Robin didn't notice the expression on Leo's face behind her.
She had tried to trick him deliberately, expecting some kind of reaction. Yet, Leo didn't seem to mind at all. Instead, a small, thoughtful smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
He wasn't angry—far from it. He was happy.
To Leo, Robin's little act of mischief wasn't a betrayal. Rather, it was a subtle signal—proof that she had finally begun opening her heart to everyone on the ship.
For someone like Robin, whose life had been spent in hiding and distrust, even the smallest sign of playfulness was a breakthrough.
Living every day on the edge of life and death is far too dull, Leo thought. Isn't it nice to enjoy something lighthearted for once?
---
The Going Merry continued sailing forward, passing several unique islands along the Grand Line.
At one such stop, Luffy unexpectedly struck up a conversation with a strange postman flying through the sky. The man had a bag full of random goods, many of which immediately caught the interest of the Straw Hat crew.
However, upon realizing who they were—the notorious pirates led by Luffy—the postman panicked. Dropping most of his cargo in fright, he fled without even taking payment.
Nami was elated. "It's like a clearance sale!" she beamed. Not only did she get useful items for free, but she also acquired the high-quality paper she had been seeking for her nautical charts.
On another island, the crew discovered a town famous for its fireworks.
Usopp was ecstatic and soon came across a fireworks expert who shared a unique gunpowder formula. With Leo's help—who forged a special slingshot and crafted new types of ammunition—the result was a display of explosive power unlike anything Usopp had seen before.
However, Leo warned him, "Even the most powerful weapon is useless if you let fear control you."
The words struck Usopp, though whether he truly understood them yet remained to be seen.
Later, in the midst of a dense fog, Sanji encountered a small child wandering alone. The boy shared the same dream Sanji once had—to find the All Blue.
Touched by the boy's hope and encouraged by his crewmates, Sanji cooked a fragrant curry using local ingredients and gifted it to the child. It was more than a meal—it was a message: Dreams are worth chasing, no matter how impossible they seem.
Eventually, the fog thickened again, and the crew stumbled upon an island of goats, where they met a peculiar old man.
Despite being terminally ill, the man was full of life. He spent his final days building pirate ships with his goat companions, chasing a dream he had carried since youth: to become a pirate and sail the seas.
Moved by his determination, the crew helped him chase off the Marines who had come to arrest him. Chopper solemnly stated that the old man wouldn't survive more than three days, but those days were lived to the fullest—on the open sea.
Next, the crew sailed into a mysterious area blanketed by the legendary seven-colored fog, where time and space twisted like a dream.
Within the fog floated wrecked ships and glittering treasure.
Leo, ever composed, sifted through the debris, selecting only rare and valuable items. He wasn't interested in bulk treasure or meaningless gold—he sought knowledge and utility.
Nami, on the other hand, gave in to her greed and collected as much treasure as she could carry, ignoring Leo's warning about the unstable fog.
---
The following day, the crew was gathered on the deck of the Going Merry, still discussing the strange "Ship Graveyard" from the fog.
"Rain?" Zoro muttered, glancing upward mid-squat.
Instead of water, what fell from the sky were wood chips, rusted nails, broken planks, and canvas—raining down like hail.
"No… something's falling!" Usopp exclaimed in shock.
Everyone looked up.
High above, a colossal shipwreck plunged toward them from the clouds. Its sails were torn, its mast half-shattered, the hull rotten from time and time again being weathered. It looked like it had sailed centuries ago.
"What is that thing?!"
"A boat!?"
"The ship is falling from the sky!!"
The crew's astonished cries filled the air.
Before anyone could react, the impact from the falling wreckage sent waves crashing violently against the Merry. The ship rocked dangerously, nearly capsizing. Everyone grabbed the railings or each other for support.
Leo swiftly raised one hand into the air while wrapping the other around Chopper to keep him steady.
A translucent, dome-like shield of light formed above the Merry, shimmering faintly as it deflected the falling debris and splinters. Piece by piece, the remnants bounced harmlessly off the magical barrier.
