Pirates on Rocks' Ship 996

But Usopp knew his intuition was right; something was passing under their ship.

It took almost ten minutes for that deep color to slowly disappear, and the sea returned to its normal blue color.

"Plop..." After confirming that the thing had left, Usopp plopped down on the deck. Only then did he realize that his body was completely soaked in sweat.

"What was that just now? That enormous body must be larger than a Sea King, right?" Zoro, who had somehow appeared at the ship's side, asked.

“It should be a super-sized Sea King! But Sea Kings of this size usually only appear in the deep sea, and it’s impossible for them to appear on the surface!” Jinbe shook his head and said, “Even on Fish-Man Island, I’ve never seen one this big! You shouldn’t be able to see them in ordinary sea areas at all; you can only see them in the deep sea in the calm zone!”

"Is it because we're getting closer to Laugh Tale?" Luffy asked excitedly. "Are they protecting Laugh Tale? Does that prove we're on the right track?"

Chapter 680 The Navy's Calculations

After Luffy and his crew saw the colossal Sea King, they knew they were not far from their destination, Laugh Tale.

However, the closer they got to their target waters, the more frequently and numerous these incredible events occurred.

Aside from the occasional appearance of colossal sea kings, the day and night here seem to have become somewhat strange, unlike the day-night cycle outside. Sometimes there are several consecutive days of daylight, and sometimes several consecutive days of night, with no discernible pattern.

This also caused Luffy and his crew to become quite exhausted.

It wasn't that there was any danger, but the sea here was quite strange, constantly making noise and disturbances, making it impossible for Luffy and the others to rest in peace, which is why their spirits were getting worse and worse.

"Luffy, this can't go on. Let's split into two groups and take turns resting!" Jinbe said to Luffy, trying to sound cheerful.

Luffy, who is usually full of energy, looked exhausted at this moment. He nodded and said, "Alright then! Let Nami and the others go and rest first!"

However, as soon as Luffy finished speaking, it started to snow lightly.

"Seriously... it was sunny just a moment ago, and now it's snowing!" Sanji said helplessly, a cigarette dangling from his lips.

"crunch~"

The cabin door opened, and Nami walked out looking exhausted. Seeing that it was snowing lightly outside, she scratched her head in annoyance and said, "The weather is changing again! Everyone, stay alert, we never know what might appear next!"

"Nami, you and Robin go and rest first, we'll take care of things here!" Luffy said seriously.

Nami rolled her eyes and ignored him, instead focusing on checking the sea chart and recording the compass needle to determine something.

"Without me to guide us, we'd all be lost by the time I wake up!" Nami replied with considerable distrust after checking.

"Nami, this can't go on. Without enough rest, we won't have the strength to deal with any emergencies!" Jinbe shook his head and said.

Nami hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Then Luffy and the others should go and rest! They are the main force in the battle!"

Everyone knew that the only solution was to split into two groups and take turns resting. However, Nami, as the navigator, could not rest because only she could continuously correct the deviation from the course.

However, with Jinbe's assurance, she and Jinbe separated and took turns resting, and after shortening their rest time, she gradually adapted to the changing climate of the sea near Laugh Tale.

Meanwhile, in the North Blue, the Whitebeard Pirates were also exchanging captains.

“Swapping four combat squads at once, with the captains taking turns leading their members to fight, will there be any problems in the New World?” Marco was leading the team this time, so Reina had Ace take the men back.

“Don’t worry, the whole world’s attention is on the North Blue right now, so there shouldn’t be any problems for the time being. If we leave too many forces in the New World, then other forces will leave even more people behind to prevent us from launching a sneak attack, which would be detrimental to our plans! Do you think the Beasts Pirates suffered two setbacks in the North Blue? It’s because they didn’t send enough forces!” Reina shook his head and said.

Marco nodded, indicating that he understood.

“So after this troop rotation, there might be some changes on the Beast Pirates’ side. Either they will send reinforcements to the North Blue, or… they will make some noise in the New World! I’ve already told Ace to go back and tell his brother to be careful of the Beast Pirates!” Reina said, stroking his chin.

"Huh?" Marco was startled and asked, "You think Kaido will make his move in the New World?"

Reina nodded and said, "That's right, Kaido still doesn't understand what the North Blue means! If he really understood, then he would have chosen to come to the North Blue to take charge, just like Big Mom!"

"What?" Marco looked at Reina in shock and asked, "BIGMOM is in the North Sea? But why hasn't there been any news about it?"

Reina chuckled and said, "It was their family's Bulin who obtained the information about those extraterrestrial visitors. Do you think Big Mom didn't know the secret behind it? Especially after I revealed the concept of destiny!"

Marco remained silent. He had originally intended to say that if Kaido was going to cause trouble in the New World, he would go back. With Reina gone and himself gone, the Whitebeard Pirates' strength would be significantly weakened.

