Journey to the Unknown Sky

"Sky Island!? What's that?" Luffy asked, eyes wide with curiosity.

"I don't see any islands up there." Zoro said, glancing up at the sky.

"It's not just the island...it's the sea that's floating in the sky." Robin corrected, her calm voice contrasting the chaos.

"Now I'm even more confused." Sanji muttered, scratching his head.

"What are we waiting for!? Let's go!" Luffy shouted, brimming with excitement.

"But that's impossible. How can an island float in the sky?" Nami asked, her doubt showing.

"You should always expect the unexpected on the Grand Line." Robin said. "Now, we just need to find a way to reach it."

Ryomen spotted Luffy and Usopp rummaging through the remains of the sunken ship. "What are you doing? Be careful, or you might fall!" He warned, heading toward them to prevent any mishaps.

Meanwhile, the others examined the skeleton of one of the ship's crew members. From the condition of the bones, Robin concluded, "He died two hundred years ago. From the South Blue. This ship was an exploration vessel."

"There should be a lot of records on board." She noted, gazing at the ship's remains.

"It's sinking!" Luffy's panicked voice called out.

"Luffy! Hang on!" Ryomen shouted as he rushed over, but both of them plunged into the sea.

"Aah-blhblh!" Luffy and Ryomen gargled as water filled their mouths, with Usopp desperately trying to keep them afloat.

"What are you idiots doing!?" Nami yelled, frustrated.

…

"Guys! We found something amazing!" Luffy grinned, holding up a tattered old map.

"A map… of the Sky Island!?" The crew shouted in surprise.

After calming down, the crew began strategizing.

"Robin's right. We need more information." Nami said suddenly. "If that huge ship got up there, then we can too."

"And how are we going to do that?" Ryomen asked, skeptical.

"By looting the ship!" Nami replied, her determination unwavering.

…

The group now stared at Luffy, who was wearing two barrels covering his body. A small round window at his face and a tube at the top.

"You sure like to put us in danger, huh?" Luffy muttered at Nami, unimpressed.

Zoro, also in a barrel, remained silent.

"I promise to find a way up to the sky, Nami-san!" Sanji said cheerfully, also stuffed inside a barrel.

"I'm counting on you." Nami smiled sweetly.

"Don't worry, my engineering is flawless!" Usopp declared confidently.

"Maybe I should go instead of Luffy…" Ryomen suggested, seeing the chaos ahead.

"Hey, don't take my chance away!" Luffy shot back, indignant.

"Fine then…just don't get into trouble." Ryomen sighed.

The three dove into the sea, heading toward the sunken ship.

…

As the Straw Hats waited for the divers, a ship adorned with monkey-themed decorations appeared.

"Is this where the ship sank!?" A man called out.

"Aye, aye, boss!" His crew replied in unison.

"Prepare to raise the ship! That wreck is mine!" The monkey-man exclaimed, arms raised high.

"Why'd we have to meet these guys now?" Nami groaned.

The man then noticed the Straw Hats. "Hey, what are you doing here? This is my territory!"

"Territory?" Nami echoed.

"That's right! Any sunken ships belong to me! You better not have touched them!" He warned.

"How lucky." Nami smirked, then spoke to him. "Sir, are you going to salvage a ship right now?"

"If there's a sunken ship, I'll bring it up! There's no wreck I can't salvage!"

"Then…would you mind if we watched?" Nami asked sweetly.

"Sure!" The man agreed.

But moments later, one of his subordinates appeared with unconscious men. "Boss, our guys preparing the cradle were knocked out!"

"There's someone down there!?" The monkey-man roared, startling Usopp and Nami.

Ryomen readied himself, sensing the tension rising.

"Hey! Be careful! There are bad people down there!" The man warned the Straw Hats, catching them off guard.

The monkey-ship then deployed a device, surprising everyone as the boss started blowing air into a giant tube.

"No way, he's going to raise the wreck…with his breath!?" Nami gasped in disbelief.

The ship began to rise, but suddenly a crew member shouted, "Boss! The underwater team lost contact! There are people in the wreck!"

"Those bastards! I'll teach them a lesson for messing with my men!" The monkey-like man raised his arms dramatically, pausing mid-air.

"Uh…we're not exactly taking pictures." Nami pointed out dryly.

"Huh!?" He replied, startled out of his pose.

"Was he posing just for us?" Usopp whispered, looking baffled.

The man then dove into the sea, aiming straight for the intruders.

"You think they'll be okay?" Chopper asked worriedly in his Heavy Point form.

