Chapter 299: The Princess Who Doesn't Cry!
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The Baptism and Mystery of the New World
The port of Fish-Man Island was packed with people, bustling with noise and activity.
The Straw Hat crew had already assembled, waiting by the thousand sunny for their final departure.
From a distance, Tatsuya and Shirahoshi could be seen walking side by side from the direction of Ryugu Palace.
Usopp immediately jumped onto a wooden crate, waving his arms vigorously and shouting:
"Hey—! Tatsuya! Over here, over here!"
Chopper was also jumping excitedly, holding his two small hooves high and calling Tatsuya's name in a babyish voice.
Zoro leaned against the ship's railing with his arms crossed, one hand resting on the hilt of a sword at his waist.
He glanced at the late-arriving Tatsuya and gave a displeased cold snort: "You're late."
Meanwhile, Sanji didn't notice the lingering, ambiguous atmosphere between the two at all.
The blonde chef's eyes instantly turned into giant pink hearts, and his body squirmed wildly like cooked noodles as he held his heart in his hands, exclaiming with exaggeration:
"Ohhh! Princess Shirahoshi is so beautiful and dazzling today~~"
"She's like the most brilliant pearl in the deep sea!"
Luffy stood with hands on his hips, his clear black eyes scanning back and forth between Tatsuya and Shirahoshi, before suddenly blurting out something nonsensical:
"Ah, you have great stamina, Tatsuya."
However, in the next second, Luffy rubbed his chin, looking at Tatsuya's normal human height and then looking up high at Shirahoshi, who was as massive as a small mountain.
Countless large question marks instantly popped up over his head, as he was clearly stuck in some deep confusion regarding physical logic, unable to figure it out.
Nami walked forward angrily in her high heels, her beautiful eyes glaring at Tatsuya as she pouted and complained:
"Where did you go! We've been looking for you all morning!"
Looking at the Navigator who was like a bristling kitten, Tatsuya chuckled and reached out a large palm, gently patting her short orange hair:
"I went to the Sea Forest with Princess Shirahoshi and got delayed for a bit."
"Alright, I'm back now, aren't I?"
After soothing Nami, Tatsuya tilted his head slightly and winked at Robin, saying softly:
"The letter."
Hearing this, Robin bloomed an elegant smile toward him.
She made no effort to hide from the gaze of everyone around, naturally walking to his side and hooking her arm through his, her every movement showing rapport and intimacy.
After a simple exchange of pleasantries, King Neptune and the Left Minister stepped forward with solemn expressions.
The Left Minister took out a strangely shaped 'New World Log Pose' with three needles from his robes and carefully placed it on Nami's fair wrist.
With a grave face, the Left Minister explained earnestly to the young Navigator:
"The magnetic fields of the New World are exceptionally chaotic and dangerous; the magnetic lines between islands can change at any time, and common sense cannot be used to judge them."
"These three needles point to three different islands."
"The more violently a needle shakes, the more turbulent that island's magnetic field is, and the more dangerous the environment and beasts on that island will be."
He looked at the Straw Hat crew and gave repeated warnings:
"Benefactors, for the safety of everyone on the ship, you must choose the route where the needle is most stable after you set sail!"
However, as soon as the Left Minister's worried words fell, Luffy's eyes were already shining as he leaned in toward Nami's wrist.
Without hesitation, he reached out and pointed directly at the compass needle shaking most violently, announcing with a loud laugh:
"Alright! It's decided! We're going to this most dangerous island!"
"Are you even listening to people?!"
Veins popped on Nami's forehead in anger, and she gave Luffy a sharp smack on the head.
But looking at her Captain's face full of anticipation and excitement, she eventually sighed helplessly, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as she accepted the Captain's choice.
The moment of departure finally arrived.
This time, Shirahoshi did not cry like she had for the past ten years.
She stood firmly at the edge of the port, her exquisite face wearing a gentle and beautiful smile, like a famous flower blooming after a storm.
King Neptune stood beside his daughter, stunned as he looked at Shirahoshi's composed demeanor.
Overnight, his daughter seemed to have been completely transformed.
The little princess who used to hide behind him shivering was now smiling as she saw off the benefactors of Fish-Man Island.
