"My lord! The Pokémon Sea is up ahead!"
"Fifty nautical miles more, and we'll be entering the Straw Hat Pirates' territory!"
On the outskirts of the Pokémon Sea, a massive fleet formed from the forces of two kingdoms—thirty thousand men in total—sailed boldly through the perilous waters of the New World.
The fact that they had been able to lead a fleet of this scale through the many dangers of the New World and arrive here was enough to prove that this fleet was experienced and powerful.
And yet, this very same veteran fleet now moved as though it had been struck by a slowing beam. The instant it reached the edge of the Pokémon Sea, it suddenly reduced speed and began crawling forward at a turtle's pace.
"Mm."
The general who received the report gave a nod in response. His eyes, as wide as bronze bells, remained fixed on the sea ahead, yet it was as if he had not noticed the fleet's abnormal speed at all. He issued no new orders.
What a joke!
When gods fought, little devils suffered!
As the general of a nation—and a man who had received the approval of another allied kingdom's king, granting him command over the armies of two countries at once—how could he possibly be some clueless fool?
Everyone knew that taking even one more step forward meant provoking the Straw Hat Pirates!
Even a colossal force as mighty as the World Government did not dare provoke them lightly. Were they, a pair of ordinary World Government–affiliated nations, supposed to afford offending such people?
If not for the Five Elders' orders leaving them with no choice, and if not for the fact that they did not dare bet on the World Government losing and simply withdrawing, they would never have bothered wading into this muddy water.
For a time, the enormous fleet absurdly loitered at the edge of the Pokémon Sea, refusing to enter.
Sometimes, when a gust of wind blew and caused the fleet to speed up for no reason, they would even deliberately turn aside and lengthen their route.
In any case, from this distance, the moment the World Government issued an order, they could immediately enter the Pokémon Sea.
When the time came, all they needed to do was show their faces, answer roll call, and prove they had not been absent.
In truth, there were no small number of kingdom warships operating their fleets like this.
But where there were clever people, there would naturally also be fools.
…
…
"My lord, the Pokémon Sea is fifty nautical miles ahead!"
"Wahahaha! After traveling for so long, we've finally arrived!"
"Those shameless pirates dared provoke the World Government and the Celestial Dragons again and again. Today, I'll let them see…"
"What true kingly might is!"
"Everyone, listen to my order! All personnel, enter battle-ready status! Full speed ahead! Enter the Pokémon Sea!"
Boom!
Following the nameless officer's order, more than a dozen large warships suddenly raised their sails and charged aggressively into the Pokémon Sea!
And just as their warships crossed the boundary of the Pokémon Sea, a few mischievous little things descended upon them all at once.
"Your Excellency, something doesn't seem right!"
The moment they entered the Pokémon Sea, the adjutant, whose strength was comparable to a Marine vice admiral's, immediately reacted.
As a powerful user of Observation Haki, although he had not discovered the tiny nanobugs hidden in the air, the intuition that had helped him avoid countless dangers made him realize that he was already in danger.
But…
Was it really that terrifying!?
They had only just entered the Pokémon Sea!
"Losand!? What's wrong with you!?"
Just as the adjutant was feeling doubtful, a commotion suddenly erupted among the kingdom soldiers.
The adjutant turned back in shock, only to see soldiers continuously collapsing one after another from within the once-neatly arranged formation.
Such a strange sight naturally terrified the soldiers around them.
"Not good!"
The adjutant suddenly shouted.
"This sea is poisonous! Everyone, put on your gas masks immediately!"
Since they had been able to cross the New World and arrive here, they naturally would not underestimate its unpredictable dangers. They had made preparations long ago.
After hearing the order, the soldiers immediately put on the breathing devices they had prepared.
For a time, the phenomenon of people suddenly falling unconscious among the crowd did indeed lessen considerably.
But before the adjutants could even breathe a sigh of relief, the familiar chaos once again broke out one wave after another.
Soldiers collapsed one after another, unconscious and unable to rise.
This scene instantly left both the adjutant and the arrogant man called the great general dumbstruck.
A moment later, it was the stronger great general who discovered the source of the problem.
"Damn it! What's making them faint isn't poison gas at all!"
Smack!
The great general suddenly slapped his own arm hard. In an instant, a dense patch of tiny black specks fell from his arm, only to scatter in midair like ash, blown apart by the fierce sea wind.
