Chapter 106

[New World]

In the middle of the sea, one pirate ship that resembles a whale, Moby Dick, was found sailing through. The water was calm and the weather was sunny, which was considered unusual for the harsh and unpredictable climate in the New World.

"..."

Aboarding Moby Dick, naturally, were the Whitebeard pirates. And 'Whitebeard' himself—Edward Newgate—was currently frowning upon a letter in his grasp as his eyes ran down through its context.

"...Is this true, Marco?"

What used to be his long, wavy, and blonde-coloured hair has now reduced to that of a thin and withering white. Having suffered from a poison that even the doctors on the ship couldn't find a cure for years, Newgate's condition has worsened by a comparative amount—to an extent where it began to affect his combat capability.

"Teach... he dared to attack Sphinx...?"

Currently, Newgate seemed enraged. Veins popped out on his forehead and his letter-holding hand trembling, he growled,

"Not only did he betray us and capture Whitey Bay, but also invade that place of all possibilities?!"

Marco, who was standing nearby Newgate, closed his eyes shut, knowing full well what was about to come.

"Marco... all of you, my sons..."

'...Pop hasn't healed sufficiently, and I wonder if that will even be possible at this rate,' Thought Marco, 'In New World, we were busy trying to limit damages brought upon by the war between Big Mom and Kaidou, and now...'

Newgate's eyes opened wide, glaring at the horizon where his enemy, Marshall D. Teach the 'Blackbeard,' must be in.

"We're going to a war!!!"

And thus, the New World faces yet another uprise of catastrophe, and due to this, they fail to receive a notice...

...that Fish Man island, one under their protection, has been attacked.

__________

[Fish Man island]

In the Ryugu Palace where the welcome party for the Red Hair pirates was still ongoing, one goldfish mermaid of thin and frail-looking physique—Queen Otohime, the wife of King Neptune and mother to three mermen princes and mermaid princess Shirahoshi—was found giddily collecting the slips of paper from the grasps of Red Hair pirates.

"Thank you so much for your support!" Said Otohime, "With this, we are now one step closer to achieving a world where fish men and humans can co-exist!"

"...Aren't you a hopeful one," Remarked Ben Beckman, the Vice Captain of Red Hair Pirates.

Shanks, on the other hand, laughed, "That or One Piece, I wonder which is harder, dahaha!"

"One Piece has once been discovered and temporarily attained by the Pirate King," Replied Beckman, in that of seriousness, "But a peace that has never properly been established... you know very well, Shanks."

Otohime smiled, "Well, you aren't the first one who said that!"

Beckman sighed with a smile of his own, "Stubborn also, I see."

"Yes, however, that's what I love about her, hohoho!" Commented Neptune as he laughed amiably.

Meantime, Shirahoshi was found struggling to deal with a much smaller girl whose hair exhibited half-red and half-white colours. This girl, lively circling around Shirahoshi and observing her in curiosity, then spoke, "Wow! How come you are so big?"

"Uh, umm... ehh..." Fidgeting in nervousness, Shirahoshi couldn't muster enough courage to reply to the girl. Noticing her hardship, Shanks called out,

"Oi, Uta!! Quit bullying the princess!!"

The small girl, named Uta, barked back, "Hey!! I'm not bullying her, okay?!! In fact, I think I'm being suuuuper nice!!"

"""Hahahaha!"""

"Why are you laughing?!!" Shouted Uta, at the Red Hair pirates who snickered at her antics.

It seemed as if the party, along with this comfortable atmosphere, would last for days. However, sharing toasts, conversing about nonsense...

"K-King Neptune!!!"

...It didn't take much for said atmosphere to break, as a merman soldier came into the palace and panickily shouted,

"O-Our island below, i-it...!!!"

The palace instantly fell into silence. With everyone frozen, trying to process what was going on, the merman soldier swallowed his saliva before continuing his report at Neptune, who had stood up from his throne with a grim expression.

"I-It's him!! The one who was with the Pirate King years ago!!! DEMON HEIR!!!!"

Shanks's pupils shrank as he silently stood up from his seat. Young Shirahoshi nervously looked to her left and right before hiding her huge form behind one pillar nearby. Uta too, quickly ran to the Red Hair pirates, noticing that something was going wrong.

"He... Douglas Bullet... he's begun to rampage upon our Fish Man island, demanding that we hand over Princess Shirahoshi to him!!"

"WHAT?!!" Outraged, the eldest son of Neptune and shark merman, Prince Fukaboshi, growled as he furiously grabbed his trident, "He said what again?!!"

"...Bullet," Muttered Shanks, knowing full well that the party was over, "So in the end, Captain Roger failed to change you, it seems."

In a darkened expression, Neptune calmly stated, "And where may he be at right now?"

"Fish-Man's meeting hall...!" The soldier responded, "The fish men situated there are putting up their best fight but to no avail!!"

Neptune silently processed the thought for a brief moment, before stating, "Order the nearby citizens to evacuate to here, the Ryugu Palace. Meantime, we will head down and fend him off."

Taking a hold of his own trident, Neptune called, "Fukaboshi, Ryuboshi, Manboshi. Prepare the soldiers, for we are going for a fight."

"Yes, we will have it done right away!" Said Fukaboshi as he bowed his head.

"...Shanks."

Simultaneously, Beckman gazed at Shanks who seemed in a complex state of emotion,

"If it's that Douglas Bullet whom you've mentioned before, then..."

"...Yes," With a cold sweat dripping on his back, Shanks made a light grin, "This will be a good chance to check, how strong we've become since four years ago."

Then, he said, "Yasopp and Hongo, stay and protect this palace."

