Chapter 381: Chapter 381: The Madman Driven to Extremes!
"Merry."
Meiser glanced at Merry, who was maintaining her ability, and said, "Are you okay?"
Although Merry now possessed the strength to lift a pirate ship, she was still too young, so Meiser was somewhat concerned about her physical condition.
"No problem."
Sitting at the bow of the ship and swinging her little feet, Merry revealed a sweet smile upon hearing this and said, "With my current strength, I can keep the Thousand Sunny flying in the sky for a long time without any issues."
After two years of training, her strength was quite formidable!
"That’s good."
Meiser nodded. As long as she was fine, it was all good.
This way... even if he wasn’t around, Merry could help everyone deal with some unnecessary trouble.
"Is that thing up there the so-called Ryugu Palace?" Franky pushed up his sunglasses and said, "It looks pretty big."
Isn’t the scale of this bubble a bit too exaggerated?
"It’s not as big as you think," Meiser said. "The actual structure would be lucky to be one-third the size of this bubble."
Franky: —
Even if it’s only one-third, that’s still pretty exaggerated, okay.
Shaking his head, Franky said, "Meiser, you go ahead."
"We’ll wait for you outside."
With Meiser’s strength, breaking through those strange bubbles shouldn’t be a problem, so it was best to leave it to him.
"Huh?"
Upon hearing this, Meiser showed a surprised expression and said, "Aren’t you coming in to see what Ryugu Palace looks like?"
Franky had never been here before.
"There’s no rush," Franky said. "We can visit after the battle is over. It’s the same, isn’t it?"
After all, they had plenty of time, right?
"Is that so..."
Meiser thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "You’re right. Maybe we can even have a banquet or something by then."
As the heroic team that saved Fish-Man Island, asking Uncle Neptune to host a banquet wasn’t too much to ask, was it? Thinking of this, Meiser smiled.
Then, Meiser looked up at the huge bubble in the sky and said, "Then I’ll go in and check the situation."
After saying this, Meiser froze, then showed a puzzled expression.
Noticing the change in Meiser’s expression, Franky asked curiously, "What’s wrong?"
"Strange... why is this corridor in a connected state?" Meiser said in surprise.
Could it be that the Hody Pirates forgot to close it when they left?
That wasn’t impossible.
"Is there something special about this corridor?" Franky asked, confused.
"If there were no corridor, no one but me could get in," Meiser pointed at the bubble above and said. "Because those bubbles would absorb the coating."
This was also why a corridor was needed to reach Ryugu Palace.
"That’s exactly right." Merry nodded and said, "When we came down earlier, the bubbles around us were swallowed up by this strange coating."
If it weren’t for her ability to fly, everyone might have fallen straight from the sky.
"So that’s what happened."
Franky frowned and said, "Is this why Den said those things?"
It’s best to let Meiser go alone...
"Yes."
Meiser nodded, then looked up at the sky and said, "Alright, I’m heading out."
"Okay."
"Take me with you." Perona walked over holding a Coral Bubble and said, "I want to see how that idiot Zoro got himself captured."
Seeing Perona’s unfriendly expression, Meiser was rendered speechless.
Then, with a hint of schadenfreude, Meiser said, "Alright, let’s go together then."
Zoro, you’re on your own.
Perona nodded, then used the Coral Bubble to create a bubble that would allow her to breathe.
Meanwhile, Meiser activated Water Release: Dance of the Swimming Fish, granting himself the ability to breathe underwater for an extended period.
After doing this, Meiser unleashed the Water Dragon Bullet Technique, swallowing both of them inside!
Then, the enormous Water Dragon soared into the sky, rushing upward along the so-called Corridor!
"Boom!!"
Soon, under Meiser’s control, the Water Dragon returned to the massive Bubble where Ryugu Palace was located.
"Alright, now we need to find where Zoro and the others are," Meiser said.
"Leave it to me!"
Perona released a Ghost and said, "I’ll use my Ghosts to search for them."
Hearing this, Meiser looked puzzled and said, "But your Ghosts can’t stay active in water for long, right?"
