"You know that guy, too?" Luffy asked curiously.
"I do, I guess. He's a pretty cold guy," Aeridar replied without turning around.
Sanji took a puff of his cigarette. "Did you guys do something to piss him off?" he asked Gin.
"No, nothing like that!" Gin retorted loudly.
"Did you disturb his afternoon nap?" Sanji asked.
"Or maybe he was just killing time," Aeridar chimed in.
"Don't be ridiculous! Our fleet couldn't have been wiped out for a reason like that!" Gin said, getting agitated.
"Heheheh, don't get angry, it was just an example," Zeff said with a laugh. "I was just trying to say the Grand Line is a place like that."
"He's right. The Grand Line is a place like that, and there's no mistake about it," Aeridar said, turning with a playful smile. "Whether you believe it or not, it's a place where anything is possible. Perhaps he was just killing time or you disturbed his nap."
"Lu-Luffy, I think I have a disease that prevents me from going to the Grand Line," Usopp said, scared out of his mind.
"So you're saying that no matter what happens, it's not surprising?" Zoro said calmly.
"Exactly. It's a pirate's graveyard, and that's not a joke," Aeridar said, a hint of seriousness in his tone. "The pirates who exist there are all monsters."
"Luffy! We can't go to a place like that! Luffy!" Usopp cried, tears streaming down his face.
Luffy's body trembled, not from fear, but from excitement. "Ah! That sounds thrilling! That's exactly how it should be!"
"You should at least think about your safety!" Usopp shrieked.
"Now my goal is completely set on the Grand Line! That man... I can find him just by going there!"
Even after Aeridar's attempt to discourage him, a confident Zoro didn't believe the world was so far out of reach and was still determined to find the "Hawk-Eyes" man. To Zoro, backing down after hearing about someone's strength went against his very swordsmanship.
"I see. That's commendable courage," Aeridar said with a carefree smile, saying nothing more. Zoro at this moment was just a small fish in the shallow waters of East Blue, far from showing his future potential and vision.
"How foolish," Sanji said, looking at Zoro. "You seem like the type that'll be the first to die!"
"You're not wrong, but 'foolish' is too much," Zoro said calmly without refuting Sanji's words. "When I decided to become the world's strongest swordsman, I put my life on the line. The only one who can call me foolish is the one who made that decision."
Zoro and Sanji stared at each other.
"Me too! Me too!" Luffy said, waving his hands in agreement.
"As a man of the sea, I'm the same!" Usopp said with his mouth wide open, trying to talk himself up.
Zoro hit Usopp on the head with his scabbard. "You're lying," he said, disbelievingly.
"You're completely out of your mind," Sanji said, his lips twitching as he took a puff from his cigarette.
Zeff smiled as he watched the Straw Hats.
"Should I call you brave idiots... or say that ignorance is bliss?" Aeridar said, a sunny smile on his face but a chilling tone in his voice. "Go on, rookies. Go and see hell for yourselves!"
"Huh? You... you know so much about the Grand Line. Have you been there?" Luffy asked, ignoring Aeridar's words entirely.
"Me? I just came back from the Grand Line," Aeridar said, picking his teeth with a toothpick.
"Wow!"
Luffy's eyes lit up.
"What?! You're kidding! You... you've been to the Grand Line?!" Usopp yelled, pointing at Aeridar.
At the same time, Zoro, Sanji, Gin, and everyone else stared at the 20-something-year-old young man in front of them in shock. Even the mighty Krieg Pirate Fleet was defeated in the Grand Line, so was this guy even stronger?
Meanwhile, on Krieg's flagship, the Dreadnought Sabre. The water and food Krieg brought back revived about 100 of his remaining men. He encouraged them to take over the Baratie, form a new fleet, and conquer the Grand Line once more. He even shot one of his men who disagreed.
Meanwhile, on the Going Merry, Nami stared at a wanted poster with a gloomy look on her face.
"What's wrong, Nami-aneki? Are you looking at a bounty poster?" Yosaku asked, walking up to her with Johnny beside him.
"Nothing," Nami said, quickly hiding it.
"Just like you, Nami-aneki, looking at a high-bounty pirate!"
When Johnny saw the wanted poster Nami was looking at, he pointed to it. "I'd suggest you give up on Arlong. I heard he's terrifyingly strong."
"He was peaceful for a while, but I heard he's active again. Still, a 20-million berry bounty is hard to pass up!"
"He's so strong, we could die just by being near him."
"Huh?"
Johnny and Yosaku were talking as they faced the sea, but they suddenly realized no one was behind them. They quickly turned around and saw Nami hanging some clothes on the railing.
"Nami-aneki?" Johnny and Yosaku asked, confused.
"I'm sorry," Nami said, her face flushed and shy. "I want to change clothes. Can you turn around?"
"Wait, wait!"
Johnny and Yosaku's faces turned red. "Change clothes? Now? Right here?"
"Is that okay?" Nami asked, lowering her head shyly.
"Yes! Yes!"
Johnny and Yosaku quickly turned around. As they did, Nami let out a devious smirk and slowly started walking toward them.
As they faced the sea, Johnny said softly to Yosaku, "She's so bold."
Yosaku made a small gesture with his fingers. "It wouldn't hurt to take a little peek, right?"
"Ahhh!"
As soon as they turned their heads, two hands suddenly appeared and pushed them into the ocean.
"Cough, cough! Wh-what are you doing?!" Johnny and Yosaku said, surfacing from the water and yelling at Nami's back.
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