[144] A Bad Felling

[2200 Words]

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Ren left the throne room and went to where the women of his crew had gathered. He told them he was going to deal with someone, but no one seemed interested in accompanying him; they preferred to relax — except for Kalifa.

Naturally, Ren didn't refuse her, and he saw this as a good opportunity to strengthen the bond between him and Kalifa.

[Kalifa's Loyalty: 94%]

Seeing the girl's loyalty level, he couldn't help but smile inwardly with happiness.

"So, Captain Ren, do you know where this Vander Decken is?" Kalifa asked, after he had informed her of the target.

Ren thought for a moment. Thanks to his photographic memory, he still remembered where Vander Decken had hidden in the original story, but that was two years ago…

"I have a rough idea of his location, and the rest I'll leave to my Observation Haki."

Hearing Ren's response, Kalifa nodded gently and walked beside him.

They were close enough that their hands would occasionally touch, of course "accidentally" and not intentionally from Ren's side.

But was Ren the only one deliberately doing this? It seemed Kalifa was doing it too...

Forget it… Ren snapped out of his thoughts when they arrived at the Fish-Man Island exit, where he took out Elsama from the Infinity Space.

"It's time to catch the little fish!" Ren used Moonwalk to rise onto the ship's surface, which was unaffected by the water pressure thanks to the transparent barrier.

"Pfttt!" Kalifa laughed sweetly and reached the ship's surface after passing through the space and appearing several meters away.

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Vander Decken, the ruthless and merciless pirate, had felt a sense of unease for the past few minutes.

He felt his heart tightening for no reason, as if someone were looking for him or as if a disaster were very close…

"Oi, Rankly! Where is that big fool Wadatsumi?" he looked around and urgently asked one of his crew members.

Rankly replied without delay, "Wadatsumi went to search for Ankoro, sir!"

Vander Decken frowned, and the sense of crisis in his heart grew stronger.

'Maybe I'm just imagining things…'

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Kalifa looked at the massive fish currently blocking their way.

This fish belonged to the anglerfish species. It had small, white eyes without eyelids, dorsal and pelvic fins, and a caudal fin. It also had a lure antenna with a natural "lantern" at the end. Additionally, it had a lot of teeth and was itself quite large, seemingly capable of tearing through iron and rocks.

"Captain, it seems it's going to attack us," Kalifa said, looking at Ren, whose eyes were fixed on the massive sea creature, which appeared slightly larger than Elsama.

"Ankoro is here; that means we're close to him…" Ren muttered some words that Kalifa didn't understand. Close to what? Their target? And who was Ankoro… Could it be this massive fish that opened its mouth and lunged at the ship?

*Whoosh!*

Fortunately, Ren didn't just stand there waiting for the giant fish to destroy his ship.

He swiftly left the ship's barrier, but there was a spherical bubble surrounding his body.

This was the Flutter Kick Coating.

Flutter Kick Coating (Bata-ashi Kōtingu) was a special coating used to form a bubble around individuals instead of ships.

When coated, a spherical bubble forms from the knees to the head, while the legs are covered with a thin layer, allowing them to withstand deep-sea pressure with limited air to breathe. This coating grants the ability to leave the ship underwater and engage in combat when necessary.

Ren had previously obtained this from King Neptune, of course, at his own request, knowing he would have to leave the ship to deal with Vander Decken, who roamed the waters surrounding Fish-Man Island.

Every member of his crew also had the Flutter Kick Coating in case they needed it in an emergency.

Back in the present, Ren exited the ship's barrier under Kalifa's gaze and confronted the fish that was about to bite down on Elsama.

Its huge mouth covered all of Ren's view, but he, unaffected by his Devil Fruit ability while in the sea, extended his fist out of the bubble and directed it at the massive fish.

[ Image here]

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"Broken World!"

