Chapter 241 - 99

Chapter 99Nika was so angry that the white flame clouds on his body flared up; clearly, his self-esteem had taken a devastating blow.Vivi, on the other hand, felt a bit embarrassed as she took out her own bounty poster.[Nefertari D. Vivi] (Princess of the AlabastaKingdom)[bounty: 500,000,000 Berries] (Only Alive)[Note: Abducted from Alabasta by Straw HatMonkey D. Luffy. A massive reward will be given to whoever successfully rescues her.]"Fi—Five hundred million Berries?!"Everyone cried out in unison upon seeing the figure, their eyes nearly popping out of their heads."Is this the condition King Cobra mentioned?" Namiclutched her chest, finding it difficult to breathe. "Is Alabasta really that rich?!"Everyone knew the truth behind Vivi's bounty poster; it was a performance by King Cobra to protect his daughter while distancing the kingdom from pirates.But seeing that staggering amount with their own eyes, they couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with emotion.Vivi felt extremely guilty about it and kept bowing to everyone in apology. "I'm sorry for causing so much trouble. It's because of me that Luffy's bounty rose so high."As she spoke, she pulled out Luffy's latest bounty poster.[Monkey D. Luffy][bounty: 200,000,000 Berries]Two hundred million Berries!Everyone marveled once again.In the first half of the Grand Line, this amount already signified a truly great pirate! Vivi's abduction likely played a significant role in this, though the primary reason was Luffy's defeat of Crocodile.The World Government only issues high bounties to those who pose a powerful threat to them.For example..."Don't worry about it,"Robin spoke up, "If we're talking about bringing trouble, perhaps a woman like me is the real source of it."Hearing this, everyone noticed the bounty poster in Robin's hand.Excluding Vivi's special case, the amount was actually higher than Zoro's![Nico Robin][bounty: 79,000,000 Berries]Seventy-nine million Berries!Luffy leaned in curiously; it was Robin's bounty poster, featuring a photo from her childhood where she looked slightly naive but her eyes were already full of alertness."Robin, what did you do before?""Just an ordinary archeologist. My family has done this for generations."Robin thought for a moment and said, "I was first wanted by the World Government when I was eight years old.""Eight years old?"Nami grew indignant. What threat could an eight-year-old child pose? What were those people at the World Government thinking?But the World Government had its reasons.To them, Robin's threat was comparable to that of the child in the Giant Kingdom who, at age six, threw the kingdom into total chaos during a Hunger Pangs rampage.And what happened to that child from the Giant Kingdom?She became one of the Four Emperors, Charlotte Linlin!"I've spent the twenty years since then hiding and running.""Since you were eight, have you been all alone?"Nami felt a sense of empathy. She was around the same age when she began raising one hundred million Berries alone to buy Cocoyasi Village back from Arlong.Robin shook her head; after all, how could an eight-year-old child survive at sea alone? Even Charlotte Linlin had Streusen by her side.So, to protect herself and as a means to achieve her goals, she had always drifted through the shadows, with Crocodile being just one of her associations."All of this was for..." Robin looked at the group, appearing hesitant. "This topic is a bit dangerous."The World Government takes severe measures to suppress anyone with information regarding the poneglyph.Knowing these things would bring them no benefit.Robin had unconsciously begun to care for the crew, which Luffy keenly noticed. "Trust us, Robin. Look at them; they won't be able to sleep if they don't hear the rest."Robin glanced around; everyone had crowded closer like gossiping bystanders. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry; hearing about such things would lead to being hunted by the World Government."Do you know that there is a hundred-year void in this world's history?"Robin looked at Luffy, her expression turning serious.It was a period of history erased by the World Government roughly 900 to 800 years ago, and records of it exist only within the undecipherable ancient script of the poneglyph.There are over thirty of those stones called poneglyph, and they are indestructible.Fearing the truth revealed by this history, the World Government banned research and destroyed the scholars of Ohara who attempted to decipher them, launching a Buster Call that resulted in Ohara's annihilation."I am the last scholar of Ohara. The Professor once told me that during the Void Century, there was a kingdom destroyed by a 20-Nation Alliance. The truth of the history I have been pursuing lies within the poneglyph."Hearing Robin mention the poneglyph, Luffyremembered something: "Is that why you told me before that I shouldn't reveal I can read the ancient script?"Nami said in surprise, "Luffy, you can read that script too?""That... uh, should I say I can't?" Luffy felt he had spoken too quickly.Robin didn't seem surprised. "Actually, I guessed that you wouldn't be able to hide it for long, Luffy. But it's best if no one else knows about this—no one except our crew mates."Nika gave Robin a surprised look. A scholar who mastered the ancient script—if she found that specific poneglyph, could she learn the history of that era?She was someone worth recruiting!To be honest, even Nika didn't know why that war had suddenly ended in defeat.Just as he was about to move, fragments of stone suddenly fell from the sky.Chapter 137: Sky Island? I'll