As Kozuki Oden and his family returned aboard, most of the crew, aside from Fang Yi, stood frozen, baffled, and even wary. Just moments ago, they were foes, and now suddenly, companions. It was unimaginable.
Not only Oden came aboard—but also his wife Toki, and their two children, Tsunonosuke and Hiyori—four people in total!
"Captain—so we're bringing all of them along from here on?" Fang Yi turned to Roger.
"That's right, Yi‑ge! Our guesses were correct—Oden really can read the ancient script!" Roger beamed. With Oden's help, they were now one step closer to his dream.
"But… we still haven't found the other three Route Poneglyphs," Rayleigh frowned.
Searching the vast seas for three more markers was a tremendous undertaking. They'd only managed to get one before—facedown from Big Mom—by sheer luck.
"We'll… retrace the Grand Line from the beginning!" Roger laughed.
"Retrace?" Everyone froze—Roger's prognosis said he might have only two years or less left.
They had to locate all three remaining Poneglyphs, decode them, and reach the final island before his time was up.
"Exactly. We searched the New World endlessly and found nothing. Let's stay grounded for now and start over. I believe we can find the clues that way. And if we still come up empty…it'll just prove… I'm not that great after all," Roger grinned confidently.
Inside Fang Yi, his heart twisted. He knew where the markers were—but he couldn't reveal the source of that knowledge. It would seem impossible.
"I support Captain Roger's plan!" Vice Admiral Rayleigh was the first to speak.
"As the navigator, I must take this ship wherever the captain wishes," Jaba added with a smile.
With such backing, their course was set. After leaving behind a portion of treasure and supplies as token gifts, the crew prepared to depart.
Whitebeard, despite his irritation at losing Oden's family from his crew, agreed, sending food with Marco's team. Only the treasure stayed with them.
Once they set sail again, two stowaways were discovered: Oden's samurai retainers, Dog Storm (Inuarashi) and Cat Viper (Nekomamushi).
Roger said nothing—there were already four extra passengers aboard. A fifth and sixth meant little. Even a proposal to have Wangzai communicate with Dog Storm was abandoned when Wangzai bit the former cat shapeshifter and fled.
The one who welcomed them most on Roger's deck? Fang Yi.
Normally, he earned six lottery tickets per day—now with Oden, Toki, and the two retainers aboard, that rose to nine. He was one visit away from hitting ten daily draws. He even specifically held onto the yellow-tinted ticket earned from Toki, believing it might bring luck.
Not long after leaving, they reached Reverse Mountain, the entrance to the Grand Line.
"So this is the start of the Grand Line? What a magnificent mountain!" Oden marveled.
"We'll rest here a day. Crocus—would you like to visit Laboon?" Roger suggested calmly, his demeanor unchanged by his frail prognosis.
"I'd rather we go now," Crocus replied firmly. "Choose a path, let's begin!"
He knew full well that Roger had only about a year left—time was of the essence.
"Then let's go this way!" Roger pointed on the map to a route labeled the first island: Whisky Peak.
"You've been there? Then that's the route—fate has guided us!" Roger laughed.
No opposition followed. The Oro Jackson set sail toward Whisky Peak.
En route, they passed Alabasta and arrived at Jaya, the legendary golden island—now a lawless territory.
There, they spotted the navigational pointer for the first time directing upward, into the sky.
"Captain, don't joke—how can an island be in the sky?" Buggy shook his head.
"If we want to go up… the updraft is our only choice," Fang Yi frowned.
He knew what the future Straw Hats did with such currents; from a navigator's perspective, it made sense—but still made him nervous. One misstep and they'd all fall to their deaths.
"If it's real… going up the current could work—but risky," Jaba added, stroking his beard.
Buggy felt his stomach sink. Flying into the sky? Who goes there?
"Fang‑tarō—can we fly up using that stream?" Oden looked at Fang Yi with horror.
"I've told you a dozen times—don't call me Fang‑tarō!" Fang Yi's face went dark.
That nickname reminded him of a pizza vendor on Earth who got killed by a demon wife. He was done being taunted.
"Okay… Fang‑tarō," Oden nodded solemnly, defeating his name-calling with his customary grace.
Everyone burst into laughter. Even as Fang Yi glared, the joke was infectious.
They asked Oden later why he called him that—apparently, "tarō" is a Wano naming custom for the eldest son (Shanks is "Benjiro," Buggy "Buggy Saburo," etc.).
The crew accepted Oden, and by evening, they celebrated with hot pot.
As a commander of Whitebeard's crew, Oden had never been a malicious pirate. Roger's crew had more of an "adventure troupe" vibe—it's just that Whitebeard's band was purer pirates, better at hit-and-run raids and black-market raids.
After their stay at Jaya, Fang Yi and Jaba worked out their odds: the Oro Jackson could ride that updraft. They equipped the ship with wings similar to the Future Thriller Bark's—just like the Straw Hats' Golden Merry—and launched toward the sky island.
When did they ascend? Even Fang Yi gasped at the impossible scenery, completely unlike the sea below.
If he'd had time, he was very curious about Birka, Enel's homeland, rumored to hold the powerful Goro Goro no Mi (Lightning Devil Fruit). If he could get it… They'd have a legend in their crew.
But with Roger's condition and the mission in mind, they didn't linger.
Under Roger's ability to hear all things, they soon located the Golden Bell suspended in the sky and discovered the inscribed Poneglyph stone.