Rain poured down in sheets, winds howled like beasts, and lightning forked across the black sky.
"Hold on tight! Don't get swept overboard!" Teach roared from the helm, gripping it with iron hands as the storm hammered their small vessel.
Waves as high as three meters tossed the thirteen-meter sailboat like a toy. Mobius clung desperately to the mast, arms wrapped around it with his Snake Hand technique to lash himself in place.
Voss had tied himself with a rope to his training pillar in the cabin, eyes closed, calm as stone despite the chaos.
Only Pito seemed utterly unfazed. She bounced lightly from rail to rail, watching the storm with wide, curious eyes, as if the raging sea and flashing sky were a new playground.
"This cursed weather!" Mobius snarled, his voice nearly drowned by thunder. "It was clear just days ago, and now this madness won't stop!"
He had been straining for hours, arms aching, teeth clenched. When another deafening boom split the heavens, Teach glanced at him and chuckled.
"Pito, tie him down," Teach ordered.
"Yes, Captain," she replied. The girl darted across the slick deck, snatched up a soaked rope, and quickly bound Mobius to the mast, neatly finishing with a bow.
"Oi! Too tight! I can't move!" Mobius protested, his cheek pressed flat against the mast. But Pito was already skipping away.
Teach's gaze never left the horizon. The waves ahead weren't calming; they were building.
His instincts flared. The storm's only just begun.
And then he saw it; a wall of water, thirty meters high, racing toward them like a moving mountain.
"Brace yourselves! Big wave ahead...we'll have to change course!"
He pulled out the Eternal Pose. They were already off track, but that didn't matter now. Grinning in the face of disaster, he bellowed, "Zehahahaha! We're gonna ride it!"
The wave loomed, blotting out the sky. Pito clutched Teach's arm. Mobius screamed. Teach spun the wheel sharply, turning the ship to meet the wave head-on.
The hull climbed the towering wall of water, tilting nearly ninety degrees, then beyond.
"We're capsizing!" Mobius shrieked.
"How could we? Have some faith in me!" Teach laughed, stepping into the air with Geppo..
In a blur, he launched himself to the ship's starboard side, bracing his massive frame against the keel itself. Muscles bulged as he fought the weight of the sea, forcing the boat upright against the colossal wave.
The hull groaned and shrieked, wood bending under pressure but Teach had planned for this. He had reinforced the ship with steel plating. It held.
Up, up, up they climbed until finally... the crest!
The boat crested the monster wave and plunged down its back. The storm broke. The clouds scattered. Rain slowed, then ceased. The sea calmed as if nothing had happened.
Mobius sagged against the mast, soaked and trembling. "We… survived?"
Teach smirked at him, returning to the helm.
"Captain! Land ahead!" Mobius called out suddenly, squinting through a telescope. The faint silhouette of an island sat on the horizon. His stomach growled. "Finally! Nine days since we last touched land. I'm sick of eating nothing but fish!"
"I like fish," Pito said brightly, nibbling on a dried one like a snack. Like a cat, she loved them. Teach was relieved she hadn't taken an interest in mice. That had been a conversation he did not wish to repeat.
By now, both Pito and Voss had picked up speech shockingly fast... already able to form simple sentences in just days.
The four of them had been at sea over ten days since leaving Pet Island. They had left with treasures, secretly sold some of it at the port, purchased a new sailboat and supplies, then departed.
Two small islands along the way had offered brief stops for resupply, but this leg of the journey had proven long, food scarce, and the storm disastrous. For five days they had lived on nothing but fish.
Even Voss, usually indifferent, looked weary of the taste. Only Pito still devoured them with delight.
Teach checked his chart. They were off course, it would take another two days to reach their target island. This unexpected isle was a gift. He steered toward it, then turned to Mobius.
"You ready?"
Mobius straightened, face taut with nerves and determination. "Yes."
Pito and Voss blinked in confusion, so Mobius explained,
"When I chose to follow Boss Teach, he gave me a condition. He taught me Snake Hand, and said within one month I had to master it, enough to break a tree with a full strike. If I succeeded, I could stay. If I failed, I'd return to where I came from."
He clenched his fists, confidence burning in his eyes. "That month is up. Today, I prove myself."
Mobius had trained relentlessly, sleeping only three hours a night. The iron pillar he struck daily bore deep dents and scars; he had replaced it twice. His arm weights had risen to fifty kilograms each. His body had transformed, his speed and strength honed to the edge.
The ship touched the beach, and the four disembarked. Teach pointed to a tree in the forest. "That one. Show me."
Mobius inhaled deeply, eyes narrowing. His shoulders rolled, and his joints popped free with practiced ease, granting his arms eerie flexibility. He sank into a low stance, arms drawn back.
"Snake Hand: Twin-Headed Poison Dragon Bite!"
He lunged. His arms snapped forward with blinding speed, slicing through the air with a sonic crack. Both hands slammed the tree simultaneously, then coiled around it like constricting serpents.
Snap!
The trunk split and shattered. The tree groaned and toppled, crashing to the forest floor.
Mobius staggered, panting, but his eyes shone with triumph. "I… I did it!"
Teach's grin spread wide. "Well done. With that body of yours, you're ready to learn more techniques."
Mobius's jaw dropped. "R-really?" Then joy surged across his face. It wasn't just acknowledgment but recognition.
Truthfully, Teach had already decided Mobius had potential worth keeping long ago. But seeing him rise from a mere man to this in one month confirmed it beyond doubt.
"Alright," Teach said, clapping his hands. "Now let's see what this island has to offer."
His Observation Haki swept across the land: a small mountain at its center, teeming life, and something… intriguing.
The forest was lush, filled with small animals. But as they ventured deeper, something unusual appeared, fruit trees. Not just a few, but entire groves. Apples, peaches, grapes, bananas, clusters of ripe, oversized fruit grew everywhere.
Teach plucked a peach, bit into it, and juice spilled down his chin. Crisp, sweet, bursting with flavor.
The others needed no invitation. Mobius plucked grapes, Voss calmly peeled a banana, and Pito leapt into the branches like a playful cat, munching on apples.
The fruits were extraordinary, rich in energy, far more nourishing than ordinary food. Teach chewed thoughtfully then his eyes caught a glimmer.
Clusters of red-and-black cherries hung heavily on a nearby tree.
He strode forward, hand flashing like a blade. With one sweeping motion, he harvested them all, catching the bounty in his arm. He popped one into his mouth, savoring the sweet-sour burst.
"Zehahahaha… not bad at all," Teach murmured, already wondering what secrets this strange island might still hold.