"You big idiot! Do you even have a heart?!" Nami yelled, one hand on her hip and the other jabbing a finger at Leno.
"We were worried sick about you, finally got a bit of rest, and the first thing you do when you come back is zap us?!"
"Yeah! Exactly!"
Chopper bounced at her feet, flailing his limbs dramatically—it would've been hilarious if they weren't so angry.
The others also glared daggers at Leno, their faces full of righteous fury. If looks could kick, he'd be flying off the ship already.
Too much. This was just too much!
What kind of decent person zaps their friends with lightning while they're sleeping?
That electric jolt… anyone who's felt it knows how painful it is.
"S-Sorry~ M-My bad~"
On the opposite side, Leno lay sprawled on the deck, face bruised and battered, slurring his apology.
He'd only wanted to teach them a little lesson... but he'd accidentally kicked a hornet's nest.
Just thinking back on it sent a chill down his spine.
One flash of lightning, and the next thing he heard was screams of agony.
A second later, he was swallowed by a horde of enraged lionesses. The scene was pure carnage—completely out of control.
He'd even tried reasoning with them mid-beating, which only intensified the violence.
"Pfft~"
Robin, who had been quietly observing, finally couldn't hold back a chuckle. She set down her book and smirked.
Serves him right. Coming back and zapping everyone without even asking what was going on?
He deserved a good thrashing.
Meanwhile, on the slowly moving main ship of the NEO fleet nearby, three silhouettes stood frozen at the railing.
They had witnessed everything aboard the Gale.
The entire absurd scene had unfolded right before their eyes, and now they were left completely dumbfounded.
The three exchanged glances, their expressions stricken with disbelief.
Had they seen that right?
The one getting beat up was the Thunder God—Leno?
The same Thunder God who had crushed a Yonko and made a name for himself across the seas—getting mobbed by his own crew?
How… how could this possibly be reasonable?
In their worldview, a captain was absolute. No one dared oppose them, much less lay hands on them.
Just what kind of crew did this adventurer have?
Ain blinked her large round eyes as she closely studied the crew aboard the other ship.
Watching the girls continue scolding their captain even after beating him up, her worldview was completely shattered.
She actually started to feel a strange sense of pity for this man who had shaken the seas.
If Nami were standing next to her, she'd probably say:
"You only pity Leno because you don't know him. Once you do, you'll hit harder than we do."
The guy's always doing stuff like this!
"Hey, dumbass—can you tell us who those people were now?"
As the ship set sail, Nami couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer and cornered Leno again.
"And don't think about brushing us off this time, got it?!"
"Ahem… What are you even talking about~" Leno coughed awkwardly, his eyes shifting as everyone stared at him.
"When have I ever brushed you off?"
"You tell me." Nami's hand casually pinched his waist, her fingers sinking into the soft flesh, oozing threat.
"Alright, alright, I'll talk~" Leno sighed, grabbing the mischievous hand and giving up.
"That fleet just now—they call themselves the NEO Marines, led by someone known as Mr. Z."
"Marines?!"
"I knew it…"
"..."
The moment he said it, the deck exploded into chaos with shocked gasps.
So their earlier guess was right?!
Before the chatter spiraled out of control, Leno quickly raised his voice:
"Wait, wait—don't jump to conclusions! I said they call themselves NEO Marines!"
"Then who exactly is Z?"
Robin went straight for the heart of the matter. That title had to be tied to the identity of their commander.
This Z probably wasn't a simple man.
"I was just getting to that," Leno replied, glancing at her and organizing his thoughts.
"This Z guy—his name is Zephyr. He was once an Admiral of the Navy… but now, he's defected."
The revelation hit harder than anything before. Everyone's minds went completely blank.
A moment later, the deck burst into even louder chaos:
"An Admiral?!"
"Defected?!"
"No way! Why?!"
"..."
"It's true~" Leno raised both hands, his expression unreadable. "Maybe he just lost faith in the Navy."
"A man who gave everything to the Marines—if he walked away so decisively, it must mean he was utterly disillusioned."
"Then there must be a reason, right? Tell us more..."
Nami handed him a glass of juice with a grin and plopped down beside him.
She loved a good story.
Leno took the glass with a satisfied nod, shooting her a look of approval before continuing:
"To explain it all, we have to start from when Zephyr was still an Admiral..."
As Leno's tale unfolded, the women's expressions kept changing.
They mourned the loss of Zephyr's wife and child. Grieved over the deaths of his students.
A man who had poured his whole heart into justice, only to be betrayed by the World Government and the Navy he served...
It was heartbreaking. None of them could help but feel it was unjust.
"Say… doesn't it seem odd that those pirates managed to sneak into the heavily guarded Marine residential district and precisely find Zephyr's family?" Robin frowned and suddenly asked, her eyes scanning the others with a chilling glint.
The whole thing reeked of foul play.
"Now that you mention it… yeah, something's off."
Nami furrowed her brows, deep in thought, casually grabbing Leno's half-finished juice.
Unless someone had fed them information or arranged things behind the scenes, it would've been nearly impossible.
Unless the pirate in question was extremely powerful.
"Alright~" Seeing the mood turn heavy, Leno clapped his hands to break the tension.
"It's just a story, no need to get too wrapped up in it!"
"Even if there was something shady going on, there's no way for us to confirm it now. All we'd get is more headaches."
As he spoke, he casually grabbed Nami's wrist and pointed to the Log Pose on it.
"What we should be doing now… is preparing for our next destination!"
"So what's the next stop?"
Chopper leaned in, eyes sparkling with excitement as he watched the pointer sway.
"No idea. That's why we need to prepare."
"Huh?!!"
...
...