Night gradually deepened.
The flagship left the dock, sailing away from Shelly Island under the champagne cannon salute of the Giant Whale Shipbuilding Company.
"Our next stop is Loguetown, it's not far. At most four or five days. Mr. Gandolft sent us enough food and fresh water for ten days, so it's more than enough for the journey."
Kuina studied the sea chart carefully, leaning over it and pointing out key routes.
"Loguetown is the closest city in all of East Blue to the entrance of Reverse Mountain. There's a Marine branch stationed there, so it's relatively safe. It can serve as our final stop in East Blue. Captain, once we restock food and water there, we can officially set sail for the Grand Line!"
She had read countless books since childhood and knew a lot about navigation. Until they found a professional navigator, she volunteered to take on the role temporarily.
And for the parts she didn't know, she could always consult Zeff for help.
"Mm, let's do that…"
Shanu lay lazily on the silver wolf figurehead, while Gin beside him glared unhappily at the carved wolf, baring her teeth from time to time.
Kuina's call of "Captain" made Shanu feel completely at ease.
Sure, she'd called him that before, even before they officially set sail.
But now that he truly had a ship of his own, hearing it again carried a whole new feeling.
He was more than satisfied with the ship, the training room was larger than he expected, the bedroom and corridors were designed with minimalist wooden décor, and the small bohemian touches matched his taste perfectly.
All that was missing was a good name.
The four of them had already brainstormed names together, but everything they came up with sounded off — Silver Wolf, Great Swordsman, Shimotsuki Coconut, Iron Fist…
Eventually, the ideas got so ridiculous that Shanu almost named it The Flying Dutchman. Fortunately, reason prevailed, and they decided to think it over for a few more days.
"Hey, Nojiko!"
Shanu yawned, glancing up the mast. "You've been up there for more than an hour. The excitement hasn't worn off yet? It's about time to come down and get some sleep."
"Eh? Come on, just a little longer, bro~!"
Nojiko whined playfully, just like when she was a child. It was her first time up on a big ship's lookout post, and everything felt new and exciting.
Shanu sighed and waved her off indulgently. Nojiko giggled and went back to her telescope.
After a while, she suddenly let out a small sound of surprise. "Bro, I think there's a pirate ship over there! That Jolly Roger looks familiar…"
She furrowed her brow, trying to remember. "I think it's the Black Cat Pirates?"
Black Cat?
Hundred Plans Kuro?!
More bounty points delivered right to him?
Shanu sat bolt upright, instantly giving his first command as captain: "Then what are we waiting for? Move in closer!"
…
But as their ship drew near, they realized something was wrong.
The Black Cat Pirates' ship was missing its entire rear half — as if something had sliced it cleanly in two.
The cut was smooth and precise. The back half of the ship was nowhere to be seen.
When they stepped onto the deck, corpses littered the floor. The stench of blood was overwhelming.
Under a parasol, Shanu found Kuro's upper body sprawled on a deck chair — his face still frozen in terror, as if he had witnessed something beyond belief before dying.
"What in the world…"
Kuina crouched beside the cut and frowned deeply. "There's no mistake — that sharpness, that cleaving power… this was done by a swordsman's strike."
But there were only three true swordsmen in East Blue, herself, her father Koshiro, and Lord Shanu.
So who was this unseen master swordsman?
"Who knows," Shanu said cheerfully. He didn't care who did it. For all he knew, Kuro had just had the misfortune of bumping into Mihawk mid-pee on his ship's prow.
While the others searched the area, Shanu hummed a happy tune and began harvesting loot like a professional scavenger.
Kuro's ten metal claws, Zango's hypnotic pocket watch… and even the weapons of those two cat-like officers whose names he couldn't recall, he stripped them all.
Altogether, he earned 1,000 points, even more than from the Krieg Pirates, bringing his total back up to 30,000.
"Bro, we've searched the whole ship," Nojiko reported, sticking her head out from the cabin. "Not much treasure, mostly cash, about 50 million Berries. With what we already have, that makes 80 million in total."
Almost breaking 100 million already, huh?
Shanu nodded. He'd left the bounty from Marine Branch 77 back home, bringing only a few tens of millions with him when he set sail.
Out at sea, opportunities were everywhere. With strength, there'd always be money.
"There's plenty of food too," Zeff added, coming up from the galley with a grin. "Looks like these pirates just restocked their supplies, untouched! Enough for us to eat for a month."
Points, treasure, provisions… quite a complete set of rewards for something dropped into their laps.
Of course, there was one last thing not to forget.
"Make sure to take their heads," Shanu ordered casually. "When we reach Loguetown, we'll hand them to the Marines for bounty collection."
They wouldn't need to resupply there anymore.
But Loguetown was still a destination he couldn't skip, because there was a big fat sheep waiting for him there… one he'd deliberately left untouched for years.
…
Five days later.
The four of them sat around the deck table, staring at the map with puzzled faces.
"Didn't you say it'd take four or five days to reach Loguetown?" Shanu rubbed his chin. "Why's it still nothing but empty sea, not even an island nearby?"
"…"
Kuina propped herself on the table, silent for a while before reluctantly muttering, "We might have… drifted off course. Our route seems to be heading toward the Goa Kingdom instead…"
"What the heck?"
Nojiko jabbed Kuina in the side, teasing her. "You looked so confident before, saying you could handle navigation. What happened to that?"
"Plans can't keep up with changes…"
Kuina's voice was meek and apologetic. She had done her best, the first two days had gone smoothly with Zeff's help, but on the third day, a violent storm hit.
The downpour lasted all day and night, blinding their view and throwing the winds into chaos.
When it finally cleared, they discovered they'd veered far off their intended path.
"This isn't your fault. Don't worry about it," Shanu reassured, patting her on the shoulder. "Let's just correct our course and continue toward Loguetown. A few days' delay isn't a big deal."
He wasn't too concerned, but it did serve as a reminder.
In East Blue, drifting off course wasn't a huge problem, as long as it was caught early, the compass could guide them back easily.
But once they reached the Grand Line?
There, magnetic fields were unstable, and currents unpredictable. A compass was useless, only a Log Pose could guide them. The risks were far greater.
It was clear now, finding a reliable navigator had to become a top priority.
Just then—
"Beep, beep…" A faint sound chimed in Shanu's ear. He froze, then his eyes lit up in surprise.
That sound…
The Devil Fruit Detection Radar had finally picked something up?!
BOOM!
Almost at the same time, the ship lurched violently. Everyone stumbled on deck, barely keeping their balance.
"What's going on?!"
Shanu shut his menu and shouted.
"It's a whirlpool current, and a massive one!"
Kuina gripped the wheel tightly, twisting it with all her strength to steady the ship. "It's dragging us toward something! Damn it, we're not even in the Grand Line yet, how can this be happening already?!"