Not long after the Straw Hat crew sailed away from Drum Island, someone rushed to tell Dalton some news. It turned out that about a week earlier, a man who looked like a traveler had suddenly appeared in Robel City. It was a rare day without snow, so he left a deep impression.
The man wore a black hat with a string of red beads around it and two small stickers in the center—one depicting a sad face, the other a happy one.
No one knew where he had landed on the island. He said he was currently pursuing the pirate Blackbeard who had attacked this country. Upon learning the Blackbeard Pirates had long since left, he asked the villagers if they had seen Luffy.
When he found out Luffy hadn't come to the island, he gave the villagers Luffy's wanted poster and asked them to pass on a message if they saw him: he would wait for Luffy in Alabasta for ten days.
Then the man, wearing a large black coat over his clothes, turned with a flourish, about to leave gracefully, when a nearby restaurant owner rushed out, pointed at him, and shouted to those around: "Quick, catch that man! He skipped out on his bill!"
The man, who had initially seemed quite calm and polite, immediately took off running.
But since Luffy and the others had already left, they missed this message.
Even so, Dalton wasn't worried about it causing a problem. When he attended the World Government conference with King Wapol years ago, he had met the little princess of the Alabasta Kingdom. After so many years, that little princess had grown up, but he recognized her at a glance—that princess was Vivi.
Since Vivi was with Luffy and the others, Dalton could guess their next destination was Alabasta. So even if Luffy didn't know about the message left for him, he would still go to Alabasta.
"Wanted: 30,000,000 Berries."
Kureha took Luffy's wanted poster from Dalton. Upon seeing the name on the poster, she fell into deep thought.
"What's wrong, Dr. Kureha?"
Seeing Kureha lost in thought, Dalton couldn't help but ask.
"Have you heard the name... Gol D. Roger?"
Kureha suddenly asked Dalton this question.
" 'D'? You mean Gold Roger? We're in the Great Pirate Era. It's impossible for anyone over seventeen not to have heard that name."
"Gold Roger?"
Kureha quietly repeated the name, then slowly said, "So that's what people call him now."
"Among that crew... the man who took the little girl down the mountain earlier must also be a wanted man. His bounty might not be lower than that straw-hat-wearing boy's. They really are an incredible bunch of scoundrels."
Kureha's words puzzled Dalton. "How can you be so sure about that?"
"My reindeer seems to have followed a truly troublesome figure."
Kureha didn't answer Dalton's question, muttering to herself in a low voice, "So the Will of D. still lives... and even the long-lost 'Judgment Jar' has reappeared, together with a 'D.'... What a fateful, ill-omened meeting."
Time passed quickly. After a night's voyage, the dawn of the next day quietly arrived.
Early in the morning, Tom was studying a few items he had taken from Wapol's armory the previous night.
Miss Goldenweek was not far from Tom, painting the morning sun.
Last night, Miss Goldenweek had actively brewed green tea for Luffy and the others. One had to admit, for a little girl her age, her tea ceremony skills were remarkable. The tea was exceptionally refreshing and aromatic.
Unfortunately, Luffy and the others were mostly roughnecks. Apart from Sanji, who knew a bit about appreciating tea, the rest didn't understand the finer points. After drinking a fair amount of alcohol, a sip of fragrant tea felt quite refreshing.
Since the tea was so good, those guys weren't about to be polite. They drank cup after cup, gulping it down like cattle, each trying to out-drink the others—not a trace of the refined posture of a tea connoisseur. Their crude way of "appreciating" the tea nearly made the little girl cry.
Miss Goldenweek was usually quiet and reserved, a very gentle little girl, which made it easy for people on the ship to overlook her presence.
Tom had asked Miss Goldenweek this morning why, if she wanted to paint the sunrise, she didn't go to the bow, where she could see the rising sun perfectly.
Miss Goldenweek looked up at Tom, blinked her dark eyes, and said nothing. She stretched out her little white hand and pointed toward the bow, as if to say it was already too crowded to paint there.
