Before long, everyone boarded the Sun Pirates' ship, their arms filled with big and small packages. The load wasn't only the few golden treasures; Princess Otohime had also prepared all sorts of gifts—Fishman Island desserts, fine liquor from Ryugu Castle, beautiful coral ornaments, and other keepsakes.
Zhang Da Ye thought, well, since they already accepted gold, a few souvenirs wouldn't hurt. He could give some to Uncle Goodman and his family later.
These were treasures from ten thousand meters under the sea—he could already picture Uncle Goodman and his colleagues bragging about them.
"Goodbye!"
"Goodbye!"
Everyone waved as a whale shark pulled the Sun Pirates' ship slowly away from the shore, fading from Neptune's family's sight.
On the way back to Ryugu Castle, Shirahoshi suddenly asked, "Father, can you teach me Mermaid Jujutsu?"
"Huh??" Neptune and the three princes froze. Their timid, gentle daughter suddenly wanted to learn martial arts?
Even Queen Otohime was surprised. She patted Shirahoshi's head and asked, "Why do you suddenly want to learn fighting techniques?"
"That's right, Shirahoshi. Martial training is very tough. You only need to stay happy every day. Your brothers will protect you!" Neptune didn't want his daughter involved in battles. Partly out of love, partly out of fear—if she lost control of her emotions, she might unleash the Sea King's power.
"That's right, we'll get stronger and protect you!" the three princes chimed in.
"Because… because Lord Da Ye said that if, the next time we meet, I've become a little stronger than I am now, then he'll tell me more sponge stories."
"Sponge… stories?" Neptune was baffled. Was there even such a thing as Sponge Fishmen? Should he get rid of them? And what did that have to do with becoming stronger?
"Mm! Since Father and my brothers who know Mermaid Jujutsu are all so strong, I thought if I learn it too, maybe I'll become stronger." Six-year-old Shirahoshi's reasoning was still simple.
"This… well…" Neptune was at a loss. He could tell Lord Da Ye's words were meant to encourage Shirahoshi, but her interpretation had gone a little sideways.
"Then it's settled," Otohime suddenly declared. "From today, Shirahoshi will learn Mermaid Jujutsu."
"What are you saying, Otohime? How could Shirahoshi possibly—" Neptune panicked, speaking not as a king, but as an overprotective father.
"Shirahoshi will grow up eventually. Learning some self-defense isn't a bad thing," Otohime said gently to her daughter. "Since you've decided, even if it's tough, you mustn't give up!"
Shirahoshi nodded happily. "Yes!"
"Then I'll have to train twice as hard," Otohime added. "Gathering signatures should go smoothly, but once we gain permission to relocate, Fishman Island will need strength to protect itself."
In recent days, she had spoken with Zhang Da Ye many times. From him she'd learned phrases like "a weak nation has no diplomacy" and "fall behind, and you'll be beaten." These new ideas had left their mark on her.
Her ultimate wish was for Fishman Island to prosper in peace with humans. But that dream would take time—time during which Fishmen needed strength to defend themselves.
"Then I'll triple my training!" declared one prince.
"Then I'll quadruple it!" another added.
The princes competed fiercely, each determined to protect their sister and fulfill their mother's dream.
Neptune, seeing this, could only agree.
Zhang Da Ye would never have guessed that simply encouraging Shirahoshi the same way he once encouraged little Baier (Goodman's son)—brushing her off with a promise of more sponge stories—would lead to such a chain reaction.
At that moment, he was aboard the Sun Pirates' ship, looking around. "Why does this ship feel… kind of like a warship?"
He noticed the paint on the hull and the marks on the sails—they looked deliberately repainted to cover up its origins.
"Because it was a warship," Aladdin replied flatly before turning and heading back into the cabin, clearly displeased.
Only Jinbei and Aladdin had come to see them off. Aladdin was a male fishman with long black hair tied into a topknot. His appearance resembled the genie from Aladdin's lamp, which gave Zhang Da Ye a good impression of him.
Jinbei quickly explained, "Please don't mind. Aladdin doesn't like to talk about it. This ship was seized during the ambush that killed Brother Tiger. Our ship was sunk that day… Brother Tiger too…"
"Ah, sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up." Zhang Da Ye hadn't expected such a casual remark to touch a nerve.
The truth was, Jinbei hadn't said everything. Aladdin had once been a slave. Unlike Arlong, he didn't hate all humans, but he wasn't about to show them kindness either. His past wasn't something he wanted others to know.
That was precisely why Jinbei had brought him along—to expose him to people like Zhang Da Ye, hoping it would help him let go of his shadows. Not to forget his hatred, but at least not to let it eat him alive. For someone as reasonable as Aladdin, such suffering could cut deeper than Arlong's blind rage.
But things weren't going smoothly. If not for Zhang Da Ye's deeds on Fishman Island, Aladdin might have already snapped.
The whale shark Jinbei had summoned pulled the ship steadily through the deep sea. As they left Fishman Island behind, the surrounding waters grew darker.
With time to spare, Zhang Da Ye finally asked the question that had been on his mind: "By the way, Jinbei, how much do you know about Haki?"
He hadn't asked Hawkeye Mihawk earlier—his personality didn't seem like the type to explain patiently.
He hadn't asked Commander T Bone either. As a by-the-book Marine, even if he knew, he wouldn't share casually. He'd just use it as leverage to recruit them into the Navy.
Now, with Jinbei here—a man easier to talk to—it was the perfect chance.
"Haki?" Jinbei gave Zhang Da Ye a strange look. "Doesn't Lady Artoria know about Haki?"
He distinctly remembered that day during the assassination attempt on Queen Otohime. It was Artoria who reacted first, blocking the bullet and pinpointing the attacker's location. By that logic, her Observation Haki should be beyond his own.
Artoria shook her head. "I only possess a similar ability to Observation Haki. It has nothing to do with Haki itself."
"I see," Jinbei said, recalling her sudden armor transformation that day. Like most people, he had assumed it was a Devil Fruit ability and chose not to pry further.
"Then I'll share what I can. Though truth be told, I am no master of Haki. Both types I use were self-taught, not systematic. Please don't laugh."
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