So, ordinary compasses don't work here.
Only specially crafted Log Poses can function as proper navigational tools on the Grand Line.
Since the information about Reverse Mountain had proven true, it was safe to assume that everything else Ren said afterward was also credible.
However—
If memory served correctly, wasn't this Ren's first time entering the Grand Line too?
"Please, call me Prophet."
Ren caught the subtle curiosity behind Zoro's tone and smiled as he fastened the Log Pose onto Nami's fair wrist.
"As I said, the islands scattered across the Grand Line are all magnetically linked under specific laws.But there aren't just one or two routes — there are seven distinct magnetic paths.
In these mysterious seas where it's impossible to pinpoint one's location, only the magnetic readings recorded by the Log Pose can be trusted.
Every time you reach a new island, you must allow the Log Pose to record the island's magnetic signature. Only through this chain of connected readings can you find the direction toward the next destination.
The Log Pose in my hand points to the starting island of one such route — Whiskey Peak.
So please, navigator, keep it safe."
"Yes, Captain!"
Nami winked playfully and slipped out from Ren's arms.
She lifted her wrist, holding the strange compass-like device toward the sky. The glass orb gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight.
And all of this was reflected inside a telescope lens.
"Oi, oi, isn't that the Log Pose the old man mentioned?"
Beneath the lighthouse at Twin Cape, aboard a pirate ship flying a bold jolly roger, the lookout asked nervously.
"Looks like it," said the bearded man beside him — missing a tooth and wearing a black hat — the first mate, Derry.
He took the telescope for a look, then nodded and turned to the crew. "Where's Captain Bonney?"
"She's eating," one pirate grumbled. "After trying to rob the old man's supplies and getting beaten up, she's been in a bad mood. So now she's stress-eating… again. That's the last of our food stores."
Another, who looked more like a simple fisherman than a pirate, added, "But we can't help it. Captain Bonney's body's… special. We have to reach the next island soon, or our food won't last."
"I get it. Bring us closer — we're intercepting that ship. We're taking that Log Pose," Derry ordered sharply.
The helmsman calculated their course and began maneuvering the ship. Around them, the rest of the pirates mobilized — swords drawn, muskets loaded, cannons readied.
"Wait—something's off. Those people don't look like pirates," the lookout frowned, pulling the scope back. The flag on the other vessel was blank. No skull, no bones — no emblem at all.
"The Grand Line's this crazy, and you think non-pirates just wander in here? You seeing things?" Derry snatched the telescope back, squinted through it, and froze.
No pirate flag.
"What now? Do we attack?" the lookout asked uncertainly.
"Let's see first," Derry said, voice low. "I don't want to harm innocents. But… if those people refuse to hand it over, then we have no choice.
We owe Kuma. His hand of salvation saved too many from the Sorbet Kingdom — our families included. We'll repay that debt through Bonney."
He lowered the scope, face hardening. "Still, there's no need to despair. We're not at the point of bloodshed yet.
Bring me the Captain's wanted poster — it'll come in handy when we land.
A bounty of twenty-one million one hundred thousand beli — they'll realize soon enough what kind of opponent they're facing."
The Bonney Pirates, prepared to overwhelm through sheer presence, began their interception.
The coordination between helmsman and navigator was seamless — unsurprising, since before turning to piracy, they'd been the finest fishermen in the Sorbet Kingdom.
Up on the Twin Cape lighthouse, Crocus furrowed his brows as he watched the pirate ship fade into the distance.
As a veteran of the Oro Jackson, he of course had a Den Den Mushi in his possession.
He'd only recently received word of Buggy's death. For an old man, that kind of news weighed heavily.
So when that brash young woman had stormed into his storeroom and tried to steal food, he'd taught her a lesson without hesitation — and withheld the Log Pose he'd intended to give.
He'd planned to make her crew show some sincerity first. He never imagined they'd sail off and attack that peculiar ship flying no pirate flag.
"Ah well… everyone's got their own fate," Crocus muttered, shaking his head as he cast one last glance toward the odd vessel.
After all, he'd seen plenty of East Blue traders foolishly trying to "conquer" the Grand Line. Their endings were usually miserable.
If they were dumb enough to tempt death, then so be it.
"So, they're targeting us, huh?"
Standing at the bow of the Enlightenment, Ren's expression twisted oddly as he watched the pirate ship approach from the flank.
According to Nami's calculations, they were on course to intercept perfectly.
Still, they could just veer off and avoid the encounter — at worst, they'd endure a few cannon shots.
Of course… none of the four aboard had any intention of retreating.
Who did these clowns think they were robbing?
