"What was that just now?" Merry asked, looking back in confusion. "Why did he run out from inside Ryugu Palace?"
Weren't all the Fish-men inside Ryugu Palace already tied up by them? So why did another one appear?
And who was this Shirahoshi he kept shouting about?
"Not sure," Nami shook her head.
How would she know what that guy's deal was?
"What's wrong, Camie?"
Perona looked at Camie suspiciously. This girl's expression had been off since earlier... what was going on?
"If I remember correctly, that person was Vander Decken," Camie said with a grim expression.
"Vander Decken?!!"
Hearing Camie's words, the expressions of the others immediately changed.
"That guy is the owner of the Ghost Ship we saw earlier?!" Nami said, her face turning ugly.
They hadn't expected to encounter that guy here.
Meanwhile, Merry said somewhat fearfully, "Does that mean... that person just now was a Ghost?!"
As if thinking of something, Merry's expression also turned rather unpleasant.
"How could he be a Ghost?" Perona said disdainfully. "That guy is just an ordinary Fish-man."
Someone who couldn't even take one of her moves... how could he be a Ghost?
Besides, that guy wasn't cute at all... so he absolutely couldn't be a Ghost!
Absolutely not!
"Vander Decken indeed isn't a Ghost," Camie explained. "He is a descendant of the Vander Decken from hundreds of years ago, commonly known as Vander Decken IX."
"A man who inherited his ancestor's name..." Nami said. "Then there's nothing to be afraid of."
As long as he wasn't a Ghost, he could be fought!
Thinking this, Nami calmed down.
"Then why did you look so strange earlier?" Perona frowned. "Did that guy bully you?"
"No, he didn't."
Camie shook her head. "He never bullied me."
"Then why..."
"Because I remembered what this guy has done," Camie said. "For ten years, in order to pursue the Mermaid Princess, he has continuously thrown all sorts of things at her, including but not limited to love letters, packages, threatening letters... and even weapons!"
"Even though the Mermaid Princess rejected him, he refused to give up."
"And precisely because of this, our Princess Shirahoshi has been forced to live inside the Hard Shell Tower, never daring to step outside even once."
Hearing Camie's explanation, the expressions of Perona and the other two immediately turned cold.
"Then that guy really is scum!"
"Indeed."
"Let's kill him next time we see him!" Nami said coldly.
She hated people who forced others the most, just like... those damn bastards!
"There might not be a next time." Perona glanced back at where Vander Decken had just fallen and said, "Falling from this height and hitting the ground directly would definitely kill him!"
"Crushed to death..."
Nami looked at the ground below and then said, "That would be too easy for him."
"He might not die from the fall." Camie shook her head and said, "He's a Devil Fruit Ability User. He might be able to survive using that power."
Hearing this, Nami immediately frowned.
Then, she asked, "What kind of Devil Fruit Ability User is he?"
"I don't know the exact ability, but he can use it to track Princess Shirahoshi's location." Camie explained, "That's why his attacks always fly accurately toward Princess Shirahoshi."
"So his attacks have built-in tracking?"
"Yes." Camie nodded and said, "That's also why Princess Shirahoshi has never been able to leave the palace."
Once targeted by Vander Decken, Princess Shirahoshi couldn't take a single step outside.
"If that's the case... this guy might really survive." Perona said with a frown.
If he used that power mid-air, he might be able to fly back into Ryugu Palace.
Although Devil Fruit Ability Users become weak and powerless in seawater...
he's a Fish-Man, so even if he's weakened, he won't drown!
Thinking of this, Perona said somewhat irritably, "If I'd known that, I would've attacked him with a Ghost Bomb earlier."
Who would've thought that guy was such a scoundrel?
"Should we go back and chase him?" Merry asked.
If they went back to pursue him, maybe they could find that guy.
"Forget it, it's probably too late to chase him now." Nami shook her head and said, "Let's head to the Sea Forest first."
"Alright!!"
"Is this the Sea Forest?!"
