After hearing Inuarashi's assessment, Jerry realized he needed to clarify a few important details that might affect the duke's strategic planning.
"Well, there's a bit more to it than that," Jerry began, scratching the back of his head. "Jack is one of Kaido's Three All-Stars, though he's definitely the weakest of the trio. What you just experienced should be roughly equivalent to his base human form."
"But he's a Devil Fruit user with additional transformations, so he's considerably stronger than what I demonstrated just now."
Jerry had improved dramatically since his time in Wano Country, but he wasn't about to claim he could defeat Jack using the improvised stick-fighting technique he'd just shown. The truth was, his original victory had involved some creative tactics—specifically, knocking the fishman into the ocean where his Devil Fruit powers became a liability.
If that first battle had continued on dry land with both fighters at full strength, the outcome would have been much less certain.
"Mr. Jerry, please don't worry about my assessment," Inuarashi replied thoughtfully. "Based on the fighting power you've demonstrated, defeating Jack under normal circumstances would indeed be challenging for me."
The duke's expression grew more confident as he continued, "But... if it were a full moon night, I can't say the same."
After mentally reviewing their sparring match, Inuarashi felt reasonably confident about handling Jack-level opponents. As expected, Kaido himself and the other two All-Stars would be the real challenges.
Seeing that the demonstration had concluded, the spectators approached the center of the clearing. Deuce walked up to Jerry just in time to catch Inuarashi's comment about the full moon, his curiosity immediately piqued.
"A full moon night?" Deuce asked, looking up at the duke with interest. "What's the difference? Could you tell us more about this?"
"Ha ha, it's no particular secret," Inuarashi replied with a good-natured grin, clearly in high spirits after their productive sparring session. "During the full moon, we minks become significantly stronger."
As soon as the explanation began, Deuce's eyes lit up with the fervor of a dedicated chronicler. He quickly pulled out his notebook and pen, the sound of rapid scribbling filling the air as he documented this fascinating detail about mink physiology.
"Saiyan transformation, huh?" Jerry muttered under his breath, glancing around at the assembled minks with new understanding.
"Boss Jerry, what did you say?" Skull asked, appearing suddenly at Jerry's elbow.
"Nothing important," Jerry deflected, looking ahead toward their destination. "That's the town up ahead, right?"
Wanda followed his gaze toward the cluster of buildings visible through the trees. "Yes, Mr. Jerry. That's Kurau City, the main settlement in the central region of Zou."
"Wow! It looks quite impressive," Deuce commented, pausing in his note-taking to appreciate the architecture.
"Thank you for the compliment," Wanda replied with obvious pride. "Most of our citizens live there, so it's the heart of our kingdom."
Just as she finished speaking, everyone suddenly felt a violent trembling beneath their feet. The ground shook with such intensity that it was impossible to maintain balance.
Deuce immediately put away his writing materials and looked around in alarm. Carina let out a startled scream, while Skull and Kotatsu instinctively rushed to Jerry's side for protection.
But the local minks seemed completely unfazed by the earthquake-like tremors. Instead, they began moving with practiced efficiency, calling out to the visitors in calm, organized voices.
"Zunesha's bath time! Everyone up the trees, quickly!" Wanda instructed, gesturing toward the nearest massive trunk.
Following the group's lead, they scrambled up into the branches just as the sky began to darken ominously overhead. Deuce, ever curious about new phenomena, couldn't help but ask questions even while climbing.
"What exactly is happening?" he called out, feeling like every day on Zou brought encounters with things he'd never seen or imagined before. As an adventure novelist, these experiences were pure gold for his creative soul.
His question was answered dramatically as the sky suddenly opened up. A massive torrent of water cascaded down from above, drenching everything in sight with a thunderous splash. What had seemed like approaching rain was actually something far more extraordinary.
Rivers of seawater rushed through the streets below, and Deuce watched in amazement as various fish and sea creatures tumbled through the artificial currents, flopping and swimming in the temporary waterways.
Jerry, who had been listening to the explanations with his usual casual demeanor, suddenly straightened up with eyes that began to shine like stars. His expression transformed into something reminiscent of Sanji spotting a beautiful woman.
"What?! All those fish!" he exclaimed, practically vibrating with excitement.
Wanda, startled by his enthusiastic outburst, smiled and began to explain the phenomenon to their bewildered guests.
"I suppose you wouldn't know about this," she said kindly. "What we call the 'Zunesha Shower' isn't actually rain at all."
"This is our elephant lord's daily routine. Zunesha sprays seawater across his back twice each day to keep clean and hydrated."
