Chapter 277: The Foodie Unleashed! The Captain Sealed by Seawater and the World-Famous Prey
From the direction of the main gate of Ryugu Palace, a terrifying, earth-shaking explosion suddenly rang out.
Just as everyone in the plaza was thrown into shock and confusion by the sudden roar...
...the previously heavily guarded "Royal Kitchen" in the rear of Ryugu Palace was also significantly affected.
The violent tremors from the explosion spread through the foundation, causing the high-piled mountain of roasted meat in the kitchen to collapse instantly, leaving the surrounding kitchenware in a mess.
"Clatter—"
Accompanied by the sound of debris being pushed aside...
...a figure with a belly rounded like a large ball, still clutching two massive bone-in meat ribs in his hands, wobbled out from the greasy ruins.
Luffy desperately stuffed a piece of tender, juicy meat into his mouth while shouting with a face full of annoyance:
"Who is it?!"
"Who's making all this noise while someone's eating!"
"This is just so rude!"
He walked out through the wide corridor outside the kitchen in a huff, wanting to settle the score with the culprit who disturbed his meal.
However, as soon as Luffy turned a corner, he bumped head-on into a group of murderous invaders.
Leading them was the leader who had just used brute force to destroy the massive bubble defense outside Ryugu Palace and led the army of the New Fish-Man Pirates to charge in.
Hody Jones.
Hody immediately spotted a human appearing in the corridor ahead.
His eyes, which had become bloodshot and violent due to an overdose of "Energy Steroids," widened instantly.
The arrogance in his bones and his hatred for humans left him with no hesitation.
"Why is there an annoying human here?!
"Die, you inferior race!"
Hody roared, his thick arms suddenly exerting force as he swung the sharp trident in his hand.
Accompanied by a violent surge of water forcibly pulled along, he ruthlessly thrust it toward Luffy's head.
Facing this aggressive, fatal strike...
...Luffy just stood there, blinking his clear eyes.
He didn't even activate his pitch-black Armament Haki, and his left hand was still tightly gripping that large bone-in meat rib.
Just as the trident was about to hit him, Luffy simply tilted his head casually, easily dodging the sharp attack by a hair's breadth.
Then, his right hand naturally formed a fist and swung forward lightly, as if shooing away a bothersome fly.
"Bam!"
A dull thud of flesh hitting flesh echoed in the corridor.
Hody Jones, who had been incredibly arrogant just a moment ago and considered himself the savior of the Fishman race, felt an irresistible and terrifying monstrous force hit his chest.
His entire body was sent flying backward instantly like a heavy cannonball!
"Boom! Boom!"
With two loud crashes, Hody's strong body smashed through two thick coral walls behind him, falling miserably onto the ground amidst rubble and dust.
Luffy stood in place, swallowing the chewed-up roast meat in his mouth and tilting his head slightly.
He looked at Hody in the distant ruins, who was covered in blood and struggling to get up, and asked with a bewildered face:
"Old man, who are you?"
Hody, who had been knocked to the ground, widened his eyes in utter disbelief.
He was the supreme leader of the New Fish-Man Pirates; he had taken so many Energy Steroids that his strength had long surpassed that of ordinary people.
Yet now, he had been casually sent flying by a random nobody with a simple punch!
To him, this was an indelible humiliation!
Hody wiped the blood from his forehead and pointed at Luffy in a fit of rage, roaring frantically at his subordinates behind him:
"What are you all standing there for?!"
"Get him! Kill him! Mince him into meat sauce!"
Hearing their leader's command, dozens of Fishman officers, also with bloodshot eyes, let out beast-like roars.
They brandished swords and hammers, rushing toward the lone Luffy like a tide.
Facing this pack of wolf-like enemies, Luffy remained calm and composed.
He chewed on his meat rib while weaving through the frenzied Fishmen as if taking a stroll in a garden.
"Too slow."
Luffy punched and kicked at will; every seemingly ordinary strike carried a heart-stopping force.
Accompanied by a series of screams, these ferocious Fishman officers were all easily knocked into the air like bowling pins, crashing heavily against the walls and losing consciousness.
Just as Luffy clapped his hands and prepared to step forward to finish off the leader, Hody...
...a roar of rushing water suddenly came from the outskirts.
It turned out that because Hody had violently destroyed the bubble shield around Ryugu Palace earlier, the gap was growing larger and larger.
At this moment, a massive amount of cold, heavy deep-sea water poured into the corridors of Ryugu Palace like a burst dam.
The cold seawater rushed in, instantly covering Luffy's knees and quickly rising to submerge his waist.
"Ah..."
