Chapters · Water Seven › Long Ring Long Land

Chapter 310: Groggy Ring!!

Arc: Long Ring Long Land · Saga: Water Seven · Released:

Summary

Round 2 of the Davy Back Fight — the Groggy Ring — begins. The Straw Hats have already lost Round 1 (the Donut Race) and forfeited Chopper to the Foxy Pirates (the Groggy Monsters gloat about “the reindeer they lost in the first round,” pp. 10–11), so the crew is now down a member and desperate to reclaim him. The MC explains the rules: it is a violent ball game in which two players per team wear a “ball marker” on their heads (the “ball-man”); a team wins by forcing the opposing ball-man into the far midfield ring; weapons are forbidden but tackling/interference is allowed, there is no time limit, and the first goal wins (pp. 5, 9–10). The Foxy side fields the “Groggy Monsters” — Hamburg, Pickles the “Tackle Machine,” and the fish-giant Big Bun — against the Straw Hats’ Zoro and Sanji. After much bickering, Sanji becomes the Straw Hat ball-man (vain about how the helmet “looks great” on him, p. 8). Zoro and Sanji refuse to cooperate and nearly come to blows, but neither will lose. The match opens ferociously: Pickles charges with a “Sling Tackle,” but Big Bun’s slick, mudfish-blooded fish-giant skin lets attackers slide right off him; he fires a “Punk Pass” while Hamburg snatches Sanji out of midair and carries him toward the Straw Hat ring for a “Hamburger Dunk.” Zoro and Sanji each refuse to let the other be the one who scores — or saves — and break up the play themselves (“Not while I’m still alive and kicking!” / “I can’t let that stupid swordsman save me!!”). The first goal attempt is denied — “Ball-man Sanji didn’t even come near the ring!” — and the MC declares the fierce battle has only just begun.

New reveals

• Round 2 of the Davy Back Fight is the “Groggy Ring” — a brutal, rugby/American-football-style ball game (pp. 4–5, 9–10).
  • Two players per team are designated “ball-men” and wear a ball marker on their heads; the Straw Hats’ ball-man starts in the opponents’ midfield circle (p. 5).
  • Win condition: force the opposing ball-man’s head into the opposite ring (pp. 5, 9–10).
  • No time limit; first goal wins (p. 10).
  • Weapons are banned (“this is a ball game, you can’t have weapons!! Lose the swords!” — p. 8), but interference (tackling) is allowed — “some athletes want to win no matter what” (p. 6).
• The Straw Hats LOST Round 1 (the Donut Race) — the Foxy Pirates conscripted Chopper (“the reindeer they lost in the first round… will Team Straw Hat reclaim, or will Team Foxy snatch away another from their crew?” pp. 10–11). The crew now races to win Chopper back.
• The Foxy side’s Groggy Ring team is named the “Groggy Monsters” (pp. 4, 11): Hamburg, Pickles (“Tackle Machine”), and the fish-giant Big Bun.
• Big Bun is a fish-giant — “not as big as a pure giant” (p. 6) — with mudfish blood that makes his fish-giant skin slick and slippery, so attackers slide off (pp. 12–13). Signature moves: “Punk Pass” (a super-long pass, pp. 13–14) and “Punk Dig” (a scoop-and-relaunch, p. 16).
• Pickles is a tackle specialist, billed “Tackle Machine Pickles” (p. 11); moves Sling Tackle (p. 11), Wipeout Tackle (p. 14), Gorilla Throw (p. 15), Spinning Tackle (p. 15).
• Sanji becomes the Straw Hat ball-man (pp. 7–8); Zoro is the other Straw Hat player. The two refuse to cooperate the whole round.

