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— — — — — — — — — — — —

Chapter's Events:

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"Hmm? … This rope…" Holding the rope Caribou had been tied up with earlier, Brook recalled the situation.

"Everyone!! Have you seen that pirate anywhere?" he asked.

"Hm?! Oh, yeah! He was here too, wasn't he? I'd completely forgotten," said Usopp.

"Where did he go?!"

"I haven't seen him since we reached the deepwater regions."

"Maybe he got thrown off the ship when we went down the current?"

"Sounds possible. He was all tied up, so he probably couldn't hang on to anything."

"No - That's just it!! It seems that he has escaped from his bonds! You see?" Brook was confident the enemy was still on board with them.

"He could be hiding somewhere on the ship…!! Ewww!" Nami understood what Brook meant.

Inside a certain barrel on the ship, Caribou, hidden using his swamp powers, was thinking about what to do next.

(Kehihihihi!! Shall I hide in the women's quarters, just to spite them?)

"Dammit!! At a time like this, we have to worry about enemies inside the ship as well?!" Usopp was worried.

"Eh, forget him. It's not like he was strong or anything," Franky said, not worried at all.

Caribou was delighted to hear that.

(Kehehehehe… Oh, this is great…! They've even gone and lost the three Kraken-fighting monster crew members…!!!)

(They were thrown out into these deep waters with nothing but a bubble each to protect them!! They're as good as dead!! It's a pity I didn't get to take Straw Hat's head myself, but… if I take the heads of all the remaining crew, that'll be proof enough that Straw Hat's dead and gone…! Kehihi!! Mmm… But then… Don't get too hasty now, Caribou old boy…)

Caught up in his thoughts, he didn't notice Franky, who had spotted him and was staring closely.

He only noticed once Franky sealed him back inside the same barrel.

— — — — — — — — — — — —

Back in Jaya, Caribou's eyelids twitched as he watched the scene unfold, only as an observer. When Franky sealed his counterpart in the barrel, Caribou stomped the ground violently in protest at this cruel fate.

"Damn it! What is he doing?!" he exclaimed.

Beside him, his brother Coribou was still weeping over the tragic fate of his counterpart and the rest of the crew who were destroyed along with the ship by the Kraken 3000 meters deep. Who could survive that!? No one!

"If he had a Devil Fruit, then may his soul rest in peace…"

Coribou sobbed more, mourning the possible death of his counterpart. He had only appeared for a few chapters, but he left a deep impression—after all, he was what Coribou might become someday.

"Luckily, it looks like the crew isn't planning to throw the barrel off the ship… That'll give my counterpart a chance to reach Fish-Man Island safely, at least. Kehihihihi~"

Forgetting his shock at what Franky did, Caribou continued reading the manga to see where his counterpart would end up, now that it was revealed he had a Logia Devil Fruit.

The Thousand Sunny was still drifting in the deepest part of the ocean. They had reached an area of active underwater volcanoes after escaping danger after danger.

…

In Marineford, the atmosphere was calm compared to the rest of the world. After all, what lay deep under the sea wasn't unknown to the Marines or the World Government.

What had appeared in the manga so far and caused such an uproar was very little compared to what actually existed in the vast ocean.

"It looks like the current caused some trouble that they'll somehow overcome later," Sengoku commented.

He was already used to scenarios like this that the crew faces at the start of every new arc.

What was different this time was that they got separated underwater.

"Are those underwater volcanoes? I feel like taking a hot bath in such natural springs. Too bad I can't underwater."

Sakazuki joked. Only he could make such jokes due to his Devil Fruit power.

"A good ship. Any other ship in that situation would've been wrecked by now," Borsalino praised the Thousand Sunny.

"Oh, who's that huge fishman… Could he really be Umibouzu?!" Zephyr expressed shock upon seeing the giant fish-man intervene to stop the anglerfish from swallowing the ship.

"He's talking. Clearly, he's a fishman…" Kuzan responded to Zephyr's surprise.

