After the small confrontation, Luffy got to work and started painting the Straw Hat symbol, but with his own artistic style.
"Here you go! It's a symbol so you can remember our promise!" Luffy said while covered in paint. "Don't hit your head anymore, or it'll be erased before we see each other again."
Laboon let out a happy sound.
"That's right!" Luffy said with a big smile.
"I'm going to plan our route," Nami said, sitting at the table with the map.
"I'm going to start preparing this elephant tuna," Sanji said while cutting the fish.
"THAT IDIOT DESTROYED THE SHIP! Oi, Zoro, help me fix it!" Usopp shouted, trying to repair the mast while Zoro was sleeping peacefully. "I'm not a shipwright!"
"Let me see if I can help you," Oliver said.
While everyone was busy with something, a loud scream came from Nami.
"What's wrong? Why are you screaming?" Luffy asked while trying to clean off the paint.
"What's the matter, Nami-san? If you're hungry, the food is ready!" Sanji said, dancing while carrying numerous plates of food.
"Alright, time to eat," Usopp said, finishing his carpentry work.
"We should hurry before Luffy eats everything," Oliver said.
Zoro kept sleeping on the ship while the rest prepared to eat and listen to Nami.
"The compass! It's broken! It's spinning like crazy!" Nami shouted in concern, knowing that without it, they couldn't move forward.
Crocus found that extremely strange.
"It looks like you don't know anything about this place. It's as if you want to commit suicide," Crocus said, catching Nami's attention.
Luffy started eating like crazy while the rest paid attention to Crocus, eating more slowly.
"I already told you that common sense doesn't work here. The compass isn't broken," Crocus explained.
"Then why? Is it because of magnetic fields?" Nami asked.
"Exactly. All the islands in the Grand Line are made up of minerals, which have created a magnetic field throughout the entire Grand Line," he began explaining how the islands worked.
"Aside from that, the weather is not constant, and neither is the sea. If you're really the navigator, you should know how dangerous these waters are. If you try to leave without knowing anything, you'll simply die," he concluded.
"You're right. If we don't know where to go, we're as good as dead. And I'm afraid I have no idea," Nami admitted, embarrassed.
"This is bad! What are we going to do?!" Usopp asked, worried.
"Even when she apologizes, she's gorgeous," Sanji said with heart-shaped eyes.
"SHUT UP!" Nami yelled at Sanji and Usopp to silence them.
"What's wrong?" Luffy asked, looking at the food. "Thish fishh issh amazing!!"
"To navigate the Grand Line, you need a Log Pose," Crocus said.
"A Log Pose? What's that?" Nami asked curiously.
"It's a special compass that records the magnetic fields of the islands," Crocus explained.
"A weird compass?" Luffy asked with half the fish still in his mouth.
"They have a very peculiar shape," Crocus said.
"Like this one?" Luffy asked, showing a Log Pose.
"Yes, exactly. Without that, it's impossible to navigate the Grand Line. And to be honest, it's hard to get one outside the Grand Line itself," Crocus said.
"I understand, but one thing... WHERE DID YOU GET THAT?!" Nami punched Luffy in the face, almost making him drop the food from his mouth.
"Those weird people left it behind when they left," Luffy explained.
"From them?" Nami asked, to which Luffy nodded.
"Why did you hit me?" Luffy asked, adjusting his hat.
"I felt like it," Nami answered.
"Oh, okay," Luffy said, finishing his fish.
"So this is a Log Pose. But it doesn't have any markings," Nami said, examining it.
"Every island in the Grand Line has a unique magnetic field, and the same happens with all of them. You have to let the Log Pose memorize the island's field so it can guide you to the next one. It's the only way. Since it's impossible to determine your exact location, the Log Pose is the only thing that can guide you once you've entered," Crocus began explaining. "There are seven different paths to enter, and you'll have to choose one. But it doesn't really matter which one you pick because, in the end, all paths lead to the same place—Laugh Tale, the final island. In history, the only one who has confirmed its existence is the late Pirate King. It's the legendary island."