"...But Shanks," Muttered Lucky Roux, "Wasn't he your crewmate in the past?"

"And therefore," Replied Shanks, "It's my responsibility to correct his wrongdoings."

Shanks then took off his straw hat and placed it on Uta's head, "Stay here with them, Uta."

"Got it!" Uta nodded vigorously.

"All right then," Shanks finally said in seriousness, "The rest of you, let's go! We are going down to stop Bullet!"

The Red Hair pirates grinned confidently, ready to battle at any moment.

__________

"B-BIG BRO TI!!!" Screaming into a Den Den Mushi was one beaten-up fish man, whose posture screamed of fear, "O-OUR HOME IS UNDER ATTACK!!!"

<<What do you mean by that, Shioyaki? The island's always been under attack pirates, wasn't it? What's the deal?>>

"That guy... that guy isn't anything like those weaklings!! Big bro Ti... y-you have to come back fast—"

BOOOM!

The wall that separated this fish man named Shioyaki from the outside abruptly collapsed, and from beyond the cloud of dust entered one muscular fellow.

"Kahahaha... it's been a while since I've been here. Took a while for me to remember the way, but alas, here I am... ah, the old memories."

This man, characterized by slicked-back blonde hair and nigh-red-coloured skin, was the infamous 'Demon Heir' Douglas Bullet, one who's arrived to wreak havoc on the Fish Man island.

<<S-Shioyaki?! Oi, answer me!!>>

From the still-sitting Den Den Mushi exited the voice of Fisher Tiger, but no one responded. After all, said Shioyaki was now having his neck strangled by Bullet's violent grip.

"How much more of you must I kill... for that disgraceful king to show his face in front of me?"

In annoyance, Bullet's eyes twitched. His grip over Shioyaki's neck tightened every second and eventually...

PUK.

<<Oi, Shioyaki!!!>>

The head, detached from the crushed neck, dropped to the floor with a horrifying sound.

"Anyhow," Unbothered by the gruesome scene that he made, Bullet shifted his eyes to another huge man, Byrnndi World, who seemed quite entertained by the ongoing chaos, "Fish Man island isn't as strong as what's been spoken by the public... what a disappointment."

World, in return, grinned maniacally, "Barororo, this is only natural. After all, a fish, no matter how hard it tries to be a human, is still a fish in the end."

Just after World said so, Bullet's eyes widened as his eyes briefly gleamed in crimson. He then grinned in excitement,

"This strength... this Haki... this sense of familiarity..." Bullet hurriedly turned his body and broke through another intact wall. Beyond the ruined wall stood the man of Red Hair,

"Brat..."

For once, Bullet seemed jovial, as he spread his arms wide open,

"Kahahaha!! It's been a long time since Roger's death, hasn't it?!!"

Shanks, glaring back at Bullet cautiously, said, "...What have you done on this island, Bullet? Have you forgotten Captain Roger's words?!"

"...Forgotten?"

Bullet stiffened up. Then, his eyes twitched, irked by Shanks's statement,

"Does it matter any longer?! HE DIED!!!"

Bullet roared, having completely gone furious,

"That bastard... he died before I got to beat him!!! Kahahaha, why must I keep the promise when he decided to destroy my dream with his own bare hands?!!"

"Have you got no sense of morality, Bullet?! Even for pirates... there are rules!!"

Shanks unsheathed his prized sword, Gryphon. At the same time, his crew members at the back drew their own weapons.

In addition, King Neptune, who was seen with his three sons and soldiers, held his trident tight with both hands. As he did so, he ordered to soldiers,

"Locate the injured ones and help them out of here!"

"""Yes, Your Highness!"""

"...And so," Calming down, Bullet growled, "where is Poseidon..."

"Far away I'd say," Replied Shanks, as he pointed the tip of Gryphon at Bullet, "Away from your reach at the very least."

Bullet frowned, and his fists tightened. The intensity of the atmosphere has reached its peak, and at the next moment,

BOOOM!

The battle began as Shanks's Haki-imbued Gryphon met Bullet's similarly Haki-imbued fist,

PAZZZ!

along with the flash of black lightning, which indicated the clash between two Conqueror's Haki.

__________

Click.

"Black Cage Hina and Steel Mask Bastille. In accordance with the law, you will be arrested."

Surrounding Hina and Bastille, in the middle of the grassy plain of Foolshout island, were the World Government agents in black suits—CP9 agents. They, having arrived on the island in advance to the main World Government units, were given a mission to strike Hina and Bastille while Smoker's attention was diverted onto Marine. Therefore, they managed to avoid the ruination brought upon by the sudden appearance of Douglas Bullet, however, they at the same time were unaware of the current situation.

Currently, a CP9 holding a pistol that was directly aimed at Hina's forehead was a man with long pink hair and a mask that covered his eyes and nose.

"...Aren't you a famous one," Mumbled Hina, "Who's-Who, one who was considered the prodigy of Cipher Pol prior to the appearance of..."

Then, she shifted her gaze to a young-looking boy with a curly black hair,

"...Rob Lucci."

"Daradara, is this all of you?" Bastille, unafraid of the enemies, bickered, "Ten members only to face the two of us?"

Provoked by his words, the boy named Rob Lucci asked coldly, "Permission to kill."

"Gyaahahaha, it's already been granted by Spandam," Said another member of CP9 named Jabra.

"...Haa,"

Sighing, Hina slowly put on the black gloves over her hands. Then, she spoke,

"Make this quick. Hina's time is precious."

PUK—!!

And as Hina's fist proceeded to smash into the face of one sneak-attacking CP9 agent, the battle in Foolshout island began.