Seeing Luffy and Chopper at the bow, Tom finally understood why Miss Goldenweek hadn't gone there to paint.
After Usopp got up, he curiously walked over to Miss Goldenweek to see what she was painting.
"You paint really well."
Usopp glanced at Miss Goldenweek's painting. The rising sun in the picture seemed to slowly radiate dazzling rays of light. The painting was static, yet it gave him a feeling of vitality and energy.
"Really?"
Miss Goldenweek, receiving praise, seemed very happy. A joyful smile spread across her cute little face.
"Really, your painting is very beautiful."
After saying this, Usopp continued to praise her. "It's perfect. I've never seen such a good painting before."
"Your painting is practically the best in the world. Anyone who sees it would like it!"
"What you paint is the most wonderful thing. No country in this world could match you!"
Usopp praised Miss Goldenweek's painting over and over, complimenting her non-stop, until Tom, who was busy nearby, couldn't take it anymore. He looked up at Usopp, who was still showering the delighted Miss Goldenweek with endless praise, and said, "Even if her painting is good, you don't have to keep saying it, do you?"
"No, it's not that... I don't know why, I just really want to say her painting is good..."
Before Usopp could finish, he turned back to Miss Goldenweek and said, "You're a genius painter. Only you could paint something this good."
"What did you do to him?"
Tom could also see Usopp wasn't acting normally and asked the happily smiling Miss Goldenweek.
"I like it when people say my paintings are good."
Miss Goldenweek, her hair tied in two pigtails, said to Tom with a smile, two shallow dimples appearing on her little face, making her look exceptionally cute.
"So you used a suggestion on him?"
Tom's mouth twitched as he sympathetically glanced at Usopp, who was still intently praising Miss Goldenweek's painting.
"Mhm. 'Praise-White.' He'll keep wanting to compliment me. I'm also very happy to hear others praise me like that."
Miss Goldenweek answered Tom very honestly. In her pleasant mood, the cute dimples on her face even took on a faint blush.
"Who said you could mess around like that?!"
Tom's face darkened. If this little girl went around casually giving suggestions to people on the ship, that would be terrible. He had to educate her again.
Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap! Whap!
After removing the white paint pattern from Usopp, a stern-faced Tom immediately held down the little girl beside him and gave her bottom a few smacks. "I'll teach you to play mischievous tricks!"
"Waaah! Waaaaaaaaaah!"
Miss Goldenweek immediately burst into loud, miserable tears. Her crying quickly spread throughout the entire ship.
"Why are you bullying a child again?!"
Nami came to the stern and saw Tom vigorously spanking the little girl. Her pretty face darkened as she asked Tom.
"If a child makes a mistake, we can't just keep indulging her, can we?"
Seeing the little girl crying, her eyes brimming with tears, looking utterly pitiful, Tom sighed and put the still-sobbing Miss Goldenweek down.
"Yeah, she likes playing pranks too much."
Usopp, having suffered deeply, righteously stepped forward to back Tom up.
"Come on, let's go over there to rest. Ignore them."
Nami glared at Tom, then put on a kind and amiable smile, crouched down, and patted the little girl who hadn't stopped crying yet. Then she took her hand and led her away.
"Did she get a suggestion put on her too, maybe?"
"Probably."
Tom and Usopp watched as Nami took Miss Goldenweek to the other side. As soon as they finished speaking, Miss Goldenweek, tears still hanging in her eyes, came running back, took the painting she had just been working on, and snorted lightly at the two men. "Bad guys!"
"Why am I being called a bad guy too?"
Usopp felt he was the victim. The one who disciplined the child was clearly Tom. Why was he being scolded too?
"Because you're a pirate, aren't pirates bad guys?"
"Oh, right."
After chatting for a few more moments, Tom and Usopp went about their own business.
Initially, Sanji had heard a girl's crying and came out to look, but the crying stopped quickly, so he went back to making breakfast.
As for Zoro, he was doing special training and completely ignored the earlier crying, concentrating fully on his exercises.
