"This Den Den Mushi really walks slowly," Perona complained.
So much time had passed, yet this big fellow still hadn't made its way out of the forest to reach them.
"Well, it is a type of snail after all," Meiser chuckled.
Wasn't it perfectly normal for snails to move slowly?
Perona blinked upon hearing this, thinking that made sense.
Meanwhile, Jimbei looked earnestly at Shirahoshi and said, "Princess Shirahoshi, rest assured. If I find that Vander Decken fellow, I will definitely capture him."
"Then you won't have to worry about his threats anymore."
"Mhm!"
Shirahoshi nodded vigorously upon hearing this, clearly placing great trust in Jimbei.
"Speaking of which... we've encountered that guy named Vander Decken before," Nami said.
"You mean that time out at sea?" Meiser glanced at Nami.
If it was that time, there was no need to mention it, because... they hadn't even seen Vander Decken's face then.
"Not that time."
Nami shook her head. "The four of us ran into that guy named Vander Decken mid-air before we came here."
"He tried to attack us back then, but Perona's Negative Spirit made him fall right out of the sky."
After recalling the situation, Nami nodded again with certainty.
Meiser: ???
That happened?
"There really was such an incident," Perona chimed in. "It's just a shame we didn't know at the time that this guy was the one bullying Princess Shirahoshi. Otherwise, I would have finished him off with a Ghost Bomb."
Such a good opportunity... and she missed it just like that.
Thinking of this, Perona wore a regretful expression.
"That really is a bit of a shame," Meiser said.
They had almost solved Shirahoshi's problem right then and there.
"Missed is missed," Jimbei said calmly. "Anyway, since that guy is on this island, we'll find him sooner or later."
Once he got his hands on that fellow... he could take him out!
This time, the others just nodded without saying anything more.
Just then, the giant Visual Den Den Mushi finally reached the group.
Subsequently, the big creature slowly raised its eyes and projected a beam of light toward the Bubble Membrane in the air.
Afterward, something resembling a screen appeared in mid-air.
Seeing this, Perona said curiously, "Is this the live broadcast screen from the Visual Den Den Mushi?"
"Yes, it is," Den nodded, then added, "We just don't know who's doing the broadcast."
At such an anxious time... who would have the leisure to do something like this?
"Who else could it be?" Meiser scoffed. "At a time like this, besides those guys from the New Fish-Man Pirates, who else would be so ostentatious as to set up something like this?"
Although he didn't know what method the other party intended to use to become king, it was certain that they needed to make all the civilians of Fish-Man Island aware of this matter.
So... broadcasting it through a live stream was quite reasonable.
Hearing Meiser's words, Den's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.
"That really isn't a good livestream..." Den said.
"Look, there's a picture now!" Chopper exclaimed.
"Zzzzt"
"Hum"
The next moment, a man appeared on the screen, his expression looking extremely fierce.
"It really is him..." Jimbei said with a furrowed brow.
Meiser was right—the one doing the livestream was indeed the captain of the New Fish-Man Pirates, Hody Jones!
"So this guy is that Hody?" Sanji said with a frown. "He looks a bit like a shark."
"That's right, it's him." Jimbei nodded first, then explained, "Hody is a great white shark fish-man, which is why he looks like a shark."
Hearing this, Sanji was left speechless.
Hody, this troublemaker, was a great white shark fish-man.
Arlong and Jimbei also seemed to be some kind of shark fish-men...
Looking at it this way... it seemed like none of the shark-related fish-men were peaceful characters.
"Something's off," Meiser said with a frown.
"What do you mean?"
"The place he's at now is exactly where we were staying earlier in Ryugu Palace." Meiser pointed at the elevated screen. "The decorations are identical."
Hearing this, the expressions of the others immediately changed.
"Does that mean Zoro and the others have been captured?" Nami asked with a frown.
"How is that possible?"
"Zoro is so strong, how could he possibly be captured?"
Perona's first reaction was disbelief, after all, Zoro was truly powerful.
So she couldn't believe that he had been captured.
"But the fact is, Hody is now in the main hall of Ryugu Palace, while Zoro and the others are nowhere to be seen," Nami said.
Hearing this, Perona was left speechless, as she couldn't find any words to refute it.
"If Hody, that fish-man, shattered the structures of Ryugu Palace and allowed seawater to flood inside, then Zoro and the others might have been captured," Meiser spoke up. "Don't forget, this guy has two Devil Fruit Ability Users with him."
If the enemy used the sea to target Usopp and Brook, Zoro would undoubtedly try to protect them.
In such a situation, Zoro, submerged in seawater, might not necessarily be able to defeat those fish-men.
