April 21, 2025 13:05:41 | Author: Fireflies of Childhood
Directly ahead of the two pirate ships stood an enormous wall, resembling a giant gaping mouth.
This very mouth blocked the path of the pirate ships, preventing them from leaving.
"What the hell is this?"
The group that had rushed out was utterly stunned.
"Has this ship been targeted all along...?" Brook said gravely. "Luffy, did you happen to come across a drift cask?"
"Yeah, we definitely saw one."
"Dammit, so that's what it was?"
Zoro's expression darkened. No wonder Nico Robin and Meiser had sensed something was off—now it was clear there really was a problem!
"Indeed. The moment you opened that drift cask, you were marked by the people here," Brook explained. "It was a trap!"
"That's exactly how I got noticed in the past."
Recalling his past ordeal, Brook's mood grew heavy.
Yet returning here was also good news for him. If he could reclaim his shadow, he would finally be able to stand under the sun again.
At that point, there was no reason he couldn't join the Straw Hat Pirates!
"Everyone, look!" Usopp pointed to the side. "There's actually an island here?"
"Seriously, why is there an island here?"
"Because... this is the drifting Ghost Island of the sea—Thriller Bark!"
"Ghost Island..." Nico Robin mused. "So this is why ships frequently disappear around here?"
"Correct."
"It does look like a particularly eerie place," Meiser remarked.
He studied the island in the distance—its sinister appearance was downright terrifying. One could easily believe ghosts lived there.
"But why isn't the Log Pose reacting?"
"This Ghost Island originates from the distant West Sea and isn't a conventional island," Brook explained. "So it doesn't have any magnetic properties."
"No wonder it can drift on the sea."
"Everyone, today truly is a fortunate day." With that, Brook turned and headed back inside to retrieve his cane sword.
Then, under the puzzled gazes of the crew, he walked to the bow of the ship and declared, "Perhaps today will be the day I reclaim my shadow."
"Your shadow?"
"So this is where your shadow was taken?" Meiser asked.
Brook didn't answer the question, merely chuckling before saying, "Everyone, I must urge you—do not anchor near this island. It's extremely dangerous!"
"Use the cannons to destroy the wall behind us and leave this place as quickly as possible."
"I hope... we may meet again on the open seas. Yo-ho-ho-ho!"
Without hesitation, Brook then leaped off the ship, leaving Luffy and the others stunned.
"Hey! Why'd you jump into the sea?!"
"Isn't he a Devil Fruit user?"
Yet to everyone's astonishment, Brook didn't sink—instead, he sprinted across the ocean's surface, his speed matching that of the moving ship!
"Run... he's running!!"
"Hey, Meiser, did you see that? Brook can run on the sea too!" Luffy grabbed Meiser's arm and shook it wildly, saying, "He might be a ninja!!"
Meiser: .
Shaken by Luffy, Meiser felt utterly helpless. Why did this guy assume anyone with a similar ability must be a ninja?
Brook obviously wasn't stepping on the water's surface.
"Probably because he's light," Nico Robin said. "Combined with his speed, that's how he can run on the sea."
Though it was unclear how this Devil Fruit user had discovered this trick. Had he been chased with no escape and forced to jump into the sea?
For a moment, a strange scene flashed through Nico Robin's mind—a shadow lurking in darkness, wielding two massive swords, relentlessly pursuing Brook, nearly hacking his bones apart until Brook leaped into the ocean to narrowly escape.
"You're not imagining something weird again, are you?" Usopp quipped.
Nico Robin didn't answer, only flashing her signature intellectual smile.
Usopp:
He had a bad feeling she was picturing something terrifying.
"Hey, Luffy, since he said so, let's listen to him," Nami suggested. "With our strength, breaking through shouldn't be hard."
The Straw Hat Pirates' combat prowess was formidable—Nami knew that much. A mere gate wouldn't stop them.
"Huh?"
"What did you say?"
Luffy turned to look at Nami, grinning widely.
"Oh no..."
