky as he shouted, full of energy,
"This! Is the official flag of the Starry Sky Pirates!!!"
"From this day on, this flag represents our pride! Our honor! Our proof of existence!!"
Luffy held the flag high, his voice brimming with excitement.
Unlike most pirate flags, this one did not bear the image of a skull.
Instead, what first caught the eye was a dim, starry night sky, with a full moon hanging high, half veiled by drifting clouds.
Below it stretched a tranquil sea, calm and peaceful, just like the waters around them now.
Countless stars glittered above, their reflections shimmering on the surface below, merging the sea and sky into one endless horizon.
At first glance, it didn't even look like a pirate flag.
It looked like a painting, a beautiful depiction of the boundless world.
But if one looked closer, nestled within that moonlit scene, a small ship floated in midair, soaring upward toward the endless stars.
That ship was none other than the Going Merry.
And if you looked even closer, you could see the tiny figures of Luffy, Zoro, Robin, Nami, Brook, Koby, and Usopp aboard her, each one carefully drawn.
And on the deck… there was still a blank space left.
A space reserved for future crewmates.
========
The flag was raised high, fluttering proudly atop the Going Merry's mast.
Below it, the crew stood quietly, each with different emotions stirring in their hearts as they gazed at their new banner.
Because of Luffy, Brook's dream had already been fulfilled. Robin had finally found a place where she belonged. Nami no longer chased her old dream of charting the entire world.
Koby, though now a pirate, had found his own purpose.
And Usopp, while he might not be the strongest fighter, carried within him a power bordering on the divine.
Only Luffy and Zoro still looked toward the horizon with uncertainty in their hearts.
Zoro had gained incredible strength, but he was still far from his goal of standing at the very top.
As for Luffy… his dream was even more difficult.
To make it come true, he had poured his soul into effort.
Now, in the Goa Kingdom, by his decree, the nation had implemented a nine-year system of compulsory education.
Even adults were required to attend night school, no graduation without meeting the learning standard.
Work during the day, study at night.
If the homework wasn't done, no sleep.
Luffy had even passed along all the scientific and technical knowledge still stored in his mind to the kingdom's greatest scholars.
They were stunned by what they learned.
Not because of the advanced technologies Luffy described,
But because it was their first time seeing a system that could explain every natural phenomenon so logically.
That system… was mathematics.
After long months of study and research, the scholars finally developed the first official standard curriculum.
Luffy was now pushing forward on two fronts,
On one hand, training his crew and himself to grow stronger, hoping to reach the level of breaking through the void itself, though even he didn't know if it was possible.
On the other hand, advancing technology, striving to reach the stars one day.
Of course, there was a final, faint hope,
That the system's random item shop might someday refresh a cosmic battleship or something similar.
But that was a dream too far away.
And even if it did appear, Luffy wasn't sure he could afford it.
Still, one thing was certain, this world had already become completely different from before.
========
The flag of the Starry Sky Pirates fluttered proudly against the blue sky.
Luffy didn't know what lay ahead, or how close his dream really was.
But dreams…
They're called beautiful because they seem impossible to reach.
Ding!
[Congratulations, host. You have met the conditions to unlock the "Navigation Ship" system. Please explore it yourself.]
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