The Queen's Grace sliced through the waves, the steady creaking of its wooden frame and the fluttering sails blending into a calming rhythm.
It had been a week since the events in Orange Town.
Buggy the Clown had been defeated by Luffy's crew, just as the original story recorded.
The Straw Hats had departed without noticing the quiet crew that had assisted from the shadows.
Kaito's crew, in turn, had slipped away, leaving no footprints behind.
They didn't need the spotlight.
Their journey was never about fame.
It was about the sea.
About freedom.
About finding their own way.
Their days settled into a steady routine.
Each morning, Nojiko reviewed their navigation, carefully charting their course toward the Grand Line.
Afternoons were for sailing drills, sparring, and survival training.
Evenings were spent in quiet meals and soft conversations under the open sky.
And yet, as the days passed, Kaito noticed something in Kuina—a growing restlessness.
Though she trained harder than anyone, there was a distant look in her eyes when she stared at the horizon.
It wasn't dissatisfaction.
It was curiosity.
It was the feeling of something waiting.
One evening, as the sun dipped into the sea, Kuina approached Kaito near the helm.
"Captain," she began, her tone unusually serious. "I've been thinking about our goal."
Kaito lowered his map, sensing that this was important.
"I don't want to chase a throne or a title," Kuina said quietly. "But I want to find something that's mine. A challenge worthy of the path I've chosen."
Kaito listened patiently.
"Back in Shells Town, I overheard some merchants," she continued. "They spoke of an island in the sky. They called it a myth, but the way they spoke… I don't think it's just a story."
Kaito's heart skipped slightly.
The Sky Island.
The path toward Skypiea was starting to unfold.
"I thought you'd be more skeptical," Kuina said when he didn't immediately dismiss her.
"Sometimes the best stories are the ones people call impossible," Kaito answered with a calm smile.
Kuina crossed her arms, her gaze firm. "If there really is an island in the sky, I want to see it. And if the legends are true… there's a fruit there. A thunder fruit."
Kaito's system chimed softly in his mind.
[Side Mission Unlocked: Sky Island – Whispers of the Thunder.]
[Reach the Grand Line. Discover the Sky Island's entrance. The journey will reveal the path.]
He nodded.
"It's a long journey," he warned. "We'd have to cross the Grand Line. Face dangers far greater than anything in the East Blue."
Kuina's lips curved into a faint smile. "Good. I don't want it to be easy."
Carmen, who had silently approached with bowls of stew, dropped them onto the deck with a grin. "If you're chasing impossible things, count me in. I want to cook in the sky."
Nojiko leaned against the railing nearby. "I've been mapping routes. It's not just about reaching the Grand Line. It's about surviving it."
Kaya arrived with freshly bandaged supplies, her smile warm. "Wherever you sail, I'll follow."
Kaito looked at them—his crew, his family.
The bond they had built wasn't one of duty or blind ambition.
It was one of shared trust, quiet goals, and freedom.
"Then it's settled," Kaito said. "We'll sail for the Grand Line. And one day, we'll find the Sky Island."
His words were simple.
But the weight of them settled in each of their hearts.
They weren't pirates.
They weren't chasing glory.
They were chasing the sky.
Their next stop was Loguetown.
The final port before the Grand Line.
It was where legends began.
It was where Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King, had met his end.
But for Kaito, Loguetown was something else—it was where Carmen's story would change.
According to the system, Carmen's fate intersected with Sanji's here.
It was also the last place in the East Blue where Luffy and his crew would rest before crossing into the Grand Line.
Their timelines would converge one more time.
But Kaito had already decided:
He would not interfere.
He would not steal the spotlight.
He would simply sail his course and meet his friends at his own pace.
The journey to Loguetown wasn't without challenges.
The Queen's Grace encountered two minor pirate crews along the way, both of whom underestimated Kaito's calm leadership and Kuina's sharp blade.
Kaito's crew repelled them without unnecessary cruelty.
They weren't pirates—but they would defend their freedom.
In the evenings, their training continued.
Kuina's swordsmanship became sharper.
Nojiko's navigation skills reached near-professional levels.
Carmen's cooking—enhanced by the system's unlocked recipe mentor—brought them warmth even in the coldest storms.
Kaya's hands grew steady enough to treat wounds while the ship rocked violently beneath her feet.
Kaito's own swordsmanship advanced as he sparred daily with Kuina, refining his footwork and precision.
They grew steadily—not rapidly, not explosively—but like the slow, sure carving of stone by the sea.
And all the while, the system whispered of future encounters.
[Upcoming Timeline Event: Straw Hats arrive in Loguetown.]
[Approaching: Sanji and Carmen's crossing.]
Kaito stood on the deck one morning, watching the mist part to reveal the sprawling silhouette of Loguetown in the distance.
They had arrived.
The final threshold.
The gateway to the Grand Line.
As they docked quietly, Kaito's crew dispersed as usual, blending with the locals.
Loguetown was a place of crossroads.
Merchants from all seas.
Pirates on the edge of their first voyage.
Marines watching warily.
And Kaito knew that Luffy was already somewhere in these streets, unaware that familiar eyes watched from a distance.
They wouldn't meet here.
Not directly.
But Kaito knew their stories would intertwine again, further ahead, across the Grand Line's treacherous waves.
He also knew Carmen's next step would unfold here.
After all, in this timeline, Carmen was destined to cross paths with Sanji one last time before choosing her true crew.
And Kaito would let her make that choice.
After all, his ship wasn't a cage.
It was a home.
One where people were free to come and go.
But something told him—Carmen had already chosen.
He would wait.
The sea would decide.
And beyond Loguetown, the Grand Line waited.
Not as a throne to claim.
But as a story waiting to be lived.