Seeing that familiar expression, Nami instantly felt a chill. This was clearly his "adventure mode" face!
What could possibly be worth exploring on such a terrifying island?
"Hmm?"
"Meiser, did you find something?"
Noticing Meiser had climbed to a higher vantage point, the crew looked up curiously.
"If I'm not mistaken, that mouth-like thing is the entrance," Meiser pointed ahead. "The surrounding walls form a ring, sealing off this Ghost Island."
"To get out, we'll have to break through the walls, just like Brook said."
After speaking, Meiser glanced back at the island but saw nothing unusual—wait, did that distant tree just move?
"So we're still on the sea, then," Franky mused, stroking his chin. "We can't drop anchor recklessly, or it'll damage the hull."
Drifting was one thing, but anchoring would fix their ship in place while the island kept moving, leading to collisions that could harm the Thousand Sunny—something Franky wanted to avoid.
"Why do you sound so eager to drop anchor?!" Usopp yelled with a shark-like grimace. "This is Ghost Island! Ghost Island!"
"But can you stop Luffy?"
Usopp:
Glancing at Luffy's excited face, Usopp suddenly felt like crying.
"Hahaha, awesome!"
"Luffy, what's the call?" Meiser jumped down beside him. "Do we stay or go?"
"No question!" Luffy laughed. "Adventure time!"
How could he not go check out such an interesting island?
As for danger...if you're afraid of danger, then why even be a pirate?!
"Let's go take a look then," Meiser said with a laugh.
"Meiser, not you too..."
"Where did that ghost go just now?" Merry asked while clutching Zoro's pant leg.
As she spoke, she carefully scanned their surroundings as if afraid something might suddenly jump out at them.
Clearly, even a Ship Spirit can be afraid of ghosts.
"Probably flew toward the island," Zoro replied after thinking for a moment. "Must be a native of this place."
"That's even scarier..."
"Hey guys, I think I've come down with a disease that prevents me from going ashore..." Nami said tearfully.
At this moment, Nami finally understood how Usopp must have felt before.
"Huh?!"
"Nami can get that disease too?" Merry exclaimed in shock.
"Me too..."
"Chopper as well..."
Seeing the two of them looking completely demoralized, Merry said anxiously, "What do we do? Even our doctor is helpless. Luffy, let's hurry ashore to find someone who can help them!"
"Don't worry about these two, Merry," Zoro said.
"Don't worry?"
"Relax, they'll snap out of it soon enough," Zoro said, then glared at the two pathetic figures. "Can't you two pull yourselves together?"
"Even Usopp isn't saying that this time."
"Hey Zoro, what's that supposed to mean?!"
Usopp shoved his nose right in Zoro's face, baring shark-like teeth as he roared, "What do you mean 'even I'm not saying that'?"
"And Luffy!" Usopp turned to look at Luffy, who had somehow already pulled out a set of tools. "I told you there are ghosts! Why are you still going?"
This idiot not only showed no fear whatsoever, but had even prepared tools in advance. Couldn't his adventurous spirit take a break for once?!
"Exactly because there are ghosts that I have to go see!" Luffy laughed. "I even brought tools to catch one and keep it as a pet!"
"Hahahaha."
Usopp:
Are you serious right now?
"And Usopp," Luffy said, his expression turning serious. "Brook is our important nakama. I'm going to bring him back."
Seeing Luffy's determined expression, Usopp froze for a moment. Meiser chuckled and patted Usopp's shoulder:
"Just accept it, Usopp."
"When Luffy said he'd help Brook get Franky back, he wasn't joking."
Once this man made up his mind, there was no pulling him back.
Besides, what kind of adventure would it be if they didn't explore an island when they found one?
Usopp opened his mouth, but could only sigh in the end.
"Ah..."
"Hey Sanji, make me a pirate lunch!" Luffy said cheerfully. "I'm going ghost hunting!"
"Already done."
Sanji calmly emerged from the cabin as if he'd anticipated this all along, presenting the prepared lunchbox.