Looking at the huge bubble in front of him, Luffy grinned and said, "This place is so beautiful~"
"It really is stunning." Meiser remarked.
Who would've thought there could be such a place 10,000 meters deep in the sea?
Meanwhile, Shirahoshi said with tears in her eyes, "This is a place I've always wanted to visit..."
"Thank you, Lord Luffy, Lord Meiser..."
Seeing Shirahoshi crying tears of joy, Meiser smiled and then turned to look at the distant Sea Forest, saying, "In that case... let's take a good stroll around here."
"Yes!"
Shirahoshi nodded vigorously. She wouldn't waste this trip!
"This should be a safe place for treatment, right?" Chopper said.
"Indeed."
Meiser nodded, then glanced at Hachi and continued, "Once we get down there, I'll use Medical Ninja Technique to treat this guy."
With his Medical Ninja Technique, Hachi would recover quickly.
"Why didn't you use it earlier?" Luffy asked, looking at Meiser in confusion.
"Didn't you see how many bubble structures we passed while flying earlier?" Meiser said irritably, "If I'd used Medical Ninja Technique then, we would've been discovered."
It's fine to tell Shirahoshi, a member of the royal family—at least this young lady won't casually spread her own affairs.
But the other members of the Fish-Man race on Fish-Man Island might not act the same way.
So being cautious isn't wrong.
"I see..."
After recalling what he had just seen, Luffy nodded in understanding.
Then, Luffy noticed the Thousand Sunny hidden inside a giant bubble.
"Look, everyone, it's the Thousand Sunny!"
Hearing Luffy's words, Chopper immediately moved closer and exclaimed happily, "It really is!"
"Why is the Thousand Sunny here?" Meiser wondered.
Didn't Nami say the Thousand Sunny was with Franky? Could it be... that Franky sailed the Thousand Sunny here?
Thinking this, Meiser turned his gaze toward Franky, who was standing beside the Thousand Sunny.
"Franky probably sailed it over," Luffy said, then looked down at Franky and shouted, "Hey, Franky, we're here!"
"Oh!"
"It's you guys!"
Hearing this, Franky smiled and took off his sunglasses, saying, "I didn't expect you to come here too."
After speaking, Franky noticed Shirahoshi lying on Megalo's back.
"Huh?"
"Why did you bring an extra-large beauty along?"
By the way... who is this?
Watching everyone gradually descend to the ground, Franky's eyes immediately filled with confusion.
"This is the coward," Luffy introduced with a laugh.
"I see, the coward," Franky nodded, then looked up at Shirahoshi, giving a thumbs-up and saying, "You need to be a bit stronger, Miss Tall."
"Yes..."
"What kind of strange introduction is that?" Meiser shook his head helplessly, then looked at Franky and said, "She's the Mermaid Princess of the Fish-Man race, named Shirahoshi."
"Ah, so she's the Mermaid Princess..."
"Huh?"
"The Mermaid Princess?"
As if realizing something, Franky showed a surprised expression and said, "Did you guys kidnap the Mermaid Princess of Fish-Man Island?"
"What are you talking about?"
Meiser shot Franky a look and said, "She wanted to come herself, so the two of us brought her along."
Franky: ???
What do you mean she wanted to come herself?
As the princess of Fish-Man Island, shouldn't she be able to come here anytime she wants? Why would she need Meiser and the others to bring her?
But looking at this Mermaid Princess... it does seem to be the case.
Glancing at Shirahoshi, who was smiling as she watched them, Franky nodded and didn't say anything more.
"Franky, are you the only one here?" Luffy asked.
"Not exactly," Franky shook his head and said. "Robin was here too, but she said she was looking for something and went into that huge coral forest ahead."
"Looking for something?"
Luffy wondered, "Looking for what?"
"Probably something like a Poneglyph," Meiser guessed.
Thinking about it carefully... Robin only seems interested in that kind of thing.
"A Poneglyph?"
Several question marks popped up above Luffy's head. What's that? Can you eat it?
