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The Going Merry sailed towards the distant guiding light.
"Oh no! It's terrible! The light went out!" Usopp yelled in panic, watching the faraway beacon suddenly extinguish.
"Lighthouses use lights; it's not surprising they go out sometimes. That's precisely why we need a navigator, isn't it?" Rowen glanced at Nami with a smile.
"That's right! Don't worry, I remember the direction!" Nami replied, puffing her chest out slightly, pleased by Rowen's praise.
"As expected of you, Nami!" Luffy and the others gave her a thumbs-up.
Rowen looked fondly at Nami's slightly proud expression.
"This is tricky, though... If this continues, it'll be just like the legends say," Nami murmured, studying the Grand Line chart she'd taken from Buggy.
"What?" Luffy asked curiously.
"Let's head inside the cabin first," Nami instructed.
Slap! Inside the cabin, Nami slapped the chart down onto the table.
"The entrance to the Grand Line—is a mountain!" Nami declared, pointing at the chart.
"WHAT?!" Everyone except Rowen stared with shocked expressions.
"Yes. I hardly believe it myself, but look at the chart. The guiding light is clearly positioned on the Red Line, atop Reverse Mountain," Nami explained.
"What?! Are we supposed to crash into a mountain?!" Usopp shrieked.
"Wait, isn't there a canal here?" Zoro pointed to a waterway on the chart that seemed to flow up the Red Line.
"A canal? Don't be ridiculous! Even if there is a canal, a ship can't possibly sail up a mountain! Right, Rowen?" Usopp asked, sweating nervously, looking towards Rowen, the most knowledgeable among them.
"No, Nami is correct," Rowen replied with a smile.
"EH?!" Usopp looked utterly terrified. "I-I've got the 'I'll-die-if-I-climb-a-mountain' disease!" he wailed dramatically.
"Relax. It's also called Reverse Mountain. We just need to ride the current into the entrance channel—and it will carry us up to the summit. Then, we ride the current down the other side, right into the Grand Line," Rowen explained, pointing at the chart with a smile.
"I see! It uses the ocean currents!" Nami, with her exceptional navigational talent, understood immediately, her face lighting up with excitement.
Zoro and the others also smiled in relief.
"However, the currents there are extremely strong. If we fail to enter the channel correctly, we'll genuinely crash into the Red Line. I hear that more than half the pirates aiming for the Grand Line perish before even entering it," Rowen added, looking at the crew with a mischievous glint in his eye, adopting his 'intimidating villain' expression.
"!!!" Usopp started trembling uncontrollably.
Sanji and Zoro's eyes twitched.
Nami grabbed onto Rowen's arm, her face pale.
Faced with the terrifying power of nature described, even Sanji and Zoro felt their hearts pound with apprehension.
"But don't worry. My ability can prevent that from happening," Rowen chuckled, seeing the crew's terrified reactions.
His Smoke-Smoke Fruit ability allowed him to freely solidify his smoke for attacks or use its elemental form for capturing and manipulation. Even within strong currents, subtly altering their course should be possible.
At the very least, entering the Grand Line channel wouldn't be a problem; they wouldn't need the near-death experience from the original story.
"You should have said so sooner!" Sanji, Zoro, and Usopp yelled simultaneously, exasperated.
"Hahaha! Sorry, sorry! Your expressions were just too funny!" Rowen laughed heartily.
"Seriously! Don't scare me like that, Rowen!" Nami leaned against Rowen's shoulder, wrinkling her nose cutely.
"I was about to say, if we can't use the entrance, maybe we should just detour south and enter from there," Zoro said, relieved, managing a smile. The chart did show an alternate southern route into the Grand Line.
"That wouldn't work," Nami immediately refuted.
"RIGHT! Nami's right!" Luffy instantly agreed.
Nami felt a flicker of gratification. 'Maybe Luffy isn't a complete idiot after all.'
"We have to go through the entrance! That's the exciting way!" Luffy declared loudly, pointing at Zoro.
"YOU MORON! That's not the reason!" Nami transformed into her sharp-toothed angry state again.
So much for Luffy making progress...
"Hahaha," Rowen chuckled, watching Luffy's antics.
"Huh? What's going on? The storm suddenly stopped," Usopp remarked, looking out the window curiously.
"It's really quiet... Just moments ago, it was pouring rain and howling wind," Sanji added.
"Yeah! Great weather!" Luffy threw open the cabin door, grinning.
"You can still see the storm over there, but there's absolutely no wind here," Zoro observed, gazing at the distant storm clouds.
"N-No! This can't be! We should be able to ride the current into the entrance!" Seeing the clear weather, Nami, the navigator, turned deathly pale.
"What's wrong?" Seeing Nami's unusual panic, everyone except Rowen looked concerned.
"We're in the Calm Belt, aren't we?" Rowen stated, stepping out of the cabin. He felt the utter stillness of the air—not a breath of wind. All the Merry's sails hung completely limp. A slight smile touched his lips.
