"Is it possible to be so arrogant just after becoming a Yonko? I stepped over mountains of corpses and seas of blood — I fought my way to the top over decades!"
Big Mom's tone was laced with menace. She defeated giants at the age of five, awakened her Haki then, and began her unstoppable conquest at that same age. She was born to rule, an existence unlike any other among the Yonko.
And now, the Fish-Man Island she had set her sights on was being claimed by a young upstart from the new era. Even if Elior was now one of the Yonko like her, it didn't change the fact that—before Big Mom—he was still just a brat.
This was the collision of the old generation of Yonko with the new.
How could anyone present not feel fear?
Elior was terrifying, yes — but so was Big Mom. That woman was the most fearsome creature in the New World, a monster cruel enough to kill her own children without hesitation.
Yet Elior's tone remained calm:
"I can always step over your corpse on my way to Laugh Tale."
His words made the expressions of everyone present shift. Big Mom had tried to intimidate him, but he shot back without hesitation. He even made a direct threat. But no one doubted that he meant every word—after all, how many top figures had already died at Elior's hands?
He had killed Sabo, the No.2 of the Revolutionary Army, and Ace as well. That alone spoke volumes about how ruthless and deadly Elior was.
Big Mom chuckled darkly. "Oh? Is that a threat? Interesting..."
Despite Elior's fearsome reputation, Big Mom wasn't afraid. Not in the slightest. She and Kaido had roamed the New World for decades — fear was something others felt in their presence, not the other way around.
"Sooner or later, I'll pay a visit to Totto Land myself. You better be ready — and I suggest you withdraw from Fish-Man Island while you can."
"Very good... You're an amusing little thing" Big Mom laughed coldly.
Elior tossed the Den Den Mushi back to Smoothie. She had listened to the exchange between her mother and Elior right there in front of him, sweat beading on her forehead.
As one of Big Mom's Sweet Commanders, she knew what this meant: the Big Mom Pirates and the Elior Pirates were on a collision course. A war between two Yonko was inevitable—it was just a matter of time.
And a war between Yonko would shake the entire world.
For Big Mom, Fish-Man Island was essential because of its desserts — her beloved sweets were her very life.
For Elior, Fish-Man Island held something far more valuable: Poseidon.
And Elior didn't mind a war with Big Mom at all. After all, his ambition wasn't just to become the Pirate King — but the King of the World.
Anyone standing in his way would either be crushed or forced to surrender. It was that simple.
And Big Mom... was now a stumbling block on his path.
"Smoothie, return at once!"
With that, Big Mom ended the call without waiting for a reply. Her tone had calmed briefly—but Smoothie could tell: her mother was furious.
"Mama..." But the line was dead.
Smoothie took one last fearful glance at Elior before turning to leave. She and her subordinates retreated from Ryugu Palace, unease heavy in their hearts.
Provoking Elior here and now? That would have been suicide.
Meanwhile, back on Whole Cake Island, Big Mom hurled a wine bottle across the hall in a fit of rage.
"If only I were on Fish-Man Island right now — hell, even if I were just a bit closer — I'd make that little brat pay dearly!"
Whether she could defeat Elior or not, Big Mom was sure of one thing: she'd make him suffer.
In all her years, she bore no scars. Decades of battles, countless powerful foes, yet no one had marked her body. She was undefeated, unparalleled. And now this brat—who dared to provoke an old Yonko?
Killed Aokiji? Seriously wounded Akainu? Ended Whitebeard's life?
No matter how strong Elior was, Big Mom could not stomach this insult — the old Yonko would not quietly accept challenges from the new era.
"Mama, what now?" Perospero asked anxiously as the other children watched their mother cautiously.
They wanted to know: what would be her next move regarding Fish-Man Island? She had just called Smoothie back — was she giving it up?
Big Mom sneered.
"Let him have Fish-Man Island for now. What's mine will always be mine in the end."
In truth, Fish-Man Island mattered to her mainly because of its desserts. That was all — at least for now. What might come of it if she truly claimed it was another matter entirely.
But for now, and perhaps forever, Fish-Man Island would remain out of her grasp.
On the other side, after Smoothie and the others had left, Elior turned to look at Neptune and his court. Standing behind the king were his three sons and several ministers — all merfolk, the most powerful figures on Fish-Man Island gathered in one place.
"I won't say much. I don't want Fish-Man Island to end up like it did in the early days of the Great Pirate Era. From now on, Fish-Man Island is my territory. If anyone dares to defy that, your entire island will suffer the consequences."
When Big Mom ruled Fish-Man Island, the oppression only worsened with time. By the timeline of the original story, the people of Fish-Man Island were already living in misery under her.
But when Elior took over, he had no interest in such oppression. What he sought on Fish-Man Island were only two things: the Poneglyphs and Shirahoshi — the current Poseidon.
These were the only two things on the island worthy of his attention.
