Rorschach halted his steps, frowning as he looked toward the sea ahead. A pitch-black slave ship was sailing straight toward them.
The reason both he and Zephyr could immediately recognize it as a Celestial Dragon's slave ship was because these vessels — assigned specifically to capture slaves for the Celestial Dragons — always flew a distinctive flag.
That flag, and the emblem upon it, was a nightmare to countless people across the world — the mark everyone feared most.
It was the Heavenly Dragon's Hoof, the exclusive slave brand of the Celestial Dragons.
Anyone branded with this symbol could never escape the fate of slavery. Even if they managed to flee, these ships could appear at any time to drag them back into hell.
And now, the black ship drawing closer had that dreadful flag billowing at its masthead.
By this time, everyone else on deck had also noticed the rapidly approaching vessel, their faces turning pale.
"The Celestial Dragon scum… what the hell are they doing here? Coming for us? Are they tired of living?" Garp sneered, cursing without hesitation.
Cobra and Poplar both stiffened but remained relatively calm, assuming the ship might be a welcoming escort from the Holy Land.
But Neptune and Shark Star's faces changed drastically. As if realizing something terrible, they shouted in unison:
"Shirahoshi! Get inside the cabin! Don't come out unless you hear our voices!"
Shirahoshi blinked, confused, not understanding why her father and brothers were suddenly so tense.
Still, she obediently flicked her pink tail and turned toward the ship's cabin.
"What's going on, Shirahoshi?"
Hibari and Vivi emerged from inside, meeting her on the way with puzzled expressions.
Shirahoshi shook her head timidly. "I don't know. A ship came… Father told me to hide in the cabin."
"A ship came and he told you to hide?" Vivi frowned in confusion. "But you're the princess of the Ryugu Kingdom — who would dare harm you here?"
"I don't know…" Shirahoshi murmured softly.
Outside, the all-black ship — even its sails were black — had already drawn within a hundred meters.
At such a short distance, Rorschach and the others could clearly see several burly men aboard, each holding an image transponder snail aimed directly at them — aimed at Shirahoshi.
"It's an image transponder snail," Zephyr said coldly.
Before anyone could question further, voices came from the black ship — fawning and arrogant all at once.
"Saint Charlmaco, look! That's her — the legendary most beautiful woman in the world, the mermaid princess. Are you satisfied?"
"Saint Sotoris, yes, that's her — the mermaid princess of Ryugu Kingdom with the pink tail. No problem! We'll capture her right now and bring her to the Holy Land. Then you nobles can conduct your friendly little auction as usual."
As the voices carried over the sea, Rorschach, Garp, Zephyr, and the others all grew expressionless — their faces cold as steel.
"Tch. Disgusting trash," Law muttered, gripping his sword Kikoku.
"Rorschach-san, they're… trying to take Shirahoshi? What a joke! She's a royal princess here for the World Conference! Where do they get the gall to do this?" Hibari clenched her fists in fury.
"Vice Admiral Rorschach, Vice Admiral Garp, Admiral Zephyr — what… what do we do?" Neptune stammered, trembling.
He could hardly believe what he was hearing. Those words from across the water shattered his final illusion.
If he'd known it would come to this, he'd never have brought Shirahoshi to the surface.
"Don't worry, King Neptune," Rorschach said, stepping forward to the railing, folding his arms. His voice was icy calm. "As long as I'm here, no one will take Shirahoshi."
"No one can oppose the Celestial Dragons, Vice Admiral Rorschach…" Neptune's voice quavered. "I don't want the Navy to be dragged into trouble because of us. I'll take Shirahoshi back to Fish-Man Island — we won't attend the conference."
"I said," Rorschach interrupted firmly, "no one will take Shirahoshi. Not even God Himself."
On the slave ship, confusion broke out.
"Saint Freya, the live image feed—huh? Why did the transmission cut out?"
"The transponder snails aren't responding either. What's happening?"
No matter how they fiddled, none of the transponder snails worked.
They didn't notice that the air above the surrounding sea had filled with faint, invisible threads of electricity.
