"You mean your method is… letting Klee Meow try her luck?!"
Jinbe and Neptune three sons, wanting to help, followed Sherwin and the others onto the Dodo Advance.
But after seeing Klee Meow "tail-pointing locator technique" from the investigation team, every one of them was speechless.
They couldn't help it. Without understanding Klee Meow bizarre good luck, Sherwin approach looked far too childish—almost like they were being played with.
Sherwin wagged a finger at Jinbe and the princes to reassure them. "Don't underestimate our Klee. Back when we didn't have a navigator, we relied on her luck to guide us. Trust first—question later."
Seeing Sherwin and the rest of the Felynes so confident, Jinbe and the princes still found it hard to believe things could be this simple.
They didn't say more, but their hope of resolving the matter with Vander Decken was already fading.
The three princes were even silently thinking about how they would comfort their sister once they returned, after her fragile hope inevitably collapsed again.
Ignoring their doubts, Sherwin and Huamei Meow followed the direction Klee Meow tail indicated and controlled the Dodo Advance as it swam out of Fishman Island.
"You even prepared a ship specifically for diving?" Jinbe examined the sea dragon–form Dodo Advance with curiosity.
"Back at Marineford, you were using a different ship, weren't you? Why not coat this one instead?"
"Hehehe~" The moment Jinbe mentioned the Dodo Advance, Sherwin perked up, proudly showing it off.
"What you saw in Marineford was this very ship! Our Dodo Advance can switch into all kinds of modes to adapt to different environments!"
"And this design came from Purah Meow. She gathered everyone requests and transformed it while preserving the Dodo Advance original appearance. Isn't she amazing?"
(=`=)
Perched on Sherwin shoulder, Klee Meow joined in the boasting. "The Dodo Advance can fly too! We used her to reach Skypiea before, meow!"
"Skypiea? An island floating in the sky? That… incredible…"
"That sounds wonderful. I want to visit the sky island too… Red Sunfish, sway, sway…"
"Ahem… could you tell us more about that sky island?"
Klee Meow words instantly drew in the three princes, who had spent most of their lives under the sea. Anything about the world above fascinated them—let alone something as extraordinary as a sky island.
Even Jinbe couldn't help leaning in, listening intently to Klee Meow wandering, scattered storytelling, completely absorbed.
He had heard of sky islands before, but between leading the Sun Pirates and helping with affairs on Fishman Island, he never had a real chance to go on such an adventure.
And since Klee Meow naturally loved lively crowds, the more listeners she had, the more excited the little plush-like Felyne became.
After finishing the tale of their sky island adventure, she immediately launched into her favorite series: Ninja Cat.
Surprisingly… the audience loved it.
Even Jinbe was engrossed, while the two younger princes, being much more energetic, occasionally jumped in to ask about the plot or worldbuilding.
…Should I start thinking about serializing Ninja Cat in the World Economy News Bird?
Sherwin thought wryly.
Thanks to little angel Klee Meow keeping the atmosphere lively, the search for Vander Decken IX wasn't boring at all.
Jinbe and the princes scarcely noticed the passing of time until Huamei Meow, who was in charge of navigation, suddenly called out:
"Admiral, target spotted ahead, meow!"
"What?! You actually found him?!"
Jinbe and the three princes immediately abandoned Klee Meow story and rushed to the bow.
By the guidance and illumination of the spotlights made from sky island Lamp Shells, they easily locked onto a shabby, dilapidated pirate ship not far ahead.
Next to that ship floated a massive figure, almost as large as the vessel, along with a slightly smaller but still enormous anglerfish providing light.
"It Wadatsumi! It really is the Flying Pirates!" Shark Star shouted, barely containing his excitement.
"Hurry, let us out so we can stop them! We can't let them escape again!"
"There no need to make it that troublesome… Shermie, it yours!"
"Hehe~ got it, meow~"
Shermie darted straight into the engine room. Moments later, electricity crackled all around the Dodo Advance, and its speed surged dramatically.
The Flying Pirates had no time to react. With its built-in AOE, the Dodo Advance shot straight toward them.
Wadatsumi, who was pulling the ship, and the giant anglerfish providing illumination were instantly electrocuted, eyes rolling back as they fainted on the spot.
As for Vander Decken IX, because he had eaten a Devil Fruit, he had coated the deck beforehand.
Thanks to that coating, the other members of the Flying Pirates avoided the same fate.
But to Sherwin and his crew… this wasn't even worth calling a problem.
The sea-dragon figurehead mouth slowly opened, revealing a cannon inside. Jinx, the ship sniper, was already in position.
"Meow-hahahahaha!" the little blue cat laughed wildly, aiming the cannon at the Flying Dutchman. "Try this, meow!"
Swish swish swish swish—!
One after another, torpedoes—cute yet vicious, full of Jinx personal flair—shot out, cutting white streaks through the water and slamming precisely into the Flying Dutchman, which had just begun to make a slight turn.
A violent chain of explosions followed. The already-ruined pirate ship was shredded into pieces instantly.
The fishmen aboard were either blown unconscious or, the moment they touched the seawater, were knocked out by Shermie electricity.
"…One torpedo would've been enough…"
Sherwin rubbed his forehead with a helpless sigh.
He had wanted to capture Vander Decken alive and extract the Devil Fruit from him afterward.
But after Jinx enthusiastic barrage, there was no guarantee the man was even alive.
"The enemy didn't put up any resistance at all. It wasn't satisfying in the slightest, meow!"
Jinx crawled out of the figurehead-launch chamber, still looking disappointed.
"Shermie, that enough." Sherwin first told Shermie to stop the discharge, then turned to Jinbe and the princes.
"You can check now. See if any of them are still alive…"
"…Thank you for your help."
Shark Star and the others finally snapped out of their daze, and the way they looked at Sherwin and the Felynes now carried a hint of awe.
The Flying Pirates who had troubled the Ryugu Kingdom for so long were defeated so easily by Sherwin group.
While this left Shark Star and the others feeling a bit frustrated, they also felt somewhat relieved—relieved that Sherwin group wasn't the type to discriminate against fish-men…
Although those adorable little Felynes did look at his younger sister with eyes that weren't quite right.
Whether it was because they were using weapons crafted by Klee Meow, or because the little ragdoll simply hated Vander Decken too much, in the end the only survivor of the entire Flying Pirates was the gigantic Wadatsumi.
As for Vander Decken, he was blown into pieces. Forget digging a Fruit out of him—assembling a full corpse was already questionable.
"Tch…"
Sherwin clicked his tongue but wasn't particularly disappointed.
There would be plenty of Paramecia-related abilities tied to the story later anyway, and although this Fruit was good, its activation requirements were far too restrictive. So if he didn't get it, then so be it.