Luffy ate until his belly was round and full, like a giant balloon, collapsing onto Hachi's Takoyaki ship.
Beside him, Usopp and Chopper also became two "balls," lying still.
Luffy patted his bulging stomach contentedly, muttering continuously, "So full, so full... I'm so happy..."
Hachi was also exhausted at this time, collapsing onto the tatami mat, not moving, and letting out a tired sigh:
"Ah... I'm so tired... As expected of Straw Hat, I really wish I had six more arms."
Sanji stood at the bow of the Sunny, shouting to the group of people sprawled not far away: "Hey... Hachi, Starfish, Camie-chan! If you want to rest, come up and rest, I'll make you some tea."
A moment later, on the Sunny, Camie held the log pose in her hand and said with certainty, "That's right, it's this direction. Heading in this direction will take us to the Sabaody Archipelago."
Everyone fell silent at the words, the atmosphere was a bit heavy, and Usopp leaned over to Camie, asking with a worried expression, "Do we have to go to the Sabaody Archipelago to get to Fish-Man Island? Can't we skip it?"
Hachi took a sip from his teacup, then answered Usopp's question: "We merfolk or Fishmen can get there just by diving, but you humans would die from the immense water pressure if you went that way."
Franky crossed his arms, thinking about the results of their previous exploration with Shark Submerge III, and fell into contemplation.
"Indeed, even a submarine reaches its limit at that depth. How exactly are we going to get to the bottom of the sea?"
Orochimaru leaned quietly to the side, watching everyone, silently calculating in his heart: "We're almost at Mary Geoise... Only three days left, huh... I can't defeat the Gorosei for now, but I can sneak in and sweep the place. Orochimaru was considering the maximum benefits after the Marineford War, which would be the period of weakest defense."
The Starfish, meanwhile, was explaining the route to the group. "The route to Mary Geoise is only for ordinary people; pirates are absolutely forbidden. The only choice you have is to continue on this ship, the only path you can take is the underwater route that passes through Fish-Man Island!"
Camie's face showed worry as she pointed at the log pose and said, "However... the underwater route is very dangerous. Many people have been swallowed whole by sea beasts or Sea Kings."
"If that's the case, it's indeed very dangerous." The few ignored the Starfish's rambling and continued their lively discussion.
Orochimaru suddenly fell into deep thought. If he accidentally got bitten to pieces by a sea beast... then... is Flying Serpent good in water? Due to the Devil Fruit, Orochimaru had an instinctive repulsion to seawater, especially the feeling of powerlessness when he fell into the water before, which still fresh in his memory.
So he had never explored whether Flying Serpent was good in water. Although Devil Fruit users become powerless in water, in the New World, most strong individuals can overcome this weakness through training, though humans still cannot move underwater.
Orochimaru tried to recall the memories of the Blue Star person. In the ancient texts of the Blue Star people, the descriptions of Flying Serpent mostly emphasized its abilities to ride clouds and mist, and to create clouds and fog. In Guo Pu's commentary on "Erya: Explanations of Fish," it states: "Flying Serpent is a type of dragon, capable of raising clouds and mist and traveling within them."
The main emphasis was on its abilities related to clouds, mist, and flight, with no clear mention of its proficiency in water. In the "Classic of Mountains and Seas," there were even fewer descriptions, only stating that it was a winged snake capable of riding clouds and mist. This indeed provided no direct evidence of its abilities in water.
However, some legends also mentioned Flying Serpent's proficiency in water, with its abilities not inferior to those of celestial dragons and Yinglong, implying that Flying Serpent possessed immense power and capability in water, able to control the power of water for its own use.
But excluding Ninjutsu, Orochimaru had not yet found any signs of Flying Serpent being good in water. This made him difficult; how should he try?
Jump into the sea and try? Sinking to the bottom is certain... The better scenario would be not being able to breathe and dying directly... and then resurrecting in a clone.
But what if he didn't die... sank to the bottom and couldn't move... wanting to die but unable to, that would be even worse, even worse than being sealed. He didn't have any Fishman subordinates who would specifically go retrieve him.
Wait... does he need Franky to urgently build him a submarine just in case? The Sabaody Archipelago seems to have a portable bubble coral that can produce bubbles.
First, wrap himself in bubble coral; he can move once inside the bubble, allowing him to float directly to the surface.
However, to prevent accidents, it would be more convenient to float to a certain height and then use a submarine.
It seems that once they arrive, he needs to quickly stock up on bubble coral.
Thinking of this, Orochimaru nodded with pleasure, "I, Orochimaru, am indeed the hardest villain to kill. Like this, I can start thinking about underwater training, and also the problem of cloning Fishman organs... Should I try a different set?"
Orochimaru's gaze was fixed on Camie.
Meanwhile, Camie had already started talking about coating, and inexplicably sneezed.
Soon, everyone docked at Sabaody Archipelago 44. The group completely forgot Orochimaru's previous words and excitedly jumped around.
Hachi reminded the group, "Everyone, don't forget the numbers here. As I said before, there will always be bridges connecting the islands, so remembering the numbers will prevent you from getting lost."
"Even so, someone will definitely get lost."
"Definitely."
Usopp and Chopper both sighed... their peripheral vision swept past Zoro... and they sighed again.
ε = ( ´ ο ｀ * ) ) ) Ah
As soon as the simple-minded Luffy saw the bubbles emerging from the ground, his eyes instantly lit up, and he excitedly bounced upwards, stepping on the bubbles like a child.
Robin, with a hint of surprise, quietly gazed at these incredible soap bubbles, bending slightly and reaching out a slender hand to touch the ground.
The sensation made her frown slightly, then she wiped her hand on Usopp's pants with a look of disgust.
"Ugh... it's sticky."
"Hey! Don't learn from Orochimaru!" Usopp shouted in dissatisfaction.
"Huh?" Hearing his name, Orochimaru, who was also wiping his hands on Zoro's clothes, subconsciously turned his head, looking bewildered.
His expression seemed to say, "What did I do?" Everyone watched his actions, their mouths twitching =_=... The group listened to the Starfish's detailed introduction, learning about some of the unique characteristics of the Sabaody Archipelago, then slowly walked forward.
Sure enough, not long after, Luffy fell from the sky with a "bang" as a bubble burst.
Camie anxiously tried to run over but was stopped by Sanji.
"Don't worry, he's fine... Look." As the dust cleared, Sanji pointed to Luffy, who was pulling his head out of the ground, completely unharmed.
Everyone was used to his behavior and even bothered to react.
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