"What exactly is going on here…?"
Standing atop the wall, Jin frowned as he looked down at the city below.
Everywhere he looked…
Women.
Nothing but women.
Did he really end up in a nation of women?
Or maybe the men lived somewhere else on the island?
After thinking for a moment, Jin decided to investigate personally.
Using the Transformation Jutsu, he turned himself into a woman and changed his clothes to match the island's style.
"This way nobody will notice anything strange."
After inspecting his disguise with satisfaction, he jumped down from the wall.
Once he landed, Jin began observing his surroundings carefully.
Honestly, the island itself looked pretty nice.
Although…
The women here dressed far more boldly than he was used to, which made him feel slightly awkward.
After wandering around for a while, Jin arrived at a conclusion.
"…There really aren't any men here."
Looking at the crowd in the streets, he frowned internally.
"A place like this actually exists in the world?"
"A literal Land of Women?"
"What exactly did Kuma send us to…?"
"If Sanji ended up here instead…"
"He'd probably lose his mind from happiness."
The thought made the corners of Jin's lips rise unconsciously.
He could already imagine Sanji screaming in rage later.
("DAMN YOU, Jin! WHY DID YOU GET SENT TO A COUNTRY FULL OF WOMEN?!")
"Pfft…"
Jin failed to hold back his laughter.
After calming himself down, he continued strolling through the city.
"Come take a look!"
"Freshly butchered Sea King meat! Anyone interested?"
"Fresh fruit! Fresh fruit!"
"They even sell Sea King meat here…"
Jin muttered softly.
"Interesting."
This island's military strength clearly wasn't weak.
Otherwise there was no way they'd be hunting Sea Kings.
Thinking that, he glanced at the woman selling the meat.
That muscular build alone was honestly terrifying.
"Want some Sea King meat?" the woman asked.
Jin shook his head.
He still had an entire chopped-up Sea King stored inside his sealing scrolls anyway.
Thankfully it was sealed properly—
Otherwise it probably would've spoiled after three days.
"Not buying?"
The woman nodded and continued shouting at other customers.
"Hey! Want to try some fruit?"
Another woman called out cheerfully while holding several fruits toward him.
"They were picked fresh today!"
Jin examined the fruit silently.
"…Never seen this kind before."
He honestly wanted to taste them.
But to avoid unnecessary trouble, he chose not to speak and simply waved politely before leaving.
The fruit seller blinked in confusion.
"That's strange…"
"Why doesn't that child speak?"
Earlier, the meat seller asked her something and she didn't answer.
Now she ignored her too.
Could it be…
"She can't talk?"
"A mute child…?"
Thinking that, the woman immediately felt pity for Jin.
"Wait a second! I'll give you some for free!"
The woman turned around to grab several fruits.
But by the time she looked back—
Jin had already disappeared.
"Huh?"
"Where'd she go?"
"She was trying to give me fruit?"
Walking farther away, Jin scratched his head.
"…Did I just meet a genuinely nice person?"
This island really was strange.
After leaving the market district, Jin finally stopped.
Glancing toward the nearby forest, he thought for a moment.
"…I should ask someone directly."
Looking at a woman walking nearby, he spoke.
"Hey. Excuse me."
"Hm?"
The woman subconsciously looked toward him.
Then her gaze locked onto his Sharingan.
"These eyes are—"
Before she could finish the thought—
Two massive crimson eyes seemed to appear before her.
"Illusion Technique: Sharingan."
SHING.
The light vanished from her eyes instantly.
She was completely under Jin's control.
"Come with me."
"Yes."
After bringing her into the forest, Jin asked:
"What place is this? Why are there only women here?"
"This is Amazon Lily."
"The nation on this island is called Amazon Lily."
"It is a country inhabited entirely by women."
Jin froze.
So it really was a Land of Women?!
A place like this actually existed in the world of One Piece?
How did they even survive?
For pirates—
Wouldn't an island like this basically be paradise?
Would they really leave this place alone?
As if reading his thoughts, the woman explained:
"That's because the island lies within the Calm Belt."
"It is surrounded by nests of Sea Kings."
"Outsiders cannot reach this place."
"The Calm Belt…"
"Sea King nests…"
Jin rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"No wonder this island survived."
This was basically another isolationist nation like Wano.
Completely cut off from the outside world.
Which meant pirates rarely even discovered it—
Much less invaded it.
The world really was fascinating.
"If I remember correctly…"
"Luffy and the others once entered the Calm Belt before."
The Sea Kings there had all been thousands of meters long.
This place was probably similar.
"If necessary…"
"I could always control a Sea King and leave that way."
With the power of his Mangekyo Sharingan, controlling a giant Sea King probably wouldn't be difficult.
Of course—
That was only the last resort.
If possible, Jin still wanted to secure an actual ship.
After all, the journey back to Sabaody would take time.
Luffy could probably survive hanging from the sky for three days straight without issue.
Merry definitely could not.
"Does this island have ships?" Jin asked.
"Yes."
"There are ships?!"
Jin's eyes lit up.
"Where?"
If they had a ship, everything became simple.
He could even buy one if necessary.
Worst case, Shakky could help settle the matter later.
Actually—
He still needed to contact Shakky and let her know they were safe.
That way Silvers Rayleigh could focus on coating the Sunny without worrying.
"Our entire island only has one pirate ship."
"The Nine Snake."
"It belongs to Snake Princess-sama."
"The Kuja Pirates use it when they leave the island to hunt."
"Hunt?"
Jin blinked.
So this island actually possessed a method to cross the Calm Belt?
Then their ship probably used paddle wheels like the Sunny.
"Snake Princess-sama is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
"She possesses the legal right to plunder."
"Another Warlord…?"
Jin frowned.