Zephyr glanced at Rorschach's expression — calm, deadly cold — and silently moved forward to stand protectively before Shirahoshi.
The slavers, frustrated by the technical failure, finally grew impatient. Throwing aside their snails, they picked up heavy weapons and shouted toward Rorschach's ship:
"Forget the snails! Catching the mermaid princess comes first! Hey, Navy! By the decree of the great Celestial Dragons, hand her over immediately!"
Vivi was stunned, crying out, "What did you say?! You want to capture Shirahoshi? Are you insane? She's the princess of a member kingdom — a guest of the World Government! Who gave you the right to enslave her?!"
"Princess of a member nation?" The slavers looked at one another — and burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! What's a princess worth? Being chosen as a Celestial Dragon's slave is the greatest honor anyone can have — even a king! Princess? Don't make us laugh! There are a hundred princesses in this world. The fact that several nobles desire this mermaid is her good fortune!"
"Silence!" Hibari shouted, glaring. "The World Government would never permit such madness! To attack a member nation's royal during the World Conference — is this what your so-called equality and harmony among races looks like?"
"Equality?" one of the slavers sneered. "Oh, we never said everyone was unequal. You might see yourselves as equals to fish, but the Celestial Dragons are not humans — they're gods. Under the gods, everyone is equal. That's their mercy to you. So…"
His voice turned chilling as his eyes locked on Hibari. "Don't get in the way, girl. Otherwise, we'll capture you too. Heh… with looks like yours, the nobles would love you."
"You…!" Hibari's body trembled in rage, her teeth grinding audibly.
"Should we fight them?" Zoro asked, gripping Shusui and glaring coldly at the approaching ship. "Let me cut a few of them."
"Are you crazy? They serve the Celestial Dragons! Stop! This isn't something we can interfere in — Vice Admiral Rorschach will handle it!" Cera cried, dragging Zoro back.
"Father, brother… I-I'm scared…" Shirahoshi whimpered, her face pale as she saw the slavers' ferocious expressions and weapons trained on her. Tears welled in her eyes.
"Don't be afraid, Shirahoshi! It'll be okay — Rorschach won't let them succeed!" Hibari said softly, standing in front of her.
"Right! As long as Rorschach is here, no one can hurt you!" Vivi added.
"Rorschach?" The slavers, hearing that name, turned their attention toward him.
The leader — a five-meter-tall giant wielding a massive net — grinned. "So, you're Vice Admiral Rorschach? Good. Capture the mermaid yourself, then. The Celestial Dragons have spoken highly of you lately. Please them, and your 'Vice Admiral Candidate' title might just get promoted—"
His words died in his throat.
Because he saw Rorschach's eyes — cold, sharp, deadly.
"Are you… teaching me what to do?"
The world itself seemed to answer.
Wind howled. Rorschach's coat whipped violently behind him as an overwhelming aura erupted like a crashing mountain.
A terrifying Conqueror's Haki storm surged outward, sweeping across the entire black ship in an instant.
Within seconds, 99% of the armed slavers collapsed where they stood, foaming at the mouth.
The few still conscious were dazed, their minds blank.
Before they could recover, Rorschach thrust out his right hand, fingers splaying — then lifted them sharply.
"Splash!"
Massive waves rose, drawn by invisible force. The seawater twisted upward like a reversed waterfall, engulfing the slave ship in a vast sphere a hundred meters wide.
"Kirin Might — Abyssal Burial!"
Rorschach clenched his fist.
"Boom!"
The enormous sphere compressed violently.
Tens of thousands of tons of seawater collapsed inward, the crushing pressure obliterating everything inside. The black ship shattered apart, bodies and metal alike crushed into unrecognizable pulp.
Then Rorschach turned his hand over and pressed down.
The sea below split open like a giant maw, swallowing the blood-red sphere into the depths.
A passing Sea King, sensing the scent of blood, opened its massive jaws — and devoured it whole.
When it was done, Rorschach turned back to the stunned crowd behind him.
"Let's go," he said calmly. "We're heading to the Holy Land."
(End of Chapter)
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