The world felt wrong when you were above it.
That was the first thought Sanji had as the thundercloud carried them forward, gliding effortlessly above the endless blue sea. Wind tore past his face, whipping his hair back, the scent of salt and ozone mixing in the air. Below them, waves rolled lazily, ignorant of the absurdity happening above.
Sanji sat rigid in his seat, cigarette forgotten between his fingers.
Yosaku was not doing as well.
"WHY ARE WE THIS HIGH!?" he screamed, clutching the cloud-seat as if it were the last solid thing in existence. "THIS ISN'T NORMAL! THIS ISN'T NATURAL! THIS ISN'T—"
"It's fast," Luffy said calmly, swirling the liquid in his glass. "And quiet."
Sanji stared at him.
Luffy sat comfortably on a throne formed entirely of condensed storm cloud, legs crossed, coat fluttering slightly in the wind. A glass of whiskey rested in his hand as if this were the most ordinary way to travel in the world.
Sanji swallowed.
"…You pirates from the Grand Line are all insane, aren't you?"
Luffy smirked faintly.
"I ate a Devil Fruit," he said casually.
Sanji flinched. "I figured."
"The Goro Goro no Mi," Luffy continued. "Lightning. Electricity. Speed."
He lifted his right hand.
For a moment, his fingers dissolved into arcs of blue-white energy, lightning crawling across his skin before snapping back into flesh.
Sanji's jaw slackened.
"…And the clouds?"
"That part surprised me too," Luffy admitted. "Turns out lightning listens better when you talk to the sky."
Yosaku whimpered.
Sanji leaned forward, staring at the clouds beneath them. They weren't soft like cotton, nor wispy like mist. They were solid — real. They supported weight. They hummed faintly, alive with restrained power.
"…So," Sanji muttered, "this is what monsters ride."
Luffy laughed softly.
They flew in silence for a while.
The ocean stretched endlessly beneath them, broken only by distant islands and wandering seabirds that veered away instinctively when the thundercloud passed overhead.
Eventually, Yosaku calmed enough to speak.
"She went to Arlong Park."
The name landed heavy.
Luffy's smile faded.
"Arlong," he repeated. "Saw-Tooth."
Yosaku nodded. "Twenty million bounty. Fishman supremacist. Controls entire islands through fear."
Sanji frowned. "Fishman…?"
"They're strong," Yosaku said quietly. "Stronger than humans. Faster underwater. Harder to kill."
Luffy exhaled slowly.
"Jimbei didn't leave him here to rule," he said flatly.
Both of them turned toward him.
"Jimbei?" Sanji repeated. "One of the Seven Warlords?"
"I met him," Luffy said. "A long time ago. Fishman Island."
Yosaku's eyes widened. "You've been there!?"
"Nice place," Luffy replied. "Good food. Bad history."
He leaned back into his throne.
"Arlong left because he hated humans more than he respected Jimbei. East Blue was weak. Easy."
Sanji clenched his teeth.
"And Nami walked straight into that."
"She didn't walk," Luffy corrected. "She ran."
The cloud suddenly accelerated.
Yosaku screamed again.
They descended half an hour later.
The thundercloud slowed, sinking until it hovered barely ten feet above the water. Ahead, an island rose from the sea — green, quiet, deceptively peaceful.
"And that?" Luffy asked.
Yosaku nodded grimly. "Cocoyasi Island."
Luffy turned the cloud away from the massive silhouette of Arlong Park looming on one side of the island.
"We regroup first," he said. "Then we break things."
They landed on a quiet beach, hidden from view.
The cloud dissolved beneath their feet like evaporating breath.
Sanji exhaled slowly.
"…I don't think I'll ever get used to that."
Luffy glanced upward.
Thunderclouds still churned far above, restless, waiting.
"Good," he said. "Neither will they."
Across the island, the storm announced itself.
Dark clouds rolled in unnaturally fast, thunder cracking without rain. Lightning danced along the horizon, illuminating Arlong Park in stark, violent flashes.
Fishmen looked up.
Villagers froze.
Zoro smiled.
Nami paled.
Because they all knew what that sky meant.
The storm wasn't weather.
It was Luffy.
And he was still angry.