When Chenos tossed Vice Admiral Kent's heart onto the ground, every trace of doubt vanished from the fishmen on the island.
Even Arlong—who despised humans the most—could no longer find any reason to argue.
Kent was a Marine Vice Admiral stationed at Sabaody. Everyone here knew him. A figure of that level would never sacrifice himself just to help Chenos stage some elaborate act to deceive them. If that were true, the price the Marines paid would be far too great.
More importantly, after witnessing Chenos's strength, Arlong clearly understood one thing:
Chenos was a powerhouse on the same level as their big brother.
Even if Arlong wanted to fight him, he simply couldn't.
So he shut his mouth.
Fisher walked straight up to Chenos and suddenly dropped to both knees.
Chenos immediately reached out to help him up—but Fisher raised a hand, stopping him.
"Big Brother—!"
The surrounding fishmen shouted in shock.
Arlong and Jinbe rushed forward as well, trying to stop Fisher, but both were halted by Fisher's outstretched arm.
"None of you come closer," Fisher said heavily.
"This time… I was wrong."
He looked straight at Chenos.
"Chenos, this is my apology for doubting you just now. I hope you won't refuse it."
With that, Fisher bowed deeply—his head striking the ground three times in loud, solid thuds.
He raised his head again, eyes full of sincerity.
"I'm sorry, my brother. I shouldn't have doubted you just because you're human. This was my fault. I apologize."
Before the words even finished leaving Fisher's mouth, Chenos had already stepped forward and pulled him up.
"Hey, Big Brother Fisher, you really don't have to do this," Chenos said quickly.
"We're brothers. If there's a misunderstanding between brothers, isn't one sentence and one drink enough to clear it up?"
He grinned.
"Come on—let's go drink!"
Fisher laughed as well.
"Good. Let's drink!"
The two threw their arms around each other's shoulders and were just about to head back to the table when Chenos suddenly turned his head and looked up at the sky.
A seagull was circling overhead.
And in its claws… was a camera.
The seagull kept snapping photos, capturing everyone on the island.
Shark, who had no idea what was going on, leaned closer to the seagull and even struck what he thought was a handsome pose.
Chenos had originally intended to kill the bird—but when he saw the seagull enthusiastically photographing Shark, a strange smile crept onto his face.
He changed his mind.
Without saying anything, he wrapped an arm around Fisher again and walked off to drink.
The seagull, satisfied, flapped its wings and flew away, leaving behind a confused Shark.
"Hey! Where are my photos?!"
Tesoro quietly took several steps away from him and shook his head.
"…This idiot."
Back at the table, Fisher grabbed a barrel of wine and poured out three full cups. One by one, he tilted his head back and drank them dry.
"Brother, three cups as punishment," Fisher said seriously.
"I hope you won't blame your big brother anymore."
Chenos downed a cup as well.
"Big Brother, if you keep being this polite, we won't be able to stay brothers anymore. Come—cheers!"
After several rounds of drinking, the entire island was buzzing with drunken chatter. People sat on the ground, laughing and boasting.
Seeing that the mood was right, Chenos once again made his invitation.
"Big Brother Fisher… have you thought it through?
Would you like to join the Warriors Pirates?"
In truth, the moment Fisher saw Chenos kill a Marine Vice Admiral, he already knew Chenos was serious.
Since then, he had been thinking about the answer.
Jinbe and Arlong both noticed the hesitation in Fisher's heart and silently shook their heads. They could follow Fisher into life and death—but they couldn't do the same for a human.
Fisher looked at them, then at the hopeful gazes of the other fishmen around him, and finally let out a slow sigh.
He wanted to join Chenos.
But he was no longer alone. He had to think about the people who followed him.
"Chenos… I'm sorry. I—"
Chenos raised a hand, cutting him off, smiling calmly.
"Big Brother Fisher, you actually want to join.
You're just unwilling to abandon these fishmen who follow you—so you plan to refuse me.
Am I wrong?"
Fisher didn't deny it.
"Yes. When I was hunted by the Marines and the World Government, it was these brothers who rushed to stand by my side. I can't abandon them."
Hearing this, the smile on Chenos's face deepened.
"Then let me analyze it for you, Big Brother."
"You're wanted by the Marines and the World Government.
If these fishmen board your ship, they'll be targeted as well. Right now, they're not strong enough. To put it bluntly—if you weren't here, two Vice Admirals would be enough to wipe them all out."
"But if you aren't on that crew, then at most, the Marines will treat them as ordinary pirates. Their bounties won't be high. The danger drops drastically."
Arlong exploded.
"What the hell are you talking about?!
If Big Brother isn't with us, what's the point of this crew?!"
Chenos smiled faintly.
"There is a point."
He turned back to Fisher and continued.
"Big Brother Fisher, if we want to oppose the Celestial Dragons, we can't do it with just a handful of people. We need power, and we need influence."
"Your Sun Pirates are the key."
"Fish-Man Island is one of the main gateways into the New World. Most pirates pass through it.
With a Sun Pirates crew that can move freely underwater, we can control that route."
"We can select pirates with potential and recruit them.
We can profit from controlling that passage and grow our strength."
"We can train talent. Jinbe, for example—his strength is more than enough to be developed into a core officer."
"And most importantly—"
Chenos's voice slowed.
"You can make the Sun Pirates a window through which fishmen understand the world above.
Instead of staying trapped under the sea, learning about humans only through rumors and fragments."
"If that continues, fishmen will never truly step onto the land."
Fisher listened quietly.
At first, the talk of building power didn't move him much.
But when he heard those final words—
His eyes widened.
There had never been a pirate crew made up entirely of fishmen that truly sailed the seas.
If such a crew existed, fishmen would finally have a window to the world.
Yes, they might witness human cruelty, hypocrisy, and violence.
But they would also meet humans like Chenos.
If the Sun Pirates sailed long enough…
Maybe—just maybe—the misunderstandings between humans and fishmen could truly fade.
And one day, fishmen might return to living on land.
"…Alright," Fisher said slowly.
"I accept."
At the same time, far away at Marine Headquarters, the News Coo delivered a report directly to Big News Morgans.
Vice Admiral Kent had been killed.
Along with the report came several photographs.
At the center of them all—
Chenos.
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