"Oho! Looks like things are about to get complicated. Look, it seems the first enemy in the arc has appeared."

From the side, Tsuru's eyes lit up after seeing the ghost ship appear near the Thousand Sunny.

"It really is the Flying Dutchman from the legend… just like Brook told the story… To think such a myth is real and even appeared in the manga… Don't tell me Vander Decken is really aboard it too!?"

Sengoku was extremely curious. After all, a shadow had appeared in the chapter whose identity was confirmed to be Vander Decken by the huge Umibouzu-like figure, who seemed to be his subordinate.

"Forget that—looks like Luffy really did tame the Kraken!"

"No wonder, he has Conqueror's Haki."

"Tsk, what a boastful brat."

"You're just jealous, Sakazuki… Why don't you try taming a Kraken too?"

"I don't need to."

"In this situation, Luffy's idea to tame the Kraken was absolutely brilliant. Look, he put the ship in a safe spot, and the Kraken is carrying it all the way to Fish-Man Island. Isn't that smart of him!?"

"Let's see them survive the volcanic eruption first. Volcanoes are nature's most powerful fury. Just imagine that power combined with the deep-sea pressure. Their fate will be terrible if they can't escape in time—I'm just wondering, heh!"

Sakazuki was enjoying Luffy and the others' predicament, now realizing they were in an active volcanic region.

Being the user of the magma Logia, he was the most knowledgeable about a volcano's immense power.

…

Back in Ohara, the atmosphere was lively. Celebrities like Clover, Vegapunk, Saul, Brook, and others were present. Homing was there too, but since he hadn't been mentioned in the manga yet, he wasn't very famous.

"It's gonna blow! That volcano is gonna blow! Yohohoho! Do you think they'll escape in time!?"

Brook laughed excitedly as the chapter's events became thrilling with the reappearance of Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji.

"Why not? These are just small obstacles. We all know they'll reach Fish-Man Island in the end," Clover smiled.

"To think Luffy really managed to tame such a giant Kraken… pfft! Even it is running in fear to avoid the explosion!"

Saul laughed upon seeing the terrified expression on Surume, the name Luffy gave the Kraken.

"Luffy's cheerful spirit and lack of anxiety make me doubt how his brain works. There's no way he's normal like other humans!"

Vegapunk was shocked seeing Luffy laugh in the face of danger without any stress or fear.

Even when he went through the worst moment of his life—Ace's death—Luffy broke down only because he lost his brother, never because he feared for his own life.

"That's what makes Luffy who he is! Yohohoho!"

…

In Syrup Village, gasps of shock echoed everywhere with each new sea creature no one had seen before, or each time a new pitch-black abyss appeared.

You could feel the growing fear among people toward the ocean depths. What the manga had just revealed was an entirely unknown world beneath the sea.

"Oh my God! The aftershock from the volcanic explosion followed them even after diving into the abyss!? That's terrifying!"

Yasopp was shocked by the volcanic power in the deep.

"It's worth noting this was a small volcano. You can't even imagine the damage a larger one could cause—it could trigger a global earthquake,"

Beckman had some geological knowledge, so he quickly categorized the volcano near Luffy and friends as a small one.

"Heh, luckily, there's a sane person like Robin in the crew, or else Zoro would've been crushed under the water pressure because of his stupidity. He can't even save himself if he drifts out, let alone cut falling volcanic rocks."

Beckman praised Robin in that moment as the most rational crew member.

"Oh,"

Banshina placed her hand over her mouth, eyes widening in shock and awe at the next scene.

"Usopp really did it!"

Yasopp was also stunned.

"Looks like Heracles's two-year training wasn't in vain—there's noticeable progress," said Beckman, smiling.

"I wonder what kind of plant he used to stop the falling rocks temporarily and let the octopus avoid them."

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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):

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Chapter 913: Arrival at Fishman Island!

Chapter 914: The Domain of the Demons!

Chapter 915: All Blue for Sanji!

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