Chapter 137
[Fish-Man Island, Waterwheel Town; July 8th, 1522]
Quiet.
That was how Rowan assessed the island upon taking a step forward.
Peaceful scenery with interesting-looking coral buildings, the space above that is illuminated by the Sunlight Tree Eve's roots. Strangely enough, there was no inhabitant to be seen nearby.
And most of all,
"Oh, a waterwheel?" Alfred exclaimed knowingly.
In the center of this village, there lied a huge waterwheel that continued to spin non-stop. As it did so, the creaking sounds were heard in the ears of all pirates within the area.
"Spin..."
With their eyes locked onto the spinning waterwheel, Rowan, Nojiko, and Nami turned solemn.
'Mr. Genzo.'
A kind sheriff who took care of Rowan in his deceased parents' stead. He always wore a pinwheel on his hat ever since Nami was frightened by his visage.
Rowan couldn't help but sigh as he turned his eyes upward, where another location encased by the smaller bubble, Ryugu Palace, could be seen to be sitting right above the Fish-Man Island.
"Hey, Rowan... are you alright?" Carina asked with a concern written on her face.
Turning his head, Rowan gave a weak smile to Carina.
"Yeah, don't worry about me."
What has already happened cannot be changed. Mr. Genzo fought bravely against the Arlong pirates until the end.
Revenge? Perhaps. However, killing those innocent inhabitants of this island wasn't an act of revenge. It was a massacre.
There were only two people for him to look for: Hatchan and Chew, the two fish-men among three, including Kuroobi, who managed to escape from Cocoyasi. Depending on how they behave, Rowan's decision will vary.
Having calmed himself down, Rowan voiced out,
"Spread out and gather the information. One thing to note, however, is my plead to you."
The captains of the other four crews listened. Although Rowan said the word 'plead,' his tone was domineering as if he won't accept any refusal.
Their statuses were supposed to be equal, but no one seemed to be questioning Rowan's attitude.
"Do not plunder or kill from the innocents. Leave the weak alone, unless they acted upon you first."
After all, he was always counteractive. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth... in most of the cases. As long as they respect him, so will he.
"If someone goes against this request of mine, consider my alliance with you and your crew over."
_____________
[Fish-Man District; approximately 1 hour later]
"What do you think, captain?"
A member of the On Air pirates asked after looking to his left and right, "Can Grimheart really defeat Kaidou?"
Apoo placed his hand on his chin playfully, before lowering it back down and stating,
"Nope!"
While he loved partying, this was this, and that was that.
"In the end, he's just like us, the rookies! He never set a foot onto the New World—"
"Uh, captain?" The other member of the crew raised his hand up questioningly, "Grimheart demolished the whole Enies Lobby and killed Kizaru. Shouldn't that be enough?"
"...You idiot!"
Apoo angrily shouted as the sound wave blasted out of him, before exploding onto his crew member weakly.
"Ow..."
Holding his bruised cheek, the crew member whimpered.
"The Emperor that these fools are trying to face is none other than the Strongest Creature of the World!! Do you think with just four rookies and one totally useless crew of those cats, we can win?!!"
Apoo barked in a cold sweat.
"If only they didn't seize our ship, I wouldn't even have dared to show my face in front of Grimheart!"
"Then... what should we do now?" Hearing Apoo's response, the third member of the crew asked with growing anxiety.
"Simple." Apoo chuckled while wiping his sweat, "We are already in this tide, so escape is not an option. If we can't defeat Kaidou... join him."
"""...How?"""
"Apapapa! Have you forgotten what my devil fruit is?! I can send an extremely long sound wave without a problem!"
"Oh, you are so smart, captain!"
Apoo lifted his chin up proudly, "Apapa! Of course, what else is there to expect from your captain—"
"Hey captain, I am getting freaky here."
The fifth member of the crew, a woman, commented while rubbing her arms with a pale face,
"Is it only me who noticed these fish-men all around?!"
"Eh?" Hearing her words, Apoo's eyes inspected his surrounding.
Eventually, he too turned pale,
"W-what happened here?!"
