At the same time, within the bubble-coral–constructed coated passageways of Fish-Man Island—
Gern Reginald Sigmar and Toritoma were walking toward the Marine warship anchored outside.
Around them drifted schools of brilliantly colored deep-sea fish, refracted light scattering into dreamlike hues that danced across the translucent walls…
"Hey… Gern."
Toritoma recalled the tense confrontation that had just unfolded in the Sea Forest—especially Jinbe's killing intent, so rare it had almost seemed to solidify into something tangible.
Unable to hold it in any longer, she asked quietly,
"Do you think… Jinbe would really have killed Arlong?"
Gern's pace remained steady, his gaze fixed forward.
He was silent for a moment.
Then he slowly shook his head.
"No. He wouldn't."
"Jinbe… can't bring himself to do that."
As he spoke, Gern tilted his head slightly toward her.
"The title 'Knight of the Sea' isn't just for show.He has his own sense of justice and a line he won't cross—especially when it comes to companions. Brothers.Brothers entrusted to him by Tiger."
(Just like how he later truly kept his promise to Ace and looked after Luffy.)
"The killing intent you sensed earlier was mostly meant to intimidate Arlong… and to give me an answer."
"In the end, the most likely outcome is exile—driving Arlong away."
Hearing this, Toritoma's slender brows furrowed slightly.She seemed ready to voice further concerns about Arlong as a lingering threat.
But Gern didn't give her the chance.
He smoothly shifted the topic.
"Has anything noteworthy happened in the New World lately?"
Seeing him turn to serious matters, Toritoma immediately reined in her thoughts and answered crisply.
"Nothing major."
"Although reckless newcomers keep flooding into the first half of the Grand Line,with Enel and Bullet taking turns patrolling and cleaning house, none of them can stir up much trouble."
"As for the base itself—daily security and operations are stable.With Lipo and Kuma holding the fort, and Tesoro overseeing everything, things are running extremely smoothly."
She paused, then suddenly stepped closer and hugged Gern's left arm, adding softly,
"And within G-10's territory and the surrounding core sea zones…with that guy Tesoro around, his deterrence alone is probably even stronger than Bullet's."
Gern didn't doubt her assessment for a second.
He knew all too well that Tesoro—when fighting on his own turf and having fully pushed the powers of the Gold-Gold Fruit to their limits—was terrifying.
Absolutely, unmistakably, an Emperor-level deterrent.
And besides—
Given that the entire G-10 base and its surrounding waters were under his influence,who knew how much fine gold dust Tesoro had already secretly embedded throughout the environment?
"Mm. With them there, I can rest easy," Gern said calmly.
"Alright. You head back first."
"I'm planning to take a vacation in the Four Blues.If luck's on my side and Vice Admiral Garp happens to be back in the East Blue, I might even hitch a ride on his dog-head warship."
The moment she heard Gern say he was going to the Four Blues alone,Toritoma's peerlessly beautiful face instantly fell.
Her rosy lips puffed out dramatically, like an inflated pufferfish.
"Hmph… again, by yourself…"
As she spoke, she instinctively leaned closer, preparing to unleash her tried-and-true coquettish routine.Her slender fingers even began to curl quietly toward Gern's hand.
Unfortunately for her—
Gern had long since developed a formidable resistance to her tactics.
Without changing his expression—and with the calm of someone who had anticipated this—he casually delivered a single line:
"This time, I stayed on Kuja Island for so long just to accompany you…"
"Our little Lipo has been guarding the house all alone, you know~"
"My dear Snake Princess."
The words struck Toritoma squarely in her weakest spot.
Her half-formed act of coquettishness froze instantly.
She awkwardly pulled her hand back.
The exaggerated pout vanished from her face, replaced by a faint trace of guilt and embarrassment.
It was true.
This time, Gern had stayed on Amazon Lily far longer than usual to help her handle Kuja affairs.
Meanwhile, back at G-10—
That girl who always clutched carrot cake, with eyes as innocent as a little rabbit,had been waiting eagerly for the two of them to return.
Especially when they'd left—
Lipo had innocently shoved a huge list into her hands,filled with Kuja specialties and strange little trinkets that only existed in the first half of the Grand Line.
Thinking of Lipo's hopeful expression—
And of how she herself had monopolized Gern for so long—
Toritoma's lingering dissatisfaction instantly evaporated.
It was even replaced by a faint sense of remorse.
Deceiving such a pure, naive child—
Her conscience did sting, at least a little!!
She really was a beautiful bad woman.
"…Fine."
She scuffed the ground lightly with the tip of her shoe and muttered sulkily,
"I get it, I get it… I'll head back first then."
"Wouldn't want Lipo waiting too long…"
Though her tone still carried a hint of petulance, she had clearly accepted Gern's arrangement.
Watching Toritoma get instantly "handled," a faint, barely perceptible smile flickered through Gern's eyes.
Before long, he watched her figure disappear down the other end of the coated passageway.
Gern then turned around and headed instead toward the heart of Fish-Man Island—
In the direction of Ryugu Palace.
As he walked, his mind replayed a scene from when he had first entered Fish-Man Island earlier.
A merchant ship—
Docked at a secluded harbor.
Its hull bore clear signs of damage, yet its overall design was unmistakably extravagant.
At the time, he hadn't paid it much attention.
But now, combining that image with his understanding of how the story unfolded—
The ship's origin was already obvious.
"So… what's meant to happen will happen after all," Gern thought quietly.
"Even with my intervention, even after changing Fish-Man Island's overall fate…"
"In corners untouched by my influence, certain 'inevitable events' tied to this world's timeline still stubbornly play out along their original course."
He was almost certain—
That damaged merchant ship had been carrying the fallen Celestial Dragon of the Donquixote Family.
And according to the original trajectory—
Inside Ryugu Palace at this very moment, a disturbance had likely just occurred.
In overwhelming terror, the young Princess Shirahoshi had unconsciously awakened her power for the first time—
The terrifying ability of the Ancient Weapon Poseidon, Sea King of the Seas.
Calling forth colossal Sea Kings from the depths.
"…What a pity," Gern mused.
"I missed Shirahoshi's awakening."