"It's an incredible stone that records the history of the past," Meiser explained.
Alabasta had once possessed a Poneglyph, so he figured Nico Robin must be searching for something similar.
"Oh, so it's an incredible stone!" Luffy exclaimed, wearing an expression of sudden understanding.
Seeing this, Meiser rolled his eyes and muttered, "You didn't understand a word of it, did you...?"
"Ahahaha!" Luffy laughed, scratching his head. "As long as we know Robin's safe, that's all that matters, right?"
He didn't need to fully grasp what the Poneglyph was; knowing his crewmate was safe was enough.
"That's true," Meiser nodded.
Now, the locations of all their crewmates were confirmed.
Franky and Nico Robin were at the Sea Forest. Nami, Zoro, Usopp, Brook, Perona, and Merry were at Ryugu Palace. Chopper and Sanji were with the two of them, so there was nothing to worry about.
Just then, a man approached from a distance, a smile in his eyes. "Luffy... long time no see!"
"Jimbei!"
Recognizing the newcomer as Jimbei, Luffy's face lit up with excitement. "It really has been a long time! How have you been?"
"I've been doing alright," Jimbei replied.
As he spoke, a hint of nostalgia flickered in his eyes. Come to think of it... the Summit War was already two years ago.
At that thought, a look of reflection crossed Jimbei's face.
Then he said, "You've gotten much stronger than before. I almost thought I was seeing things."
"Well, two years have passed," Luffy grinned, flashing his teeth.
"You've gotten stronger too, haven't you?" Meiser chuckled.
As he spoke, Meiser took off his sunglasses, revealing a pair of Sharingan eyes as he looked at Jimbei.
"Those eyes are..."
Seeing the familiar eyes in Meiser's sockets, Jimbei's body trembled, and he exclaimed excitedly:
"Meiser!!!"
"You really are still alive!"
When he saw that newspaper back then, he never believed this guy had been killed by the World Government.
Now, seeing for himself... it was true after all!
This was wonderful!
"Yeah, I'm still alive," Meiser said with a cheerful laugh, tucking his sunglasses into his pocket. "Alive and well."
"What exactly happened two years ago? Why did you attack Mary Geoise?" Jimbei asked. "And how did you survive?"
At this moment, Jimbei desperately wanted to know what had transpired two years ago.
"That's a long story," Meiser replied, thinking back to the events of two years ago. "After the Summit War, Luffy clearly realized that we weren't ready for the New World yet, so we decided to train for two years first."
As he spoke, a trace of reflection appeared on Meiser's face.
There was no denying it—that decision had been the right one. Two years of training had brought them many benefits.
After hearing Meiser's words, Jimbei fell silent for a moment before asking, "So... your purpose in attacking Mary Geoise was simply to deliver a message?"
As he spoke, Jimbei recalled the newspaper he had seen two years ago.
At that time, Meiser indeed had a strange tattoo on his body.
He had been curious back then about what it meant—turns out it was a message about two years of training?
"Yes."
Meiser nodded and said, "Delivering the message was my main purpose for going there this time."
Only by conveying the message properly could his companions train with peace of mind—that was his primary goal in going to Mary Geoise.
As for other things?
They were just incidental.
"Main purpose?"
Jimbei asked in confusion, "What other purpose did you have?"
"Kill a few Celestial Dragons, steal some treasure, and... incidentally, free the slaves there."
Upon hearing the last part, Jimbei's eyes immediately grew complex.
Who would have thought Meiser would perform the same heroic feat as Big Brother Fisher Tiger?
Thinking of this, Jimbei solemnly bowed to Meiser and said, "Thank you for your help to the Fish-Man race."
"You..."
Meiser stepped forward and helped Jimbei up, saying, "Given our relationship, is there any need to be so formal?"
"Besides... freeing the slaves of the Fish-Man race is nothing more than a small effort for me."
