"They're all a bunch of lunatics," Gion muttered, shaking her head.
She'd already thought Ross's trick of manipulating ocean currents to rocket over Reverse Mountain was insane enough. Now he wanted to launch them ten thousand meters up to Skypiea? Still, she had to admit—she was curious to see what the legendary floating island looked like.
"No issues on our end," Ross said, glancing at Sora. "But can Reiju handle Skypiea's environment for long? The air's thinner up there."
Reiju was the youngest aboard, a sweet little thing who had everyone wrapped around her finger. Back in Alabasta, she'd been sheltered under Zephyr's watchful eye and tended by dedicated maids. She was still tiny, but already so well-behaved.
Sora's lips tightened, her eyes flashing with old disgust at the mention of Judge. "Reiju's fine. Her genes were altered early on, making her tougher than most kids. Lucky for us, they never got around to the physical mods. We can still fix things."
Gion tilted her head, curious. She doted on the girl too. "Fix what, exactly?"
Sora's gaze softened with pain. "Judge's tweaks were sloppy—mostly genetic tweaks that weren't too deep. But if they'd rebuilt her body... her whole life would've been ruined. Turned her into some emotionless machine."
"Scumbag," Gion spat, lips curling.
Ross chuckled dryly. "Hey, he's just the sperm donor. Didn't stick around for the hard part."
Sora let out a soft laugh, shooting him a warm, affectionate glance. Compared to Judge's cold detachment, Ross had burrowed into her heart, reshaping her world. He mattered more than anyone—even Reiju, though it killed her to admit it.
"Don't sweat it," Ross added. "If you need help sorting Reiju out, just say the word."
Sora nodded firmly. "I will."
Reiju often climbed into his lap during quiet moments, begging for stories or games. Ross had grown genuinely fond of her over time.
"Right, back to business," he said, steering the conversation. "We can't just wing it with these underwater volcanoes to spark a Knock Up Stream. That'd be suicide."
He had no intention of waiting around for a natural one. Crafting their own would be quicker—and with their crew's power, any hiccups were manageable. A ten-thousand-meter drop? He'd walk away from that unscathed now. Plus, Gion could fly and clone herself for backup, shielding Sora and Stella if needed.
Sora pulled out her sketched map of the waters around Gaya Island. "To trigger a proper Knock Up Stream, we ignite them in sequence. Random blasts would just whip up a monster tsunami—enough to swallow Gaya whole."
Ross nodded, his senses probing the seabed as she spoke. He cross-checked the "nodes" on her map with the real layout. He didn't care much for Gaya, but screwing this up could strand them. His Devil Fruit let him soar thousands of meters no problem, but ten thousand was pushing it without momentum.
"Man, if we had the Float-Float Fruit..." he mused, eyeing the Golden Lion's old power with real envy.
His ability ruled the seas—no sailor could match him there. On land, Zephyr, Sakazuki, and Gion were beasts. But air? That was their weak spot. Gion could handle herself mid-flight, but hauling the whole crew? No way. And it wasn't just them—the ship carried Zane's recruits too, the backbone of Ross's plan to claim Skypiea.
Skypiea was prime real estate. He wasn't letting it go to waste.
"Saint Ross, reporting back!" Zephyr called, striding aboard. Fresh from pirate-hunting, his white suit was pristine. To him, those skirmishes were barely a stretch.
"Perfect timing," Ross said. "We're heading out."
They'd held position for him. The eruption's spot would reveal itself soon, but the ship was already in the zone.
Ross's eyes gleamed silver, his long silver-white hair whipping in the wind as he shifted into demigod form. He stepped forward, planting a foot on the waves. Direct contact amplified his command over the water tenfold.
BOOM!
The sea split wide. The depths howled.
Dozens of volcanoes ignited in chain reaction, Ross's currents slamming into them like precise strikes. Bedrock shattered with a thunderous crack that punched through billions of tons of water. It was like a colossal lava beast, chained for millennia, finally shattering its bonds. Crimson magma erupted from fissures, boiling the sea into frenzy.
The ship bucked like a toy in the chaos.
Sora gripped the rail, Gion steadying her. But Sora's mind raced in overdrive, her Brain-Brain Fruit crunching the Knock Up Stream's trajectory. Timing was everything—dive in early, and they'd ride the surge. Too late, and Ross would burn power shielding the vessel from shredding apart.
Ross frowned at the turmoil. He lifted his boot casually, tapping the heaving surface. The sea quaked in response.
An unseen force rippled from his touch. The roiling waves froze, then smoothed to glass underfoot. Their patch of ocean went eerily still, the ship locking steady like it was moored in a pond.
A hundred meters off, the water still thrashed, waves crashing like thunder. But here? Mirror-calm, reflecting the sky.
Two worlds in one sea: storm on one side, serenity on the other. The divide sent a chill through the air, a raw display of Ross's dominion.
When his fruit awakened, he'd be no less than a sea god.
—