The whole area was filled with a mix of dead and heavily injured fish-men all around them. Some were gazing at them with fear, while some others were glaring murderously.
"S-s***, did they hear all?!!" Apoo shouted in panic as he jumped up and down, before ordering his crew, "Kill them all!!! Leave no witness alive!! If someone spills to Grimheart, we're screwed!!!"
"No need."
All of a sudden, a familiar voice was heard from their back.
"I've heard each and every single word that you sprouted out... from the very start."
Turning around, Apoo saw none other than Law, who was grinning with his hand holding onto his hat.
"Trafalgar Law!!"
Apoo exclaimed in shock.
"Unfortunately for you, Scratchmen Apoo, I can't have Grimheart fail. Since you've betrayed us... you and your crew are our enemies now." Law raised his hand up,
"Room."
_____________
[Coral Hill]
"We meet again, Jewelry Bonney."
Within the colourful scenery where the Mermaid Café sat right behind, Capone Bege and his crew were seen to have occupied the area.
"Although we have no idea why those merfolks all moved to Gyoncorde Plaza all of a sudden, your arrival does make me speculate..."
Bege, with a cigar in his mouth, said thoughtfully,
"Trafalgar Law. It must be about his arrival."
After all, due to their encounter last time where Law was spectating the fight between Bege and Bonney, Bege came to believe that there was a connection between the two of them. This was due to his flaw of tending to overthink—one of the downsides of being intelligent.
Moreover, he was oblivious to the fact of the pirate alliance, as well as Kizaru's death. After all, immediately after hearing Rowan's arrival, he and his crew fled to the Fish-Man Island.
Their stay was prolonged simply due to the huge battle between the Phoenix pirates and Douglas Bullet. They had to stay hidden for a while.
"Huh?! What's he got to do with me?!" Bonney, with her eyebrow raised, growled in annoyance.
"C-captain! Grimheart told us not to—"
"Hey!" Bonney interrupted her crew member, "Those Fire Tank pirates are anything but innocent!! Are you telling me to let them go?! For what?!!"
"Haa..." The crew member backed off, "At least I tried."
The other members of the crew patted the former's back.
Bege's eyes narrowed before taking out the pistol from his holster,
"It seems that you didn't learn your lesson the last time."
_____________
[Area Near the Fish Bus Stop]
"'Cat Swinder' Nojiko, as well as 'Cat Burglar' Nami."
Sitting on top of coral rock, Basil Hawkins stated in a monotone.
"Choosing this location had the highest chance of survival."
However, while saying so, Hawkins grimaced on the inside.
'According to my tarot a few days ago... our chance of survival in the other cases is only 0.05%. However, against the Twin Cats pirates... 15%.'
Hawkin escaped from Sabaody Archipelago to evade Rowan, but was unexpectedly stuck in the Fish-Man Island for a quite long amount of time, for he never expected to have arrived during the devastating battle between Douglas Bullet and the Phoenix pirates.
Technically, he and his crew were sandwiched between two powerhouses.
'Although I have no idea why the chances are so low here...'
He didn't know the recent formation of the pirate alliance just like Bege, and hence, had no idea that Rowan too just arrived here. After all, all residents have evacuated elsewhere; he had no way to acquire the recent news.
"...'Magician' Basil Hawkins."
Nojiko remarked in a cold tone.
"Seems that you know me." Hawkins stated impassively before taking his tarot cards out.
"The probability of you two attacking me before I can draw more than one card..."
Hawking stated as he selected one card out and inspected it,
"...99.68%."
And just as he said so, he jumped back to dodge a pale-green flame that Nojiko shot toward him.
"Whatever your ability may be, don't think we're idiotic enough to stand still and do nothing."
Nojiko snarled as her hands turned into cat paws.
"Compared to those sea creatures... super rookies? Hah, not scary at all!"
Nami spun her bo-staff above her head skillfully, ready for the combat.
___________
[Gyoncorde Plaza]
Gyoncorde Plaza. This area is the center of Fish-Man Island, as well as the landmark where the now-deceased queen, Otohime, was giving a speech 8 years ago.
At the current moment, the whole place was dead silent.