"No, it may be so for you, but for us on Fish-Man Island, it is not." Jimbei said, "What you have done, in the eyes of our Fish-Man race, is the act of a hero!"
"So you deserve my bow!"
With these words, Jimbei pushed Meiser aside and once again bowed solemnly to him.
Meiser looked somewhat helpless but did not insist further, accepting the gesture.
Then, Meiser said, "Is that enough now?"
"Yes."
Jimbei nodded as he raised his head and said gratefully, "If not for you, those fellow Fish-Men would probably have..."
"Perhaps this was their fate." Meiser laughed. "Destined to encounter a benefactor like me."
"A benefactor..."
Looking at the man smiling at him, Jimbei fell silent.
Then, he laughed and said, "Yes, a benefactor!"
For their Fish-Man Island, Meiser was indeed a benefactor!
No... more like a hero!
"Don't dwell on this anymore." Meiser said. "We are friends who have faced life and death together, so just treat me normally."
If Jimbei kept seeing him as a hero, he would feel rather awkward.
Hearing this, Jimbei was momentarily stunned, then seemed to understand something, nodding with a smile. "Alright, I understand."
Since this was Meiser's request, he could not say much more—he would simply agree.
As for King Neptune?
They could discuss that later.
Then, Jimbei continued, "So how did you escape from the World Government?"
"You remember my ability, right?" Meiser said.
"Ability?"
Jimbei paused, then murmured as if recalling something, "The Undying Body..."
"So... you survived using that move?"
"Yes."
Meiser nodded and said, "I used this ability to create a 'death' phenomenon, escaping by feigning death."
Jimbei fell silent, then showed an expression of admiration. "Truly worthy of you."
To be able to utilize his abilities to this extent... I suppose that's to be expected of Meiser.
The World Government probably never dreamed that Meiser was still alive.
"By the way, remember to keep this a secret for me," Meiser said with a chuckle. "As far as the World Government is concerned, I'm still a dead man."
"Rest assured, I understand," Jimbei nodded.
Even if Meiser hadn't mentioned it, he wouldn't have gone around blabbing about Meiser being alive.
After all, that would bring no benefit to the Straw Hat Pirates!
"However... even if I wanted to help you hide it, you probably won't be able to stay hidden for long," Jimbei said. "So you should prepare yourselves mentally."
Although Meiser's appearance had changed drastically—so much so that he couldn't even recognize him at first—his aura hadn't changed at all!
Once someone familiar with Meiser's aura encountered him, they would definitely recognize him!
So he hoped they would be prepared in advance.
"I'm aware of that too, but that's something for after we reach the New World," Meiser said. "Once we're in the New World, even if the World Government wants to capture us, it won't be easy."
"Besides... we're pretty strong ourselves, right?"
"Right, Luffy!"
"Exactly!"
Luffy grinned, baring his teeth. "If those guys dare come to capture Meiser, I'll knock them all flying!"
He wouldn't hold back against anyone who dared bully his friends!
Seeing Luffy's reaction, Jimbei smiled. "It seems you're all very confident in your strength."
"Of course!"
Luffy struck a pose, flexing his muscles. "I'm really strong now!!"
His current strength was formidable, and he wasn't afraid of the World Government at all.
"That's good," Jimbei nodded.
As a friend, he was glad to see them possessing the strength to protect themselves.
"By the way, Jimbei, why are you here?" Meiser asked curiously. "Didn't you leave Fish-Man Island a long time ago?"
He clearly remembered Camie saying that Jimbei had led the Fish-Man Pirates away from Fish-Man Island, so why was he still here?
"I did leave before, but I came back alone to wait for you," Jimbei said.
After a pause, he added with confusion, "Didn't you come here looking for me because you received my message?"
He remembered leaving a message with King Neptune and Prince Sharlie. Could it have not been delivered?
"Message?" Luffy asked, puzzled. "What message?"
He had no idea about any message.
"We really didn't receive any message," Meiser said.
Maybe Uncle Neptune forgot?
Given how scatterbrained that old man could be... it wasn't impossible.
