"Why can't I learn it..."
Usopp seed to have lost all strength, his entire being shrouded in gloom.
Not being able to master such cool ninjutsu felt like losing hundreds of millions—it was agonizing.
"Because our physiques are different," iser explained. "I'm probably the last ninja left in this world."
After a pause, he added, "Well, a rather special kind of ninja."
Considering what Kokoro had ntioned about the Land of Wano, iser felt the need to clarify.
Hearing this, the others stopped pressing the matter. So things were simply inherited through bloodlines—no one could force it.
Nico Robin froze for a mont, realizing that iser might have had experiences similar to hers.
'He's the only ninja left...'
Could it be that his holand... was also destroyed?
"Mmm..." Chopper suddenly trembled before slowly opening his eyes. "Where... am I?"
"You're awake," iser said with a smile. "How do you feel?"
"My body's exhausted, but... I can still move."
As he spoke, Chopper sat up and began examining himself. After a mont, he said, "I rember now... I took a Rumble Ball..."
"Yeah, you went berserk, but I managed to subdue you."
"Is that so? Thanks, iser."
"No need for thanks. I'm just glad you're okay."
iser reached out and ruffled the little guy's head—the texture was surprisingly pleasant.
"You really scared us back then," Nami chid in. "Chopper, don't do sothing so reckless again."
"Sorry, I'll be more careful," Chopper replied, scratching his head.
It wasn't like he had a choice back then—otherwise, he wouldn't have risked taking a third Rumble Ball.
"Huh?!"
"Isn't this the Going rry?!" Chopper exclaid as he noticed their surroundings. "Why are we on the rry?"
"That's... a long story..."
"Speaking of which... why did this ship co to Enies Lobby?" iser glanced at the Going rry. "Wasn't it deed unseaworthy?"
"I thought it might have sothing to do with you..."
iser gave Nami a puzzled look. "Why would you say that?"
"Rember, the first ti I t you guys was near the Sea Train—I never even saw this ship before."
Since he hadn't witnessed it firsthand, his reasoning made sense.
Seeing that iser didn't seem to be lying, Nami grew even more confused.
"If it wasn't you... then what happened?" she pressed. "We searched everywhere but found no trace of anyone else."
"It's almost as if... as if the ship ca here on its own. But how is that possible?"
After all, for a ship to reach its destination, environntal factors had to be considered!
In the Grand Line, the weather varied drastically between seas—calm waters here could an violent storms there.
Drifting to a specific location on its own was practically impossible, let alone... surviving the terrifying Aqua Laguna!
They were able to pass through Aqua Laguna thanks to iser, but how did the rry get here?
"Long-nose, rember what I told you before," Franky suddenly said.
Usopp, no longer despondent, imdiately stood up and said, "You an... the Ship Spirit?"
"Yes, the Ship Spirit!"
"Ship Spirit?"
Facing the confused looks from the others, Franky calmly explained, "The Ship Spirit is a legend of the sea. When a crew cherishes their ship deeply, there's a chance for a Ship Spirit to be born."
"And this long-nose here has actually seen the Ship Spirit of this very ship!"
"So..." Franky glanced around and said, "I believe this ship managed to cross Aqua Laguna and reach Enies Lobby because of the Ship Spirit."
Otherwise, there was no way to explain how the ship had arrived at Enies Lobby on its own.
"Our ship actually gave birth to a Ship Spirit?!" Sanji said in disbelief.
"Cherishing the ship..." Usopp looked at the patched-up hull and fell silent for a mont before choking up, "rry..."
Had they really taken good care of this ship?
If they had, why had it ended up in such a state?
"rry!!"
Chopper burst into tears. Had the rry really braved the dangerous Aqua Laguna to save them?
"I knew I loved the rry the most!!"
"Really?!" Luffy exclaid excitedly, "rry!!"
"rry, where are you?"
"rry!!"
Luffy, lying on the deck, struggled with great effort to stand up but couldn't manage it. In the end, he resorted to using his chin as a ans of movent, inching his way across the ship, clearly trying to find the Ship Spirit.
"Even I have never seen a ship that gave birth to a Ship Spirit before," Kokoro remarked with emotion.
Though she hadn't seen the Ship Spirit with her own eyes, she felt her life was now complete.
"Hmm?"
iser seed to sense sothing and turned to look at the rry's cabin, narrowing his eyes.
'This feeling is...'
"Don't waste your energy," Franky said. "If she wants to see you, she'll co out on her own."
"But... don't forget, this ship is already on borrowed ti. Even with a Ship Spirit..."
"You jerk, don't talk about rry like that!" Chopper shouted angrily. "The rry is fine! Why would you say such a thing?!"
"If it weren't for the rry, we wouldn't have escaped Enies Lobby, you heartless bastard!" Nami said.
"It's just how it looks..."
Franky wanted to explain further, but after seeing the looks in the eyes of the Straw Hat Pirates, he wisely kept his mouth shut.
Clearly, to the Straw Hat Pirates, this wasn't just a pirate ship—it was a companion who had been through countless life-and-death situations with them!
This stirred a feeling in Franky's heart that he had never experienced before.
"rry..."
Zoro placed his right hand on the ship's railing, unable to keep his emotions in check.
"Is there really no other way?" Nico Robin looked at Franky and said, "This ship really..."
"The keel is beyond repair," Franky shook his head.
Although he really wanted to help the Straw Hat Pirates fix this ship, once the keel was damaged, it was essentially a death sentence.
Replacing the keel would be equivalent to building an entirely new ship—could that even still be considered repairs?
That would just be constructing a new ship altogether!
"Sigh..."
Nico Robin sighed. She hadn't expected everyone to face such a situation right after escaping from Enies Lobby.
"Huh?"
"Where's iser?"
The others blinked. Their attention had been completely focused on Franky, and they hadn't even noticed when iser had disappeared.
Just then, a childlike voice ca from inside the ship's cabin—it sounded... like a little girl?
"Please put down. I don't want them to see like this."
"Please..."
"No." iser shook his head. "You beca like this for everyone's sake... How could I let you hide alone in a dark corner waiting to die?"
The sight of rry made iser's heart ache!
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