"Well, this looks like a fun way to kill some time," Zoro said with a grin, stepping onto the side deck as a fierce light sparked in his eyes. "It's been too long since we met an opponent with any weight."
"I'm interested too," Nojiko said, pulling out an octagonal talisman carved with a crimson dragon, excitement gleaming in her eyes.
"Do you think their ship has treasure?" Nami's eyes practically turned into beli signs. "They're pirates — they have to have a treasure room, right?"
"Maybe," Ren sighed, glancing helplessly at his eager crewmates before looking at the enemy flag.
Unfamiliar design. Probably small fry.
As he thought that, the two ships finally drew close.
"Oi, oi, what's this? They're not even aiming the cannons?"
"Feels like they're underestimating us."
"Isn't that good? Fewer casualties. We don't even know for sure if they're pirates."
"Enough talk. Prepare for battle — and give me the wanted poster," Derry ordered.
From his vantage, he saw four figures on the deck of the strange three-masted ship — and a bunch of weird statues.
Something felt wrong, but he shook it off and raised the poster high.
"Oi! You there! Stop your ship right now!" Derry shouted across the waves. "You're being robbed! We're pirates — our captain is the 21,100,000-beli great pirate, Jewelry Bonney!
If you know what's good for you, surrender peacefully and no one gets hurt!"
"Bonney?"
Ren's eyes flickered with surprise as he focused on the pirate ship — but there was no sign of the pink-haired woman herself.
A coincidence of names?
Zoro stepped forward, blocking Ren with a smirk. "Not yet, Captain. Let your first mate handle this one."
"When did you become first mate?" Nami snapped, pulling out her Magical Clima-Tact, glaring at his back.
The captain of this ship was obviously Ren, but being vice-captain meant a bigger share of loot — and she still owed four hundred million!
"Women should sit this one out," Zoro said flatly, resting his blades and fixing a cold stare on the encroaching pirates.
Ren watched, half-amused, half-resigned.
Honestly, it wasn't that strange. Even in the original timeline, Zoro had once tried to seize leadership after witnessing Nami's ferocity — a sort of "I might not be captain, but I'm at least the first mate" attitude.
Of course, he'd eventually given up after realizing he couldn't out-bark her.
For now, Ren thought, let's just see how it plays out.
"Derry, I think they're going to fight back," the lookout warned, voice tense.
"Then beat them down! In close combat, there's no way we lose — sixty-seven to four, the advantage's ours!"
Derry drew his saber, gripping Bonney's wanted poster in his other hand.
Moments later, the two ships were side-by-side — close enough for boarding.
The Bonney Pirates leapt across, surrounding the four intruders in a crescent formation.
"This is your last warning — surrender!" Derry barked, stepping ahead of his men. He locked eyes on the black-haired man who seemed to lead the group, and brandished the wanted poster.
"Do you even know what a 21,100,000-beli bounty means!?"
"So it really is her," Ren murmured with a faint, amused smile. "Alright, go. Just don't kill them."
What…?They saw the wanted poster and still wanted to fight?
The lookout nearly lost his mind — were these people crazy?
But the next second, a green-haired swordsman's sneer told him everything.
"How arrogant… a mere 21-million-beli pirate?"
Zoro drew his blades, crossing them with a metallic clang before charging straight in.
"Fools! I'm Derry! I'll teach you some respect!" the first mate roared, striding forward to meet him.
He got his lesson all right — in the form of being sent flying backward like a cannonball, smashing through his own men.
"The fools here are you. Rhino Return!"
Zoro spun like a gale through the crowd, twin blades slashing in a blinding whirlwind.
In seconds, chaotic flashes of steel filled the air.
The deck erupted in a howling storm; white sword-winds weaved together into a lattice pattern that swallowed the pirates whole.
Over twenty men were hurled into the air, screaming as they crashed to the ground.
"Gale Sword!"
Almost at the same time, Nami thrust her Clima-Tact forward.
A tiny bubble formed at the staff's tip — and when it popped, a razor-sharp gust blasted out, slicing down several enemies.
She dashed forward, the three blue batons of her Clima-Tact locking together.
From one end, black orbs of lightning wrapped in bubbles shot out, bursting mid-air into a swirling ribbon of thunderclouds.
"Magical Clima-Tact: Thundercloud Rod!"
With a sweeping motion, she unleashed the storm. The black band of lightning engulfed the remaining pirates, golden arcs crackling wildly.
Thunder roared.
Dozens of pirates convulsed mid-scream, charred and smoking before collapsing unconscious.
"Hey! Don't steal my prey, Nami!"
Zoro slashed the half-conscious Derry back down to the deck, glaring over his shoulder in irritation at the thief of his fun.
(End of Chapter)