Chapter 252: Gathering of Storms on Fish-Man Island
Near Fish-Man Island, in the deep, silent seabed.
A chilling, cold light suddenly appeared, disturbing the fish of all sizes that were active on the seabed. Immediately after, an irregular rift appeared on the ocean floor, opening up a portal-like gateway to a starry sky. The next second, a sphere of ice, entirely azure and over ten meters thick, emerged from the portal, landing on the seabed and kicking up the silt that had been dormant for hundreds of years.
Inside the cold ice sphere, Uta slowly opened her eyes. Her expression became extremely strange, and she complained, annoyed, "This teleportation is way too off! If you hadn't been careful, Yelena, we'd be fish food by now!"
Uta was completely speechless at Avant Heim's teleportation this time. The many previous teleports from Terra had all been without any problems. But this short, ten-kilometer teleport had almost thrown them into the bottom of the sea.
"This is too unreliable!" Uta transformed into her Siren form. She crossed her arms, which were now adorned with sharp claws, and the small wing-fins that protruded from her hair twitched slightly, transmitting a special wave.
Nearby, Yelena, while extending her Observation Haki, comforted her. "The ten-thousand-meter-deep sea probably interfered with Avant Heim's teleportation. Teleporting without one of its split bodies as an anchor is already a rather risky thing. The reason there were no accidents in the sky before was because there were no obstacles."
Hearing this, Uta's displeasure dissipated a little. "After this mission, I'm definitely going to suggest to Louis that we throw Avant Heim's crystals all over the world!"
Just then, the surrounding sea currents were disturbed. A giant dark shadow swam over, its scarlet eyes staring intently at the ice sphere below, which was a few sizes smaller than its head.
Uta took a deep breath, then opened her mouth and emitted an ultrasonic wave that was at a frequency higher than human hearing. It combined with her own Observation Haki and spread outward.
"Echolocation?" Yelena thought, watching her.
Gradually, the reflected sound waves, which were inaudible to the human ear, returned to the ice sphere, and were clearly transmitted to Uta's mind, constructing a map of the surrounding seabed.
"Found it. It's not very far," Uta said, opening her amethyst-like eyes, the wing-fins on her head twitching slightly again.
As the sound of surging seawater was heard again, the massive sea beast opened its cavernous mouth, which was filled with sharp fangs, and carefully held the ice sphere. Immediately after, the sea beast twisted its eel-like body and swam in the direction of Fish-Man Island.
Seeing this, Yelena, after a brief thought, took out a Den Den Mushi and dialed Fukaboshi. She knew that if she wanted to enter the royal palace as low-key as possible, she couldn't do it without the help of the king.
Brrring~ Brrring~ Brrring~
However, after a long while, Fukaboshi did not answer the call. Yelena frowned and cast a meaningful glance at Uta. The latter saw it, instantly understood, and extended her slender, clawed hand, taking out Shirahoshi's and Fukaboshi's Vivre Cards.
"The Vivre Cards are fine. Maybe Fukaboshi is busy with other things." Uta looked at the two intact cards in her hand, a subtle light flashing in her purple eyes.
Yelena's frown eased slightly. She then turned and dialed Fukaboshi's younger brother, Ryuboshi.
Click... This time, the Den Den Mushi was answered quickly, but no one spoke immediately.
Yelena didn't think much of it and said in a hoarse voice, "This is the Snow-Fiend."
As her words fell, the Den Den Mushi, after a brief silence, mimicked Ryuboshi and gave a puzzled reply. "Mr. Snow-Fiend, you've suddenly contacted me. Is there something special you need me to do?"
"..."
"Where is Fukaboshi?" Yelena's eyes, from under her gas mask, narrowed slightly. She then gestured to Uta, who was watching her intently. "And how far has the plan progressed? When is the right time for our people to set out from Terra?"
Nearby, Uta, who had also noticed something was wrong from Ryuboshi's reply, quickly retreated to the other side of the ice sphere, took out a Den Den Mushi, and dialed Kuina on Avant Heim. The moment the call was connected, she didn't give Kuina a chance to ask any questions. "Something's happened," she said concisely. "Have everyone prepare to teleport."
At the same time, the Den Den Mushi in Yelena's hand also transmitted Ryuboshi's somewhat hesitant reply. "I'm sorry, Mr. Snow-Fiend. My big brother... he and Shirahoshi are being held up by World Government officials while they're giving a speech in the plaza. The officials are still threatening us with the consequences of leaving the World Government, and with the interference of the CP agents, I'm afraid it will take a considerable amount of time."