"They'll be fine. I get the feeling they won't even end up fighting." Ryomen replied, already recognizing the chemistry between the two pirate captains.

Moments after the monkey man entered the water, a massive turtle surfaced, devouring the wreck whole.

"What is that!? A continent!?" Nami shouted, eyes wide.

"I don't know! I don't see anything! It's all just a dream!" Usopp cried, covering his eyes.

"A dream?" Chopper echoed, confused.

"Phew…Thank goodness!" They all wiped their foreheads in exaggerated relief.

"I can't even bring myself to worry with such idiots around." Ryomen sighed, shaking his head.

"Oh? Have they been…devoured, ship and all?" Robin observed calmly, watching as the giant turtle resurfaced with the vessel clamped in its mouth.

"Don't say that!" Usopp whimpered, visibly upset.

"It seems so. The air hoses are just dangling there." Robin continued.

"Please, stop saying that!" Usopp shouted.

The ship was suddenly jerked forward, pulled by the turtle as it dove.

"This was inevitable if they didn't cut the hoses." Robin remarked.

"We're being dragged under!" Ryomen said grimly.

"Can't you do something!?" Usopp asked, a note of desperation in his voice.

"Impossible. That thing's too massive." Ryomen replied.

Meanwhile, the monkey man's crew scrambled, doing their best to rescue their boss.

Usopp watched them, looking inspired. "That's right! Moments like this are true tests of crew solidarity!"

"Usopp!" Nami snapped. "Cut the hoses! Save the ship!"

"What!? How about not doing that!?" Ryomen retorted angrily.

"Yeah, what about our friends!?" Usopp added, equally appalled.

"She's evil!!" Chopper wailed, visibly horrified.

Suddenly, the sky darkened, and the turtle stopped moving.

"It got dark all of a sudden!" Chopper exclaimed, looking around in shock.

"It's way too early for night!" Nami muttered, squinting at the sudden gloom.

"Then what's going on!? Zoro! Luffy! Sanji!" Usopp called out, and as if on cue, they all surfaced, each carrying sacks stuffed with treasure. Luffy, however, was unconscious, dangling limply.

"Set sail! Let's get out of here!" Zoro barked.

"What happened?" Ryomen asked, curious.

"There was a big monkey down there. He was friendly with Luffy at first." Zoro explained.

"Naturally. They're both monkeys." Sanji added.

"But when he saw what we picked up, he went berserk and turned into a gorilla." Zoro continued.

"Hey, the turtle's acting weird. Its mouth is open. Is that how you got out?" Usopp asked.

"What turtle?" Zoro and Sanji both asked, only now noticing the giant creature. "What's that!?"

"You're just noticing now!?" Usopp shouted in disbelief.

"Uuh…why's it so dark?" Luffy mumbled as he woke up.

Before anyone could answer, the monkey-man resurfaced. "Nobody steals my treasures!" He yelled furiously.

"B-Boss, look out!" His crew warned.

Everyone, including the turtle, turned their eyes to the sky. Five massive shadows adorned with wings loomed overhead.

"Monsters!!" Luffy and the monkey-man screamed.

The sky cleared as suddenly as it had darkened.

"This day keeps getting stranger." Sanji muttered.

"A falling galleon was bad enough." Zoro added.

"The needle pointed to the sky." Nami said.

"A weird monkey tried to salvage the wreck." Usopp exclaimed.

"And a giant turtle ate it." Chopper mumbled.

"It suddenly got dark." Robin stated.

"Then those gigantic monsters appeared." Luffy continued.

"And vanished like they were never there." Ryomen finished.

"Yeah…that was scary." The monkey-man muttered.

A beat of silence passed before Luffy, Sanji, Zoro, and Ryomen simultaneously kicked him into the sky. "Get out!!"

…

"So…you didn't find anything useful." Ryomen crossed his arms, glancing at the pile of junk they brought back.

"We need something like a log pose or a map! That kind of stuff!" Nami snapped, kicking the items away in frustration.

"Aaah!" Sanji and Zoro watched, mouths agape.

"What's that, Luffy?" Nami asked, noticing him stumbling in a suit of dented steel armor.

"Armor!" Luffy declared proudly.

He then ended up sprawled on the ground, his armor destroyed. Zoro and Ryomen stood over him, exchanging concerned looks.

"Is he…alright?" Zoro asked, nudging Luffy with his foot.

"Seems like it." Ryomen muttered, still baffled.

"I got this for you, Nami-san! It's a pretty shell!" Sanji called out.

"I don't want it!" Nami growled, utterly exasperated.