He naturally didn't know everything that had happened in the Hard-Shell Tower, assuming only that his daughter had finally grown up.
His eyes were slightly red, feeling both relieved and somewhat bewildered.
Shirahoshi's gaze pierced through the crowd and the churning seawater, landing precisely on the black figure standing by the ship's railing.
Tatsuya was looking at her.
Shirahoshi reached out her giant finger and gently tapped her chest over her heart.
Hidden there was a pink gemstone, and beneath the gemstone was the lingering warmth of last night's intimacy.
Her lips moved silently, mouthing three words.
Despite the barrier of the seawater, those three words were clearly transmitted to Tatsuya's eyes.
"I'll wait for you."
A smile curled at the corners of Tatsuya's mouth.
He nodded slightly, a movement so light it was almost invisible, yet it made the light in Shirahoshi's eyes brighten even more.
"SUPER—Set sail!"
With Franky's shout and trademark pose, the thousand sunny untied its thick mooring ropes.
The sails rose, and the ship followed the strong current, plunging headlong into the violent upward current, sprinting toward the surface at high speed.
Just as the thousand sunny left the port and began to disappear from sight,
In the dark shadows of the deep sea, several super-sized Sea Kings, their bodies comparable to giant islands, silently appeared.
Their massive bodies were like moving mountain ranges, slowly rising from the dark trenches of the deep sea.
These beasts, large enough to swallow an entire ship in one bite, now acted like loyal guards, using their mountain-like bodies to block the dangerous deep-sea undercurrents for the small thousand sunny.
The eye of one Sea King turned, looking through the coating at Tatsuya on the ship.
Or rather, it looked at the location of the pink conch in his arms.
Then it swam silently beneath the ship, blocking all the undercurrents that could have torn the thousand sunny apart.
Only when the thousand sunny had completely entered the safe ascent channel did these behemoths slowly retreat back into the darkness of the deep sea and vanish.
"SPLASH—!!"
Accompanied by a deafening, earth-shaking roar, the tough bubble film surrounding the thousand sunny burst as it broke through the sea surface.
The thousand sunny was like a beast breaking free from the shackles of the deep sea, bringing with it a sky full of white spray as it leaped into the air.
However, what greeted them was not the sunny blue sky and calm sea they had imagined.
The sky was heavily covered by oppressive, pitch-black thunderclouds, as if the firmament were about to collapse.
Deafening thunder rolled through the clouds like dancing purple dragons.
On the surface of the sea, an exceptionally thick, eerie fog lingered, so dense one couldn't see their hand in front of their face.
The wind howled, whipping up terrifying waves as tall as mountains that crashed madly against the hull, causing the entire ship to pitch violently in the storm.
Encountering such a desperate situation immediately upon surfacing, the Straw Hat crew grabbed the railings, letting out cries of disbelief.
Facing this completely irrational, apocalyptic horror of a seascape, Luffy showed no fear whatsoever.
He strode onto the bow, standing firmly on the sunny-flower lion head, facing the sky full of thunderstorms and thick fog.
He opened his arms and let out his most excited laugh:
"Hahahaha! New World! Here we come!!!"
Just as the Straw Hat crew was scrambling to fight the extreme weather and stabilize the ship,
The Den Den Mushi in the cabin, specifically for monitoring emergency frequencies, suddenly let out a sharp and piercing "Bulu Bulu" sound.
Luffy immediately jumped down from the bow and ran over to pick up the call.
From the other end came a man's shrill, distorted scream of extreme terror:
"Help... Save us! Boss!"
"Where on earth is this... the fog is too thick, I can't see anything!"
"Ah! What terrifying lightning! Wait... what is that? Someone's been cut!"
"It's a samurai! A samurai is slaughtering us in the fog!!"
Accompanied by a shrill scream and the crisp sound of a blade unsheathing and tearing through flesh, the call was abruptly cut off, leaving only a hair-raising dial tone echoing in the cabin.
Hearing the words "samurai" and "island filled with lightning and fog," Luffy's adventure radar instantly went off the charts, and his excitement shot straight to his head.
He spun around, rushed out of the cabin, and pointed at the dangerous needle ahead that was still shaking wildly, shouting at the top of his lungs:
"It's decided! Our next stop—the Island of Lightning and Mist!"
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