The giant elephant known as Naitamie-Norida!
A colossal being that has roamed the seas for over a thousand years!
Its name—Zunesha.
Once a companion of Joy Boy in ancient times!
Because of a grave sin committed eight hundred years ago, it was sentenced by an unknown existence to forever wander the seas of the New World.
In this unbelievable, bizarre pirate world—
Zunesha is truly the most unfathomable of the unfathomable, the strangest of the strange.
In terms of lifespan, it has existed for at least a thousand years.
In terms of size, even a 5,000-meter-long Sea King is nothing but a little brother before it.
Its two massive elephant legs stretch deep into the ocean, nearly ten thousand meters long.
Its body is so immense it can support an entire island—a kingdom even.
In all the vast oceans, there may be no living creature larger than it.
As for its origins and past—everything remains a mystery.
However…
In the near future—
It will undoubtedly become the key to a monumental change in the world.
---
Evening sunlight dyed the sea and sky crimson.
The glowing surface of the water rippled violently.
It was the mighty Zunesha, moving slowly through the waves.
"Look, it's Zunesha! I knew I wasn't mistaken! It's in this direction—meow~"
Aboard the Beasts Pirates' warship, Nekomamushi pointed excitedly at the distant giant.
"You old cat idiot! I'm the one who reminded you. Can't even remember what you said!"
Duke Inuarashi fired back, unimpressed.
"What did you say? Even if you hadn't said it, I still would've remembered—meow~!"
Nekomamushi huffed indignantly.
"Hah! You wish!"
Inuarashi scoffed.
"What, you want to fight again?"
Nekomamushi growled, baring his fangs.
"Bring it on!"
In a blink, the air grew tense once again.
These two were none other than the reigning kings of the Mink Tribe.
Though they had made peace during the war with the World Government, the time-traveling chaos seemed to have reignited their ancient rivalry.
Over the past two days, the frequency of their arguments had skyrocketed.
They weren't alone on the ship either—
"All right, all right! Inuarashi, Nekomamushi—we need to focus on getting to Zou quickly and explaining the situation to your past selves to rally reinforcements!"
Izou spoke up firmly.
"Exactly, Nekomamushi, Inuarashi—if we're going to convince the Minks, you two are crucial!"
Marco nodded in agreement.
Hearing this, the two bickering rulers finally paused.
Before long—
The ship reached the base of Zunesha.
With ropes, they secured the warship to the colossal elephant.
Then—
Marco transformed into his phoenix form, wings flaring with flames.
Nekomamushi and Inuarashi each grabbed one of his talons.
Izou and the little rabbit Carrot clung to their backs.
"So heavy…"
Marco winced as he flapped his wings.
But he held firm, lifting the four of them slowly into the sky.
"You old cat! Lose some weight! Marco's struggling because of you!"
Inuarashi snapped.
"What?! This is all fluff! I'm actually very light! It's you who—!"
Nekomamushi waved his paw threateningly.
"All right, all right! You two move again, and I swear I'll drop you!"
Marco growled, half-joking.
He shook slightly on purpose.
That shut the two up instantly.
A few minutes later—
Marco successfully brought the four onto Zunesha's back.
"According to the plan—Nekomamushi, you head to the capital. Inuarashi, go to Whale Forest. Move out now."
Marco landed, catching his breath.
"Two years ago, you old cat—"
"Two years ago, you old dog—"
The two kings glared at each other.
"Okay, okay~"
"Let's go~"
Izou and Carrot each pulled one of them in opposite directions.
Meanwhile, Marco made his way to the central plaza.
---
As the sunset faded and the moon rose...
Day gave way to night.
With the changing of the sky—
So too did the power structure of the Mokomo Dukedom shift.
Duke Inuarashi, who ruled the day, vanished.
And the dormant king of the night—Master Nekomamushi—awoke in Whale Forest.
---
At the royal palace...
"Duke, the time is almost up. You should get some rest."
Said Shishilian, captain of Inuarashi's Musketeer Squad.
"I know, I know. That old cat won't show up that quickly. Just let me finish this last bit."
Two-years-ago Inuarashi grumbled.
But—
A second later, a shout rang out.
"Nekomamushi?! Why are you here so soon? The sun hasn't even fully set yet!"
The striped zebra Giovanni gasped in shock.
"Master! What happened to your arm?! Who injured you?! Was it one of your own men?!"
Conzelot, the fox mink with a rifle, cried out in alarm.
"Don't worry about it," said the future Nekomamushi with a wave of his gatling-gun paw. "Izou's a comrade. Speaking of which, Inuarashi should be here."
"I thought I smelled something. Isn't that you, old cat? What, came early just to pick a fight?"
Two-years-ago Inuarashi stepped out from the hall, staring down his rival.
His hand went to the hilt of his sword.
But…
A moment later, he froze.
Looking at this Nekomamushi—he sensed something different.
And the biggest difference?
That missing right arm.
"…Your arm. What happened?"
he asked quietly.
"That arm was chopped off by Jack the Drought of the Beasts Pirates!"
Nekomamushi, from two years in the future, grinned.
"The Beasts Pirates?!"
Inuarashi's pupils shrank.
Memories surged back.
But he quickly shook his head.
"No… don't joke with me, old cat. I never heard anything about you leaving the country. Don't think you can fool me!"
His tone turned sharp.
"Inuarashi, he's not lying."
From behind the giant cat stepped Izou.
"You… you're Izou?!"
Inuarashi's face lit up.
His old friend—whom he hadn't seen in years.
"Let me explain everything."
Izou stepped forward and told the two-years-ago Inuarashi everything.
The time travel.
The crisis.
The future.
"WHAT?!"
"You're from two years in the future?!"
"That's the future Nekomamushi?!"
"Then… my future self must be coming too!!"
"Is that even possible?!"
The entire square exploded into shocked voices.
Shishilian, the Inuarashi Musketeers, curious birds who had gathered from nearby towers, and even young Carrot from two years ago—
All the Mink Tribe warriors who heard Izou's story—
Were shaken to their core.