"You're having a hard time." Robin remarked, stepping in.

"How could I not? This ship is filled with idiots!" Nami complained.

"Here. Maybe this will make up for it." Robin casually handed Nami an eternal log pose.

Nami's eyes widened in surprise. "Huh? How did you—?"

"I stole it from the ape's ship." Robin replied nonchalantly.

Nami's frustration instantly melted away as tears of joy filled her eyes. "Robin, you're the only ally I have on this ship!"

"Hey! There's an octopus! Let's make octopus fritters!" Sanji suddenly exclaimed, completely distracted.

"Seems like you've got your hands full." Robin chuckled.

Nami ignored the chaos and examined the log pose. "Jaya. That must be their base."

"Jaya? Are we going there?" Luffy asked, now with a plate of food in hand.

"You're the captain! You decide!" Nami fumed.

"Alright then! Full speed to Jaya!" Luffy shouted enthusiastically.

"But won't the log pose reset itself if we stay too long?" Usopp asked nervously. "We won't be able to make it to Sky Island!"

"What!?" Chopper cried out in alarm.

"Stop the ship! We're not going to Jaya!" Luffy shouted again, making an X with his arms.

Nami sighed, exasperated. "Make up your mind already!"

Luffy crossed his arms with a serious expression. "As captain, I'll decide where we go! We're going to Sky Island!"

"But…how are we getting there?" Nami asked, completely baffled by Luffy's sudden confidence.

"We'll ask someone!" Luffy responded.

"We'll ask someone? What kind of plan is that?" Usopp muttered in disbelief.

"That's true, we should ask for information at Jaya." Nami agreed with a sigh. "So…let's go to Jaya."

Luffy grinned. "Alright! To Jaya!"

"We're right back where we started!" Usopp shouted, slamming his fist on Luffy's head.

Ryomen watched with a deadpan expression. "I feel myself becoming dumber just standing here…"

Robin chuckled. "The log pose won't reset right away. We can visit Jaya quickly and leave."

"Yeah, sounds like a plan!" The idiot trio exclaimed.

…

As the Merry sailed toward Jaya, the crew kept their eyes peeled for the island.

"Anything yet?" Ryomen asked Usopp, who was scanning the horizon with binoculars.

"Not yet." Usopp replied.

"Shouldn't be too far now. The monkey guy said this was his territory." Zoro added.

"I bet Jaya's a spring island. It feels so nice and warm." Luffy said dreamily, sitting on the figurehead.

"I like spring. Even the seagulls seem to enjoy it," Chopper replied with a smile, pointing at the birds circling above.

Without warning, the seagulls dropped dead onto the deck, causing the crew to jump back in shock.

"Waaaah! They've been shot down!" Chopper shrieked.

"Shot!? But I didn't hear any gunfire!" Usopp exclaimed.

"Look! There's a bullet!" Chopper pointed at a small, round object lodged in one of the birds. "Based on the direction the bird was flying, the shooter must be straight ahead!"

"You're saying we're being attacked from an island we can't even see? That's–" Nami started, her voice wavering.

Before she could finish, Ryomen raised an eyebrow at her. "You weren't about to say 'impossible' right? Otherwise, all that training these past few days would have been for nothing."

Nami cleared her throat. "Pfft. Of course not."

"Does this mean…that person has Observation Haki?" Usopp whispered, his voice trembling.

…

Far off on the western coast of Jaya, a man stood on a rooftop, his clothing reminiscent of 19th-century Europe. With calm precision, he held his rifle steady.

"Poor things. How they must've suffered. I wasn't able to kill one of them instantly." He mused aloud. "But such is the way of life. Fate is never kind."

…

The Merry finally approached Jaya, and the crew's excitement returned.

"Look at that town!" Luffy exclaimed.

"It looks like a resort!" Usopp added, gazing at the picturesque buildings.

"Yeah! I wouldn't mind staying here for a bit!" Nami smiled, temporarily forgetting her earlier frustration.

As they neared the port, the number of pirate ships docked became visible.

"Guess you can't judge an island by its looks." Ryomen joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Cut it out! Pirates wouldn't anchor here in broad daylight!" Nami's face paled.

"Yeah! Nami's right!" Usopp agreed with her.

Usopp, Nami and Chopper then stared at each other in silence.

"They'll kill us all!! What kind of place is this!?" They shouted with tears in their eyes.

"This island's full of interesting guys!" Luffy said, looking more excited than ever.

"Looks like a fun spot to me." Zoro grinned.

"And now…let the chaos begin." Ryomen sighed, bracing himself for what was to come.