Chapter 53: Next Destination

After the ship set sail, Luo Ning targeted Robin and the Thunder Fruit.

According to the sailing route, Sky Island should be their first stop. So, Luo Ning planned to acquire the Thunder Fruit first. As for Enel, he considered him a fool and killing him wouldn't be a problem.

"Where are we going next?"

Nami asked curiously. During her time in Impel Down, she had learned a lot about sailing and was eager to showcase her skills.

"Head towards the vicinity of Gaya Island. We'll decide then," Luo Ning instructed. With the location known, he no longer needed his compass.

After Nami left, Luo Ning pondered for a moment before a clone materialized beside him.

The clone acknowledged Luo Ning with a nod before departing.

Considering the possibility of unforeseen circumstances, Luo Ning sent his avatar to Cocoyashi Village.

Maintaining a clone requires a small expenditure of Luo Ning's Reiatsu and imagination, but it's necessary.

Nami, unlike Robin the loner, has a hometown and a sister. Nami is his only vulnerability. The World Government lacks any humanity, and Luo Ning knows they'll inevitably target Nami to get to him. Since Nami has been by his side and acquiring her was difficult, Nojiko in Cocoyashi Village is his only leverage.

As a precaution, Luo Ning dispatched his avatar to guard her before it's too late to act. This can be seen as Luo Ning's backup plan. He hadn't considered it before setting sail, but it's on his mind now.

The avatar, empowered by a fraction of Luo Ning's Reiatsu, possesses a vast array of abilities and will likely reach Cocoyashi Village swiftly thanks to its flight capability.

Having completed these preparations, Luo Ning awaited their arrival at Gaya Island.

However, after a day at sea, a minor incident occurred.

"Pirates are attacking again! These fools have a death wish! Inform Mr. Luo Ning!"

For the jailers on warships, encountering pirates is commonplace. Some have the audacity to attack warships, a testament to the madness rampant in the pirate world. Part of the reason, of course, is a complete lack of foresight. Like Krieg, who challenged Mihawk upon entering the Grand Line, only to be chased back to East Blue by the master swordsman.

The fleet had been cut down to a single ship, which Hawkeye ultimately destroyed.

These pirates were all Luo Ning's doing. After all, easy points were up for grabs when dealing with them. They might have been few, but as the saying goes, even a mosquito is meat.

Therefore, Luo Ning always took care of these pirates himself, never delegating the task.

Now that pirates had been discovered again, it was naturally his job to handle them.

"Th-that's a warship! Are we really going to rob one?" a pirate stammered to his companions on the neighboring pirate ship. Two figures stood beside him: an extremely short old woman and a tall, strong man.

These two were Edward Weevil and Miss Buckin, though whether Weevil's surname was accurate remained to be seen.

"Silence! With my son here," Miss Bajin declared, placing great importance on her foolish son (whose true relation to her was also questionable), "what is a mere warship?"

News reached Luo Ning, who emerged upon receiving it and spotting Weevil and Miss Buckin.

He knew these two very well.

After all, Weevil remained the one who cut off Zephyr's arm. Judging by the timeline, this man was only in his twenties when he accomplished this feat, and he was considered a formidable power.

Of course, Zephyr was also old at the time, and surrounded by many subordinates. Given these circumstances, Luo Ning found it somewhat acceptable that Weevil could sever Zephyr's arm.

However, Luo Ning even suspected that Weevil might truly be Whitebeard's son. Why, you ask? Primarily because of the Whitebeard Pirates' reaction.

Weevil and Miss Buckin had always operated under the banner of Whitebeard, yet nobody had seen Whitebeard himself.

It's important to understand that casually using the banner of a Yonko is no trifling matter.

And Weevil's strength was undeniable. Whitebeard likely already knew about such a person. If Weevil were an imposter, then the question arises: why hadn't Whitebeard taken action to deal with him?

Even if Whitebeard himself didn't make a move, none of his captains under him intervened against Weevil.

Putting aside the question of whether they could defeat him, their inaction raises some concerns.

If they knew and did nothing, does that imply tacit approval? As for Miss Buckin, Luo Ning found her even more disgusting than Weevil.

While Weevil might be foolish, Miss Buckin was the one who was truly vicious.