Sailing on the vast sea is actually a very boring thing. As far as the eye can see, it's nothing but seawater...
After seven days of sailing, Sephiroth's initial extreme dislike for the weather changes gradually, and unknowingly, turned into 'small surprises' in his sailing life, adding quite a bit of variety to his daily routine.
Of course, there were also times when 'big surprises' occurred...
For example, giant Sea Kings suddenly emerging from the sea, or layers upon layers of continuous 'rogue waves'.
Each time, it was a narrow escape from death!
If it weren't for the navigator Sandersonia and the helmsman Marigold, Sephiroth felt that this ship definitely wouldn't have escaped those two 'big surprises'.
Grand Line... Sephiroth gradually began to understand why people used this name to call it.
Unpredictable weather, various incredible races and islands, endless adventures...
The gentle sea breeze blew across Hancock's lovely face, causing a few strands of her black hair to sway in the wind.
The young girl sat on the small stairs of the deck inside the ship's hull, watching the boy standing below the mast, continuously swinging his Saber. In her eyes, a strange emotion would occasionally surface, but she didn't know what it was.
She only knew that just by looking at the boy, she would feel inexplicably happy in her heart...
"Sephiroth, why do you train so hard?"
Hearing this, the boy's motion of swinging his Saber paused for a moment, but in less than three seconds, he firmly swung the Saber in his hand again.
"Because I want to become stronger... strong enough to protect the things I cherish...
And, I want revenge on a certain guy!
For this, absolute power is necessary!"
After this period of recollection, Sephiroth finally remembered...
The pirate ship that attacked the passenger ship he was on during the storm, the skull flag with horns hanging on it, which Pirate group it belonged to... Beasts Pirates!
This is the Pirate group created by Kaido of the Beasts...
According to Sephiroth's estimation, at this point in time, Kaido should have killed the big fool Kozuki Oden and completely turned Wano Country into his sweatshop.
Although the pattern of the Four Emperors dividing the sea has not yet formed.
But...
Without a doubt, Kaido has already become one of the most powerful Pirates in the latter half of the Grand Line, in the New World!
The path the boy wants for revenge seems long and winding.
A gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after ten years!
If that doesn't work, I'll wait another nineteen years...
Wait until Monkey D. Luffy defeats Kaido, then I'll go to Wano Country to collect the head and land two more blows on Kaido!
Thinking of this, the breath Sephiroth had been holding in his heart almost leaked out, and he even wanted to start slacking off!
No! No!
In this world, weakness is the original sin. Without absolute power, no matter what you possess, it will be easily taken away.
Furthermore, I said myself that I would get revenge on the Beasts Pirates, and I absolutely must kill that fat guy Queen. I must do what I say!
As the boy's determination to become stronger was reaffirmed, eliminating hesitation, his Saber-swinging movements also became sharper.
Hancock didn't know the changes in the boy's emotions, but she inexplicably wanted to help the boy...
"Sephiroth, do you have a grudge against someone?"
"Beasts Pirates, they killed my father..."
The boy's voice sounded very calm, but it contained a hint of kill intent.
"Oh!"
Hancock nodded, not asking further questions, but simply memorizing the name of this Pirate group.
She didn't know why she cared so much about what the boy said, perhaps it was just to repay the boy for taking meticulous care of her for three days when she was sick...?
On the mast, Sandersonia, holding a spyglass in her hand, immediately shouted down to the three people below when she saw the giant city shaped like a fountain:
"Great! Water 7, Water Capital, we have finally arrived!"
Due to the extremely chaotic magnetic field of the Grand Line, it's impossible to use a compass for navigation. Therefore, sailing on the Grand Line requires relying on Log Poses and Eternal Poses to find the location of islands.
A Log Pose can remember the magnetic field of a certain island and the pointer will point to the next island, while an Eternal Pose will always point in the direction of a specific island.
Merchants engaged in sea trade, or the Marine, or Pirates, generally use Eternal Poses for the shortest distance sea travel to quickly reach a certain island, shortening the sailing time.
Of course, there are also certain islands that cannot be reached or found with a Log Pose. These islands can only be guided by an Eternal Pose, such as special islands like Laugh Tale, Punk Hazard...
On this fast sailing ship, besides the Log Pose, there were only five Eternal Poses: Jaya Island, Sabaody Archipelago, Water 7, Etol Island, and St. Popura Island.
Among them, Water 7 is the closest island to Amazon Lily, and it is also where Sephiroth's home is located...
Water 7 is the city with the most developed shipbuilding industry in the world. Even the ancient weapon 'Pluton' battleship from eight hundred years ago was built by the shipwrights on the island.
Besides being famous worldwide for its shipbuilding industry, Water 7 is also second to none in the world for its construction and development of hydraulic engineering. Intersecting waterways are spread throughout the entire city.
However, it's worth mentioning that the construction project for the sea train connecting Water 7 to the surrounding islands is only just beginning to be implemented now...
At this time, Franky was still a rebellious teenager in his youth, researching offensive weapons every day.
The future mayor of Water 7, and the president of the Galley-La Company, Iceberg, was still an ordinary shipwright.
Currently, both of them are still apprentices at Tom's Workers, working for Tom the shipwright to make a living.
After sheathing his Saber, Sephiroth saw Marigold seemingly wanting to sail the ship directly into the harbor to dock, and he quickly spoke up to dissuade her:
"Let's not sail this ship into the harbor. Let's go around to the right side. There's a place called Wasted Ship Island over there."
"This ship isn't a Pirate ship, it doesn't have a skull flag, so it should be fine to sail into the port and dock, right?" Hancock asked with a puzzled look.
Hearing this, Sephiroth gently shook his head and reached out to stroke the top of the black-haired girl's head.
Boa Hancock's soft, beautiful hair felt very nice to the touch, making him reluctant to let go. The young girl didn't feel any dislike towards his affectionate gesture; instead, she felt a bit of joy and enjoyment.
"This ship of ours is indeed not a Pirate ship, but have you ever thought that since those slave traders have an Eternal Pose for Water 7,
then it's also a very normal thing for them to have related forces in this place, right?"
"I see."
Hearing the boy's explanation, Hancock immediately understood and nodded, grasping the reason behind it.
The four of them had taken down everyone on a slave ship and seized the ship. If they were discovered by people from those related forces, they would definitely attract a lot of trouble.
Immediately, Marigold turned the rudder, making the fast sailing ship detour around the edge of the island, heading towards Wasted Ship Island...