Just thinking about the people standing behind Gion made Jin's scalp prickle.
Crane's little sister. Protected by Sengoku, Zephyr, Garp… If I ever actually Ryder a hand on that woman, they'd drag me into a dark alley and beat me half to death.
I might be crazy, he thought, but I'm not suicidal.
A Fishman guard swam over. "Are you the ones here to retrieve the Celestial Dragon?"
Kuro stepped forward and nodded. "Yes. We're under orders to escort the stranded Celestial Dragon back to the Holy Land."
"I see." The guard glanced at Jin, eyes narrowing as if checking something. "He's already been taken to Ryugu Palace for treatment. Come with me. King Neptune has been informed."
The guard gave Jin another long look, like he was comparing him to a rumor, then turned away.
Jin felt it, but didn't care. Look all you want, he thought. I don't charge for staring.
As soon as the Marines walked off, the guard turned to the others at the gate.
"It's him. I'm sure of it," he whispered.
Eyes lit up red around him.
"Spread the word…"
"Oi, Tokikake. That's enough flirting," Jin called, watching the man still clowning around with a group of bikini-clad mermaids. "Let's finish this mission. I want my vacation."
"Ladies, I'll be back next time, I swear!" Tokikake clutched his chest dramatically, drinking in every last second.
The mermaids giggled and waved. A Marine officer with a decent face and a decent rank who didn't try to enslave them was rare enough; plus, they loved hearing stories about the surface.
"See you next time, Tokikake!" one of them called.
Tokikake turned away with a face like his soul was being torn in half.
Jin watched him for a moment, then said casually, "You know, you could always ask Sengoku to station you on Fishman Island."
Tokikake's eyes lit up. "For real?"
"Sure. Sounds like a great idea. Bring it up as soon as we get back."
He was practically vibrating with excitement… until Jin added:
"Of course, that means you'd be leaving Gion behind. You've chased her for years. Be a shame to throw that away, yeah?"
Tokikake froze mid-step.
He slowly turned and glared at Jin. "If you have nothing useful to say, shut up."
Jin pretended not to notice, and kept going, voice lazy and merciless.
"The mermaids here are passionate and enthusiastic. Gion ignores you most of the time, sure—but you grew up together. Childhood sweethearts, shared history, that kind of thing.
"Out here, maybe you end up with three or four mermaid wives. Back home, just Gion. But Gion's worth at least three or four by herself.
"On the other hand, these girls really admire strength…"
The more he talked, the more Tokikake's expression twisted, until his whole face looked like it had been tied in a knot.
The Marines following behind had to cover their mouths, shoulders sHaking. None of them dared laugh out loud—getting flattened wasn't worth the joke.
Even the Fishman leading them finally turned around and glared at Jin. From his point of view, Jin was making it sound like mermaids were just some harem stockpile for human men. If anyone had the face for that, it was Jin. Not this scruffy, pervy guy drooling at every tail that swished past.
Jin let it go before Tokikake snapped. Any more and the man might actually explode.
Tokikake finally muttered, in a tiny voice, "Do you think… I could bring Gion here?"
Jin looked at him in disbelief. "You actually dare think that out loud? If you said that to her face, she'd kill you on the spot."
Tokikake deflated. "Then forget it. I'll just keep chasing her. Once I hit ten thousand confessions, I believe she'll say yes."
"How many are you at now?" Jin asked, half curious, half horrified.
"Nine thousand nine hundred," Tokikake said proudly. "Almost there!"
Kuro shook his head in silent respect. That's not love, he thought. That's a mental illness.
"Good luck, then," Jin said. "I'm rooting for you, Tokikake. Don't give up."
"Right? I knew someone would understand me!" Tokikake perked right up and started rambling about all the ways he'd proposed over the years, how many times he'd been punched, kicked, thrown out, his detailed thousand-step plan, and so on.
Jin simply turned off his ears and walked.
Before long, they reached the massive gates of Ryugu Palace.
The Left Minister himself came out to greet them. "Welcome to Ryugu Palace, honored Marines. I'll take you to Lord Mjosgard."
"Alright," Jin said, nodding. He followed the catfish merman through the gates.
Inside, even Jin couldn't help but whistle.
The great hall glittered with fist-sized pearls that hung from coral chandeliers. Rare treasures from the surface world were just… decorations here.
"Pretty rich," Jin muttered.