Foreshadowing seeds planted

Payoffs (seeds from earlier chapters that resolve here)

Mentions / appearances

• Straw Hats: Zoro and Sanji (Groggy Ring players; Sanji = ball-man), with Luffy, Nami, Nico Robin, Usopp cheering from the sidelines; Chopper referenced as the forfeited Round-1 prize (Straw Hat Pirates)
• Foxy Pirates (“Groggy Monsters”): Hamburg, Pickles (“Tackle Machine”), Big Bun (fish-giant); Foxy referenced as “Boss” by the team (Foxy Pirates)
• Events/concepts: Davy Back Fight (Round 2 = the Groggy Ring), Fish-Men / fish-giant biology (Big Bun)
• Location: Long Ring Long Land
• Cover/title splash: Luffy, Zoro, Nico Robin (two-page kabuki/samurai title art, “暫” Shibaraku seal — pp. 1–2)

Notable panels

• pp. 1–2 — Two-page title splash: “GROGGY RING!!” / “Chapter 310:”. Luffy in samurai armor holding a katana, posed against a great dragon, with a stylized “暫” (Shibaraku) seal — the classic kabuki “Shibaraku” hero pose. Page 2 continues the scene: Zoro in a haori holding a parasol, and Robin kneeling in a flowered kimono. Decorative arc title art, not an ongoing cover serial (logs to Long-Ring-Long-Land-Title-Page-One-Offs).
• p. 4 — The Groggy Monsters size up the Straw Hats: “the vicious cook who kicked around our interference corps in the first round… and the pirate hunter Roronoa Zolo with the 60 million bounty.” Big Bun: “Since they called us, I expected fierce opponents. Hee hee hee!”
• p. 5 — Rules dump: “two players will wear the ball markers on their heads… Win by forcing your opponent’s ball-man into the opposite ring!!” “The Groggy Monsters choose ball!” / “The Straw Hats’ ball-man must start in his opponents’ midfield circle!!”
• p. 6 — Big Bun: “He’s not as big as a pure giant” — i.e., a fish-giant. Rules clarified: “interfering is allowed in this game too” / “I’ll just watch, if you don’t mind. I don’t think I’ll need to interfere.”
• p. 8 — Zoro and Sanji clash (“Knock it off, you two!!”); MC: “weapons are against the rules! Lose the swords!” / “Is that okay? A swordsman without a sword is… kind of pathetic!” Sanji becomes the ball-man (“I’ll do it!! I’m the ball-man!! This ball suits me!”).
• pp. 10–11 — The stake is spelled out: “the reindeer they lost in the first round… will Team Straw Hat reclaim, or will Team Foxy snatch away another from their crew?!” — Chopper was taken after the lost Donut Race. “No time limit! First goal wins!” THWEEEEET!! — the game begins.
• p. 11 — “Tackle Machine Pickles is first on the move!!” → “Sling Tackle!!”
• pp. 12–13 — Sanji’s kick (“Collier…”) slides off Big Bun: “His skin’s all slippery!! Big Bun has mudfish blood running in his veins! His fish-giant skin is slick and slippery!”
• p. 13 — Big Bun’s “Punk Pass!!” (“super long pass”).
• pp. 14–17 — Pickles’ Wipeout Tackle / Gorilla Throw / Spinning Tackle; Big Bun’s Punk Dig; Hamburg catches Sanji in midair and carries him into Straw Hat territory for “the Hamburger Dunk!!”
• pp. 18–20 — Zoro and Sanji each refuse to let the other score or save: “You’ll never score! Not while I’m still alive and kicking!” / “I can’t let that stupid swordsman save me!!” — they break up the dunk themselves. KRAK!!! “NOO GOOOAALL!! Ball-man Sanji didn’t even come near the ring!” MC: “A fierce battle has just begun!!”

Open questions raised

• Will Zoro and Sanji ever cooperate, or will their feud cost them the Groggy Ring (and Chopper)?
• What does the Foxy crew do when honest play fails — i.e., how do the “Groggy Monsters” cheat? (Tackling-only rules + Foxy’s reputation as the “genius of interference” loom.)
• Can the Straw Hats win Chopper back through the remaining contests, given the Davy Back rule that conscripted members can only be reclaimed by winning another game?
• What is Big Bun’s full fish-giant heritage, and what is Foxy’s still-unrevealed Devil Fruit / “something evil” (set up @0307)?