"So fast!"
Meiser stared at Sanji in astonishment. How had this guy prepared it so quickly?
"In that case, let's take the mini boat ashore," Franky said with a grin. "Perfect chance to show you all the surprise I prepared."
"Surprise?!"
"That's right!" Franky extended two fingers and said, "Armed Ship Service System No. 2!"
"Number 2?"
"Exactly. This system has five numbered units, each with different functions."
"We already know that much," Nami nodded. "We're familiar with Systems Zero, One, and Three, but didn't you say Numbers Two and Four were still empty?"
"I only said that to surprise you. Come with me."
Franky gestured and led the group below deck.
After descending, Franky opened the hatch, revealing its contents.
"This... is this me?!"
Merry stared in disbelief at the small figure, especially the distinctive ram-head ornament on its bow. Her eyes welled up with emotion.
"Yep, that's you," Franky said, giving a thumbs-up. "So, do you like it?"
"I love it! Thank you, Franky!!"
"Hahaha, glad to hear it."
Watching Merry's excitement, Franky grinned widely. Seeing the little ship so happy made all his hard work worthwhile.
"Never expected such a wonderful surprise," Nami remarked. "Franky, you're amazing."
"If you guys don't plan to go ashore, you can use this to explore the coast," Franky said. "I'll head up and open the hatch for you."
Usopp and Chopper exchanged glances before climbing aboard the small vessel with Nami and Merry.
"Quick, let's try it out!"
"Awesome!"
Franky chuckled and returned to the deck.
"What did you show them?" Meiser asked curiously.
"Heh, you'll see soon enough."
Franky flashed Meiser a mysterious smile, then walked to the bow and opened the hatch for Armed Ship Service System No. 2, releasing the Mini Merry 2.0.
"Whoa!!"
Usopp and the others cheered as they raced across the waves on the Mini Merry 2.0.
"Is that... the Merry Go?" Meiser asked in surprise.
"Yep,
I specially built it as a shopping boat," Franky said proudly. "Pretty cool, huh?"
"That's really thoughtful," Sanji said. "I'd gladly go shopping as many times as needed if I could ride this!"
It was the dream shopping boat!
"This is awesome!" Luffy exclaimed. "Hey, Nami, when's my turn?!"
"Let us have some fun first," Nami waved him off before steering the little boat forward.
Even small waves were no obstacle—Nami navigated through them perfectly!
"Whoa!"
"Amazing!!"
"Hahaha."
"Let them enjoy it for now," Franky said. "We'll take our turn later."
Since Nami's group clearly had no intention of exploring the island, they could play first. The others would go ashore afterward.
"Franky, you're something else," Zoro remarked. "You can invent anything."
"Did you think I called this ship the best for no reason?" Franky boasted. "Its capabilities exceed anything you can imagine!"
The design of this pirate ship had actually been in his mind for a long time, but he had never taken action to protect the City of Seven Waters.
But now that it had been created, Franky could confidently say this was the best ship!!!
At that moment, a sudden cry came from the distance—it sounded like Nami's voice.
"Huh?"
"Something's wrong?"
Their expressions darkened. Could Nami and the others have been attacked while approaching the shore?
"Dammit, this thick fog makes it impossible to see what's happening over there," Sanji said. "Hey, Meiser, go check it out."
Among them, only Meiser could run on the sea without a ship, so sending him was the most logical choice.
"Got it."
Meiser nodded and quickly moved to the ship's edge, preparing to step onto the water to check on Merry and the others.
But before he could leap, he sensed a sharp gust of wind rushing toward him. His expression changed as he instinctively backflipped to dodge the attack.
"Huh?"
A faint, almost imperceptible sound of confusion lingered in the air, as if surprised that Meiser had avoided the strike.
"Hey, Meiser, what are you messing around for?" Sanji snapped. "Hurry up! Don't let something really go wrong—!"
"I'm not messing around," Meiser frowned. "Something just attacked me."
He had definitely felt that gust of wind. Was it an attack from the shore?
