# Chapter 480: Flaunting Around
“So… this is the Blue Sea?”
Enel stood on the deck of the Ark Maxim, his eyes wide as he stared at the blue ocean stretching out in every direction.
Although he knew about the Blue Sea, he had never come down here before. Now, suddenly confronted with this magnificent vista where sea and sky merged into one, he was momentarily stunned.
The Blue Sea and the White Sea of Skypiea were completely different things. It wasn't just a matter of water color—more importantly, the White Sea didn't have such vast expanses. That scene where you could only see the horizon line was something only the Blue Sea could offer.
Without the pervasive sea of clouds, there was only warm sunlight and sea breeze. Enel couldn't help feeling a twinge of regret. If he had known the Blue Sea looked like this, he would have come down to see it long ago.
"Captain! We've reached the surface. Should we stop the Wind Dial?" Dorry ran over to Ian and asked.
Ian nodded. "Stop it. Let's save energy where we can."
Dorry ran back, fiddled with something in the cabin, and soon the rumbling sound of the Wind Dial at the bottom of the ship ceased. With the loss of buoyancy, the Ark Maxim plummeted straight toward the sea surface.
Ian and the others grabbed onto whatever fixed objects they could find, and then felt a massive impact as the ship hit the water, sending tall splashes rising around the hull.
The Ark had fallen from a height of several dozen meters above the sea, so the impact wasn't too severe. The ship could withstand it.
"Where are we?" Ian asked.
Robin raised her wrist to check the Log Pose, then shook her head. "I don't know, but the Log Pose is pointing somewhere, which means there's an island in the distance."
"Then head in the direction of the pointer," Ian said.
He went over to help Matthew unfurl the Ark's sails. Although the wind wasn't perfectly favorable, making the ship move somewhat slowly, it wasn't worth worrying too much about.
The Ark sailed slowly across the sea. Robin and Reiju used materials from the ship to make two lounge chairs and enjoyed a long-awaited sunbath on the deck. Enel sat atop the Ark's golden cabin, silently watching Ian practice with his sword on the deck. Now that he had descended to the Blue Sea, Enel had lost any thought of escape. He was completely unfamiliar with the Blue Sea, so he could only follow Ian and obey his arrangements.
"Come down and eat something!" Ian called out to Enel, seeing that Matthew had prepared some food.
Matthew was quite skilled. The food was what Conis and the others had given Ian when they left—all Skypiean cuisine. Matthew had experimented a bit and managed to recreate it, and it tasted pretty good.
As they ate, Ian chatted with Reiju and Robin. Enel had been silent the whole time, but suddenly spoke up: "Is your pirate crew really this small?"
"No," Ian shook his head. "Most of the others are in the New World right now."
"The New World?" Enel naturally didn't understand the meaning of the term, but he pointed at Robin and Dorry and asked, "Are the people in the New World all as strong as them?"
"What are you trying to say?" Ian asked him.
"If those people are all about the same strength, then you should give me the position of First Mate!" Enel said, tilting his chin up.
Since he had already agreed to Ian's terms, Enel planned to stay on Ian's pirate crew. But his arrogant nature hadn't disappeared. He thought that even if he couldn't beat Ian, he could certainly beat everyone else, right? So he suddenly got the idea of becoming the First Mate of the Dragon Hunter Pirates.
Hearing this, Dorry, Matthew, Robin, and Reiju all exchanged glances and then burst out laughing.
"What's so funny!?" Enel said, somewhat embarrassed and annoyed.
"The First Mate position is already taken," Ian said with amusement. "So don't even think about that spot. But I can give you the position of Boatswain."
Generally speaking, the Boatswain on a pirate ship was the top fighter, usually responsible for leading the crew in battle. In Ian's view, this position suited Enel's role as a enforcer perfectly.