"That's strange," Jimbei said, still confused. "Why didn't you receive the message?"
Entering Fish-Man Island required undergoing inspections, so King Neptune and Prince Sharlie would definitely know about the Straw Hat Pirates' arrival!
In that case... why hadn't Luffy and the others received the message?
Just then, a startling thought crossed Jimbei's mind.
Could it be—
"You didn't enter through the main gate, did you?!"
If they had used the main gate, they would have definitely encountered the princes!
"No," Meiser said awkwardly. "The situation was rather special at the time, so I didn't go through the main entrance."
"That makes sense," Jimbei nodded and said.
In that case, it's normal they didn't receive their own messages, since they never encountered the royal family anyway.
Well, now isn't the time to dwell on such matters, especially since everyone is already here, right?
But before Jimbei could say anything more, a somewhat timid voice was heard.
"Ji... Jimbei, sir, l... long time no see."
Hearing Shirahoshi's voice, Jimbei instinctively looked behind Megalo and then smiled:
"Ah, isn't this Princess Shirahoshi? I didn't expect you to have come along as well."
"It really has been a long—"
"Huh?!"
At this point, Jimbei froze, then stared at Shirahoshi in shock and said, "Why is the princess here? Th... this..."
Seeing Jimbei's eyes nearly popping out of his head, Shirahoshi wore an embarrassed expression and said, "I wanted to come here to take a look, so I asked Lord Meiser and Lord Luffy to bring me along."
Hearing this, Jimbei was rendered speechless.
He understood what she meant, but this was extremely dangerous!
"Chopper, put Hachi down." Meiser looked up at the top of Megalo's head and said, "I'll treat Hachi down here."
"Okay!"
Hearing Meiser's words, Chopper nodded, then glanced at Sanji, who had already woken up, and asked, "Are you okay?"
"I... I'm fine..." Sanji said from where he lay on the ground.
Chopper: —
Is he really okay?
But it seems like there's no danger, so it should be fine to leave him here.
Thinking this, Chopper brought Hachi down below.
"Hachi?!"
Seeing Hachi covered in wounds, Jimbei was completely stunned.
"Why is he injured like this?"
"I don't know either." Chopper shook his head and said, "He didn't say."
The other had only spoken a few words before passing out, so he didn't know why Hachi was so badly injured.
"We'll ask when he wakes up." Meiser said.
With that, Meiser went to Hachi's side and began focusing on treating his injuries.
"Huh?"
Seeing the faint green light glowing from Meiser's hands, Shirahoshi asked curiously, "What is that?"
"This is Medical Ninja Technique." Meiser explained without looking up. "Using this, wounds can be healed quickly."
As long as vital organs aren't destroyed, most injuries can be healed.
"So Lord Meiser knows this too?!" Shirahoshi exclaimed in surprise. "How amazing!"
Not only does he know powerful Ninjutsu, but he can even use healing Ninjutsu like this... He's truly incredible!
Then, as if remembering something, Shirahoshi's eyes gradually dimmed.
"If Lord Meiser had been there ten years ago, Mother wouldn't have died..."
At this thought, tears welled up in Shirahoshi's eyes once more.
"I know many things." Meiser said with a smile. "It's just that this Ninjutsu—"
"Drip... drip..."
"Hmm?"
Hearing the sound of water droplets hitting the ground, Meiser paused mid-sentence, then turned to look at Shirahoshi and asked, "Why are you crying again?"
The others also looked at Shirahoshi in confusion, wondering why the princess had started shedding tears once more.
"I'm sorry, I just remembered something sad."
"Again..."
A hint of helplessness appeared in Meiser's eyes. Every time he asked, she would say she had thought of something sad, but never specify what it was.
This way, even if they wanted to comfort this timid girl, there was no way to do so.
Shaking his head helplessly, Meiser turned back to continue treating Hachi.
Just then, Sanji darted out from behind Megalo, performed a 720-degree spin in mid-air, and landed steadily on the ground.
