Translator: PapaSmurf0700
Bai Ye didn't even spare a glance for the twenty thousand Fish-Men surrounding him. They were completely paralyzed, crushed into stillness by the sheer weight of his spiritual sense.
He walked calmly through the frozen army until he stood before the octopus Fish-Man, a chilling smile on his lips.
"So, the plan was to use seawater to sink us? That Hody Jones is certainly full of clever ideas." The voice belonged to Bai Ye, but the cold, merciless tone was that of his other self. It was a side of him that rarely surfaced.
After learning of the Sun Pirates' tragic history, he could find a sliver of understanding for Arlong's rage.
But for Hody Jones, there was no mercy. None for him, and none for his followers.
Arlong had witnessed firsthand the cruelty of humans; he had watched his captain, Fisher Tiger, die for it. His hatred was born of pain, but he still cared deeply for his own people. Hody Jones was different. He was a creature born of the festering resentment of Fish-Man Street, a monster who had never even met a human.
He was a man who would slaughter his own kind for showing a shred of kindness to humans and would use his own subordinates as human shields without a second thought. Such a man was a pitiful product of his environment, but he still deserved to die.
"Unfortunately for him," Bai Ye continued, his voice dropping to a whisper, "that plan is destined to fail. My friends will see to that." He leaned closer. "But you won't be around to see it, because—"
"There is only one fate for those who dare to harm my crew."
He raised a single hand, his fingers outstretched as if to embrace the entire Fish-Man army.
Water Trigram: Ice Age!
Bai Ye slowly clenched his fist. In that instant, twenty thousand Fish-Men became twenty thousand ice sculptures. There was no struggle, no resistance. Their consciousness was snuffed out in a heartbeat. With the absolute control granted by his power, he had flash-froze an entire army with surgical precision, not allowing a single wisp of cold to escape and harm the surrounding coral.
He admired his masterpiece, deeply satisfied. He didn't bother wondering if his spiritual sense was stronger than Conqueror's Haki; they were powers operating on entirely different levels. Just moments ago, he hadn't even needed an active technique. The passive pressure of his power alone was enough to utterly crush them. It was his most powerful ability, second only to the completed art of Yin-Yang Qimen.
Simply put, anyone who hadn't mastered Armament Haki would be helpless before him. The only exceptions were those with absurd, law-defying Devil Fruits, like Bartolomeo's barrier. After all, his spiritual sense commanded the laws of the physical world, but a Devil Fruit could rewrite those laws entirely.
With the army neutralized, Bai Ye lifted his gaze to the true target of his journey, a colossal shadow looming in the distance.
The Ark, Noah.
Eight hundred years ago, the human Joy Boy and the ancient Mermaid Princess, Poseidon, had made a promise to move the people of Fish-Man Island to the sunlit world above. This ark was the key. If there was another great secret on this island, besides Joy Boy's letter of apology hidden in the Sea Forest, it was undoubtedly Noah.
Perhaps I can find some clues here.
With that thought, Bai Ye began his walk toward the ancient vessel.
-----
In the northeast of Fish-Man Island, nestled within a vibrant coral reef still touched by the distant sun, was a forest encased in a massive bubble.
This was the ship graveyard.
"So this is where she wanted to come?" Luffy asked, sitting on the soft sea grass and looking at Jinbe.
"That is correct," Jinbe nodded grimly. "Sunken ships often drift here with the currents. But for Princess Shirahoshi, this is also the final resting place of her mother, Queen Otohime."
Not far away, Shirahoshi knelt before her mother's grave. Looking at the photograph on the tombstone, her eyes filled with tears.
"Mother... Shirahoshi has come to see you." After years locked away in the Hard-Shell Tower, the wave of emotion was more than most could imagine. "Father and my brothers have been very kind. I've been good... I've grown so much taller now..."
She sat before the grave, recounting the quiet, monotonous years of her confinement, one small detail at a time. It was a miracle she hadn't lost her mind.
"Mother," she whispered, her voice catching. "I've met someone. A human pirate." She began to tell the story of her encounter with Luffy. "It was so surprising," she said slowly. "Mr. Luffy... he said something very similar to what you once said."
Years ago, after Fisher Tiger's death, the residents of Fish-Man Island had refused to sign the petition for peace. Queen Otohime, heartbroken, had cried out to them, "Don't we all live on Fish-Man Island because we long for the real sun? Don't our children sneak away to the Sabaody Archipelago because they dream of the world above?"
"If we all share that dream, why can't we find the courage to chase it? It doesn't matter if we have to give up everything! It is the only way to change our children's future!"
Shirahoshi hadn't understood her mother's desperate passion back then. But today, after hearing Luffy's simple declaration—
"A dream is something you have to be willing to risk your life for!"
—she was beginning to understand.
Suddenly, a wild, cackling laugh echoed from above. "Zehahaha! My dearest Shirahoshi! You finally escaped that dreadful tower! Now, will you finally be my wife?"
Vander Decken IX, riding a piece of coral, had finally found the mermaid princess he'd been obsessed with for years.
CRACK!
A powerful stream of water intercepted the coral projectile, shattering it to pieces.
"Jinbe! You dare interfere, you bastard?!" Vander Decken roared, preparing another attack.
"I finally have you, Vander Decken," Jinbe's tone was colder than the deepest sea trench. "Your years of harassing the princess end today."
"Huh?" Luffy asked, tilting his head. "Is this weird-looking guy the one who keeps throwing stuff at Shirahoshi?"
"Yes, that's him, Mr. Luffy." Shirahoshi moved to stand behind her two protectors. Though she was still afraid, she found the courage to meet her tormentor's gaze.
Seeing his intended bride standing so close to another man, Vander Decken completely snapped.
"Shirahoshi! Are you breaking our pact?! Are you betraying our marriage?!"