Nami had already accepted Franky's death. She no longer paid any attention to the resurrected Emet. Turning around, she went to find Luffy.
Eventually, she found him standing alone on a rooftop.
Luffy leaned against the railing, staring silently at the distant sea. His expression was absent-minded, as if he had lost himself in his thoughts.
Nami slowly walked over and softly called his name.
"Luffy..."
Hearing her voice, Luffy snapped out of his trance and turned toward her. His eyes looked hollow, carrying exhaustion and pain that he could not hide.
The two stood there in silence, looking at each other for a long moment before Luffy finally spoke.
"Nami... are you scared? This time it was Franky. Next time..."
Before he could finish, Nami raised her hand and covered his mouth.
"Idiot Luffy, how many times do I have to tell you? I'm not scared."
Her voice was gentle yet firm.
"I'll always stay by your side. Besides, we still have dreams we haven't achieved yet, right?"
As Luffy stared blankly at her, Nami slowly withdrew her hand, placed both hands on her hips, and scolded him with a familiar expression.
"Aren't you going to become the Pirate King? Since when would the future Pirate King be afraid of things like this? Pull yourself together, Luffy!"
The words "Pirate King" made Luffy's expression shift.
His eyes flickered with countless emotions before determination gradually returned.
He clenched his fists tightly.
"Pirate King..."
"I'm going to become the Pirate King!"
A bright smile immediately appeared on Nami's face.
Without hesitation, she stepped forward and hugged him.
"Luffy, I know you can do it!"
Luffy nodded heavily and gritted his teeth.
"But if I don't get rid of that Celestial Dragon, I can never become the Pirate King."
His voice grew colder.
"And Franky, Ace, and everyone else would have died for nothing."
"I have to become stronger."
"Stronger than that Celestial Dragon."
Hatred was clearly visible in Luffy's voice.
Someone as straightforward and optimistic as him rarely hated anyone. Yet Lloyd had become an existence he could never forgive.
Nami's expression filled with concern.
After confirming there was nothing abnormal in his eyes, she carefully asked,
"Luffy... what are you planning to do now?"
Luffy took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.
Then he spoke with unprecedented seriousness.
"The people left with us aren't strong enough."
"I'll inherit the forces my father left behind and establish the Straw Hat Grand Fleet."
Nami froze.
The Luffy standing before her suddenly felt unfamiliar.
She bit her lip.
"But..."
"There are no buts."
Luffy interrupted her immediately.
"I've already made my decision."
"Just like Uncle Kildeo said, we'll return to the East Blue first and secretly build our strength."
"I also need time to train."
As he lowered his head, his fists trembled slightly.
"My strength..."
"It's too weak."
"The weak can't protect anything!"
The moment those words left his mouth, a crimson tint appeared within his pupils.
The emotions he had suppressed for so long seemed ready to erupt at any moment.
Seeing this, Nami could only remain silent.
She knew there was nothing she could say right now.
...
Meanwhile, aboard Blackbeard's ship...
Teach squatted on the deck with several bandages wrapped around his bare chest.
Chiffon carefully handed him a slice of cherry pie.
Teach immediately grabbed it and stuffed a large bite into his mouth.
Watching him eat so recklessly, Chiffon couldn't help but remind him,
"Husband, you're still injured. Slow down."
"Mmph... it's fine."
Teach chewed noisily while speaking.
"I'm almost fully recovered."
A cold gleam flashed through his eyes.
"That Straw Hat brat has a strange power."
"And his Devil Fruit..."
As he spoke, intense greed appeared in his gaze.
That was the Devil Fruit once possessed by the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
If he could obtain that power...
Unfortunately, even then, he still wouldn't be able to defeat Lloyd.
Roger himself had already proven that fact before the entire world.
Still...
At least it would give him the qualifications to fight.
Teach had already mastered the powers of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, yet he still lacked confidence when facing Lloyd.
To be precise, he wasn't even certain he could survive ten exchanges against him.
Thinking about that overwhelming gap in strength, Teach clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Tch!"
"That lucky brat almost made this old man cough up blood."
As he spoke, he casually ripped off the bandages covering his body.
It wasn't carelessness.
His injuries had genuinely recovered.
At that moment, Laffitte approached from the side.
As both navigator and one of Teach's most trusted subordinates, he reported respectfully,
"Captain, we'll arrive at the Sabaody Archipelago in about a day."
Teach nodded.
"Good."
"Once we arrive, we'll coat the ship and head straight for Fish-Man Island."
A trace of hesitation appeared on Laffitte's face.
"Captain, there's something I need to remind you."
"Both Sabaody and Fish-Man Island currently have a large Marine presence."
"Ordinary Marines aren't a problem, but those locations are extremely close to Marine Headquarters."
"If Headquarters dispatches reinforcements after we're discovered, the situation could become troublesome."
Teach laughed loudly.
"Zehahaha!"
"Of course I know that."
"But being a pirate is all about taking risks."
"The greater the risk, the greater the reward."
"No matter what, I'm going to Fish-Man Island."
Chiffon looked puzzled.
"Husband, what's on Fish-Man Island that's worth taking such a huge risk?"
Teach patted his stomach and grinned.
"It concerns the ultimate dream of every pirate."
"When I was still sailing on Whitebeard's ship, the old man accidentally mentioned it while drunk."
"As long as we obtain that thing, we'll gain the qualification to reach the One Piece!"
The moment the words "One Piece" were spoken, everyone nearby was shocked.
Even Doc Q, who usually looked half-dead, slowly moved closer to listen.
Burgess immediately shouted excitedly,
"Captain! What exactly is it?!"
Teach swept his gaze across the gathered crew.
Everyone present was one of his trusted confidants.
There was no need for secrecy.
He spoke directly.
"A Road Poneglyph."
The crew was instantly stunned.
Chiffon covered her mouth in surprise.
"A Road Poneglyph?"
"You mean those giant stone tablets covered in ancient writing?"
Teach nodded.
The existence of the Road Poneglyph on Whole Cake Island was no longer a secret.
Ever since Roger secretly obtained a rubbing of it years ago, Charlotte Linlin had stopped concealing its existence altogether.
After all, everyone knew where it was.
The problem was that nobody dared to take it.
Just because treasure was visible did not mean it could be claimed.
The Road Poneglyph on Whole Cake Island was exactly like that.
Everyone knew where it was.
Yet nobody dared touch it because Charlotte Linlin stood guard over it.
Chiffon frowned.
"But even if we get one, what use would it be?"
"Very few people in the world can read the ancient script."
"Wouldn't it just be an enormous stone?"
Teach remained completely unfazed.
"That's a problem for later."
"First, we need to get our hands on it."
"At the very least, we can't allow someone else to obtain it first."
His eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Especially that Straw Hat brat."
"I remember Kozuki Toki is still traveling with them."
"She's Kozuki Oden's wife."
"And she might possess the ability to decipher the Road Poneglyphs."
Burgess immediately cracked his knuckles.
"Then we'll capture her!"
The deck fell silent.
Teach said nothing.
Meanwhile, Laffitte glanced at Burgess as if he were looking at a fool.
After all, Teach had only recently been beaten half to death by Straw Hat Luffy.
And now Burgess wanted their captain to provoke the Straw Hats again just to capture Kozuki Toki.
What an idiot.