Beasts Pirates' Ship.
The snot bubble at Kaido's nose burst, and his snoring stopped.
"You said alliance?"
Sitting up, he frowned and looked at Deron who had come to deliver the message.
"Yes, Kaido-sama!"
"It's a message from Bazel-sama. He also said to have me come back and get the pirate flag."
The pirate flag wasn't just some ordinary piece of paper that could be casually given away.
King, who was listening nearby, said solemnly, "Kaido-san, to be honest, the area where the fish-men are located is in a completely different sea from where we're headed next."
"I don't see the point in what Bazel is doing."
"It's normal that you don't see it. Every time Bazel does something, he's aiming for the far distant future."
Kaido crossed his arms and tilted his head in thought.
"This time is probably no exception. Deron, first take the pirate flag to Bazel. I'll personally ask him for details later."
"Yes, I'll set off right away!"
After Deron ran off, Kaido lowered his voice.
"Arber, I have a feeling that what Bazel has his eyes on isn't just the fish-men alone."
"You go search all over Fish-Man Island. I'll watch the ship. Let's see what Bazel is planning before he returns."
Hearing this, King frowned: "You suspect Bazel?"
"No, I never suspect my own brothers."
Kaido's mouth twitched, "I'm the captain. As the captain, I can't keep losing to Bazel. This time, I want to reclaim my dignity as the captain."
"I absolutely must figure everything out before Bazel shows off his plan. I want to have that expression of having seen through the truth all along too!"
"This mission is of great importance. Arber, you understand, right?"
King took a deep breath and nodded firmly, "Of course I understand, Kaido-san. This is a rare chance to hold our heads high and feel proud!!"
"That eight-headed bastard snake has mocked us for being idiots more than once. This time, we absolutely must win!"
"Set off, Arber. My dignity is in your hands!"
King flapped his wings and soared into the sky, "You can rest completely assured!"
Early the next morning, in a villa at Gyoverly Hills, Bazel, suffering from a hangover, was awakened by the Den Den Mushi.
"Hey, if it's nothing important, I'm hanging up. I'm feeling terrible with a hangover right now."
"Th-This is huge, Bazel Aniki!!"
Babanuki's panicked voice made Bazel slightly more alert.
"What happened?" Bazel opened his eyes.
"It's Hanafuda! He took us and swept through the whole Fish-Man District!"
'Swept through Fish-Man District?!'
His drowsiness instantly vanished, and Bazel asked in shock, "What on earth is going on!?"
Hanafuda quickly explained what had happened the day before.
"Yesterday, they were drinking at the Mermaid Cafe. A big shot named Jinbe came and said he wanted to challenge the strongest human."
"After Hanafuda defeated him, he led everyone into Fish-Man District and even set up a fighting arena."
"Saying something about definitely helping the beautiful mermaid ladies reclaim justice and righteousness."
"Then he challenged all the hoodlums on Fish-Man Street, called them weaklings who couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag, and even said he could defeat all of them by himself!"
"And then, and then..." Looking at the weeping, distressed Den Den Mushi, Bazel covered his face with his left hand.
"That idiot Hanafuda… Babanuki, is that guy sober yet?"
Babanuki, who is far away on Fish-Man District, cautiously glanced at Hanafuda, who was still drinking and fighting on the stage, and the mermaid cheerleading squad not far from the fighting arena, shouting encouragement. He covered the receiver with his hand.
"He's still drinking. The fight is still going on. Please come quickly! If you're any later, there won't be a single male fish-man left standing on the whole of Fish-Man District!!"
"I got it. I'll be there as soon as possible."
Kacha.
The Den Den Mushi hung up. Toki, who was sleeping next to Bazel, sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Mmm~ Did something happen, Bazel?"
"Nothing much. You go back to sleep. When you wake up, take Olga out shopping. I need to go to Fish-Man District first."
"There's an idiot whose vision is clouded by alcohol and beauty. I need to go over there and sober him up."
After giving Toki a light kiss on the forehead, Bazel quickly got out of bed and splashed some water on his face.
He found Otohime, who was preparing breakfast, asked for the general location of Fish-Man District, and then left.
'Fish-Man District? Why would Bazel-san be interested in that lawless place?'
After a moment's thought, Otohime still woke the soundly sleeping Neptune.
