At Hody Jones' repeated urging, the fishman underling finally brought him the deadly ES drug.
This drug could grant a massive power boost—but at an equally terrifying cost: it rapidly consumed the user's lifespan.
And the degeneration wasn't subtle—it was visible to the naked eye. Compared to Luffy's Gear Second and Third drawbacks, the ES drug's effects were instant and far more drastic.
Hody Jones stared at the red-and-black capsule in the underling's hand, a twisted grin spreading across his face.
Right now, his entire body was immobile except for his head, so he shouted at the fishman holding the drug,
"What are you waiting for?! Get it in my mouth—now!"
The fishman underling was so startled by Hody's fury that he nearly dropped the ES drug.
Trembling, he stepped up to the window where Hody was laid out and carefully placed a capsule in his mouth.
The moment the capsule entered his mouth, Hody began to chew violently.
Gulp. The ES drug was swallowed.
His eyes snapped wide open. His body swelled up—so much that the bandages wrapped around him started bursting apart.
Feeling the surging power flood his body, Hody's smile grew even more deranged. He shouted,
...
...
"Not enough! More!!"
"Hody-boss, taking too much of that stuff is really dangerous. You'd better—"
"I said MORE! Do you want to die?!"
By now, Hody Jones was completely intoxicated by the surge of power coursing through him. All he wanted was to storm Ryugu Palace and kill that damned human.
But he wasn't totally out of his mind—he knew one capsule wouldn't be enough to take down his enemy.
So he needed more. Much more.
The fishman underling gulped nervously, then once again brought a capsule to Hody's mouth.
But Hody had long since run out of patience. The effects of the ES drug had already allowed him to move again. He suddenly lunged forward, biting down hard on the underling's hand—and along with it, swallowed a whole bunch of ES capsules in one go.
The room instantly echoed with the fishman's blood-curdling screams. A large chunk of his hand had been bitten off, and blood was gushing like a fountain from the mangled stump.
Yet no one in the room paid the suffering fishman any mind.
All eyes were locked on Hody Jones, who had just swallowed an enormous dose of ES drugs.
Grimaces of pain escaped from Hody's clenched mouth. His body swelled again—this time the bandages exploded completely, revealing tightly packed, bulging muscles beneath. Even the wounds he'd sustained earlier had vanished without a trace.
His hair, once jet-black, now turned stark white, just like something out of an anime...
But in the very next moment, that white hair began to fall out rapidly. In mere seconds, Hody's head was completely bald—smooth as glass.
Hody didn't even glance at the hair scattered all over the floor. He tilted his head back and let out a thunderous roar that shook the walls. There was no trace of the weak, crippled man from moments ago.
As he basked in the overwhelming power flowing through him—several times stronger than before—Hody's grin stretched all the way to his ears. He felt like he could smash Ryugu Palace into rubble with a single punch.
The other officers of the New Fishman Pirates in the room were ecstatic at the sight.
They were already a bunch of desperate fanatics—and the craving for power had long been seared into their bones.
Now that power was within reach—how could they not be thrilled?
They started shouting at Hody Jones in unison.
"Hody! We want the Energy Steroid too!"
Hody looked at the eager mob, then waved his hand grandly, ordering the remaining stock of ES drugs to be brought in and distributed among all the officers of the New Fishman Pirates.
Within minutes, the room was filled with bald heads gleaming under the light.
Hody Jones looked over his reborn New Fishman Pirates, a satisfied grin on his face. Thanks to the ES drug, his ambition had swelled to new heights.
He raised one massive arm and shouted,
"Brothers! Follow me to the plaza! I'll announce to the world that from this moment on, Fishman Island is under the rule of the New Fishman Pirates! Let those cowardly royals rot in hell!!"
"Yeahhhhhh!!!"
In an instant, Fishman District descended into chaos. Waves of fishmen armed with blades and spears poured out of buildings and joined Hody's swelling ranks, marching as a black tide toward the plaza.
...
Meanwhile, in Ryugu Palace—
Kaito paused mid-bite, a knowing smirk forming on his lips.
He gently set down his utensils, then gracefully picked up a napkin to dab the corners of his mouth.
Sitting beside him, Shirahoshi, still focused on eating, noticed the odd behavior and asked curiously,
"Kaito-sama, you're not eating anymore? Was something wrong with the food?"
The question sent a jolt through Neptune's heart. In his mind, he had already imagined a hundred and eight punishments for the chef in charge of today's meal.
Of course, Kaito wasn't dissatisfied with the food. He had simply detected the disturbance outside through his Heavenly Net.
A massive group of fishman rioters had already taken over the plaza, and Hody Jones had begun his "passionate and rousing" speech.
As he listened, Kaito couldn't help but chuckle. That speech... it reminded him of some failed art student from Earth who tried to stir crowds—except far more laughable. Even the words sounded ridiculous.
The speech was nothing more than empty glorification of fishmen and merfolk, peppered with furious insults aimed at himself. From the sound of it, Hody wanted nothing more than to tear him limb from limb.
Shirahoshi, seeing Kaito suddenly smile for no reason and not answer, grew a little worried about his mental state. She reached out and softly called,
"Kaito-sama? Are you alright?"
Kaito snapped out of it, glanced at her concerned face, and replied,
"I'm fine. I just found a group of clowns' speech amusing."
"Clowns? Where? I didn't see any."
"In the plaza. Don't worry—you'll hear all about it in just a moment."
Just as he finished speaking, a frantic merfolk guard burst into the hall. Neptune scowled and scolded,
"What sort of behavior is this? Can't you see we have an esteemed guest?"
The guard barely took a breath, ignoring the reprimand and urgently shouted,
"Your Majesty—bad news! Hody Jones and a huge number of fishmen have taken over the plaza! They're rallying the crowd to attack Ryugu Palace!!!"
"Nani!?"
Neptune, who had just scolded the guard a second ago, now turned pale.
He had long suspected Hody Jones harbored ill intentions—but out of consideration for the fishman race, he had chosen not to act against him.
Now, he bitterly regretted that choice. It wasn't just a rebellion—Hody had timed it exactly for Kaito's visit.
Wasn't that a direct provocation?
If Hody angered Kaito... could Fishman Island still have the bright future foretold by the prophecy?
Hody Jones was an absolute lunatic!
Jinbe, filled with rage, stood up abruptly and stepped beside Neptune.
"Your Majesty, let me go. I failed to properly guide the fishmen in the district. This is my responsibility."
Neptune agreed without hesitation. His understanding of Hody's strength was still based on the past—he thought that with Jinbe and some soldiers, they could quell the uprising.
He never even considered asking Kaito for help.
But just then, Kaito, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.
"I'll go too. Hody Jones is out there shouting about taking my head as proof of his power—how could I miss such a show?"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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