Chapter 347: Poneglyph Raftel

"Wait a minute,"

Just as the Straw Hat Crew was about to rush off and cause trouble with BIG MOM's pirate crew, Duke Inuarashi, who was managing Zou during the day, had to step in and stop them.

"If your goal is to become the 'Pirate King,' then follow me. There's something I need to show you."

?

Is it one of the four Poneglyphs pointing to Raftel? Looks like I don't have to play the bad guy. Roman quietly clenched his hand into a fist, and a set of printed documents vanished without a trace.

"Hey, how did things get so weird in just one night?"

Trafalgar Law, who had hurried over with a group, looked speechless. "You were supposed to prepare to deal with Kaido, but your plan was completely messed up by you guys. — Now you're facing 'BIG MOM,' too? You guys have an amazing talent for causing trouble, makes me think anything could happen with you all."

"Oh, Trafalgar!"

Luffy waved his hand excitedly.

"We'll go get Sanji first, then knock Kaido down! — Are those your crew members?"

"Yes, the 'Heart Pirates,' 20 people in total. Don't worry about them. What are you guys thinking?"

Since meeting the Straw Hat Crew, Law's cold image was long gone. So, at least he didn't want his subordinates to be 'infected' by them. "Facing both Beasts Pirates and BIG MOM's crew at the same time... whatever," Law sighed, knowing talking to Luffy was pointless. He probably didn't have a cautious bone in his body, so he said, "Roman, as a strategist for the Straw Hat Crew, isn't this a bit unwise?"

"We didn't start this mess this time."

Roman shrugged.

"This time, it's Sanji's father, the 'King' of the Vinsmoke family, who caused the problem. — I'll explain the details later, but for now, our cook has been taken by the BIG MOM Pirates. Do you think Luffy will just sit back and do nothing?"

"…Fine, so what are you going to do?"

"Of course, we'll charge straight to the Land of the Four Emperors and bring Sanji back!"

I knew it! Law put a hand to his forehead, feeling like the world was spinning. Do you think the Land of the Four Emperors is just a place you can come and go as you please? Going there is practically a death sentence...

"I'll go with you—"

"No, Trafalgar."

Luffy raised his hand to stop what Law was about to say, "The alliance we made was to deal with Kaido together, but this time—"

"This is an internal problem of the Straw Hat Crew. Bringing a friend into it goes against the pirate code. Heh heh heh~~"

Facing Luffy's cheerful smile, Trafalgar Law sighed.

"Alright, then I'll wait for you in Wano."

"You have my vivre card, don't make me wait too long."

"Of course!"

——————

"Uncle, where are you taking us?"

With Duke Inuarashi leading the way, the usually inactive Nekomamushi also walked at the back of the group. In the middle were the Straw Hat Crew and Law, heading to the left side, the place corresponding to the right abdomen base.

"Wow, that's a huge whale!"

"Idiot, that's just a tree that looks like a whale."

"Everyone, follow the vines, and you'll reach the 'White Whale Forest.' From there, you can enter the internal space. That's the most secret place in Zou."

Indeed, although the huge 'White Whale Forest' was very eye-catching, because of that, no one would expect there to be a secret space inside. It's a classic case of 'the darkest place is under the light.' And—

"The entrance is actually here?"

At the whale's tail, a secret door opened, and a downward path appeared before them.

"Heh heh heh, what's inside, I wonder?"

Luffy was excited.

"I can't wait~~!"

Well, you're going to be disappointed, Roman thought to himself in the back. — As long as the exact location is known, there's no secret room Roman can't reach. He wouldn't even need to do anything: the 'Gate-Gate Pages' could bypass any defense traps.

"Please look—"

As the group walked into the secret room below, a large red stone tablet appeared in front of them.

"Please look at this stone tablet."

"Poneglyph!?"

"Exactly, Nico Robin," Duke Inuarashi turned to the intelligent beauty beside him. "I've heard of you: the 'Ohara' child. You might try translating this stone tablet."

"Eh? Is it okay—"

Although she said that, Robin couldn't help but glance at the stone tablet, as Poneglyphs were incredibly appealing to her... "Please go ahead."

As Duke Inuarashi, wrapped in bandages, and Nekomamushi stepped aside, Robin approached to closely examine the stone tablet. The more she looked, the more serious her expression became!

"What's wrong, Robin? Is the translation difficult?" 

Seeing Nami's concern, Robin waved her hand.

"No, it's not that. It's just the content of this stone tablet..." She paused. "Let me write down the translation, and you'll understand. Roman—"

"Alright,"

As Roman stretched out his hand, pieces of paper flew into Robin's hands. All she had to do was hold the paper and think, and the words would appear on the page in her mind.

"This is..."

After Nami glanced at the translated paper, her expression also became serious.

"This looks like the coordinates for a sea chart? Aren't Poneglyphs supposed to record things like 'ancient weapons' or the history of the Void Century?"

