111. Birka
The Clowns go to the Sky Island's gate and meet some guards. Just like what Buggy knows from the Birkans, these guards have rather big wings. The only Birkan that doesn't have such wings is Enel, who has drums instead.
"Palu, their wings look like yours," says Manba to Palu.
"Yeah, maybe this is where I originated from," says Palu while looking at the guards.
Some guards approach the ship and call out to them.
"Halt, Blue Sea people! We are the guards of Birka's gate. What's your purpose to come here?" asks a Guard.
"Vacation," replies Buggy.
"Vacation, is it? Then, you will be charged for 1,000,000 Extol each," says the Guard.
'Hmm? It's a lot cheaper than Skypiea. But maybe that's because of Enel who set the price to be that high on Skypiea,' thinks Buggy.
The fee on Skypiea is 1 Billion Extol, while this place only charges 1 Million. Buggy smiles because it is a low price, but his crewmates don't know that.
"1 MILLION?!" shout the Clowns in surprise.
"Oi oi oi, don't joke with us, dude. Isn't 1 Million too much for 1 person?" asks Cricket.
"Hmm? What do you mean? That's a low price already," says the Guard.
The Clowns are dumbfounded at the Guard's answer. To say that 1 Million is a low price must mean that the Sky People are very rich. The Clowns except for Buggy suddenly gather around and talk in low voice.
"Oi, won't we get rich if we rob this island clean?" whispers Deon.
"That's right, this is our chance to get a lot of money," whispers Manba.
"But we can't pass the gate without paying. There are 8 of us, so we need to pay 8 Million. We have the money, but that's not a small number," whispers Jude.
"Who cares about that? We are pirates, we can just enter without paying," whispers Cricket.
"Ah, that's right," whispers Jude.
The Clowns giggle happily while making a plan to rob the Sky Island.
Buggy can only sigh seeing his clueless crew. Then he asks the guard, "Sigh, what's this Extol thing? We only have Belly as money."
"Extol is the money that we used here. Well, we can also accept Belly here, but you'll need to use Extol in the town. The conversion rate is 10,000 Extol for 1 Belly. So you will need to pay 100 Belly each," says the Guard.
The Clowns fall on their faces when they hear the conversion rate. They thought it is the same as Belly, but it is a lot lower. 100 Belly for each person is even cheaper than Amusement Park's ticket.
"What happened with you guys?" asks Buggy while smirking.
"Captain, you know it, right? Why didn't you tell us about it?" asks Jude.
"Huh? Didn't you hear it too? He said 'Extol', not 'Belly'. You should have guessed that they have different values," says Buggy.
"We never used another currency, so we won't realize it," says Mantis.
"Yeah, we don't even know that Belly isn't the only currency in the world," says Deon.
Buggy laughs at their statement, but he also understands that because they have never seen another currency. They pay the 800 Belly and also change some money to be used in the town.
After they pay the fee, the guard blows a whistle. Then a giant Crab appears and grabs Little Hunter's sides before taking them to move through the milky road. They go up to the upper level through the spiral milky road at a rather high speed.
"Wow, this crab is fast," says Jude excitedly.
"It also walk to the front, very strange," says Manba curiously.
"Does it tastes good?" ponders Buggy.
"Maybe we can cook it after we reach the town," says Cricket.
The Crab wants to cry when it hears the Clowns. They're very cruel for wanting to cook it even though it has helped them.
"Don't even think about that. I won't cook it even if you beg. This guy has helped us to climb the cloud, so at least let it go to continue its life," says Mantis.
"Eh~. But-" say the boys disappointedly before Mantis cut them off.
"No but! Do as I say or I won't cook anything for you," says Mantis with a strict tone.
The boys can only sigh and nod. It's better to leave one delicious meal rather than die because they can't eat anything.
The Crab sighs in relief after knowing that it will be safe. It thanks Mantis in its heart and moves faster. The Crab also promises to itself to never take another Blue Sea People to the upper level again.
They arrived at the upper level in 5 minutes and the Crab takes them to the beach. It leaves immediately before the Clowns change their mind and decide to cook it for real.
The Clowns ignore the strange Crab and look at the Sky Island. Just like Skypiea, this island is made of a white solid cloud. The plants grow on the white cloud and the buildings are also made of clouds.
But unlike Skypiea, the residences here have wide & bigger wings. Most of the Birkans are warriors too and must be stronger than Skypieans. These guys are more like the Shandians, but with bigger wings.
Even so, the people here are friendlier than the Shandians. It's proved by their attitude toward the Clown who has just arrived. They greet the Clowns normally, although not as friendly as the Skypieans.
"Alright, you can do what you want in this place as long as you don't create too many troubles. This place is 10 km above the sea, so it will be difficult for us to leave freely. Be mindful of that and like usual, gather any information about this place," says Buggy to his crew.
"Aye aye," replied the Clowns excitedly.
Palu is the most excited to explore this place as he might be originated from here.
"Cricket, you guard the ship first. The people here are quite strong, so be careful. From what I know, most of them can use Observation haki," says Buggy.
"Oh, that's interesting," says Cricket while grinning and rubbing his chin.
"Ruff, go with Palu and make sure he won't make trouble. He will also be able to protect you if something happens," says Buggy.
"Alright," replies Ruff.
"Eh~? Do you think that I'll make trouble?" asks Palu with a wronged expression.
"Who knows? You might get too excited to find out about your origins and it might create trouble. Better safe than sorry," says Buggy.
"Sigh, alright then," replies Palu.
"Good. You can go now, dismissed," says Buggy.
The Clowns nod before they spread and move on their own. Some of them move together while the other move alone. Cricket stays on the beach to guard the ship as there might be some troublesome people.
Buggy walks to the town while thinking, 'Has Enel got his devil fruit? If he hasn't then I will try to find it, but if he has, then what should I do to him? He might be as annoying as when he becomes Skypiea's God. Hmm, I will decide after I meet him. I hope he can entertain me.'
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