As Sandy and Luffy arrived at the coast, they saw a group of Marine soldiers firing at the Going Merry.
Just as Sandy was about to make a move, a sudden strong wind blew through the area.
Sandy looked speechlessly in Dragon's direction, thinking, "What a redundant move…"
After the gust, the Marine formation was completely disrupted, and even the cannon platform was blown away. Seriously, who would believe that if you told them?
"Space Field…"
Once Sandy was on board the Merry, Nami immediately rushed over and hugged him. Sandy naturally accepted it with pleasure.
Sanji's entire body flared with sour flames. "Sandy, you bastard, let go of Miss Nami right now!"
Zoro said speechlessly, "You idiots, pay attention! We're not out of danger yet!"
Only then did everyone realize it was still raining heavily.
After an unknown amount of time, the Going Merry had sailed out of Logue Town's sea area, but the dark clouds above hadn't dispersed, and the heavy rain kept pouring down.
At this moment, Sandy, Luffy, and Zoro stood at the bow of the ship.
Looking at the turbulent sea, the waves seemed capable of swallowing the Merry whole.
Sandy sighed. "This heavy rain seems to have lasted forever, huh?"
Zoro nodded. "Yeah, it's been a long time."
Luffy tilted his head. "Will we be swallowed by these waves?"
The three of them didn't notice that Nami, standing behind them, was already fuming with anger.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Nami shouted angrily, "You three sure look relaxed! Do you even know how busy we are trying not to die here?"
Just then, Usopp cried out in fear, "Nami! The ship's going to hit that big mountain! Do something quick!"
Nami barked out orders immediately. "Sanji, take the helm! Turn left sixty degrees!"
Sanji gritted his teeth. "I can't, Nami! The current's too strong. It won't turn!"
At that moment, Sandy said calmly, "It's my turn."
Zoro raised a brow. "And how exactly are you gonna do that?"
Sandy smirked. "Cut it."
Nami grabbed Sandy's head and pointed at the giant mountain ahead, eyes wide. "Look carefully! How the hell are you going to cut that?!"
"Let go of me," Sandy said speechlessly. "Or it'll be too late!"
Immediately, he assumed a stance, extending one hand and holding his index and middle fingers vertically in front of his chest, level with his chin.
A small space vortex appeared on his left side, and a sword slowly emerged from it.
The "High Wind" that appeared this time had transformed into a double-edged sword, no longer its usual single-edged form.
Sandy gripped the hilt and roared,
"Space Slash — One Sword Cleaves the Mountain!"
Clang!
In an instant, like a flash of lightning, a blinding white light flashed across the sea, and the area in front of the Merry split clean in two.
A massive crack opened before their eyes, accompanied by the roar of crashing waves.
This time, Sandy was smarter. He didn't just cut straight up like last time, which had created a space zone that sucked in seawater and formed a vortex.
Instead, he cut at a thirty-degree angle to the right of the mountain, using the giant waves on that side to push the Merry out.
He had quickly realized that if he split the mountain straight down, the ship's bottom would still hit a reef.
Even if they avoided a head-on collision, the ship's hull would be wrecked.
Everyone stood frozen in shock at Sandy's slash.
Sandy shouted, "Nami! Take the helm already! Don't just stand there. You know what to do!"
Nami snapped out of it and started giving rapid orders.
"Zoro, lower the sails first. Luffy, keep your eyes on the left waves and report anything unusual. Usopp, Sanji, turn right sixty degrees. Sandy, the front's yours!"
The Merry grazed past the mountain's side, missing it by mere meters.
After a lot of frantic maneuvering, they finally—finally—escaped the danger.
At that moment, the rain stopped, the sky cleared, and everyone collapsed onto the deck, panting heavily.
The power of nature was truly astonishing.
After catching their breath, Sandy turned to Nami with a grin. "Not bad, Nami. Your navigation skills are the best in the world. You're a genius among geniuses. Even the navigator on the Pirate King's ship couldn't compare to you!"
Zoro rolled his eyes. "Hey, hey, that's a bit much, don't you think?"
Sanji's eyes turned into hearts. "Miss Nami, I love you!"
Usopp sighed dramatically. "Nami, you're incredible."
"Hahaha!" Luffy got up, patted her shoulder, and laughed. "Nami, you—"
Before he could finish, Nami punched him away, then said a little shyly, "I'm not that amazing… but I'll accept the compliment, hehe."
"Tch, shameless," Zoro muttered under his breath.
Nami gave him a dangerous look. "What was that, Zoro?"
Zoro quickly changed the subject. "Sandy, didn't you say you'd faint after using that move? Why didn't you this time?"
"Yeah!" Everyone stared at Sandy.
Sandy spread his hands. "That's just what happens with geniuses. You can't explain genius. How am I supposed to explain something even I don't get?"
"This guy's as annoying as ever."
"I regret asking."
"By the way," Usopp suddenly remembered, "your bounty's three hundred million now, right?"
"Three hundred million?!" everyone exclaimed.
Usopp leaned in. "How the hell did your bounty get that high, Sandy?"
Nami added, "Three hundred million?! What did you even do?"
Sandy sighed inwardly. To keep up his image, he stuck to the same nonsense story he'd used to fool Smoker.
Usopp's eyes sparkled. "Sandy, that's so cool!"
Nami echoed, "So you're also an orphan?"
Sandy looked at Nami awkwardly. Forget it… he had to commit to the bit, even if it made him want to cry.
So he pulled out a guitar from the [pheromone system].
Luffy's eyes lit up. "Sandy, you're a musician!"
Sanji blew out a puff of smoke. "Pfft. He's just showing off. Bet he can't even play."
Zoro smirked. "Jealous much?"
Sanji snapped, his cheeks a little red. "Who's jealous of him? I'll kick you to death, you bastard!"
"Come on then," Zoro shot back. "I'll cut you first."
Nami facepalmed. "Can you two idiots stop fighting for once?"
"Yes, Miss Nami." Sanji immediately switched to fawning mode. "I'll do whatever you say, Miss Nami."
At that moment, Sandy had already started strumming. The deck went quiet as everyone turned to watch him, curious about what kind of song he would play.