How could she find them under these circumstances?
"That’s true, but I’ve already found a solution!"
"What solution?"
"This."
Perona took out a Coral Bubble and waved it at Meiser, saying, "My Explosion Ghosts have physical forms, so they can wear this bubble."
"That way, they can..."
"Clang!"
"Boom!"
Before Perona could finish her sentence, a tremendous roar echoed from the distance, as if something had been sliced apart by a sword!
Perona: ???
Meiser: ...
After glancing at the situation in the distance, Meiser fell silent for a moment, then said to the bewildered Perona, "Looks like we don’t need to search for those guys anymore."
Slicing a building apart with a sword... No one else here besides Zoro would do something like that.
"That idiot," Perona said with exasperation. "Isn’t he afraid of drowning everyone?"
Usopp and Brook are Devil Fruit Ability Users, after all!
Thinking of this, Perona said, "Quick, let’s go check on the situation. We can’t let the other two drown."
"Don’t worry, they’re still alive."
With his Sharingan activated, Meiser noticed several idiots rushing out of the building and said, "They’re all wearing Bubble Coatings."
It seems Zoro and the others aren’t completely foolish—they knew to put on Bubble Coatings before slicing the building.
"That’s good then."
Meiser nodded and said, "Let’s go find those four idiots."
After speaking, Meiser controlled the Water Dragon and charged toward the four fools in the distance.
"Whoosh!"
"Zoro, I really can’t stand you!" Usopp, who was flying all over the place in the seawater, opened his shark-like mouth and roared, "I told you to just open a small gap! Why did you cut down the entire building?"
Now, they couldn’t even control their direction.
"This way is faster," Zoro said calmly.
If they only opened a small gap, the seawater would flow in too slowly, so... it was more convenient to just cut it open directly!
Usopp:
This bastard doesn’t seem to have any intention of reflecting on his actions.
Just then, Usopp felt his body suddenly jolt, and then gradually stabilize.
Usopp: ???
What’s going on?
But before he could turn around to check, he heard Meiser’s familiar voice from behind.
"You all seem to be having a lot of fun," Meiser said.
Usopp: !!!
"Meiser!" Usopp exclaimed in delight. "You came to get us?"
Looking at Usopp’s delighted face, Meiser smirked and said, "If I hadn’t come looking for you, you four fools would have been swept away by the sea current."
"It’s all Zoro’s fault!"
Usopp glanced at Zoro, who had been swallowed by the Water Dragon, and grumbled, "If it weren’t for him, how could we have been caught up in this strange sea current and sent flying?"
"Huh?"
Zoro, who had just stabilized himself, immediately took offense upon hearing this. He stood up and said, "Didn’t you tell me to cut the building open?"
"But I said to cut a smaller opening!"
"But now it’s not..."
Before Zoro could finish speaking, Perona, standing behind him, said, "Zoro, can you explain to me why, with you around, the three of you still got captured?"
Zoro:
Glancing at Perona, who was staring at him, Zoro fell completely silent.
Why did he suddenly have a bad feeling about this?
Meanwhile, on the other side.
In the sky outside the plaza, Megalo was carrying Jimbei and Shirahoshi as they sped through the air.
"Hurry, Megalo!" Jimbei said. "We’re almost at the plaza!"
I hope Hody keeps his word about the time, otherwise... King Neptune will be in danger.
Hearing Jimbei’s words, Megalo nodded and sped up even more.
Shirahoshi, meanwhile, looked worriedly into the distance and silently prayed.
Just then, a familiar dark figure appeared in the thin clouds in the distance, and Neptune’s voice echoed from it.
"Hey~ it’s me~"
"It’s Father!" Shirahoshi exclaimed excitedly. "Hurry, Megalo!"
"Shark!"
Megalo, equally excited, wagged its tail and charged toward the dark figure in the distance.
"Something’s wrong!" Jimbei said. "How could King Neptune be in the air?"
Wasn’t he tied up by Hody and his gang? How could he possibly be in the air?
