After a few days of sailing, the Going Merry finally approached the edge of the Calm Belt.
Jack picked up the megaphone and called out across the ship. Luffy, Zoro and Sanji who had been sparring with Dragon stopped what they were doing the moment his voice could be heard by them. "Alright, everyone! That's enough training for now!"
Luffy blinked. "Eh? Why stop now, Jack?"
Jack crossed his arms. "Because we're almost at the edge of the Calm Belt. It's time to decide, are we crossing through the Calm Belt or going over Reverse Mountain?"
That got everyone attention immediately.
"The Calm Belt?" repeated Usopp, sweat already running down his face. "What's that?!"
"The Calm Belt is a stretch of sea with no wind at all and it's packed with Sea Kings bigger than most islands," Jack explained.
"Then we're going through the Calm Belt!" shouted Luffy, his eyes lighting up.
Dragon watched his son from where he stood and said nothing, just smiled quietly to himself.
"Luffy, are you out of your mind?! That place is full of monsters!" Nami screamed.
"Yeah! Jack, there is no way we are crossing the Calm Belt!" added Usopp, already backing away from the railing.
"I'm the captain and I decide where this ship goes," said Luffy firmly.
Jack chuckled. "Luffy, I don't mind crossing the Calm Belt but think about it this way, even the Pirate King himself went over Reverse Mountain and if we skip it then we're not really following the true path of pirates are we."
Nami and Usopp looked at each other, then slowly nodded with tears in their eyes.
"Hmmm… okay. Reverse Mountain it is!" Luffy declared.
Jack nodded. "Aye, Captain."
Nami and Usopp both collapsed with relief while Nojiko watched them with an amused smile.
"Luffy-senpai, are we really going up Reverse Mountain?" asked Bartolomeo, grabbing the railing with shining eyes.
Luffy grin spread wide across his face. "Yeah! That's where we're going, Reverse Mountain!"
Zoro smirked. "Of course we are taking a pirate king path."
"We're pirates and pirates don't take the easy road," replied Jack simply.
Luffy pumped his fist. "Adventure's no fun if it's easy!"
Jack shook his head, not surprised at all by that answer. "Then it's settled. Nami, take the helm and set our course for Reverse Mountain."
Nami eye twitched as she put her hand on her hip. "Fine. But everyone gather around and listen." She rolled out a nautical chart across the table and looked each of them in the eye before speaking. "Reverse Mountain is nothing like a normal route. Four ocean currents, one from each of the Blues, all rush up the mountain at the same time and slam together at the top before crashing down straight into the Grand Line. If anyone loses focus for even a second or the ship drifts off course, we get crushed against the mountain walls."
Usopp throat moved as he swallowed hard. "C-crushed?!"
Sanji frowned. "So we're riding a waterfall going the wrong direction."
"Exactly," said Nami. "And those currents are violent enough to tear apart a regular ship without even trying. Most pirates who attempt it never come out the other side."
"Nami-senpai, don't worry! I'll protect you!" declared Bartolomeo, striking a pose.
Nobody responded to that.
Luffy grin just got wider. "That sounds amazing!"
Zoro rolled his shoulders. "Then we make sure we don't die. Simple."
Usopp dropped to his knees and grabbed the floor. "You're all completely insane! Nobody told me this crew would did mountain climbing on a ship!"
Jack put a hand on Usopp shoulder. "Relax. The Merry hull has been reinforced with Vibranium alloy and even if we take a direct hit from the current she won't fall apart."
Usopp looked up slowly. "R-really?"
Jack nodded. "Really. Trust the ship and trust your navigator."
Dragon leaned against the railing with his arms folded, watching Luffy bounce around the ship with that ridiculous grin of his at the thought of flying up a waterfall on a boat. He let out a quiet laugh through his nose.
Nojiko glanced at him. "You sound proud."
Dragon looked at her for a moment. "He is my son."
Bartolomeo slammed both fists together with stars practically coming out of his eyes. "Luffy-senpai is going to conquer Reverse Mountain! I can already see the headline, The Unstoppable Straw Hat Crew Defies the Impossible!"
Jack gave him a look. "Bartolomeo… many pirates have tried Reverse Mountain before. Not many made it through."
The wind started picking up and the sea below the hull began to churn as the Going Merry pushed forward toward the mountain.
***
The current hit them fast and without warning, grabbing the Going Merry and dragging her upward along a stream of water that was moving in a direction water had no business moving. The crew spread out across the ship as the whole world around them tilted and roared.
Jack stood near the helm watching the pressure readings push deep into the red. "All systems holding," he said. "We're starting the climb."
Nami gripped the wheel with both hands, her voice cutting cleanly through the noise. "Everyone hold on! Once we're in the current there is no stopping!"
Luffy stood at the front of the ship with both hands on the railing, staring straight into the wall of rushing water ahead with that grin that never seemed to go away no matter what was in front of him.
The wood groaned and the waves crashed against the hull from every direction as the Merry pushed upward and somehow, through all that noise and chaos, the crew felt something settle in their chests.
Zoro exhaled. "No turning back now."
Jack looked around at all of them before speaking. "Before we cross into the Grand Line, there's something we should do first."
Luffy tilted his head. "Huh? What?"
Jack picked up an empty wooden barrel from the corner of the ship and set it down in the middle of everyone. "A promise."
The crew looked at the barrel and then at each other.
"In this world a crew with no shared dream falls apart eventually," Jack said. "So before we go any further, let's say it out loud. What are we chasing."
Luffy didn't even hesitate. He stepped forward and stomped his foot right on top of the barrel.
"I'll go first! I'm going to be the Pirate King!" he said, loud and clear with not a single doubt behind it.
Zoro stepped up next, eyes straight ahead. "I'll become the greatest swordsman in the world. That's all there is to it."
Nami rested her foot on the side of the barrel, her voice softer but just as certain. "I'll draw a map of the whole world. Every island, every sea, I want to see all of it."
Sanji flicked his hair back. "All Blue. A sea where fish from every ocean swim together. I'll find it."
"I want to become the bravest warrior on the sea," said Usopp
Jack placed his foot alongside theirs. "I'll master everything I have."
Nojiko stepped up quietly and added her foot. "I never want to see another child go hungry. That's mine."
Bartolomeo looked like he was about to cry as he brought his foot down on the barrel so hard the wood shook under everyone else feet. "I'm following Luffy-senpai to the very end of this journey no matter what happens to me!"
Everyone turned to look at Dragon.
He had been standing off to the side the whole time, watching all of them with that unreadable expression of his as the wind pulled at his cloak. Nobody said anything, they just waited.
Dragon looked at each of them one by one, this strange crew his son had built around himself, loud and chaotic and somehow completely solid at the same time. Then he walked over and put his boot on the barrel.
"My wish is to free this world."
Nobody said anything for a moment. The wind around the ship picked up and the current roared beneath them.
Then Luffy threw his head back laughing. "Shishishishi! Then it's decided!"