"I see... So, Conis, your hometown was taken over by a group of monsters, and you had to escape?" Nami, after talking with Conis, felt even more sympathetic toward her.
As someone whose hometown had been ravaged by the Arlong Pirates, Nami deeply understood what Conis was going through.
"Luffy, I have a terrible illness! If I set foot on an unknown island, I'll die!" Usopp, having heard about the monsters lurking on this island, completely lost any courage to step ashore.
"Oh? I was thinking we could all go on an adventure together, but if you're sick, that would be a problem." Luffy tilted his head in thought. "Chopper! Usopp's sick! Come check on him!"
"What? Usopp's sick?!" Chopper, who had been chatting with Su, immediately rushed over in a panic.
"Usopp! Are you okay?!" Chopper pulled out his stethoscope and began examining Usopp on the spot.
"Chopper, Usopp said he has a disease where he dies if he steps on an unknown island," Luffy explained seriously.
"He'll die?!" Chopper, upon hearing those words, immediately clung to Usopp in distress.
"Usopp! You can't die!"
"Uh... Chopper, actually, I—" Usopp, seeing Chopper's reaction, felt guilty about continuing his lie.
But just as he was about to come clean, he remembered the terrifying monsters on this island. Steeling himself to keep up the act, a large shadow suddenly loomed over them.
"Ch-Chopper...? Y-you..." Usopp's face twisted in horror, his voice trembling.
"Is there something on my face? Why did it suddenly get so dark?" Chopper, noticing the sudden dimming, looked up—only to freeze in terror. "A-a MONSTER!"
A grotesque, hulking creature with a hideous face loomed behind them, raising a massive hook and swinging it down viciously at Chopper and Usopp.
If that hook connected, they would be reduced to nothing but pulp.
Just as the deadly hook was about to crush them, Luffy stretched his arms out, wrapping them around both Chopper and Usopp while grabbing onto a distant tree with his other hand.
Using his rubber elasticity, he launched himself out of harm's way, narrowly dodging the monstrous attack.
"That was close." Luffy watched as the monster's hook smashed into the ground, leaving behind a deep crater.
"T-that was terrifying!" Chopper and Usopp's legs nearly gave out from fear.
"This thing...!" Nami, seeing the monster's grotesque appearance, was visibly shaken.
"Why is this monster here?! It was supposed to be inside the town!" Conis's face was filled with despair upon seeing the beast.
She had personally witnessed the slaughter it had caused—McKinley and his entire team of priests had been wiped out by this creature alone.
Three powerful, deep-blue sword slashes streaked through the air, cutting into the monster's hide.
As the beast's flesh was torn open, a foul, sticky fluid oozed out. Zoro had launched his attack the moment Luffy had saved Chopper and Usopp.
"He actually wounded that thing by himself?!" Conis was in complete shock, her mouth agape.
"Don't worry! My crew is really strong!" Nami reassured Conis, gripping her trembling hands.
The wounded monster let out a deafening roar before swinging its massive hook violently toward Zoro.
"Too slow!" Zoro leapt backward, easily dodging the attack.
While midair, he unleashed a series of slashes infused with his cutting power.
Though the individual strikes weren't as strong as his previous attack, the repeated blows to the same spot inflicted even greater damage.
But this monster wasn't going down that easily. With another furious roar, it charged at Zoro again.
Zoro aimed to counter the incoming attack by using the wind force generated from his swordsmanship to deflect the monster's hook.
However, he quickly realized the creature's sheer strength was far beyond his expectations—even stronger than Mr. 1 from Alabasta.
He found himself completely overwhelmed.
"Damn it!" Zoro gritted his teeth and used the rebound force from his own sword to create some distance.
"This thing is ridiculously strong! But I'm not about to lose to some monster!"
Realizing he couldn't match the creature in raw strength, Zoro relied on his speed, continuously chipping away at it with precise sword strikes.
...
"This ends now!"
Zoro's three blades flashed, slicing clean through the monster's thick neck. Its grotesque head was sent flying into the air.
"Be careful! That thing explodes when it dies!" Conis suddenly shouted in alarm. She had seen firsthand how Forest Grandmaster had been obliterated by this creature's death explosion.
Right as she spoke, the monster's corpse began to expand, followed by a violent explosion.
"Nami-san! Conis-san! Are you both okay?!" Sanji had instinctively shielded them, standing protectively in front of them when the explosion occurred.
"Thank you, Sanji-san! Are you hurt?" Conis noticed the burn marks on the back of Sanji's suit, her hands gently touching the damaged fabric.
"As long as I can protect a beautiful lady, this is nothing!" Sanji, feeling Conis's touch, was instantly lovestruck.
"Tch! That damn pervert!" Zoro, though he had managed to evade the explosion, still looked a little roughed up.
Luffy and the others, having been a bit farther away, were completely unharmed.
...
"Luffy, I… I want to ask you to save my village."
After a moment of hesitation, Conis finally voiced her request. Seeing how Zoro had single-handedly defeated the monster, she felt certain that Luffy's crew could liberate her home.
"Sure—"
"Wait a moment, Luffy. Do we really need to get involved in this?" Robin interrupted with her calm reasoning. She had a feeling this situation was more complicated than it seemed.
"She's right, Luffy! That monster was already terrifying enough. If we go any further, who knows what else we'll run into?
Let's just leave this island while we still can!" Usopp, still shaken from the encounter, quickly backed up Robin's suggestion.
"Luffy, I want to help Conis. I know exactly how she feels right now." Nami, holding Conis's hand, stepped forward firmly.
"Luffy, I want to help Su and the others too!" Chopper, just as determined, spoke up as well.
Zoro and Sanji remained silent, simply waiting for Luffy's final decision.
Luffy grinned, eyes full of excitement. "Alright! Let's go save her village!"