Chapter 292: Splitting into Two Teams

"Whoa! A centaur!!"

"Let go, let go!!"

A centaur-like armed figure, with a human upper body dressed in clothing and holding a gun, and a horse-like lower body with four legs, was being restrained by Luffy. He had the poor guy completely wrapped up with his *Gomu Gomu no* technique.

"Hehehe, join my crew!"

... 

"Hey, hey, hey, Luffy, can you stop trying to recruit every 'rare creature' you meet?" 

After Roman's white dove sulked, it was Zoro's turn to comment on Luffy's antics. Meanwhile, Usopp had climbed onto a roof and was staring wide-eyed at the snowy peaks in the distance.

No wonder Roman said it was about to "cool down"—?!

Wait, who's that?

Usopp quickly turned his head toward a building a kilometer away. A tall, slender woman with wavy green hair glanced their way meaningfully before spreading her wings and soaring into the sky.

"Did you guys just see that... a person? No, a bird? A person with wings."

"Wasn't that Roman?"

Hearing Luffy's question, the white dove next to him couldn't help but retort.

"What do you guys even think I am? Never mind..."

The dove performed a smooth dive and, flapping its wings, landed lightly on Robin's shoulder, holding a Den Den Mushi in its beak.

"You should at least be a little more cautious. This guy—" The dove tilted its head toward the unconscious centaur. "He's clearly one of the armed personnel on this island. Look at his equipment, and this Den Den Mushi."

The dove placed the Den Den Mushi in Robin's hand, its "CC" marking catching everyone's attention.

"So, we've stepped onto someone's turf."

Zoro, casually gripping his sword hilt, gestured toward the centaur lying on the ground, who had fainted from the "humiliation."

"And because of Luffy, we're already in an 'enemy' relationship with them?"

"Exactly. In fact, the moment we landed on this island, we became mortal enemies."

This island was tied to Big Mom's human gigantification experiments, served as the upstream production line for artificial Devil Fruits between Doflamingo and Kaido, and was where Caesar himself was researching poisonous weapons.

Any one of these secrets being exposed would bring instant disaster! So the island's owner, Caesar, would never let anyone who set foot here leave alive.

Then again, besides the Straw Hat Crew, who else would bother coming to an obviously dangerous island like this one just for adventure?

This island isn't marked by Log Poses, so regular ships can't reach it. 

"I sometimes wonder if I'd be just as… happy if I knew nothing." 

The white dove perched on Robin's shoulder sighed as it watched Luffy happily run off to catch some "bird with a human face," leaving the centaur behind. Even though strong enemies were lurking nearby, was Roman supposed to just turn a blind eye? 

He couldn't do that. 

"Sighing will make you age faster, Roman." 

 Robin patted the dove on her shoulder. "Didn't we train these past two years to face any challenge that comes our way?" 

That might be true, but the white dove rolled its eyes. 

If only you knew that we'll soon be facing Caesar and Doflamingo, which will lead us to Kaido. Not to mention Sanji being "forced" into a marriage by Big Mom, and Jinbe trying to leave her crew… 

If you can still laugh after all that, I'd be amazed! 

Well, whatever. 

When the enemy strikes, we'll counter. Be it the Warlords or the Emperors—bring it on! 

"Roman, get me a boat!" 

"On it—" 

The dove flew over to the lake… though this "lake" at the center of the island was actually the result of the Akainu and Aokiji battle two years ago. Their clash had carved out a massive crater in the island's center, which filled with seawater, creating this unique landscape. 

"Bag Bag—Lifeboat!" 

Pulling a small boat from its chest pocket, the dove tossed it into the water and perched on its mast, turning to look at Usopp. 

"There are enemies gathering ahead. Watch out for long-range attacks." 

— — — — — 

"Luffy's side should be okay, right?" 

Meanwhile, on the Sunny, under Nami's command and Roman's control of The White Knight, the ship circled around to the icy side of the island, hiding in a cove. 

