"Shahahahaha!"
Hody Jones looked at the distant Ryugu Kingdom, then turned to face Doss and the other executives of the New Fishman Pirates. Behind Doss and the other executives stood tens of thousands of excited fishmen. These fishmen were all his followers. After receiving the call from the New Fishman Pirates, these extremists quickly gathered here.
"King Neptune is too weak. He only knows how to compromise with humans!"
Hody's opening sentence immediately stirred up the emotions of all the fishmen present, their faces filled with hatred. In the past, they had not been so extreme. But after Queen Otohime was assassinated by human pirates, they deeply resented humans and despised King Neptune, who continued to compromise with the World Government.
"King Neptune is no longer qualified to lead Fishman Island!"
Hody, who had personally orchestrated Queen Otohime's death, was very satisfied with his work. It had earned him more support from the fishmen, leading to today's gains. These tens of thousands of fishmen, and even more waiting for his call, would become the key to realizing his ambitions.
"Occupy Ryugu Kingdom, capture King Neptune!"
Daruma, an executive of the New Fishman Pirates, seized the moment to shout the slogan, which was immediately met with an enthusiastic response from the already riled-up fishmen.
"Occupy Ryugu Kingdom, capture King Neptune!"
Faced with the roaring cheers, Hody grinned fiercely and gave a signal to Doss and the other executives. Understanding his intention, the executives dispersed, each gathering a group of fishmen as their subordinates. They all had their own tasks. Hody would naturally lead the attack on Ryugu Kingdom, but Fishman Island was not limited to just Ryugu Kingdom. Many important locations needed to be destroyed to coerce more fishmen and merfolk into joining the rebellion.
Soon, the teams, with the New Fishman Pirates members as their core, scattered and headed for their respective targets.
"Let's go. Together, we will usher in a new era for Fishman Island!" With Hody's order, he led the charge toward Ryugu Kingdom. His group was the largest, numbering fifteen thousand.
The massive crowd set out from Fishman District. Every fishman and merfolk who witnessed this procession was stunned, watching as Hody led his men straight to Ryugu Kingdom.
When the group arrived at Gyogyo Square, the Neptune Army, already aware of the rebellion in Fishman District, stood ready. The Neptune Army was a crucial force in maintaining Ryugu Kingdom's rule. Before the Sun Pirates and the New Fishman Pirates emerged, this army had been the dream of nearly all fishmen.
Seeing the densely packed Neptune Army, led personally by Prince Fukaboshi, the rebels showed obvious signs of panic, and their morale dropped significantly.
"Shahahahaha... Perfect timing."
Hody, seeing Prince Fukaboshi leading the troops, grinned fiercely and took a pill from his pocket, tossing it into his mouth.
As the pill entered his stomach, Hody's eyes instantly turned red with white pupils. He felt an overwhelming surge of power from within.
The Energy Steroid (ES), a forbidden drug that could multiply the user's strength. This was one of the trump cards Hody had painstakingly obtained after joining the Neptune Army.
"Fishman Karate... Gyojin Mizuame!"
Feeling his strength multiply, Hody's confidence soared. With his webbed hand, he flung a highly penetrating water bullet. Enhanced by the Energy Steroid, the attack was far faster than ordinary Fishman Karate techniques.
Prince Fukaboshi, on the opposite side, didn't even have time to react before the water bullet struck his abdomen, sending him flying backward and crashing into a large group of Neptune Army soldiers.
Prince Fukaboshi was defeated in a single strike, causing the Neptune Army's morale to plummet into chaos.
"Surrender. Neptune is not fit to be the king of Fishman Island!"
Hody looked at the disorganized Neptune Army but did not order his troops to press forward for victory. Instead, he grinned and urged the Neptune Army to lay down their arms, even to defect.
Behind him, the rebels, who had initially feared Fishman Island's renowned warrior Prince Fukaboshi, saw Hody defeat the prince in one strike. Their morale skyrocketed, and they immediately echoed Hody's call.
The Neptune Army grew even more chaotic. Many soldiers who were also dissatisfied with King Neptune's appeasement policies wavered.
When the first Neptune Army soldier took up his weapon and joined the rebel ranks behind Hody, more and more soldiers chose to defect.
The extreme ideology of Fishman Supremacy was highly persuasive to these soldiers, who knew far more than the average fishman.
Humans discriminate against us. Why should we just endure it?
Without a leader, they might have only grumbled in private. But now, with Hody leading the rebellion, they hesitated only briefly before choosing to defect.
As more and more Neptune Army soldiers defected, the rebels' morale soared again!
The remaining loyal Neptune Army soldiers, inexperienced in such a situation, could only grit their teeth and hold on, quickly sending Prince Fukaboshi to the rear under the leadership of a few officers.
The others, pale-faced, mustered their last bit of courage to block the rebels' advance toward Ryugu Kingdom.
"Kill them!"
Having incited many Neptune Army soldiers to defect, Hody cared nothing for those he saw as blindly loyal. With a wave of his hand, he led the charge.
The remaining Neptune Army soldiers, relying only on sheer bravery, were no match for Hody's assault.
In a single clash, the Neptune Army was routed.
Fortunately, most of the rebels were Fishman Supremacists. Though they resented the blindly loyal Neptune Army, they did not actually kill them.
Aside from a few unlucky ones, the rest of the Neptune Army was quickly subdued and tied up in Gyogyo Square.
"Capture King Neptune!"
With his first victory secured, Hody ignored his subordinates' mercy toward the Neptune Army and led the charge toward Ryugu Kingdom.
With Prince Fukaboshi and the main force of the Neptune Army gone, the Ryugu Kingdom guards were unable to hold out and were forced back into the palace.
After breaking into Ryugu Kingdom, the rebels' momentum grew, and the battle soon ended.
"Shahahahaha... King Neptune."
Hody, with the smile of a victor, walked up to the bound King Neptune, looking down at the king of Fishman Island.
King Neptune, perhaps heartbroken, glanced at Hody and silently lowered his head.
Seeing this, Hody's mood improved even further.
At that moment, Doss and the other executives arrived at Ryugu Kingdom one after another.
Jinbe, Prince Fukaboshi, Prince Ryuboshi, Prince Manboshi... Hody grinned even wider as his subordinates brought back the three princes and Jinbe.
This was a sure victory!
Hody looked at the resigned expressions of King Neptune and his family, then turned to announce to Doss, the other executives, and the rebels, "The new era of Fishman Island will be opened by me, Hody Jones. I will lead you to become the rulers of this world!"
Doss and the other rebels cheered as if injected with adrenaline.
"Shahahahaha... Has Vander Decken IX not brought good news yet?"
Hody had already made thorough plans. Sacrificing an Emperor of the Sea and a Warlord of the Sea during his coronation would undoubtedly attract the greatest attention.
"Hody Jones, your conspiracy will not succeed."
Jinbe's voice interrupted the rebels' cheers.
Hody turned his fierce grin toward the bound Jinbe, but his expression froze instantly.
Jinbe, lying tied up next to King Neptune and his family, still wore a resigned expression on the cold floor.
Hody was utterly confused.
"I never expected you to do such a thing."
Hody quickly turned around and saw a door open in the air. Jinbe stepped out with a heavy expression.
"Hody Jones, you have lost!"