Chapter 305 - 163

Chapter 163Nami took a deep breath and shouted out orders.For safety's sake, the small going merry was quickly stored within the thousand sunny's Soldier Dock System to avoid damage from the wind and waves.Zoro had already come down from the crow's nest and stood at the bow, watching the churning sea ahead.Humans are small in the face of natural disasters; a slight oversight leading to a capsizing would mean the destruction of the ship and the death of everyone on board.Chopper had also transformed into his human form, standing by the main helm with Zoro, ready to respond to Nami's steering commands at any moment.Actually, it would be best if Merry could directly control the thousand sunny; as a Klabautermann, she was the most excellent helmsman.But Merry said she still needed a bit of time to communicate with her new partner, sunny, and couldn't yet control the sunny as effortlessly as she did the going merry."Hard to starboard! Hard to starboard!"Nami's voice remained clear amidst the sound of the wind.Zoro and Chopper immediately joined forces, straining to turn the heavy helm as the massive hull began to turn slowly but surely."Furl the sails! Furl the sails!"Sanji and Usopp quickly untied the ropes securing the square sails and forcefully turned the capstan.Pulled by the ropes, the massive canvas folded upward and tightened, finally being lashed securely to the yards to reduce the wind's impact on the hull."Waaaaah!"A sudden, violent crosswind blew in, and Little Merry, who was excitedly running around the deck experiencing the new ship, cried out as her small body was blown away like a kite with a broken string.Luffy was quick-eyed and fast-acting; his Rubberarms instantly stretched out, scooping the screaming Merry back and holding her tightly in his arms."So scary, I almost got blown away!" With lingering fear, Merry clung tightly to Luffy's neck, burying her small face in his shoulder.Chapter 238: Observation Haki, Foreseeing the FutureJust as Luffy breathed a sigh of relief, he turned around only to see another figure being blown by the wind, rolling straight across the deck.Then, with a splash, they fell into the sea.He was quite nervous at first, but after seeing who it was, he felt relieved instead.It was a drunk Nika!She had been dozing in a corner clutching a wine jug just now, only to be swept into the sea by this gust of sea wind."Nika!" Usopp cried out."What do we do? What do we do?" Merry watched the small white figure splashing in the sea with concern.Luffy, however, waved his hand with a calm expression. "It's fine."Right, it really was fine.As a special existence bound to Luffy, even if Nikawere blown away or fell into the sea, she could return to Luffy's body in an instant with just a thought.It was the same during the previous battle with Aokiji.Even from a great distance, Luffy had only to shout to call Nika over, though it completely drained her already meager energy.Sure enough, the Nika who fell into the freezing seawater jerked awake, instantly sobering up about seventy or eighty percent.She watched the thousand sunny rapidly receding in the wind and waves and screamed in terror.In the next second, her figure vanished into the seawater like a phantom; immediately after, a white light emerged from Luffy and coalesced back into Nika's form."Baka!""You scared me to death, you bastard Luffy! Why did you just watch me fall into the sea?!"As soon as Nika appeared, she hopped madly, pointing at Luffy in accusation."Who told you to drink so much wine?" Luffy shot back unceremoniously.Just then, a giant wave taller than the mainmast, like a towering black mountain range, slammed toward the thousand sunny from the side, its crest churning with white foam as if it were about to swallow the entire ship!No time for bickering."A big wave is coming, turn the helm! Everyone, hold on tight!!"Nami's urgent command remained organized, her voice piercing through the wind and waves with an unquestionable calmness.After all, she was a top-tier Navigator who had weathered countless storms.Who else could it be when the ship's Navigatorwas Nami?Her command was the ship's greatest reassurance.Moreover, Vivi, a Logia Wind-Wind Fruit user, was also on board!Standing on the deck, she guided the air with her hands, struggling to control the chaotic currents around them. She diverted the most dangerous, violent gusts that could tear the sails, ensuring that while the ship pitched violently, the wind pressure it endured was much less than normal.After nearly two hours of intense, focused work, the thousand sunny finally emerged from the edge of the storm like a lion breaking out of its cage.Golden sunlight once again spilled onto the wet deck; although the sky was still somewhat gloomy, the most dangerous phase had passed.It was also lucky that the main drift of that massive rain cloud was different from their course; otherwise, who knows how long they would have been struggling in that terrible weather.Franky, on his first truly long-duration sea voyage, plopped down on the deck, leaning against the gunwale and panting heavily, a look of lingering fear still on his face."Super exciting, but this is just too dangerous!"If Water 7 only had to face the wrath of Gods of Water once a year, then pirates sailing the high seas were practically facing this kind of weather—or even worse—every day.Luffy was soaked through, yet he still grinned energetically."Don't worry, we have the world's best Navigatoron our ship!"Hearing this, Nami, who had just been commanding with such composure and now looked slightly tired, huffed and tossed her wet orange hair, deliberately putting on a stern face as she spoke to Luffy:"Even so, I'm still not letting you into the Girls' Dormitory!"The ladies' clothes were