"That's where it is?! THE ONE PIECE?!" Usopp asked, completely excited.
"Maybe. But no one else has managed to reach it," Crocus said.
"Well, when we get there, we'll see it with our own eyes," Luffy said, finishing his meal. "Alright, let's go! I'm done eating."
"YOU ATE THE WHOLE THING?!!" Sanji shouted with shark-like teeth.
"THERE AREN'T EVEN ANY BONES LEFT!" Usopp shouted upon seeing that even those were gone.
"I'll have to take good care of the Log Pose. Without it, we're lost," Nami said, putting the Log Pose on.
'I think it's time to step away from Nami's wrath,' Oliver thought.
"You damn rubber idiot! You ate everything! All the food I made for Nami-san!!" Sanji kicked Luffy, sending him flying straight into the Log Pose, destroying it.
"Huh?"
Nami saw the Log Pose break right before her eyes, freezing in shock before glaring at Sanji.
"Go cool your heads!" Nami kicked both of them, sending them straight into the sea.
"What a fall," Oliver said, watching Luffy sink.
"Oi, weren't we lost without that?!" Usopp asked, getting up from the impact.
"Crocus-san, what do we do now?!!" Nami asked, worried.
"Don't worry, I'll give you mine as thanks for helping Laboon," Crocus said.
--
--
After a few minutes, Luffy came back up with Sanji, along with Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, to explain a situation to them.
"Whiskey Peak? What's that?" Luffy asked, standing in front of the two bounty hunters.
"It's the name of our town, sir," Mr. 9 said, kneeling alongside Miss Wednesday.
"And you want us to take you there because you don't have a ship. Why should we help you, Mr. 9? You tried to kill the whale," Nami asked them.
"Who are you?" Usopp asked.
"I'm a king," Mr. 9 lied, making Nami grab his face, causing him to scream in pain.
"Liar," Nami said.
"We can't tell you anything! But we really want to go back. If you help us, we'll repay the favor!" both bounty hunters said, doing a Dogeza bow.
"The truth is, we didn't want to do this dirty job. Our organization works this way—everything is a secret. We can't tell you anything. We just hope you take pity on us," Miss Wednesday said.
"Don't bother; the only thing you'll get from them is trouble," Crocus told them.
"It doesn't matter that we broke the Log Pose and don't have another one. Do you still want to come with us?" Nami said, showing the broken Log Pose.
"WHAT?! YOU BROKE IT? That Log Pose was mine!" Mr. 9 shouted, furious.
"We got on our knees and begged! And now you're in the same situation as us!" Miss Wednesday shouted.
"Calm down, I don't want to have to knock you out again," Oliver said, using Electro, which scared them.
"Oh right! Crocus-san was going to give us another one," Nami said, making them kneel again.
"We're at your feet, appealing to your kindness," they said, doing Dogeza again. 'Damn it! That shameless woman tricked us!'
"Alright. You can come with us," Luffy said after thinking about it.
Hours later, the Going Merry was repaired, and the Log Pose was charged.
"It's time. The Log Pose should be ready. Did you use the map to set it?" Crocus asked.
"Yes! It's pointing to Whiskey Peak," Nami confirmed.
"Are you sure about going to Whiskey Peak just for those two? This is the only place where you can choose the route," Crocus asked.
"Yeah, and if we don't like it, we can always turn back, right?" Luffy said with a smile.
"Of course," Crocus replied with a grin.
'Hehehe, stupid pirates,' the two bounty hunters thought upon seeing how foolish the pirates were acting.
"We're leaving, Old Man-Flower," Luffy said, saying goodbye.
"Thanks for the Log Pose," Nami thanked him.
"See you around," Crocus said.
Laboon let out a loud farewell cry.
"We're finally leaving," Nami said, looking ahead.
"I'll be back, whale!" Luffy shouted, saying goodbye to Laboon.
As they sailed away from Twin Capes, Crocus watched them closely.
"Maybe they're the pirates we've been waiting for. That boy seemed special. Don't you think so, Roger?" Crocus asked into the air.