Vivi and Karoo were still inside the cabin and hadn't come out.
"So amazing!"
Meanwhile, this was Chopper's first time at sea. He had been so excited for several days that he didn't sleep all night. Now he sat at the bow with Luffy, gazing at the boundless, deep blue sea.
"The ocean is so huge!" he exclaimed in wonder.
"Of course, the sea is huge."
Luffy sat on the Merry's cute sheep figurehead, looking at the endless sea ahead, and said to Chopper beside him.
"Wow! Pirates really are amazing!"
Chopper's eyes shone with excitement. Having just set sail, everything before him felt incredibly novel.
"Nami, were you the one crying just now?"
Luffy saw Nami walking over and asked.
"How did you come to that conclusion?"
As Nami said this to Luffy, Miss Goldenweek returned, holding her painting.
"If you're feeling sad, just look at this great sea, and all your worries will disappear. Right, Chopper?"
Luffy said to Chopper beside him. His words happened to be overheard by Miss Goldenweek.
"That's right, Nami! Look!"
Chopper waved to Nami.
Just as Nami was about to say something to Luffy and the others, a massive bird flew overhead, casting a shadow over the ship.
"What's that?"
Chopper looked up at the large bird above, speaking in surprise.
"A seagull!"
Luffy looked at the large bird flying past in the sky and stated.
"Tom! A seagull!"
Luffy habitually called out to Tom.
"There's no seagull that big."
Nami thought the bird was too large to be a seagull.
"Hey, Tom! Catch that seagull! Let's eat it!"
"I'm busy right now. Catch it yourself."
Tom had fought pteranodons on Little Garden that were much larger than this bird. He currently had little interest in the so-called seagull. He'd rather study how to use the new items he found.
"Alright! Leave it to me!"
Luffy waved at the large bird flying above. "Hello there, seagull!"
Then the bird, hearing Luffy's shout, made a steep dive, let out a strange cry, quickly turned, and flew directly toward Luffy and the others.
As this "seagull" flew low toward them, it stirred up waves on the sea's surface, showing just how fast it was flying.
"See? A seagull."
Luffy said happily to Nami, as if not noticing the aggressively approaching bird.
"How can you say that at a time like this?!"
Nami completely lost it the moment she saw the giant "seagull" flying toward them.
"So incredible! This is a real adventure!"
Chopper's reaction was completely different from Nami's.
Seeing the bird flying straight at them, about to crash into the ship, Nami was so scared she crouched down and covered her head. Chopper was also startled and covered his eyes. When the two opened their eyes again, they found Luffy, who had been sitting on the sheep figurehead, was gone.
Then Nami and Chopper discovered that Luffy had been snatched up by the giant "seagull." Their jaws dropped in shock, and they shouted worriedly, "Hey! Don't get eaten!"
At that moment, the ship shook violently. On the other side of the ship, an extremely strange-looking giant creature burst from the sea's surface. Its entire body was covered in sharp spines, its color a golden yellow. It had ten legs, with the two front legs being longer and ending in large pincers. At first glance, it looked like a cross between a crab and a spider.
Miss Goldenweek had also wanted to get a good look at the sea. But just as she climbed onto the ship's railing, this monster leaped from the water, scaring her so badly she fell from the railing. Seeing the monster reach its pincer toward her, her face immediately turned pale. "Waaaah! No!!!"
"A monster!!"
Chopper and Nami, seeing such a huge creature that looked like both a spider and a crab appear not far from the ship—its body about half the size of the Going Merry—were instantly shocked speechless.
"Where's the monster?"
The moment Tom heard Nami's words, he excitedly ran over.
"A monster appeared! Why are you so happy? You're always like this!"
Nami, seeing Tom get excited at the mention of a monster, said exasperatedly.
"What's the big deal? You're much better-looking than them."
Tom's words made Nami's lovely eyebrows twitch uncontrollably. For a moment, she didn't want to say anything.