Did the Straw Hats accidentally enter some kind of Warlord nest?
Why had they encountered so many Shichibukai within only a few months?
"She became one in order to protect this nation," the woman explained.
"Snake Princess-sama is our empress."
"She accepted the World Government's offer for the sake of her people."
Jin paused.
So there was a reason like that.
To protect her citizens, she willingly became a dog of the World Government…
She really was different from the other Warlords.
"…Speaking of which…"
"Why did Kuma become a Warlord?"
Robin once mentioned Kuma was the most obedient among the Seven Warlords.
But after everything he'd done—
That didn't feel true at all.
At minimum—
He disobeyed the World Government by sparing them.
And he even saved them at Sabaody.
"If I get the chance…"
"I'll talk with him properly."
Though…
Would they even meet again?
Once again, Kuma's final words echoed in his mind.
("Farewell.")
That sentence still bothered him deeply.
"Where is your empress right now?" Jin asked.
"I don't know."
"You don't know?"
"Snake Princess-sama has already gone out to sea."
"As for when she'll return…"
"I'm only an ordinary citizen."
"I'm not even qualified to become a warrior of the Kuja Pirates."
"So naturally, I don't know her schedule."
"I see…"
Jin frowned.
Makes sense.
As the ruler of an entire nation, her whereabouts would obviously be confidential.
After thinking briefly, he asked:
"Then is there anyone who would know?"
If nobody knew—
Then he'd have no choice but to leave by riding a Sea King with Luffy and Merry.
Though after several days under the sun and wind…
He wasn't sure Merry could endure it.
"You could ask Elder Nyon," the woman replied.
"She's the most respected elder on the island."
"She might know."
"Elder Nyon…"
The woman then explained where Elder Nyon's house was located and described her appearance.
"As for whether she's currently home… I'm not sure."
"Alright. Thanks for the information."
"You may go."
Without another word, the woman turned and walked back toward town.
Once she returned to the street—
Her eyes regained focus.
"…Huh?"
"That's strange…"
"Did someone call out to me just now?"
She looked around in confusion.
But finding nothing unusual, she shrugged it off.
"Must've been my imagination."
"Time to buy groceries~"
"Maybe I'll grab some fresh Sea King meat!"
Soon, she happily disappeared into the crowd.
Meanwhile, Jin silently stood atop a rooftop, watching her leave.
"One of the Seven Warlords…"
"I wonder what kind of person she is."
After muttering softly, he turned his gaze toward Elder Nyon's district.
A moment later, he headed there.
Unfortunately—
After searching the area, he failed to find her.
"Went out, huh…"
Looks like he'd need to search elsewhere.
After thinking for a moment, Jin formed several Shadow Clones and sent them out in different directions.
One clone was specifically dispatched to check on Luffy and Merry.
Watching them disappear, Jin sighed.
"I just hope Luffy didn't cause trouble while I was gone…"
Meanwhile—
"WAHHHH!!"
"Luffy, what happened to you?!"
"Don't scare me!!"
Merry cried loudly while staring at Luffy in horror.
His entire body was covered in mushrooms.
Just moments ago they'd been laughing together while eating mushrooms—
So why was he suddenly turning into a walking fungus garden?!
Was he dying?!
At that moment, several women rushed over from the forest.
"What happened?!"
"There's a child here!"
"Kid, are you okay?"
"Don't be afraid. We're villagers. We won't hurt you," said Marguerite gently.
"Villagers…?"
Merry blinked.
Did Jin send them?
"…Wait."
"Why is this child covered in mushrooms?!"
One of the women stared in shock.
Looking at the mushroom in Luffy's hand, Marguerite immediately realized something.
"She ate this mushroom?"
"This is a Body-Growing Mushroom…"
"Hurry!"
"We need treatment immediately!"
"If left untreated, it'll absorb all her life force and kill her!"
Merry barely understood the explanation.
But she clearly understood the word die.
"…You can save him?!"
"Of course!"
Marguerite smiled warmly.
"We can't ignore children from our village."
Merry almost admitted they weren't actually villagers—
But swallowed the words.
Luffy needed help first.
"Aphlandra, carry the child back to the village."
"We'll get Doctor Belladonna."
"As the island's doctor, she'll definitely know what to do."
"Right!"
The giant woman, Aphlandra, lifted Luffy easily and headed toward the village.
Meanwhile, Merry was carried gently in Marguerite's arms.
"Let's go."
Marguerite smiled kindly.
She couldn't understand why children this young were wandering through dangerous forests alone.
Where were their parents?
At that moment, Merry suddenly spotted Jin standing silently on a tree branch nearby.
Her eyes immediately brightened.
"Xiya—"
Before she could speak, Jin raised a finger to his lips.
Don't say anything.
Since these women could save Luffy, it was best to let them handle it.
After all—
Even Jin had never seen a bizarre mushroom illness like this before.
Merry nodded obediently and closed her eyes.
As long as Jin was nearby—
Everything felt safe.
"Hm?"
"What is it?"
Marguerite looked upward curiously but saw nothing strange.
What had the child been staring at?
"…Nothing."
Merry shook her head.
"Big sister… please save Luffy quickly."
"So Luffy is this child's name…"
"Don't worry!"
"We'll save him!"
"Hurry! Back to the village!"
"Right!"
Watching them leave, Jin rubbed his chin.
"Body-Growing Mushroom…"
"What a painfully literal name."
Seriously—
What went through Luffy's head before eating random dangerous mushrooms?
Did that idiot genuinely never worry about poisoning himself?
Good thing Merry didn't keep eating them too.
Otherwise they'd both be suffering right now.
Sighing quietly, Jin followed after them without making a sound.
Hopefully after this lesson…
That idiot would think twice before eating random things next time.
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