"It really hard to admit it… the mistakes made because of youth."
Standing atop the Dodo Advance, which had now returned to its original form, Sherwin looked up at the sky at a perfect forty-five-degree angle, striking a pose just like the masked man known as Char.
Beside him, Sanji Meow was still tirelessly kicking his calf, while dangling from his arm was an adorable little ragdoll.
"Bad Sherwin big brother! Klee gonna bite you to death, meow!"
(=◣皿◢=)The little ragdoll mumbled angrily through clenched teeth.
After the Dodo Advance arrived at the White Sea, Klee Meow—who had been tricked by that despicable Hunter—had burst out from the engine room and latched herself firmly onto Sherwin arm with nothing but her teeth.
Seeing Klee Meow join in, Sanji Meow naturally kicked even harder.
Even Haibara Meow, who had finally recovered her composure, was now staring eagerly at Sherwin pair of battle-worn ears, clearly tempted to join the assault.
"Alright, enough fooling around. We've reached the Sky Island already—don't you all want to take a good look around?"
At Huamei Meow words, the two little kittens finally ceased their attack on the Hunter. Haibara Meow, still in Sherwin arms, let out a soft huff of disappointment and reluctantly spared his poor ears—for now.
"Sherwin big brother, where the Sky Island, meow?"
(ˇˇ)After letting go, the little ragdoll glanced around curiously, her brows furrowing as she turned to glare suspiciously at the Hunter whose credibility was already at rock bottom. She puffed up her cheeks and demanded, "You're not tricking Klee again, are you, meow?!"
"Of course not!" Sherwin quickly defended himself, desperate to restore even a shred of his lost reputation.
"This is just the White Sea beneath the Sky Island. Above us is another layer—the White White Sea—that where the real Sky Island is."
To prove he wasn't lying, Sherwin took out a Log Pose.
Sure enough, after entering the White Sea, the pointer magnetic force was immediately drawn upward—straight toward the remaining half of Jaya Island that floated in the sky above.
"But Klee doesn't wanna sail anymore, meow…"
(=｀3=)The little ragdoll pouted unhappily.
Back when she was "flying the ship" in the engine room, she could still hear the lively chatter coming from outside. It had sounded like so much fun—yet she hadn't been able to join in. Of course, Klee Meow felt terribly wronged.
Sherwin scooped up the sulking little ragdoll and gently comforted her. "Don't worry, don't worry. Once we're in the White Sea, there another way to reach the White White Sea. But before that, we can play around here for a bit."
He walked over to the edge of the ship and pointed down at the thick sea of clouds below. "You all saw it when we came up—this White Sea is also full of lively sea creatures. Because of the high-altitude environment, their meat and flavor are quite unique."
"Ooh, ooh, ooh! Klee wants to eat them, meow!"
(=﹃=)The little ragdoll eyes sparkled as she immediately pulled out one of her buzzing bombs and hurled it toward the distant cloud layer before Sherwin could even stop her.
"Bzzz—!"
A visible shockwave rippled outward, and the distant clouds were blasted open into a wide circular gap, revealing a cluster of dazed sky fish and sky crabs floating within.
But before long, the surrounding sea of clouds quickly surged back in and filled the gap. The stunned sky seafood, however, didn't float up like normal marine creatures would. Using Observation Haki, Sherwin sensed that they were actually sinking slowly downward instead.
"Looks like your method of bomb-fishing doesn't quite work in the White Sea."
Sherwin smiled and gently patted Klee Meow puffed-up little cheeks, then pulled out one of his starting items—the "Indestructible Hunter Fishing Rod."
Using Observation Haki to sense the faint auras of the sky fish that had been knocked out among the clouds, Sherwin swung the rod and skillfully hooked one of the largest among them, reeling it back in with precision.
"Here, Sanji, try cooking one and see how it tastes."
Sherwin tossed the strange-looking sky fish to Sanji Meow.
The little yellow cat, excited by the sight of a new ingredient, didn't bother arguing with Sherwin this time.
Wagging his tail happily, he darted into the kitchen. Moments later, a plate of freshly pan-seared sky fish was served before everyone.
"What an unusual texture. Sanji cooking is still as amazing as ever," Robin said with a warm smile, gently patting the little yellow cat on the head in praise after tasting a piece of the fish.
The other Felynes also took a brief moment to voice their agreement before returning to their meal, heads lowered as they devoured the food.
