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Boom!
Lightning, like a jagged white blade, tore through the charcoal sky, followed by a roaring thunder that rattled the very hearts of men. At this moment, this sea area was facing a rare super storm. Gale-force winds howled with the fury of a thousand armies charging head-on, while rain hammered down like an overwhelming hail of lead. Surging giant waves rose like enormous, watery hands, threatening to drag everything into the deep, never to see the light of day again.
In this perilous natural disaster, a figure was struggling against the mountain-sized waves. "Phew! This won't defeat me! Ah, spit, spit, spit!" Having accidentally swallowed a mouthful of brine, Satori spat it out, gritting his teeth as he paddled onward.
Ever since leaving Qiya Island, he had been swimming. When he had swum for most of the day without seeing land, his stomach started to growl. He had planned to dive and catch a snack, but to his surprise, he hadn't seen a single fish. Shortly after, the weather turned, sweeping him into this disaster. He had considered using Moonwalk to escape through the air, but the technique was too stamina-heavy for such an endless horizon.
"Phew! This is a trial; I must swim out with my own strength!" Satori's eyes shone with a terrifying light. He realized now that Grandpa Garp was right; he really did need a ship. Without a place to rest or store meat, he was finding himself in a dire situation. After a fierce struggle that lasted an unknown amount of time, the sun finally broke through the clouds.
"Yo-ho! I swam out!" Satori cheered weakly. Exhausted and energy-depleted, he floated on his back, staring at the clear blue sky. Before long, the lack of food took its toll, and he fell into a deep, unconscious sleep on the vast, boundless ocean, his body drifting with the currents towards an unknown fate.
As the sun began to set, a small boat drifted nearby, looking like a lonely leaf on a lake. On board, Nami adjusted the sail. She took a long, comfortable gulp of water and began chewing on some hardtack.
"Sigh, this was truly a miscalculation," she muttered, recalling her past few days. Her plan on Qiya Island had been ruined by Satori's interference, and her next target island turned out to be empty of pirates. Thinking about the small fortune she had lost because of that kid, she gnashed her teeth in frustration. In her two years as a "thieving cat," she had never lost money once it reached her hands—until Satori. He was firmly etched in her mind as a source of bad luck.
"I really don't know where that kid came from," she sighed, feeling her aching knees. "Well, the sea is vast. I'll probably never see him again."
Just as the thought crossed her mind, she glimpsed something floating. A person? After a moment of hesitation, she adjusted her sail and rowed closer, keeping her wooden defense stick within reach. As the silhouette became clearer, her expression changed from caution to utter shock.
"How can it be that kid?!"
She quickly hauled the unconscious Satori onto her boat. Seeing his chest rise and fall, she breathed a sigh of relief. She moistened his dry lips with water and patted his cheek. "Hey, wake up."
Satori didn't wake, but he mumbled unconsciously, "Hungry... so hungry..."
Nami shook her head with a chuckle. "Fainted from hunger, huh?" She reached into her bag for some hardtack, but her gaze fell on a large chicken leg wrapped in tin foil—her breakfast for tomorrow. She hesitated, looked at Satori's pale face, and sighed. Hmph, you're getting off easy this time!
She unwrapped the chicken leg, ready to wake him. But as she turned her head, she jumped in fright. Satori was no longer lying down. He was sitting bolt upright, his eyes glowing with a primal, green hunger as he stared at the meat, saliva dripping wildly from the corners of his mouth.
"Food! There's food!!"