"Bluu! Bluu! Bluu!"
Just then, the sound of a Den Den Mushi echoed through the hall.
Kuzan raised an eyebrow and pulled a small snail from his coat.
As soon as he answered, a voice came through. "The pirates have begun diving."
"Oh? Looks like our banquet will have to be put on hold for a while."
Kuzan hung up with a hint of regret.
"Perfect timing!"
Ulti slammed the table and stood up, cracking her knuckles with excitement. "I've been waiting for this!"
"Uncle Jinbe!"
Ace turned his gaze straight to Jinbe.
Although they were allowed to handle the matter, Jinbe was the supreme commander of this operation.
"King Neptune, let the banquet wait until after our victory."
Jinbe stood as well and looked solemnly at the kingdom's ruler.
"I will be here waiting for your triumphant return!"
Neptune replied seriously.
The group quickly left Ryugu Palace and headed for the harbor to rendezvous with Jinbe's Fish-Man troops.
Along the way, Jinbe handed each of them a special belt.
"Uncle Jinbe, what is this?"
Ace took the belt, puzzled.
The belt was made entirely of metal; the buckle was square, with a button on the front and a small hole on the back.
"This is a portable membrane generator personally designed by Lord Queen," Jinbe said.
"Press the front button and, within one second, it creates a membrane that can cover the entire body."
"If you lock the button down, it will continuously produce the membrane."
"It's specially made so humans can operate underwater."
"Oh?"
Zoro raised an eyebrow. "So with this belt, we can fight in the deep sea, right?"
"Wait!"
Page One cried out in alarm. "Are we really going to fight down in the deep sea?"
Jinbe nodded apologetically. "There are simply too many pirates; I can't let them come onto the island to battle."
"That would cause untold damage to this country."
"So," Jinbe continued, "we'll intercept them when they enter the great hollow beneath the Red Line, and bury them in the deep sea."
"Understood."
Ace nodded, smiling. "Fighting down in the deep sea? That actually sounds fun!"
"More like I can't wait," Zoro added.
"I'm fine with it too!" Sanji said without hesitation.
"Let's get going, then!" Ulti even started to urge them on.
Kuzan, walking at the rear, couldn't help the faint twitch at the corner of his mouth.
What a bunch of enthusiastic youngsters — six of them in all, four of whom are Devil Fruit users, and yet they barely batted an eye at the idea of fighting in the deep sea.
Well, that'll do.
Besides, they weren't the only ones going; Jinbe's Fish-Man forces were accompanying them, so nothing major was likely to go wrong.
And so, the fleet set out!
Linking the New World to Paradise was a vast hollow beneath the Red Line.
No one knew where that enormous cavity had come from — people had simply used it for ages to travel between the two seas.
After the Beasts Pirates sealed off the New World, the ships traveling through that hollow became far fewer.
But today, as if to make up for the lost years, hundreds of ships steadily sailed out of the black depths and into the great hollow at once.
Different flags flew from those ships, but without a doubt they were all pirate flags.
At the very front, on a pirate ship leading the charge, a man with a long spear in one hand gripped a Den Den Mushi with the other and shouted into it at the top of his lungs,
"This time we'll crush Fish-Man Island for good! Damn Ian — we'll make him feel the pain! He really thinks he's a king!!"
His bounty read 360,000,000 Berries — Freddy "The Piercer."
By rights, with his strength he should have long ago been roaming the New World.
But the damned Beasts Pirates had set up a checkpoint at Fish-Man Island that kept him stuck in Paradise.
That hatred — today was the day he would repay it with interest!
"Hell yeah!"
"I'll catch five hundred merfolk!"
"I'll take a thousand!"
"As soon as we take that island, there'll be as many merfolk as we want!"
Shouts of anger and greed echoed through the Den Den Mushi from other pirate captains.
Freddy curled his lip into a grin.
Even if Jinbei's crazy subordinate wielded tremendous power, facing their sudden attack, he would be completely helpless!
That's what he thought.
But then.
"Wait! What is that?!"
A sudden cry came through the Den Den Mushi.
Freddy could tell immediately—it was the voice of the captain at the very front, acting as the scout ship.
The next second, the voice twisted with panic.
"It's Jinbei! Jinbei is coming with his army! Damn it… we've been exposed…"
"Boom!!"
With a tremendous explosion, the Den Den Mushi went completely silent.
Freddy's eyes widened. He couldn't utter a single word.
The other captains must have been the same, right?
Far in the distance, a small firework of light blossomed over the sea.
"Retreat!!"
That faint flash seemed to snap Freddy out of his daze. He immediately screamed hoarsely, "Hurry! Retreat!"
If they could charge straight into Fish-Man Island, nothing would scare them.
A sudden strike could even catch the enemy off guard.
But here, in the deep sea, going up against a fully-prepared Fish-Man force? That was suicidal.
They couldn't even leave their bubbles. The cannons on their ships were useless. The only weapons they could even deploy were a few spears!
But then.
"It's too late!! The Sea Beasts are approaching!!"
Freddy's head shot up.
In the deep sea ahead, several gigantic beasts were rapidly closing in.
And behind them, in the dark waters, an even darker cloud of shadow was looming.
"Damn it!!"
Freddy was drenched in sweat, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
"We'll fight them!!"
He gritted his teeth.
"There's nowhere left to run!"
"That's right! We'll fight them!!"
Through the Den Den Mushi came the furious shouts of the other pirate captains, united in their rage.
They were the kind of madmen who, by banding together, dared to oppose the Beasts Pirates.
Now that there was nowhere left to run, they naturally had no more hesitation!
Fight!
Standing atop the head of the fastest sea beast, Ace's lips curled into a smile, his body covered by a strange membranous layer.
The layer over him was peculiar, almost like wearing a tight-fitting suit, rather than a dispersed bubble.
Of course, this was none other than Uncle Queen's handiwork.
Ace lifted his hand and lightly grasped, even feeling the water flow between his fingers.
The deep sea truly was wondrous.
Though Uncle Jinbe had warned him that this membrane was actually quite fragile, and that he had to move carefully.
He lifted his head, and ahead was the massive pirate fleet.
The boy's lips curved higher.
Above the heads of the other giant beasts beside him were the companions he trusted most.
"Let's go."
**********
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