"Don't worry, do you think Xuan Yue Island is so easy to attack? Believe me, even if Big Brother doesn't make a move, if Kaido attacks Xuan Yue Island, I can guarantee he won't get anything!" Reina said with a wicked grin.

As the captain of the first division of the Whitebeard Pirates, Marco naturally knew a lot about Crescent Moon Island and understood that it was absolutely impossible for the Beast Pirates to conquer Crescent Moon Island with just one crew, so he put his worries aside.

"When did BIGMOM arrive in the North Sea? How did you know without any news getting out?" Since there was nothing to worry about on Xuan Yue Island, Marco naturally became curious about BIGMOM.

"Heh... I'm the only strongman who's been stationed in the North Blue for a long time. Neither the pirates nor the navy pay enough attention to the North Blue! Especially after they found out I've been stationed there for so long, the navy even recalled their admirals! They only send the three admirals over occasionally! But I sensed the aura of a powerful figure in the territory of the Big Mom Pirates!" Reina said with a light laugh.

"And haven't you noticed? Apart from the Navy, all the forces stationed in the North Blue, except for our territory and that of the Big Mom Pirates, are still in our hands. The other forces have had many small islands swallowed up by extraterrestrial visitors!"

"What?" Marco exclaimed in surprise, asking, "But wasn't the situation in the North Sea supposed to be stable? Why is this happening?"

“What do you think those extraterrestrial visitors are? It’s already quite an achievement that they’ve managed to maintain the current situation. It’s only because all the world’s powers are paying close attention to the situation in the North Sea. After all, only by deploying most of their forces here can they truly achieve stability and even launch a counterattack!” Reina shook his head and said.

“I see. We’ve been in the New World and haven’t heard anything from the North Sea. We thought those guys weren’t that strong!” Marco said with a wry smile.

"This is intentional on the part of the Navy; they're deliberately blocking the news!" Reina's eyes flashed as he said, "Because this is the early stage of the extraterrestrial invasion, and it's also the best time for us to acquire resources, that's why the Navy is doing this! They'll probably only release this information after they've made their gains here!"

Chapter 681 Whitebeard's Depression

Since Reina came to the North Sea, he has not returned to the New World.

Firstly, because these extraterrestrial visitors were very mysterious, he wanted to get to know them better. Secondly, because Reina discovered that he could earn points by killing those extraterrestrial visitors.

Although I didn't get many points, the number of opponents was just too much!

Moreover, the stronger the extraterrestrial visitor, the more points he receives.

So he simply stopped in the North Sea, earning points while trying to climb the Tower of Trials.

He has now reached the fortieth floor of the Tower of Trials. If he wants to earn points, he has to keep starting from the first floor, but this will reduce the training effect.

However, if you don't start from the first level, you'll need to use up your own points, but the training effect will be much better.

Therefore, he had always chosen to start climbing from the first level of the Ouno Tower, earning some points before continuing to climb and improve his skills.

Now that killing these extraterrestrial visitors also brings him some points, he no longer starts climbing from the first floor. The points from killing extraterrestrial visitors are enough to support his climb of the Trial Tower.

He didn't enter the Tower of Trials every day; after all, he couldn't continue without resting for several days after coming out.

Whenever I come out to recuperate, I hunt down those extraterrestrial visitors to earn points. Occasionally, I start climbing again from the first level to earn points and test how many levels I can climb in one go, which is also a way to summarize my strength.

That day, Reina had just come out of the Tower of Trials. Covered in blood, his first priority was to take a bath to wash off the bloodstains.

"Dong dong dong..."

"Huh? Who is it!" Reina had just gotten into the bath when he heard a knock on the door.

“It’s me, Vista!” Vista replied from outside the door.

"Ah~ come in by yourself! I'm taking a bath!" Reina replied weakly.

"Just finished training?" After entering the room, Vista looked at Reina and asked with a light laugh.

They all knew that Reina possessed a special space where his strength increased rapidly when he cultivated, but it was also very dangerous, as Reina had emerged from it several times unconscious.

"There's nothing I can do, my talent isn't as good as yours, I can only train harder!" Reina replied with a smile.

Vista's face darkened. With Reina's current strength, who would dare say he wasn't talented? Although his training was indeed very hard, in Vista's opinion, both his Sharingan and his ability to absorb damage were already exceptional.

If this counts as a lack of talent, then there are truly very few talented people in the world.

"Hahaha..." Upon seeing Bistan's appearance, Reina couldn't help but burst into laughter before asking, "What brings you here?"

"It's nothing. It's my turn to lead the team back this time, so I came to let you know. Ace should be here this afternoon. After he arrives, I'll head back. Is there anything you want me to tell Dad?" Vista shook his head and replied.