"Master Bubble—Stealth Bubble!" 

As Nami released a giant bubble that enveloped the Sunny, it became almost invisible unless someone got very close to inspect it. 

"Merry, we'll leave the ship to you." 

As the ship's spirit, Merry could only influence the vessel, but it was more than enough for handling emergencies. Besides, Roman had left plenty of paper on board, ready to assemble The White Knight for defense if needed. 

"Safe travels, everyone." 

"Well, let's go on our 'adventure,' too. To keep things interesting, I won't give too many details about the enemies we'll encounter. So, who's taking the lead?" 

?! 

"Roman, did you just say 'enemies'? As in, we're definitely going to run into them?" 

Chopper looked horrified. 

"Does that mean there's going to be fighting?" 

"Don't panic," 

Roman waved casually. "Whenever we reach a new island, strong enemies are a given. Isn't that common sense?" 

What kind of "common sense" is that?! 

"No, I can't do this… I've come down with 'the disease where you die as soon as you step on an island'…" 

As Chopper collapsed in tears, Roman looked to the sky. —Is this Usopp's spirit taking over? 

"Don't worry, Chopper." 

Nami crouched to comfort the little reindeer. "We have plenty of reliable fighters here—Roman, Sanji, Franky, and Brook. That's way more solid than Luffy's side…" 

She trailed off mid-sentence. 

"Let's just hope Robin can keep an eye on those three." 

Luffy didn't even need to be mentioned; most of the trouble the crew faced stemmed from him. Usopp's actual strength remained questionable. Zoro? As long as he didn't get lost, that would already be a win. 

When it came to that team, things didn't look very promising. 

"Don't worry, I have a dove following them at all times. And—" 

The White Knight pointed to its wrist. Everyone in the crew was wearing a "Roman-brand" mobile phone as a substitute for a Transponder Snail. Being the "questionable manufacturer" he was, Roman had, of course, installed a backdoor. 

"I can locate everyone at any time, so just treat this like a relaxing vacation." 

"Roman, every time you say something like that, a big fight is right around the corner…" 

"Got hurt, huh?"

Roman, part of The White Knight, sighed. Isn't it always Luffy who decides the ship's course? After all, Luffy is famous for his knack for attracting trouble.

"Let's go. We'll meet up with Luffy and the others on the island."

——————

Meanwhile, the moment Roman's dove form returned to consciousness, he saw:

"Oh my, I didn't know you all liked winter swimming."

Four figures—Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Robin—emerged from the shoreline, soaked and covered in frost. Roman, who had just returned from his main body, couldn't help but make a sarcastic remark.

"I told you to watch out for their long-range attacks. How did you all end up looking like wet chickens?"

"It's freezing!!"

"Cold like this is no match for my trained muscles..."

"But no matter how much you train, you still can't—unless you're using Armament Haki."

"Look, we're actually in luck..."

The group's eyes turned sharply toward the defeated attackers—a mix of "centaurs" and "half-donkey men." Their focus was clear.

"Clothes!" x4

Pirates. Robbery.

 At last, you're doing something fitting for pirates. Should I feel proud, or completely exasperated?

Roman's dove form wasn't sure how to comment, but:

"We've landed on the other side. Marines have shown up."

The dove perched on Usopp's head, pecking at his curly hair like a real bird.

"If you want me to guide you to regroup, I can. Or maybe you'd prefer to keep adventuring—"

"Shishishi, Croc-ride! Move forward!"

As the dove spoke, Luffy had already taken down the leader of the "half-beast men"—a massive man with crocodile legs, a bulky upper body, and a long, brown beard braided into three strands. He had successfully "tamed" him as a ride.

"Damn it, I'm the great 茶胡子 with a bounty of—"

One glare from Luffy and Zoro shut him up. Brownbeard quickly resigned himself to his new role as "transportation." After all, survival beats death.

"Head that way."

The dove pointed the direction, its gaze darkening before returning to the other side once more.

——————

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