There was nothing they could do—cats have always been powerless against fish dishes.
"Sherwin-nii, can we catch some more sky fish and raise them, meow?!"
(=ω=)
After finishing the delicious meal, Klee Meow eyes sparkled with excitement as she made the suggestion.
In fact, the Dodo Advance aquarium already housed several particularly tasty sea creatures—specimens that Sherwin and his crew had collected from all over the world.
Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Sherwin replied, "Raising a few sky fish isn't a problem, but the question is—once we bring them down below, will they be able to adapt and survive in that environment?"
"Even if they survive, it useless, meow." Haibara Meow shook her head regretfully as she continued, "The altitude difference is too great. Even if they live, it'll be nearly impossible for them to reproduce, meow."
"Besides, the texture of these sky fish comes from their high-altitude environment. Once they return to sea level, even if we manage to breed their offspring, the meat quality will gradually become the same as that of ordinary fish…" Haibara Meow spread her tiny paws helplessly.
"So it better for us to just catch more sky fish now and store them in our packs as reserves, meow."
The Felynes on board immediately sprang into action. Each of them displayed their own unique skills, launching a sweeping hunt on the sky fish and other sea creatures drifting beneath the clouds.
Among them, Seijuro Meow was the calmest. He simply took up a fishing rod, sat at the edge of the ship, and began fishing leisurely.
Klee Meow, who was always the most energetic, wasn't about to give up so easily. Seeing that her regular Boom Bombs weren't effective,
she quickly switched to a new kind—Push Bombs—which not only stunned the sky fish but also used a specially enhanced blast to launch them straight out of the cloud sea.
Right beside her, Purah Meow, who had been waiting in position, immediately pulled the trigger on her net-launching gun, casting a wide net that captured the sky fish blasted out of the clouds in one go.
And to avoid disturbing Seijuro Meow fishing, the two little cats boarded the Spark Knight and flew off from the Dodo Advance, blasting their way through the skies as they went.
Huamei Meow didn't bother to stop Klee Meow this time. After all, Purah Meow was with her, and since they'd rarely ever come to such an altitude, she decided to let the little doll play to her heart content.
Of course, there was another reason—Huamei Meow herself was deeply fascinated by the sea of clouds floating in the sky.
She was far too busy piloting her Anglerfish-class submarine, diving into the White Sea to explore and fish at the same time.
(=ΦωΦ=)つ
At the stern of the ship, Link Meow stood with his Twilight Bow, firing a rope-tethered physical arrow far into the distance.
After traveling a certain range, the arrow exploded midair, unfolding into a massive fishing net that descended into the White Sea below.
Link Meow quickly grabbed the rope attached to the arrow and began hauling the large fishing net back with all his strength.
Meanwhile, Haibara Meow, the little kitten, circled around the Dodo Advance once before stopping at a spot where sky fish were most concentrated.
She then pulled a small test tube from her pocket, filled with a deep purple liquid. The moment she popped the cork, a skull formed from purple smoke appeared at the mouth of the tube and lingered without dispersing.
"Stop right there!"
Sherwin hurried forward and snatched the test tube from the paws of the deadly little poison cat.
"You idiot, give it back to me, meow!" Haibara Meow hopped angrily, trying to grab it back from his hand. "This potion is perfectly safe! It won't kill anyone, meow!"
Looking at the skull of purple smoke still faintly hanging above the open tube, Sherwin didn't believe a single word she said.
Still, he returned the test tube to Haibara Meow but strictly forbade her from pouring its contents into the White Sea.
"Hmph!"
(=`へ=)
Feeling wronged after being stopped, Haibara Meow crossed her tiny arms in displeasure. Sherwin could only resort to his ultimate move—the "Cat-petting Hand of Kato"—to comfort the little kitten who'd just been stripped of her right to experiment.
Aside from Haibara Meow, there was another Felyne who didn't join the fishing operation…
(`」∠)
Sanji Meow, who hadn't managed to sneak aboard the Anglerfish submarine or hop onto the Spark Knight in time, now lay sprawled out on the deck, his fur gray with soot, looking utterly lifeless—as if the world had ended. Clearly, he had no energy left to fish.
Fortunately, Nico Robin was still on board. Mimicking Sherwin technique, she used her masterful cat-petting skills to soothe the dejected little yellow cat.