Eventually, the ocean calmed.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"Why would a ship fall from the sky?" Nami said, still wide-eyed.
"There shouldn't be anything in the sky," Sanji added, puffing his cigarette.
"Is it… possible?" Robin mused.
"Nothing makes sense anymore," Zoro muttered.
Luffy pressed down on his straw hat and looked up toward the sky with gleaming eyes. "Maybe there is something up there."
"The Grand Line keeps throwing weirder things at us," Usopp muttered, shivering.
Robin stepped closer, her voice serious. "The Log Pose has changed. It's pointing straight up and refuses to reset."
"What does that mean?" Chopper asked.
"It means there's an island above us," she explained. "Only one thing could pull the magnetic field upward like this… Sky Island."
"Sky Island?!"
Luffy practically shouted with joy.
"Is it really an island floating in the sky?"
"To be precise," Leo said, stepping in next to Robin, "It's more like a sea suspended in the air. The area 7,000 meters above sea level is called the White Sea. Above that, at 10,000 meters, is the White-White Sea. Sky Island is located somewhere up there."
"Wait, wait, wait," Usopp said quickly. "You're saying… there's a whole sea up in the sky?!"
"Didn't you notice?" Leo smirked. "Some of the ingredients I gave Sanji came from Sky Island."
Sanji's eyes lit up with new appreciation. "So those spices came from up there…"
"In other words," Robin asked, narrowing her eyes, "you've been to Sky Island?"
Leo nodded calmly.
At once, Luffy and Usopp were at his side, stars in their eyes.
"Then we're going up! Turn the rudder up!" Luffy shouted.
Sanji rolled his eyes, cigarette bobbing. "You can't just 'turn the rudder up,' idiot. That's not how ships work."
Robin's eyes twinkled with curiosity. "But if Leo's been there… he must know a way."
Everyone turned to Leo.
He sighed, raising both hands in surrender. "I could take us there instantly, but…"
Before he could finish, Luffy cut in.
"No! We're going the proper way! What's the point of a ship if we just teleport everywhere?"
Leo gave a helpless shrug. This wasn't the first time Luffy had refused his teleportation magic.
He said something similar back in East Blue… Leo recalled. To him, a pirate's journey is just as important as the destination.
"But if we want to go to Sky Island…" Nami said thoughtfully, "we should check the wreckage. There might be clues."
"I'm on it!" Luffy shouted, already diving overboard.
Usopp followed—only for both to immediately start sinking.
The shipwreck, barely afloat, gave way beneath them. Usopp managed to fish Luffy out just in time.
Meanwhile, Robin examined a corpse from the wreckage and confirmed the ship was incredibly old—possibly hundreds of years.
"We'll have to salvage more directly," Nami said. "Usopp, build us some diving suits."
Usopp beamed. "Already on it! Behold—my Deep Sea Dive Barrels!"
Everyone stared at the strange, barrel-shaped contraptions.
Leo's eye twitched. "You're not seriously going into the sea with those…"
"They're pressure-proof… I think," Usopp mumbled.
Leo shook his head. "Alright, alright. I won't teleport us, but at least let me help."
With a flick of his wrist, Leo summoned a small wind-propelled shell and a scroll-like map from thin air.
"These are what I retrieved from the wreckage. The shell is a damaged Wind Knot Shell. The map might be the route to Sky Island."
Everyone crowded around, curious.
Nami took the map carefully. "What is this?"
Leo nodded. "It's a rough map detailing a phenomenon known as the Knock-Up Stream… a massive geyser capable of launching a ship to Sky Island."
"Sounds dangerous," Sanji muttered.
"But exciting!" Luffy shouted.
Robin studied the Wind Shell. "With this and the map, we have what we need."
Leo smiled faintly. "As long as we survive the launch."
Luffy grinned, holding out his fist. "Let's go to the sky!"
Ãdvåñçé çhàptêr àvàilàble óñ pàtreøn (Gk31)