But unfortunately, Shirahoshi, desperate to save her father, couldn’t hear Jimbei’s words at all.
All she could think about was rescuing her father as quickly as possible.
"Hey, listen to me!"
"Megalo, stop!"
"Shark?"
Hearing Jimbei’s words, Megalo was momentarily stunned, instinctively slowing its speed.
But unfortunately... its reaction was still too slow!
Thud!
At that moment, the shadow ahead suddenly burst open, transforming into an enormous net that flew toward them, ensnaring all three.
Immediately after, the three of them, having lost their ability to fly, plummeted from the sky and crashed onto the ground.
Thud!
Megalo, who was at the bottom, let out a pained cry as it was crushed, tears welling up in its eyes from the pain.
"Ahahahaha, I never thought such a simple trap could capture Princess Shirahoshi," several Fish-men standing before Jimbei laughed heartily. "It was even easier than I imagined!"
"Ahahahaha!"
"Damn you, you bastards!"
Bound by chains, Jimbei glared furiously at the Fish-men, his body instinctively struggling as if he were about to lash out violently.
Seeing this, the Fish-men immediately aimed their weapons at Shirahoshi and said, "Jimbei, your strength is indeed formidable, but I advise you not to make any rash moves."
"Otherwise... we can’t guarantee Princess Shirahoshi’s safety~"
Upon hearing this, Jimbei froze for a moment, then reluctantly stopped struggling, appearing genuinely afraid that they might harm Princess Shirahoshi.
"That’s more like it."
The Fish-man nodded in satisfaction before turning to the others and saying, "Quick, tie these three up and take them to see Captain Hody!"
"Ooh!!"
The Fish-men roared in excitement, their expressions filled with exhilaration.
They then used hooks attached to sharks to grab the net, relying on the sharks’ strength to carry the three of them into the air. They flew toward the distant square and soon arrived at their destination.
"Captain Hody!" the Fish-man standing atop the shark’s head shouted excitedly. "We’ve captured Princess Shirahoshi and Jimbei!"
Boom!!
As soon as the words were spoken, the Fish-men tossed their captives to the ground.
"Shirahoshi!"
Seeing Shirahoshi lying on the ground, Prince Fukaboshi and the other two were utterly stunned.
Why was Shirahoshi captured alongside Boss Jimbei?
Meanwhile, the other Fish-men watching from the sides of the square also wore expressions of shock.
Why was Boss Jimbei captured together with Princess Shirahoshi?
"My luck is truly amazing~"
Looking at the three figures lying on the ground, Hody stood up excitedly and said, "I never expected the two people who posed a threat to me to be captured at the same time..."
"Shahahahaha!"
"This is perfect!"
With this, no one on this island could threaten him anymore.
Shahahahaha!
"I’m sorry..."
Shirahoshi hung her head, looking sorrowfully at Jimbei as she said, "If I hadn’t been deceived, Boss Jimbei, you wouldn’t have..."
Hearing this, Jimbei shook his head and replied, "It’s fine. What’s done is done..."
Although Princess Shirahoshi’s capture was indeed unexpected, now that it had happened, there was no point dwelling on it. They just had to proceed with the plan!
A moment of admiration then surfaced in Jimbei’s heart.
"As expected of Princess Shirahoshi, knowing exactly what to say in such a situation to make Hody lower his guard..."
Well done!
At this moment, Hody was exactly as Jimbei had thought—completely convinced that these two had been captured by his subordinates.
"Hody, I actually admired you back when you were still a pirate," Hody said, tilting his head as he looked at Jimbei. "But it’s a shame... you chose humans!"
"So I have no choice but to take you down along with them."
Hearing Hody’s words, Jimbei showed no surprise.
After all, the other party had already made it clear earlier that he intended to kill any Fish-Man who befriended humans, so it was only natural that he would target Jimbei as well.
However...
"Why does Hody look different from before?" Jimbei wondered inwardly.
With that thought, Jimbei voiced his observation.
"It’s nothing, just a sign of increased strength," Hody replied calmly.
Clearly, he had no intention of explaining his true condition to Jimbei.