soaked by the rain and waves, clinging to their bodies and outlining their graceful curves; they planned to hurry back to the Girls' Dormitory to change into dry clothes.Seeing this, Luffy naturally followed along because his study plan time wasn't over yet; according to the rules, he couldn't stray too far from his tutor, Robin.Nami immediately turned into a door guardian, crossing her arms to block the entrance to the Girls' Dormitory and making a firm "no entry" gesture to Luffy.Luffy couldn't squeeze in at all.He let out an "Eh?" with a drawn-out tone, pointing at his own equally soaked clothes. "I need to change too, and besides, you know I can't leave Robin right now!""I don't really mind, actually."Robin watching this scene, couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle. "Luffy, why don't you come along too?"Vivi, who had already ducked into the dormitory with Merry, peeked out from the crack of the door with a still-blushing face, her voice as faint as a mosquito's as she chimed in, "Actually, it's not a big deal."Nami looked at these two traitors, dumbfounded."Hey, you two!"Even if it's Luffy, having zero defenses against him... just what have you guys been through?No! Absolutely not!Finally, a compromise was reached between Nami's strong insistence and Luffy's reasonable needs.Robin used her Hana Hana no Mi ability to sprout several palms over Luffy's eyes, covering them tightly before he was allowed to enter the Girls' Dormitory to change his clothes.Luffy curled his lip and muttered under his breath, "It's not like I haven't seen it before."Before he could finish, Nami stepped on his foot, a blush rising to her face as she huffed in embarrassment.She indeed had been seen, and more than once.But she didn't want Robin and Vivi to be seen naked by this Rubber idiot too!As for whether she had other motives, that was hard to say.After the struggle with the storm, everyone was famished.Sanji timely served up steaming, fragrant, and hearty food, instantly winning cheers from everyone.Franky once again witnessed Luffy's bottomless appetite; watching him devour mountains of meat at a visible speed, he couldn't help but marvel again:"Super! Is this appetite for real? Is your stomach connected to another dimension?"Just as he finished speaking, his vision blurred, and a piece of top-grade steak he had just cut on his plate vanished into thin air!"Luffy!" Franky roared."Sorry, sorry! I saw you weren't eating it and thought you didn't like it."Franky: "..."No wonder everyone was clutching their own bowls while eating; he was definitely suffering from a lack of experience!It wasn't until the afternoon that it was time for Luffy to develop his Devil Fruit abilities alone.The life-and-death struggle against the enhanced Aokiji in his dream had not only allowed him to initially master a new form inherent in Gear SecondHaki Infusion, bringing a massive boost, but it also naturally allowed his Haki to break through its bottleneck.After his Armament Haki reached LV2, allowing for finer flow and infusion, his Observation Haki finally entered the hall of LV2 at this moment!The effect of this level of Observation Haki was—precise perception over ultra-long distances, and foreseeing the future!Chapter 239: The Vanishing Town, Rain of KnivesAt this time, Luffy was inside the going merry.As he closed his eyes and concentrated, carefully experiencing the wonderful perception brought by this new ability, he saw a fleeting image.In the next second, Robin would push the door and enter.Sure enough, just as he opened his eyes, he saw Robin walk in.The entrance to the passage.A passage had been artificially constructed between the going merry and the thousand sunny, allowing even Devil Fruit Users like Luffy to pass through freely; moreover, traveling between two ships at sea was dangerous, and without a passage, one might fall straight into the sea.Given the Straw Hat crew's personalities, such a thing might actually happen."Luffy, Nami wants you to come over for a moment."Before Robin could finish, she saw Luffy looking at her with a "just as I thought" expression.She was slightly taken aback, then understood, asking curiously, "You knew I was coming?""I just saw it."Luffy grinned with a bit of pride. "This is an ability from reaching a new realm of Observation Haki."Although based on the current situation, he could only see a split second into the future, in a confrontation between powerhouses, even seeing a split second ahead is enough to decide the outcome!For a close-quarters fighter like Luffy, it was practically a divine skill if used well.Surprise flashed in Robin's eyes, but it was mostly a sense of well-deserved gratification.She had personally witnessed Luffy's hard training and the effort he put in; such progress was his hard-earned reward.It would make no sense if he didn't get stronger."Can you really see the future?"Robin walked a few steps closer with interest, her face filled with curiosity."Of course, I can see it very clearly," Luffy promised solemnly."Then shall we experiment a bit?" Robinsuggested.That slightly mischievous smile appeared on her face again.But Luffy, in the excitement of mastering a new ability, didn't suspect anything and nodded confidently."Go ahead, Robin. How do you want to test it?""Then I won't hold back."Then, he saw Robin raise her hand, and several fair arms instantly appeared from his shoulders, covering his eyes.The moment his vision was stripped away, Luffy, relying on his newly improved Observation Haki, clearly saw what would happen in the next second.Robin's real body would take advantage of the moment his vision was blocked to quickly approach and then... kiss him?!"!!"Alarm bells rang in Luffy's mind, and almost instinctively, his head jerked backward.Whoosh.