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*Crack~!!*

*Whoooom~!!*

Powerful seismic waves exploded around him in an instant, sweeping through the waters in fractured circles as if the ocean itself had shattered and crumbled. Massive whirlpools formed, and cracks spread through the water like fracture lines on fragile glass, with pressure surging like an overwhelming tide toward the giant fish!

The seismic waves struck Ankoro, causing it to recoil suddenly from the powerful blow, letting out a cry of terror. Its massive body trembled as if its bones had been shattered, and its thick layers of skin cracked open, releasing dark torrents of blood from within.

Pieces of her body scattered in the water, her glowing lights fading quickly, allowing the darkness to consume her bit by bit. All her massive fins had cracked and torn apart brutally, and her body plunged into a state of complete collapse as her limbs shredded and scattered under the overwhelming seismic force.

Her heavy remains began to sink slowly toward the ocean floor, leaving behind a trail of dark blood spreading in the water like gloomy clouds gradually dissolving into the depths, marking the end of her life.

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"Wha... what's happening...?? The world is spinning..."

Wadatsumi, the giant, foolish fish-man who had previously been searching for Ankoro, felt the sea trembling unnaturally.

Earlier, he had left the Flying Pirates' hideout to look for Ankoro because they needed to leave the area and move to another location, either to avoid detection or to search for treasures and ships to seize.

Of course, Wadatsumi didn't know anything about this; he simply couldn't find Ankoro and assumed the fish was eating ships again, which was bad, so Wadatsumi felt he needed to teach Ankoro a harsh lesson.

Well, those were Wadatsumi's simple thoughts, but he was currently confused because he felt an unnatural tremor in the water, and small fish and shrimp began to flee frantically, even many smaller and mid-sized sea kings were escaping for their lives as if an unknown danger was looming on the horizon.

"Wha...? Ankoro?!"

Wadatsumi shouted dumbly as he caught sight of the mutilated head of a giant fish swept by the still-uneasy waters.

In the next moment, Wadatsumi saw strange energy appearing in the surrounding water.

It looked like a black and purple portal, and from this portal, a girl with blue hair wrapped in a spherical bubble emerged.

"There you are..." said Kalifa, who had used her Devil Fruit ability to teleport short distances through spatial gaps several times until she reached Wadatsumi.

Normally, this feat would be impossible for Devil Fruit users, due to the limitation that weakens them in water, but with this flaw removed thanks to the system, there was no difference in using her Devil Fruit ability in water or on land.

Behind Kalifa, Ren, who had returned to the surface of Elsama, was already advancing toward them and would soon reach them.

"Don't kill him." He looked at the girl, who quickly replied, "Understood, Captain!"

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"Distortion ball!"

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A small but concentrated void energy appeared in her hand, which she directed at the bewildered Wadatsumi. The giant didn't understand what was happening; first, he saw Ankoro's destroyed head, and now he was being attacked by a small human.

[Image Here]

But, relying on his instincts, he sensed danger from the small energy ball headed toward him and wanted to escape.

However, it was already too late.

The spatial energy orb was fast compared to Wadatsumi's speed, and his massive body didn't help him either.

*Boom!*

The orb exploded upon reaching Wadatsumi's body, causing him to scream in pain and stagger backward, his colossal form making a loud noise.

*Boom!*

*Boom!*

*Boom!*

Kalifa didn't stop attacking Wadatsumi until he fell unconscious, his body covered in blood, and his large, spaced teeth terribly broken.

It took several attacks from Kalifa to bring down Wadatsumi, which was understandable since she had not yet awakened her Devil Fruit ability. Still, she could teleport to a nearby target, provided she had set an anchor point beforehand, as she had with Elsama when she and the crew teleported from the Sabaody Archipelago to the floating ship.

But could she do the same with Fish-Man Island? For example, teleport from the Sabaody Archipelago to Fish-Man Island, or teleporting between different seas? It was impossible to achieve that in her current state.