The Left Minister heard him and smiled. "Because we're at the bottom of the sea, pearls, coral, and similar goods are common here. But…"
He hesitated.
"Because of human prejudice against fish-men, it's hard for Fishman Island to trade properly with the surface. Much of our wealth just piles up. Even though we're a member of the World Government, I'm sure you know how things really are here."
Tokikake and the other Marines fell silent.
Slaves.
Mermaids were prize catches in the slave trade—worth hundreds of millions apiece. fish-men sold well too. That was why slavers were constantly prowling the island.
Jinbe and the others did what they could, but it was like bailing water from a sinking ship. The real black hand behind it all lived in the Holy Land.
"You're too weak," Jin said bluntly. "That's your real problem."
The Left Minister flinched.
"If you were strong enough—if you were vicious enough—do you think they'd still dare come here and snatch people like that?"
They walked into a side hall.
Mjosgard was there, wrapped in bandages, sitting on a couch with a sour expression. Queen Otohime was perched beside him, trying to make small talk, her voice gentle and hopeful.
He ignored her completely.
The moment he saw the Marines enter, Mjosgard's eyes lit up.
Everyone else's stomachs sank.
Here it comes, they all thought. He's going to make trouble.
The two CP agents spotted Mjosgard and immediately used Soru, flickering to his side.
"Lord Mjosgard! Thank the heavens you're safe! It's our fault—we deserve death!" They dropped to one knee, bowing their heads.
Mjosgard jabbed a bandaged hand in their direction. "You useless CP dogs! And you, Marines—once I get back to the Holy Land, I'll complain to the Five Elders about all of you!"
"Y-Yes, Lord Mjosgard!" the CP agents stammered. "It was our failure that led to your suffering!"
Every scrap of blame was instantly dumped onto their own backs. That was survival instinct.
On the Marine side, Jin picked his ear and glanced briefly at Otohime—the walking, breathing pinnacle of saintly doormat—then went back to looking bored.
Tokikake gave him a sideways glance. If the boss wasn't saluting, he sure wasn't going to. He was just support on this mission, anyway.
The other Marines followed their example.
Got a problem? Take it up with our CO.
Mjosgard noticed the lack of bowing and formulaic flattery and immediately turned purple with rage.
"Hey, Marines!" he shouted. "How dare you stand there when your master is present? Have you forgotten you're just the watchdogs of the Celestial Dragons?!"
His words hit like a slap. The Marines' faces twisted, fists clenched at their sides. Not one of them dared talk back.
Because it wasn't a lie.
The Marines were the Celestial Dragons' watchdogs.
Jin blew on his little finger.
"Understood, Lord Mjosgard," he said lazily. "So. May we depart?"
"You!" Mjosgard pointed his golden pistol at Jin. "Get over here and kneel!"
The entire room tensed.
Tokikake's face changed; he opened his mouth to intervene, but he was a heartbeat too slow.
Because Jin's temper was much worse than his manners.
Jin eyed the golden pistol with open disdain.
"Listen up, 'Lord,'" he said. "If you pull that trigger, I'll kill everyone in this room. You, your CP guards, the king, the queen, every bystander.
"And then I'll report that Fishman Island held a grudge, killed you, and ambushed us using the false news of your survival."
"What!?" The gathered fish-men all flinched, stunned.
Otohime's brows knit; her beautiful eyes fixed on the young Marine, searching his aura.
"I'm a Celestial Dragon!" Mjosgard screeched. "You'd kill your own master!?"
"Oi, Jin, enough!" Tokikake snapped. "Just bow, say sorry, let it go. These idiots don't know your face from Garp's fists."
Jin didn't even glance at him.
"You really think I'd sit and wait to die?" he asked Mjosgard quietly. "I'm not like the other Marines. I don't kneel. I don't swallow this crap.
"You pull that trigger, I fight back. If it comes to it, I go pirate. Fly around, rob people, live free. Sounds better than licking boots."
The CP agents immediately moved to shield Mjosgard, hands drifting toward their weapons, eyes wary.
All around them, throats bobbed as people swallowed hard.
Then Mjosgard… laughed.
"Heh. Ahahahaha!" He lowered the pistol. "An amusing Marine. All these years, everyone else has bowed and scraped. Finally, someone different shows up."
Jin's eye twitched. Oh no, he thought. This bastard doesn't have some… special kink, does he?
Even the fish-men were confused.
Since when are Celestial Dragons reasonable?
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