188: Chapter 188 Arrival at the Dragon King's Palace"Looks like Sanji's recovered.Let's go out and let the two angels take good care of him," Luffy said, his lips twitching as he forced a smile and led Usopp and Chopper out of the room.Sanji desperately reached out his hand towards Luffy's retreating back, but was quickly pushed back onto the bed by the two transvestites.Chopper looked worriedly at the noisy room and said, "Luffy, isn't this too cruel to Sanji?He finally escaped a bunch of transvestites; won't he go crazy seeing them again?"
Luffy chuckled and patted Chopper's head reassuringly, "Don't worry, Chopper, you're still the best doctor here!Besides, I'm doing this for his own good; it'll cure his bad habit of getting nosebleeds whenever he sees a pretty girl." Although Chopper sensed something was off, hearing Luffy praise him as the best doctor, he immediately forgot about it and danced with joy.Only Usopp looked at Luffy with a horrified expression, thinking to himself: "Two years apart, how did Luffy become so cunning?" The three quickly returned to the front, where Camie was happily chatting with a middle-aged woman.When she saw Luffy and the others come out, the woman smiled and said, "Hey, you young man in the straw hat, is your friend with the bushy eyebrows alright?" "Yes, he's fine.Thank you so much, Mrs.Shirley," Luffy said gratefully.
Meanwhile, in the territory of the New Fishman Pirates, the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.The henchmen who had returned to report the news were kneeling on the ground, trembling, not daring to look up at their boss—Hody Jones.Everyone knew that the slightest misstep could make them victims of their boss's wrath.
The fish-man seated at the head of the table had a face as dark as the calm before a storm.His fierce eyes were fixed on the two corpses on the ground, his anger erupting like a volcano."Fine, fine, fine!You dare kill one of Hody Jones's men!Straw Hat Boy, is it?I don't care if you're one of the Four Emperors of the New World or a Supernova.As long as you're on my fish-man territory, if you're a dragon, you'd better coil up; if you're a tiger, you'd better lie down!" Hody Jones said through gritted teeth, his eyes flashing with bloodlust.
He clenched his fists tightly, as if trying to channel his rage through them.He stood up, radiating a powerful aura that made the surrounding air heavy.His voice was deep and cold, filled with killing intent and authority."Straw Hat Kid, do you think you can escape my grasp so easily?Let me tell you, this is just the beginning!When I find you, I'll make you regret ever coming to this sea!"
As his words fell, the room fell into a deathly silence.No one dared to speak; even breathing became cautious.Everyone knew their leader had been thoroughly enraged, and a bloody massacre was imminent.At the center of this storm was none other than the arrogant Straw Hat boy—Luffy Hody Jones—who stared resolutely into the distance, making a silent resolution.He reached for a handful of pills from the plate beside him and, without hesitation, shoved them into his mouth.With a few crisp "crunch" sounds, he quickly swallowed the pills.Immediately afterward, his already muscular body swelled again under the influence of the drugs, becoming even stronger and more ferocious.
Feeling the power surge within him, Hody Jones groaned contentedly, then stood up and strode resolutely towards the door.Now was the crucial moment for him to implement his plan to rule Fish-Man Island; he would show everyone who the true king was!
Meanwhile, at Shirley's Cafe, Nami and several other ladies had arrived.Just as they sat down, ready to enjoy a delicious cup of coffee, King Neptune of Fish-Man Island suddenly appeared at the door.Neptune, with a smile, warmly invited the Straw Hat crew to the palace.Luffy readily accepted the invitation and led his crew to follow Neptune to the palace.
"Mr.Straw Hat Luffy, please wait a moment, the banquet will begin shortly," Neptune said with a smile.Having heard of Luffy's heroic deeds from Jinbe, Neptune felt a surge of goodwill and curiosity towards this human, so he specially invited Luffy and his crew to the banquet at Ryugu Palace and instructed his ministers to treat them well.He himself would return to the main palace to attend to state affairs.However, he never expected that Luffy was not one to wait patiently; taking advantage of the others' inattention, he secretly left the group and began wandering around Ryugu Palace alone.
"This Ryugu Castle is quite large.By the way, where is that tower that protects Shirahoshi?" Luffy muttered to himself as he walked.He remembered the legend he'd heard on Fish-Man Island, knowing that this tower was used to protect Shirahoshi.Filled with curiosity about this mysterious place, he wanted to see it for himself.So, he began searching for the tower's location.
Luffy looked around curiously, observing everything around him.The Ryugu Palace had a unique architectural style, wide and clean streets, and various fish and creatures swam freely in the water.However, without a guide, Luffy quickly got lost in the maze-like streets.But he wasn't discouraged; instead, he found the adventure quite interesting.
As Luffy wandered aimlessly, he stumbled upon a towering, solidly built tower.The tower appeared incredibly sturdy, surrounded by formidable defensive structures.Upon closer inspection, Luffy noticed the gate was riddled with dents and scratches, clearly indicating it had been attacked multiple times.Seeing these marks, Luffy couldn't help but feel sorry for the perpetually weeping mermaid princess, Shirahoshi.He thought: "Poor Shirahoshi, imprisoned here since childhood, just to escape that madman's pursuit!"
Luffy DeepTaking a deep breath, Luffy placed his hands on the heavy door of the Hard Shell Tower and pushed it outwards with force.With a creaking sound from the hinges, the door slowly opened, and Luffy cautiously poked his head in, curiously peering inside.
The room was dimly lit and filled with a faint, feminine fragrance.Despite his blurry vision, Luffy, with his exceptional Observation Haki, keenly sensed that the moment the door was pushed open, a figure darted into the covers like a startled rabbit.
Luffy chuckled inwardly, but feigned ignorance, tiptoeing into the room.However, none of this escaped the girl's notice.Her eyes widened in terror, her body trembled slightly, and her heart pounded in her chest.
She could clearly sense a strange human intruding into the room, and the man seemed determined not to leave.She desperately wanted to scream for help, but deep down she was filled with fear, worried that this man might harm her.So, she could only tightly cover her mouth to stifle any sound, silently praying: "Mom, please protect me."
(Shirahoshi possesses Observation Haki; it's innate, inherited from her mother, Queen Otohime, whose powerful Observation Haki was a gift from her.)