"Don't keep us waiting for too long. If an accident happens, ask us for help." Yelena replied, as if a little impatient, and then hung up before Ryuboshi could say anything.
Almost at the instant the call was cut off, the giant sea beast holding the ice sphere had already picked up speed, its flat, long tail almost a blur.
"Something's happened to Ryuboshi," Yelena's cold voice sounded from within the sphere. "Fukaboshi and Shirahoshi are being held up by World Government officials in the plaza. They don't know that something has happened to Ryuboshi yet."
Years ago, all the royals of Fish-Man Island had known Yelena's identity. If there were no special circumstances, even Ryuboshi, who rarely contacted the Archangel Pirates, would not have directly called her "Snow-Fiend." Therefore, his strange behavior was a report and a cry for help under a situation of information asymmetry. And Yelena, after understanding the situation, had also taken the opportunity to convey the false impression that the Archangel Pirates were still on Terra.
As her voice fell, Uta's expression also gradually became grim. "Perhaps it's not just Ryuboshi. We have to be prepared for the possibility that everyone except Shirahoshi and Fukaboshi has been captured."
???
Ten minutes later, with the sea beast's full speed, Yelena and Uta were approaching the range of Fish-Man Island. Their Observation Haki had already heard the voices on the island.
"I'll go to the plaza to prevent anything from happening to Shirahoshi. Uta, you go directly to the palace and rescue the others," Yelena said, her body in its hybrid-beast form. She raised a hand, once again expanding the ice sphere and splitting it in two.
Uta looked at the figure that was gradually being obscured by the ice wall and nodded. "Alright. I'll get there as soon as possible."
Just as the ice wall was about to seal completely, a subtle light flashed in Uta's eyes. "If you can't control the situation and the bombs are disabled, then have Fukaboshi activate all the pre-prepared Den Den Mushis. That way, even if I can't get there immediately, I can still help you."
Uta felt that since the palace had already fallen, it was also possible that the bombs that had been planted long ago had been discovered and dismantled by the Marines and agents who had been there for a long time. If her assumption was correct, then the bubbles of Fish-Man Island could not be instantly destroyed, and they would have to have a second plan.
"Alright," Yelena's short reply came from the other side of the ice wall.
Immediately after, the second, newly formed ice sphere erupted with a terrifying low temperature, instantly freezing a long ice tunnel in the depths of the sea that led straight to Fish-Man Island. In that instant, the round ice sphere shot out like a cannonball, heading straight for the island's entrance. The huge recoil even shattered most of the teeth of the sea beast, which was over a hundred meters long, and its massive body trembled. But soon, after shaking its head, it picked up speed again and rushed straight for the royal palace.
"..."
At the same time, a woman with a military cap, a special military uniform on her upper body, and only a pair of boots and panties on her lower body, stood in the mermaid cove. Around her stood one after another, agents in white suits with masks on their faces.
Under the respectful gazes of everyone, the woman named Junko lightly raised her arm and initiated a "Deep Abyss" summon. In that instant, one after another, dark lightning bolts exploded. A giant five-pointed star slowly appeared on the ground, and ink-black flames ignited, revealing three different figures.
The several white-clad agents present saw this and, without hesitation, fell to their knees. In the face of an existence that was considered an absolute high-ranking figure even among the Celestial Dragons, all humans had to kneel. This was no exception, even for them, as members of CP0.
"See! It really is a summon without any warning! It's a good thing I put on my clothes beforehand!" Saint Somazu patted the elbow of Saint Quilinguame next to him and laughed heartily.
Beside the two of them, Shamrock, his half-long red hair tied up and wearing a special military uniform, expressionlessly walked out of the five-pointed star and headed for the plaza. Junko and Quilinguame, with several agents, also followed, leaving only Somazu, who had his back to them, and one agent behind.
Somazu raised a hand to shield his eyes from the light, his eyes looking with great interest at the familiar scenery. "This should be the mermaid cove, right? I've been here before. I took some local specialties. Why has it become like this now!"
However, his words were not answered. Just as he was feeling confused, the agent who had stayed behind inconspicuously reminded him, "Saint Somazu, the other lords have already gone far."
"What?!" Somazu abruptly turned his head. Seeing the figures who were gradually disappearing at the end of the street, he looked a little flustered. "Hey, hey! Are you really leaving me here by myself?!"
At the end of the street, Quilinguame turned his long neck, which was covered in a wild mane, and replied with a very strange look on his face, "Weren't you the one who wanted to stay there?"
Nearby, Shamrock and Junko ignored the two of them. Instead, they began to get a report from the surrounding agents. "Tell us the current situation, Gernica."