"Calm Belt?" Luffy and the others looked confused.
"Yes! The Calm Belt! Quick, furl the sails! We need to row back into the storm!" Nami urged frantically.
"Why are you panicking? This is a sailboat! Why do we have to row?" Luffy asked curiously.
"Yeah, why go back into the storm?" Usopp added.
"Stop asking questions! Just do as I say, you idiots!" Nami yelled desperately.
"But the weather's so nice now," Zoro commented, stretching lazily.
"Rowen! Please tell them! You know about the Calm Belt, you must know what's here!" Nami pleaded, looking at Rowen, her face utterly pale.
"I know. Just like you mentioned detouring south earlier... our ship is currently drifting south," Rowen replied, seeing Nami's terror, then glanced at Zoro with a smile.
"Huh? Does that mean... we're already in the Grand Line?" Zoro asked cluelessly.
"Idiot! If it were that easy, everyone could get into the Grand Line!" Nami snapped, transforming into her sharp-toothed state again.
Besides Rowen, is there anyone reliable on this ship?!
"Listen up! The Grand Line is sandwiched between two long strips of ocean! These are the Calm Belts! Just like the name says, there's absolutely no wind here!" Nami explained urgently.
"So what?" Zoro and the others still didn't understand the problem.
"Because, besides having no wind, this place also has some... very interesting inhabitants," Rowen added, his lips curling as he gazed down at the sea surface.
His Observation Haki detected presences in the water below.
KRA-SHOOOOM!
The next moment, the sea surface erupted violently. A colossal creature emerged from the depths, lifting the Going Merry entirely out of the water on its head.
"W-What's happening?! An earthquake?!" Usopp screamed in panic.
"Moron! How can there be an earthquake at sea?!" Sanji yelled back.
Then, everyone except Rowen froze, utterly stunned.
Several terrifyingly massive creatures had surfaced around them. And the Going Merry was perched precariously atop the head of one of these behemoths.
"!!!" Sanji, Zoro, Luffy, and Usopp's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.
"This is... a Sea King nest! And they're huge!" Nami shrieked, clinging onto Rowen for dear life, tears streaming down her face from sheer terror.
"Giant Sea Kings, huh? Must be very nutritious. Sanji, interested in catching one for dinner?" Rowen asked casually, looking at Sanji.
The Sea Kings in the Calm Belt were entirely different from those found elsewhere.
Their size started at several hundred meters, with thousand-meter ones being common. Deep below, creatures exceeding five thousand meters lurked.
These Sea Kings were the true apex predators of the ocean!
Rowen still remembered the taste of Mohmoo, the sea cow Arlong kept.
These super-giant Sea Kings should taste even better.
"D-Don't say things like that! These monsters are probably thousands of meters long!" Sanji stammered, his face turning grim.
How could you possibly cook a monster that size?!
"Rowen! Please! Don't fight them!" Nami pleaded, clinging to Rowen like an adorable koala, looking up with pitiful, tear-filled eyes.
"Alright, alright," Rowen relented, gently patting Nami's head comfortingly as he looked at her pale, terrified face.
The Merry certainly didn't have the space to store one of these behemoths anyway.
'But someday... I definitely have to taste a giant Calm Belt Sea King.' Rowen smirked inwardly.
And this sea held another purpose for Rowen.
Swimming across this sea—the 'Disposition' gained via Born of the Sea would be many times greater than in other waters!
For Sea Kings—especially giant ones—to choose this area as their nesting ground indicated the sea's energy here was far more potent than elsewhere.
One of the three Ancient Weapons, 'Poseidon', could command these very giant Sea Kings.
One could only imagine the sheer power contained within the nesting grounds of such creatures.
Rowen, through his Born of the Sea (Apex Gold) Trait, could clearly sense the immense sea energy permeating this region.
And crossing the Calm Belt? It was simple enough.
Rayleigh had once swum across the Calm Belt himself, astonishing the world.
'I'll have to ask Rayleigh later what kind of physical standard is needed to swim across the Calm Belt.' Rowen smiled faintly.
"Phew!" Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, and Luffy collectively sighed in relief when they saw Rowen relent at Nami's pleading.
They looked at Nami with immense gratitude.
'Thank goodness Rowen listens to Nami!' Otherwise, fighting monsters like these... Rowen, being a Logia user with strong Haki, wouldn't be afraid.
But they wouldn't survive!
"Listen up! The moment this monster submerges, we row like hell!" Zoro, who had been reluctant to row earlier, now gripped a giant oar tightly, sweating profusely as he instructed Sanji and Luffy.
"Right!" Luffy and Sanji nodded grimly, also grabbing the Merry's large oars.
Faced with monsters thousands of meters long, even Luffy knew this wasn't the time for recklessness.
"Aaah... CHOO!" Just then, the giant Sea King supporting the Merry let out a tremendous sneeze.
The Going Merry happened to be right near its nostrils...
