With the ship's navigator ill, Luffy was running around as both the temporary doctor and the temporary navigator.
Although... even so... at this moment, Luffy felt a slight sense of affirmation toward the Plan.
Without this knowledge, what would he do in this situation?
It seems he could only watch helplessly.
Perform clown tricks in front of Nami to make her feel better? That would be utterly clownish. Not just useless, but completely ineffective, even counterproductive.
He didn't know how much time had passed.
Luffy was carefully using a damp towel to wipe the sweat from Nami's forehead when a commotion broke out outside the cabin, along with Merry's anxious shouts.
"Luffy, Luffy, it's bad!"
Merry whooshed through the cabin door, her little face full of panic, lowering her voice as she said:
"Zoro saw someone standing on the sea with his telescope! And I can feel it, there's a really, really big thing right below us that's about to come up!"
As if to prove Merry's words, the Going Merry suddenly rocked violently, as if rammed from below by some massive creature.
Nami let out a groan of discomfort in her fevered sleep.
Already in a bad mood, Luffy now faced this. Whoever it was, an enemy was just waiting to be punched flat.
He left Nami in Merry's care.
With suppressed fury in his eyes, he strode toward the deck.
When he pushed open the cabin door, everyone was gasping at the scene before them.
"Doesn't look like they come in peace," Zoro remarked, his hand already on his sword hilt.
A massive, strangely shaped submarine resembling a whale, far larger than the Going Merry, was breaking through the sea surface and slowly rising. The waves it churned up tossed the Merry about like a small boat in a storm.
The submarine's hatch opened, and many figures quickly swarmed onto its upper deck.
Leading them was a portly, middle-aged man dressed in gaudy clothes, wearing a crown. He chewed loudly on some unknown food while sizing up the Straw Hat crew with an arrogant gaze.
Two guards stood beside him.
One man sported an exaggerated afro.
The other was the man Zoro had seen earlier on the sea, wearing a blue nightgown but with a dazed, vacant expression.
The combination looked utterly incongruous.
Behind them was a group of soldiers in uniform, armed with rifles.
"You bastards!"
Sanji was the first to curse angrily. "What the hell do you think you're doing, popping up out of nowhere like that? We have a sick person resting on our ship!"
Zoro's hand was already gripping his sword hilt, his eyes icy. "We don't have time to waste here with you. State your name."
The obese, king-like man let out a loud burp, then jumped onto the Merry's stern railing. His massive body made the wooden railing groan under his weight.
"I am the King of the Drum Kingdom, Wapol!"
The man sneered, waving a hand. The soldiers on the ship behind him raised their rifles.
"You pirates! If you don't want to sink to the bottom of the sea, hand over your Log Pose or Eternal Pose pointing to Drum Island!"
"Drum Island?"
Luffy had just stepped onto the deck. Hearing the name, his mind stirred. He turned to Robin for confirmation.
Robin nodded. "That's where we need to go." Having been active around Alabasta all these years, she knew quite a bit about the neighboring Drum Island.
From what she knew, it was inseparable from the king before them.
"Drum Island was once a major medical power, famous for its many excellent doctors. However, about half a year ago, a tragedy occurred known as the 'Doctor 20' Incident. Almost all the doctors were expelled or disappeared..."
"Wahahahaha!"
Wapol laughed triumphantly upon hearing this, patting his round belly. "That's right! That was my masterpiece! Doctors only need to serve me alone! The common rabble can just pay if they want treatment. As the King of Drum Island, I should have such privileges! See? My vessel, the White Iron King, was built exactly for this purpose!"
"You lot don't seem to have a Pose. Well, as the price for me personally coming out, hand over all the treasure and food on your ship!"
As he spoke, he actually grabbed a short sword from a guard's waist and started crunch-crunching on it like a biscuit, causing Usopp's eyes to nearly pop out of his head.
"He even eats swords?!"
He thought Luffy was invincible when it came to eating, but he never imagined there was a master like this.
Wapol licked his lips, bragging. "Hmph! I am a user of the Baku Baku no Mi! I can eat anything and make it a part of myself..."
Before he could finish, a fist wrapped in jet-black Armament Haki was already in front of his face, covering the distance instantly and smashing squarely into his fat face.
BAM!
Wapol didn't even see who threw the punch. He screamed as he was sent flying backward like a cannonball, slamming into the submarine's mast with a tremendous crash.
"Zoro! Sanji! Don't make too much noise, you'll disturb Nami's rest," Luffy said.
"Roger!"
"Couldn't wait any longer!"
With the captain's order, Zoro and Sanji pounced like tigers into the flock of rifle-wielding soldiers.
Sword flashes gleamed, leg shadows flew. The soldiers didn't even have a chance to pull their triggers before they cried out and fell to the ground.
Even Robin lightly raised her hands, crossing them over her chest.
"Fleur Fleur: Clutch."
Countless arms sprouted from the deck and the ship's sides, accurately seizing the throats or joints of the remaining soldiers, easily subduing them.
"I don't want anyone disturbing that Cat Burglar lady's rest either. Please be quiet, everyone." Robin held considerable appreciation for Nami.
Her flaws were obvious, but her strengths were equally prominent.
In the blink of an eye, the rabble Wapol brought was completely cleared.
Only the afro guard and the nightgown man remained, staring dumbfounded at the scene.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"
Wapol finally caught his breath. Supported by his subordinates, he looked up only to see Luffy leap into the air.
"Giving you a send-off."
Luffy looked at the massive submarine, the White Iron King, and inflated his fist.
"Gomu Gomu no... Hakoku!"
The enormous rubber fist shot out like a battering ram. Not only did it send the barely risen Wapol flying again, but the accompanying terrifying blow also struck the massive submarine White Iron King, snapping its keel and causing it to begin sinking rapidly.
A large part of the submarine relied on Wapol's Devil Fruit ability to hold it together. With him unconscious, the vessel disintegrated quickly.
"If Wapol is nearby, then Drum Island should be close," Luffy said, not even glancing at the sinking ship as he turned and walked back to the cabin.
Right now, nothing was more important than reaching Drum Island as quickly as possiblle.
***
Dive deeper into the story with 30+ advance chapters, available now on Patreon!patreon.com/CNBLUE
If you're enjoying the novel, please consider leaving a review. Your support is crucial and helps the story grow immensely. Thank you!