"Is this true, young Carl?!" Neptune asked, utterly shocked.
"Hody Jones, was it really him?!" Jinbe's face twisted into an ugly grimace.
Carl nodded. "There was an eyewitness back then: Princess Shirahoshi's little shark pet, Megalo. Princess Shirahoshi herself should know the truth. You can ask her. In any case, Hody Jones is not a small threat. You need to figure this out yourselves. After all, this is an internal matter for Fish-Man Island, and it's not for us to interfere casually."
Neptune and Jinbe exchanged a look, then nodded in unison. If Hody Jones had assassinated Queen Otohime and truly stolen the forbidden drugs, he must harbor dangerous ambitions. Such a person had to be stopped, or he would bring disaster to Fish-Man Island. And, as Carl said, this was an internal issue for the kingdom; it was difficult for outsiders to get involved. Now that they knew the truth, they had to act quickly and decisively. It was time to clean up a troublesome place like the Fish-Man District.
They decided to first verify the facts with Shirahoshi, check on the status of the banned drugs, and then immediately move against Hody Jones upon confirmation, giving him no time to sense the attack or escape. The two men said goodbye to Carl and the others and went to work.
Robin smiled as she poured wine for Carl. "Carl, you truly seem to know everything."
Carl offered a modest reply. "I just know some things; I don't know anything deeper. Since we have a good relationship with Fish-Man Island, I naturally wanted to offer some help. You could consider this a proof of our friendship."
Law glanced at Carl but said nothing. He wasn't going to try to guess Carl's motivations, as Carl was clearly extremely perceptive, acting as if he had everything calculated.
Carl, however, wasn't overthinking it. He had planned to warn Jinbe before arriving at Fish-Man Island and simply took the first opportunity to do so. This avoided potential future complications, or the risk of forgetting after drinking too much. As he said, it was just friendly help without any hidden agenda.
On the other side, Luffy and the others arrived at the Hard-Shell Tower, led by some of the royal soldiers. As soon as they approached, an axe flew out of nowhere, heading straight for the tower. The entire group was furious. Luffy roared, smashing the axe into pieces.
"That Vander guy is so hateful! I'm going to beat him into a pulp!" Luffy was genuinely angry.
"Luffy, don't try to compete with me! I will be the one to defeat Vander Decken IX this time! I won't forgive a guy who terrorizes a beautiful princess!" Sanji rarely stood up to challenge Luffy like that.
"Heh, that depends on who's faster!" Zoro declared, patting his three swords. Zoro was also seriously annoyed by Vander Decken IX; otherwise, he wouldn't have left the sake and run off to join the fun. The others felt the same way, as if they couldn't enjoy their banquet until Vander Decken IX was defeated.
When they reached the Hard-Shell Tower, they saw a large, strong fish-man with blue hair standing in front of it, holding a trident and flanked by a group of fish-man soldiers.
"Prince, you are here!" The soldiers who had guided Luffy and the others quickly saluted him.
"Yes. I will lead the way for the Straw Hat Captain next," Prince Fukaboshi replied, waving his hand. He looked at Luffy and the others. "Thank you for the Straw Hats' help. I will personally guide you this time. I hope that with the Straw Hats' strength, we can finally find Vander Decken IX and relieve my sister of her troubles of so many years!"
Luffy smiled casually. "Don't mention it! You're the mermaid princess's older brother, so 'Big Brother Fukaboshi,' please bring the mermaid princess out. We'll use her to find that Vander guy."
Bring Shirahoshi out? Fukaboshi hesitated, concerned about Shirahoshi's safety.
Luffy gripped his straw hat and stated seriously, "Brother Fukaboshi, you don't need to worry about your sister's safety. We will protect her well. You know, we're really strong!".
Fukaboshi was momentarily stunned, then patted his own head. Indeed, the Straw Hats were a Five Emperors crew, and the Straw Hat Captain could even fight a Marine Admiral. Couldn't such power easily protect Shirahoshi? He had nothing to worry about.
"Alright, I will bring Shirahoshi out now!"
Fukaboshi agreed and entered the Hard-Shell Tower. However, after he went in, they only heard a girl whimpering and crying inside, and Fukaboshi didn't emerge. Luffy and the others could hear clearly that Shirahoshi was refusing to come out because she was worried that anyone who protected her would get hurt.
Luffy immediately grew impatient. He marched straight into the Hard-Shell Tower, and the rest of the Straw Hats followed him inside.
Law had intended to follow, but his Transponder Snail rang at that moment. He told Bepo and the others to help Luffy while he went into a secluded corner to take the call.
"What are you crying about? You're such a coward!" Luffy yelled at the sight of the giant Shirahoshi. "You are so huge, you must be incredibly strong. I can't believe you cry this much. I'll just call you a coward."
Sanji and Brook froze on the spot as they laid eyes on Shirahoshi. The Mermaid Princess is so beautiful! Even Usopp, Chopper, Jango, Hachi, Pekin, and the others were dumbfounded, first by Shirahoshi's beauty, and then by her enormous size. She was ten, or even dozens, of times larger than her older brother; they didn't look like siblings at all.
Tashigi couldn't help but sigh. "I didn't expect the mermaid princess to be so beautiful and so huge. It's really hard to imagine that she's a crybaby. She's acting just like a child."
Zoro commented, "It seems she was locked up at a very young age. It's only natural that her mind is weak."
The Straw Hat Crew stared at Shirahoshi, and Shirahoshi, in turn, looked back at the crew. She was curious why her eldest brother had brought so many people today. Facing strangers made her feel shy.
"Brother, these people are...?" Shirahoshi asked timidly.
"Oh, these are the Five Emperors Straw Hat Crew," Fukaboshi said with a doting smile. "They can guarantee your absolute safety. They are here to take you out today!".
"Take me out? Go outside? I still... don't want to go out. Someone will get hurt."
"It's no problem, coward. I'm strong; no one will get hurt! And I will send Vander Decken IX flying, so don't worry about it!" Luffy said carelessly, but for some reason, Shirahoshi felt a glimmer of trust in his words.
Shirahoshi looked at Luffy several times with curiosity, and finally nodded slowly under the encouraging gaze of her older brother, Fukaboshi. "Well, honored pirate, I will go out with you today."
"Shishishi, my name is Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm the man who is going to become the Pirate King. It's a pleasure to meet you!"
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