"AHHHH!" Luffy and the others screamed as they were launched into the air.
"White Blow—!" Rowen's eyes narrowed, activating his Smoke-Smoke Fruit.
His arms dissolved into several streams of smoke, catching Luffy and the others safely.
Nami was gently enveloped in smoke and placed beside Rowen.
"White Out—!" Rowen commanded. Smoke surged beneath the Merry's hull, cushioning its landing gently back onto the sea surface.
Not being cursed by the sea, Rowen could freely use his abilities even over the water.
"Whoa! Rowen! That frog is leaping at us!" Before they could catch their breath, Nami screamed, pointing at a frog-like Sea King jumping towards the Merry.
"GET LOST—"
VMM! Holding Nami, the terrifying crimson-black light flared intensely in Rowen's eyes.
"Croak!" Cold sweat instantly covered the frog Sea King's body. It whimpered fearfully and dove back beneath the waves.
"ROWEN! SUGEEEEEE!!!" Luffy roared, his mouth wide open in awe.
This scene—felt familiar!
Just like... when Shanks saved him back then!
So Shanks was using Conqueror's Haki too!
"Is this really the time for that?! ROW!" Zoro and Sanji grabbed their oars and began rowing with frantic intensity.
Luffy snapped back to reality and started rowing furiously as well.
Under their combined desperate efforts, the Going Merry finally re-entered the stormy waters bordering the Calm Belt.
Although back in the storm, Zoro and the others felt immense relief, collapsing onto the deck, gasping for breath.
"Now you see why we have to use the entrance channel, right?!" Nami yelled at Zoro and the others, still trembling slightly and clinging to Rowen, remembering their earlier dismissal of her warnings.
Her legs still felt like jelly.
"That was interesting. We should go swimming in the Calm Belt next time," Rowen chuckled, holding the still-shaken Nami (who felt almost boneless in his arms) and looking at the exhausted crew sprawled on the deck.
"Don't joke about that!" Zoro and Sanji yelled back, transforming into their sharp-toothed angry states.
Swim in a place like that?! Are you crazy?!
"Rowen, didn't you eat a Devil Fruit? How can you still swim?" Luffy suddenly asked, tilting his head curiously.
"I'm special. Even with Devil Fruit powers, I can still swim," Rowen replied with a smirk.
"Eh?! SUGEEEEEE!" Luffy's eyes widened in amazement.
He had thought he wouldn't be the only one on the ship unable to swim anymore!
Luffy looked at Rowen with immense envy.
Being unable to swim as a pirate had been Luffy's biggest regret since eating his Devil Fruit.
"I wasn't entirely joking. Swimming across the Calm Belt would actually be great training for your Haki—both now and for future development," Rowen added, smiling at Zoro and Sanji.
Although they lacked the Born of the Sea Trait, conquering the Calm Belt with its countless giant Sea Kings would significantly strengthen their willpower and spirit.
Even if it didn't directly boost their Haki like Rowen's Trait did for him, the experience would greatly benefit their future Haki training and growth.
And the reason conquering the entire Grand Line made someone the Pirate King likely stemmed from this principle too.
Conquering nature itself also strengthens the spirit, which in turn strengthens Haki!
This was also one reason why Devil Fruit users often had a harder time developing Haki compared to non-users.
Being unable to swim prevented them from directly confronting and conquering the sea in the same way.
Furthermore, during perilous voyages on the Grand Line, their inability to swim often led to greater fear and panic in dangerous situations, hindering the development of their willpower and thus making Haki growth more difficult.
But conquering the most terrifying sea—the entire Grand Line—as the captain of the crew that achieved it... would forge unparalleled Haki!
However, for others, this process of strengthening Haki through conquering nature still required subsequent training and combat experience to fully manifest.
Whereas Rowen, with his Haki training cheat code, Born of the Sea, could directly enhance his Haki.
Zoro and Sanji looked conflicted upon hearing Rowen's words.
They desperately wanted to learn Haki.
But swimming across a sea teeming with those monsters...?
Zoro and Sanji shivered involuntarily.
Maybe after they got a bit stronger.
"How about it, Usopp? If you swim across, you'll truly become a brave warrior of the sea!" Rowen clapped the green-faced Usopp on the back, laughing.
"I-I think I need... m-more training first," Usopp stammered, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
"Hahaha," Rowen laughed at Usopp's reaction.
He was mostly teasing, anyway. None of them had even awakened Haki yet.
Even Rowen himself needed more 'training'.
Rowen then pointed ahead.
"Soon... we should be able to see it. Reverse Mountain," Rowen stated, his lips curling into a smile.
Soon, following Nami's directions through the storm, a colossal mountain, so vast its peak was hidden by clouds, loomed before them.
"LOOK! I see it!" Luffy yelled.
"It's huge!" Usopp gasped, his mouth agape.
"That current! It really is flowing up the mountain!" Nami exclaimed, clutching Rowen's arm tightly in amazement.
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