Chapter 297: Praise of the Earth

Arc: Skypiea · Saga: Sky Island · Released:

Summary

As Enel’s ark Maxim bombards Giant Jack to sink the great vine “at its roots” (p. 3), Wyper climbs after Enel and delivers the chapter’s thesis: the earth/Vearth cannot be toppled (pp. 5–8). Even as the ruins are blasted apart, Wyper screams that you cannot topple “the history of the proud warriors who lived in the land of Shandora” — “No matter how many ruins you crumble, no matter how much of the forest you burn… we give birth to it and cultivate it… that sublime power” (pp. 5–6). Enel taunts him as nonsense, but the survivors below note that Upper Yard “isn’t sinking an inch” despite the bombardment, marveling at the power of the “Varse” — and Enel himself muses, “We never had the right to claim ownership of it… why could we not see that truth for the last 400 years?” (pp. 7–8). Luffy, launched on Nami’s waver, hurls himself at Enel crying “Gimme that… golden bell!!!” (p. 10). Enel, “sick of waiting,” conjures and names his ultimate weapon — a colossal lightning-cloud sphere, “Kingdom Come!!!” (the Raigo) — vowing the country will “disappear along with” it (pp. 10–11). Luffy meets the descending sphere head-on with “Gum-Gum Fireworks / Golden Peony” (pp. 13–14); the gold on Enel’s right arm acts as a conductor and the discharge crackles around Luffy harmlessly (p. 15) — but the chapter cuts away before resolution. Down below, Conis and her father Pagaya (with the Skypiean refugees) fall to their knees and pray to the gods to protect the people and “give us a miracle” (pp. 16–18). Gan Fall restates the island’s old prophecy: “The next time we hear the Song of the Island once again… the fighting will stop” (pp. 16–17). The chapter ends on Enel’s shocked face as Luffy’s strike connects with the Raigo (p. 19, “FW—!!”).

New reveals

• Enel’s ultimate weapon — the colossal thundercloud sphere amassed last chapter — is named on-page for the first time: “Kingdom Come!!!” (VIZ rendering of 雷迎 / Raigo) (p. 11). He intends Skypiea to “disappear along with the country” beneath it (p. 10).
• Upper Yard / the Vearth is physically un-sinkable by Enel’s bombardment — “Upper Yard isn’t budging an inch” / “It isn’t sinking!!” (p. 8). The land endures where Enel expected destruction.
• Enel’s recantation: “We never had the right to claim ownership of it… Why could we not see that truth for the last 400 years?” (p. 8) — the Skypiean-claim-to-Upper-Yard premise of the 400-year war is, in Enel’s own mouth, framed as a wrong.
• Luffy’s named counter to the Raigo: “Gum-Gum Fireworks / Golden Peony” (pp. 13–14) — a scattering rubber-limb barrage launched into the descending sphere.
• The gold on Enel’s right arm functions as a lightning conductor, channeling/grounding the discharge around the rubber-bodied Luffy (p. 15) — restated by an observer (“That gold on his right arm is a conductor”).

Foreshadowing seeds planted

Mentions / appearances

Luffy · Enel · Wyper · Nami · Nico Robin · Gan Fall · Conis · Pagaya · Aisa · Zoro (referenced — “Zolo’s collapsed over there!!”, p. 4) · Tony Tony Chopper (among the survivors below) · McKinley (referenced by name, “Captain McKinley…”, p. 16) · Skypiea · Upper Yard · Shandora · Maxim · Raigo · Vearth · Giant Jack · Song of the Island · Mantra

Notable panels

• Page 1 — Title page / cover story: “Ace’s Great Search for Blackbeard, Vol. 22: ‘Ace, Busted.’” Chapter title: PRAISE OF THE EARTH. Splash art: Ace, shirtless with his “ASCE” hat, sprawled/busted in front of a domed building amid a crowd of onlookers.
• Page 6 — Wiper’s tear-streaked, tattooed face: “The earth…” — the chapter’s emotional center, the warrior screaming the un-topple-able power of the land.
• Page 8 — Triptych intercut: Upper Yard “isn’t budging an inch” / “Varse is truly miraculous!!” beside Enel’s masked face conceding “We never had the right to claim ownership of it… Why could we not see that truth for the last 400 years?”
• Page 10 — Luffy launches: “Gimme that… GOLDEN BELL!!!” — his open-mouthed lunge toward the ark/bell.
• Page 11 — Near-splash: the giant lightning-cloud sphere looming in the white sky, “RUMMBLE…” with Enel’s pronouncement balloon “KINGDOM COME!!!” — the on-page naming of the Raigo. Bottom tier intercuts Robin, the praying refugees, Chopper.
• Page 14 — Luffy’s “Golden Peony” — radial-burst splash of rubber limbs scattering into the descending sphere (“BADABADA”).
• Pages 16–18 — The praying-Skypieans sequence: Conis and Pagaya on their knees, hands clasped — “What else can we do… but pray?!” / “Gods, if you really exist… give us a miracle” / “Gods, please protect this country” / “PLEASE PROTECT THOSE PEOPLE!!” — intercut with Gan Fall’s “Song of the Island” prophecy.
• Page 18 — Splash: the Raigo sphere, electricity arcing, “OO[K]—!!” with Enel’s command “LET THE SUN SHINE!!!”
• Page 19 — Cliffhanger: huge “FW—” SFX as Luffy’s strike connects; bottom-left panel of Enel’s shocked, wide-eyed face (“WHOOOOAAA!”).

Open questions raised

• Does Luffy’s “Golden Peony” actually stop or detonate the Raigo, or merely delay it (p. 19 cuts before resolution)?
• Will the Skypieans’ prayer for “a miracle” be answered by the bell tolling — i.e., is the prayer sequence (pp. 16–18) the deliberate emotional set-up for the bell-ring payoff?
• Enel’s “we never had the right to claim it” (p. 8) — does this concession factor into the war’s resolution, or is it a passing rhetorical flourish from a god who plans to destroy everything anyway?

• Raigo splash (pp. 11, 18) — the giant electric sphere in the white sky; this is the canonical “Raigo/Deathpiea” splash. Cross-reference against later cataclysm-sphere compositions and the eventual bell-ring panel set.
• Luffy reaching for the golden bell (p. 10) and Luffy meeting the sphere head-on (pp. 13–14) — track toward the Luffy-rings-the-bell payoff composition (~Ch. 0300–0302) flagged at Ch. 295.
• Wiper’s tear-streaked “The earth…” close-up (p. 6) — emotional-beat composition; compare to other warrior-defiance close-ups (Calgara, the Shandian war flashbacks).
• Praying-Skypieans / “Let the sun shine” (pp. 16–18) — the clasped-hands prayer-for-a-miracle motif feeding the bell payoff; the “Let the Sun Shine” line over the lightning sphere is a notable light/dark inversion to flag against later sun/Nika motifs (inference — do not over-read).
• No Roger silhouette / Roger-laugh / Roger-execution motif appears this chapter.