"I seem to have heard the sound of a lady crying."
"Huh?"
"Sanji?"
Seeing Sanji perform such a difficult move and still land steadily, Chopper immediately exclaimed excitedly, "You're better?"
"Mhm."
Sanji nodded without turning his head, then looked up at Shirahoshi and said, "Your Highness, is there anything I can do for you?"
As he spoke, Sanji's body began to twist and sway, adding, "I am willing to go through fire and water for a beautiful lady."
"Ah?"
"I... no... no need..."
Shirahoshi, so startled that she even held back her tears, immediately waved her hands, as if afraid this strange person might rush over.
"Hey, Meiser, did you see that!" Chopper excitedly grabbed Meiser's clothes and said, "That's the kind of reaction Sanji only used to have—he's back to normal!"
"I saw it," Meiser said. "It seems this guy has fully recovered."
After saying that, Meiser paused, then asked in confusion, "By the way... Chopper, how did you do it?"
"Me?"
"I didn't do anything," Chopper thought for a moment and said, "I just gave Sanji some blood, nothing more."
"I see."
Hearing Chopper's explanation, Meiser fell into deep thought.
Then, he suddenly looked up and said, "Now I know what happened!"
"What happened?"
"It must be because Sanji received blood from those Okama!!" Meiser declared firmly.
"Crack!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Sanji seemed to suffer an utterly fatal blow, his body freezing stiff on the spot.
Then, with a pained expression, he knelt on the ground, pounding the earth with his fists and saying, "Meiser, you bastard, why did you have to bring up such a terrifying thing? I had almost forgotten..."
As he spoke, Sanji shed tears of agony.
He never wanted to recall that painful memory a second time!
Ah!!
No, it's coming back to me again!!
As if recalling some painful scene, Sanji's entire body turned gray and white.
"I just want to die..."
Seeing this, Meiser wore an awkward expression and said, "Ahem... sorry, sorry."
"Hmph, you despicable bastard."
Sanji, lying on the ground, snorted, then got up, intending to fetch some tea for everyone from the ship.
Just then, the Merfolk shipwright Den walked out from the ship, holding his head and saying, "So noisy."
"What's going...
"Huh?!"
Before the man could finish his sentence, he noticed the enormous Mermaid Princess.
Then, with a shocked expression, he said, "Why is Her Highness here?"
Noticing Den's gaze, Shirahoshi immediately wore an expression that was both awkward and embarrassed.
"Ah... hehe..."
Den:
What does "ehehe" mean?
"Hey, who are you?" Luffy frowned as he looked at Den. "Why are you on the Thousand Sunny?"
"Don't get worked up, Luffy." Franky walked over and said, "He's the younger brother of my shipbuilding master, Tom—Den!"
"He's helping us coat the ship right now. Once he's done, we can set sail~"
It probably wouldn't be much longer before their ship was fully coated. Thinking this, Franky grinned.
"I see." Luffy grinned, baring his teeth. "So he's Franky's younger brother, the coating master."
As soon as he said this, the air instantly fell silent.
"What kind of weird way is that to understand things?" Meiser remarked.
Franky, meanwhile, stared blankly at Luffy. He never would have dreamed the other would interpret his words that way.
But considering Luffy's thought process, Franky quickly calmed down.
Yeah, that's Luffy for you.
Thinking this, Franky decisively gave a thumbs-up and said, "Forget it, you can think of it that way too."
Den: ???
Is this how young people communicate these days?
Was he falling behind the times?
With this thought, the Merfolk craftsman fell into deep contemplation.
Just then, an enormous Plum Blossom Axe came flying from the distance, heading straight for Shirahoshi's head!
Seeing this, Luffy leaped up without hesitation and punched the Plum Blossom Axe away with a single blow!
"Clang!"
"Boom!!"
Glancing at the fragments flying off into the distance, Luffy landed on the ground and frowned. "It just never ends."
First axes, then coral... That Vander Decken is such a jerk!
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