"Yes, Lord Shamrock." The man known as the strongest agent, Gernica, reached up and touched the hat on his head. "We have just dismantled most of the bombs in the Fish-Man Island area. Lucci and the others have already taken control of the royal palace and are also in the process of clearing and dismantling. According to Lucci's report, not long ago, the Snow-Fiend of the Archangel Pirates asked the second prince of the Ryugu Kingdom, Ryuboshi, when the plan would be launched. The Ryuboshi who was being controlled by Lucci managed to put her off."
Nearby, Saint Quilinguame couldn't help but glance at Gernica. "So, the Archangel Pirates haven't noticed the situation on Fish-Man Island yet, right?"
"That's right, my lord," Gernica said.
Somazu, who had just caught up with the group, crossed his arms and, while walking with a casual pace, his eyes, from under his sunglasses, swept over the nearby mermaids. "The mermaids are as beautiful as ever."
As the group drew closer to the plaza, the number of mermaids and fish-men also increased, and one after another, they cast curious glances at these humans.
Somazu raised a hand to his chin. After some thought, he turned to the agent following beside him and instructed, "Hey, when you go back, bring a few back for me." Somazu felt that although he was tired of them, it would still be nice to bring back a few of these beautiful mermaids, which were about to become a limited edition, for his children or as gifts.
The several agents heard him and lowered their heads. "Yes, my lord."
After some thought, Shamrock posed another question to Gernica. "Where are the Marine warships? Why haven't they arrived yet?"
Gernica heard him, and a series of information he had learned appeared in his mind. He quickly organized his words. "According to the report from the Marine liaison, the warships led by Admiral Akainu suffered considerable losses in the deep-sea currents. Only 28 warships remain combat-ready. In less than half an hour, they will arrive at Fish-Man Island to carry out the cleanup."
"28 warships?" Quilinguame's drowsy eyes, from under his resin bubble, instantly opened, a hint of disbelief in them. "Only 28 warships can make it? Didn't they say their ships used that Vegapunk's latest technology?"
To this, Gernica hesitated for a moment and then replied tactfully, "My lord, that is actually a considerably high survival rate."
As the few of them were talking, they had already arrived at the huge plaza. Junko looked at the giant mermaid who was surrounded by a crowd, and a chilling light flashed in her heterochromatic eyes. "Pink hair, a huge body... is that the target?"
"That's right." Shamrock put his hand on the hilt of his sword, casually tossed the photo aside, and looked at the fish-men who were almost blocking the road, his eyes becoming abnormally cold. "It's too crowded. Clear a path."
The several agents heard him, and their auras suddenly changed. A dangerous killing intent spread outward. This scene made the surrounding mermaids shudder, and they subconsciously made way.
"Watch out!" The undisguised killing intent also made the whale shark fish-men around Shirahoshi and Fukaboshi's faces change instantly. They subconsciously shielded the two of them.
The next second, several white figures turned into streaks of white light and began a bloody slaughter in front of them. Wherever they passed, a rain of blood and gore followed. For a moment, the entire plaza was thrown into chaos. Cries of fear and pain spread throughout the entire island.
Seeing this, Jinbe's face instantly darkened. After handing Shirahoshi and Fukaboshi to the guards, he charged straight in the direction of the disturbance.
"Forget it, stop." On the blood-soaked ground, Saint Quilinguame opened his hazy eyes and looked at the still-blocked path ahead. "The efficiency of mortals is too low. Let a god like me do it—"
The next moment, a pure white flame ignited beside him, turning into a continuously fluttering white cloud of smoke that connected his shoulders and neck. In that instant, the power of the Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Mythical Model: Qilin was activated.
Instantly, one after another, fish-men and mermaids fell to the ground, trapped in an endless dream. Immediately after, one after another, grotesque, terrifying, and ferocious-looking behemoths broke free from their dreams and stepped into the real world.
Just as the one after another twisted monsters were about to begin their slaughter, an extremely terrifying low temperature spread from the horizon, turning the world white. The terrifying cold current swept through, instantly freezing the monsters born from the dream.
"This is..." The agents' faces changed. Gernica's mind went blank, and he was instantly drenched in sweat.
"The power of ice and snow." Shamrock turned and looked at the pale figure who was arriving with the blizzard at the end of the horizon, his expression becoming serious. "The man-eating giant beast of the wind and snow... a Wendigo."
Shamrock could feel it: a powerful Conqueror's Haki, and a strength that could match his own.
Nearby, Somazu, upon seeing this, shed his friendly, neighborhood old man appearance. Although his expression did not change noticeably, he had already turned his head to cast a detached glance at Gernica.
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