The morning sun glimmered over Water 7's canals as the Straw Hats stood aboard their new ship, ropes loosening, sails catching the breeze.
The dock was crowded.
Iceburg stood at the front, arms crossed, sunglasses glinting.
"…Take care of her," he said gruffly. "She's built to survive hell itself."
Franky grinned. "She will. SUPER promise."
Zambai wiped his nose hard. "Oi, Straw Hats! Don't die out there, yeah?!"
Mozu and Kiwi standing behind Zambai yelled out. "FRANKY-ANIKI TAKE CARE!!!"
Granny Kokoro waved wildly from the pier.
"Take care, you idiots! And don't forget to eat properly!"
Chimney and Gonbe shouted together,
"BYEEEE!"
Luffy leaned over the railing, waving both arms. "THANKS FOR EVERYTHING!"
Usopp saluted dramatically. "We'll be legends!"
Nami smiled, eyes soft. "…Goodbye, Water 7."
The ropes dropped.
The ship began to move.
Then—
BOOM.
A cannonball screamed through the air, splashing down just off the bow.
Everyone froze.
"…EH?" Luffy blinked.
Another cannon fired.
BOOM.
This one slammed into the water even closer.
Luffy's head snapped toward the harbor.
"…GRANDPA?!!!"
On a Marine battleship not far behind them, Monkey D. Garp stood proudly at the bow, cannon crew scrambling behind him.
He grabbed a microphone.
"LUFFY! LUFFY! CAN YOU HEAR ME?!"
Luffy cupped his hands around his mouth.
"I HEAR YOU, GRANDPA!"
Garp laughed. "GOOD! I just got a message from the top brass!"
The Straw Hats tensed.
"It looks like your journey ends here!"
"EHHHH?!" Luffy yelled. "I THOUGHT YOU WERE GONNA LET US GO!"
Garp scratched his head.
"I WAS!"
"But they wouldn't allow me!"
Then he grinned wide.
"BWAHAHAHAHA!"
Zoro clicked his tongue. "…Here it comes."
Behind Garp, Marines struggled as a cannonball the size of a house was rolled into position.
Nami screamed. "IS THAT EVEN A CANNONBALL?!"
Usopp turned pale. "WE'RE GONNA DIE!"
Chopper clutched Luffy's leg. "I DON'T WANT TO DIE ON A NEW SHIP!"
Sanji growled. "I'll kick him into the sea!"
Garp raised his arm. "I'll throw this one myself!"
The massive cannonball lifted.
The air itself seemed to compress.
The massive cannonball hovered in Garp's grip.
Even from this distance, its shadow swallowed half the harbor.
The air pressed down on the Ship like an invisible hand.
Nami's knees buckled. "…That's not a cannonball."
"That's a meteor."
Usopp screamed, pointing. "WHY IS HE BUILT LIKE THAT?! GRANDPAS AREN'T SUPPOSED TO DO THAT!"
Chopper shook violently, fur standing on end.
"W–W–We're going to be flattened!"
"Like a pancake!"
"A pirate pancake!"
Robin tilted her head slightly, calm as ever.
"…Ara."
Everyone turned to her.
"If that hits us," she said gently, "we'll likely be crushed instantly."
"Our bodies would be spread across the sea like… mushed ketchup."
Silence.
Then—
"STOP SAYING IT LIKE THAT!!!" Usopp shrieked. "WHY ARE YOU SO CALM ABOUT IT?!"
Robin smiled. "I find it helps to be precise."
Sanji snapped. "THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR POETRY!"
Zoro cracked his neck, eyes sharp.
"…That thing's real."
"If it hits, we're done."
Franky stared at the cannonball, teeth clenched. "Even the ship can't tank that head-on."
Luffy blinked, squinting at Garp. "Grandpaaaa! You're gonna break my ship!"
Garp laughed into the microphone.
"THAT'S THE POINT!"
The Marines behind him scrambled.
"V–Vice Admiral! Please don't throw it yet!"
"Our calculations—!"
Garp ignored them.
"LUFFY!" he shouted. "LET'S SEE IF THAT SHIP OF YOURS CAN HANDLE A GRANPA'S LOVE!"
Nami snapped.
"THAT'S NOT LOVE, THAT'S MURDER!"
Usopp grabbed Franky by the shoulders.
"FRANKY! DO SOMETHING SUPER RIGHT NOW!"
Franky slammed his foot down.
"EVERYONE HOLD ON!"