However, from Neptune's perspective, things were not that simple. Everyone present knew of Elior's cruelty. Yet faced with overwhelming power, what could they do but tremble and submit?
Resist? Obviously impossible.
As the rulers of Fish-Man Island, they bore the responsibility of protecting and advancing their nation. Every decision they made could lead to prosperity — or disaster. If they chose wrongly, the entire island could be destroyed. How could they then face their ancestors?
After a long silence, Neptune finally declared:
"We of Fish-Man Island... hope to receive your protection."
He glanced at the others behind him and saw only helplessness in their eyes. In truth, he had no other choice.
In recent days, many had died trying to resist invading forces, and there had already been nine reported missing persons. If they couldn't stop this, things would only get worse.
The bitter irony was that Fish-Man Island was simply too weak to defend itself.
Big Mom had wanted to take over the island with crushing demands. First, her crew demanded ten tons of desserts every month—a type of delicacy once reserved only for nobles, and impossible to mass-produce. Now they were expected to produce it in bulk, monthly. How could they possibly sustain that?
And that was just the demand for sweets—there were plenty of other conditions.
On Fish-Man Island, they were trampled on but dared not protest.
Elior understood how weak the island was. Excluding Shirahoshi's potential to command Sea Kings, the island had no real strength. Take Vander Decken IX, for example—the madman who had threatened Shirahoshi for years. Even after all that time, Neptune's forces still couldn't catch him.
Not to mention the bigger hidden threat: Hody Jones, a militant fish-man fueled by hatred of humans.
The incompetence of the Ryugu Kingdom was obvious.
Elior said nothing further about it, but he planned to deal with Hody Jones and Vander Decken IX himself sooner or later.
What surprised Neptune was that, unlike the Big Mom Pirates, Elior made no outrageous demands when claiming Fish-Man Island. Nor did he stay to impose his will.
Instead, Elior expressed his intention to visit the Sea Forest, and Neptune had no choice but to accompany him. After all, the Sea Forest was protected, and no one was allowed to enter without permission.
The two precious Poneglyphs on Fish-Man Island were kept there — one a regular Poneglyph, the other a Road Poneglyph, containing one of the four coordinates leading to Laugh Tale.
It was said that the ability to hear the Voice of All Things allowed one to interpret Poneglyphs. Elior recalled that Roger once visited the Sea Forest and used that very ability to read the stones.
"Can you understand the ancient script?" Neptune asked, unable to hide his curiosity. Many forces sought the Poneglyphs, but who in the world today could actually read them? Ohara had been annihilated, the Kozuki Clan that inscribed the Poneglyphs was long gone, and the scholars who could interpret the texts were extinct.
Yet here Elior stood, in front of the Poneglyphs — was he really about to interpret them?
Elior ignored Neptune's question and instead activated his ability to hear the Voice of All Things.
It was the highest mastery of Observation Haki.
The moment he opened his senses, he could hear the life around him—the rustling of every leaf, the whispers of the earth itself.
He noticed even the ants on the ground communicating with each other—their thoughts simple yet clear: Food, movement, cooperation.
This was the Voice of All Things.
Elior was astonished. Though he had acquired this ability as a reward, he hadn't yet explored it deeply. Now, he was truly beginning to grasp how powerful it was.
He stood silently for about ten minutes, adjusting to the flood of sensations, before finally focusing on the apology Poneglyph.
Reiju and the others stood behind, not daring to disturb him. Still, they all wondered if Elior could truly decipher the ancient script.
Only Weevil, the dull-witted brute, stood there looking completely lost.
Before Elior stood the apology Poneglyph, left behind by Joy Boy — an ancient apology to the mermaid princess of that era, the previous Poseidon. Unable to fulfill his promise to her, Joy Boy left his confession here.
Elior couldn't read the text directly, but through the Voice of All Things, he could hear the stone speak, conveying the meaning behind the ancient words:
"Joy Boy expresses his sincere gratitude to the princess for her efforts to end the war. However, he was delayed by his journey to Laugh Tale and missed the promised meeting. Thus, he came here to apologize and ask for her forgiveness."
"So he really went to Laugh Tale... That place was already extraordinary eight hundred years ago. But what war was this? And how was Poseidon involved?"
Elior was deeply intrigued. The Poneglyph contained a wealth of historical information—mentioning Laugh Tale, a great war, and Poseidon's participation, all from eight hundred years ago.
He suddenly recalled the scene from the original story when Luffy arrived at Fish-Man Island — the massive Sea Kings lurking outside the island who could speak human language. They said they were waiting for Shirahoshi, but also mentioned the previous Poseidon and a certain "someone" — could that have been Joy Boy?
Still, Elior could only treat it as a distant tale. The people involved had long turned to dust.
Yet this information might prove useful one day.
More than anything, Elior's curiosity about the true secret of Laugh Tale deepened. Even eight hundred years ago, that place was already significant.
With that thought, Elior turned his attention to the Road Poneglyph.