"A spider crab... They usually live in the deep sea. Why did it surface?"
Tom, upon seeing the ten-legged creature with huge pincers, rescued the terrified Miss Goldenweek, who was sitting dumbfounded on the deck, and pulled out the fishing rod from his arm-sleeve device.
"This is bad!"
Seeing the situation turning dire, Chopper immediately ran to find Zoro and the others, shouting loudly, "Luffy's been eaten! Tom's in danger too! Everyone, come help them!"
"Zoro! Now's not the time for training!"
"Sanji! Come out quick! Luffy and Tom are in trouble!"
"Usopp! Stop making your stink bombs and go help them!"
Chopper ran back and forth on the deck, scared out of his wits.
"Chopper, did they ask for help?"
Zoro, continuing his training, asked the panicking Chopper.
"No."
Chopper stopped running around and replied to Zoro.
"Then it's fine. Don't worry about them."
Zoro's words made Chopper pause. Then he looked up at the sky and saw that Luffy, held in the seagull's beak, had stretched his arms to pry the bird's mouth open and was now wrestling the giant seagull. Tom had also subdued the seemingly massive spider crab and was preparing to haul it aboard.
"They're so strong..."
Chopper had just said this when Luffy and Tom brought the giant seagull and spider crab onto the deck, causing the ship to rock violently again. He lost his footing and fell, dragging Zoro down with him.
"Everyone, come get breakfast..."
Sanji had just come out of the kitchen. Before he could finish his call, the ship's rocking made him stumble forward, unfortunately piling on top of Zoro and the others.
Usopp, who was developing stink bombs, was about to put away the finished ones when the violently rocking ship sent him flying, along with several stink bombs, landing in a heap with Zoro and the others.
As Tom steadied Nami, who nearly fell, he and Luffy, now back on deck, shouted together, "Hey, Sanji! We brought back meat!"
"Strange... Are they sleeping?"
Seeing Zoro and the others all lying in a pile without responding, Luffy said, puzzled.
"There seems to be a weird smell... What's going on?"
Tom faintly caught a whiff of a disgusting stink-bomb odor in the air and said to Zoro and the others, "You all should go take a bath."
"This is all your fault!"
Seeing Luffy and Tom standing there making such heartless comments, Zoro and the others couldn't take it anymore and immediately started brawling with them.
And so, as the sun fully rose, a great free-for-all commenced on the Going Merry.
After breakfast, Tom asked Miss Goldenweek why she had gone off alone earlier to climb the railing, nearly getting eaten by the spider crab.
"I wanted to see the sea."
Miss Goldenweek answered truthfully. After being scolded by Tom earlier, she was feeling somewhat down. Hearing Luffy say that looking at the sea would make worries disappear, she had decided to do just that.
"I see."
Without a second thought, Tom picked up the little girl beside him, placed her on his shoulders, and walked to the bow. Looking at the vast, boundless sea ahead, he said, "So you wanted to see the sea? Can you see clearly now?"
"Mhm. You're not a bad guy."
Miss Goldenweek, sitting on Tom's shoulders, her small, delicate hands holding onto his hair, said happily.
"What are you two doing?"
Nami came to the bow and, seeing the large and small figures quietly looking ahead, asked.
"Looking at the sea."
Tom turned his head and smiled at Nami.
Nami stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Tom. A slightly damp, refreshing sea breeze gently blew over them. The deep blue sea surface was as soft as silk, rippling slightly.
From the bow, the sea appeared vast and misty, stretching endlessly. Occasionally, small waves would gently slap against the ship's hull, making cheerful splashing sounds.
It was undoubtedly a very comfortable morning.
The morning sun shone warmly on them. Nami gently tucked a strand of orange hair behind her ear and said to Tom, who was still letting the little girl watch the sea from his shoulders:
"We'll be reaching Alabasta soon. Vivi seems to have something she needs to tell us."
"Then let's go."
Hearing Nami's words, Tom put down the little girl riding on his shoulders and went with Nami to find Vivi...
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T/N :
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