Was it due to the lack of people? No. Instead, there was an incredible number of merfolks and fish-men standing at one corner of the area. In front of them, king Neptune, three princes, and their royal army were seen to be gazing at the front with a mix of caution and nervousness.
"H-hey, what's going on?!" One merfolk whispered in confusion.
"How slow are you?!!" While shivering in fear, another merfolk responded, "It's that Grimheart that Hachi warned us of! The victim of the very village that the fish-men killed!!"
"Hm..." Neptune, grimacing as he gazed at the back, spoke up firmly, "don't waver, all of you! No matter what happens, I am not letting a single one of you die before me!"
And just as Neptune said so, the Grimheart pirates were seen to be walking toward the plaza.
"For an hour, I thought that Fish-Man Island was a ghost city." Dan muttered.
At some distance back, Rowan's expressions turned stoic as they sighted the huge number of fish-men among the group. It reminded him of the time in the Cocoyasi. But nonetheless, he steeled his resolve.
"Greetings," Stopping right in front of king Neptune, Rowan stated.
<Greetings, humans.>
In Rowan's mind, the moment where he first encountered Arlong and his pirates was being replayed.
"...humans."
After a momentarily pause, Rowan managed to mutter the word out.
Those who live under the surface too are human beings. If he acts upon his hatred, what difference will there be between him and Arlong?
<From today on, I, Arlong, am the king of this land!>
"We came here in peace."
<As the owner, whoever lives here must pay the rent, 50 thousand Beli for each child and 100 thousand Beli for each adult!!>
"Poneglyph, ship coating, and... a personal matter. As long as these three conditions are taken care of, we will leave immediately."
Rowan, his eyes staring at the king Neptune with an adamant will, stated sincerely.
"...How do we trust you?"
Slowly, in a cold sweat, king Neptune spoke up.
"I know how it feels to be in your shoes."
Behind Neptune and his army, Rowan came to sight one family shaking in fear. The parents were seen to be holding their children as a subconscious act to protect them, out of love.
Rowan still remembered that day when he lost his whole family.
'It must be scary. It must be frightening. The thought of someone close to you getting brutally murdered for no particular reason... it must be unbearable.'
Although he was the cold-blooded murderer of many, he couldn't afford to act upon the violence today.
Without any more words, Rowan and Neptune locked their eyes against one another.
Within the tense atmosphere, everything seemed to be quiet, until...
"Haa..." Neptune sighed in relief as he lowered his trident, "Come. I will show you the way to the Poneglyph."
Having reminded himself of his deceased wife, queen Otohime's words, Neptune decided to place his trust in the humans in front of him.
_____________
[Sea Forest]
"I apologize for the previous hostility." As the giant fish carrying Neptune and his three princes landed, Neptune stated seriously, "We've been having the worst year, with an increased number of pirates who inflict harm upon my people. After hearing just what you've suffered against my kind, as well as your well-known strength, we couldn't help but get cautious of you... even though you were known to have helped Whitebeard-san in the Marineford."
*Splash*
Simultaneously, Prominence descended from the air above and landed on the water.
"...I'm fine with that." Rowan responded before asking, "So this is where the Poneglyph lies?"
"Right in the forest over there. The coating mechanic named Den lives here as well." Neptune took a deep breath before stating, "And as for your personal matter... I presume that it's about Hatchan and Chew, who were part of the Arlong pirates years ago.
Chew was killed by a man named Douglas Bullet a few days ago, but Hatchen is in there with the Phoenix pirates."
Rowan's eyes widened, but quickly calmed down before nodding,
"I give you my gratitude."
Rowan jumped off of the Prominence, to which his crew member all followed suit without a word.
"Carmen, Dan, and Cavendish." Without turning back, Rowan spoke up to his crew members, "Law and Apoo are fighting. Nojiko and Bonney ran into some troubles. Go resolve the situations for me, will you?"
Somehow, Rowan managed to see through it all with his Observation Haki.
The three of them nodded,
"Roger that."
"Got it, captain."
"Guahaha, leave it to me!"
With the three of them flashing out by turning into their respective elements, Rowan and the rest of the crew walked into the forest.
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