But who was Enel? The ruler of Skypiea, a man who considered himself a god. He had always been the boss, and now that he had finally accepted reality and wanted to be second-in-command, Ian was telling him he couldn't even be second, only third or fourth. How could Enel accept that?
"What if I can beat your First Mate? Can I take the position then?" Enel asked Ian, very annoyed.
Hearing this, Ian and the others laughed even harder.
"I suggest you don't even think about it," Ian said, patting him on the shoulder. "It's impossible for you to beat my First Mate."
Ian didn't think Enel could beat Uncle Fujitora at all. Although Enel was a Logia user, Fujitora could use Armament Haki, and even Enel's vaunted Mantra probably couldn't compare to Fujitora's.
Enel's Mantra could cover the entire Skypiea, but Uncle Fujitora's Observation Haki could reach all the way to the atmosphere! Who was stronger and who was weaker was obvious at a glance.
Perhaps speed was Enel's only advantage, but Ian felt that Fujitora definitely had ways to deal with him.
How to put it? The Rumble-Rumble Fruit was indeed a very powerful Logia Devil Fruit, but the Blue Sea wasn't Skypiea. There wasn't even rubber in Skypiea, while on the Blue Sea, there were many types of insulating materials.
It could be said that after arriving on the Blue Sea, if Enel didn't learn Armament Haki, his ultimate achievements would still be limited.
In this world, there was no such thing as an invincible ability. Even Ian, relying on his card system, hadn't achieved invincibility, so Enel certainly couldn't either.
However, since Ian was just saying it without proof, Enel didn't believe him. He hadn't met Fujitora yet, so he naturally thought Ian was bluffing. He couldn't help saying, "Fine! When I meet your First Mate, I'll settle it with him. If I can beat him, you have to promise me the First Mate position!"
"Talk about it after you beat him," Ian said, shaking his head with amusement.
As for Reiju and Robin, they hadn't really seen Enel's power yet, so they also felt Ian's words made sense.
Seeing this, Enel stopped talking, but he was secretly determined to show off his strength.
Maybe his wish came true, because after sailing for half a day, Ian and the others encountered a large pirate crew on the sea.
It was a large fleet of five pirate ships, apparently also heading along the Grand Line toward the New World. When they met on the sea, Ian initially didn't plan to bother with them, but he forgot one thing.
The cabin of the Ark Maxim was entirely made of gold. When sailing under the sunlight, it practically sparkled and shone. The opposing pirate crew, seeing it from afar with their telescopes, was blinded by the sight. When they realized what it was, the crew got excited and charged toward Ian's ship like they'd been injected with stimulants.
"What do these guys want?" Ian said, annoyed, as he saw them bringing out cannons and firing at them.
Robin chuckled. "Who told you not to raise your flag? They don't know that on this ship are people they can't afford to mess with!"
Reiju stood on the deck, raised her long, beautiful leg, and kicked an incoming cannonball away. She also spoke up: "This golden cabin is way too flashy."
Indeed, because they had switched to the Ark Maxim, Ian hadn't been able to raise the flag of his Dragon Hunter Pirates. If he had, this pirate crew would probably have turned around long ago. Ian hadn't thought of this. It seemed that if they didn't quickly make a flag, they would encounter even more pirates swarming like flies toward the gold during their journey.
Fortunately, this time they had a professional enforcer on board, saving Ian the trouble of acting.
"It's your turn," Ian said to Enel. "This is your job. But leave one alive to ask where we are on which route."
Enel snorted and didn't waste words. He thrust his right hand toward the distant sky, and his entire arm transformed into a bolt of lightning, appearing above one of the pirate ships.
Then, he swung it down fiercely, roaring: "God's Judgment!"
Boom! A huge thunderclap sounded. The bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, directly hitting the pirate ship. The massive lightning bolt shattered the entire ship into pieces!
Reiju and the others watched in shock. Only then did they understand that Enel, this guy Ian had captured, was actually this powerful!
Only someone like Ian could subdue a guy like this, right?