Jimbei frowned upon hearing this. Under what circumstances would gaining strength turn one’s hair white?
"Things are progressing even more smoothly than I imagined," Hody said as he returned to his seat. "Now, the only ones left are the Straw Hat Crew, who are unpredictable in their actions."
"But I suspect... right now, they’re probably scurrying around like headless flies, searching for the entrance to Ryugu Palace."
Unfortunately for them... Ryugu Palace was now under the control of his subordinates, so there was absolutely no way the Straw Hat Crew could get in!
Shahahaha! "Aren’t you afraid the Straw Hat Crew will come after you?" Jimbei asked, staring intently at Hody.
"Why should I be afraid?" Hody sneered. "To deal with the Straw Hat Crew, I’ve made ample preparations."
With that, Hody clapped his hands, signaling for the others to come forward.
Moments later... "Tap, tap, tap..."
The sound of countless footsteps echoed in everyone’s ears, and one after another, figures emerged from the cave!
In the end... nearly one hundred thousand people walked out of the cave!
"Wh-what is this?!"
Seeing the staggering number, Prince Fukaboshi was utterly stunned.
When had Hody’s subordinates grown to such a massive size?
"See this!" Hody spread his arms wide and declared, "This is my trump card to deal with the Straw Hat Crew!"
"Thirty thousand human slaves and seventy thousand Fish-Men capable of wielding weapons!"
"A total of one hundred thousand effective combatants!"
"Shahahahaha!"
"With them, my dream is certain to come true!"
"Shahahaha!"
"Ooh!!"
The Fish-Men below began to roar, their expressions growing more and more fervent!
Taking it all in, Jimbei frowned and said, "That truly is an exaggerated number."
He wondered how many would remain by the end of the battle.
With that thought, Jimbei sighed quietly to himself.
Meanwhile, Shirahoshi wore a horrified expression and murmured, "One hundred thousand..."
With such a terrifying number... could Meiser and the others possibly win?
If anyone from the Straw Hat Pirates got hurt because of this... she...
Tears welled up in Shirahoshi’s eyes at the thought.
"Starting to feel scared, huh~?" mocked Dos, an officer of the New Fish-Man Pirates. "Too bad it’s already too late~"
"Hahahaha!"
Whether this girl cried or not, it wouldn’t change the fact that she was about to die!
After hearing Dos’s words, Hody laughed even more heartily.
Then, he looked down at Shirahoshi and said, "Don’t worry, under my leadership, Fish-Man Island will become even more prosperous!"
"Sha ha ha ha!"
After his loud laughter, Hody turned his gaze to the surrounding Fish-Men and said, "Alright, now you traitors who are friendly with humans, hand over your homes."
"This way, the warriors from the Fish-Man District will have places to live."
After saying this, Hody paused, then his expression turned cold as he added, "Of course, you can also choose to stay, but then you’ll have to face our pursuit!"
"Whether to flee or wait for death, make your decision now!"
"How can this be..."
The Fish-Men who had previously submitted signatures immediately showed expressions of terror.
If they didn’t leave, they would be killed by the Hody Pirates, but if they left Fish-Man Island... where could they go?
The entire sea had only one place with the Eve Sunlight Tree!
"Making such a commotion in public, what a bunch of rude children." Shakky, sitting in her bubble, approached Hody and said, "Aren’t you getting a bit too carried away?"
"Hody... Jones!"
"You are..."
"Oh!"
Upon seeing who it was, Hody immediately showed a look of realization, then grinned and said, "What a nostalgic face."
"What do you want to say?"
"Arlong’s sister... Shakky!"
"Just delivering a message to someone as arrogant as you." Shakky, holding her pipe, said calmly, "My divination shows that a man will destroy Fish-Man Island."
"Sha ha ha ha ha~"
Upon hearing Shakky’s words, Hody immediately burst into wild laughter.
Then, he grinned and said, "The person appearing in your divination must be me, right?"
After all... he was going to destroy Fish-Man Island once!
"No, the person appearing in my divination is not you." Shakky said flatly.
"What?"
