Chapters · Skypiea › Jaya

Chapter 227: Noland the Liar

Arc: Jaya · Saga: Skypiea · Released:

Summary

The Straw Hats repair the Going Merry (damaged earlier by the salvage ape Masira); Usopp frets the ship is wrecked, but Luffy insists “the Merry Go’s part of the crew” and they’ll fix her up good as new (p. 2). Following the map taken in Mock Town, they sail to the eastern coast of Jaya to find Mont Blanc Cricket — “the man who talks of big dreams” — whom Robin names (p. 3). They arrive at a gaudy striped castle-house that turns out to be plywood, “only half a house, the rest is fake” (pp. 4-5). Robin recaps the rumor: Cricket claims a huge hoard of gold lies somewhere on Jaya (p. 5). Nobody is home, but Luffy and Chopper get excited to dig for gold (pp. 6-7). Nami finds an old storybook, “Noland the Liar,” which Sanji recognizes as a famous North Blue children’s folktale (p. 7). The full tale is read out (pp. 8-10): more than 400 years ago in the North Sea, an explorer named Mont Blanc Noland told adventure stories so amazing nobody believed them; he returned claiming “I found a mountain of gold on an island,” so the brave king took 2,000 soldiers to verify; tempests and sea monsters reduced them to 100; the island held only jungle, no gold; Noland was sentenced to death for lying, and his last words were “I know! The mountain of gold must have sunk into the sea!” — flabbergasting the king. Cut to Mock Town, where Bellamy’s crew laughs that Cricket is a descendant of Noland the Liar still searching the island for gold 400 years later to redeem an ancestor branded a liar and a laughingstock — “what a hilarious family!” (pp. 11-12). Back on Jaya, Luffy muses on the beach that the liar “died without ever becoming a brave warrior of the sea,” when a hulking man surfaces from the water demanding “WHO ARE YOU?!” (p. 13). Mont Blanc Cricket — epithet “Last Boss / The Monkey Mountain Allied Force” — declares the waters his, tells the trespassers “Then die,” and accuses them of being after the gold (p. 14). He attacks Sanji with detonating-gauntlet punches (“BOOM!!”) (pp. 15-17), but mid-fight collapses, coughing, back into the sea — he is gravely ill (pp. 17-18). It emerges Luffy had earlier hauled a drowning “chestnut” out of the water that turned out to be the diving Cricket (p. 18). They carry him inside; Chopper diagnoses decompression sickness — “the bends” — from diving deep day after day without decompressing, “an unnatural phenomenon” that “can be fatal” (pp. 18-19). Masira (in his named shirt) appears among Cricket’s circle and gravely confirms the danger (p. 19). Page 20 is the SBS Question Corner.

New reveals

• Mont Blanc Cricket debuts (pp. 13-19) — a huge, muscular lone diver on Jaya’s eastern coast. Epithet box reads “Last Boss / The Monkey Mountain Allied Force” (p. 14). He wears a striped diving suit, fights with detonating “MAROON”-firework gauntlet punches (no Devil Fruit shown), and lives alone obsessed with finding the gold.
• Cricket is a blood descendant of the explorer Mont Blanc Noland (pp. 11-12) — and has spent his life diving for the sunken City of Gold to redeem an ancestor branded a liar and a laughingstock (“erase 400 years of humiliation”). The shared surname “Mont Blanc” makes the lineage explicit.
• Mont Blanc Noland — the legend in full (pp. 8-10). A North Sea explorer of 400+ years ago, executed for “lying” about a mountain of gold on an island that proved to be only jungle. The “Noland the Liar” folktale is famous across the North Blue (Sanji and Nami both know it). His dying line — “the mountain of gold must have sunk into the sea!” — is the arc’s central hook (the gold did not vanish; the island rose into the sky).
• The City of Gold premise established on-page: Robin states Cricket claims “there’s a huge hoard of gold somewhere on Jaya” (p. 5), tying the Noland legend to a real, present-day treasure quest.
• Decompression sickness (“the bends”) introduced as a real medical hazard (pp. 18-19) — Chopper explains air bubbles forming in blood/tissues from surfacing too fast; it explains Cricket’s chronic illness and how relentlessly he dives.
• Masira appears at chapter’s end (p. 19) tied to Cricket’s circle — first on-page link between Cricket and the salvage apes (the future Saruyama / Monkey Mountain Allied Force). His name is shown on his shirt.