As a Devil Fruit user, once in contact with such a large amount of seawater, the curse of the sea took effect immediately.
Luffy's strength vanished without a trace, like a balloon being suddenly punctured.
Luffy's legs gave way, and he knelt powerless in the cold water with a splash.
But he still stubbornly pressed the Straw Hat on his head with one hand, looked up at Hody, who had just regained his footing nearby, and asked that question again with a weak but persistent voice:
"I said..."
"Old man... you bastard, who the hell are you?"
Hody had originally felt lingering fear toward the terrifying strength Luffy had just displayed.
But now, seeing this human who was clearly weak and on the ground yet still completely ignored his identity...
...Hody's twisted pride took this as a massive insult to the supreme leader of the Fishman race.
He gripped his trident again and strode over to Luffy.
Looking at Luffy, who had lost his ability to resist due to the seawater, Hody let out a mocking sneer from above:
"Hmph! As expected, a superficial and disgusting inferior human!
"Weren't you very arrogant just now?"
"Once submerged in the seawater that we Fishman depend on for survival..."
"...you ability users can only crawl on the ground as miserably as a dead dog!"
Just as a cruel murderous intent flashed in Hody's eyes and he raised his trident high, preparing to step forward and finish off this human...
...the gaze of one of the Fishman officers who had rushed in with him was fixed firmly on the Straw Hat on Luffy's head.
That subordinate seemed to recall a terrifying scene; he trembled all over and pointed at Luffy in the water, shouting:
"Ho... Hody-boss! W-wait a minute!"
"I recognize him! That iconic Straw Hat!"
"He's Luffy!"
"The one from the Worst Generation who caused an uproar in the Marineford War two years ago—Straw Hat Luffy!!!"
As the seawater continued to pour in, the cold water had completely covered Luffy's chest.
The curse of the sea had caused him to completely lose his last bit of resistance.
He powerlessly blew a few bubbles in the water, his eyes gradually becoming glazed, yet he still declared his unwavering dream with that weak voice:
"Ah..."
"I am Monkey D. Luffy..."
"The man who will become the Pirate King..."
"Glug glug..."
After saying this, Luffy's eyes rolled back, and he completely fainted in the water that had submerged his body.
Hearing the famous name "Straw Hat Luffy," Hody's movement of raising the trident suddenly stopped mid-air.
He lowered his head and stared fixedly at the young human who had completely passed out in the water.
His brain, severely eroded by the Energy Steroids and already somewhat out of control, was instantly filled with an unprecedented arrogance and ambition after a brief moment of shock.
The corners of Hody's mouth, filled with sharp teeth, curled up frantically, reaching all the way to his ears.
He immediately realized that heaven had sent him a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
If he only succeeded in executing King Neptune here today...
...in the eyes of the outside world, it would at most be considered an internal coup on Fish-Man Island, and wouldn't cause much of a stir.
But!
If he could publicly execute a representative of the "Worst Generation" here—someone who even the World Government and Marineford had headaches over!
This would definitely be like a heavy bomb, causing a massive sensation throughout the world!
This would be the perfect stepping stone to demonstrate Hody Jones's terrifying power to all of humanity...
...and to prove that the Fishman race is the supreme race in this world!
Hody took a step forward, reached out his thick hand, and grabbed Luffy's collar, roughly lifting the unconscious rubber man.
He turned around, facing all the members of the New Fish-Man Pirates who were in a state of frenzy, and let out an extremely arrogant and mad laugh:
"Hahahaha! So it's him!
"Truly, you can search far and wide only to find it by chance!
"The so-called Worst Generation pirate is nothing more than this in the face of seawater!"
Hody held the unconscious Luffy high with one hand, as if displaying a rare trophy, and roared loudly to all his compatriots:
"Straw Hat Luffy!!
"Since you were willing to throw away your life to save your brother who was about to be executed in the Marineford War two years ago..."
"...then today, you shall take his place and taste what it's like to be executed!"
"I will do it in front of all Fish-Man Island! No! The entire world!!"
"I will publicly execute you in front of the whole world!"
"I will use your head, a head of the Worst Generation, as the bloody prelude to a full-scale war against hypocritical humanity by our noble Fishman race!"
"Cheer for me! Cheer for Hody Jones!"
"Long live the Fishmen!"
Hearing Hody's inflammatory and violent fanatic declaration...
...the Fishman pirates around him, whose eyes were blinded by hatred, immediately felt as if they had been given a shot of adrenaline.
They frantically raised their blood-stained weapons and let out a series of deafening, fanatical cheers:
"Oh!!! Boss Hody is wise!"
"Public execution! Long live the Fishmen!"
"Let all of humanity tremble beneath our feet!"
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