The SHIP creaked as systems rumbled deep within her hull.
Garp drew his arm back.
The world seemed to hold its breath.
Chopper screamed. "DOCTOR KUREHA I'M SORRY!!!"
Robin calmly folded her hands.
"…I do hope my books survive."
Usopp sobbed.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE AS KETCHUP!"
Franky slammed a palm onto the deck.
"WAIT!"
The wind howled.
The sea churned.
Garp's grin widened impossibly. "READY OR NOT—!"
The cannonball LAUNCHED.
And in that instant—
A house-sized cannonball hurtled toward them.
And Franky—
Was worried about something else.
Everyone snapped their heads toward him.
"Before we leave," Franky said, deadly serious, "we gotta name this ship!"
The Straw Hats stared at him.
"…NOW?!" Nami shrieked. "WE'RE ABOUT TO DIE!"
"Yes!" Franky shouted back, veins popping.
"This is IMPORTANT!"
"A ship without a name is bad luck!"
Luffy gasped loudly. "Oh yeah! We forgot!"
Zoro blinked. "…You're all insane."
Usopp clutched his head. "WE ARE SECONDS FROM BEING VAPORIZED!"
"Okay okay!" Luffy yelled, pointing at the figurehead. "How about—POLAR BEAR!"
"…Why?" Nami asked weakly.
"Because it's strong!" Luffy said confidently.
"Tiger!" Chopper added, bouncing despite the terror. "Tigers are cool!"
Usopp waved his arms. "No animals! What about 'Usopp the Great's Magnificent—'"
"NO!" everyone screamed.
Sanji rubbed his temple.
"This ship deserves elegance."
"How about Le Soleil Noir?"
Zoro scoffed. "Sounds like a wine."
Robin folded her hands, thoughtful.
"…Perhaps 'Dark Nemesis.'"
A chill ran through the deck.
Usopp gulped. "WHY DOES THAT SOUND LIKE IT EATS SOULS?!"
Franky laughed. "Hahaha! Not bad—but nah."
The cannonball grew larger in the sky.
Nami snapped. "DECIDE ALREADY OR WE'RE DEAD!"
Franky's grin widened, bright and unshakable.
"The Thousand Sunny."
Silence.
The name hung in the air.
Luffy's eyes lit up like fireworks. "I LIKE IT!"
He threw both fists into the air.
"THOUSAND SUNNY!"
Robin smiled softly. "It suits her… warm, but unyielding."
Zoro smirked. "Better than Polar Bear."
Chopper cheered. "It sounds happy!"
Sanji nodded once. "…A ship that carries the sun forward."
Nami exhaled, defeated but relieved.
"…Fine. Just—do the thing already!"
Franky spun toward the bow.
"USOPP!"
Usopp jumped. "Y–YES?!"
"Under the Sunny's head—there's a button!"
"…WHAT BUTTON?!" Usopp screamed.
Franky pointed dramatically.
"PRESS IT!"
"It's loaded with COLA!"
Usopp didn't question it.
He dove.
Reached under the lion's head.
Found a large, unmistakably red button.
"…This better not kill us," he muttered.
He slammed his palm down.
The ship ROARED.
Engines hidden deep within the hull ignited, the deck trembling violently.
Jets of compressed energy blasted downward.
Franky threw his fist into the air.
"COUP DE—"
"BURST!!!" Franky and Usopp shouted together.
The Thousand Sunny LAUNCHED.
The deck tilted violently as the ship flew into the sky.
At that exact moment—
The massive cannonball tore through the air—
And missed.
By a hair.
It smashed into the sea below with catastrophic force, sending a tidal explosion skyward.
Water vaporized.
The harbor shook.
Marines stared upward, frozen.
"…THE SHIP IS FLYING?!" one screamed.
Another dropped his rifle.
"…That's illegal."
Garp blinked slowly.
"…Huh."
Aokiji lying next to Garp lifted his sleep mask. "Ara that's surprising. Guess they escaped."
The Thousand Sunny soared, sails snapping wildly, sunlight glinting off her hull—
Before crashing back into the sea miles away, far beyond Marine reach.
On deck—
The Straw Hats lay scattered like laundry after a storm.
Silence.
Then—
Luffy burst into laughter. "WE MADE IT!!!"
Usopp sobbed.
"I SAW MY LIFE!"
"AND MY FUNERAL!"
"AND MY GRAVESTONE SAID 'IDIOT'!"
Nami lay flat on her back.