"This is!?"
The adjutant's eyes widened.
As someone who could at least be considered a powerful fighter, he also realized where the problem lay and hurriedly began patting himself down.
Immediately, a large mass of black specks spread out like black mist.
Only then did the great general and the adjutant, upon closer inspection, discover that what had attached itself to the surface of their bodies was actually a kind of tiny flying insect so small that it was extremely difficult to observe with the naked eye!
It was precisely because of these tiny flying insects that their stamina was being rapidly drained.
The soldiers who had fallen were merely the ones whose stamina had not been outstanding to begin with, and thus were the first to be unable to hold out.
"What do we do!?"
The adjutant anxiously raised his head and asked.
At this moment, the great general was also covered in cold sweat.
Although he held the noble position of a nation's general, he did not possess such a precious power as Conqueror's Haki.
Faced with these densely packed tiny flying insects, he ultimately had only one choice…
Splash!
The great general, who was near the bow, plunged straight down and fell into the sea, sending up a spray of water.
Immediately afterward, a thin black stain suddenly spread out from the place where the great general had fallen into the water.
Pfft!
In the next instant, the great general burst out of the water again, revealing his head as he shouted loudly:
"Jump into the sea!"
"Everyone, jump into the sea immediately! Use seawater to isolate yourselves from the foreign matter in the air!"
"They don't have the ability to survive underwater!"
Splash, splash…
In the end, he was the great general who managed the entire army. Military orders were absolute.
As soon as his words fell, the soldiers close to the rails immediately jumped into the sea one after another like dumplings being dropped into a pot.
Some responsible soldiers even dragged the soldiers who had already fainted along with them and leaped into the sea together.
Only when the soldiers on all the warships had almost all jumped did the adjutant at the bow harden his heart.
As a powerful fighter, he was not so weak that he would be driven off by mere insects, but the Pokémon Sea had delivered such a heavy blow the moment they entered.
This war was clearly not going to be as easy as they had imagined.
The adjutant placed one foot on the railing.
But at that moment, a sudden change occurred!
"Fish-Man Karate: Ocean Current Shoulder Throw!"
Boom!
Directly ahead of the warships, a massive wave appeared without warning not far from them, then rushed toward their location with terrifying power.
Wherever it passed, the sea roared and the waves churned.
The sharp-eyed adjutant even saw, atop that enormous wave, a group of Fish-Men and merfolk holding giant fishing nets!
"They… what are they planning to do!?"
"Go out to sea and catch fish… no! Go out to sea and catch people!?"
"But going out to sea shouldn't look like this, right!?"
That was the adjutant's final thought before he was swallowed by the sea.
The overwhelming waves crashed down. Even the enormous Marine-style warships were nothing more than drifting leaves before the impact of such waves, and they were instantly overturned.
Large numbers of soldiers were directly swallowed by the waves.
"That guy is their commander. Capture him first!"
Jinbe, standing atop Laboon's head, immediately spotted the two people with the strongest auras in the crowd, then instantly called out to the Fish-Man legion beside him.
"Understood, Boss Jinbe!"
Several thousand Fish-Men charged out in full force under the leadership of the Sun Pirates.
The huge waves on the surface of the sea did not seem to affect them much as ocean creatures, allowing them to move swiftly and freely amid the chaos.
As one fishing net after another fell, the human soldiers trapped in the water and unable to move freely were immediately scooped up by the Fish-Man legion and then thrown forcefully toward Laboon.
At this moment, Laboon had already opened his huge mouth, silently waiting for the Fish-Man legion's "feeding."
Although war was merciless, the kindhearted Straw Hat Pirates were still willing to give these pitiful soldiers a chance to live.
They would not directly slaughter the soldiers. Instead, they would gather them inside Laboon's inner world as prisoners.
Of course, if they refused to behave, then what awaited them would only be death.
As for the commanders and nobles above those soldiers?
Someone had to pay the price for a wrong decision, didn't they?
Whether or not they had acted against their will, since they had chosen to stand opposite the Straw Hat Pirates, it was equivalent to handing their lives over to the Straw Hat Pirates.
And all Red and the others could do was help them leave this world as cleanly as possible, washing away the sins on their bodies.
More than half an hour later, tens of thousands of naval soldiers had all been captured.
As for the commander and adjutant, the two of them forever sank into slumber in this sea, returning to nature.