Hearing this, Hody’s expression stiffened, then darkened as he said, "Then who is it?"
Why wasn’t it him?
He had already gone this far...
"It’s Straw Hat Luffy." Shakky said calmly. "The divination shows that the one who will destroy Fish-Man Island is the captain of the Straw Hat Crew!"
"What did you say?"
Hody said incredulously, "How is that possible?"
How could a weak human destroy Fish-Man Island?
If anyone were to destroy it, it should be him!
"Even if you don’t want to believe it, this is the fact." Shakky said flatly. "So... what that Straw Hat Boy will do afterward, I don’t know either."
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Hody said with an unpleasant expression.
"Just telling you that the one who will destroy Fish-Man Island is not you." Shakky said. "At the very least... the one who holds the fate of Fish-Man Island is not you, Hody!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Hody’s face immediately darkened.
"That’s right!"
The surrounding Fish-Men said excitedly, "Madam Shyarly’s divination has never been wrong!"
"So that means... the one who will ultimately occupy this island is not Hody?"
"Great!"
This way, they wouldn’t have to die!
Hearing these words, Hody’s face instantly bulged with veins, and his eyes became filled with rage.
Without hesitation, he then launched an attack on Shakky!
"Water Shot!"
"Whoosh!"
"Thud!"
A droplet of water shot from Hody’s hand, mercilessly piercing through Shakky’s fish tail and sending her crashing down from mid-air!
"Madam Shyarly!"
Shirahoshi stared in shock at the scene, never imagining that Hody would attack Madam Shyarly.
Meanwhile, Jimbei looked at Hody with a grim expression, equally surprised that he would strike at Arlong’s sister.
"That bastard Hody..."
"Have you gotten a bit too carried away, Shyarly!" Hody glared coldly at Shyarly, who was trembling on the ground, and said, "What’s the point of saying all that?"
"To vent your anger?"
"Let me tell you, it’s completely meaningless!" Hody declared. "Because I now possess the power to destroy this country!"
"And the only one who can destroy and rebuild this nation... is me!"
"As for that Straw Hat Boy, he’s nothing but a lowly human in the end. He can’t even be compared to me! Hyahahaha~"
"Wooooh!!!"
The surrounding Fish-men roared once more, as if echoing Hody’s will.
"See this!" Hody pointed at the crowd around him and said, "This is my strength!"
"Just like your brother Arlong, I now have the power to fulfill my dreams!"
"And today is the day I make that dream come true!"
"Hyahahaha!"
Upon hearing Hody’s words, the Fish-men around him grew even more excited.
Yes, today was the day they would move from the Fish-Man District to Fish-Man Island!
From this day forward... they too could live on the prosperous Fish-Man Island!
Ahahahaha!
"Hmph, how laughable that the sister of a mere Arlong would dare to obstruct our captain’s will," sneered Daruma, an officer of the New Fish-Man Pirates.
"Indeed," agreed Ikaros, another officer of the New Fish-Man Pirates. "Does this woman really think she has the power to defy Captain Hody?"
"How utterly ridiculous!"
Even if this woman’s prophecies had never been wrong in the past, they wouldn’t care about such things.
After all... they had a hundred thousand men!
Even if the Straw Hat crew really came here, they wouldn’t be afraid!
Hody was very pleased with his subordinates’ reactions, as it was a form of recognition for his will.
"Let me tell you something even more interesting," Hody sneered, looking at the Fish-men gathered above. "The one who killed your beloved Queen Otohime ten years ago... was me!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the plaza fell into a deathly silence.
"Otohime..."
Neptune stared in disbelief. His wife had died at the hands of this man?
Not a human?
Fukaboshi also widened his eyes at this moment, but unlike Neptune, he thought of what Meiser had said earlier.
The truth of the matter... was exactly as Meiser had guessed—it was this Hody who did it!
How dare this Hody?
Meanwhile, Shirahoshi lowered her head, tears beginning to well in her eyes.
"How could this be..." The Fish-men above stared at Hody in disbelief. "Queen Otohime was killed by Hody?"