Store Lightning FirstA sharp whistling sound suddenly came from overhead, interrupting everyone's thoughts."Whoa, what's that?!"Usopp was the first to scream, pointing toward the sky.A massive shadow was falling rapidly, the whistling sound growing louder as it frictioned against the air.A local would have been familiar with this, as ships occasionally fell from the sky in this stretch of sea.Fragments of debris flew past Chopper. Suddenly seeing something, he ducked behind Zoro in terror, leaving only his round eyes visible. His voice trembled: "Sk—Skulls, and a pirate flag! A ship is falling!"Everyone looked up.Indeed, what was falling was a medium-sized galley. Its sails were tattered and its hull was charred black, as if it had been through a brutal battle; the pirate flag on the mast was barely recognizable. It was plummeting straight toward the deck of the going merry!"Gum-Gum Giant Pistol!"Luffy reacted instantly. Without a second thought, his arm grew massive and stretched back, his fist—wrapped in Armament Haki—blasting upward like a cannonball.Bang!Boom!A massive shockwave dispersed in the air. The falling ship was knocked off course by the heavy blow and disintegrated into countless fragments, splashing into the surrounding sea with a thunderous roar."That was close, that was close." Usopp patted his chest and peeked out, still shaken. "Were we under attack?""There are no enemies around."Luffy retracted his arm and looked at the sky with a confused expression. "Strange, why would a ship fall from the sky? There aren't even any islands."Nami also frowned and instinctively looked at the log pose on her wrist.What she saw made her even more confused: "Huh? The log pose isn't moving? It hasn't stored any magnetism, and it's not pointing in any direction? But there are clearly no islands nearby!"This defied the common sense of the Grand Line.A log pose is supposed to point to the next island and store magnetism until it is full.But now, the needle was neither pointing nor storing, as if it had malfunctioned.Robin walked over to Nami, carefully observed the log pose, then looked up at the clear, empty blue sky. She mused, "Perhaps the log pose hasn't malfunctioned. Its magnetism might be attracted to something much higher up.""Higher up?""Is there really something in the sky?"Robin nodded, her tone carrying a hint of uncertainty:"I've only seen scattered records in some extremely ancient texts. It's said that high above the clouds, there are islands known as Sky Islands. they float upon the White-White Sea, a region difficult for ordinary people to reach. If the log pose is pointing toward the sky, it's likely because it's sensing the magnetism of a Sky Island.""Sky Island?""Do islands really exist in the sky? That's awesome!""Hey, everyone! Our next destination is the Sky Island!"However, the reactions of the others on the ship were varied."Does such a place really exist?"Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow while holding his swords."Of course it exists, Marimo. If even the All Blue exists, why wouldn't a Sky Island?"Sanji lit a cigarette and blew a smoke ring. "I bet the ladies up there are as beautiful as angels!"Nami held her forehead, looking worried. "The sky... It sounds dangerous, and getting up there is a problem in itself."Usopp and Chopper were already huddling together, shivering as they imagined all sorts of terrifying monsters that might live on a Sky Island."But this is just my guess. Besides, my knowledge regarding the specifics of Sky Island and how to reach it is very limited," Robin added, a slight smile touching her lips as she watched the excited Luffy."It doesn't matter."Luffy said directly, "Since the log pose points to the sky, then we're going up. Isn't the iron rule of the sea that you must absolutely trust the log pose!"Despite his enthusiasm, the subsequent voyage did not immediately bring news of the Sky Island.For the rest of the day, the going merry sailed across a calm sea. Looking up, there was nothing but blue sky and white clouds....The next day, 4:00 AM.The cabin was silent, filled only with the sound of steady breathing.Even Zoro, who usually woke up the earliest, was currently clutching his three swords and catching up on sleep amidst light snoring.Inside Luffy's mind, a sharp [Warning] sounded right on time, like a death-knell curse.[Warning: It is time to wake up according to the plan...]Luffy mumbled groggily, but his powerful biological clock and a deeper fear snapped him awake instantly. With a kip-up, his Rubber body landed silently on the floor."Seriously, didn't I already do extra training in my dreams last night?"Luffy couldn't help but complain as he walked to the bathroom to splash his face with cold water.To make up for the training time occasionally lost to adventures in reality, he had spent countless hours in the plan's Dream Training Ground.The enemies in his dreams changed constantly.Recently, it had even incorporated Ace, Crocodile, and Smoker—three Logia Devil Fruit Users.Luffy had truly experienced the meaning of Logiafirepower.It was too fierce.Between the sand, the smoke, and the flames, he sometimes didn't even know where he was when he opened his eyes.[The plan has been executed multiple times; the punishment has been reduced from Stage Two to Stage One. Awakened. Warning: Next is [Daily Training] time. Please proceed immediately. Countdown: 30, 29...]Because he had followed the plan a certain number of times, the Stage Two plan punishment reverted to the Stage One electric shock punishment.Because Luffy was a Rubber Human, the Stage One electric shock punishment had no effect on him.