As the Gale broke through the final layer of cloud sea, Leno and his group finally returned to Skypiea once again.
On the White Sea, the ice, snow, and sand clinging to the hull slowly dissipated, and the snow-white world outside instantly unfolded before everyone's eyes.
For Olga, Vivi, and the others who were visiting Skypiea for the first time, the sight was nothing short of shocking.
Their eyes went wide, mouths hanging open, utterly unable to find words to describe the breathtaking scenery before them.
After a long moment, Vivi finally came back to her senses. Breathing a little heavily, she leaned against the railing and exclaimed in awe.
Olga hugged her lizard mount, bouncing up and down in excitement, clearly delighted with the environment here.
But before she could hop around for long, she suddenly felt an intense tightness in her chest and began gasping violently.
"Wh-What's happening to me? It—it hurts to breathe!"
Vivi's face turned pale as she kept patting her newly developed chest, gasping heavily with every word she spoke.
The sudden change made her panic. Instinctively, she turned her gaze toward Leno, wanting to ask what was happening.
But to her surprise, Leno looked completely fine, as if nothing were wrong at all.
She then looked toward Nami, Robin, and the other girls, only to find that none of them were experiencing anything like her condition.
Her face grew even paler. She looked at everyone and asked in a trembling voice,
"Why… why are you all fine?"
"It's probably because the air is thinner."
At that moment, Acier spoke up from the side. His plump body rose and fell with heavy breathing.
While busy helping his daughter steady her breathing, he explained,
"If I remember correctly, Lord Leno once said that Skypiea is located thousands of meters above the ground!"
"At such an altitude, the air is much thinner than on the surface, so it's normal for us to feel short of breath!"
After saying all that in one go, Acier's face also turned a little pale. He quickly sat down on the deck to rest.
Even then, he didn't forget to pull Olga over and have her sit beside him as well.
"Exactly. As expected of a scientist—you identified the key issue right away."
Leno withdrew his gaze from the distance and looked at Acier with approval before continuing,
"But don't worry. This will pass very soon."
As he spoke, he glanced at Vivi and Olga and shook his head inwardly. Their physical conditioning still needed improvement.
Back when they first arrived on Skypiea, Nami and Nojiko hadn't shown such obvious symptoms.
"Keep your breathing steady, and don't get too emotional. You'll feel better in a moment."
Still worried, he added another reminder. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Uta and Gordon were also completely unaffected.
With a bit of thought, he understood why.
Both of them were musicians who practiced singing regularly—no doubt their lung capacity had long been trained up.
To accommodate everyone's condition, Leno and the others paused in place for a while before slowly flying toward the island.
But they hadn't gone far when they suddenly spotted a brilliant flame streaking through the sky in the distance, rapidly heading their way.
Seeing this, a gentle light flashed in Leno's eyes, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously lifted.
Behind him, Nami, Nojiko, and the others all broke into radiant smiles as well.
Their little princesses were here!
Of course, there were also those who didn't understand what was going on—Vivi, Olga, and Uta among them.
All they could see was that blazing flame in the sky, shooting toward them like a meteor.
Its speed was incredible, tearing through the air and stirring up rings of white ripples!
Meanwhile, Leno and the people behind him remained completely unfazed, smiles still on their faces.
This made the three of them change color slightly. Before they could figure out what was wrong, the flame had already slammed straight toward Leno at the bow.
Only when it drew close did they realize that the dazzling flame was actually a multicolored bird, its entire body engulfed in fire.
And on its back sat a person!
At that moment, Leno spread his arms wide.
Just as it was about to collide with him, the multicolored bird suddenly spread its wings, forcibly stopping itself in front of Leno for a single second!
The outstretched wings kicked up a massive gust of wind, making it hard for everyone on deck to open their eyes.
Along with the wind came waves of scorching heat.
Then, the flames on the bird's body extinguished, its form rapidly shrinking, until it finally transformed into two figures who flew straight into Leno's arms.
"Brother! I missed you so much!"
With tender, slightly spoiled voices, the two armored little ones wrapped their arms around Leno's neck and rubbed against him affectionately.
"Mm, I missed you too. That's why I came back to see you~"
Holding the two of them tightly, Leno looked at them with indulgence before praising them,
"And Aisa, your Observation Haki has improved a lot too. You noticed us from so far away~"
Watching Leno ahead, gently chatting and laughing as he held the two little girls, the people behind who hadn't understood the situation were completely dumbfounded.
Since they were acquaintances, couldn't you have said so earlier? You scared us half to death…
At this time, Nami, Nojiko, and Robin also gathered around. They were extremely fond of the two little ones.
Nestled in Leno's arms, Aileen and Aisa greeted the older sisters one by one. Their sweet little mouths quickly made everyone laugh.
When Uta, Vivi, and the others came over, Leno introduced everyone to each other.
With so many familiar faces around—and all of them Leno's crew—the two little ones showed no shyness at all and quickly became comfortable with everyone.
Just as the conversation was getting lively, Nami quietly leaned in, her eyes gleaming as she stared at the armor on Aileen's body.
"Little Aileen, your armor is so beautiful. Can big sister take a look?"
Seeing that her eyes had already turned into pure Berries, everyone's faces instantly filled with black lines.
You're unbelievable!
You won't even spare a little sister's armor?
Nojiko smacked her on the shoulder irritably. You're even going after your own little sister's things?
She was about to warn Aileen not to get fooled, but the next second, Aileen's reaction left her frozen on the spot.
Aileen stretched out her little hands and tightly protected her golden armor, staring at Nami with a wary expression, her voice muffled.
"Nami, don't even think about my golden armor. I'm not giving it to you!"
"Big brother already told me!"
"He said you're a huge money grubber!"
"The kind who forgets even family the moment you see gold!"
"..."
"..."