The Mysterious teacher and the three tribes

Inside the Whale Forest, small figures walked alongside larger ones on the stone road that led deep into the forest where the legendary whale resided.

After accepting the Duke's offer, Fang followed him to meet his teacher. Throughout the journey, Fang marveled at the beauty of Zou. Everything he saw lived up to the reputation of the "City of 1000 Years." As they walked, Fang's curiosity got the best of him. He realized that the plot hadn't mentioned any mink character who could be his teacher, especially someone residing in a place as revered as the Whale Forest. Turning to Hitsugisukan, he asked:

"Your Majesty, why have we come to the Sacred Forest? Does my teacher live here, and how strong is he?"

"We're about to reach his location, and he will answer all your questions. He was the one who sent me to bring you to him," Hitsugisukan said with great respect for the mysterious teacher, fueling Fang's curiosity even more.

For the rest of the trip, Fang followed behind Hitsugisukan until they reached an enormous tree shaped like a whale. Fang stopped and gazed in surprise at the whale tree, knowing its significance in the quest for the One Piece, as it contained one of the Road Poneglyphs inside a secret room.

"Kiddo, why have you stopped? We're not there yet; keep walking," Hitsugisukan urged after noticing that Fang had fallen behind.

"Oh, sorry, I'm coming," Fang realized he had been staring at the whale tree for a few seconds and quickly ran to catch up with the Duke.

Hitsugisukan guided Fang to the tail of the whale tree, but to Fang's surprise, they entered a secret room with a Road Poneglyph – something not shown in the manga. The Duke opened a hidden door and led Fang down a staircase to an empty, dark room.

"You're finally here," a voice echoed in Fang's head the moment he stepped inside, sending shivers down his spine.

"Elder, I've brought your student as you wished," Hitsugisukan said respectfully.

"Thank you. You can leave now," an elderly voice emanated from the dark room.

"You can call me if you need anything. I'll take my leave now. Good luck, Fang," Hitsugisukan said and then left the room, leaving Fang alone.

After the Duke departed, Fang began to feel nervous, knowing nothing about his new teacher.

"You don't need to be afraid. Come in," the voice echoed again, as if the hidden elder in the dark room sensed Fang's worries.

"If someone as powerful as him wanted to harm me, I would already be dead," Fang reasoned and stepped into the dark room.

As a tiger mink, Fang's eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness, allowing him to see the interior of the room. The room was full of dust, suggesting that it hadn't been entered in a long time. It was almost empty, with only a large turtle shell in the middle.

"Elder?" Fang called out as he searched for his mysterious teacher. Suddenly, the turtle shell shook slightly, drawing Fang's attention. Slowly, four limbs emerged from the shell, followed by a small, wrinkled green head with a long white beard and a long, slim neck. The mysterious turtle man's eyes opened, revealing two deep, black eyes filled with wisdom from a long life. He looked at Fang, who was clearly surprised, and spoke slowly:

"Welcome, my long-awaited student."

Fang, who was in shock, managed to regain his composure and greeted the elder while suppressing all the questions that swirled in his mind.

"Hello, teacher, or should I call you master?"

"You can call me whatever you like, but first, you need to ask all the questions that are filling your mind to clarify everything. We don't have time to waste," the turtle elder said slowly, as if he were reading Fang's thoughts. Fang felt exposed, unable to hide anything from this wise old man, so he decided to set aside his hesitation and inquire.

"Teacher, who are you? I've never seen anyone who looks like a reptile before. Are you a mink? And why have you been staying here?"

"I am Kaimenoshi, and I do not belong to the Mink Tribe. I am the last living member of the Scale Tribe. Eight hundred years ago, there were three tribes: the Mink Tribe, the Feather Tribe, and the Scale Tribe. These three tribes were three of the original inhabitants of the Red Line. However, an alliance of twenty royal families grew greedy for our homeland and heritage. They became too fearful of our combined strength to confront us directly, so they resorted to dirty tricks," he spoke, and Fang sensed a deep-seated anger concealed beneath his calm voice. Fang listened more attentively, realizing the significance of what he was hearing.

"They enslaved the most peaceful tribe, a tribe that roamed the world without harming anything, using a Devil Fruit power , and transformed them into weapons to fight against us. In that cruel war, the Feather Tribe was the first victim, and their heritage included the Sacred Disk, Uranus, a Weather Control Device capable of manipulating the world's weather. Those malevolent individuals harnessed it to reshape the world to suit their own interests." Fang took a deep breath in shock, already aware of the true forms of the Ancient Weapons, except for Uranus.

"After that, my tribe became the second victim. I lost all my family, relatives, and everyone I knew and loved. I survived solely due to my Devil Fruit power," Kaimenoshi paused briefly, but the pain he felt hadn't lessened over time. He then continued, "As the last tribe standing, the Mink Tribe managed to hold on for some time. However, after the Mink royal family and most of the warriors were sacrificed in the war, I began to see the end approaching. But then, the last member of the enslaved tribe managed to free himself, saving me and the few remaining Mink. Thanks to him, the Mink Tribe survived until this day. However, he carried the burden of guilt for what happened to our tribes, leading him to punish himself by carrying the survivors and their descendants on his back until he died to atone for his sins."

Hearing this, Fang understood that the elder was referring to Zunicha. This revelation allowed Fang to uncover one of the secrets of One Piece from his past life. He continued to listen attentively, sensing that the elder's story was far from finished.

"After we lost everything, I began planning for revenge. However, the Mink Tribe was weak at the time. To prepare for the day when a Mink capable of bearing such responsibility would emerge, I utilized my Devil Fruit, the Sleep-Sleep Fruit. It allowed me to recover when I slept and slow down my aging. I started to sleep for extended periods to prolong my life. Over time, I studied the Mink Tribe and honed my observation Haki to better understand them. I lived in secrecy, and gradually, the Mink Tribe began to forget their origins and my existence. After 300 years, my existence was known only to Zunicha and the leader of the Mink. As more time passed, I grew older, and my hope waned. But after nearly 800 years of waiting, a child was born with talents that enabled him to hear Zunicha's voice."

As Kaimenoshi's story took an unexpected turn, Fang began to feel a growing sense of unease. He listened intently, realizing that this intriguing tale had more unusual twists in store.

"But when the young Mink first heard Zunicha's voice, his mind was fragile and couldn't withstand the pressure, causing it to shatter and leaving the child in a coma," Fang began to suspect that his new teacher might know more than he had initially thought. Kaimenoshi's next words only confirmed this suspicion.

"As I started to feel hopeless, with my life nearing its end, I sensed a strange presence, as if it didn't belong to this world, entering the child's body and merging with him, saving his life. That's my story. Now, dear student, could you tell me yours?" Kaimenoshi finished speaking and turned his gaze toward Fang, who appeared nervous, his face flushed as if he would be sweating profusely if he were human.