First and foremost, she had not awakened her Devil Fruit ability, and her understanding of space and teleportation had not yet reached that level. Secondly, her physical strength wasn't sufficient.

Even Kalifa herself didn't know what would happen to her if she failed during such a teleportation attempt.

Would she get lost in space and be swallowed by dimensional rifts? Kalifa didn't know, and she didn't dare to try such teleportation, limiting herself to short distances only.

"Well done, Kalifa." When the girl returned to the ship's surface, she was met with Ren's praise, which made her happy, though naturally, she didn't show it on her face.

She replied with her usual cold expression, "Captain, what should we do with him next?"

Clearly, she was referring to the unconscious Wadatsumi lying on a massive rock. He was knocked out, but his life wasn't in danger; in fact, if not for Ren's orders, Kalifa would have killed him already.

"Nothing for now. Let's go visit our main target." As he spoke, Elsama began to sail once again, seeming this time as if it already knew its destination.

Ren's Observation Haki had already detected Van Der Decken's hiding place!

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"Those fools haven't returned yet?!" Vander Decken shouted at his subordinate, who had reported that Wadatsumi and Ankoro had yet to come back, leaving the Flying Pirates' captain both furious and deranged.

Oh, wait… he's been insane for a long time already.

The subordinate who brought the report didn't dare lift his head, cursing the two missing individuals for putting him in this predicament.

Just as he thought he was about to hear Van Der Decken's curses and rants for hours, sounds were heard outside, specifically on the ship's deck.

"I-intruder!!"

One of the crew members, a tall, muscular fish-man with four arms, came in terrified, but as soon as he managed to say the word "intruder"...

*Bang!*

He dropped dead to the floor as his head burst into a mist of red blood.

"!!!!"

Vander Decken and the other person in the captain's quarters were stunned as they witnessed this scene.

Finally, the cause of all this appeared. He was holding a red-colored gun with a devilish design, looking at Van Der Decken with an amused expression.

Beside him was a woman with blonde hair and a hot physique, standing close enough that her chest was pressed against his body due to the height difference between the two.

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A few minutes earlier.

Ren and Kalifa arrived at a well-hidden spot deep under the sea, a naturally formed cave surrounded on both sides.

The "cave" was incredibly large, but the most intriguing part was the presence of a ship docked quietly there.

It looked like a ghost ship.

Old and worn by time, with tattered sails, patches of seaweed growing in various places, and a mast resembling a clock tower in design. The lower front sail bore the name "The Flying Dutchman," while the upper sail displayed the crew's Jolly Roger – a skull with fangs and swords pointing downward instead of crossbones. The figurehead of the ship also carried the same skull and sword motif.

The ship was enormous, nearly the same size as Wadatsumi.

"This…!" Kalifa looked at the ship in shock.

"Yes, that's the legendary ship, the 'Flying Dutchman.' It's said to have roamed the seas for hundreds of years."

Ren glanced at Kalifa and confirmed her thoughts. The legend of the famous "Flying Dutchman" was well known, one of the most famous seafaring tales, speaking of a ship cursed by the gods due to its captain's wicked deeds, dooming it to sail endlessly until it was destroyed.

Of course, legends tend to exaggerate, and here the ship could be seen docked quietly.

"Let's go, Kalifa." Ren leapt from Elsama, still within the bubble because Vander Decken's ship wasn't coated – it didn't need any coating for a strange reason, as it could withstand underwater pressure at depths of 10,000 feet below sea level, thanks to already being filled with holes that balanced the water pressure inside and outside the hull.

Only a small part of the ship's deck was coated, where Vander Decken, who had eaten a Devil Fruit, resided.

Kalifa landed and followed Ren, and soon they reached the ship. What followed was a one-sided massacre.

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Back to the present.

Ren looked at Van Der Decken, whose face bore an ugly expression, then smiled faintly and said, "Van Der Decken IX, that's you, right?"

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To be continued....

500PS= Bonus chapter.