"If I had known things would turn out like this, I would have left Merry here," Nami sighed.
If Merry had been there, perhaps things wouldn't have developed this way.
"No one could have predicted things would reach this point."
Sanji lit a cigarette for himself, took a puff, and continued, "Besides... there's still a possibility that Moss Head and the others escaped."
After all, they hadn't seen any footage of Zoro and the others being captured yet, so they couldn't outright conclude that they had been caught.
The others thought about it for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
Upon careful consideration, it made sense—what if Zoro and the others had escaped beforehand?
That was also a possibility!
With this thought, they gradually calmed down.
"Let's see what he has to say first," Meiser said.
"Alright!"
At that moment, Hody picked up the microphone and spoke calmly, "All citizens of the Fish-Man race on the island, can you hear me?"
"I am the captain of the New Fish-Man Pirates, Hody Jones!"
After saying this, Hody paused briefly before continuing, "Now, I have important news to announce to all citizens of Fish-Man Island!"
"Today, this country will be destroyed once, and then... reborn anew under my leadership!"
"And I, Hody Jones, will be the new king!"
"Shahahahaha!"
With that, Hody began to grin widely, his expression looking particularly arrogant.
He then took a sip of the drink beside him, giving the citizens some time to digest this information.
"This guy really seems arrogant enough," Perona said, somewhat annoyed.
"He wants to become the new king of this country, of course he's arrogant," Meiser replied.
In this guy's eyes, he probably already felt he was more than halfway to success.
Then, he glanced at Jimbei and said, "Jimbei, I now have reason to suspect that the one who will destroy Fish-Man Island in the future is this guy, and Luffy is just taking the blame."
At the very least, Luffy had never shown any intention of destroying Fish-Man Island, while this Hody had outright stated it.
So... it really might be this guy who destroys Fish-Man Island!
"I'm starting to feel the same way," Jimbei nodded in agreement.
Although Madam Shyarly's past prophecies had never been wrong... who could guarantee that this one was accurate?
At least, he didn't believe Luffy would destroy Fish-Man Island.
"How despicable, making Luffy take the blame..." Merry gritted her teeth as she glared at Hody. "This guy is nothing but a villain!"
Seeing Merry, claws bared and ready to charge at the live broadcast screen to punch it, Meiser pulled her back and said, "What are you trying to do?"
"I want to hit him!"
"You can't hit him from here..." Meiser said helplessly. "Let's wait and see how things unfold first."
Hearing this, Merry blinked, then seemed to understand Meiser's meaning. She obediently nodded and stayed quietly in Meiser's arms without saying another word.
Seeing this, Meiser sighed in relief, then glanced at Luffy, who had remained silent.
Since Hody appeared, this guy hadn't said a word, just staring at the live broadcast screen, lost in thought.
But since he hadn't spoken up, Meiser didn't ask.
Just then, Hody in the broadcast put down his glass and grinned.
"After I become the king of this country, this nation will undergo unprecedented reforms!"
"And under my rule, Fish-Man Island will establish one absolute rule."
"This rule is: any Fish-man who wishes to befriend humans must disappear from this country!"
"As the superior race, Fish-men have no need to help those weak humans!"
As he spoke, Hody's expression gradually turned fierce.
In his view, weak humans were utterly unworthy of coexisting peacefully with the powerful Fish-Man race!
"Weak humans..."
Sanji, with a cigarette in his mouth, frowned and said, "How dare he say that."
"He's probably comparing himself to ordinary humans," Meiser said calmly. "If compared to true powerhouses, he's nothing."
In the end, this guy can only act tough in the sea.
If we fight somewhere without water... he's nothing!
"Can he really succeed?" Merry asked doubtfully. "Even if he occupies Ryugu Palace, he can't change the will of everyone on this island, can he?"
Without gaining the approval of the island's citizens... can he really hold that position securely?
Probably not.
"Did you forget what I just said?" Meiser replied. "This guy brought quite a few people with him."
Besides... in this world, becoming a king doesn't necessarily require everyone's approval, does it?
"Most of the civilians on Fish-Man Island are just ordinary people. In terms of combat power, they're definitely no match for those fish-men who fight year-round," Hachi added.
So Hody's plan will most likely succeed.
Listening to the two of them, Merry lowered her head in thought. It seemed... that really was the case.
Meanwhile, Hody continued speaking at that moment: "Soon, warriors from the Fish-Man District will settle here.
They will be responsible for overseeing this matter!"
"What?!"
Hearing Hody's words, the islanders watching the broadcast were all stunned.
Those lawless thugs from the district are coming to live on Fish-Man Island?
