The alley opened into the storm like a gate into war.
Luffy stepped out, water soaking through his shirt, hat pulled low as rain poured in sheets. The wind slammed against his body, but his pace never faltered. Lightning lit the sky behind him like a spotlight on the battlefield he'd just left behind.
The system glowed faintly in front of his vision.
[Crew Status: All Confirmed Present – Dockside Zone]
[Marine Coordination: Fragmented]
[Weather Alert: Cyclone Forming – 4 Minutes to Full Landfall]
[Shadow Reserve: 76% Stable]
[Priority Objective: Regroup and Escape]
He didn't need a second reminder.
He turned toward the sea and ran.
All around him, Loguetown was collapsing into panic.
Wooden signs snapped and flew through the air. Market stalls toppled over. Crates and fruit baskets rolled down flooded alleys, carried by surging runoff.
Civilians screamed as they fled into buildings, clutching soaked coats and children.
Lamps blew out.
Awnings ripped from storefronts.
Lightning struck the side of the Marine barracks, showering sparks over a group of shouting soldiers. The town, usually bustling and proud, was now at the mercy of something beyond its control.
And something beyond its understanding.
Zoro pulled Nami by the wrist as they ducked under a collapsed storefront and dashed into the open street. Rain hammered down around them, but neither stopped moving.
"You sure this way?" he shouted over the wind.
"Trust me!" Nami yelled, clutching her drenched map against her chest. "I memorized the harbor routes yesterday!"
Zoro smirked. "You and your weather obsession finally paid off."
Nami didn't smile back. Her eyes were sharp. Calculating wind, water current, cloud speed—all instinctive now.
The storm wasn't random.
It was being pulled.
By someone.
Or something.
On the other side of town, Sanji ducked under a swinging sign and shoved Usopp forward.
"Move, long nose!"
"I'm moving!" Usopp cried, nearly slipping on the wet stone. "Do you even know where you're going?"
"I'm following the wind!"
Usopp nearly tripped over a rolling barrel. "The wind's trying to kill us!"
Sanji grabbed him by the collar and hurled him ahead. "Exactly. So we run through it faster."
They turned the last corner and caught sight of the docks—barely visible through sheets of rain.
Sanji's eyes narrowed. The Going Merry rocked violently against the pier, ropes strained tight, sails partially furled.
He exhaled a breath of relief.
"She's still there."
The Straw Hats converged near the harbor—four of them arriving from different directions at the same time.
Zoro helped Nami aboard first. Sanji threw Usopp up next. Then jumped himself, landing beside the mast.
They turned.
Luffy sprinted into view, his silhouette flashing with each burst of lightning behind him. He didn't slow. He leapt over the dock and landed hard on the soaked deck, raindrops exploding beneath his boots.
"We good?" he asked, already moving toward the wheel.
"All here," Nami confirmed, wiping water from her eyes.
"Anchor's stuck!" Sanji yelled.
Zoro jumped down with him and slammed his shoulder into the crank.
The anchor gave way.
The ship lurched forward.
[System Alert: Storm Level 8 Approaching – 2 Minutes to Core Impact]
[Route Window: Eastern Current – 300m East]
[Marine Activity: Multiple Units Approaching From South]
[Threat Marker: Captain Smoker – Vector Intercepted]
Luffy looked forward.
A shadow moved in the fog.
The storm screamed louder.
The crew worked like clockwork.
Sanji took the main ropes. Zoro manned the side sails. Nami turned the wheel, steering into the crosswind with hands steady as steel.
The ship groaned as it tilted hard left, waves smashing against the hull.
Usopp strapped himself to the mast and shouted, "Huge wave behind us—brace!"
Luffy closed his eyes.
"Arlong."
The shadow general rose from the hull, gripping the main sail rig and reinforcing the ropes with tendrils of black. Another tendril coiled around the mast to help Zoro anchor it against the wind.
The ship surged forward.
A wave rose to meet them—towering and dark.
Arlong leapt from the deck, slamming into the center of the wave and splitting it with a shockwave of shadow energy.
Spray exploded everywhere—but the Merry stayed afloat.
Just as they broke into open water—
A column of smoke rose from the ocean ahead.
And in the middle of it… Smoker.
Hovering on a cyclone of fog, drenched but resolute, jitte in hand.
His eyes met Luffy's across the storm.
"You don't run from justice."
Luffy didn't flinch.
"You're still in my way."
The system flared.
[Threat Identified: Captain Smoker – Full Blockade Detected]
[Escape Probability: 37% – Shadow Surge Required]
[Environmental Interference Detected – Unknown Pressure Approaching]
Then—lightning cracked through the clouds.
And for the briefest moment, a shadow in the sky above the storm… moved.
[End of Chapter 94]
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