Jinbe surveyed the surroundings and, after confirming there were no fish that had slipped through the net, nodded to the Fish-Man Pirates beside him and said:
"Move out. Head to the next location!"
…
…
At the same time.
Similar incidents were also occurring in other corners of the Pokémon Sea.
"Seriously, with this little strength, they dared send troops to punish us?"
"Are they looking down on the great Captain Usopp a little too much?"
On top of a massive rhinoceros beetle the size of an elephant, Usopp boredly wrinkled his nose. Looking at the Butterfree still continuously dropping Sleep Powder and Stun Spore from the sky, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
Although the technology of creating Pokémon through the power of wishes was not yet mature, thanks to Usopp's enormous investment and the cooperation of the Scientific Research Corps, he had still managed to pull together a Bug-type Pokémon army numbering over three thousand.
And just now, with only a thousand Butterfree at an average level of around 30, Usopp had easily wiped out a fleet of more than twenty thousand men.
Of course, although the Bug-type Pokémon army was indeed terrifying, this was already the result of Usopp holding back!
If he released all the combat insect swarms inside his body right now, those twenty thousand-plus soldiers might turn into a pile of bones in an instant.
Even the grand governor, who possessed a Zoan-type Devil Fruit power and whose strength was roughly equal to a pirate with a bounty of 300 million Beli, would not escape death.
Although…
They were supposed to meet death anyway.
Kindness should be sharp-edged, not foolish and dull.
Looking at the unconscious grand governor lying beneath him, a trace of pity flashed through Usopp's eyes. Still, he waved his hand without hesitation, directly summoning an insect with sword-like antennae. It stabbed into the grand governor's heart like a bolt of lightning.
Usopp was not someone who loved killing.
But he knew this was the most correct way to handle it.
…
…
"Disaster · Thunder Dance!"
Beneath a sky that had grown inexplicably dark, a gigantic bolt of lightning that seemed about to tear the heavens in half suddenly appeared.
Rumble!
Accompanied by a deafening roar, the lightning gathered within the dark clouds suddenly split into fourteen thick bolts of thunder, descending like giant pythons toward the sea below.
Under Nami's control, the fourteen invading warships did not even have time to take another breath of the Pokémon Sea's sweet air before they were electrocuted into blissful unconsciousness.
"Hmph~ You got off easy!"
Looking down at these people who had dared invade the Pokémon Sea, Nami was nowhere near as softhearted as Usopp.
If Red had not said that these people could be kept and sent to the moon as laborers to mine, she truly would have wanted to roast them all black with lightning.
In Nami's eyes, how were these people invaders? They were clearly robbers!
Just look at the direction they had chosen. A little farther ahead, and they would reach the warehouse island filled with precious resources.
If these soldiers had landed on that island and gone on a spree of destruction and looting, Nami would truly have wanted to die on the spot!
That was all money!
Endless money!
…
…
"Endless Mode · Full Firepower · Coup de Burst!"
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
A huge Gundam flying freely through the air using flame power suddenly struck an extremely shameful pose, and a massive cannon barrel extended from the middle of its backside.
In an instant, a terrifying blast of wind surged out, overturning twenty warships that had just been preparing to invade the Pokémon Sea.
…
…
"Thousand-Flower Eyes · Hypnosis!"
Rustle, rustle, rustle…
A huge tree formed from pale pink arms suddenly grew atop the central warship of the fleet.
The branches extending from that strange tree suddenly grew one glittering pink eye after another, looking at all the invaders in every direction without a single blind spot.
With a wave of energy, all the soldiers who looked over and saw those magnificent eyes instantly stiffened their legs and fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the ground.
Their sleep quality was excellent.
"W-witch!"
Just then, a faint curse suddenly rang out, drawing Robin's gaze over.
She saw a burly man staggering to his feet with difficulty, a heavy sword in hand, glaring viciously in Robin's direction.
There was no need to ask. This man was the highest commander of the fleet.
As for whether his insult had angered Robin, or whether Robin simply did not want to waste too many words…
Seeing the burly man appear before her without needing to search for him, Robin smiled gently. With a wave of her hand, she summoned two fair arms from the man's body, one above and one below, embracing his head.
"I hope you have a pleasant dream."
"Flower Burial · Thousand-Neck Clutch · Rend."
Crack!
With a crisp sound, the world once again became quiet.
(End of Chapter)