Are you kidding?!
What will they do then?
They're no match for those terrifying thugs.
If conflicts arise, they...
"Ahahahaha, did you hear that, you lot!" The fish-men of the New Fish-Man Pirates sneered as they looked at the original islanders. "From now on, we'll be neighbors~"
"Ahahahaha!"
"That's right, let's get along well~"
"Wahahahaha!"
Hearing these thugs' voices, the honest, simple fish-men immediately showed expressions of fear.
What will they do from now on?
Damn it, Your Majesty King Neptune, where are you?!
Please punish these vile thugs soon!
But unfortunately, they received no response from King Neptune. Instead, they heard Hody's demonic voice once more.
"I know some islanders still hold certain illusions about humans because of Queen Otohime, but..." Hody crushed the wine glass in his hand, his expression twisted as he said, "Don't forget who killed Queen Otohime!"
"It was humans!"
"Betrayal happens once, and it will happen again. Why can't you understand this?!"
"Humans are nothing but untrustworthy, evil creatures!"
Listening to Hody's words, some fish-men who didn't know the truth began to waver.
"Is that really true?"
"It was indeed humans who killed Queen Otohime back then..."
"But we can't deny Queen Otohime's efforts because of that. She was..."
"Hmm?"
Hearing this man's words, the New Fish-Man Pirates member's expression immediately darkened.
Then, he glared fiercely at the man and said, "What did you just say?"
"N-nothing... I—" "That's good."
The grimacing Fish-man reached out and patted the other's shoulder, saying, "Remember to listen well to Boss Hody..."
"Ah, no, I mean King Hody's teachings."
"Ahahahaha!"
Watching this wildly laughing Fish-man, a trace of frustration flickered in the man's eyes, but forced by the other's overwhelming strength, he could only choose to remain silent.
Meanwhile, Hody sneered coldly, "In the end, the so-called ideals of the Neptune clan are nothing more than an unattainable pipe dream."
"So there's no need for us to believe in any of that!"
After speaking, Hody turned and walked to the side, saying, "Come, take a look at this."
"Is... is that His Majesty the King?"
Seeing Neptune tied up, the residents of Fish-Man Island were all stunned.
Their king had actually been captured by Hody?
Neptune, under their gaze, silently sighed.
"Ah...
Who could have imagined things would come to this?
"Fish-Man Island in the hands of someone like you has no future." Hody stared coldly at Neptune. "But in my hands, it will become glorious!"
"Hody..."
Looking at the confident Hody, Neptune's eyes grew complex.
This arrogant young man simply didn't understand how terrifying the sea could be.
The Fish-Man race could never rely on force to oppose humans.
Thinking this, Neptune intended to say something.
But before he could speak, Hody interrupted him.
"No need to look at me like that." Hody sneered. "Sooner or later, you'll know I'm right."
"Oh, and you probably won't live to see that day."
"But it's fine. You can watch from below as I lead Fish-Man Island to glory~"
"Shahahahaha!"
With that, Hody ignored Neptune and turned to the screen, declaring, "Now, notify all residents of Fish-Man Island!"
"In three hours, at Gyoncorde Plaza, I will personally behead this incompetent king!"
After a pause, Hody continued, "The current Great Pirate Era began with the execution of the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger."
"This has only accelerated humanity's persecution of the Fish-Man race."
"In that case... then I will use Neptune's execution as the catalyst to usher in the Great Fish-Man Era, where the Fish-Man race will rule over humanity!"
"Shahahahaha!"
By the end, Hody was laughing uproariously, his expression exceptionally arrogant.
Upon hearing Hody's words, Meiser's head immediately sprouted several question marks.
Where did this guy Hody get the courage to say such things?
"Has he never understood the strength of the powerful on the sea?" Meiser glanced at Jimbei. "He actually plans to rule over humans..."
Forget the Four Emperors; even a single Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea could beat him to a pulp.
Why is he so confident?
"Blinded by hatred and rage, he refuses to see any of that." Jimbei shook his head.
He understood what Meiser meant.
There were far too many powerful humans on this sea, such as BIG MOM, who had lent her flag to their Fish-Man Island.
If they wished, they could effortlessly annihilate the New Fish-Man Pirates... No, it would be more accurate to say they could effortlessly destroy Fish-Man Island itself! For such terrifying beings, sinking an island was all too normal.
Unfortunately... Hody would never consider such things. His eyes had grown "clouded," leaving him utterly incapable of seeing the world as it truly was.
Upon hearing Jimbei's words, Meiser immediately understood. It seemed this fellow named Hody was a frog at the bottom of a well, completely unaware of the vastness of the world and the strength of its true powers.