"Time really flies! Have you made any progress during this time?" Reina nodded and asked.

“It doesn’t seem like we’ve gained much!” Vista shook his head and said, “Their ordinary soldiers aren’t very strong. Apart from their large numbers, they’re not actually that difficult. Their strong soldiers rarely come out, and we didn’t dare to go too deep. We basically fought on that small island, so we didn’t get much out of the picture!”

Reina stroked his chin and said, "Indeed, if we attack and the surrounding forces don't cooperate, we'll be left out in the front lines, making us easy targets! But it's time to make some changes!"

"What do you want to do?" Vista asked with some anticipation.

"I haven't decided yet. The Big Mom Pirates' defense zone is right next to us. We'll call them over and try to counterattack together! They also know about the secret here, and I'm sure they're getting impatient just like us!" Reina said with a smile.

“How about… I stay a few more days?” Vista said, a thought suddenly crossing his mind.

"Hmm?" Reina frowned and said, "On Big Brother's side, there should only be Marco and the other three right now. If you don't go back..."

Vista paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "Then I'd better go back! It would be terrible if something happened to Xuan Yue Island!"

“That’s not as exaggerated as it seems. With the defensive capabilities of Crescent Moon Island, it won’t be a big problem even if you don’t go back! Besides, the Doctor and Frank are here too. How about this, after Ace arrives, I’ll go to Big Mom’s place to see and discuss it. If they do have the same plan, then you can wait until after the operation to go back!” Reina said after thinking for a moment.

“Alright!” Vista didn’t waste any words. On Xuan Yue Island, all they did was drink and hold banquets. It was fine for a short time, but it would get boring after a while. It was better to stay here and fight.

Whitebeard is just getting old now. If it were before, he would have been traveling all over the world on Moby Dick long ago, and he would never have stayed on Crescent Island.

As he grew older, Whitebeard's health deteriorated. He was fine if he didn't fight, but if he did, he was likely to have serious problems. So, to avoid worrying his sons, he gave up the idea of ​​continuing to sail.

If everyone were by his side, then there would be a guarantee of success when going to sea. Currently, there are only eight captains who are with him most of the time. When there is a change of captains, there are only four captains with him. Everyone would never allow him to run around.

However, since Reina was always in the North Blue, he subconsciously overlooked Whitebeard's side.

As for the team leaders, they weren't so observant. Seeing their father hosting banquets every day, they naturally assumed he was having a very happy time.

In fact, only one person on the entire Crescent Moon Island noticed this: Marco's wife, Nami's sister, Nojiko.

As Marco's wife, Nojiko had frequent contact with Whitebeard. However, she didn't know much about pirates and had never interacted with Whitebeard before. So, although she sensed that Whitebeard had been somewhat depressed lately, she didn't know the reason.

It wasn't until the day Ace led the rest of the crew to the North Blue that Nojiko, seeing the envy in Whitebeard's eyes, understood that pirates were meant to roam the high seas, not to spend their days feasting.

“Marco…” So when Marco returned home that evening, Nojiko voiced her suspicions.

“You’re right!” Marco pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, “We usually overlook Father’s feelings! Not to mention a great pirate like Father, even I, if it weren’t for you, would never be able to get used to staying on Crescent Moon Island every day!”

Chapter 682 Whitebeard's Heartbeat

After receiving Nojiko's reminder, Marco immediately summoned Frank, the head steward of Crescent Moon Island. In terms of combat, Marco could easily defeat Frank, but when it came to matters outside of combat, Marco was no match for him.

"I never expected Captain Marco to be so meticulous. He's truly admirable! That was my mistake. I'll definitely think of a way to ensure Dad's safety while still letting him experience the thrill of adventure!" Frank said admiringly after hearing Marco's explanation.

Marco scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly and said, "I didn't find out about this. You know, why would a grown man like me pay attention to these things? It was my wife, Nojiko, who found out. She asked me if Dad was unhappy lately, and I said no!"

"Huh?" Frank was taken aback, then burst into laughter along with Marco.

“By the way, Captain Marco, what do you think… how about we find Dad a companion…?” Frank suddenly said, his eyes lighting up.

“This…” Marco hesitated for a moment, then shook his head and said, “I’ve never seen my father show any interest in women!”

"No... let's put it this way! We're all grown men, and we're all pirates, drifting with the tide most of the time. Who has the time to look for women? But now we have Crescent Moon Island, right? Life has settled down, and many of us in the crew have started families! Take yourself for example, do you think your life has changed since you got married to Nojiko?" Frank stepped forward and said.

Marco scratched his head and realized that what Frank said seemed to make sense. Since getting married and starting a family, he had changed a lot. He used to love having parties with everyone, but now no matter where he went, there was always a lingering attachment in his heart, which made him completely different from before.