Chapter 67

"I don't want to—"

Luffy refused to give up and transformed into a "slithering snake," coiling himself around Sima Di.

"If you don't give me another mecha suit today, I'll keep clinging to you and never come down!" Luffy threatened.

How could Sima Di possibly be threatened by Luffy?

【Using the Rubber ability will cause him to melt into a Slime!】

Before Luffy could even ask what a slime was, he saw him suddenly turn into a puddle of liquid, flowing across the deck with only his eyeballs darting around in delight.

Seems like......

He actually quite likes his current state?

Sima Di was utterly speechless—this is something you can play with too?

Suddenly!

He thought of a good way to punish Luffy, and withdrew the Word Spirit ability to let Luffy return to his original form.

"Fine, I'll give you one more special edition then!" Sima Di said, putting on a look of great benevolence.

This instantly perked Luffy right up!

"Lord Sima is the best!"

"Your Majesty!!"

Sima Di let out a sinister chuckle. This time, let's see if I don't teach you a lesson you'll remember!

The people nearby caught the scent of a good show and came over with cheerful smiles to watch.

Sima Di used his telekinesis to gather the wreckage from earlier and muttered a few words under his breath.

Repairing is always simpler than creating something from nothing.

The Mk-5 immediately reverted to the appearance of a briefcase, and what's more, it gleamed black as if cloaked in Armament Haki—looking far more distinctive compared to the red-and-silver appearance of everyone else's.

Luffy fell head over heels for the color scheme on the spot!

He rushed over eagerly to activate it, but the moment he touched the briefcase, he collapsed weakly to the ground.

"How is it? Like it?" Sima Di grinned. "Made entirely of Sea Prism Stone, its defense far surpasses ordinary metal—absolutely the most luxurious model. Trendy enough for you?"

Luffy: "Aba aba aba......"

The guy was so weak he could barely speak clearly.

And yet—

Even in such a wretched state, Luffy still clung desperately to the briefcase, utterly unwilling to let go!

But the weakening effect of Sea Prism Stone left him without the strength to equip the Mk-5.

Thus, he fell into a vicious cycle.

Looking at his beloved toy right before him yet unable to use it, Luffy finally shed tears of sorrow!

Isn't this just too torturous?

The people nearby watched the scene with lingering fear, each silently making a resolution—from now on, we absolutely must take good care of the Going Merry!

Never seen Sima Di this angry before!

Robin walked over and laughed, "Why so angry? The ship's railing is damaged, just patch it up."

"That's right, Lord Sima, a damaged railing doesn't affect sailing." Nami couldn't help but add.

But Sima Di's expression was stern!

"The Merry is also one of us, also our companion!" Sima Di said firmly. "If you saw me chop off Usopp's nose, wouldn't you be angry?"

He had thought this analogy would strike a chord.

He hadn't expected—

"If you chopped Usopp, it must be because he made a very serious mistake!" Robin said with trust.

"Right, reliable Sima-chan, how could he hurt someone without reason?" Vivi agreed.

"Exactly exactly! Sima can't be wrong!" Laboo declared firmly, hands on hips.

"Hey hey...... you guys......" Usopp trembled.

That's not how it's supposed to go!

Sima Di's example was already terrifying enough, but your reactions are the truly scary part!

Sima Di could only smile wryly. Are they all this blindly worshipful?

But—

Somehow, it felt kind of satisfying!

"Ahem, I was just making an analogy." Sima Di waved his hand. "In any case, the Merry is our companion too, we can't just hurt it!"

"Right!"

"Agreed!"

"Luffy should have been taught a lesson long ago!"

"Sima Di is right!"

Sima Di: "......"

I'm done with you lot, I'm out of here.

And the Straw Hat Pirates exchanged a knowing glance.

Their performance just now—

Was of course not genuine blind worship of Sima Di, but a coordinated joke.

As for Luffy?

Everyone went off to attend to their own matters; once he got hungry enough, he'd let go on his own.

And when Sima Di woke up from his nap,

he heard loud commotion on deck, stepped out curiously, and saw that the Merry Already was already docked; they had just been deciding who would go ashore to gather intelligence, hence the noise.

Seeing Sima Di emerge,

Nami exclaimed with delight: "Perfect! It's decided—you, Sima! You'll come with me to scout information about the Sky Island. Everyone else stays put here!"

"I don't want to!" Luffy refused. "We agreed the next island was for me to eat my fill of meat!"

"Yeah, where's my alcohol?" Sanji growled.

Sanji said nothing, but his silence was already the strongest statement against Nami.

Even Laboon joined the chaos, bellowing that he wanted meat.

"Why restrict them? Didn't we always act freely before?" Sima Di asked, puzzled.

Robin walked over to Sima Di's side and explained.

"Jiayadao is known as a pirate's paradise—every last one of them is vicious and ruthless. If too many of you go ashore, given Luffy's and the others' temperaments... they'll cause endless trouble."

That made sense.

"I won't cause trouble!" Luffy swore. "I'm only going up to eat meat! Nothing else!"

"Exactly! I'm quite peaceful—unlike Luffy, who always stirs up trouble," Zoro added.

Sanji was about to speak, but Nami shot him a glare that silenced him.

"Alright! Then it's settled—you two come along. Everyone else stays on the ship—no one sets foot ashore!" Nami declared.

The matter was settled.

The four went ashore,

found a nearby tavern, and while Luffy and Zoro feasted, it was also the best place to gather intelligence.

But unexpectedly,

before Nami had even asked a few questions, Luffy had already started a fight with someone.

"Bastard! The Sky Island definitely exists! It's a place even the Pirate King visited!"

The entire tavern fell silent.

Then erupted in roaring laughter!

"Ha-ha—"

"What's that brat saying?"

"Someone actually believes this ancient legend?"

The crowd's mockery made Sima Di frown.

Nami argued back: "The Log Pose points straight up! Why can't the Sky Island be real?"