But before Meiser could say anything more, Hody continued, "Oh, right. After arriving at Ryugu Palace, we discovered some interesting things."
As he spoke, Hody gestured to one of his subordinates, signaling him to hand something over. The subordinate obediently produced the Celestial Dragon's Letter and placed it in Hody's hand.
Seeing this, Jimbei's pupils contracted sharply. "Could that be...?"
"I imagine quite a few of you have guessed what this is," Hody sneered. "That's right! This is the Celestial Dragon's Letter that Queen Otohime risked her life to obtain ten years ago!"
"Once it's torn up, there will never be another chance to get it! Sha ha ha ha ha!"
With that, Hody handed the letter back to his subordinate, adding, "Later, take this and dispose of it along with Neptune!"
"Yes, sir!"
The subordinate who received the order nodded, then carefully tucked the letter into his chest.
Hody then walked over to a large chest, patting it as he said, "Besides this Celestial Dragon's Letter, I also found a massive pile of signed petitions!"
As he spoke, he grabbed a handful of signatures and continued, "I never imagined there would be so many fools in this country who want to join hands with humans... It's truly hard to believe my own eyes!"
He flung the handful of signed petitions to the ground, his expression twisting into something ferocious.
"Signing these is tantamount to betraying the Fish-Man race and rebelling against my new kingdom," Hody declared. "So I'm going to dispose of every single one of you!"
After a brief pause, he added, "No need to keep trampling on portraits. That identification method is too easy to fool."
"So... we'll use this list to find people instead!"
By the end, a horrifically twisted smile spread across Hody's face, making him look like a terrifying demon.
"How could this be..."
Upon hearing Hody's words, all the fish-men who had signed the petitions wore expressions of terror. Were they going to be killed by Hody?
"You bastard, stop this at once!" Neptune roared, forcing his eyes open. "I won't allow you to harm the citizens!"
If Hody wanted to kill him, he should just do it directly. Why harm the people of this island? This was not the magnanimity a king should possess!
"What can you possibly do at this point?" Hody turned his head, casting a mocking glance at Neptune. "In the end, you're nothing but a prisoner."
No matter how dissatisfied he was, there was nothing he could do.
"Damn you, I..."
Ignoring Neptune's furious curses, Hody shook his head and said, "Forget it, there's no need to bother with you anyway. Your time is running out."
So if he wants to curse, let him curse. Consider it the barking of a dying dog.
Then, he waved his hand, signaling his subordinates to take Neptune away.
"Dammit, of all people, Hody had to find that letter," Jimbei said with a grim expression.
If the citizens' petition letter were destroyed, they could always collect signatures again.
But a letter from a Celestial Dragon wasn't something easily obtained!
Once it was destroyed...
Damn that Hody!
Meanwhile, Shirahoshi clenched her fists, watching as Neptune was dragged away by the New Fish-Man Pirates, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.
"Father..."
What should she do?
What could she possibly do?
Having never experienced anything like this before, Shirahoshi was utterly panicked.
"Shirahoshi, you..."
Before Nami could even begin to offer words of comfort, Hody's voice came from the live broadcast: "Oh, right, you pirates of the Straw Hat Crew. Before the broadcast ends, let me show you something good."
"You must be watching this broadcast from somewhere on this island, you humans who crushed the anger of the Fish-Man race and shattered the ambitions of the Arlong Pirates!"
The next moment, the image changed.
A steel cage appeared on screen, and inside it were... Zoro and the other two!
"Usopp, Brook, Zoro?!"
Seeing the three humans on screen, Chopper was stunned. Had they really been captured?
"So they really were caught," Sanji said, rubbing his temples in frustration. "What were those three idiots doing?"
Hearing this, Nami fell silent for a moment before turning to Meiser. "You were right after all."
Things had unfolded exactly as Meiser predicted—those three idiots, Zoro and the others, had been captured by Hody and his crew!
Now they had to figure out a way to rescue those three fools.
"Knowing how to use the innate advantages of the Fish-Man race in battle..." Meiser frowned. "It seems there's someone clever among Hody's crew."
He just wondered if there was a Dog-headed Strategist type of character among them.
"Dammit!"
"Zoro actually got caught..." Perona clenched her fists. "What was that idiot thinking?!"
She had been so confident that Zoro wouldn't be captured, but in the end... that directionally-challenged fool!
"See the situation clearly now, Straw Hat Crew," Hody sneered. "The room they're in will be flooded with seawater after the execution. When that happens... these inferior humans will drown!"
After a pause, Hody pulled out Luffy's Wanted Poster and declared, "Straw Hat Luffy, with a bounty of 500 million Berries, listen up!"
