Chapter 231 – Return to Fish-Man Island
In the dark, silent depths of the ocean, Ace piloted his coated speedboat, gliding through the vast, shadowy waters toward Fish-Man Island.
The sea at that depth was pitch-black — not even a glimmer of light could be seen. Ace ignited a small flame in his hand, illuminating the surrounding water with a faint orange glow.
"It's so dark… I can't see anything," Yamato muttered, squinting into the void.
"That's right," said Tama, peering ahead nervously. "Are there really islands this deep under the sea?"
"Fish-Man Island…" Carol said softly, her eyes sparkling. "I've heard of it for so long. I never thought I'd actually get to go there. This is so exciting!"
"Whoa! Look at that huge fish!" Tama exclaimed suddenly, pointing out the window.
"Where?! Where—oh, wow!!" Carol yelped in awe.
"Keep your voices down," Ace warned sharply, eyes narrowing. "If anything attacks us down here, we won't stand a chance."
"Hey, you're the loudest one here!" Yamato, Tama, and Carol all retorted at once.
Eight thousand meters below the surface, as a colossal Sea King glided past their small vessel, Ace suddenly stiffened. A faint sound — a whisper — echoed in his mind.
"…Huh?" Ace turned to the others, his expression serious. "Did you guys hear that just now? It sounded like… someone was talking."
"What are you saying?" Yamato blinked. "There's no one here. We're deep underwater."
"That's right," Tama added. "It's completely silent. We didn't hear anything."
"…So only I can hear it." A thoughtful look crossed Ace's face. His gaze followed the massive Sea King as it drifted away into the darkness. Could it be… that sound came from that creature?
"This must be the 'Voice of All Things,'" Ace thought silently. "Is this… because of the 'D' in my name?"
He wasn't entirely sure. He could only hear, not communicate. The faint voice had reached him — but he couldn't tell if it truly came from that Sea King or from something else entirely.
It was a strange and frustrating feeling.
Unbeknownst to Ace, the enormous Sea King that had just passed by turned its head. Its massive eye glimmered as if it, too, had noticed him — curious, perhaps even startled.
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Hours later, the speedboat finally emerged beneath the shimmering bubble that enclosed Fish-Man Island, located 10,000 meters beneath the surface.
Because Fish-Man Island was the territory of the Whitebeard Pirates, under the protection of Edward Newgate, Ace's Spade Pirates, as Whitebeard's allies, were allowed to enter freely.
When the island guards saw the flag flying from Ace's coated ship, they immediately granted passage — even if they didn't personally recognize him.
"Wow, so this is Fish-Man Island!" Yamato's eyes widened as they entered the bubble. "We're ten thousand meters under the sea, yet there's sunlight and even clouds in the sky!"
"It's incredible!" Tama gasped, pressing her hands to the glass. "It feels just like the surface!"
Ace chuckled. "That's because of a massive tree near the island, called the Sunlight Tree Eve. It absorbs sunlight from the surface and channels it down through its roots, bringing daylight to the ocean floor. Thanks to it, Fish-Man Island has day and night just like the surface world. The locals call it the Gift of the Sun."
"The Gift of the Sun…" Carol said softly. "That sounds a bit like the tree from our island."
"It's similar, but not quite the same," Ace said with a smile, then changed the subject. "I heard there's a famous Mermaid Café at Coral Hill. The owner is a fortune-teller — said to predict the future. Let's go take a look."
"Fortune-telling!" Yamato's eyes sparkled.
"Predicting the future!" Tama repeated excitedly.
Carol, perched on Ace's shoulder, also looked intrigued.
"Then it's decided," Ace said decisively. "We'll head to the Mermaid Café first."
Just as Ace and his crew were preparing to set out for Coral Hill, a group of Fish-Men approached, surrounding them.
At their head was a tall merman wielding a golden trident, with long, wavy blue hair and a small mark on his forehead.
"Your Excellency, Fire Emperor Ace — welcome to Fish-Man Island!" the merman announced respectfully.
It was Prince Fukaboshi, the eldest son of King Neptune — a shark-type merman and heir to the Ryugu Kingdom.
Fukaboshi had been patrolling nearby when he received word that Ace had arrived. He immediately reported it to Ryugu Castle, then personally came to welcome him.
Before Fish-Man Island came under Whitebeard's protection, it had suffered greatly from pirate raids and human traffickers.
The island's most tragic victims were always the mermaids, whose value in the human world made them prime targets.
Even after the Whitebeard Pirates' flag was raised, kidnappings still happened — but far less often. Under Whitebeard's protection, few pirates dared to cause trouble here.
The name Whitebeard alone was enough to keep most of the sea in check — even more effectively than the World Government.
Because of the alliance between the Ryugu Kingdom and the Spade Pirates, relations between the two had always been warm.
"My father, King Neptune, wished to greet you personally, Your Excellency," Fukaboshi said respectfully, bowing slightly. "However, there's been a recent incident in the Ryugu Kingdom that requires his immediate attention. So he has sent me to invite you to the Ryugu Palace as an honored guest."
"Oh?" Ace raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "What kind of incident?"
Fukaboshi hesitated for a moment, then replied gravely, "Not long ago, a thief infiltrated the Sea Forest and stole something of great importance."
"The Sea Forest?" Ace frowned. "If I remember correctly, the Poneglyph of Fish-Man Island is kept there…"
More than twenty years ago, Fish-Man Island housed two Poneglyphs — one of the four red Road Poneglyphs, and another containing the message known as Joy Boy's Apology from 800 years ago.
Ace knew that Gol D. Roger had once gathered three Road Poneglyphs and found the final one here on Fish-Man Island.
But that red Poneglyph had vanished long ago.
By the time the Straw Hat Pirates arrived in the original timeline, only the Joy Boy Poneglyph remained, deep in the Sea Forest.
Now, hearing Fukaboshi say that something had been stolen from the Sea Forest, Ace's expression hardened.
Could it be… that the stolen item is the Poneglyph itself?
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