The island was burning.
Sakazuki's Meteor Volcano had been destroyed by the clones' slashes, scattering scorching magma across the entire island and igniting a raging inferno.
"Horohorohorohoro... Now that I've caught you, what reward should I ask for?"
Perona floated in the air under her delicate parasol, looking down at Jinbe below as she pondered what to demand from Reddy now that she had captured this guy.
"Little girl, I have no desire to fight you. Please take me to see Dr. Reddy."
Jinbe expressed his goodwill, stating that he did not want to fight and only wished to meet Reddy. Since Perona was just a child, he did not fully reveal his true purpose for coming.
"Are you joking?"
Perona grew increasingly annoyed with Jinbe. Not only was he ugly, but now he also wanted to rob her of her hard-earned reward.
Go die a hundred times!
With a wave of her hand, three Negative Hollows cheerfully pounced toward Jinbe.
Jinbe smiled wryly, dodging the three Negative Hollows while still trying to explain his intentions. "I truly mean no harm. I just want to meet Dr. Reddy."
His sincerity was evident, but unfortunately, he was dealing with a spoiled brat.
"Horohorohorohoro... Reddy-sama doesn't have time to see you."
Perona watched gleefully as the three Negative Hollows forced Jinbe to retreat repeatedly, already recalculating her plans in her mind.
This guy seemed pretty strong. Delaying him should count as a contribution, right?
Well, I can ask for a little less then.
...
Reddy was indeed busy at the moment.
The Marines had withdrawn from the island, leaving no prisoners to capture, so Reddy gathered the clones to begin hunting.
First on the list was Bartolomeo's location, since the commotion there was the loudest.
"Dracule Mihawk... So a Warlord of the Sea has come too."
Reddy stood within the alternate dimension created by the Door-Door Fruit, watching Mihawk warm up with Bartolomeo, his instincts itching with anticipation.
To be honest, among the Warlords of the Sea, only Dracule Mihawk's genes were on his hunting list.
The other Warlords... Gecko Moria was already a prisoner, and the abilities of the rest didn't interest him much.
If he had to name another worthwhile target, it would undoubtedly be Jinbe of Fish-Man Island.
The Fish-Men were the best aquatic fighters, bar none.
And Jinbe was one of the best among the Fish-Men.
"Since they're already here, they might as well stay!"
Aside from Mihawk and Jinbe, Reddy wasn't particularly interested in the other Warlords, but he didn't mind capturing a few more to expand his gene bank.
After all, those who became Warlords were undeniably strong.
Reddy turned and left.
Now wasn't the time to face the world's greatest swordsman.
Soft targets came first.
Before long, Reddy found his next prey.
Perona, relying on the unique nature of her spirit form, was acting outrageously arrogant, her distinctive laughter serving as the perfect beacon.
By the time Reddy arrived, Jinbe was still trying to persuade Perona to take him to meet Reddy.
"Little girl, I truly mean no harm!"
Jinbe had lost count of how many times he'd said this, but the bratty girl simply refused to listen, acting utterly unreasonable.
Just as he dodged another attack from the Negative Hollows, Jinbe's pupils contracted. Without hesitation, he struck backward with his palm.
A door had just opened in the air.
Jinbe's strike sent the clone that had been about to ambush him flying back through the door.
"I mean no harm!"
Seeing that a clone had tried to sneak attack him, Jinbe immediately abandoned his attempts to reason with Perona and instead tried to convince the clone to take him to Reddy.
As he spoke, Jinbe turned to face the door to show his goodwill.
"An opening!"
Perona, who had been annoyed that Shadow had come to steal her credit, became excited when she saw Jinbe turn his back to her.
Three Negative Hollows gleefully passed through Jinbe's body.
"I wish I could become a bug and rot in the mud."
Jinbe had never expected Perona to be so dishonorable. He knelt on the ground, hands pressed against the floor, his mood utterly defeated.