"These three are just the beginning for me!"
"After this, I'll find every single one of you, one by one, and use your heads to deliver a shocking warning to the humans on land!"
"Sha ha ha ha!"
After his laughter subsided, Hody announced, "Three hours from now, this country will be reborn!"
"So... everyone, look forward to it!"
"Sha ha ha ha!"
Bzzzt
Click
The next moment, the Visual Den Den Mushi closed its eyes, and Hody's image vanished completely.
"So they plan to take care of us as well," Sanji said calmly, exhaling a puff of smoke. "They've got quite the nerve."
It seems the blunders of those three idiots, Zoro and the others, have given Hody a lot of confidence.
Do they really think they're easy to mess with?
Even without counting Meiser, who's hiding in the shadows, the strength of their Straw Hat Pirates isn't weak at all!
Not to mention anything else, Miss Perona's Negative Spirits aren't something ordinary people can withstand!
"Hey, let's hurry and save Zoro and the others!" Merry said anxiously. "Otherwise, they'll be killed by the seawater."
Everyone had finally gathered together, and she didn't want to lose any of her comrades here.
Thinking of this, Merry became so anxious that tears welled up in her eyes.
"Calm down a bit, Merry."
Meiser, who glanced down at Merry in his arms, spoke up. "Zoro and the others are fine."
"Huh?"
Merry was taken aback, then asked in confusion, "Why do you say that?"
The three of them, already bound by chains... How could they possibly survive in such a situation?
They aren't Fish-men!
"You mean..."
As if understanding what Meiser was thinking, Nami's eyes lit up. "Usopp's Devil Fruit ability!"
"Yes."
Meiser nodded and said, "Although I don't know how those three idiots, Zoro and the others, got caught, ordinary chains can't hold Usopp."
They just needed to wait for Hody and his crew to leave, and then Usopp could use his Devil Fruit ability to enlarge the chains and the cage, allowing the three of them to easily escape.
As for how to leave that room?
With Usopp's explosive abilities, destroying a building would be all too simple.
"I'm just afraid those things might be made of Sea Stone," Nami frowned.
"If they're made of Sea Stone, then it would indeed be a bit dangerous, but..." Meiser glanced at the place where the live broadcast had just taken place. "That guy Usopp was bouncing around more energetically than anyone else inside the cage earlier, so I don't think those are Sea Stone chains."
As long as they aren't Sea Stone chains, Usopp can handle the problem!
And what about the seawater below?
With Zoro there, swimming out with two others shouldn't be an issue.
"I see..." Nami thought for a moment, then nodded. "Then the three of them should have no trouble breaking free."
Meiser nodded, then looked at Luffy and said, "But since others have provoked us, we can't just do nothing."
"Luffy, what do you think?"
"Luffy?"
Seeing Luffy staring ahead without saying a word, Meiser had question marks popping up in his head.
What's wrong with this guy again?
As if hearing Meiser's call, Luffy, who had just been lost in thought, turned his head and gave everyone a delighted smile. "My bounty actually reached 500 million Berries! When did it go up?"
Meiser: ???
Is this idiot really concerned about that right now?
"Is this really the time to be happy about something like that, you idiot!" Nami roared, her mouth wide like a shark's. "Can't you be a little more serious, you stupid captain?"
Thump!
"S-sorry..."
Luffy, who had been punched, lay on the ground and apologized obediently.
Jimbei: ...
Luffy got beaten up by his crewmate?
Seeing Luffy apologize so meekly, Jimbei was left utterly speechless.
Afterward, he thought to himself, 'This group's way of interacting is really quite unique...'
Shaking his head, Jimbei explained, "Your bounty increased after the Summit War."
"Oh, I see," Luffy nodded.
Meanwhile, Meiser asked curiously, "What about me?"
"You fell shortly after the Summit War, so your bounty didn't change at all."
"Tch..."
Meiser pouted. So it hadn't gone up after all.
Oh well, his bounty would rise sooner or later anyway, so there was no need to rush.
Then, Meiser looked at Luffy, waiting for his decision.
Seeing this, the others also turned their attention to Luffy.
Noticing everyone's gaze, Luffy got up from the ground, adjusted his hat, and said, "Since they've already come looking for trouble, we have no choice but to fight back!"
Although he wasn't very interested in Hody as a person, since the other party had already attacked his crewmates, he couldn't just pretend nothing had happened.
So... he would be the one to punch that bastard who dared lay a hand on his crewmates!
Then, Luffy glanced at his crewmates and said, "Let's go to Ryugu Palace and find that guy named Hody."
"Yeah!!"
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