Chương 40: Chapter 040

"Dream squid!" Usopp screamed, as Sanji got ready to take preemptive action against the creature. Before he could jump up to kick it though, a trio of harpoons shot through its head, and it fell back into the water. The Straw Hats looked at the new arrival in apprehension. His gaze seemed to tear through their eyes to their very minds. He continued staring at them menacingly for about 10 seconds before Sanji got frustrated.

"Aren't you gonna say something!?" he shouted. The man just continued staring at them wordlessly.

"What, y-you wanna fight old man?" Usopp stuttered. "We have a cannon! Don't make us shoot you!"

The man's gaze intensified. "Don't, or someone will die," he said quietly. Usopp shrieked.

"Oh, yeah? And who would that be?" Sanji asked challengingly. The man's intense gaze shifted to him before he answered.

"Me."

"The fuck!?" Sanji shouted. "Bastard, messing with me," he grumbled as he walked forward. Zoro held him back, and then called out.

"Hey, who are you anyway? Are we inside the whale right now?" The other three looked at him as if he was insane. How could they be inside the whale?

The man's gaze shifted to Zoro. "Before you ask another's name, it is common courtesy to introduce yourself first," he responded.

"Oh, right," Zoro said. "Well, I'm—"

"My name is Crocus," the man interrupted. "I am the watchman of the lighthouse to the Grand Line. I am 71 years old and my sign is Pisces. My blood type is—"

"Hey, can I kill him now?" Sanji asked as the man continued, the information getting less and less relevant.

"He still hasn't told us where we are," Usopp said.

"Like I said, we're in the whale's stomach," Zoro said. "That sky is a painting." Their eyes squinted as they took a closer look. Now that he mentioned it, the seagulls weren't even moving…

"Why is there a painting of the sky inside a whale's stomach?" Usopp asked.

"I get bored," Crocus said simply.

"Well, how can we get out of here?" Sanji asked, finally getting to the point.

"The exit's over there," Crocus said, pointing at a large, barred metal door.

"There's an exit!?" Nami shouted.

"Actually, there are two, but I suspect that you'll find this one preferable," Crocus said.

"So, what, do you live here or something?" Usopp asked curiously. "Does that make you some kind of whale hermit?" Crocus' gaze intensified again, threatening to pierce through into Usopp's soul. "Stop doing that!" Usopp shouted. The man started to pout.

"You just don't appreciate a good running gag, do you?" he asked.

"Your gag is tripping over itself in its attempt to keep running," Sanji commented.

"At least I have a gag," Crocus retorted.

"I'll gag you both if you don't shut up soon," Zoro said in an annoyed tone. It was then that the entire sea they were in seemed to start swaying, and they had to hold on so as to not fall into the whale's…stomach acid. Nami shuddered at the thought. Usopp asked what was going on, and Crocus explained that the whale was bashing its head against the Red Line in an attempt to break through. Suddenly, there was a crash coming from above, and Luffy started falling from the sky along with two strangers that he was carrying for some reason. He took a few steps through the air before he landed on the Going Merry and set the two down.

"Hey, what's up guys?" he asked.

"How did you get here!?" Usopp and Nami shouted.

"I used Geppo to reach the top of the whale. There was a latch at the top that led here," Luffy answered.

"This sure is a strange whale," Usopp commented. "Come to think of it, why is there light in here? Shouldn't it be complete darkness inside a whale's stomach?"

"It's a mystery whale," Luffy concluded with his arms crossed.

"What is Geppo?" Nami asked.

"Basically, it lets me fly." It was then that the two strangers he brought down with him jumped to their feet, declaring that they were here to kill the whale and use it as food for their town. They pulled out two bazookas, and Crocus looked like he was getting ready for a fight, before Luffy punched them both and knocked them out cold.

Crocus suddenly disappeared and after a while the sea stopped swaying, so they were able to get out to the open sea through the exit. Crocus came and met them out there.

"Hey, Crocus," Sanji began. "Why does this whale hit its head against the Red Line? It must know that it can never get through that way."

Crocus took on a sad expression as he looked up toward the whale. He explained the whale's past and it's promise with the pirate crew that brought it here. He went on to say that it had been 50 years since then, and that the crew was either dead or not coming back. Luffy wanted to disagree as he thought of Brook, but didn't say anything. Once Crocus finished his explanation, Luffy looked up at Laboon with a determined expression.

He shot off the ship using Geppo until he was hovering directly over Laboon's head. "Gomu Gomu no…Rifle!" His spinning fist rammed into one of the scars on Laboon's head, and the whale cried out in pain. He quickly became hostile and rammed his head against Luffy, who flew back into the Red Line with a loud crash. Luffy quickly rebounded and continued his assault. "Gomu Gomu no…Pistol!" He hit Laboon's eye dead center, and the whale got angrier, attempting to ram him again, but Luffy dodged, jumping up high into the atmosphere before landing back on the mountain.

The whale started to come in for another headbutt, but Luffy held his hand out. "Enough," he said. The whale surprisingly stopped, looking at him in confusion. "It's a draw," Luffy said. Then he smiled. "I'm pretty strong right? I'll bet you'd like to fight again. We have to know who's stronger after all." Laboon continued staring at him curiously. Luffy pointed at him. "Three years! Wait here for us for three years, and by then we'll have sailed around the world and come back to see you." Luffy's grin widened. "I'll even bring one of your crewmates so they can see you too!"

At these words, Laboon raised his head to the heavens and let out a loud cry of agreement. Luffy quickly scribbled a poorly drawn mark of the Straw Hat Pirates on his head. "All right, this mark symbolizes the promise between us. Until we return, don't do anything to ruin this mark." The whale nodded to convey that it understood. With that taken care of, Luffy jumped back onto the Going Merry, where Nami was talking to Crocus about a Log Pose.

"So, it's a compass that records the unique magnetic field of a specific island and points in that direction?" she asked eagerly.

"That's correct. And in appreciation of what you've done," he said as he gestured to Luffy, "I think I'll just give you one so you can start your journey." While Nami was thanking Crocus for the trouble, the two strangers that Luffy had knocked out suddenly woke up. They quickly took off in their ship, yelling that they had to get back to Whiskey Peak, but that they'd succeed next time.

"Well, that's quite the coincidence," Crocus said as after they left. "This Log Pose happens to be locked onto the same island they're going to." Nami took it and handled it carefully, scanning it with curious eyes. So, this is what we'll be using to navigate from now on.

"Great! Then we can start there," Luffy said happily. "At that, uh, Sake Summit place."

"Whiskey Peak," Crocus corrected.

"Yeah, that." With their next destination decided, the Straw Hats set off for their first island of the Grand Line. "Remember our promise, whale!" Luffy shouted as they set off. Laboon let out a loud cry as the ship pulled away from the Red Line.