Foreshadowing seeds planted

Payoffs (seeds from earlier chapters that resolve here)

Mentions / appearances

Luffy · Zoro · Nami · Sanji · Usopp · Tony Tony Chopper · Nico Robin · Mont Blanc Cricket (first appearance) · Mont Blanc Noland (first named; appears in storybook flashback and as a wall portrait) · Masira (appears p. 19 in named shirt) · Bellamy · Sarquiss · Straw Hat Pirates · Saruyama Alliance (named via Cricket’s epithet) · Bellamy Pirates · Jaya · Mock Town

Notable panels

• Page 1 (title + cover): Title splash “NOLAND THE LIAR.” Cover serial — “Hachi’s Walk on the Seafloor, Vol. 39: The Catfish Village Repays Their Debt.” A festive takoyaki (“TAKOYAKI / 8”) ship “TA-DAAH!!” with octopus villagers wielding mallets. (Cover-story tracker.)
• Page 2: Crew repairing the storm/ape-damaged Going Merry; Usopp upset (“that darned orangutan!!”); Luffy “You got a big heart, Luffy” / “The Merry Go’s part of the crew. Don’t worry, Usopp.”
• Page 3: Map of Jaya (Mock Town west, an X / skull on the eastern coast). Robin names their target: “Mont Blanc Cricket.”
• Pages 4-5: The gaudy striped castle-house (“TA-DAAH!!”) — revealed to be plywood, “only half a house, the rest is fake.” “Look more closely, fool.” (Zoro). Robin: a man of big dreams who claims a huge gold hoard.
• Page 7: Nami finds the old “Noland the Liar” storybook; Sanji recognizes it as a famous North Blue children’s tale he read as a kid.
• Pages 8-10 (KEY — the Noland legend): Full storybook flashback. Mont Blanc Noland, North Sea explorer, “stories so amazing nobody believed them”; the king + 2,000 soldiers; only jungle found; Noland executed for lying; last words “the mountain of gold must have sunk into the sea!” Caption: “Noland the Liar, a North Sea folktale.”
• Pages 11-12: Bellamy’s crew in Mock Town mocking the Mont Blanc family — “a descendant of Noland the Liar… searching for gold 400 years later.” “What a hilarious family!”
• Page 14 (KEY — Cricket debut splash): Mont Blanc Cricket surfaces in full; epithet box “MONT BLANC CRICKET / LAST BOSS / THE MONKEY MOUNTAIN ALLIED FORCE.” “The waters around here belong to me.” / “Then die.” / “You’re after the gold, aren’t you?” Detonating “MAROON” fist.
• Pages 15-17: Cricket vs Sanji — explosive gauntlet punches; Sanji blocks; “Fool. You underestimated him.”
• Page 18: Cricket collapses back into the water; reveal that Luffy earlier pulled a drowning “chestnut” (the diving Cricket) out of the water. They carry him in.
• Pages 18-19: Chopper’s diagnosis — decompression sickness / “the bends,” “an unnatural phenomenon,” “can be fatal.” Noland’s portrait visible on Cricket’s wall.
• Page 19: Masira appears (named shirt) among Cricket’s circle, confirming the danger.
• Page 20: SBS Question Corner (Chopper bubble-blowing header; Sea Cat “ear hair” gag; Nico Robin’s birthday set to February 6 [ni=2, ro=6]).

Open questions raised

• Was Noland actually lying, or did the island (and its gold) truly leave? Where did the City of Gold go?
• What is “the Monkey Mountain Allied Force,” and how do Cricket and Masira fit together?
• How does Cricket’s gold-hunt connect to the Straw Hats’ goal of reaching the sky?
• Can Cricket survive the bends, and will he help the crew get “up to the sky”?