She laid out the entire situation at Fish-Man District.
"Fish-Man District? I understand. I'll take the soldiers and go there."
…
At Fish-Man District.
"Hey, hey, hey, don't the fish-men have any men who can fight?!"
On the arena, the battered Hanafuda let out a drunken belch, his steps unsteady.
"I've been fighting all night! Send me someone who can sober me up!"
"You cowards who only know how to bully mermaid ladies!"
"If you've got the guts, come at me head-on, you bastards!"
All around the arena, fish-men lay unconscious, with their eyes rolled back.
"You... you bastard…"
Below the stage, the seventeen-year-old Jinbei stretched out a trembling hand, his face filled with resentment.
"If Tiger-san hadn't gone traveling, there's no way you could have taken advantage like this!"
"Tiger-san? Hahahaha~" Hanafuda threw his head back and laughed.
"You really are cowards! When you're beaten, you don't say you'll definitely defeat me in the future, but instead bring up an even stronger Fish-Man?"
"If it were us Beasts Pirates, losing a fight wouldn't matter!"
"As long as we're alive, no matter how many times, we can summon the courage to charge forward!"
"Bazel often says it's not scary for a man to fail once, twice, or countless times. What's scary is failing and not having the courage to clench your fists and charge again."
"And you fish-men, pfft, a bunch of cowards who only know how to rely on someone bigger."
Jinbei was stunned when he heard this.
He hadn't actually gone specifically to challenge this powerful human yesterday.
Before leaving, Tiger had a heart-to-heart with him and persuaded him to join Neptune's team at Ryugu Palace.
To become a real man fighting for the great cause of the Fish-Man Race.
But when he entered Coral Hill, gossip about the Beasts Pirates defeating enemies and helping mermaids was everywhere.
Seventeen is inherently a hot-blooded age.
Hearing that humans were being treated as heroes, Jinbe felt a surge of extreme dissatisfaction.
He immediately found Hanafuda, who was drinking, and then the series of events that followed occurred.
Hanafuda paid no more attention to Jinbei. With 50% drunkenness and 50% spirited fervor in his eyes, he scanned the nearby fish-men who were clenching their fists, "If you feel humiliated, get on the stage. I'll use my fists to teach you a lesson."
"If a man wants to have a say, he speaks with his fists!"
"After you defeat me, not only can you mock me, but you can even crap and piss on my head and I won't say a word!"
"That is what a real man is!!"
Mermaid A (covering her face with her hands): "Kyah~ Hanafuda-sama is super handsome!!"
Mermaid B (heart-shaped eyes): "Hanafuza-sama~ I want to give birth to little merfolk with you!"
Mermaid C (hysterical): "And me, I want to have little merfolk with you too, the super handsome real man Hanafuda~!!"
Not far away, Babanuki was held back by his equally enthusiastic pirates.
"Captain Babanuki, we want to win the affection of the mermaid ladies too!"
"That's right, Captain, we want to challenge him too!"
Babanuki's mouth twitched: "Don't go adding to the chaos. Let's wait until Bazel Aniki gets here. Besides, Hanafuda hasn't lost yet."
'Hasn't... lost yet?'
Hearing this, a few clever individuals jumped out from the two hundred-plus pirates behind Babanuki.
Beasts Pirate A (Big Brain: Beginner Level): "I get it! Captain Babanuki means for us to challenge Hanafuda-sama!!"
Beasts Pirate B (Big Brain: Complete Form): "So that's it! As long as we defeat Hanafuda-sama, we can win the affection of the mermaid ladies!"
Beasts Pirate C (Big Brain: Mutant Form): "Defeat Hanafuda, become the strongest man in the Beasts Pirates!"
"Ooooh!!"
"We challenge you, Hanafuda-sama, we challenge you!!"
Watching his subordinates, nostrils flaring with hot air, eyes glowing green with excitement, Hanafuda was first stunned, then, provoked by their challenging words, his fighting spirit swelled.
"Ha!? You want to defeat me? You're a hundred years too early!"
"Perfect! Line up if you want to challenge me! This time, I'll let you know that a real man can last a full day and night without falling!!"
Bazel, who happened to arrive just then, saw this scene.
'This guy is completely drunk.'
---
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