"Southeast wind, force three… adjust the angle…"
Usopp muttered to himself as his hands spun the adjustment wheel at high speed.
"Watch closely, Luffy! This is Captain Usopp's—ultimate finisher!"
"BOOOOM—!!"
With a thunderous roar, the cannon's muzzle vomited orange flame and thick smoke.
A black solid shot screamed out, carving a perfect arc through the sky.
Ronan didn't move from where he was lying down, but his Observation Haki instinctively caught the shell's trajectory.
Accurate, Ronan praised silently.
The next second—
"BOOOOM!!"
Far off—thousands of meters away—the cannonball struck the massive black reef dead on!
The impact detonated into raw kinetic violence: rock fragments exploded outward, and a towering water column blasted up into the sky.
That reef—was blown clean in half, collapsing into the sea with a tremendous crash!
"WAAAAH!!"
Luffy sprang up in excitement, both hands raised over his head as he shouted, "Amazing!! One shot and it hit! Usopp, you're incredible!"
As the smoke drifted away, Usopp blew at an imaginary wisp of barrel smoke and smugly wiped his nose.
"Hmph. Of course. I'm really good at aiming, you know! Aren't you impressed?"
"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" Luffy nodded furiously, then declared with unwavering certainty, "It's decided! You're our crew's sniper!"
"What?!" Usopp's heart was basically doing flips, but his mouth instantly went tsundere. "Hey! Wasn't I the captain? How did I become the sniper?!"
"Shishishishi!"
"…Fine. I'll grudgingly take the sniper job too."
Usopp grinned. "But if you, the captain, perform too badly, I'm replacing you immediately!"
...
Inside the Going Merry's Cabin
Sunlight poured through the round porthole, painting warm circles on the long wooden table.
Ronan and the others sat around it, the air faintly scented with tea.
This was the Straw Hat Pirates' first official "tactical meeting."
Luffy sat in the main seat, unusually serious. He clasped his hands under his chin and said solemnly:
"Before we enter the Grand Line, I think we still need to fill an important position!"
Ronan lifted his teacup, his gaze shifting slightly.
He glanced toward the well-equipped kitchen and thought, Looks like we're not far from the curly-browed cook—Sanji—joining.
After all, these past few days they'd been living on Nami's "high-class expensive light meals." Their diet desperately needed an upgrade.
Nami nodded in strong agreement as she looked around the bright, spacious kitchen.
"True. The kitchen on the Merry is so nice—fully equipped too. It'd be a waste to leave it empty."
"If you pay me… I could reluctantly handle cooking, but I'm only responsible for making it, not making it taste good."
Zoro crossed his arms, voice deep.
"This is essential for a long voyage."
"Without proper nutrition and decent food, you can't sustain high-intensity combat and sailing."
Everyone was clearly hinting at the same thing.
A cook.
Luffy saw how "in sync" his partners were and got excited. He slammed the table, jumped up, and announced loudly:
"Right?! You guys think so too! Obviously, the most necessary thing on a pirate ship is—"
Everyone held their breath, ready for the word cook.
Luffy took a deep breath, eyes glittering with the light of a dream.
"—A MUSICIAN!!!"
"..."
"..."
The cabin went dead silent.
Even the seagulls outside sounded awkward.
Ronan nearly dropped his teacup. Even as someone who knew the plot, he was still stunned by Luffy's bizarre thought process.
This was probably… a kind of extreme, romantic stubbornness.
After a brief, suffocating pause, the cabin exploded into furious shouting.
"ARE YOU AN IDIOT?!!"
A vein bulged on Zoro's forehead as he roared at Luffy. "We were talking about eating! Eating! Can music fill your stomach?!"
Nami slammed a palm on the table, voice sharp. "What do you think sailing is?!"
Even Usopp couldn't help complaining, looking like he wanted to knock some sense into Luffy. "I thought you were finally going to say something serious for once!"
But under everyone's fire, Luffy showed zero remorse.
He picked his nose and mumbled with total conviction:
"But… pirates have to sing! Without a musician, adventures are way less fun!"
Ronan watched the scene, his lips twitching as he thought, Yeah, this moment really did happen in the story… but seeing it in person still makes me feel like… Luffy is unbelievably unreliable.
Just as Luffy was about to keep arguing for the "musician" position—
"BANG!!"
A massive impact shook the ship from outside, like something heavy had slammed down on the deck.
Then a rough, slightly weak voice rang out from above:
"HEY!!! COME OUT HERE, PIRATES!!"
The sudden commotion instantly cut off the argument.
The cabin atmosphere solidified.
Ronan's eyes sharpened. His beginner Observation Haki rippled outward like waves, slipping through the wooden walls.
In his perception, there was a single life presence on the deck.
But that presence… wasn't strong.
"Only one person," Ronan said calmly, setting down his teacup. "Not a strong aura. No threat."
On the other side, Zoro closed his eyes. His own newly-learned Observation Haki wasn't as refined as Ronan's, but it was enough to catch something familiar.
Zoro's eyes snapped open. Surprise—and a hint of nostalgia—crossed his face.
"This presence… it's Johnny?"
"Johnny?" Luffy asked, confused. "Who's that? Your friend?"
Zoro stood up, Wado Ichimonji hanging at his waist, a faint smile tugging at his mouth.
"Yeah. Sort of. Two junior bounty hunters I used to run with… specialized in catching small-time thieves."
"Let's go. We'll see what's going on."
They pushed open the cabin door, sunlight pouring down in a blinding flood.
On the deck stood a man in sunglasses, with the kanji "SEA" tattooed on his cheek.
He was soaking wet, furious, and looked completely miserable.
"So… we meet here, Johnny." Zoro's lips curved slightly, the warm look of seeing an old acquaintance.
"Z-Zoro Boss!!"
Johnny's voice cracked with emotion as he stumbled forward.
"B-Boss! Why are you on a pirate ship?!"
Zoro lifted an eyebrow, not bothering to explain the change in his status. Instead, he immediately noticed Johnny's abnormal panic.
"Forget me. Why are you alone? Where's Yosaku? You two are never separated."
At that name, Johnny's face crumpled instantly. The excitement drained out of him, replaced by raw despair.
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