"I'm charging all of you for emotional damages."
"And trauma."
"And ship insurance."
Chopper sparkled. "WE FLEW!"
Sanji lit a cigarette with shaking hands.
"…I hate your family, Luffy."
Zoro sat up slowly. "…That was kinda fun."
Franky crossed his arms proudly, chest out.
"SUPER launch."
Behind them—
Water 7 faded into the distance.
Ahead—
The unknown waited.
And the Thousand Sunny sailed on.
—————————-
Days Later.
The sea around them darkened.
Not suddenly—but gradually, as if the light itself was being drained away.
The sky dimmed to a dull gray.
The wind slowed.
The waves lost their rhythm.
And then—
Fog rolled in.
Thick.
Heavy.
Unnatural.
It crept across the surface of the sea like a living thing, swallowing the horizon inch by inch.
Nami stood at the helm, eyes narrowing.
"…That's not normal fog."
Sanji leaned against the railing, cigarette ember glowing faintly in the gloom.
"…Feels wrong," he muttered. "Like the air's heavier."
Zoro rested a hand on Wado Ichimonji, instincts screaming.
"Yeah."
"This place gives me a bad feeling."
Usopp's knees knocked together violently.
"I—"
"I KNOW THIS PLACE!"
Everyone turned.
Chopper gulped, ears flat. "T-this is—"
Robin's voice cut through the tension, calm but grave. "…The Florian Triangle."
Silence followed.
Nami stiffened. "…The fog sea?"
Robin nodded.
"A region of the Grand Line where ships disappear without a trace."
"No currents, no storms—"
"Just fog."
Usopp pointed wildly into the mist.
"SAILORS SAY SHIPS GET DRAGGED UNDER!"
"OR CURSED!"
"OR EATEN BY SEA DEVILS!"
Chopper whimpered. "I don't like cursed…"
Robin continued evenly.
"Entire fleets have vanished here."
"Some claim it's haunted."
"Others say it's home to things that shouldn't exist."
Sanji exhaled smoke slowly. "…Great. So it's definitely haunted."
Luffy leaned over the railing, peering into the fog. "Cool."
"NOT COOL!" Nami snapped.
The Thousand Sunny drifted forward, its lion figurehead cutting into the mist.
Visibility dropped to almost nothing.
Then—
The fog parted.
Everyone froze.
A massive ship drifted ahead.
No—
What remained of one.
Its hull was cracked and hollowed, wood blackened by age and salt.
Masts snapped like broken bones.
Sails hung in tatters, fluttering weakly.
A graveyard.
Zoro's eyes narrowed. "…That ship's been dead for years."
Usopp swallowed hard. "…Or longer."
And then—
They saw it.
At the highest point of the wreck—
A figure stood.
Tall.
Unmoving.
Outlined against the fog.
Chopper squinted."…Is that… a person?"
The figure lifted a cane.
Tipped a hat.
And stepped forward.
The fog shifted—
Revealing a skeleton.
Tall and slender, bones gleaming white despite the gloom.
A top hat perched neatly atop his skull.
An old-fashioned coat hung from his frame.
And from his mouth—
Came a voice.
Cheerful.
Lively.
SINGING.
"Yohohoho~ Yohohoho~
"Yohohoho~ Yohohoho~ "
The Straw Hats screamed in perfect unison.
"A GHOST!!!"
"IT'S A TALKING SKELETON!!!"
"WE'RE GONNA DIE!!!"
Usopp collapsed. "I KNEW IT! THIS PLACE IS CURSED!"
Chopper fainted. "A—A—A—!"
Sanji kicked him upright. "DON'T FAINT NOW!"
Zoro stared, unblinking. "…Skeletons can sing now?"
The skeleton paused mid-song. "Oh?"
He adjusted his hat politely. "Ah~ Good evening!"
He waved with exaggerated grace.
"Please excuse my sudden appearance—"
"May I trouble you fine folks…"
He leaned forward slightly.
"…for some tea?"
Silence.
The fog thickened.
The ship creaked.
Nami's face twitched. "…Robin."
"Yes?"
"…Is that normal here?"
Robin smiled faintly. "…Not particularly."
Luffy's eyes sparkled. "YOU'RE AWESOME!"
The skeleton laughed.
"Yohohoho~!"
"Why, thank you!"
The fog swallowed the laughter.
And the Thousand Sunny drifted forward—
Deeper—
Into the Florian Triangle.
Where the dead sang.
And the unknown waited.