"The water you just saw was pure ocean water. After it flows through the filtration systems in our city center, it becomes our primary source of drinking water."
"Since Zunesha draws up seawater randomly from the ocean depths, countless fish and sea creatures come along for the ride. This provides us with an abundant food supply, so we never have to worry about going hungry."
Jerry's mind immediately latched onto the implications. "Wait, do these fish eventually flow into the lakes and rivers around the city?"
"Of course," Wanda confirmed. "When all the water streams converge, they form our main water storage areas and artificial waterways."
"So you're saying..." Jerry's voice took on an almost reverent tone, "there are a lot of fish in those waters?"
"You could certainly say that, yes."
Jerry's eyes widened even further, shining so brightly that Wanda actually took a step back in surprise. The intensity of his excitement was almost frightening.
"Hey, hey! Show some restraint!" Deuce said, slapping Jerry on the shoulder in an attempt to bring him back to reality. Unfortunately, his efforts had absolutely no effect—Jerry continued staring off into space with that manic gleam in his eyes, clearly lost in fishing-related fantasies.
After the artificial flood waters had drained away through the city's sophisticated channel system, everyone climbed down from their tree-branch refuges. Deuce finally managed to snap Jerry out of his trance, though the captain's mind was clearly still elsewhere.
Jerry was already planning his fishing expedition. With Zunesha's twice-daily delivery system, the local waters had to be absolutely teeming with fish from every corner of the ocean. He wouldn't even need to bait his hooks or find the perfect spots—it would be like fishing in a fully-stocked aquarium.
With tremendous anticipation building in his chest, Jerry followed the group toward Kurau City, though his attention kept drifting toward the waterways they passed along the road.
"Wow! What is that?" Deuce suddenly exclaimed.
"It's huge! Like a whale!" Carina added, her voice filled with awe.
In the distance, visible through the gaps between buildings, rose an enormous tree with a distinctive whale-like shape carved into its trunk. The sight was both beautiful and slightly ominous, dominating the horizon with its impressive scale.
"That is the Whale Forest, the most sacred site of our tribe," Wanda explained with obvious reverence. "It's under the protection of Boss Nekomamushi and his Guardians. Outsiders are strictly forbidden from entering without permission—they'll attack any trespassers on sight."
"Got it, understood," Deuce nodded, making another note in his journal. Carina also smiled and indicated her comprehension, though the calculating look in her rolling eyes suggested she was filing away this information for less innocent purposes.
Jerry glanced between the distant Whale Forest and Carina's suspicious expression, but decided to keep his observations to himself for now.
Soon they reached the outskirts of Kurau City proper, and the sight that greeted them was genuinely heartwarming. The streets bustled with activity as mink citizens went about their daily business, but there was something special about the atmosphere—everyone seemed genuinely happy and content.
Families chatted warmly on street corners, children played games in the squares, and merchants called out their wares with good humor. When the citizens noticed the human visitors being escorted by Duke Inuarashi and his Musketeers, there was no panic or hostility. Instead, many offered friendly waves and greetings before returning to their activities.
It was clear that Zou was a kingdom at peace with itself, where the people trusted their leaders and felt secure in their daily lives.
"Well, I'll leave you here," Duke Inuarashi announced, turning to address Jerry and his crew. "From this point forward, Wanda will serve as your guide and host."
"Wanda, please see that our guests are properly accommodated and given a thorough tour of the city."
The duke nodded respectfully to each of the visitors. As a ruler, he obviously had pressing governmental duties to attend to, and the time he'd already spent personally escorting them had been an exceptional courtesy.
After bidding farewell to their gracious host, Wanda turned to the group with a professional smile.
"Shall we arrange your accommodations first?" she suggested. "Once you're settled, I can organize a proper tour so you can familiarize yourselves with our city's layout and customs."
"After you've gotten oriented, you'll be free to explore whatever interests you most. Does that sound acceptable?"
Deuce considered the proposal and found it perfectly reasonable. The rest of the crew seemed agreeable as well, so they prepared to follow Wanda to their temporary lodgings.
"Let's speed this up a bit!" Jerry interrupted, swinging his fishing rod impatiently. "What we really want is the full island experience!"
"Don't waste too much time on boring stuff like room assignments," he continued with obvious eagerness. "Wanda, just point us toward some basic accommodations. We promise to give you excellent reviews!"
Jerry was practically bouncing on his toes, clearly desperate to finish the administrative details and get to the good stuff—specifically, finding the best fishing spots on this miraculous island.
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