"Indeed, you can understand it."

Duke Inuarashi and Nekomamushi exchanged a glance. Even though they had been somewhat distant for the past twenty years, they wouldn't be awkward in front of their old friends who had saved the entire country.

"This is the 'Road Poneglyph'!"

"It's a stone tablet that guides the brave explorers of the sea and the truth toward the end of the Grand Line."

?! "Doesn't that mean..."

Seeing the Straw Hat Crew, who had just realized and looked shocked, Duke Inuarashi nodded.

"That's right, it's 'Laugh Tale!'"

"Eh, eh, eh!"

Luffy's jaw nearly dropped to his chest. Even though he shouted every day about wanting to become the Pirate King, he asked:

"Does it say Laugh Tale is there?"

"Does that mean Luffy can become the Pirate King soon...?"

"Wait, wait a minute. But—"

Once someone says "but," everything that was said before is usually up for debate. As expected, Nekomamushi extended his cat paw.

"There are four of these 'Road Poneglyphs.'"

"Eh, 'Laugh Tale' has four of them?!"

*Slap*, Usopp gave Luffy a smack on the back of his head.

"How can that be? He hasn't even finished talking!"

"Right, the so-called 'Laugh Tale' is actually the intersection point at the 'center' marked by the four red Poneglyphs."

"But—"

Nami raised a new question.

"When we first entered the Grand Line, Uncle Crocus at Twin Capes told us that if we follow the 'Log Pose,' we would reach Laugh Tale. Why...?"

"You met Crocus?" 

Duke Inuarashi said with a sigh, "What he said was true. When you follow the 'Log Pose' and reach the last island of the Grand Line, you'll find out that it takes four 'Road Poneglyphs' to locate Laugh Tale."

"We're just telling you in advance, that's all."

Nekomamushi, who was nearby, also sighed, "Your 'strength' is already enough that you don't need to continue the journey."

"...Finally, it's here?"

Luffy clenched his fists, unsure if it was excitement, nostalgia, memories, or something else.

"On that island, does that treasure really exist?"

"The great treasure 'One Piece'!"

"Great, let's head out immediately—we've already got one!"

"The world is so big, where else do we go to find the rest?"

Facing Usopp's question, Roman raised his hand.

"If it's about those 'red Poneglyphs,' I know where the other two are."

?

"One is with Kaido of the Beasts Pirates, and the other is with Big Mom's 'Charlotte Linlin.' As for the last one..."

Most likely, it's in Blackbeard's hands! Don't forget, Blackbeard himself is an archaeologist. Roman doesn't believe he hasn't been collecting these 'Road Poneglyphs.' After defeating Kaido and Big Mom, the Straw Hat Crew and Blackbeard's crew will definitely have a battle—there's no doubt about it.

"I see, we'll just take them!"

Luffy finally remembered his 'pirate' persona.

"Since we're going to get Sanji back, let's just steal the Poneglyph too!!"

"...Luffy, that's the Four Emperors! Think carefully~~"

"Yeah, do you believe I'll scare you so badly you'll wet your pants?"

Chopper and Usopp, holding onto Luffy's legs on either side, were teary-eyed. They were about to face the Four Emperors head-on... Why did this happen so quickly? If they had known, they wouldn't have bothered with this broken stone. It wouldn't be too late to go to the end of the Grand Line and come back later to look for it.

"We don't need to steal the Poneglyphs. Most people just take 'copy' of the content. — Many big figures in the world have such copy, so..."

Duke Inuarashi kindly reminded them.

"Nico Robin, you need to be careful with your safety. Since you can read the Poneglyphs, many powerful people will likely try to target you."

"It's fine," 

Robin smiled sweetly.

"After all, I have so many strong partners around to protect me."

"Hey, hey, hey, you're praising me so openly, it's making me embarrassed~~"

Luffy, looking like a monkey, said:

"Even if you rely on others like this, they still won't be happy~~"

Chopper, powered up by his martial arts, shouted: "Don't you dare lay a finger on Robin!"

Usopp, feeling confident again, added: "Don't worry, we're pirates!"

Roman clenched his fist, "We take from others, but no one takes from us!"

Duke Inuarashi and Nekomamushi, who had just said the same thing, gave each other a cold snort and turned their heads away.

"Alright then," Luffy said, fist bumping his hand, full of battle spirit. "We're going to crash that 'Big Mom' tea party! Then we'll grab Sanji and the Poneglyphs!"

"You guys really are..." 

Law, who had just arrived, was already tired and wanted to lie down. 

"One of the Four Emperors, and you guys talk about it like it's nothing. Totland, a huge country, and you guys act like you can just waltz in and out..." 

"Don't panic," Roman reassured him. 

"We haven't fought yet, how can anyone say we'll lose?"

"Whatever makes you happy!" ————

———

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