"Horohorohorohoro... He's my catch."
Perona floated over under her parasol, declaring her ownership of Jinbe as a prisoner to the figure inside the door.
"He... Never mind, this prisoner is yours."
Reddy stepped out of the door, hands in his pockets. He had considered pointing out that Jinbe had voluntarily surrendered, but then he thought better of it. What kind of demands could a little girl even make, anyway?
"I want a castle!"
Seeing Reddy acknowledge her contribution, Perona immediately made her request, carefully watching Reddy's expression. Her demeanor suggested that if he showed even the slightest displeasure, she would quickly switch to a smaller demand.
Though she enjoyed considerable freedom under Reddy, she was still afraid of him.
"A castle?"
Reddy was confused. "What castle?"
Perona immediately found an outlet for her grievances, ranting about how a certain bastard named Terry had refused to provide manpower to build her castle, leaving her dream residence stuck on blueprints.
"Where are Moria and Absalom now?"
As a reward for Perona's earlier tip-off, Reddy had stopped imprisoning Gecko Moria and Absalom, allowing them to live in Perona's castle.
But since the castle was still just a blueprint, where were those two now?
Perona awkwardly replied, "Moria-sama and Absalom are staying in town, but I swear they wouldn't dare harm your people."
The satellite island was perpetually floating in the sky, making escape impossible.
Both Moria and Absalom understood this. Being free from imprisonment was already a blessing.
"Forget it."
Reddy decided not to pursue the matter.
With Seastone shackles restraining them, Moria and Absalom, as Devil Fruit users, would find it nearly impossible to hurt anyone and escape the satellite island.
Though Terry hadn't yet reached his full potential, dealing with two ability-sealed prisoners was more than enough.
"Are you Dr. Reddy?"
By now, Jinbe had shaken off the effects of the Negative Hollows. Seeing Reddy, he thought of his earlier humiliation and quickly spoke up to mask his embarrassment.
"You wanted to see me... Why?"
Reddy was curious about Jinbe's purpose.
But then again, the Warlords of the Sea were nominally under the World Government's banner, yet they often ignored orders.
It wasn't strange for Jinbe to disregard this war and show goodwill toward him.
Jinbe glanced around, hesitating.
What he was about to say would be considered outright betrayal by the World Government.
This was hardly the place for such a discussion.
"Follow me."
Reddy immediately understood Jinbe's concern and stepped back through the door.
Jinbe visibly relaxed and followed obediently, maintaining a safe distance to demonstrate his goodwill.
The door closed behind them.
Jinbe scanned the alternate space, spotting numerous clones, and felt reassured. He spoke frankly about his true purpose: "What price must I pay to join your ranks?"
After a pause, he quickly added, "I mean Fish-Man Island."
Realizing this might sound impolite, he further clarified, "I can become one of your fighters."
"Give me a sample of your blood... That's the price."
Though surprised that Jinbe was representing Fish-Man Island's desire to join his faction, Reddy didn't object.
If not for his interest in Jinbe's genes, he wouldn't have even bothered making demands.
Jinbe was stunned. "That's it?"
This price was practically negligible!
For a moment, he wondered if he'd misheard.
"I'm willing to help all who wish to help themselves... But I must make one thing clear: I'm not a babysitter. Fish-Man Island must stand on its own and earn its happiness through effort."
Reddy's words shocked Jinbe once more.
"You... You are the most open-minded strong person I've ever met."
Jinbe bowed respectfully to Reddy, then solemnly said, "I need to return and discuss this with King Neptune. I'll inform you of Fish-Man Island's decision as soon as possible."
After a pause, he added apologetically, "Given Fish-Man Island's safety, I can't assist you in this war. I'm sorry."
Reddy waved his hand dismissively.
Even without Jinbe's betrayal, there was no way he could lose this war!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 Like the story? Read 120 chapters ahead!
🔗 patreon.com/atomelectron
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━