Summary:
Team Slamák Explore (Luffy, Zoro, Chopper and Robin) wasted no time getting into trouble. Zoro has already strayed from the group and Luffy yells at him that west is the opposite, when he is actually pointing east. Zoro counters with the logic that the “right eye of the skull” must mean they’re going right, and the two trade insults. Meanwhile, Robin asks Chopper to tell them both that they are actually supposed to go south. Finally, they regroup and head out. Chopper comments that at first he was worried that the forest would be a dangerous place, but now he thinks there’s nothing to fear (making a mental note that he feels safer with the group), prompting Luffy to mention how brave he is today . Zoro adds that he can relate since nothing happened to them even yesterday when they entered the forest, and Chopper feels even better about himself. Unbeknownst to all of them, a gigantic snake is slithering through the forest behind them, vastly taller than all of them. Robin thinks to herself how strange the group is for wanting something bad to happen. At that moment, the giant snake fully emerges in front of them.
Aboard the Going Merry, Usopp has assumed the role of “captain” and asks Nami to speed up the ship. He replies that the milky stream on the road is too rough, so they have to rely on dials to get through. Usopp then asks Sanji to be his bodyguard, to which he coolly replies that he will do it solely for Nami. Nami then remembers that it’s time for the Sky Knight to get his medicine and asks Sanji where Chopper hid them. The knight will speak and say his name is Gan Fall. He asks to share a bit of the country’s history. He starts by saying that until 6 years ago he was known as the “God” of Skypiea. This causes Usopp to ask him if he fell on his head, earning a nasty head bite from Pierre. He goes on to confirm what the crew has already discovered: the Upper Yard first appeared on Skypiea about 400 years ago. Before his arrival, Skypiea was a peaceful place where its inhabitants highly valued the things from the blue sea that were occasionally washed up by the Knock Up Stream. All of the vearth that had previously appeared on Skypiea had come this way, but for something the size of the Upper Yard to appear was truly unprecedented. They considered it a real miracle, the Holy Land as a gift from heaven. However, the land already had its own original inhabitants, the Shandia, and so the war for the Holy Land began. Eventually, the Shandia were pushed out and have been trying to reclaim what was once theirs ever since. Sanji and Usopp immediately express their guilt to Gan Fall, earning both of them a bite on the head from Pierre. But Gan Fall admits to this and does not try to shift the blame at all. When he stops to get medicine, Nami asks him about the “God” Enel. He explains that six years ago, Enel emerged as the leader of a powerful army and defeated both God’s army and Shandia. He has since taken control of the Upper Yard and put his army to work intensively, although he does not know the details. He reaffirms that the Shandia don’t care who “God” is, they only want their homeland. Sanji questions what led them to attack the garrison when they first arrived, and explains that they attack God’s army without mercy. They most likely mistook them for militia because they sometimes try to escape on blue sea ships. Gan Fall says he became a “Knight of Heaven” to help people who could so easily be considered criminals escape Enel’s sphere of influence. Sanji decides that Enel is nothing more than a bully, which scares Usopp as he wonders what Enel can hear. Gan Fall explains that it’s actually worse than being a bully; he enforces a system that uses various pretexts to outlaw people and then pressures Skypiea people to participate in their capture. This consciousness creates fear, which he uses to maintain control over a population that truly equates him to a god. Nami worries about how absurd it all is as she realizes that the city of gold has come to a truly incredible place. This sparks more memories of Gan Fall from the crew’s discussions the night before and he asks what is the gold.
Back in the forest, the Scout Team prepares to deal with the snake. Luffy yells at them to run (though he’s clearly enjoying it), Chopper is scared and speechless, Robin wonders if the island’s environment is the reason for his size, and Zoro prepares to cut him. The snake strikes them and they all manage to dodge. However, the snake hits the tree, which melts completely, and the snake is revealed to have extremely corrosive venom. With that, they decide that running away is the better option, though once again Luffy clearly finds the snake to be fine. Zoro warns that the poison will kill you instantly and Luffy tries to get his attention. However, he targets Robin and strikes at her. She dodges effortlessly and creates a makeshift vine to swing herself to safety. Chopper quickly scrambles away (comically running upright on his hind legs at the walking point) and Zoro finds himself face to face with another snake. Zoro comments on how terrible it looks and the snake lunges for him.
Robin isn’t sure what to do. She navigated back to where they were originally, but no one else is there. He wonders if he should wait. Elsewhere, Chopper is in a terrible state of panic about being lost and calls for help. Elsewhere, Zoro wonders where everyone has gone. He quickly decided that they would be fine on their own, and that he had even memorized most of the map: he just needed to go “right”. Finally, Luffy was also separated from the group, but assumed they were lost. He decides to meet them at the ruins and since they said it was “to the south” it must mean somewhere warm.