A Devil Fruit Ability User?
Creak
Thud!
The ship's anchor suddenly detached, slamming into the water with a splash, immediately drawing their attention.
"Why did the anchor drop?"
"That shouldn't happen," Franky said. "This ship hasn't been built for long—the gears couldn't have loosened already."
"Or... is it because of this island?"
"Let's pull the anchor back up first," Zoro said. "Otherwise, the ship will be in trouble."
"But what's really going on?"
Creak
Something on the deck shifted again, making them realize something was off.
"Something's wrong—there's someone else here!" Meiser said.
Huff… huff…
A strange, panting sound reached their ears, like a beast lurking nearby.
"An invisibility ability?" Meiser activated his Sharingan. "This is troublesome..."
Using such a trick in front of the Sharingan was unexpected.
After scanning the deck, Meiser immediately locked onto the enemy's position.
"Got you!"
"Zoro, don't move!"
Seeing Meiser draw his sword and thrust it toward him without hesitation, Zoro froze for a moment. But trusting Meiser, he didn't move.
Stab!
The sound of a blade piercing flesh echoed, followed by a scream.
"AHHH!!!"
Hearing the scream, the others tensed, quickly spreading out to surround the area.
"Blood?"
Seeing Meiser's blade embedded in thin air yet drawing blood, Zoro immediately understood—an invisible enemy had boarded their ship!
"Why is the air bleeding?!" Luffy exclaimed in shock.
So their pirate ship was this amazing?
"Idiot, this is obviously an enemy!"
"Dammit, how can you see me?!" Absalom gradually revealed his form, glaring furiously at Meiser as he said:
"I was completely invisible just now!"
Ever since obtaining the Invisibility Fruit, he had never been spotted while in his invisible state.
Yet today, not only had this enemy detected him, but they'd also precisely stabbed a weapon into his body. How could Absalom not be both shocked and enraged?
"W-wait a minute..."
Sanji trembled as if struck by a massive blow, weakly raising a finger to say: "This guy...could he be an Invisibility Fruit user..?"
"Exactly right! I'm the transparent man who ate the Invisibility Fruit!" Absalom proudly declared.
Hearing this, the light rapidly faded from Sanji's eyes—it was the extinguishing of something called dreams.
His body losing all color, he collapsed face-first onto the ground.
Absalom: ???
This guy's insane.
"Kid, I asked you a question!" Absalom snarled at Meiser while reaching out to grab him, intending to pull out the weapon lodged in his body.
Had his body not undergone powerful modifications, this attack might have taken him out of the fight.
But Meiser gave him no chance, immediately activating Lightning Release.
"Zzzzt"
"ARGH!!"
The lightning's power surged through Absalom's body, making him convulse violently as paralysis set in, temporarily robbing him of any ability to resist.
"Invisibility might be troublesome for others, but not for me," Meiser said calmly.
Truthfully, Meiser was somewhat puzzled by this too. After activating his Sharingan, even when the opponent used the Invisibility Fruit's power,
they still appeared to him as a faintly glowing human-shaped light source.
But the problem was—the opponent didn't have Chakra. So why this reaction?
Could it be...that when the Invisibility Fruit activates, some special energy flows through the user's body?
And this energy can be detected by the Sharingan, which is how I caught him.
Of course, there's another possibility.
That when I crossed over into this world, those strange mists I encountered caused some beneficial mutation i
n me.
Considering this, Meiser fell into deep thought.
Absalom tried to speak, but finding his paralyzed body unable to form words, could only glare hatefully at Meiser.
"So cool!"
Luffy stared at Meiser in amazement—he could actually see an invisible enemy! Was this the power of a ninja?
No wonder he was his nakama!
"Meiser, how did you spot him?" Nico Robin asked curiously.
"Because...I have hacks."
"Hacks.."
Nico Robin looked slightly confused. Though she didn't understand what Meiser meant, when she saw him wink at her, several guesses formed in her mind.
Could it be...because of those eyes?
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