"Miss Wednesday… doesn't that eagle and sea otter flying over here look familiar?" the man who introduced himself as Mr. 9 suddenly asked.
At his words, everyone looked up toward the sky.
"Oh no, Mr. 9… they're the Unluckies. We're doomed. Please free us and run for your lives!" The Blue haired woman shouted struggling to free herself.
A strange eagle appeared high in the sky, carrying a sea otter on its back with sharp knives attached to its paws. The otter suddenly threw a package toward the group.
Not curious about the content of the package, Leo immediately used his ability to form a ball of red earth from below and hurled it toward the package with tremendous force.
The stone ball collided with the package midair, and a violent explosion rang out across the sea, startling everyone.
Realizing they were no match for the group, the duo quickly retreated. The crew could do nothing against the airborne assassins since none of them had a proper way to attack flying enemies, so the matter was temporarily dropped.
The duo or more precisely, the blue-haired woman and the man with a crown soon began explaining what had just happened.
"We're part of a mysterious organization, and we failed to complete a mission, so they sent those assassins to kill us. There's no mercy for failures like us… but we'll redeem ourselves, right Mr. 9? We just need your help reaching the next island, Whisky Peak, since our ship was destroyed."
"Don't listen to those frauds… they'll betray you halfway through," Crocus said calmly while sipping a cup of tea.
"They're greedy assassins who've been trying to kill this poor whale for a long time over some petty selfish reason," Crocus added with clear disdain.
"What about the whale? Why is it trying to kill itself?" Leo asked, glancing toward Laboon, whose massive body floated half above the sea while staring at the stream of water descending from Reverse Mountain.
The old man explained how a long time ago a pirate crew consisting of lighthearted entertainers had left Laboon with him for his own safety when he was still a baby whale, promising they would return after circling the entire world. Yet fifty years had passed without any news of them.
"The Rumbar Pirates…? Never heard of them before," Leo and the others thought for a while looking at the whale's scarred head and sad eyes.
"Ever since then, Laboon has been trying to break through the Red Line in hopes of meeting them again," Crocus continued. "I've been injecting him with sleeping drugs to stop him, but even those are starting to lose their effect now."
"Is that so…"
Luffy stood up, but Leo pressed a hand onto his shoulder and forced him back down before walking toward Laboon himself.
"Hey, Laboon… your pirate friends are not coming back." Leo shouted.
"BWAHHHHHHHHH…!!!!" A furious cry erupted from the giant whale.
"But we can go and find them instead." At Leo's words, everyone froze in shock.
"What are you saying, brat…?" Crocus shouted from behind.
"If you want to break this Red Line… I can help you do it." Leo pressed his hand against the red earth beneath him, and a deep crack suddenly spread upward across the Red Line like a giant scar stretching into the sky.
Leo's ability normally only affected an area within sixty meters around him, though it had steadily improved as he became more familiar with his Devil Fruit.
Even so, by loosening the very foundation of the Red Line, he managed to create a massive fissure that weakened part of the colossal wall towering overhead.
Moments later, an enormous slab of red stone larger than even Laboon itself—broke free and crashed into the sea, creating a gigantic wave that surged across the ocean. Thankfully, it rolled toward the open waters instead of the lighthouse where the group was sitting.
"Stop, you brat…!" Crocus shouted, but Leo ignored him completely.
"It might take me years of work, but I can break the Red Line, I promise. But that still won't help you meet your friends," Leo continued.
"We humans don't live that long. There's a chance your crew was wiped out by the horrors of the Grand Line long ago… or maybe they settled somewhere else. If you truly want to find them, then come with me to the sea."
Leo's voice echoed across the entire lighthouse as he shouted toward the whale.
"I'll help you achieve your dream. You couldn't sail the seas before because you were too weak… and maybe you're still weak compared to many horrors lurking in the Grand Line, but I'll protect you."
"Bwahhhhhh…!" The whale roared in protest.
"I know I'm tiny compared to you, and probably weaker too… but didn't I just break the Red Line you've been trying to destroy for the past fifty years?" Leo mocked back. Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Wait… did I just understand what it said?" At those words, Luffy blinked in surprise as well.
"Hm… I heard it too. Hey old man, can this whale actually speak?" Luffy asked while turning toward Crocus.
"Don't be ridiculous. Whales don't speak human language," Crocus replied. "It took me decades just to understand what Laboon wanted through its behavior. I can only say… you two brats are special."
Something deep and unreadable flickered behind the old man's eyes.
As Leo slowly approached Laboon, the massive whale moved closer to the shore as well.
Then, the moment Leo's hand touched the scarred bleeding injury of the giant whale, a miracle happened.
"BWAHHHHHHHH…!!!!!!!"