"Then what about the humans from before?"
Wasn’t it said that Queen Otohime was killed by humans?
Why did it become Hody?
"That human was the one I paid to do it." Hody sneered. "I had him burn the petition letters beside Queen Otohime to create chaos."
"And at that very moment, I personally killed Queen Otohime!"
"After finishing that, I found that human who had arrived early and killed him myself, so I could pin Queen Otohime’s death on the humans~"
"Sha ha ha ha ha!"
"You fools, you were all deceived by me!"
"Sha ha ha ha ha!"
Taking in everyone’s expressions, Hody threw his head back and laughed maniacally, feeling immensely excited.
Yes, this was the reaction he wanted!
Sha ha ha ha ha! "Damn it, so it was this bastard who killed Queen Otohime..."
"Hody, you bastard!"
"Sha ha ha ha ha!"
Watching the weeping Fish-men, Hody mocked, "Who can you blame but yourselves?"
In the end, they were nothing but a bunch of fools. Just then, Neptune behind Hody began thrashing wildly and roared:
"Hody, you bastard!"
"I’ll—"
"Guh!"
Not giving Neptune a chance to finish, Hody struck back with a Water Shot, piercing Neptune’s abdomen.
Then, Hody sneered, "You should just shut up, worthless king."
"I have no interest in listening to you."
"Da...mn it..."
Neptune, pierced through the abdomen, was covered in cold sweat, in so much pain he could barely speak.
"King Neptune!"
"Father!"
"Damn it, Hody, you bastard!" Prince Ryuboshi said angrily. "Stop this!"
"Sha ha ha ha ha!"
"Stop?"
Hody laughed wildly. "How could I possibly stop?"
"After all... this king is too much of an eyesore!"
"Sha ha ha ha!"
After his laughter, Hody turned to Shirahoshi and said, "Right, Shirahoshi?"
"Just like your mother."
"As members of the Fish-Man race, they not only refused to support our revenge against humans but instead chose to coexist peacefully with them, to befriend humans... What else are such people but traitors?"
At this point, Hody’s expression twisted, and he became completely deranged.
Then, he continued, "So I killed her!"
"Not only did I kill her, but I also used her death as a tool!"
"I used her death to reignite the Fish-Man race’s hatred for humans, to shatter Queen Otohime and the islanders’ foolish daydreams!"
"Sha ha ha ha ha~"
"How about it? That play I directed and starred in was brilliant, wasn’t it? You were all deceived by me!"
"In truth, the one who killed Queen Otohime was never a human—it was me!"
"It was me, Hody Jones, standing right before you!"
"Sha ha ha ha ha~"
"Sha ha ha ha ha!"
At this moment, Hody felt immense satisfaction.
Because his plan had been executed flawlessly, and his dream was about to come true!
As for that so-called Straw Hat crew?
Not worth mentioning!
"Damn you, Hody!"
"Queen Otohime..."
"Princess Shirahoshi..."
The Fish-men standing on both sides shed tears of anguish, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
Who could have imagined the truth was like this?
"Damn it..." Nami, standing beside Meiser, clenched her fists, her eyes burning with fury.
At this moment, she thought of her own past.
Back then, had Arlong also killed her mother right before her eyes like this...
Thinking of this, Nami wished she could rush forward and kill him right now.
But Nami also knew that now was not the time for such things, so she forced herself to calm down.
Then, using the power of the Mirage, she moved toward the Fish-man in the distance.
She had to steal the item as quickly as possible!
Meanwhile, Hody looked at Shirahoshi and said, "Hey~"
"Shirahoshi, say something to me, the one who killed your mother."
"Otherwise, you won’t get another chance~"
"Sha ha ha ha ha"
"Sha ha ha ha ha!"
"Sha ha..."
"I’ve known about this for a long time," Shirahoshi said, her face covered in tears.
Hody: ???
Hody was stunned by Shirahoshi’s words. Known for a long time... What did she mean?
The others also showed expressions of disbelief, clearly not expecting Shirahoshi to say such a thing.
She... had known all along?
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